The touching relationship between two bald eagles captured on a hidden camera shows the pair are true soulmates. Viewers have been captivated by the conduct of these two birds, who have made their home in Big Bear Valley, California.
Jackie and Shadow are dedicated to each other and it can be seen in their showing affection with tender pecks, busily carrying out nest duties together, and sleeping side-by-side. Often, they “talk” and chortle, sometimes appearing to argue, but they always settle disputes before heading to roost.
“Watching them gives me a deep appreciation for how intelligent, how cooperative, how determined and dedicated, and how loving nature is,” Sandy Steers, biologist, writer, and executive director of the nonprofit Friends of Big Bear Valley, told The Epoch Times. “I love watching their interactions and feel that they teach me new perspectives and more resilience every day.”
Steers became aware of the eagles’ nest in 2012 after it was discovered by the Forest Service. Using a spotting scope just over half a mile away, she started watching a growing chick in fascination.
“We believe that chick was Jackie and she took over the nest a couple of years after her parents left the area,” Steers said. “It was the first active bald eagle nest in Big Bear Valley in recorded history.”
For the first two years in the nest, Jackie was with another mate called Mr. B. However, five summers ago, Shadow turned up at the nest and immediately set his sights on Jackie. Mr. B and the couple’s chick did their best to chase him away, but Shadow was unperturbed.
“He was determined to stay,” Steers said, “so finally, Mr. B left, and Jackie accepted Shadow.”
Jackie is much calmer and more loving to Shadow than she was to her previous mate.
“She was always bossing Mr. B around and Mr. B seemed to cower in her presence. Jackie also bosses Shadow, which he just takes in good stride and then does what he wants,“ Steers said. ”Jackie behaves as if she has much more respect for Shadow and his strength than she did for Mr. B.”
Fans of the family love to watch as the two of them bond with each other and prepare for nesting season.
“Very often when one of them brings a large stick to the nest, they assist each other to place it in the nest. They sometimes have differing ideas about where that stick might go, but they always work it out in harmony,” Steers said.
When they lay eggs or raise chicks, they share in sitting duties. Shadow is keen to take his turn to give Jackie some time off. Sometimes, he’ll even play little games such as laying sticks on her back to get her off the nest so that he can settle in, not moving when she comes back.
Fights over food happen only during the off-season and it usually happens over who is going to get the fish they got to the nest. However, when they are nesting, Shadow lets his wife have all the food. Together, they work to protect their nest from intruders and when the day is done, they most often choose to sleep in the same roost tree with each other.
Steers, who feels “beautifully privileged” to be able to watch them learning from their commitment to each other, is not alone in her appreciation.
“The website is always a comforting and peaceful way to start my day. It refreshes my spirit,” commented one eagle cam viewer. While another credited the discovery for keeping young learners engaged.
“My fourth graders are captivated. We are in the middle of a unit on birds in our Abeka science curriculum, so this discovery (I stumbled upon it while looking for live footage of bird feeders on YouTube) couldn’t have come at a better time. What a blessing this has been to students and teachers!” another viewer said.
Watching the bald eagles interact with each other so closely, Steers said she has learned much about them.
She said they are very intelligent and can figure things out and work with each other, as opposed to just functioning out of instinct.
“They have behaviors that show they feel emotions— whether they are like our emotions or not, we cannot know,” she said. “They have different reactions and behaviors to emotional situations than they do to normal daily activities.”
Steers has also noticed that they’re resilient and bounce back from emotional situations and keep striving to move forward.
