By Mary-Justine Lanyon
Editor
The Friends of Big Bear Valley are counting down. Pip watch will begin on March 1. That’s when the eggs bald eagles Jackie and Shadow have been incubating may begin to hatch.
Sandy Steers, the executive director of Friends of Big Bear Valley, told members of the Mountain Sunrise Rotary Club on Feb. 19 that bald eagles began wintering in Big Bear 20 to 30 years ago. The lakes further north froze over so they headed south to find food. Bald eagles, she said, eat on the water – fish or ducks.
“They would be at Big Bear Lake from November through March, Steers said. “We used to have 25 to 30 wintering eagles.”
And then one year, one eagle stayed. That eagle found a mate and they built a nest. That pair became known as Ricky and Lucy. They hatched a chick in 2012 the U.S. Forest Service named Jack – the first check ever hatched in Big Bear Valley.
By the time the chick was ready to fledge, it was bigger than both parents. Because females are bigger than males, they knew Jack was a female and she became Jackie.
Steers’ fascination with eagles – and Jackie in particular – grew. She would stand in a parking lot in Fawnskin, watching Jackie grow through a spotting scope half a mile away. “I wanted to see more about what was going on,” she said.
Over the next couple of years, they knew the eagles were sitting on eggs but they didn’t hatch. Then they saw chicks but they disappeared in a storm.
The Friends of Big Bear Valley raised money to put up a nest camera, which they did in October 2015. “When we put up the camera,” Steers said, “Ricky and Lucy moved their nest. They didn’t want the paparazzi!”
In 2016, Jackie claimed the nest. She found a mate, Mr. B. They had two chicks in 2018 – Stormy and BBB. BBB was lost during a storm. Steers said the chick was too big to fit under Jackie and the chick didn’t have its full waterproof feathers yet. Stormy did fledge.
Enter Shadow in the fall of 2018. He won Jackie’s heart. “For another adult eagle to show up is very rare,” Steers said. “They are very territorial.”
Jackie, Stormy and Mr. B all tried to chase Shadow away but he kept coming back. Mr. B finally gave up and left. Shadow took over the nest – and Jackie.
Eagles can be aged by the colors of their feathers. Jackie is 13 and Shadow is 11.
Jackie and Shadow had two chicks – Simba and Cookie. “It was amazing to watch Shadow,” Steers said. “He had no idea what to do – he had never been in a nest with chicks before.”
She went on to say Shadow would bring food to the nest – fish, some ducks – and then stand behind Jackie and watch while she fed the chicks. “He’d study what she was doing, then take a little bite and feed them. He’s very gentle and tender.”
Eagles lay eggs three to five days apart so they practice delayed incubation, Steers noted. After the first egg is laid, they don’t sit on it full time to delay incubation. That way, all the eggs will hatch together.
Cookie was also lost in a storm; Simba, probably a male based on his size, fledged.
In 2019-2020, Jackie and Shadow started nesting again. They only sleep in the nest to incubate the eggs and raise the chicks; otherwise, they sleep in another tree, standing up with their talons gripping a limb so they don’t fall off.
Shadow is the architect, Steers said, He and Jackie often have very different ideas as to where the sticks should go in the nest. She has seen them pull a stick in different directions, each wanting to get it in their spot.
Jackie laid eggs, which they incubated and protected for 68 days but they did not hatch. That usually happens in 35 to 40 days. “There were a couple of weeks of confusion,” Steers said. “Shadow was trying to figure out what happened. It’s fascinating to watch eagles go through the emotions. Jackie gets over things faster and tries to encourage Shadow. It’s adorable to watch her try to coax him out of the nest while she talks to him.”
The next year Jackie laid eggs in early January but they were eaten by ravens. She laid a second clutch in February. “It’s rare to have two clutches in one season,” Steers said. Those did not hatch either.
In 2022 Jackie laid her eggs in late January. Thirty-nine days later they had a pip – the chick was pecking its way out. “They grow an egg tooth at the top of their beak,” Steers said, “so they can hatchet their way out of the egg. It’s hard work to get hatched.”
Jackie laid another three eggs in January 2024. The nest got covered by three to four feet of snow. It is Jackie who sits on the eggs during inclement weather. She set a record by sitting on the nest for 62 hours with no break. Those eggs did not hatch.
And that brings us to this season. Jackie and Shadow bond over bringing new sticks to the nest. “It’s amazing to watch how affectionate they are with each other,” Steers said.
Jackie laid the first egg on Jan. 22, the second on Jan. 25 and the third on Jan. 28. Both parents want to sit on the eggs so they will fight over who gets the job. Shadow will put a stick on Jackie’s back. She will nibble at him and push him away.
To watch Jackie and Shadow, follow “Friends of Big Bear Valley and Big Bear Eagle Nest Cam” on Facebook. Tune in on March 1 to watch for that first pip.
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