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
4K 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.
Latest video from Androcat. Click ‘more’ under the video to see his very important comments. This cell tower was not turned off. Repairs and maintenance of it are on hold, but it is still operating. That nest doesn’t look like a traditional shape. Sticks all over the place there.
Hello 👋 M15, and darling lady!!! You are bothering hard workers and very magical to watch. I love 💗 you both.
Thanks Mary. I haven’t finished the video but I will.
Hello, does anyone know the distance approx. from our nest tree to the cell tower where the eagles seem to want to build their nest? Thank you!
On a cell tower map, there is a 4 level cell tower at the end of Elm Rd that is licensed by 4 different organizations. That tower is in the correct direction as seen in the SWFL cam video. There is a website called ‘https://distanceasthecrowflies.com’ which can be used to calculate the straight line distance of a bird flying from the nest area to the cell tower. Here is the map from the Church of the Nazarene (by the Pritchett nest) to the 4 level cell tower.
The website calculated the distance as .91 mile. To be absolutely certain, someone local would have to confirm that this is the cell tower they’re using. There are other tv antennas in that area, but not 4 level cell towers.
The distance to the river where they also go fishing is farther from the cell tower. I circled the nest and cell tower locations in red on the attached google map. The river is at the bottom. The cell tower is farther away from the fast busy highways, so that would be better for them.
Rewind function is back on the Pond Cam. Thank you.
Testing system
No rewind with the pond cam today on YouTube or SPO.
Thanks, MaryNJ.
From 10/16: Androcat youtube video, Hooties in the old nest, courting and scouting. Yikes!!!
I hope they go back to the tree nest.
Hi Lisa. I hope so too. But if not, M will have his talons full, trying to protect both nests. Then again, if M and mate go back to original nest, will M still feel the need to protect the new alternate nest? 🤔 Both nests are in his territory.
Maybe the owls will end up taking over the old nest. I wonder if M would chase them away even though he’s not using the nest anymore.
Are owls both cavity and open bowl nesters?
Well, I tried to post two examples for you, but I don’t know if the posting is going to be approved. Yes, these owls are Great Horned Owls and GHOs don’t build their own nests. They takeover nests of hawks, ospreys, and sometimes an eagle nest.
So usually they don’t use cavities? Thanks Mary. Our SWFL experience sure has rapidly changed. I guess we won’t see a lot now.
They use holes/cavities in trees or open nests built by other raptors. Maybe we’ll end up watching owlets in the nest and eagles in the cell tower.
That would be fun!
Oh my goodness!!!
yes
That’s what I’m wondering, too.
It will really take getting adjusted on my part to see the eagles on the towers. It’s just not a look of nature…. Well, I’m not an eagle 🦅, and it’s not up to me to choose….
Hi Lisa. I agree. And so far away.
I know falcons nest on structures like that but I don’t remember seeing eagles do so.
Here in NJ for one season, we had a pair of eagles nest on the platform on top of a huge high-tension electric tower, but haven’t heard of any cell tower eagle nests in my area. They did have a successful fledge that season, but they didn’t come back for a second season. That was not too far away from the Duke nesting site. We have lots of nice big sycamore trees and woods, so they don’t need to use cell towers.
That must have been quite a sight to behold! I believe the Pritchett property also has some big trees.
Yes, they actually had a cam on top of that power line tower and it was quite a view from up there, but I didn’t hear about the nest until the eaglet was already close to fledging, so I only viewed the cam for the last month or so.