Nestcam Notes Photos Courtesy of Eagles Online Baby Sitting How would you like to have an eagle umbrella? When it's pouring rain, an eaglet's downy feathers can get soaked down to the skin. The mother eagle's outer feathers provide good protection from rain, and in this case it looks like they're protecting her and the baby both. Notice that the part of the baby getting the most protection is its head. Just as we humans lose a lot of our heat through our heads--why wearing a hat on the coldest days is so important--eaglets can also lose a lot of body heat through their heads. So right now this little guy is enjoying the benefits of an eagle hat and eagle umbrella all in one! Brrr.....It was about 50 degrees and raining in the Massachusetts nest when the above photo was taken. Big Foot Look at this baby's big, strong feet. The feet on eaglets must grow strong and sturdy very quickly after hatching, because it's critical that the baby be able to hang on tight in powerful winds, and when the baby goes to the edge of the nest to poop. Shoulders, Wrists and Elbows Look at how this eaglet is growing, and how gangly it looks now! The bones and muscles of the wings grow before the flight feathers come in, and the wings look strangely scrawny. At this point, you can see how the eaglet's wing bones correspond to your arm bones.Can you find the shoulders, wrists and elbows? (Hold your arms in the same position to your body, to help you visualize.) Once the feathers grow in, it's much more difficult to see the structure of the wing bones, as you can tell by comparing the young eagle to its parent. The adult’s wing bones are identical, but are buried under flight feathers. Itching to Grow Up Each new feather grows through the skin, encased within a little "sheath" that looks like a small, gray drinking straw. As feathers start growing, the skin apparently feels very itchy, so baby birds spend a lot of time preening. Isn't it handy that an eagle can turn its head completely backwards to scratch and preen the back and shoulders? That both relieves the itch and helps, little by little, to crumble the feather sheaths so the feather within can unfold. Can you see how the eagle's head is turned, so its beak can scratch its back? These emerging feathers on these baby hummingbirds also have sheaths like drinking straws Ready, Camera, Action! This photo is blurry because it's an action shot! One of the parents has been sitting with the chick, and in flew the other parent, probably with food. Copyright 2003 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form