Southwest Florida Eagle Cam Watches for New Eggs as M15 and F23 Return After Avian Flu

The Southwest Florida Eagle Cam has fixed its lens on M15 and F23's nest. The mated pair recovered from avian flu earlier this year. Dick Pritchett Real Estate runs the camera for its 14th season, tracking this pair for their third year together.

F23 rests in the nest bowl most days, with M15 taking his turn too. Virginia Pritchett-McSpadden started the cam years ago. She says the schedule shifted from what they saw before.

"We've used that as a timeline, and we're seeing now they're on their own time schedule. Nov. 8 has come and gone, and we continue to wait for some eggs," Pritchett-McSpadden said, according to Cape Coral Breeze.

This marks their first attempt at nesting since both caught avian flu and lived through it. Last year, F23 laid what became E24 and E25 on Nov. 8 and 11. E24 broke free from its shell Dec. 14. E25 followed three days behind. Six weeks passed, then both eaglets died from the illness within 48 hours of each other. 

On Nov. 12, F23 laid her first egg of the season. Now the incubation period begins.

The nest perches off Bayshore Road on Pritchett property, right across from Eagle Landing Publix in North Fort Myers. Watchers from every corner of the planet check the site, hunting for egg signs.

Viewers can watch and follow what happens through the official SWFL Eagle Cam website.