This Bald Eagle Nest-Cam Is What You Need Right Now

You’re probably spending all day watching streams of the NCAA Tournament, and that’s cool, but it can also get a little tense. I’m here to tell you to take a few breaks to de-stress with the peaceful, majestic livestream of a bald eagle nest in Washington D.C.

I’ve been watching for a few days, and it’s mostly been shots of mama bird, “First Lady,” sitting and chilling on her two eggs.

Which is fine! Eagles are great. Gorgeous birds. But we’re really here for the babies. Finally, this morning, one of the eggs started to crack, and gradually a little fuzzy thing came out of it.

What is that? ENHANCE.

It’s an eaglet! Nature is magical!

The eaglet hasn’t really done much but lie there and sleep and occasionally wriggle around, and most of the time its mom has been sitting on it. But sometimes things happen. So far I’ve seen:

• Papa bird, “Mr. President,” bring half a fish to the nest for mama bird to eat.

• Mama bird eat some egg placenta.

• Mama bird fly away for some exercise or me time or whatever, while papa bird watches the nest. He seems confused, but maybe I’m projecting.

• Papa bird yell at the baby.

• Both birds snapping at insects that fly near.

It’s honestly all very zen, but there is the promise of drama and tragedy. Why hasn’t the second egg hatched yet? Will everyone survive? Will the babies kill each other? The American Eagle Foundation, which is providing the webcam, offers a foreboding warning that nature, red in tooth and claw, may break out at any moment.

This is a wild eagle nest and anything can happen. While we hope that two healthy juvenile eagles will end up fledging from the nest this summer, things like sibling rivalry, predators, and natural disaster can affect this eagle family and may be difficult to watch.

So far it’s been great. I can’t recommend Eaglecam enough. This is a great country we have here.