How much time passes between eggs laid?

2-eggs-in-nestThis question comes up every time a Bald Eagle lays an egg, and one person’s answer isn’t always the same as another’s. Fortunately, we now have a sizable body of data that provide a reliable answer.  Information collected from JudyB’s charts, the Hancock Wildlife Forum, the Channel Islands EagleCAM Forum, nest cam websites, and other observations give reliable dates and times for 55 nests with 2-egg clutches, 37 nests with 3-egg clutches, and 1 nest with a 4-egg clutch.

The eggs come at roughly 3-day or 4-day intervals. But the data tell us much more than that.

Go here to see the data and my analyses. And let’s have a conversation on Facebook about it.

Quick update

First of all, I am overwhelmed by the response I’m getting here and on Facebook.  You all are very kind, and I hope that I don’t disappoint as we move forward.

Second, I’ve posted the January 2007-2017 calendar and made a few minor corrections to the November and December calendars.  I’ve also made them pdfs instead of jpgs, which I think might be easier to read.  Notice that you can scroll through the pages of a pdf.

I will tackle February soon, but my it will be a challenge — elebenty billion eagles lay eggs in February!

High on my list is a tabulation of timings between eggs laid over the last 10 years.  The data we now have provide good evidence of the process of egg development.

Up and running!

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This web site has been a gleam in my eye for about 5 years, since I began watching eagle (and other wildlife) cams, reading about birds, and working as a volunteer for raptor rehab organizations.  I have big plans for the site — probably way bigger than the time I have left to devote to it.

I have been waiting to get things up and running because I wanted to have a lot more to show for all these years of learning. I’ve been promising various people over the years that I really would do this, and I think most of them stopped believing me a while ago. So instead of presenting a finished product, I’m presenting a work just barely begun. The beginning of a new Bald Eagle nesting season seems like the right time to toss some pages out there.

I’m beginning with a bit of information that I’ve collected and tabulated about the nest cams, notably a calendar of egg-laying that covers the 11 years that observers have recorded nest activity and logged their observations, especially at the Hancock Wildlife Forum and the Channel Islands EagleCAM Forum, (and I extend profound thanks to all those dozens of journalists who have diligently and faithfully posted there — what an astounding collection of information!). Go to Bald Eagle Nest Cams on the menu to see what I’ve gathered so far.

The design of the web site is basic. I will probably be fiddling with it as time goes on, but right now I’ve opted to spend time on content rather than design.

If you want to follow my blog (where I’ll try to put out alerts to new content), you can subscribe with your email addy over there → .

 

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