With the help of nationwide protections, the bald eagle has made a comeback after two decades of being considered an endangered species. A pair of Minnesota bald eagles hatched a newborn eaglet weeks after tragically losing an egg. It’s always an inspiring sight to see bald eagles bringing one more to the world. As a male and female eagle prepared their nest to hatch their eggs this season, those who tuned into Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ EagleCam witnessed many ups and downs. There have been 4 years of eggs laid in the same nest by the female, according to the department. The couple spent weeks preparing the nest with soft grasses and leaves. Her nest was hit by a snow storm on February 23, piling up 13.4 inches of snow. A video shows her staying in her nest, keeping the eggs safe while snow piles up on her:
One of the couple’s eggs died on February 28. As the male and female switched incubation duties, a broken egg was observed on the male’s brood patch when he stood up. It is unclear whether the egg had already been broken or if it had happened earlier.“The Kansas City Star reports that we have never seen this happen in the 10 years we have been watching the nest.
Experts said the other egg’s chance of survival actually improved, as the couple continued incubating it. There is a 50 percent success rate for bald eagle chicks to fledging (successful flight), according to Minnesota DNR. It is unfortunate and sad to lose an egg, but a young chick has a much higher chance of surviving. Thankfully, the remaining egg hatched successfully on March 26.
It is unclear how the newborn eagle will be cared for, but it will probably be well protected by both adults. A camera captured the chick’s arrival and viewers can find out how it develops on the EagleCam. According to the department, newborns are in the “cutest phase of development” that they refer to as “bobble-heads.”
