Watch the Southwest Florida Eagle Cam (SWFL) from Southwest Florida and follow M15 at the famous bald eagle nest. Use the Pond Cam link below to watch on YouTube. Cam 3 and the 4K cam are currently offline. You can also find season updates, nest history, and FAQs here.
2025–2026 Season at a Glance
- E26 hatched: December 18, 2025
- F23 last seen: February 27, 2026
- F23 presumed dead: March 4, 2026
- E26 fledged: March 10, 2026
- M15: remained in the territory as E26 became independent
Latest SWFL Eagle Nest Posts:
Pond Cam
Nest View
Southwest Florida Eagle Cam
Typical Season Timeline
- Nestoration: late October-November; sticks, rails, soft grass & moss
- Egg window: typically November, with increased nest work and time near the nest bowl
- Hatch window: about 35 days after an egg is laid
- Fledge window: about 10-12 weeks after hatch
- Post-fledge: young eagles continue learning to fly, find food, and become independent
Read more
2025-2026 SWFL Eagle Season Recap
- Egg #1: laid November 13, 2025, and hatched December 18 as E26.
- Egg #2: laid November 15, 2025, but did not hatch.
- F23: last seen February 27, 2026. On March 4, nest operators announced that she was presumed dead after credible reports of a deceased eagle found less than two miles from the nest.
- E26 fledged: March 10, 2026, at about 6:32 p.m. ET.
- M15: continued delivering food and defending the territory as E26 developed into an independent young eagle.
Meet M15 & Remembering F23
- M15: A veteran bald eagle known for his nest building, hunting, territorial defense, and dedication as a parent. In 2026, he continued caring for E26 after F23 disappeared.
- F23: M15’s mate during the 2025-2026 nesting season and mother of E26. She helped raise E26 until her disappearance in late February 2026 and was presumed dead in early March.
How to Watch the SWFL Eagle Cams
- Watch the Pond Cam: Use the YouTube link above to open the stream in a new tab.
- Playback: On YouTube, select the full-screen button for a larger view. When rewind is available, use the playback bar to catch earlier activity.
- Audio: Make sure the YouTube player is unmuted if you want to listen. Wind can sometimes mask vocalizations.
- Local time: The nest is in Southwest Florida and operates on Eastern Time (ET).
SWFL Eagle Nest History & Notable Moments
- Nest building: Watch for M15 carrying and positioning sticks, grasses, and other nesting material as breeding season approaches.
- Food deliveries: Fish are a major part of the eagles’ diet, along with other prey found throughout Southwest Florida.
- 2026 milestone: After the loss of F23, M15 continued caring for E26 until the young eagle fledged on March 10, 2026.
- Wildlife visitors: Other birds and wildlife can occasionally appear around the nest tree and surrounding habitat.
Southwest Florida Eagle Cam FAQs
Q: How can I watch the Southwest Florida Eagle Cam?
A: Use the Pond Cam link above to watch on YouTube in a new tab. Cam 3 and the 4K cam are currently offline.
Q: What happened to F23?
A: F23 was last seen on February 27, 2026. On March 4, Southwest Florida Eagle Cam operators announced that she was presumed dead after credible reports of a deceased eagle less than two miles from the nest. Definitive identification was not possible, but the location and timing led operators to conclude that F23 had most likely died.
Q: What happened to E26?
A: E26 successfully fledged on March 10, 2026. M15 continued providing food and protecting the territory as E26 became more independent.
Q: When do Southwest Florida eagles usually lay eggs?
A: Egg laying at this nest typically occurs during the fall nesting season, often in November. Bald eagle eggs generally hatch after about 35 days of incubation.
Q: What are the best times to watch the SWFL Eagle Cam?
A: During active nesting season, sunrise and late afternoon can be especially active periods for nest work, food deliveries, and eagle visits. Activity can occur at any time of day.
Q: Are the SWFL eagles wild?
A: Yes. The Southwest Florida Eagle Cam documents wild bald eagles living and nesting in their natural environment.
- Get email updates for major SWFL Eagle Cam events, including eggs, hatches, and first flights: Sign up for our newsletter.
The live videos are provided by Dick Pritchett Real Estate on YouTube(see video for link).
I stumbled upon the new location for the SWFL Chat and Nest Updates/Activity. Don’t know if we’ll be needing this because it looks like the female hasn’t brought any branches, but M15 brought three of them on a couple of days in September. Seems like she either doesn’t know that she is supposed to help build the nest, or she doesn’t want to use the nest on the Pritchett property and is bringing sticks somewhere else.
Chat will be to the right of the 4K cam in YouTube.
The Nest Updates are in a Google spreadsheet. To view the updates, click on YouTube from the 4K cam above. Then under the 4K cam in YouTube, click ‘more’ to expand the text.
Click on the link for the Nest Updates. At the bitly web page, click the ‘Continue to Destination’ button.
The Google doc containing the Nest Updates is displayed. You can save the URL at the top to go directly to the Google doc in the future. The latest update is at the top of the doc, and you can scroll down to see all of the activity since August 25th.
That is a great feature, thank you Mary for researching out all this info for us.
you’re welcome, Debbie.
Thanks Mary! At least we can read about them even though we might not see them much.
you’re welcome, Tremals, and they probably won’t have to worry about owl attacks way up there.
That will be helpful.
Thanks Mary! That is a good thing.
I don’t like those rolling, constantly moving chats on YouTube. Hundreds can be on those at a time. I might try to read a little, but I won’t sign up or participate.
I don’t sign up or participate either. I only scroll back to read through the chat comments if I’m looking for more information about something that happened at a particular nest site.
I do exactly that.
I dont like those chats either. I dont know if i will watch this nest like i used now with the changes.
Oh I don’t like this new format on YouTube for this camera😭😭 all good things must end so they say
I guess we will just have to wait and see. Fingers crossed. Could be the season might be a littler late, probably wishful thinking.
Fingers and toes crossed. 😀
My toes are naturally crossed so I will do my part! 😁
😆
Yes and the owls are still around, so I’m sure they’re excited. I sure hope nobody gets hurt and especially M-15 trying to defend his territory. and will she even help him defend it?😢
While she was bonding with M, she was learning the territory and making it her own as well. I would think that she will defend it, especially if they have eggs or eaglets in the nest.
10/11 video – M and female at the nest tree, osprey fishing, another branch broke and fell down from the nest tree…sigh. 😞Thanks to Lady Hawk for keeping everyone informed.
I’m just really upset we can’t see the cams here. This was my first SPO site. 2016. It is just not the same to see the cam in one place, chat in another.
I agree Debbie. It’s very disappointing.
They aren’t on the Pritchett’s page either. It directs you to You Tube.
Vicki, Where is the Pritchett website/home page? I can’t find the link to get into it. That’s where they had the nest updates and another informative chat in addition to the cams.
http://www.southwestfloridaeaglecam.com/
Thank you, Vicki
I know, I used to like to get summaries on Pritchett’s site.
And sometimes if something happened like an owl attack, information about it or links to a video of it were posted in the chat on Pritchett.
I wonder why they changed so much? Maybe they are tired of the time involvement. But why if they put it on YouTube did they stop letting sites like SPO use it?
Maybe. Pritchetts may have been paying a software company to maintain their website. People can always chat on the Facebook website, but not everyone is on Facebook, so that’s not a great solution. With the tree falling apart like it is, the nest may stay empty. If they nest here and a big storm passes through, it could endanger the eaglets in the nest. There are not many branches to shelter the nest from the wind or sun. Last season when in the nest, E26 used to sit in the shade produced by the camera. It’s a shame because it’s… Read more »
I think I was wondering about the nest site even before the 2024 hurricane, but all the damage in 2024, I really thought this nest would be done. Then lo and behold, we had eggs, an hatchling, F23 died, and a fledge. So, guess we will see. I’m happy we now how 2 cams working above. Maybe the eagles will build another nest in another tree on the property. Stay tuned for a new episode? Maybe the cam will be relocated if the nest is on their property. We would be out of luck for a closeup nest cam, but… Read more »
I think I read that the Great Horned Owl has a nest nearby, so the eagles have to be cautious if building an alternate nest in the area.
Because it might be hard in a denser area to see the owl coming?
If they build a nest too close to that of the GHO’s nest, there will be constant owl attacks when there are owlets in their nest, which can be a threat to their eaglets.
Got it!
It definitely is more inconvenient. Takes more time to go back and forth between the two websites.
I have to go through a commercial on YouTube. It isn’t all that long but a nuisance.
I don’t know why, but I don’t get a commercial. The video starts right up for me when I go into YouTube from the cam above and click on the cam in YouTube. I’m using a computer with Firefox browser.
Maybe I went directly to YouTube? I’ll be sure to click above instead.
If you go through YouTube you will get commercials. That’s how they keep it free for people to use. The ads pay the fee for the publicity.
Thank you Vicki.
Some nice close up video of M and his female friend on 10/8 by Androcat.
Thank you!!! Sweet. The horse 🐎 in the pasture is always an additional blessing!!!
M15 and his female friend were at the nest tree, but no nest work was done. M15 relaxing at the pond.
Thanks Mary. I wonder what will happen here.
You’re welcome, Debbie. That’s a good question. Only time will tell.
M-15 visited the nest tree today! Still as handsome as ever. Video by D. Morningstar on YouTube.
Also, there is a video by Yoikofrog on 10-6 of M-15 at the pond and the nest tree. He looks SO good! He did not take a bath, and he did not sit on the U-branch. More like he was just taking it all in.
Thanks Karen.
I used to read the nest updates that were posted on the Pritchett web site, but I don’t see the Pritchett web site. I wonder if the Pritchetts are planning to bring their website back up.
I really wish Pritchett would bring their cameras back up!!!!
Hi Mary, It doesn’t look like they are going to.
Thanks HNF. It seems that there is some uncertainty about M15 and his new female using this nest again, so maybe that is why they decided not to bring up the Pritchett website.