Second eaglet hatches at Pittsburgh's Hays bald eagle nest

A second baby eagle has emerged at the Hays bald eagles nest, Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania officials announced Monday afternoon.

“It’s a really fun time of year for us,” Audubon Communications Director Rachel Handel said. “I think it’s one of the most engaging ways we come in contact with people (when the eggs lay and eggs hatch). People really are excited to watch the cam.”

Every turn of the egg as well as every peck of an eagle chick’s special “egg tooth” to break out of its egg is documented by a live webcam sponsored by the society and CSE Corp. of Murrysville.

Handel said the first of three eggs hatched Saturday, and the third remains uncracked. Authorities will determined within days whether its viable.

The Hays birds are in their seventh year of breeding on a hillside above the Monongahela River and near Sandcastle Water Park in West Homestead. They have been incubating their eggs for about 35 days. They hatch sequentially as they were laid about two to three days apart.

Handel said the birds have not been officially named, but people informally designated them H9 and H10 — indicating they are the 9th and 10th chicks hatched at the Hays nest.

Young eagles break through the egg-shell on their own, which is an exhausting process, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

Both eagles will take turns tending to the chick and incubating the remaining egg. Fish and other food will be brought to the nest for one of the parents to feed the eaglets.

The Hays birds are the first pair of bald eagles to nest in the city limits in more than 150 years. The birds are making a comeback in the region due to cleaner rivers and the rebounding population of the formerly endangered birds.