Tucson Animal Tails: Baby eaglet

--Arizona Daily Star, May 13, 1985

The Eaglet was born Tuesday and is 6 days old. It was artificially incubated after keepers discovered a fertile egg in a new pen for the pair of Golden Eagles which were just moved to their new location. In the past nest the Eagles had laid many unfertile eggs, but it took a move to produce a fertile egg. Also the egg was laid on the ground and not in the nest.

The new baby weights currently about 100 grams or about 3 oz. It eats 30 specially prepared food pellets each day . . . Which amounts to about 30% of its current body weight. And its appetite is increasing every day!

It will eventually inhabit the Appalachian Mountains in North Carolina. The population of Golden Eagles there is low.

When the Eaglet is 6 weeks old it will be able to move east and then will be gradually acclimated to the wild with a process called Hacking Out. It will be 2 ½ to 3 months old before it will be fully able to take care of itself.

Currently the handlers at the Desert museum use a glove specially made so that the Eaglet won’t become accustomed to humans. That is Peter Siminski’s hand doing the feeding.

The Golden Eagle is protected by federal law and our little Eaglet that now weights in at 3 oz will have a wing span of between 6-7 feet, and can live to be 50 years old.