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When Shadow returned to the Big Bear nest and briefly touched beaks with Kaydee, viewers quickly called it a “beaky kiss.” But the moment did not appear out of nowhere. In the weeks before it, the two had repeatedly perched together and spent time working around the nest. So if one beak touch cannot establish a pair bond, what do those repeated behaviors tell us? In Bald Eagles, courtship and pair bonding can include shared perching and nest-building activity, and researchers judge those relationships by patterns that persist over time. That makes the larger sequence more important than the nickname: the beak contact adds a new physical interaction, while the repeated behavior around the nest is what gives it biological context.



Source: Source: Friends of Big Bear Valley, Pennsylvania Game Commission, Jenkins & Jackman

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.

What began as simple proximity between Shadow and Kaydee has gradually turned into a pattern of increasingly close social behavior around Big Bear. Through August and September, the two bald eagles were repeatedly seen sharing favored perches, roosting in the same tree, exchanging morning chortles, following one another in flight and returning to the nest together. Kaydee also began moving and carrying sticks, while Shadow continued using the same familiar territory. By September, cameras captured direct beak-to-beak contact between them—what many viewers affectionately call a “beaky kiss.” The moment is striking, but it does not by itself prove emotion or confirm a breeding pair. What the repeated observations do show is a clear progression from simply occupying the same space to increasingly frequent and direct social interaction, while Friends of Big Bear Valley still describes Shadow and Kaydee as getting acquainted.



Source: Friends of Big Bear Valley, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.

September 18 may not hold a famous milestone in Jackie and Shadow’s official history—no egg, hatch, first flight, or major nest moment is recorded on that date—but it still falls within an important time in Big Bear’s eagle calendar. Friends of Big Bear Valley considers September the beginning of a new nesting season, when another chapter gradually starts long before the familiar winter activity, eggs, and chicks arrive.

On September 18, 2024, however, Big Bear was facing something very different. The Line Fire had burned 39,181 acres and was 50% contained, while the western side of Big Bear Lake remained under an evacuation warning. Fire activity had begun to ease as humidity increased, but thousands of firefighters were still working the incident and the mountain community remained watchful. For Jackie and Shadow, there was no major nest milestone recorded that day, but around them Big Bear was living through another reminder of how quickly conditions can change in a wild mountain landscape.



Source: Friends of Big Bear Valley, KBHR Big Bear News

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.

A passing driver in Goshen, New York, spotted an injured female bald eagle along the roadside and called police, setting a rescue in motion. On Monday, September 14, Goshen Police shared the story and explained how officers responded to protect the injured bird while following the proper protocol for handling a bald eagle. Nearby residents also helped keep the area secure until a local wildlife rehabilitator arrived. The eagle was then taken to a veterinarian for examination and treatment. Police have not said what caused her injuries, but they hope she can recover and eventually be released back into the Hudson Valley near where she was found.



Source: Goshen Police Department, WPDH

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.

A new chapter is quietly unfolding at the Big Bear eagle nest in California. Kaydee has been making increasingly frequent visits, stopping at the nest, rearranging sticks and spending time around familiar perches used by Shadow. At sunrise, the two bald eagles have been heard exchanging chortles before appearing together in the Roost Tree and flying toward the Lookout Snag. Kaydee later returned alone, preened in the afternoon sun and calmly watched activity around the nest. Their growing comfort around each other has been especially meaningful to longtime viewers still mourning Jackie. But for now, wildlife observers are being careful not to label Shadow and Kaydee a new breeding pair. What is clear is that their social interactions are becoming more regular—and Big Bear has another eagle story worth watching.



Source: Friends of Big Bear Valley

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.

A golden retriever named Kenai helped uncover an injured bald eagle stranded near Lake Superior in Duluth, Minnesota. In January 2016, Kenai suddenly alerted his owner, Kerrie Burns, to something hidden near the snowy shoreline. There, Burns and her friend found a bald eagle that could not fly. As darkness fell and conditions became dangerous, they returned the next morning and followed the eagle’s tracks through the snow until they found it again. With help from Minnesota wildlife officials, the bird was safely captured and taken for treatment. Veterinarians later found a shoulder injury, dangerously high lead levels and other health complications. Kenai had not physically rescued the eagle—but his alert gave the injured bird a chance to be found and treated before the winter conditions became even more dangerous.



Source: The Raptor Center, Wildwoods, Minnesota DNR

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.

A bald eagle that once had little chance of returning to the wild is flying free again in Alabama. The bird was found grounded near Prattville with two wing fractures, embedded shotgun pellets and lead toxicity, then taken to Auburn University Raptor Center. Its recovery lasted nearly eight months and included two surgeries after the injured wing fractured again during rehabilitation. Staff worked with the eagle several times a week until it regained enough strength and mobility to fly. On August 21, it was released at Autauga Experiment Forest, only about 10 miles from where it had been found. The eagle flew to a nearby longleaf pine, then lifted off again and caught the thermals overhead—a hard-earned return to the wild after one of the center’s most difficult recent rehabilitation cases.



Source: Auburn University, WAKA Action 8

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.

Big Bear’s summer skies were filling with unexpected visitors in Big Bear Valley, California, by August 7, 2026, when several bald eagles of different ages—including a banded nearly mature bird and a younger subadult—were being seen around the valley. Why were they showing up months before the usual winter influx? After nesting season, young and nonbreeding bald eagles can roam widely, sometimes traveling hundreds of miles and stopping near lakes along the way. Big Bear’s main winter concentration historically builds from November through March, making the August–September sightings notably early. KD1, later named Kaydee, even arrived from Prado Basin. The pattern points less to winter migration and more to post-breeding dispersal bringing wandering eagles through Big Bear.



Source: Friends of Big Bear Valley, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Forest Service

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.

A bald eagle was rescued after being found barely moving at the Cook County Landfill in Cook County, Georgia, on August 26, 2026. The rescue and recovery involved the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, Quailwood Animal Hospital, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. During treatment, the eagle received intensive care, including fluids, antibiotics, and nutritional support. By the following day, its condition had improved significantly, and on August 28, the bird successfully passed a flight test. After being cleared for release, the recovered bald eagle was returned to the wild at Paradise Public Fishing Area on August 29, 2026, completing a remarkable recovery just days after it was found nearly motionless.



Source: Cook County Sheriff’s Office / Georgia DNR / U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

AI-assisted visualization based on a real event reported by trusted sources.