Nesting season starts early for Southwest Florida’s most famous eagle pair
It looks like egg watching season has started a little earlier this year.
Southwest Florida Eagle cam star F23 laid her first egg of the nesting season Friday at around 2:38 p.m., with the second egg arriving Monday at 6:15 p.m.
“F23 was laying on the nest and then she got up and went into labor. Her body quivered, her wings were out from her body as she went into contractions. She then laid her first egg and stood over it for about 14 minutes before those on the Southwest Florida Eagle Cam got to see it at 14:49 p.m.,” according to Lady Hawk, posting on the Cam, which for 13 years now has allowed viewers worldwide to following the nesting season at the Pritchett Farm off Bayshore Road in North Fort Myers.
Each season, the cam draws millions of views.
This is the earliest eggs have been laid at the nests since the cam’s inception.
With former matriarch Harriet, eggs were typically laid around Thanksgiving, with the eaglets hatching between Christmas and New Year’s Day.
Ginnie Pritchett-McSpadden, founder of the Southwest Florida Eagle Cam, said it’s definitely earlier than anyone expected.
“F23 and M15 were seen hanging around the nest more but we didn’t think anything of it because their usual egg-laying time is around Thanksgiving,” Pritchett-McSpadden said. “They surprised us with the earliest egg ever.”
Pritchett-McSpadden said that this early arrival could be the new normal for pair, which is nesting together for just their second time.
“This could be a new timeline for them. We’ll have to continue to watch. We know due to delayed incubation and bonding periods, a second egg comes three or four days after the first,” Pritchett-McSpadden said.
Expect these eggs to hatch sometime in mid-December assuming a typical 35-day incubation period. The pair will take turns incubating the eggs, turning them regularly so they can warm evenly and avoid the eaglet attaching to the shell.
Viewers can again catch all the action in the nest, which started its 13th season last month as the eagles returned home early to work on their nest before mating.
M15 and F23, who became M15’s mate after Harriett died in 2023, are producing their second set of offspring. Last year, they pair was only able to raise one eaglet because the second egg cracked prematurely and became unviable.
It was F23’s first attempt at motherhood, so inexperience could have been to blame for what happened.
The 2024-2025 season will again catch all the action using four cameras that stream the bald eagles live at https://dickpritchettrealestate.com/southwest-florida-eagle-cam/DickPritchettRealEstate.com.
Camera 1 is positioned 7 feet above the nest and is equipped with night vision. Camera 2 is located at nest level capturing the side view.
Camera 3 is in the nest tree and the first-ever live camera in history to capture a 360-degree look into a bald eagle’s daily activity. This cam allows you to click and drag to any viewing area for a fully immersive experience. Camera 4 is installed closer to the pond to capture activity happening around the pasture and in the pond area.
To reach CHUCK BALLARO, please email news@breezenewspapers.com