Rfalconcam Forum

http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html (http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html)

One in there now

and they have an egg!  :chick3:

Wow!  This is an early one!  Fingers Very Crossed  :pray:

Another picture of first egg

A second egg for the Blackwater eagles:

WooHoo!  More Eagles for Maryland!   :happy: :happy:

[/quote]

WooHoo!  More Eagles for Maryland!   :happy: :happy:
[/quote]

1002 eagles now, so far..... :eagle: :eagle2:

2 eggs at Blackwater. Momma just left. Today is last day for 3rd egg.

Some wonderful pictures from Blackwater by Bob Quinn

http://www.delmarvaphotos.com/bw012310

AMAZING photos...Thanks

I love it when you see the eagles perched on many tree branches! 

 :coolphotos: :thanks2:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXuVrCnzBMY&feature=player_embedded (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXuVrCnzBMY&feature=player_embedded)

Watch dad bring in a pine sprig and put it on moms back. Too cute.

Very cute!  He puts it on, she moves it, he puts it back, and she waits until he's gone!   :happy:

He didn't get it at Jared.

 :laugh:  I'm so happy that you guys up North have to suffer through those commercials, too!   :laugh:

We ALL have to suffer through them!   :silly:

Just a wee bit of snow at Blackwater today

Bald eagle on Osprey cam at Blackwater.

Both Cams just went black....snow problems interfering with wireless.

Hi Donna,

the last picture shows a young Bald Eagle.


Greetings
Annette  :wave:

Snow problems!  :natale3:  I'll say!! The weather people were wrong again - currently at 6 or 7 inches and still falling.  1-3 were predicted by me last night (Cambridge is right across the Bay).   :snow2:

And were not gonna get any snow!!!! Pffft.

Poor Momma...but at least we know the eggs are warm...

Mama is going to get a LOT more snow covered, as the Snow Warning is until 4 AM!  Temps are going to drop into the teens (20 by me now).  Could get ugly - Winds NE at 10 to 15.

I hope she will be all right. :o

She is and this snow is easier than those HEAVY Rains!  Only a few more ugly hours and then the parents might be able to do a switch.  Fingers Crossed (Shaky, we need a Smiley for fingers crossed).

(http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b241/LoriZubie/Graphics/thfwp-smiley-09.gif)  Her ya go Janet.

Good News!  Snow stopped after midnight and it was very light by that time anyway.  Bright moonlight and no blowing snow, so the parents should be fine!   :2thumbsup:

Eggs are looking good and toasty.

Just now momma left for a break.

Yeah, this is gonna be the BIG one. Poor Eagles, hope they can handle all that snow. 6 to 12 predicted here but most accumulations in the South. I wanted snow but this is ridiculous. The stores are going to be crazy!!!

Nest Tree
Posted by Lisa in Blackwater NWR, Eagle Cam, Nesting

two bald eagle eggsWhile we’re patiently waiting for our eaglets to hatch, I thought folks might be interested in learning a bit more about our Eagle Cam tree. The tree that has hosted our camera for six seasons is a loblolly pine tree. Loblolly pines are beautiful, tall trees that are common at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, and they’re a favorite of our eagle population.

In Brooke Meanley’s excellent book Blackwater, he writes:

    Though there are some big hardwood trees in southern Dorchester County — oaks, gums, and others — loblolly pines are invariably selected for nest sites. The pines are probably chosen not only because they are the predominant trees and the best life-form for a nest site, but also because pines usually grow closer to the marshes and open water, principal hunting grounds of the eagle.

    Nest are constructed mostly of sticks, with a few clumps of sod, cornstalks (occasionally with ears attached), and if near a marsh, a few cattail stalks. In the Blackwater country, nests are usually lined with marsh grass. As material is added year after year, the core of the nest comes to form a sodden mass of vegetable mold. Sticks up to six feet in length have been noted in eagle nests.

Meanley goes on to describe a Blackwater nest that fell down and noted it contained some odd items, such as acorns and periwinkle snails (neither used for food), furnace clinkers, and muskrat traps.

    Through the years fragments of nonedible food, the bones of muskrats, feet of ducks, heads of fish, skulls of birds, and other items, filter down into the interstices of a nest.

One fallen nest contained the remains of 35 muskrat, 8 waterfowl, several fish, 1 spotted turtle, 1 blue crab, and part of what appeared to be the skull of a red-tailed hawk.

Several years ago, Craig Koppie — an endangered species and raptor specialist from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service — came to Blackwater NWR to collect a few bald eaglets that were being relocated to Vermont, where they’re trying to establish a breeding population. During his visit, photos were taken of Craig climbing loblolly pine trees where eagle nests with young were located. If you click on the links below, you can see Craig climbing the trees and you can also get an idea of how big an eagle nest is compared to a human male.

And as a final treat, here is a photo of our actual Eagle Cam tree. We happened to find this in our archives not long ago, and we knew our cam watchers would enjoy seeing the actual tree. The nest is bigger now, for sure, but it gives you a good look at the tree location. As a side note: Our camera is about 80 feet up in the air, which gives you an idea why we have to use a professional tree climber in order to do cam maintenance.

Weather

We hear that more snow is headed our way this weekend — it’s been one tough winter — so we hope our parents will continue doing their excellent job in keeping the eggs safe. And be sure to check in on the Norfolk Eagle Cam in Virginia, where their couple is also protecting two eggs at the moment.

Thanks to all those who have sent in photos. We’ll get the gallery updated this weekend.

Poor Momma Blackwater looks like she's gonna be buried again...

The eagles are now going through a snowstorm, and conditions seemed to get worse quickly. I hope they will be able to protect the eggs.

      
      

I have faith in this pair, Alison.  They rode out a similar storm last year just as the eggs were hatching...



Both eaglets hatched surrounded by snow...

I remember that Ei and we were all saying name it SNOWFLAKE or SNOWBALL!!!

I remember that too from last year -- I know the eagles can deal with these conditions. I hope the storm doesn't continue for too long.

Pic from just now....poor gal. She'll do fine. Snow just started here, 1 to 3 is all we expect. Janet and others in that area.....Good luck.

We are and have been under Blizzard conditions since about 10 last night through lunch today.  If you look at the weather images, Blackwater is in the heavy Chesapeake Snow zone.  Temp in Ownings is 33 right now, which is helping to make the snow VERY Heavy (trust me on that, as my back hurts from moving the stuff coming down at about 1 inch per hour last night BEFORE the winds). 

Rich just asked about Blackwater (such a guy  :happy: ).  He just got some of my heavy pans and will fill them for the birds and put them in some semi-sheltered places.  The winds are brutal - the poor little guys are blowing around, so he's going to try to help them  :happy:

Up to her wings, but not buried this morning...

Poor Bald Eagle. So much snow!  :(

GREAT NEWS!  Snow is stopping and has stopped in many places.   :2thumbsup:

Blackwater Mom is still sitting on those eggs!  Lots of snow, but she looks good!

Blackwater updated their blog with videos of the second egg being laid...

Blackwater Blog (http://friendsofblackwater.org/wordpress/eagle10/)

Mom is hanging in there...

"Forecast is for 5-10 inches and high winds. If our parents can get through this, the weather should finally get better."

For what it is worth, the side of the Bay is under the Blizzard Warning (drat!  thought we were far enough south to miss that band - no it is white out conditions right now).

A BLIZZARD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 7 PM EST THIS EVENING.

* PRECIPITATION TYPE...SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW.

* ACCUMULATIONS...10 TO 20 INCHES. DRIFTS OF 2 TO 4 FT POSSIBLE.

* TIMING...SNOW WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE AFTERNOON. GUSTY WINDS WILL CONTINUE INTO THIS EVENING.

* TEMPERATURES...MID AND UPPER 20S.

* WINDS...25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS AROUND 55 MPH. BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW WILL REDUCE VISIBILITIES TO A QUARTER MILE OR LESS AT TIMES... PRODUCING BLIZZARD CONDITIONS.

Posted this morning:

02/12/10:
Looks like our amazing eagle parents weathered the storm and kept the eggs clear of snow.

http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html

Mom looks good  :clap:

Excellent news!!!    :clap:

FISH FRIDAY!!!   :steff: :dance1:

 :happy:     
It's Friday and they are having a fish fry !!!

And it's Lent!

The Blackwater kids.  So cute.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D960zBKF0nU (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D960zBKF0nU)  Nice crowd

looks like they are rebuilding the nest!  :clap:

False thread?  ???
Ospreys are not Bald Eagles.

No Annette, not false thread....Blackwater Ospreys, I put them in the same thread.

Blackwater Eagles are back and so are the Ospreys Thread title!

Nest Update

03/27/10:
We're not sure about our ospreys' approach to nest building so far, but we hope as we get into April, their building skills will improve.

Don't worry - that nest will grow exponentially when they decide that is THEIR nest.

building their nest.

Wow, they are hoppin!

:clap:  Told you  ;)

Nest Update

04/23/10:
Egg Alert!

We had an Earth Day egg laid at the nest Thursday evening.

Incubation can be on-and-off for the first egg, so no worries if the parent is off the egg. We hope to get another egg in a couple days.

   :2thumbsup:

1st hatch for BW Osprey  :2thumbsup:

:yahoo:

 :2thumbsup:  oink

The Friends of Blackwater are proud to announce the following winners in our 2010 Osprey Chick-Naming Contest.

Winners:

The winning names of "Hooper" and "Holland" were submitted by Amy Dixon of Fair Haven, New Jersey. Amy works at Fort Monmouth where she reports they have 4 osprey nests with 8 chicks this year, but unfortunatley no webcams. Hooper and Holland are two Chesapeake Bay islands that are located near Blackwater Refuge. Hooper is larger than Holland, so we'll give the name "Hooper" to our oldest chick.

And the winning name of "Hope," for our youngest osprey (the one we weren't sure would make it), was submitted by Leslie Peterse from Toms River, New Jersey. Note that several people submitted this name, but Leslie was the first. Leslie has followed our Osprey Cam for two years, and follows several of the other osprey cams on the Net as well. Also, Leslie and her husband were able to come down for our Blackwater Eagle Festival this year.

Both Amy and Leslie will get to choose an osprey prize from our store and will also get a certificate.

Thanks to everyone who participated in our contest. If your entries didn't win this year, hang on to them and you can use them again in a future chick-naming contest -- they might just win next time.

Hope getting some serious lift @ Blackwater....soon to fledge.  Hooper & Holland fledged already.

 All 3 there now

Was down Holland Pt. last night!   :clap:  In fact, the Osprey family over on FB was north of HP.  I thing the Hooper Straight light is at St. Michaels Museum (I think).  Thanks, Donna - I'm headed up to Annapolis and will check on a few of my nests  ;)

CWC? Atta girl Janet, you go girl. Hope you see some good flying. Good luck.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWWRzooON_c (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWWRzooON_c) Hope getting some lessons from her sisters. Very cute!

WOW!  That is some serious wing flappage!  Now that's a massive wingspan!!    :2thumbsup:

Blackwater Osprey Chick. What a gorgeous bird.

 :wave:   Beeeautiful!!!    :clap: 

http://friendsofblackwater.org/wordpress/osprey10/ (http://friendsofblackwater.org/wordpress/osprey10/) The 2nd one is amazing and so cute. Wow, what the wind can do and how they handled it.  :clap:

Notice the distinctive "M" of the wings

Those were very cool videos but too short! :mbanana: 
I guess this thread belongs to the three little pigs!  :harhar: OINK!

 :thumbsup:   Absolutely stunning!  Thanks piggy.   :frog: :gum:

No Ospreys, just Eagles.

Eagles are back at the Osprey nest! Nice

 :thanx:

That's because they all left last week - now we have that long wait until March!

Eagles back at Osprey nest. Cool to see them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxhvxjb1KiI (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxhvxjb1KiI)

This is so nice!

That "End of Summer..." video is so much more than nice; and the music, "Spheres" is perfect!  :heart:

Thanks Donna! That was wonderful!  :bravo:

On Tuesday we caught this dramatic photo from the osprey platform showing two eagles quarreling over a fish! Nice photo BW!

From Blackwater: Eagles nest along Maple Dam Road! Beautiful nest & Eagle.

 :thumbsup:  Beautiful!   ;D

What a grand picture!  :thumbsup:

Eagles at their nest just a few minutes ago.

Today I saw this Bald Eagle on the Osprey Cam.

Blackwater Eagles bringing pine sprigs to the nest.

They are so pretty!
Thank you Donna for posting the picture!

 :clap:

  :chrispup:

The Blackwater Eagles like the Osprey nest. Hanging out there now

Snowing in Blackwater

Blackwater NWR -- New Year 2011 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdeoXgqjYO4#) 

On Jan. 1, we spotted a southern flying squirrel in the Eagle Cam nest. You can see his big eyes "shining" in the infrared image. This little guy appeared to be snacking on some leftover food brought by the eagles.

The Blair Squirrel Project

 :clap:

AND for this group, "Mr. Squirrel had best be careful lest HE become a SNACK!"

   

"Nest Update

01/11/11:
We saw the eagle pair brought a feathered meal to the nest. It was a mallard.

It's a good sign to see them eating at the nest -- this activity has preceded egg-laying in the past."

Ei

AND THEY HAVE THEIR 1ST EGG!!



We have the first egg of our 2011 Blackwater Eagle Cam season!! The eagle parents caught us off guard, as this is the earliest we've had an egg on the cam since it went online. We would expect to see another egg in 2-3 days.

CONGRATS!!!!! (http://i362.photobucket.com/albums/oo67/jtoro/bird3gif.gif)

Remember last years Blizzard in Jan?

Sharing the duties

 :2thumbsup:

egg # 2 has arrived!!



 :clap: :clap: :clap: :clap:

 :2thumbsup:

3 EGGS as of this morning!
 :2thumbsup:

Yup and they reported 2 was it....then they had a correction!! Hope all 3 make it, you know how eagle chicks are!

 :yahoo:

 :clap: :clap: :clap:

Saw this on the Osprey nest. Look at that face!!

I can't open the original Blackwater thread, so I had to start a new topic. I tried for a week to click on the old topic and it just won't open.

EDIT: We fixed the problem. -Shaky

 :clap: :thumbsup:

Scavengers!

Today was  the expected hatch day but as you can see, all eggs in tact.

But Mom & Dad were up & down a lot yesterday-I suspect someone is peeping inside the shell.

Oh it will be soon.

Today's update...



Nest Update

02/19/11:
The father eagle has brought a fish, which is a very good sign that something is happening with the first of our 3 eggs. We should see our first chick appear before the end of the weekend. We're expecting high winds, so the mother eagle might keep the eggs closely covered.
   

This just in...



Nest Update

02/19/11:
Chick Alert!

We have our first chick of 2011!

Our mother eagle is keeping the chick and eggs covered well since we have very high winds today, but it's clear the first chick has hatched. Thanks to those sending in their shots!

 :mbanana: bguitar

 :yahoo: :hatch1:

YAY, they said it would be before the weekend ended!

She's still got them covered, but you can see the empty shell!

A tiny peek at eaglet #1!

A good look at eaglet 1 during a shift change.



Mom wasn't gone long, but Dad doesn't want to give up his spot!

 :heart:

Most excellent!  :2thumbsup:

Breaking News!



Nest Update

02/21/11:
Chick Alert!
Our second chick has hatched!

Also, we've updated the Eagle Cam Gallery with photos of our first eaglet hatching. We spread the photo credits around; thanks to all those who sent in shots.

The third chick could hatch around Feb. 22-24.

 :heart:  :heart:

2 baby Eaglets!

 :2thumbsup:  :hatch1: :hatch1:      :2thumbsup:

I thought I saw a pip earlier today in the 3rd egg.  Looks like the Blackwater folks agree...

Nest Update

02/23/11:
We have what looks like a pip in the third egg.

Looks like a pip to me!  :chick3: :chick3: :hatch1:

Not sure if the 3rd hatched but daddy is doing his job keeping them well fed!

Pretty sure we'll be seeing eaglet #3 very shortly.  I just got back to my desk in time to see what looked like a big crack in the 3rd egg, then it changed & Mom was on it...

Someone captured it!

Nest Update

02/24/11:
A bigger crack in the third egg is now visible.

     

 :hatch1: :hatch1: :hatch1:

The third hatch!  :2thumbsup:

Just confirmed!

Nest Update

02/24/11:
Chick Alert!
Our third eaglet has hatched!

 :clap:

Feeding time

Mini is looking good!

Fish again

Actually, I think 2nd breakfast was duck confit...

CUTE ALERT!



AWWW!  :wub:

                     :chick3: :chick3: :chick3:  :wub:

Breakfast!

Looking at all the fish in the pantry got me thinking about Dad's first year.  He had no idea he was supposed to fish for the family & Mom did most of the work.  He sure has figured it out now!

Another feeding! So cute.

Being fed

These little ones are growing rapidly!

 :ditto:

Poor Momma Blackwater has had to play Mom-brella all day today.

Waiting for food!

Dad helping with the feedings!  Tiny is getting his fair share!

 :eagle: :chick3: :chick3: :chick3: :eagle2:  So darn cute! ;D

Tiny sure is making sure he gets his share!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guFU6ufruTU# (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guFU6ufruTU#)

One is baaaaack!!!

 ;D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJbG4x95s6E# (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJbG4x95s6E#)

Nest Update

03/06/11:
We have a new video showing our crew out at the Osprey Cam platform Saturday preparing our set-up for the return of our adults. The eagle at the beginning of the video is likely a visitor from the Eagle Cam.

AWW!  Even Tiny is getting his second down now!

They just posted an update with videos of Tiny hatching!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lbRz7zQ6Mg&feature=player_embedded#at=79 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lbRz7zQ6Mg&feature=player_embedded#at=79)

Pt 2 - Hatching of 3rd Eaglet on 2011 Blackwater Eagle Cam (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrsTEq2Hzfw#)

 :chick3: Such tiny little wings! Thanks Ei!  :2thumbsup:

Look how big!! Tiny's been getting plenty of food.

Tiny's BYF!!

 ;D

I have a feeling Tiny is going to turn out to be male-and the 2 Godzillas have to be female!  Tiny is walking around & doing fine-getting pin feathers-sitting on his "heels"-making sure he gets fed-but those girls are so huge he looks like he's not growing at all.

Tiny goes right for the fish with mom. Look at him!!!

Just watched the big eaglet plop down on Tiny!!!

Tiny's under there!

What a little trooper Tiny Is!   ;D

Well, we'll see...Tiny is still under Big sis!!

Tiny's crop is as big as he is!

 :spaghetti:

I think when BIG sis plopped on him, all the air went from his stomach to his crop!!! That's HUGE!

Our youngest eaglet continues to hang in there and work his way into meal time. He’s still small and he has a lot of catching up to do, but he looks healthy and active, which at this age is about the best we could hope for.

We have noticed the eaglets’ big yellow feet are becoming more noticeable. Their feet are among the first body parts to become adult size, which is why biologists can often band their legs at a relatively young age. We don’t band eaglets at the Refuge at this time, so we won’t be banding these birds.

One question I did get this week was about the eaglets’ ability to feed themselves. Biologists believe that eaglets can feed themselves at around 6 weeks of age. Holding down prey with their talons while they tear into a fish or duck with their beak is hard work, so it takes a little while before the eaglets are strong enough to do it themselves. But once our oldest eaglet is able to tear off his own food, it might help our youngest, since it would free up the parent to feed just the two younger chicks.

No one has asked, but I thought I’d mention the Eaglet Naming Contest, as well. We usually like to wait until the chicks are about a month old before we start the contest, since that age is a safe time to assume that they’re all going to make it. So you can start thinking up your names now, and it won’t be long before we start the contest.

Tiny is growing up...

                               

Personal Service                               Sitting up like a big boy...with an even bigger crop!

WINGS!

All lined up in size order!

Now that's a Kodak Moment!

 :yes:Uh huh!  :flash:

They grow so fast!

The triplets are plotting something  :secret2:

Tiny's doing well!  :clap:

The Ospreys are building!!  :clap:

Last night-all 3 trying to tuck under Mom...



...and this morning...  :scaredblue:

Blackwater eaglets and some snow!

Wow Ei, think the same much??

 :hysterical:

Momma's back

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqlCzvTDllk# (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqlCzvTDllk#) This is like the Shaky'Dailies. BW Osprey's: A Day in the Life of

Yeah, but you can't dance to it.

Eaglets now feed themselves. They got huge!

1st eggs for Osprey. April 18th.

 :wow: Those eagles sure changed since the last time I saw them!  YAY for the Osprey egg! Thanks Donna!  ;D

While browsing for other pics, found this one from February 25...

3 eggs now for the Osprey and they think 1 more to come!! YIKES!

The Friends of Blackwater are proud to announce the winner in our 2011 Osprey Chick-Naming Contest.

Winner:

The winning names of "Harry, Ron and Hermione" were submitted by Joan from New Jersey. Joan enjoys hiking and nature in her spare time, and also following our young chicks on the Osprey Cam.

As all Harry Potter fans know, the final Harry Potter film was released just a couple weeks ago, and that brings an end to the saga of the Harry Potter books and movies, which millions of people around the world have enjoyed. Earlier this year, we paid tribute to the American space shuttles by naming our three eaglets after the three shuttles that were recently retired, so we decided to name our three osprey chicks after the Harry Potter characters that are retiring this year as well.

As for which chick gets which name, it's been very hard to tell the gender and identity of our chicks. They all seem close in size, and because the food has been flowing freely this year, one chick wasn't behind in its development, so it was hard to spot the youngest. But for the record, we'll name the oldest Harry, the middle chick Ron, and the youngest Hermione -- because the youngest usually needs to be smart and spunky. :-)

Thanks to everyone who participated in our contest. If your entries didn't win this year, hang on to them and you can use them again in a future chick-naming contest -- they might just win next time.




Nest Update

07/27/11:
All the chicks have now fledged and returned safely to the nest. We caught the last one taking off earlier today. We expect the chicks to be hanging around the nest through early September.

Friends of Blackwater NWR

Glenn Lawrence just posted this to our wall and I had to republish it here so everyone would be sure to see it. He took it yesterday, and it makes me really homesick for the return of the Osprey Cam feed. This could very well be our Eagle Cam couple perching on the Osprey Cam nest.

 :clap: Nice pic!   :thanx:

http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html (http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html)  Up and running!!!  :clap:

Nest Update

01/03/12:
We're back up with our new PC. Thanks again for your patience.

We've seen our eagle couple rubbing each other and touching up the nest, so we think they're in good form for a new season. You might see some occasional static on the cam caused by wind and local traffic, but it should come and go.

Finally!   :mbanana:

They've been spending quite a bit of time in the nest!

1st egg of 2012

Friends of Blackwater NWR

As our quick-fingered fans have noticed, we just got our first egg of the 2012 season! The earliest we've ever had an egg on the Blackwater Eagle Cam. We think the egg was laid earlier this afternoon, and we hope to see a second egg in two to three days.

I thought something was up-I just tuned in a little while ago & she was stuck right tight to the nest!  :clap:

Just read the good news on FB!   :clap:

 goodnews: I thought it looked like she was scooching down like there was an egg under her!  ;D

2 eggs!!

They look so tiny in that big nest!  ;D

Mom-brella

Dad had been sitting for a while, but Mom's back now!

Nest Update

01/25/12:
On Wednesday, we saw one of the parents perform the old trick where they dump grass on the seated parent to get that adult to stand up so they can switch positions. And as we see, it usually works.


I love when they do this...I always think of Mariah trying to get Kaver to move.  I wonder if she ever dropped pebbles on his back? 

Friends of Blackwater NWR
We're excited to announce the sighting of a relatively new bald eagle nest right near the end of the Wildlife Drive at Blackwater Refuge. We conferred with our supervisory biologist and our ranger, and they believe it is a new nest. What's great about the nest is it's just to the left of the road and in full view of any photographers who happen to be on the Drive. On Sunday, we saw a female eating on the nest and a male in a nearby tree, so we hope they'll be on eggs soon.

Eagle Eggs
Posted by Lisa in Eagle Cam, eggs
We’re about ten days away from the possible hatching of our first egg. As we mentioned on the cam page, our parents went through a brief period where they seemed agitated by something outside the nest (maybe another eagle). They spent some time off the eggs, and we have to assume that it was not long enough to hurt the eggs’ development.

Then on January 31, the male brought in a meal to the nest (almost all meals to this point had been eaten away from the nest that contained eggs), but rather than hand it off to the female, he mantled over it and then gave her some when he was done. This is the kind of behavior we’ve seen on the Osprey Cam nest when a new male was at the nest or when the couple — which had spent the winter apart — we’re just beginning to bond again for the breeding season. It isn’t the kind of behavior we expected to see with a male eagle that had already helped bring about two eggs with our female. So we’re not sure what was going on, but we haven’t seen this behavior again.

Cam watchers have asked about the size and color of the eggs. The blog from the Center for Conservation Biology reports that the eggs are oval (about the size of a tennis ball) and 4.3-4.5 ounces.

Hatch date is approaching! Earliest estimate is 02/15.

Meanwhile, Dad arrived & tried to convince Mom he needed a turn on the eggs. 
She wasn't budging.  She knew snow was coming!

     

Nest Update

02/17/12:
We've seen a dark spot on one of the eggs that definitely looks like a small hole.

Nest Update

02/18/12:
Chick Alert!
One egg is definitely hatching. The other might have some minor activity as well.

            :clap:

Second hatch!   :hatch1: :hatch1: This one was captured by Bob Geary on FB...

Wow, those eggs don't mess around!  :clap:

Eaglets sitting up waiting for supper!

Something "Happy" for a change! Thanks

Oh, my!  Great news.

"Old Blackwater, keep on rolling..." -- The Doobie Brothers,

Great news!

Paul

Sad news at Blackwater...

Nest Update

02/26/12:
Special News

We have some sad news at the nest. Please read our latest Eagle Cam Web Log (http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/eagle12blog/) entry for details.

I read that over at BCAW, how very tragic.  Sometimes nature can be difficult to understand.  :( :(

I've had a feeling something was off there, but I couldn't put a finger on it.  They just seemed to be alone more often than they should be.  Very sad.  As they said on the blog, we've been spoiled at this nest by success year after year.

Just read that on FB. Very sad.  :(

Oh dear!

That is very sad  :crying:

Possibility of intruder causing harm to chicks:

http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/eagle12blog/ (http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/eagle12blog/)

OMG, they both died?? That intruder was probably pecking them! This is just awful, I can't stand this!!

That's one of the reasons I can't watch eagles nests.  The first and last year I did, one sibling pecked the other to death pretty much and that was it for me..and the parent just stood there the entire time.  I was told 'that is their way and the stronger will survive'.  They're beautiful birds but I'll stick to my falcons, we have enough drama of our own with that..no need to go looking for more.

Posted on their blog:

We believe one chick has died and the other is injured (or possibly dead at this point). We're keeping an eye on the cam and we'll turn it back on once we don't have images of an injured eaglet crawling around the nest.

We don't plan on keeping it offline for a long time. Just until the chick's immediate survival plays out.

       
 :crying:

Nature can really S**K at times. Too many looking for nests now and the trouble starts! I'm with Carly!!! I'll watch a few falcon cams and that's it!

http://youtu.be/7w1ZMKL3Dx0 (http://youtu.be/7w1ZMKL3Dx0) 1 chick deseased, the other still moving, then the cams went down. Hope this one will survive.  :crying:

From their blog:

Last update for today. :(

February 26, 2012 (final post for the day)
Our ranger -- who can see the live cam feed -- relayed the following news:

"As of 3:30 pm, the remaining chick was still alive. Parent was not on the nest at the time but soon returned. At 4:10 pm, I glanced at the TV and finally saw both parents on the nest. Male appeared to be sitting, and female chowing down on something. Did not see chick get fed, though. This is good, however, because I reviewed a couple hours of the tape from this morning and never saw a visit from the other parent."

The other chick does appear to be dead and is slowly getting buried in the nest material. Sometimes eagle parents remove the body and sometimes they let it get buried in the deep nest.

If the remaining chick is still alive later on Monday, we'll turn the cam feed back on

Such a shame!  :( Praying for that little one.

In an effort to interject something positive and upbeat here, I see eagles overhead when walking and driving along the Bay.  I am about 10 - 12 miles from Cambridge, as the eagle flies.  We have a lot of eagles in the area.  They have made a wonderful comeback!  I don't have to go anywhere to see eagles!  This is the good and of course, the bad is the territorial thing, which I opt to veiw as good.  Eagles will hang with people (think Arlington, VA), but the size of the Bay is finite, which makes the territories very defined.  This is nature's way of "thining the herd".  Sad as it looks, this IS a good thing -- the eagles are BACK!

 :crying: Nature can be so cruel sometimes but like Janet said the strong survive and carry on the species.  :heart:

Not in my book! It's maddening!! Not on BP meds yet but I feel it coming!!

The last eaglet didn't make it.  Fly free little ones!  :crying:

Nest Update

02/27/12:
Special News

Our Eagle Cam Web Log (http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/eagle12blog/) has a new post for Monday that explains the current status of the nest. The blog entry also explains why the cam is currently offline.

 :'(

 Such a tragic turn of events. Fly free, little Eaglets.  :crying:

Oh this just breaks my heart. Poor babies!  :heart: :heart:

 :heart: :heart:

Here's a photo of Craig Koppie in the Eagle Cam nest yesterday retrieving the chicks. Folks have asked about our parents. If there is an intruder hanging around the nest, then the parents will have to deal with that. Sometimes it results in a new mate at the nest - survival of the strongest and most persistent. But it's something that will likely play out away from the nest. We hope to hear Craig's thoughts in the next couple days.

We saw an eagle couple on the nest Wednesday. First time in a while. We should have a report from Craig Koppie about our eaglets soon. We'll update the blog with news when it comes

Posted today-

http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/eagle12blog/ (http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/eagle12blog/)

Very very sad and tragic.

  Last night we had a Great horned owl on the Osprey Cam platform. It looked like he might have had a duck meal. GHOs can be a threat to ospreys, taking out both chicks and adults. But we've fortunately never had any problems with owls bothering the cam ospreys.

From fb

  As some of our fans have likely noticed, we now have only two chicks in the Osprey Cam nest. We think we lost the youngest chick sometime late last week. We watched the TV monitor at the Refuge on Saturday for a few hours, and confirmed we only have two. The good news is our current chicks appear to be healthy and growing fast.

One of our Osprey Cam chicks (probably the older bird) got some serious air over the nest today. Looks like it won't be long before one chick is out and about for its first flight.  :o

http://youtu.be/3FM5G2QG5TU (http://youtu.be/3FM5G2QG5TU) No eagles, no osprey but snow geese!

That is incredible!  :clap:

Been seeing a LOT of Snow Geese in the area the last few weeks (Maryland's Western Shore - Chesapeake Beach - almost directly across the Bay from Blackwater).

We have three eggs on the Blackwater NWR Eagle Cam! We just got power to the cam and made the discovery. For those wondering about the delay in getting online this year, please read the note we've posted on the cam page: http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html (http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html)

OMG!!  :o

That's great news! I had checked the cam a little earlier, and it was still down then.

http://blackwatereaglecam.wordpress.com/2013/02/11/welcome-to-a-new-season/ (http://blackwatereaglecam.wordpress.com/2013/02/11/welcome-to-a-new-season/)

http://youtu.be/0GWNXHbMFeA (http://youtu.be/0GWNXHbMFeA)

Shift change

Getting exciting with all these cams to watch and eggs to hatch!

  Pip!!  :wave:

1st hatch!  :clap:

 :2thumbsup:

Yay!  :hatch1:

The tiny new eaglet:

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/February%202013/blackwaterfeb269a_zpsaafec3cf.jpg)

Now there's 2!  :hatch1: :hatch1:

 :2thumbsup:

and a pip in #3, all will be around same age, so not much competition!

Woohoo!  :hatch1: :hatch1: :dance1:

Chick Alert!
In our Eagle Cam Web Log this morning we predicted the 3rd egg wouldn't hatch, and it just did. We'll have to see how it does being so late to the game.

That scares me, being so late. Hope the others don't hog all the food! Not watching another one wilt away!

I didn't catch the picture, but it was just sitting up with the other 2 having lunch. They are a well experienced pair, so fingers crossed!

Jr getting his first bite

from fb

 :clap: :hatch1: :hatch1: :hatch1: Hey at least it hatched so there's a chance!  :2thumbsup:

I'm rooting for the little one! 

Poor Momma Blackwater...hate when it weathers on them... :rain:

they just exchanged places but the incoming one looks just as soaked as the one that was setting.
At least it isn't snow.

I don't think they switched yet

I saw them switch

OK-she's just not taking a chance the babies will be uncovered then. They are an experienced pair...

Yeah, she got off and he got right on, covering them immediately, then he took his time turning around and settling down.

They are so cute.  Glad they all hatched.
            :yippee: :eagle2: :eagle2: :eagle2: :yippee:
                                 Lola

They all made it through the storm! Up for breakfast!

Yay and it was windy too!  :heart:

Confirmation today on FB that the youngest didn't make it. Fly free, little one.  :sorrow:

Had a feeling!  :(   

 :(

OK-it's a bit :nausea: , but we had mallard for brunch yesterday. I'm amazed by what's left-or not left-this morning!

 :crying: 

Wow...haven't posted over here in forever!

Look at them now!

The eldest is flying well. The youngest is still a homebody.

Mom & Dad Blackwater are at home...

 :clap:

(http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r32/djweeds/1Blwateregg_zps39ab417a.jpg) (http://s140.photobucket.com/user/djweeds/media/1Blwateregg_zps39ab417a.jpg.html) Looks like an egg to me!!   :clap:

It IS an Eagle egg!  :happy:

 :thumbsup:

  They have a 3rd!!

Friends of Blackwater NWR

We have our first eaglet of the 2014 Blackwater Eagle Cam season! And there might be a mark on another egg as well, so there's a chance the hatching could be pretty quick at this point.

First breakfast!  :wub:

 :clap:   :hatch1:

Awww... :wub:

2 hatched so far!  :hatch1: :hatch1:

 :2thumbsup:

 :thumbsup:

Breakfast at the Blackwaters

They're growing!  So cute!

Poor Momma Blackwater...but the babies are safe...

Poor thing...what they don't go through!

Hey mom!  One's getting loose!   :happy:

 :wub: :wub:

Mom finally got Dad to switch...

Blackwater babies are doing fine!

Haven't posted anything on these guys in a while...all is well!



An adult bald eagle has around 7,200 feathers. Eagle feathers come in a variety of types, including:

    Primary feathers, which can be spread out like fingers on a hand to reduce drag.
    Secondary feathers, which can be moved down to increase drag or up to reduce it.
    Tail feathers, which are used for steering.
    Coverts, which make the wing thicker in front, so that air will flow faster over the top of the wing.

The Friends of Blackwater are proud to announce the following winner in our 2014 Eaglet-Naming Contest.

Winner: Cheryl Keosky from Saratoga Springs, New York with her names of Glider and Chaser. We thought the older chick (likely a female by her big size now) would be called Glider and the younger chick would be called Chaser -- since he's looking like he might be a smaller male who will be chasing his big sister around the Refuge once they're flying.

Cheryl works with people who are Adults with Developmental Disabilities, and every year when the bald eagles lay their eggs she shows them the Eagle Cam and they watch the chicks grow. Cheryl has entered the contest in five previous years, so we thank her for being persistent in entering her names.

Cheryl will receive a certificate and a gift from our Eagle's Nest Gift Store.

Thanks to everyone who participated in our Eaglet-Naming Contest. We always appreciate all our entries because they help make the contest a real event. If your entries didn't win this year, hang on to them and you can use them again in a future chick-naming contest.

Congratulations to Cheryl! And much thanks to all our participants.

Kudos to her and great choices for names!   :thumbsup:

Yeah, love the names!  :thumbsup:

http://youtu.be/8b6ctX8g_6Q (http://youtu.be/8b6ctX8g_6Q)

Wingercizing!

http://youtu.be/aWPXJB9vWbE (http://youtu.be/aWPXJB9vWbE)

I'll take that!

That one laying down is lookin' at the one winging it like "What the heck is your problem"!?  :lol:

Nest Update

01/01/15:

We've seen an eagle pair mating on the Osprey Cam, and since we know our eagle couple likes to perch on that platform, we're hoping it was them. If so, we might have an egg by mid January.

(http://i140.photobucket.com/albums/r32/djweeds/1-8Blackwater_zpscf2dcda3.jpg) (http://s140.photobucket.com/user/djweeds/media/1-8Blackwater_zpscf2dcda3.jpg.html)  1st egg!!!

 :mbanana:

2 eggs!    :clap:

Nice! :2thumbsup:

 :star: :star:

First hatch!

Their camera has gone totally wonky unless it's warm, so hopefully we'll see it/them better as the weather improves!

Woohoo!   :clap:

The cam cleared just enough to see 2 hatches!

They got some nice clear pictures of the 2 eaglets this morning. Still one egg.

There is a possible pip in the third egg, according to the site:

(http://i1195.photobucket.com/albums/aa393/falcoperegrinus1/February%202015/blackwater-feb-22-2a--possi_zps1156d3ca.jpg) (http://s1195.photobucket.com/user/falcoperegrinus1/media/February%202015/blackwater-feb-22-2a--possi_zps1156d3ca.jpg.html)

Chick Note
We have some sad news. It looks like we may have lost the 2nd chick. The food has been plentiful, so we're not sure if it was the cold or if it had health issues.
   

                             :(

Chick Note
At this point it looks like we'll have a one-chick brood. We'll update the Eagle Cam Web Log tonight with the latest news.



And one I just captured...love when they do this  :wub:

Glad that at least one chick has made it.  Sad for the loss of the other one. 

Poor Momma sitting in the snow...

Got to keep that chick nice and warm.  Good momma!

02/26/15:

We may have only one chick, but he's a feisty little eaglet, as he goes after a fish tail here.



As a reminder, we updated our Eagle Cam Web Log  (https://blackwatereaglecam.wordpress.com/)on Wednesday.

More sad news from Facebook:

Sad loss of the remaining eaglet at the Blackwater Refuge nest
March 1, 2015 — bald eagle, birds, Blackwater Refuge, Eagle, hatchling, nature ~ by twizzkid
I am so very sorry to report the sudden loss of the remaining eaglet at the Blackwater nest. After the death of the smaller eaglet a week ago, the remaining eaglet seemed to be thriving and was seen active and eating early this afternoon. Unfortunately a later view showed the deceased eaglet laying outside the nest bowl. It is unknown what happened.

 Just read this on FB..so sad..wonder what happened?  Fly free, little one.   :sorrow:

dammit!

 :crying:

OMG!! What is going on???  :crying:

 :(

 :crying: poor baby

 :sorrow: