No need to egg these birds on
Viewers interested in a bird’s eye view of a great blue heron nest may get an eyeful as a Cornell Lab of Ornithology live-streaming camera captured a heron laying her first egg of the season March 28.
The birds have nested in a white-oak snag near the lab the last four years and have typically laid four eggs per clutch, one every two or three days. With two 24-7 live-streaming cameras, one in HD, attentive viewers may get an up-close and personal view of more eggs being laid.
Once the egg-laying drama is over, it will be another 25 to 30 days before the eggs hatch, and another seven to eight weeks before they fledge.
The cams can be streamed on smartphones and iPads. A full-featured BirdCam site launches in late April.
–Krishna Ramanujan