Love is in the air: DC's iconic bald eagle couple expecting hatchlings soon
Bald eagles Mr. President and Lotus are expecting, said D.C. Fisheries and Wildlife Biologist Dan Rauch.
The eagles gained a large following because of a 24/7 web cam that captured their activity while living in a previous nest in years past.
It's the latest chapter in a remarkable comeback story for America's national bird.
WASHINGTON - Valentine's Day may have been last month but at the National Arboretum, love is still in the air – literally.
What we know
You can expect more of the nation's bird to be flying above the Capitol before long. Reason being, as first reported by the Washington Post, D.C.'s favorite eagle couple, Mr. President and Lotus, appear to be expecting again.
"We got to see an eagle kind of standup and they shuffled their feet around a little bit, and they'll actually dip their beak down to maneuver their egg to roll it and get proper position and sit back down again," explained Dan Rauch, fisheries and wildlife biologist for D.C. "Eagles are the ultimate conservation story."
Dig deeper
Back in the 1960s, Rauch said the country was down to fewer than 500 pairs of breeding eagles in the lower 48 states. However, because of pesticide bans and conservation efforts, the eagles came back.
There are now more than 70,000 breeding pairs in the lower 48, Rauch said, and he told FOX 5 that in the District, there are at least three nests in D.C.-proper and 26 nests in the region overall.
What's next
Rauch said Mr. President and Lotus' egg (or eggs) are likely to hatch between April 9 and 11.
The Source
Dan Rauch
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