Live Hanover, Pennsylvania Bald Eagle Nest!

Home of "Liberty" & "Freedom" 

In Partnership with Pennsylvania Game Commission & Comcast Business  • Powered by HDOnTap

 

This live video feed has been granted a Special Permit by the Pennsylvania Game Commission for educational purposes. The Game Commission's mission is: To manage wild birds, wild mammals and their habitats for current and future generations. 

 

Welcome to the 2019/2020 nesting season!

HDOnTap is excited to announce the 2019/2020 season launch of the Hanover, PA Bald Eagle nest cams! In coordination with the Pennsylvania Game Commission, HDOnTap visited the nest site to perform maintenance on the existing cameras as well as install a new PTZ (Pan/Tilt/Zoom) camera. It was clear that the eagles had been working on the nest prior to our arrival. 

HDOnTap has since been monitoring the nest and Sentinel Tree for any eagle visits. The only actual nest visit captured on video is on October 28th. “Freedom” stopped by for a few minutes, looked around, adjusted a few sticks and left. Since then, the eagles have not been seen at the nest, to our knowledge, but have been seen at the Sentinel Tree lookout nearly every single day. You can see a more detailed record by clicking on the History icon underneath the player on the live stream page. 

HDOnTap is grateful for intel on the eagles’ whereabouts that has been passed on by local resident  Hanover nest community members. Based on their observations, the eagles do not appear to have nested in a different location as they have been frequently spotted in the Sentinel Tree as well as protecting the area from intruders. 

While the future events of the 2019/2020 Hanover Nest are unknown, we look forward to watching the season unfold and unlocking the secrets of bald eagle behavior alongside our dedicated viewers. Watch for information on an upcoming Q&A session to get a better understanding as to why the eagles have not been frequesting the nest, what it could mean, and if there is still time for the eagles to begin nest building this season.

 

Watch all the Hanover Cams on the Multi-Cam Player!

 

*** There are two separate URLs for the Hanover Eagles ***

 

1.) Hanover Eagles (this page)

• The live stream is a Multi-Cam Player. The camera views = 4K Cam & PTZ  • NO Chat. Page admins can only post to this page. The posts contain informational text, pictures and video highlights about bald eagles and specifically the Hanover eagles. 

 

2.) Hanover Chat 

 • The live stream is a Multi-Cam Player. The camera views = 4K Cam & PTZ  • Chat

 

 

Bald Eagle Facts

The bald eagle's history in Pennsylvania is a precarious one. Only 30 years ago, Pennsylvania had a mere three nests left in the entire state. With the help of the Canadian government and several agencies including the Pennsylvania Game Commission, bald eagle chicks were brought back to PA to reintroduce bald eagles to the Northeast. 

The bald eagle is the only eagle unique to North America and about half of the bald eagle population lives in Alaska. Bald eagles live along the coast and on major lakes and rivers where they feed mainly on fish. 

Eagles sit at the top of the food chain, making them more vulnerable to toxic chemicals in the environment, since each link in the food chain tends to concentrate chemicals from the lower link. A bald eagle's lifting power is about 4 lbs.. Generally, they do not feed on domestic livestock or pets, but they will make use of available food sources. Bald eagles will take advantage of carrion (dead and decaying flesh). 

Both male and female adult bald eagles have blackish-brown back and breast; a white head, neck and tail; yellow feet, legs and beak; and pale yellow eyes. Immature bald eagles have a mixture of brown and white feathers, with a black beak and brown eyes in younger birds; some immature bald eagles have more mottling than others. Adult plumage develops when a bald eagle become sexually mature; it takes five years for a bald eagle to attain solid white head and tail feathers.

It's possible for bald eagles in the wild to live longer than thirty years, but the average lifespan is fifteen to twenty years. A female bald eagle's body length varies from 35 to 37 inches; with a wingspan of 79 to 90 inches. The smaller male bald eagle has a body length of 30 to 34 inches; with a wingspan ranging from 72 to 85 inches. An eagle's average weight is ten to fourteen pounds. Northern birds are significantly larger than their southern relatives.

A bald eagle's skin is protected by feathers lined with down so they are very tolerant to cold temperatures which they experience in Pennsylvania! Their feet are cold resistance, consisting of mostly tendon. The outside of the bill is mostly nonliving material, with little blood supply.

 

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2020 Season

Season Summary: TBD

• October 24, 2019 - “Freedom” & “Liberty” spotted in Sentinel tree
• October 28, 2019 - “Freedom” visits nest (watch clip), both eagles spotted in Sentinel tree
• November 2, 4-6 & 9, 2019 - Both eagles in Sentinel tree
• November 14, 2019 - Both eagles in Sentinel tree, seen flying in distance 
• November 15, 2019 - Both eagles in Sentinel tree (watch clip)
• November 16, 2019 - Both eagles in Sentinel tree
• November 17, 2019 - Both eagles in Sentinel tree 
• November 18-19, 2019 - One eagle in Sentinel tree
• November 21 - One eagle in Sentinel tree
• November 23, 2019 - Both eagles in Sentinel tree 
• November 25, 2019 - One eagle seen in Sentinel tree multiple times 
• November 26, 2019 - One eagle in Sentinel tree 
• November 29 - 2019 - One eagle seen in Sentinel tree two seperate times 
• November 30, 2019 - One eagle in Sentinel tree 
• December 3 - 4, 2019 - Both eagles seen in Sentinel tree 
• December 5, 2019 - One eagle in Sentinel tree 
• December 7, 2019 - One eagle in Sentinel tree 
• December 9, 2019 - One eagle in Sentinel tree
• December 10, 2019 - Both eagles in Sentinel tree 

 

2019 Season

Season Summary:
Clutch of two egs, two hatches, two fledges

• December 3, 2018 - Cameras turned on for the season
• February 26, 2019 - First egg laid at 5:08pm EST (watch clip) 
• March 1, 2019 - Second egg laid at 6:23pm EST 
• April 4, 2019 - First hatch @ 9:20am Eastern (watch clip)
• April 6, 2019 - Second hatch @ 9:30am Eastern (watch clip)
• June 18, 2019 - "Star" is knocked off the nest by "Liberty" (watch clip)
• June 23, 2019 - "Star" returns to the nest (watch clip)
• June 30, 2019 - "Stripes" fledges (watch clip)

 

2018 Season

Season Summary:
Clutch of two eggs, no hatches, no fledges

• January 3, 2018 - Cameras turned on for the season
• February 20, 2018 - First egg laid (watch clip)
• February 23, 2018 - Second egg laid (watch clip)
• Events of March 17, 2018 and beyond:
  The cameras were disrupted and unavailable due to an electrical malfunction from the morning of March 17th to early March 19th. 
  During this time, the PGC reported that there appeared to be another adult eagle around the nest. From the PGC:
  
  “Extra” bald eagles may be adults that have not yet paired up and claimed a territory; they may attempt to interfere with this pair in order to claim a mate or territory. With the population filling the available habitat in many parts of Pennsylvania, it would not be surprising to see some increase in nest failure as a result of these interferences and competition disrupting the care of nest and young. The big takeaway lesson, bald eagles are well-adapted to Pennsylvania. They are well-adapted at selecting nest sites, building nests, and caring for eggs and young. This is one of the great lessons of the Game Commission’s bald eagle recovery effort and its annual monitoring of active eagle nests. As bald eagles are filling available habitat in some parts of the state, there will be some conflicts between competing eagles. We have never in modern history been witness to such conflict events and we will all learn as we go. In most conceivable circumstances, nature will be allowed to take its course without intervention. Should an injured eagle end up grounded, the Game Commission could facilitate its transfer to a licensed rehabilitation facility.
  
  It is not possible to know the events that transpired while the cameras were shut off, however, it appears that the "extra" adult eagle engaged the resident eagles in conflict at the nest, potentially in an effort to claim territory. It is unclear what happened to the resident female (commonly referred to by viewers as "Liberty", although the PGC does not name wildlife). It appears that the resident male (commonly referred to as "Freedom") continued to incubate the eggs alone and may have been subject to additional conflicts with the "extra" adult eagle over the next few days.
• March 21, 2018 - The two eggs were left unattended during a winter storm and were exposed to harsh conditions, ultimately becoming buried under the falling snow. The eggs are believed to have become non-viable due to these events.
• March 22, 2018 - The "extra" adult eagle (now being referred to by viewers as "Lucy" and distinguishable by black markings on the tail wing tips) and the resident male made several visits to the nest throughout the day, both alone and together. In the evening hours after a joint visit, the black tipped eagle consumed one or possibly both of the eggs.
• Late March and beyond - The nest continued to see visits from various eagles, including juveniles. While it is not possible to know for certain which eagles visited the nest, it is widely speculated that the adults included Freedom, Lucy and Liberty.
• May 4, 2018 - Cameras turned down for the season

2017 Season

Season Summary:
Clutch of two eggs, two hatches, two fledges

• December 28, 2016 - Cameras turned on for the season
• February 10, 2017 - First egg laid
• February 13, 2017 - Second egg laid
• March 20, 2017 - First hatch
• March 21, 2017 - Second hatch
• June 7, 2017 - First fledge
• June 10, 2017 - Second Fledge
• July 3, 2017 - Cameras turned off for the season

2016 Season

Season Summary:
Clutch of two eggs, one hatch, no fledges

• December 17, 2015 - Cameras turned on for the season
• February 18, 2016 - First egg laid
• February 21, 2016 - Second egg laid
• March 28, 2016 - First hatch
• March 30, 2016 - Hatchling deceased, perhaps injured by a branch being moved in the nest
• May 23, 2016 - Unhatched egg removed from the nest by one of the adults
• June 1, 2016 - Cameras turned off for the season

2015 Season

Season Summary:
Clutch of two eggs, two hatches, two fledges

• February 14 - First egg laid
• February 17 - Second egg laid
• March 24 - First hatch
• March 25 - Second hatch
• June 22 - Both eaglets fledged

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Last Edited on 2018-3-10

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