A Bird's Eye View Of America's National Bird: Duke Farms Eagle Cam

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — For 15 years, Duke Farms' Eagle Cam has offered a bird's eye view of America's majestic national bird. The 24/7 live stream channel has more than 10,000 subscribers and 10 million-plus viewers worldwide and continues to grow.

Over the years, viewers have been able to catch a glimpse of the eagle pair's day-to-day life, including their eating habits, when they lay eggs, hatching of the eggs, the eaglets' first flights, and even attacks from intruders.

All of this was made possible thanks to the Eagle Cam.

The idea of mounting a camera 115 feet into the air atop a tree near a Bald Eagle nest at the nature preserve in Hillsborough first came about in the early 2000s when a Duke Farms employee saw the camera system at a trade show.

"The camera was mainly for observation and not for streaming," said Charles Barreca, Manager of Ecological Stewards at Duke Farms.

The webcam was installed on a tree adjacent to a bald eagle nest to provide a live look at the eagles in 2008.

In the beginning, the staff encountered issues with getting power and signal to the feed. It was temperamental, said Barreca.

Mice had chewed on it, lighting strikes had hit it and even water got into the cables.

"Anything that could happen, happened to it," said Barreca.

After Hurricane Sandy knocked down the original Bald Eagle nest in 2012, the birds rebuilt a new nest 100 feet south of their original location. The staff had to move the camera and also upgraded it in 2015 to incorporate infrared technology allowing viewers to see during the day and at night.

Over the 15 years, the camera has not seemed to bother the eagles.

"Occasionally we do move the camera and they will notice it," said Barreca. "The Eagles peer at it then go back to doing their eagle business. And the infrared light at night is not visible to them so it doesn't disturb them."

In partnership with the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey, the Eagle Cam also serves as a tool for teaching about wildlife and its many facets like animal behavior, bird biology, natural history, endangered species, food webs, and more.

"It's pretty amazing to see their interaction with other animals and nighttime activities," said Barreca.

The camera has been following one male Bald Eagle since the nature preserve banded him in 2000 along with his female partner. There have been few females over the years.

"He's a pretty old bird and it is pretty cool to see how he is keeping the nest going," said Barreca.

Barreca noted that while Bald Eagles mainly use the river for their main food source — catching things like smallmouth bass, American Shad and an eel — sometimes they have seen the male bring "road kill and live animals like groundhogs or mammals into the nest."

The camera will also catch intruders to the nest such as a Red Tail Hawk attack or owls swooping in.

"It's pretty impressive to watch," said Barreca.

One tussle broke out recently in January 2021 when a young eagle around 4 to 5 years old, entered the nest and attacked the parent that was guarding the egg. The attack was captured on camera. Watch the attack and read more: Attack At NJ Bald Eagle Nest After 1st Egg Arrives At Duke Farms

Currently, the nest has two eaglets that are getting ready to fledge or fly any day now. The first egg was laid on Jan. 20 and the second on Jan. 23. The first egg hatched on Feb. 27 and the second on Feb. 28. Read More: 2nd Bald Eagle Egg Hatches At Duke Farms In Hillsborough: Video

The chicks will most likely fledge, or become capable of flying, by the middle of May.

To catch a glimpse of the chicks getting ready to fly and the Bald Eagle parents, watch the Dukes Farms camera live at dukefarms.org/eaglecam.

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