Thousands of people have watched the livestream
⭐️HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW⭐️
- Two bald eagles, named Jackie and Shadow, built a nest in Big Bear Valley, California.
- A non-profit organization, Friends of Big Bear Valley, installed a camera on their nest.
- They provide a live YouTube stream 24/7, 365 days a year.
- This March, three chicks hatched in the nest, and two have survived.
- Keep reading to learn more about this eagle family. ⬇️⬇️⬇️
At the beginning of March, more than 40 metres in the air in a Jeffrey pine tree in Big Bear Valley, California, something exciting happened.
Three bald eagle eggs hatched on the 3rd, 4th and 8th of the month.
Yet this was no ordinary hatching.
The journey of these chicks and their parents, Jackie and Shadow, has been monitored by thousands of people around the world, thanks to two cameras placed in and around the nest.
A non-profit conservation group, called Friends of Big Bear Valley, first installed a camera in the eagles’ nest in October 2015.
Before that, the group’s executive director, Sandy Steers, had been watching the nest from her home.
“I wanted to see what was going on in the nest,” she told CBC Kids News in an interview.
“So I talked to our board and we raised the money to be able to put up this camera so everybody could see what was in there.”
A second camera, with a wide-angle view of the neighbouring trees, was installed in 2021.
The cameras provide livestreams on YouTube that run 24/7, 365 days a year.
Friends of Big Bear Valley say that they hope sharing the ups and downs of Jackie and Shadow’s parenthood journey will encourage viewers to become invested in the natural world.
Keep reading to learn more, but first watch this video to see the bald eagle chicks hatch!
Bald eagle nests
Bald eagles are birds of prey native to the United States, Canada and northern Mexico.
They often mate in the winter, and healthy pairs may stay together for their entire lives.
The mates work together to build their nest — a complicated process.
“There’s a lot of thought that goes into this,” Jody Allair, director of communications for Birds Canada, told CBC Kids News in an interview.
“They’re not just grabbing random sticks. They have this vision in their mind.”
Only around 50 per cent of bald eagle eggs hatch, and about 70 per cent of those survive their first year.
According to Allair, it’s common for hatchlings to fall out of the nest or die as a result of windy or snowy weather.
Jackie and Shadow perch on their nest in a Jeffrey pine tree in Big Bear Valley, California. (Image submitted by Friends of Big Bear Valley)
The impact
Unfortunately, one of Jackie and Shadow’s chicks died following a snowstorm on March 13. The exact cause of death is unknown.
Although it came as a blow to the family’s fans, it’s not uncommon.
Allair encouraged people to focus on the fact that, so far, the other two chicks have survived.
“To survive is really impressive,” he said.
In fact, last year Jackie laid three eggs, and none of them hatched.
Since the cameras were installed, only three of Jackie’s chicks have successfully grown and left the nest.
One of the eagle parents feeds the chicks on March 8, the day the third chick hatched. (Image credit: Friends of Big Bear Valley/Facebook)
Meanwhile, Steers says we should allow ourselves to be fascinated by nature, even when it seems hard or unfair.
Most of all, she hopes that Friends of Big Bear Valley’s cameras encourage people to connect with the natural world in their own lives.
“I love that everybody is so invested in this and that they’re opening their mind and opening their ideas and their emotions to nature,” she said.
And in the end, she added, the nestcam allows the public to learn more about birds like Jackie, Shadow and their babies.
Have more questions? Want to tell us how we’re doing? Use the “send us feedback” link below. ⬇️⬇️⬇️
