I don't know if anyone is interested in this.. ( but I think you might be,) :)
Outdoor Channel, in partnership with the National Conservation Training Center, provides this live EagleCam to stream the activities of the eagle nest located 110 feet up, in a tree on the grounds of the US FWS National Conservation Training Center. The nest has been active for six seasons, fledgling several juvenile bald eagles. The eagles return to the nest for the winter season around mid-January, with eggs being laid in early February. Bookmark this page to come back and see how the eagles are doing.
The eagle nest is located approximately 75 miles from Washington, D.C. on the campus of The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services' National Conservation Training Center. The campus is in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, along the Potomac River.
( I sometimes watch them as I worked and have their screen minimized and in the corner...)
The Eagles names are Belle and Lib... that is what someone has named them.
I do occasionally check in with them at night but you can' see anything as well. A few nights ago, however.. something had the female extremely agitated.. she was prancing all over the place with her wings out.. Don't know what it was.. but she didn't like it. After awhile... the other one came and they both settled down.. .. It is so interesting.. I just love it and thought today as I looked in on them .. that you all might too. Its windy today..You can hear the wind... and the posts say it is around 28 degrees.. this is the first year I have watched.. but by going back and reading all the posts, it should be rather exciting when the babies are born.. :)
Let me know of you like it as much as I do.. :)
January 20, 2011 Update
We are excited that the eagles have been working hard to set up the nest for another nesting season. Dawn, midday and dusk seems to be the best time to view them right now. There has been mating activity occuring for more than a week, which is a good sign.
We have been able to adjust the new cam to work fairly well in night vision mode, so we are ready for the eggs to be laid. We are hoping to see the first egg within about about two weeks, toward the beginning of February.
Keep watching...
Click on this link and use it daily to check on the eagles and their nest of eggs.. I actually have this link saved on my desktop..and I check on them about 5 times a day.. :)
http://outdoorchannel.com/Conservation/EagleCam.aspx
It was snowing on them this morning... and at 1:22 today she got up.. there are 2 eggs.. and she prearranged them.. gently moving them around.. then settled back on them... and started to gather bits of nest and tucked it around her... trying to further protect her eggs from the cold..
That was so cool! My day is complete!!
She got up around 10:50 am Howard time and rearranged the two eggs and did some nest housekeeping with the finer bits of grass, etc.
That nest looks awfully big for just two young'ns.
What I have always wondered about nest making is: Once that first twig is put into position in a tree juncture, how does that lone twig stay put until the mama bird can return with enough twigs to begin an interlock of materials to hold the nest secure?
Waldo,
I'd say super glue or maybe that's where papa-bird comes into play. :)
Quote from: jarhead on March 10, 2011, 01:02:29 PM
Waldo,
I'd say super glue or maybe that's where papa-bird comes into play. :)
::) and I am sure if YOU were the papa bird.. you would have enough hot air and bull s*** to make it stick together just fine..
:)
And you just bought yourself an old time Kansas ass whup'n, Blondie. Ol Sarge and me are just the guys that can deliever ( we always work as a tag team )
Get em Teresa, I want to have the ticket sales and concessions for that one.
Pfffhhttt... Like.... I'm supposed to be shaking in my socks? You and Ole Sarge couldn't fight your way out of a wet paper bag... let alone give me an Kansas ass whuppin. Both of ya are too old and fat.. :P
And I've certainly noticed..as maybe you haven't yet?? ?? ?? That your "tag team" buddy Ole' Sarge hasn't said a word! Most likely sittin' under a shade tree somewhere with one of Franks tickets in his hand waiting to see the show.. LOL
Wrong again. I called his squaw woman and she said he's outside doing push-ups, getting in shape. Wish i hasd more time to argue with you but got to go jog ANOTHER 7 miles !!!
Whew!!! I just came in from running a couple of miles and doing a bunch of push ups. What's going on??
Well when you 2 good ole boys get done with all your "push ups and runnin".. why not "run" over by my place.
There "might" be some sport in this ass whuppin' game after all.. ( That is.. if you and Ole Sarge can still stand and have any lungs and arms left.. )
(http://freeemoticonsandsmileys.com/animated%20emoticons/Funny%20Animated%20Emoticons/unreal.gif)
Teresa, what are the shiny things in the bird nests? Maybe we need to get Jarhead to check them out with his metal detector. Might be real gold those birds are finding.
Yes, after they stop smoking that funny weed that makes them think they are 20 again! ;D ;D ;D
Ms Bear,
Funny you would mention gold because two days ago I found my first gold. Hunting at an old late 1800---early 1900 hotel / house of ill repute, site. It was a dainty gold ring. I'm sure some spoiled dove was so happy to receive it until she learned the cheap gold plated copper ring is worthless and chucked it out the widow where it laid buried 5 inches deep ,for a century, until I unearthed the "tear jerker". I did find an unusual thing. What I thought was a small brass strip turned out to be a 1935-1945 Social Security card. I can make out the first 3 numbers to know it came from Alabama and I can see just a few of the letters of the name. Looks like they might be--M--c--D--o--n--a--l--- I can't quite make out the last letter but quite possibly a "D". Any idea of anyone by that name who would have been at a "ho house" ?
PS: Larry, you are lucky I don't know your last name because I gar--an-tee you them letters would change and start looking like your name. :)
Jarhead, I think some of that shrapnel must have got shoved from your butt up into your head. I ain't go no idea what you are telling me. I haven't made any comments on this thread. As far as my last name, it is there in the roll call for all to see, but if your metal loaded brain can't find it, pretty much like that thing you are lugging around looking for gold, it is JORDAN. By the way, maybe that metal detector can't work with all the interference coming from above your eyes. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Larryj
Jarhead, I am really glad you found something interesting. Maybe the owner of the SS card was the gardener. Some of those houses had a lot of men working at them. Went to one in Fort Smith, AR that is now a museum and those ladies lived very well. The owner had half the men in town on her payroll. Dr and merchants came to the house to sell to the girls since they could only leave when she took them to the Opera or theatre.
The Eagle is starting to be more active than she has been... She rearranges her 2 eggs and is busy tucking and pulling bits of nest all around her to block more of the wind. She gets herself all settled on the nest again.. and then an hour or so later.. she is up again.. fussing with them and busy rolling them over with her feet .. I can't wait until they hatch.
Quote from: jarhead on March 12, 2011, 03:07:16 PM
Any idea of anyone by that name who would have been at a "ho house" ?
Oh yeah, I have an idea. So does Teresa.
(http://gi165.photobucket.com/groups/u53/NUQ2CIAAPY/image004444.gif)... yup... and it was most likely the one who dropped the coin in the first place ..then after all these years.. went back to find it..
The baby eagles have arrived, what a neat thing to get to watch.
Thanks Teresa
One of the little guys is moving around, but the other one does not look like he got more than his head outside the shell and then gave up the farm.
This morning, the second egg does not look like it has hatched.
Must have been part of the first's shell that looked like it was sticking out of the second egg.
The little guy is moving around quite a bit. Mom is probably off looking for pablum.
Bless his little heart.. He is crying and trying to stick his neck up to look and see something and then he topples over... I wish she would hurry up and get back and feed him Poor little feller...
With the full moon.. you can see them in the night time now.. She isn't doing anything.. but its still kinda cool that the moon is lighting up the nest.
He/she was sleeping just now but when the baby woke the adult was very interested in feeding what I think is partially digested liquefied food.
How Majestic these birds are. BEST SITE on the internet, by far! Thanks Teresa.
2nd best: http://www.hancockwildlife.org/index.php?topic=raptors_victoria1#closeup
Sidney, BC Nest Site: The Sidney nest is on a property not far from Patricia Bay, in Sidney, BC, near the Victoria International Airport. The nest is on private property with no access to the public. Two views of the same nest.
This pair of eagles has successfully raised young each year that we've had a camera on them, since 2006 season when their chicks were watched continuously by over 40,000 people for 4 months solid after the eggs in our Hornby Island nest failed to hatch.
http://www.hancockwildlife.org/index.php?topic=White-Rock-Eagle1#WideAngle
The pair of bald eagles built a a nest high in the trees on the White Rock bluff
overlooking Boundary Bay in Surrey, BC.
Bald Eagle information gleaned from some web sites:
Taken off the endangered species list in 2007.
Mom and Pop weigh from 10 to 14 pounds.
Live up to 30 years in the wild.
Lifting power is four pounds.
Mate for life
Eggs have 35 day incubation period.
Eggs are subject to be eaten by squirrels, ravens, and gulls.
Nests can be up to 9 feet in diameter and weight 2 tons.
Nesting territory is one to two miles.
98% of the time one parent performs nest duties.
Second egg is laid several days later. Eggs hatch in the order they were laid. Sometimes have
three eggs.
Eaglets gain one pound every four to five days. Should be one foot high within three weeks.
Male provides the majority of food.
40% do not survive their first flight.
Chances are great that the older eaglet will kill the younger eaglet and neither mom nor pop will have any objections.
I seem to recall that the turkey was suggested to be the national bird but the bald eagle won out in 1782. However, one web site says that this not true saying the idea came from a letter Benjamin Franklin wrote a couple years after the bald eagle was adopted as the national bird. He compared the qualities of the turkey to that of the bald eagle and apparently thought the turkey should be the national bird.
I'm so sad.. apparently our little Eagle baby, Paddy, has died. Belle left the nest over the weekend to get a fish and while she was gone.. There was an intruder.. . What I gather from the posts is that Belle may have stepped on Paddy as she was trying to fend off the intruder yesterday ...
I didn't realize that this would effect me like it is.. I'm just so sad inside this morning.... The other egg will not hatch..
Nature is sometimes cruel... :'( :'(
Belle has covered and buried the unhatched egg and Paddy.. She has fought off another intruder with a black spot on his head while doing it. She is standing watch.. There is a fish in the nest.. and from reading all the posts, I don't know if she wasn't able to get away from the nests to get food and that part of Paddys' death was not only from the stepping on him, but from lack of food. She has been ducking her head down and looking up watching the sky's and calling out.. Nature is fascinating.. cruel and brutal... but fascinating..
We could really learn something from nature if we broke our mental process down and simplified our thoughts.. I will continue to watch off and on all day between working..
These are 2 just posted comments..
I have watched multiple nests over the past few years and the egg and the eaglet will become just a part of the nest now as the pair will remain there and maintain the nest and also defend the territory against other intruders.
It is sad that the eaglet has not survived, but to be able to see what the eagles have to go through to defend their nest and territory gives you a fantastic glimpse of their survival instincts. If I remember correctly, a gentleman who works for an avian center said the mortality rate for raptors is about 75% in their first year. This should give you greater appreciation when you are able to see an eaglet being raised from hatch to fledge.
Mar 21, 2011 -- 10:43AM, NCTC wrote:
All -
It has been quite a long weekend. Here is a summary of an update which will go live on our Web page shortly:
Over the weekend we were able to confirm multiple sightings of the male eagle who is a part of the established breeding pair. He appears to be uninjured and in good health. We were also able to confirm the presence of a third eagle near the nest, and we are almost certain it is a breeding age female. The eaglet, as many of you know, has died.
We have biologists on staff at NCTC who have offered their assessments of the situation. It is generally agreed that if the new female is successful in taking over the nest, she will then need to recruit a male to join her. If she does find a mate, it is likely too late in the nesting season to lay, incubate, and hatch any new eggs.
Nest competition is common in areas with healthy eagle populations. The fact that we are seeing nest competition at NCTC means the population of eagles in the area has likely increased in recent years.
So I guess the intruder was a female who wanted to take the nest over.. I wonder why they don't build their own nests? So am I correct in thinking that IF belle and Liberty can keep the new female at bay then they will keep this nest? or will they give it up to her... As the post said.. Mating season is over.. too late to harvest an egg now.. so I wonder what will happen?
Am I the only one who is talking here?? Helloooo??? Anyone home today?
Yes, I'm here and have been watching, just not saying anything. Nature does waste a lot of little animals, but there is always something to be learned. I wonder what the next chapter will be.Thanks for sharing with us.
Teresa, we have been watching this site every chance we get. We saw Belle attacking the intruder and wondered at the time if it was the males (of some animal species) do attack the young. The intruder had 2 or 3 big black spots on its head and we wondered if it might be blood as we had never seen an eagle with black on the head. We have watched a pair of eagles in the wild and the eaglets were larger than this one ever got to be. Both the male and the female were feeding and watching after them. They also had built a second nest as we were told the first one gets too dirty to use after awhile and they do stay in the nest (unless they take a fall) until they are quite large.
This has been a fastinating thread. Thanks for sharing with all of us.
Myrna
I really enjoyed watching this Eagle Cam. It lets one see nature and the living cycle of nature. On another thread there is a web site that shows how the Chernoble area came back from a dead zone to a wild area with overgrown plants and wild animals.
I have been doing massages all afternoon so haven't had a chance to watch.. I am going into the forum now and reading what the expert eagle people are saying.. I guess I missed the intruder female coming back in and trying to dig Paddy and the egg up.. Belle is back now watching carefully still trying to protect her nest.. Has anyone seen Liberty? I wonder if he will come back to Belle being he hasn't been around? I know they mate for life but has the intruder chased him away for good? Someone on the forum said that He was back circling and trying to get Belle to leave the nest.. I also copied this..
To explain about nest competition, which is what we have been seeing here.I have read that parents do bury the remains because they will decompose. Sometimes they bury them deep enough to lay new eggs on top if it isn't too late to have another clutch.
We have seen other competitions like this (there was one filmed at the Norfolk Botanical Gardens a year or so bak) where the male fought off the intruder, so we are not sure why Liberty has not been able to do this. We have heard on this forum that Liberty has flew and tried to lure this female intruder away. The thinking is this female is larger than Liberty and could win if there were a fight. This male (Liberty) has been seen around the nest, just not on the nest as the female intruder has chased him away before he could get to the nest. There have been sitings of Liberty over the past four days right there in the surrounding trees.
It is possible that the intruder will stay until she either wins or loses the nest. It does seem odd because it is unlikely that either female can raise a new clutch as we have been told by NCTC that it is too late in the season to mate, produce an egg, incubate it and have them hatch. I don't know why, but that is what they said. NCTC has confirmed to us Liberty is still there out of camera range and occasionally chased away, but has never left the area. We also have confirmed reports from eye witnesses who have followed this pair for years. They know their eagles!!
Hope this helps. It has been another long day for those of us who have watched for as long as we could. The behavior has been very odd, even by eagle expert observations, so many of us don't have answers. We just watch and learn.
Its getting dark....
Looks like Belle is going to sit tight and stand guard another night. On some other sights, some are confirming Liberty's still near watching. We may not see him come in until the battle begins or ends. It would be nice if the younger female left, but we will have to all wait this out....and hope for the outcome we all want. Let's all hope Belle and Liberty prevail.
When an intruder female eagle comes into the nest when their are eaglets, is it normal for the male for the male eagle to stay away?--- Most of the time a male will not move when a female intruder is inbound. do a google search for this string "intruder female bald eagle" you will see this situation occurs often.. Most of the time the Female Eagle is in charge, the are mates for LIFE and will only re-mate on the death of the mate.
When there is an intruder eagle how long do they normally stay around the nest?-- until the female "Belle" says enough.. When she is ready this situation will get colorful, prepare yourself one of the Eagle may die.. It will be like a stand off!! In the search you will see the male hangs back however, if Belle get into a very bad situation he will tag team with her. Remember the females are bigger and can kick his butt..
Isn't is weird how our human instincts come freight training in at instances and times like this? I want to intervene ( or as the truth be told.. "interfere".. :-\ ) I think everyone feels that the human in us wishes there was some way to comfort Belle and Liberty .. to let them know they are not alone and that we grieve along with them .. it's so sad to see Belle just sit there like that ..
as one gal posted...
Poor Belle looks as if she is about to fall over! She must be totally drained.................where the heck is Lib? She needs him to comfort her if no other way than to be in the nest to help keep watch so she can get some much needed sleep! Hope he will join her soon. I have never had more respect for a person than I have for this Regal Lady! Goodnight, Belle - get some sleep. Tomorrow is a new day &hopefully the intruder realizes you are NOT giving up your nest to HER!
Like I say~~~ The human aspect is there to try to interfere with Nature.. :)
But we have no choice but to watch and wait.. and see what happens in the morning.
((And I have massages off and on all day long.. How in the world am I supposed to keep up with the Eagles life and try to work a job? LOL))
Kjell is laughing at me.. because I am so 'into " these birds.. but thats' ok.. what does he know .. ::)
For those of you who didn't get to see some of what went on.. I found the cam footage..
This was when they first started...Can you spot the deer walking on the ground below? To see how tiny it is.. gives you a clue as to the height this nest is..
NCTC Bald Eagle Outdoor Channel, in partnership with the National Conservation Training Center, provide this live EagleCam to stream the activities of the eagle nest located, 110 feet up, in a tree on the grounds of the US FWS National Conservation Training Center. The nest has been active for six seasons, fledging several juvenile bald eagles. The eagles return to the nest for the winter season around mid-January, with eggs being laid in early February.
NEST LOCATION
The eagle nest is located approximately 75 miles from Washington, D.C. on the campus of The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services' National Conservation Training Center. The campus is in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, along the Potomac River.This is when Paddy was born..
The first chick has hatched in the NCTC nest in Shepherdstown, WV on March 17, 2011.
This is when she was feeding him..
An intruder has been harassing Liberty and Belle for several days. Belle is unable to get food to the eaglet, so she feeds the eaglet saliva/moisture/water from her beak to the eaglet's beak. You have to watch very carefully to see the moisture that Belle shakes off her beak from time to time. You may want to watch it in full screen.
Liberty Fights off the Intruder.. and this is when he died and she buried him..and the "Intruder" shows up.. ( the black spot on her head)
Yesterday Belle's chick passed away... She covers her chick and unhatched egg and flies off to the right. The intruder flies down into the nest from a branch above and looks where belle just buried her chick and egg. earlier this had also happened but the intruder actually took the chick out from being buried.
Eventually you can hear Belle fly from above and intruder takes one last look before flying out to the right.
Belle arrives back and the intruder is heard landing back up in the tree.
Checked on the Eagles just to see.. and looks as if there is another nesting being made and prepared.. Belle is back with another male..Hopefully there will be another go at it this year..
First part is mid-day. Second part is evening. Viewers wonder if dark item dug up is eaglet that died and was buried there, or perhaps an old fish.
That is SO cool !!
I have been watching an eagle cam sent to me by my cousin. I just finished watching the mother feed a fish to herself and her three chicks. The last one was hatched on the sixth of April; I just happened to tune in to see mama move off of the third hatchling. Here is the link;
http://www.raptorresource.org
sixdogs. The eagle cam peeked my interest and I also have roamed the internet finding several sites that have the eagles and eaglets.. they are so fascinating
.. I will check yours out when I have the time.. I really love watching them..
I just spent an entertaining half hour with the Decorah eagle family. Got to see both parents and the babies as they dined this evening. Mama is beginning to look like she needs a trip to the beauty shop, and did leave the nest only briefly. Both parents then fed themselves and the babies. Afterward, Mama tidied up the nest, rearranging various twigs and pieces of grass. Then she decided to have another snack. Papa then uncovered a prize morsel that was hidden beneath the surface of the nest. Mama gave him some looks that could have translated to "That was for Suday dinner!". Shortly afterward, he left the nest and Mama started preparing for the night. This is fun. Wish we could find one for hummingbirds!
http://outdoorchannel.com/Conservation/EagleCam.aspx
There are two new ones this year. Last years died after being hatched.
Both parents were home this morning.
http://outdoorchannel.com/Conservation/EagleCam.aspx
These two are getting rather large.
I love watching these guys, especially when their fish dinner comes.
I've been watching them too. They are getting so big!! Their feathers are changing too.
Lisa