Decorah Eagle
The first Decorah eagle egg might have a pip. Ustream

Many have been anticipating the hatch of the Decorah eagle eggs. Last season, the birds moved their nest and the Raptor’s Resource Project was unable to provide live-stream footage, which will make the 2014 hatch even more special.

The RRP set up cameras at the old site and the new site to make sure they captured the hatch. According to the organization’s Facebook page, eagles take anywhere from 35 to 39 days to hatch. Three eggs have been laid: one on February 23, another on February 26 and the last one on March 2. Since those dates mirror the 2012 season, the RRP assumes that the first egg will hatch on April 1, the second on April 3 and the last one on April 6.

Since the amount of time an eagle can take to hatch varies between a few different days, there might be different hatch dates for 2014 than 2012 because the winter in Decorah was much colder. The organization wrote they baby eagles might need some extra time in their eggs. If that’s the case, the first egg will hatch on April 3, the second on April 6 and the last one on April 10.

Overall, it can be assumed the eggs will start to hatch between April 1 and April 5. The RRP project said they would stay tuned to their live streams and wait to see if the parents will roll them around or stop and stare at the eggs as they wait for a pip hole. Sometimes a chirp from inside the egg can be heard.

The RRP project revealed that once eaglets begin to crack through their shell, it could take 12 to 24 hours before the hatchling emerges. Sometimes the parents chirp back at the chicks for encouragement.

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