I (along with about 10 million other people) am completely hooked on the Eagle-cam. For those who have not heard, this camera was placed in a tree overlooking an eagle's nest on Hornby Island. The reason for the current interest is that mamma and papa eagle have been sitting on a pair of eggs for a month or so, and one is expected to hatch soon. The other has disappeared from the nest - it's assumed it was either buried in the nest or pushed out by the parents, who realized it would not survive.
The remaining egg apparently has some signs that a chick is trying to work its way out, but it hasn't been making very good progress lately and there are fears that this chick will not survive either. Every now and then the eagle sitting on the nest (the parents share nesting duties, and I can't tell them apart) gets this rather despondent look, like it knows something's not right. Occasionally it also looks at the camera like it knows it's being watched .
There's an article about the webcam, and the interest it's drawing, at the CBC's BC website. Scroll down to the bottom of the article to hear the interview with Doug Carrick, who placed the webcam and who watches the eagles almost constantly. The CBC's BC page is updated often for the egg's progress.
Another reason to move to BC - bald eagles nest here.
Posted by Sarah at May 3, 2006 07:13 PM