Jackie and Shadow welcome two new chicks, their first hatchlings in three years

Jackie and Shadow have welcomed two new eaglets into the world.

The first chick hatched around 11:30 p.m. Monday, and the second poked through just before 4:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to Friends of Big Bear Valley, the nonprofit that manages the popular Youtube livestream centered on the nest.

Eagle-eyed fans are overjoyed by the arrivals, with more than 80,000 people tuning in live Tuesday morning. It’s welcome news for those who were left heartbroken last year, and the season before, when none of mama Jackie’s eggs hatched after weeks of waiting.

Sandy Steers, executive director of Friends of Big Bear Valley, told LAist that there hasn’t been a pip — the first crack an eaglet makes as it emerges — in the third egg yet.

“ But today is the first day that it may be likely to hatch because it's only 35 days old today, and that's when they start,” she said.

What we know so far

The chicks look like little balls of gray fluff right now, but Steers said they’ll grow quickly.

They’ll be known as Chick 1 and Chick 2 (and potentially Chick 3) for now. There will eventually be a naming contest which may take several weeks, but it hasn’t been announced yet.

In the past, the final naming decision has been up to a Big Bear third-grade class. Previous chicks have been named Stormy, BBB (for Big Bear Baby), Simba and Cookie through that process.

The third and youngest egg is still considered viable, so we very well could see a third chick this season. That would be unprecedented for Jackie and Shadow but isn’t unheard of in other nests, according to Friends of Big Bear Valley.

Eagles typically don’t help the chicks hatch, as they want to make sure they’re strong enough to survive. But papa Shadow has been known to move a piece of shell or two.

Jackie and Shadow look down at their new chicks early Tuesday.

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Courtesy Friends of Big Bear Lake via YouTube

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What’s next

We don’t know if the chicks are male or female, as the only way to know for sure is with a blood test.

But once they reach around 9 to 10 weeks old, Friends of Big Bear Valley can start looking for signs to make an educated guess, including the chicks’ size, ankle thickness and vocal pitch. Generally speaking, female bald eagles are larger than males.

The chicks don’t need to eat immediately, as they absorbed the yolk before hatching, but Jackie and Shadow could start feeding them the same day.

The two newly hatched eaglets.

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Courtesy Friends of Big Bear Lake via YouTube

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The proud parents will tear off pieces of food, raw meat specifically, and hold it up to the eaglets' beaks. Bald eagles don't regurgitate their food, unlike some other birds.

The first feeds may be a bit awkward, according to Friends of Big Bear Valley, while the chicks learn to sit up straight.

When the eaglets are around 10 to 14 weeks old, they will start to fledge, which is when they take their first flight away from the nest. They’ll spend another month or three in the area before taking off to see the world.

Southern California fledglings have been seen as far east as Yellowstone and as far north as British Columbia, according to Friends of Big Bear Valley.

Watch the live feed

The backstory

All eyes have been on the nest belonging to Big Bear’s famous bald eagle couple, Jackie and Shadow, and their trio of eggs once two of them started showing signs of hatching.

The initial crack — or pip — was spotted as Jackie and Shadow switched places on the nest at 3:09 p.m Sunday. The second was spotted just before 8 a.m. Monday.

Pips have been confirmed in two out of three of the eggs.

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Friends of Big Bear Valley

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Youtube

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The news was met by excited watchers — more than 50,000 people were viewing live after the second sign.

"Congratulations Jackie and Shadow and the entire eagle family!" the Friends of Big Bear Valley posted online. "We’ve been waiting for almost 3 years. Jackie and Shadow’s previous chick Spirit pipped exactly 3 years ago to the date."

But the group cautioned that it can take "a day or more for the chick to fully emerge from the shell."

"Meanwhile," they added, "we will remain patient and hold the most positive thoughts."

Jackie and Shadow with their three eggs on February 28, 2025.

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Friends of Big Bear Valley

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Youtube

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Sandy Steers, executive director of Friends of Big Bear Valley, told LAist they have high hopes for this season after the last two ended in an empty nest.

“The livestream "has gotten more popular since then, and I'm not sure exactly why,” Steers said. “I think maybe just because so many things are going on in the world, it gives people something friendly and happy to watch, and focus on, to take away their worries about everything else.”

What to watch for with the third egg

The hatching process usually takes between two to three days and can be a tough test for the chick.

Peter Sharpe, a wildlife biologist with the Institute for Wildlife Studies and the expert behind Jackie and Shadow’s camera system, told LAist that hatching includes three major stages.

The first is called an internal pip. That’s when the chick breaks through the membrane and starts breathing for the first time.

“ So that's when you start getting some vocalizations from inside the egg,” Sharpe said.

About 24 hours later, they start the hatching process. Next, they’ll break a small hole through the eggshell in what’s known as an external pip.

But if you pay close attention to Jackie and Shadow, Sharpe said you might see signs even earlier. The adult eagles can hear a chick inside the egg usually a few days before hatching, so if they suddenly look down at the nest, they may be hearing a rustle or two.

“It's usually about 24 hours after they've made that first external pip in the eggshell that they really start spinning, and just sort of like a can opener, open up the end of the shell,” he said.

A confirmed pip site from a previous egg in 2022.

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Courtesy of Friends of Big Bear Valley

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The hatching process for a bald eagle chick.

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Courtesy Friends of Big Bear Valley

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Friends of Big Bear Valley warned fans that dirt smudges and stuck fluff may look like movement, but real pip sites should grow larger and more obvious within a few hours.

The nonprofit also cautioned viewers to avoid “Pip Watch Itch” — the urgent need to study all eggs frame-by-frame and declare every speck or spot a pip. As soon as a pip is confirmed, Friends of Big Bear Valley will let fans know.

How live images get from the nest to you

Sharpe gave Jackie and Shadow’s cameras a little makeover last fall, including new solar panels and batteries.

It runs off a 24-volt solar system with ethernet cables for the cameras, which have been programmed to move incredibly slowly — about one or two degrees per second — so as to not disturb the animals living around it.

The cameras don’t have any Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or radiation, and as an extra precaution, the closest has been covered in a smoked dome to conceal the lens.

“We don't want to disturb them in any way and have them worrying about something there moving,” Steers said. “We did have one of the chicks, Simba, when he was in the nest, he got very interested in that dome sitting up there.  He went up and started biting on it, just trying to figure out what it was, so we got to investigate down his throat and notice he doesn't have tonsils or anything.”

A low intensity infrared light helps the camera see at night, but it’s not visible to the eagles, us humans, or the nest’s recurring guest star Fiona the flying squirrel.

Jackie and Shadow welcomed two new chicks.

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Courtesy Friends of Big Bear Lake via YouTube

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The cameras are operated by three anonymous Friends of Big Bear Valley volunteers, including one in Europe who handles the late shift.

They’re tasked with monitoring the nest 24/7 and keeping fans updated on all the exciting updates, including zooming in on Shadow when he stops by with a new stick, or the eggs as they prepare to pip.

When Jackie showed up with a black speck on her feathers a few months back, the camera operators were able to show that it was just sap, putting fans at ease.

“They're amazingly dedicated,” Steers said.