Very SAD news for the Eagles...Savannah and Derek

[tamaran2]

Looks like there will be NO new baby eagles this year...

EagleCam | Second egg candled - WCNC Blogger

Just posted: The second egg

3/10 At 11 a.m. today Julia Raddatz, rehabilitation coordinator at Carolina Raptor Center, removed Savannah's egg from her nest and brought it into a dark room to candle it. Candling an egg is the process of holding an egg up to a bright light in order to visualize the density of its contents.

Upon candling, Julia saw that the contents of Savannah's egg were too dense to allow light to pass through. This could mean two things: It could mean that an embryo has developed to the point that it has taken up the entire egg or, the far more likely possibility, the egg was fertilized but development stopped at an early state. Julia also noted that there was no movement within the egg. She did not hear any sounds coming from the egg, or any other outward signs of hatching.

When an embryo begins to develop within an egg, it causes the chemistry of the egg to change. Then, when development stops, the contents will decompose faster than if it were never fertilized, causing the contents to become more dense, which likely explains what Julia saw when she candled it.

The egg was placed back in the nest so Savannah can make the choice of when she is done incubating her egg. Savannah returned to the nest almost immediately after the egg was returned to her.

CRC staff will be removing the visual barrier around the eagle aviary tomorrow afternoon so the public can come out and see where Savannah's nest is located and all five bald eagles in the enclosure.

And the first egg:

3/9 Due to the length of time that Savannah has been laying on her egg, CRC staff will be removing Savannah's remaining egg at 11 a.m. on Tuesday to inspect the viability of the remaining egg. If the egg is fertile, it will be returned to the nest and if not, we will gain what knowledge we can from the egg. Normal length of incubation for bald eagle eggs is 34-37 days. As of tomorrow, 44 days will have passed since the first egg was laid and it is very unlikely that hatching could still occur. Savannah's change in behavior last week may have been due to her expecting the eggs to hatch as the incubation period was nearing its end. Expect more information by late afternoon on Tuesday.

3/6 Last night Savannah removed one of her eggs from the nest. The egg was infertile. Carolina Raptor Center staff candled the second egg around 11 a.m. and there's hope it will hatch. The egg was placed back in the nest and Savannah returned to sitting on it. There's hope it will hatch by Monday. PHOTOS of CRC staff inspecting the egg

[RedFeather Hawk]

Awww. Poor eagles. :( Well, hopefully next year.