Second Hilton Head eagle egg hatches, nest now home to two eaglets. Watch them grow here
The wait is over for fans of Hilton Head Island’s beloved bald eagle pair.
George and Gracie’s second egg hatched at approximately 10:03 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 30, bringing a second eaglet into the nest, just in time to ring in the new year.
The first visible “pip,” or crack in the shell for eaglet number two, was spotted late Monday night, signaling that the hatch was imminent.
The first eaglet hatched in the early morning on Monday, Dec. 29, and with the arrival of the second eaglet, Gracie and George are now caring for two hatchlings, marking another milestone in their 14th nesting season together.
For those interested in watching the eaglets grow, folks can view the nest on the Hilton Head Island Land Trust’s live eagle cam.
What’s next?
The siblings are expected to grow rapidly. Bald eagle chicks can gain nearly half a pound per week during their first two months of life, requiring frequent food deliveries from both parents.
Once the eaglets are about five weeks old, they can begin standing and tearing up their own food. Gracie and George will continue to feed them, and as is typical in eagle nests, the eaglets may engage in sibling competition for food, a natural behavior known as “bonking.”
By eight weeks, the eaglets will start stepping out onto branches on their home tree and eventually fledge from the nest.
Gracie laid her first egg on Nov. 21 and the second on Nov. 24, placing both hatch dates well within the normal incubation window of about 35 days. The timing aligns more closely with the pair’s historical nesting patterns after last season’s late egg-laying.
Viewers can continue to watch the eagle family grow on the live eagle cam.
