An Update on the Big Bear Valley Eagles

By Terri Estes

Last week, I reported on Jackie and Shadow, the eagles of Big Bear Valley, and their two new hatchlings. This week, I am happy to report that the third egg that we were rooting for has also hatched, and all the babies are doing well! All three eaglets are being fed several times a day by both parents.

This is great news, since their eggs of 2023 and 2024 all failed to hatch. In 2022, three eggs were laid, but only one hatched. That eaglet, named Spirit, was successfully raised and fledged the nest to fly off on his own.

Jackie and Shadow are proving to be very good parents. One is always on the nest, and one is always hunting. They bring fish and have even brought a waterfowl to the nest. Food is delivered several times a day. They take turns. While one hunts, one sits on the nest. They also take turns feeding and each parent has their own way of delivering food to the kids. Shadow likes to drag the fish right into the center of the nest, next to his babies, so that he doesn’t have to venture to the edge of the nest to grab the morsels of fish to feed his kin. Jackie, on the other hand, is the typical mom, who likes the nest area neat and tidy. When she returns to the nest, she pulls the fish that Shadow brought into the sleeping area off to the edge of the nest, away from her little ones. Then, she pulls pieces of fish, bit by bit and delivers them to her babies. Both parents, so far, make sure that each little eaglet gets fed.

Even with these doting parents, the eaglets are not out of the woods yet. They need their parents’ warmth to keep them alive, and it has snowed several times this week in Big Bear Valley. As they get older and larger, there may not be enough room for all of them to snuggle under their parents. We can only hope that spring comes early to the valley and that they don’t have a late cold spell.

The nest is high up on the side of a mountain. As these babies get older and larger, their nest will become crowded. There is always a chance that an eaglet can get pushed out and fall to its death in these tight living conditions. Unfortunately, the odds are not in their favor. According to the American Eagle Foundation “once hatched, fewer than 50% of eaglets survive their first year.”

Friends of Big Bear Valley, the group responsible for the live camera feed, has announced that, in about a week, there will be a chance to enter a naming contest for the new eaglets. That information and more can be found on their Facebook page, “FOBBV.”

So far, so good for our beloved eagle family, but the journey is long. I will keep watching and rooting for this adorable family, and I hope you do too!