Welcome to the 2010 Duke Farms Eagle Cam
The Duke Farms Eagle Cam provided a live video stream of a Bald Eagle nest located in central New Jersey from March to July 2010. Our Eagle Cam season has now ended for this year -- please check back early next year for another season of Eagle Cam.
PLEASE NOTE: Bald Eagles are extremely sensitive to human disturbance. At no time should anyone approach nesting eagles. People who want to observe or photograph eagles and who come too close may actually cause the birds to abandon a nest.
The mission of Duke Farms is to serve as a model of environmental stewardship. This Eagle Cam was installed to provide researchers with an opportunity to monitor a pair of nesting Bald Eagles without any disturbance to the birds. It is being shared with the public to provide viewers with a glimpse of wildlife in its natural environment.
New this year! The Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey has developed lesson plans for educators who would like to use the Eagle Cam as a learning tool: Eagle Cam Lesson Plans. The Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey is a non-profit organization that carries out research projects, develops management plans, encourages conservation practices and educates residents of New Jersey about the wildlife living on their doorstep.
Bald Eagles have been making a comeback after many years of decline, due in part to the once widespread use of Dichloro-Diphenyl-Trichloroethane (DDT) and other agricultural pesticides. Thanks to growing public concern about the health of our environment, DDT and other chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides were banned in the U.S. in 1972. Along with protection offered by the Endangered Species Act, scientists credit the ban on DDT as a major factor in the comeback of the Bald Eagle, Osprey and other bird species in the contiguous U.S.
In New Jersey, that comeback has been dramatic. In 1985, only a single pair of nesting Bald Eagles were recorded in New Jersey. In 2009, that number was up to 84 pairs with 69 active nests. Of those, 56 nests produced 99 young. Today, the Bald Eagle continues to face hazards in the environment, but perhaps the largest threat to the species in New Jersey today is the encroachment of development and human activity that limits the areas of potential nesting sites.
About the Bald Eagle
Size: 71-96 cm (28-38 inches)
Wingspan: 204 cm (80 inches, almost 7 feet)
Weight: 10 to 14 lbs.
Lifespan: Average of 15 to 20 years
The national emblem of the United States, the Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a large raptor, or bird of prey, with long, broad wings that are held flat when soaring. Adults have a brown body with a white head and tail, immature Bald Eagles have a dark head and tail – it takes about 5 years for them to acquire their white feathers.
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.
Eagles lay from one to three eggs that are an off-white or buff color and speckled, about the size of a goose egg. The eggs are incubated for 35 days. Incubation duties are shared by both the male and female, though it is the female who spends most of the time on the nest to both keep the eggs warm and protect them from potential predators.
When ready to hatch, eaglets break through the shell by using their egg tooth, a pointed bump on the top of the beak. It can take from 12 to 48 hours for an eaglet to hatch after making their first break in the shell.
Newly-hatched eaglets are covered in a grayish-white down and their eyes are partially closed eyes. Parents feed their young by shredding pieces of meat from their prey with their beaks. Eagles typically raise one eaglet, though sometimes two chicks will survive. Fratricide among eaglets is not uncommon.
Eaglets grow rapidly, adding a full pound of body weight every four or five days. At two weeks of age, an eaglet is able to hold its head up for feeding, and by three weeks it is approximately 12-inches tall with a beak and feet that are nearly the size of an adult. Four weeks after hatching, the bird is able to stand and can begin tearing up its own food. By six weeks, the eaglet is nearly the size of its parents.
After fledging, or leaving the nest, at about 11 or 12 weeks of age, young eagles stay close by for six to nine weeks as they practice their ability to fly and to hunt. Young eagles that remain near the nest often are still fed by their parents. Eagles are born with the instinct to hunt, but must practice their skills before they become expert birds of prey.
From the time the parents build the nest until the time that their offspring are on their own takes about 20 weeks. During the nesting cycle, the parents remain within one to two miles of the nest.
Once listed as a Federally Endangered Species, the Bald Eagle remains protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act.
Our Eagle Cam video stream is hosted by Ustream.tv, Inc., which provides content streaming and social networking services for the sharing of live content and video chat on the Internet and via mobile devices. The advertisements that appear are administered and maintained by Ustream.tv. Duke Farms does not make any representations regarding the content or accuracy of these advertisements and does not endorse any product or service advertised.
Links to more information on Bald Eagles
Volunteer Opportunities
If you are a bird watcher and have some free time, Duke Farms has a variety of volunteer opportunities.
- Nest box monitoring
- Avian Migration Project
- Breeding Bird Survey
- Project FeederWatch
Click here for more information on volunteering at Duke Farms.
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