Bald eagle couple Jackie and Shadow’s first eaglet has ventured out into the real world.
It was a joyful day — and perhaps one of happy tears — for fans of the Big Bear, California, eaglets, as Sunny took her first flight and left the nest.
For the past few months, animal lovers have followed the captivating journey of Jackie and Shadow, a pair of wild bald eagles. From egg-laying to the hatching of three eaglets, and now, one of their young has taken to the skies.
Three eaglets hatched in early March, though one sadly died mid-month. Since then, viewers have watched the remaining two — Sunny and Gizmo — via the Friends of Big Bear Valley (FOBBV) 24-hour livestream. On Monday, Sunny reached a major milestone when she spread her wings and took flight from the nest.
“At 10:46 a.m., Sunny flew from the upper Y-branch right out into the world,” FOBBV shared on its website and Instagram. “She caught the wind, jumped, and let those beautiful wings carry her. She circled back toward Jackie and Shadow’s favorite roost tree… Gizmo watched it all from right beside her.” Video footage captured Sunny’s leap and later showed her perched near the top of the roost tree.
FOBBV noted that Sunny may return to the nest, as previous eaglets have done — but that decision is now up to her.
By 2:45 p.m. PT, Jackie and Shadow were seen back in the nest with Gizmo, sharing food.
As of publication, Sunny had not returned.
Sunny’s flight came just days after FOBBV confirmed that both eaglets are female. In recent days, Sunny had been edging farther out onto the branches, even hovering briefly above the nest. On Saturday, cameras caught her hovering for about 2.5 seconds — a sign of what was to come.