The bald eagles in Pittsburgh’s Hays neighborhoods became “snowbirds” Wednesday morning.
Not missing a beat, even when covered in the snow, the birds continued to incubate their three eggs, with the female covered in snow early in the morning.
The mother eagle was mostly buried in snow, but she stood up, shook off the snow, turned her eggs and resumed incubating.
“A lot of people get concerned and are afraid the birds are cold,” said Jim Bonner, executive director of the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania. Audubon and CSE Corp. of Murrysville operate the live webcam documenting the nesting activity of the eagle pair, who are now in the seventh year of breeding in a nest perched high on a hillside overlooking the Monongahela River.
“The eagles are not cold,” Bonner said. “The fact the snow is not melting on them shows that they are well insulated. Much like goose down in a parka, the eagles’ feathers are doing the same thing for them.”
“They’re doing what they do best. They are taking care of their eggs,” Bonner said.
And those eggs seem to be doing just fine with round-the-clock incubation by both parents. The eggs are turned throughout the day for uniform warming. Even with the snow, the eggs are likely to be at their normal temperature of around 100 degrees, Bonner said.
You can watch the nest live below.
