Eagle Cam Q & A

For those who want to know more about the nesting behavior of Chesapeake Bay eagles (incubation, hatching, etc.) be sure to check out our Eagle page. You might also want to check out the American Bald Eagle Information website, which offers a large variety of bald eagle photos and lots of interesting facts.

Also, in the space below we will try to answer some of the most frequently emailed questions:

Why do the Osprey Cam and Eagle Cam sometimes have different refresh times?

Answer: Bandwidth is the term used to describe the amount of images we send from our website out to the Internet. We have a limit on how much bandwidth we can use in a month, so we often adjust the refresh times on the Osprey Cam and Eagle Cam depending on which nest is getting the most action.

If eagles hang out at the Osprey Cam nest, why don't they raise their young there?

Answer: The eagles like perching at the Osprey Cam nest because it is near the river and offers a good view of their fishing grounds. But the man-made platform is very shallow and is not in a tree, so the eagles would not nest there. Also it's very close to our Wildlife Drive, and while ospreys don't mind being relatively close to people during nesting season, the eagles prefer privacy.

Is there a light shining on the eagles at night?

Answer: The Eagle Cam uses infrared technology (like the military uses) to provide "night vision," so there is no light shining on the eagles in the evening -- it just looks that way.

Why does the camera stop at night?

Answer: Again because of our bandwidth limits, we stop the camera from 10pm until 4am to reduce our bandwidth. During that period the birds are mostly sleeping and the nest activity is quiet.

What happened to the eaglets from last season?

Answer: The eaglets from last season are still about four years from settling down and raising their own families. In the meantime, they'll wander around this area, exploring and improving their hunting skills. They might even strike out to visit other states before returning to Blackwater in the future when they're ready to breed.

Are you tracking the eaglets from last season?

Answer: We don't regularly band and track eagles at Blackwater Refuge, so no, we are not following their movements.

Thanks to all our cam watchers who are following the Eagle Cam and sending in their photos and questions.

Lisa - webmaster