Tag Archives: Eggs

Peek inside a Bald Eagle egg – at hatch!

Peek inside a Bald Eagle Egg - at hatch!

The camera operator gave us a wonderful peek at the eggs when Mr. North left this morning. The hatching window is larger, and we can see the outer shell, the inner membrane, and the eaglet moving around inside the egg. I’m not sure whether this is DN19 or DN20: we saw the first pip at 12:03 PM and the second one at 1:18 pm, which means these two eaglets will probably be hatching very close together! It wasn’t especially warm

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Peek inside a bald eagle egg: 24 days!

An embryonic chicken at roughly the same stage as a 24-day old eaglet. Image credit Carolina Biological Supply.

As of this blog post, DNF’s two eggs are 28 and 25 days old, Mrs. T’s three eggs are eight, five, and two days old, and Ma FSV’s four eggs are 18, 14, 11, and 7 days old. Hatch watch for Decorah North begins on March 19. What do embryonic eagles look they look like as they develop and grow inside their eggs? Dr. Peter Sharpe from the Institute for Wildlife Studies developed a table of bald eagle embryonic development

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Peek inside a bald eagle egg: 17 days!

This chicken embryo is roughly equivalent to an eaglet at about 13 days. We can see the bony plate around its eyes, long folded limbs, rudimentary feet and 'hands', feather germs, and oversized head. Next up: feathers and scales!

As of this blog post, DNF’s two eggs are 22 and 19 days old. We have a three-day-old egg in Trempealeau and four eggs ranging from 11 days old to two days old at Xcel Energy’s Fort St. Vrain nest. What do embyronic eagles look like as they develop and grow inside their eggs? Dr. Peter Sharpe from the Institute for Wildlife Studies developed a table of bald eagle embryonic development based on work done by Hamburger and Hamilton (1951). While

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Peek inside a bald eagle egg: 11 days!

Seven day old chicken embryo. It's roughly equivalent to a 12-day old embryonic eagle.

What do embryonic eagles look they look like as they develop and grow inside their eggs? Dr. Peter Sharpe from the Institute for Wildlife Studies developed a table of bald eagle embryonic development based on work done by Hamburger and Hamilton (1951). While not all bald eagle eggs hatch in 35 days, the stages of development look something like this… When we last peeked inside the egg, our embryonic eagle had inner and outer layers, a developing circulatory system, a

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Bald Eagles, Eggs and Cold Weather

The eggs are warmed and protected by their parents’ bodies and the insulation beneath and around them.

Cold weather often raises concerns among Bald Eagle watchers. Will their favorite eagles keep their eggs warm and dry in sub-zero temperatures and snow? Eagles don’t have central heating or electric blankets, but they have everything they need to incubate their eggs through the worst a Midwestern winter can throw at them: meticulously built nests that aid incubation and withstand winter’s chill, highly vascularized brood patches that transfer body heat directly to their eggs, and remarkably robust eggs.  In short:

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When will our eagles lay eggs?

January 26, 2025: Mr. North and DNF duetting

When will the Decorah North, Trempealeau, and Fort St. Vrain eagles begin laying eggs? Mark your calendars as follows! It looks like the lead-up to eggs has started at the North nest. Mr. North and DNF have copulated almost every day since January 24 and DNF was very interested on the one day they didn’t. This is very similar to 2024, which again, puts egg number one around February 15. We’re also seeing solicitation, footing, and duetting. More on eagle

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March 22, 2024: Pip Pip Hooray!

March 22, 2024: Pip Pip Hooray!

Pip pip hooray! Hatch has started at Decorah North. The first eaglet to hatch this year will be DN17: the 17th eaglet to be produced here since we started counting and DNF’s 9th eaglet. For a refresher on hatch, follow this link: https://www.raptorresource.org/2024/03/21/april-1-2023-we-are-on-hatch-watch/. Congratulations, Mr. North and DNF! We are so eggcited for you! We’ll be announcing our hatch fundraiser soon, but if you’d like to celebrate by making a donation, follow this link: https://www.raptorresource.org/support-the-raptor-resource-project/make-a-donation/.

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