(Eaglets twelve weeks old)

Our eaglets — Intrepid and Destiny — have been very active as of late. We’re about convinced that Intrepid is flying due to the amount of time he’s been missing from the nest. Also, Destiny appears to be branching, but based on the amount of time he’s been seen in the nest, we don’t think he’s flying just yet.

Also, I recently posted a few photos that seem to show an eaglet taking off (Photo 1 and Photo 2). One second the eaglet is there, and then he’s not.

Recently I received an email from someone who seemed to think that by posting these photos on the cam page I was indicating the eaglet had left for good. For those folks, I suggest they read my previous web log postings where I’ve explained that even if the eaglets are flying, we expect to see them returning to the nest. “Taking off” doesn’t mean the eaglet has left for good, it just means that the eaglet is flying and no longer bound to the nest. And as we’ve seen in many image shots on the cam in the last week, occasionally there are two eaglets there, meaning that even if Intrepid is flying, he’s obviously doing well enough to return to the nest.

Thanks to all those who have been sending in photos to our Eagle Cam Gallery. I’ll post an update to our Gallery later this week.

Other Eagle News

The main reason I wanted to post this update is because of some rather dramatic eagle news that happened around the Web the previous week. Those who follow some of the other Internet eagle cams have likely heard this news already, but for those who have not, I thought it would be helpful to post an update.

First, at the Norfolk Eagle Cam in Virginia they announced that their sole eaglet has developed a growth on its beak. At first there was speculation that the problem was Avian Pox, but they have since removed the eaglet, and now they do not believe that is the cause. Unfortunately the most recent tests show that the aggressive growth has grown into the eaglet’s sinus cavity and appears to be involved with the underlying tissue and bone, which makes the situation much more serious. At this time, we don’t know what the outcome will be for the eaglet who is otherwise healthy and strong.

You can read more about the eaglet on this WVEC news report and also on the Norfolk Cam blog.

We feel especially sorry for the Norfolk fans, and for this eagle family, since this is the nest that lost their first batch of eggs to the intruder eagle earlier this season. The sole eaglet was seen as a bit of a miracle because it arrived so late and was the only eaglet to hatch and survive.

The other bad news of the past week was the dramatic happenings at the Pelican Harbor Eagle Cam on the Channel Islands in California. As I’ve mentioned in my web logs before, we always show a special interest in the Channel Islands’ bald eagles because of the history of the islands. The Channel Islands is a locale that was severally affected by tons of DDT (the now-banned pesticide) that were dumped into the California waters decades ago, which subsequently devastated the local bird populations (DDT moved up the food chain and weakened the eggshells of the local raptors that ate the contaminated fish). The Institute for Wildlife Studies, along with other local supporters, have been working to restore the bald eagle population on the islands, and this has involved removing eggs from the nests and swapping them with fake eggs, then incubating the real eggs by hand and returning them after hatching. This process has been necessary due to the fact that DDT still weakens the shells of the local eagle population.

This past week, the two seven-week-old chicks at the Pelican Harbor nest were accosted by a locally born sub-adult bald eagle. Cam watchers on that website witnessed the scary scene where the sub-adult bird hung out near the nest for a considerable period of time and then eventually attacked the resident chicks. A video on YouTube shows the footage where, despite the efforts by the chicks to scare the intruder off, the aggressive intruder swooped over the nest, dragging one chick out of the nest with him. A short time later, the intruder returned and did the same to the second chick.

Representatives from the Institute for Wildlife Studies were alerted to what had been seen on the cam, and they rushed to the remote nest as fast as they could. Both chicks were found beneath the nest (likely too heavy for the intruder to carry). The recent reports say the one chick has a puncture wound in its beak and the other has a fractured right wing that has since been set.

As for the parents, one parent was seen fighting off the intruder after the attacks, but unfortunately the parents did not appear to have been around when the eaglets were calling out and trying to scare off the sub-adult. Maybe the parents did not expect another bird to attack such big eaglets.

You can follow the action of this event as it was recorded on the Channel Islands’ Discussion Forum. Also you can see photos of the eaglets after they were rescued and as they were being examined by the vet.

Dr. Sharpe from the IWS said in a television interview that this attack by a local sub-adult of the same species — on large eaglets in the nest — was very unusual and not something they would have expected.

As if this news wasn’t bad enough, earlier in the season, the Channel Islands’ fans also lost the female adult bald eagle and two eaglets at what is known as the grassland nest — a nest that an eagle pair had built on the ground (possible because of a lack of land predators on the island). You can read more about the grassland nest on the Channel Islands’ forum .

In addition to these two events, the Channel Islands’ fans were dealing with the additional sad news that the eggs at their Santa Rosa nest did not hatch, so this has been a difficult year all around.

Although our Blackwater Osprey Cam this year was a bust, we feel lucky that our two eaglets — Intrepid and Destiny — have had a relatively uneventful season and appear to be doing well. We’ll keep our fingers crossed for them as they learn to fly and spend more time out in the world, where danger is great for all forms of wildlife.

Until next time,
Lisa - webmaster
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eagles, wildlife refuge, eagle cam, Blackwater Refuge, Maryland