A nest full of snow – and full-grown adult bald eagles – made it difficult to tell for sure.
But according to the Minnesota DNR, there are now two eggs in the Eagle Cam nest, located somewhere in St. Paul.
And, sure enough, when the adult eagles took a rare break from the nest late Friday afternoon, Feb. 23, there there were.
According to a DNR news release Friday, the first egg came at 1:15 p.m. Monday, Feb. 19 and the second sometime Thursday, Feb. 22. In the release, the DNR said this female is the same one that has been documented at the nest the last six years, and that she has laid three eggs every year since 2013. So, the agency continued, another egg will likely arrive this weekend; this was the latest the eggs have come in those six years.
According to the DNR, bald eagle eggs weight about 4.4 ounces and are approximately 2.9 inches long and 2.2 inches wide. In that first year in 2013, the nest failed and the eggs didn't hatch (they reportedly were laid the first week of January – by far the earliest of the six years). But since then, 10 eaglets have been successfully raised and fledged from the nest, the DNR said, adding that the incubation period is 35 to 37 days.
To view the Eagle Cam, click here. The camera that, for the previous five years had been streaming live video from the nest, stopped working last spring. But thanks to donations and work by the agency, a new camera was installed on a different branch of the same tree overlooking the same nest as in previous years, the DNR said in December 2017.
The new camera is reportedly an upgrade: It’s high-definition and features infrared imaging for nighttime viewing. It also includes a microphone, a first at the nest, but the mic has been faulty and isn't currently operational. It will be replaced when the chicks are banded this spring, the DNR said, as it's too late in the season to disturb the nest now.