Bald eagles tend to two eggs in Northern California nest. When will they hatch?

Helena Wegner
·3 min read
2

Bald eagles Liberty and Guardian have been protecting two eggs for over a month in their Northern California nest.

Now one egg is on hatch watch — also called pip watch — as of Thursday, March 21, according to the Facebook page Friends of the Redding Eagles.

Eagle eggs typically hatch after 35 to 40 days of incubation, so it’s possible Liberty’s first egg that was laid Feb. 15 at Turtle Bay could start the hatching process in the coming days.

But we might not see an eaglet immediately.

Bald eagle dad Guardian incubates two eggs on March 20 after giving Liberty a break from the nest.
Bald eagle dad Guardian incubates two eggs on March 20 after giving Liberty a break from the nest.

What’s the eagle hatching process?

First, a pip is created when a baby eagle uses a tooth on its beak to crack a hole on the membrane of the egg, according to the Friends of Big Bear Valley. Then the eaglet can take its first breath and can be heard peeping, the group said.

From there, the eaglet will slowly start to use its beak to scratch the inside of the shell until it pecks a hole through the external part of the shell.

Then it will crack completely, according to Journey North, a nonprofit science program affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Madison Arboretum. The process may take a day or two, the group said.

One of three eggs broke

Liberty laid her second egg Feb. 18, followed by her third egg three days later.

One of the three eggs was seen cracked Feb. 29 in the nest, after the area was hit with blustery winds, McClatchy News reported.

Because of this, the group doesn’t know which egg broke apart.

“If it was egg #1 then that would delay things for a few more days,” the group’s founder and director Terri Lhuillier told McClatchy News.

What are the signs an eagle is hatching?

Viewers can watch Liberty and Guardian tend to their eggs on a live camera on YouTube.

Although the eggs aren’t typically visible on the camera like they have been in Jackie and Shadow’s nest in Big Bear.

That’s because the nest bole where Liberty and Guardian keep their eggs is very deep, according to the group.

One of the eagle parents looking down toward the eggs that are deep in the nest on March 20.
One of the eagle parents looking down toward the eggs that are deep in the nest on March 20.

“As you can see we can’t see eggs even when Liberty and Guardian are off the nest,” the group said in a post. “We have gotten glimpses of those eggs and they are absolutely perfect!!”

But there will be many signs the eggs have hatched.

The group said Liberty will look down when they begin to chirp inside the egg.

The two parents will also keep their bodies further above the nest so there’s room for the eaglets, and they will eventually bring food for the baby eagles.

Group is hopeful for eaglets

Although Liberty and Guardian weren’t lucky last year when both of their eggs cracked, Lhuillier said “everything seems to be right on track for a successful hatch this year!”

Lhuillier also said the two parents have been paying close attention to eggs this year as they’ve taken turns incubating the eggs.

Plus she said Liberty, who is 25 years old, has raised 26 eagles over the past 18 years, six of which have been with Guardian.

“Anything can happen in nature of course, but I have a really good feeling that we will see 2 little gray, fuzzy bobbleheads in this next week!” Lhuillier said.

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