History of The NCTC Eagle Cam

The National Conservation Training Center eagles first showed up during the winter of 2002-03. They started working on a nest at that time, but only managed to gather a few sticks. They returned to the nest in the fall of 2003, began working on the nest in earnest. They had a large nest built by January of 2004. They laid the first egg on Valentine's Day and two eaglets were hatched by the first day of spring. Both eaglets survived and fledged in early June.

The adults returned in November of 2004. They spent two months making repairs to the nest and exhibiting breeding behavior. The first egg was laid on February 15, 2005, and one eaglet hatched in late March. It survived and fledged in mid-June.

The eagles are back for their third year. They arrived in November of 2005 and began nest repairs and breeding behavior. The first egg was laid on February 9, 2006. We expect it to hatch on or about March 15th .

In September of 2005 NCTC installed a small video camera about 10 feet above the eagle nest allowing us a “birds-eye” view inside the nest. A local tree service company was hired to do the installation. They used their 75-foot bucket truck, but had to climb an additional 10 feet to reach the nest. The nest is about 85 feet high in a large sycamore tree, and is about 4 feet across and 2 feet deep, and probably weighs a few hundred pounds. It is made of branches and large sticks with a softer grass and leaf lining. Both eagles spend a lot of time repairing and keeping the nest strong and sturdy

The shape of the eagle nest or aerie is determined mainly by the branch point on which it is built in. Sticks placed in deep, near vertical forks result in cylindrical or conical nests. Nests built on the ground or nearly level branches are disk shaped. Bowl-shaped nests may occur where the tree trunk branches suddenly into several smaller, upright branches.

Bald eagles build their nests in large trees near rivers or coasts. A typical nest is around 5 feet in diameter. Eagles often use the same nest year after year. Over the years, some nests become enormous, as much as 9 feet in diameter, weighing two tons. Even when a nest tree falls or a strong wind blows a nest down, the established pair usually rebuilds at or near the site within a few weeks if it is near the breeding season. The nest may be built in a tree, on a cliff, or even on the ground if there are no other options available

An eagle reaches sexual maturity at around four or five years of age. At that time, the eagle's energies become concentrated on the effort of finding a mate and raising offspring. Bald eagles mate for life, but when one dies, the survivor will not hesitate to accept a new mate. During breeding season, both birds protect the nest territory from other eagles and predators.