FORT MYERS, Fla. – After Harriet the eagle's first egg hatched on Saturday, thousands of viewers have been watching and waiting for the second eaglet to emerge from its shell, but experts said it's unlikely the egg will hatch.
Diana Flynt, rehabilitation supervisor at Audubon Center for Birds of Prey, said the egg was likely either infertile or there might have been a genetic or physical issue during the development process.
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Harriet laid her eggs with mate M15 on Nov. 22 and Nov. 25. The egg incubation period generally lasts 34-40 days, so when the egg reached day 41 without a pip on Monday, Southwest Florida Eagle Cam announced on Facebook that it most likely wouldn't hatch.
Eagle eggs have about a 50 percent hatch rate, so situations like this aren't unusual, Flynt said.
Harriet and M15 can still be seen on the live cam incubating the egg, but once they decide it's not viable, they will move it to the side, bury it or remove it from the area, or if the egg is cracked, they'll consume it for its calcium.
E9, the eaglet that hatched around 7:30 a.m. New Year's Eve, is doing well and can be seen during feedings several times a day. Eaglets generally gain about 1 pound every five days and will gain about half of their adult weight by day 30, according to officials at Southwest Florida Eagle Cam.
Three non-intrusive, environmentally friendly cameras placed around the nest have streamed live as Harriet hatched eight eaglets during the course of four nesting seasons.
The nest livestream is embedded below.