Meet Sandy and Luna: The Newly Named Eaglets in Big Bear Valley
The two chicks in the famous bald eagle nest in Big Bear have been given names. The offspring of Jackie and Shadow, the adult eagles, are now known as Sandy and Luna. The names were chosen through a contest organized by Friends of Big Bear Valley, a nonprofit that manages a popular YouTube livestream of the nest and works to protect land in the area. The names were selected by third-grade students from Big Bear Valley, who are studying bald eagles in school.
Sandy was the most popular name submitted for the contest, with over 3,700 entries. The name Sandy is a tribute to Sandy Steers, an environmental advocate who played a key role in launching the eagle livestream and was the late executive director of the nonprofit. Sandy passed away shortly before the eggs were laid, and the organization expressed gratitude to the students for honoring her memory by naming one of the eaglets after her.
The chicks, previously known as Chick 1 and Chick 2, hatched in early April. The tradition of letting the Big Bear third graders name the chicks is a special one, and it was something that Sandy valued greatly. Jackie and Shadow, the adult eagles, have had previous chicks named Stormy, BBB, Simba, Spirit, and Cookie through a similar naming process.
The gender of the eaglets is not yet known, so the organization asked for gender-neutral names. Sandy and Luna are currently about 4 weeks old, and signs of their gender may start to show when they are around 9 to 10 weeks old. Female bald eagles are typically larger than males and have deeper, lower-pitched vocalizations. While a blood test could determine the sex definitively, it is unlikely to be done as there is no human intervention in the nest during nesting season.
Once the eaglets are around 10 to 14 weeks old, they may fledge and take their first flight. The timeline for fledging can vary, as seen with a previous eaglet named Simba who took 16 weeks to fledge. Bald eagle fledglings from Southern California have been observed as far north as British Columbia, as far east as Yellowstone, and as far south as Baja California.
Friends of Big Bear Valley is currently leading a fundraising campaign to purchase over 62 acres of land near the nest to protect it from a housing development project called Moon Camp. The organization aims to place the land under permanent conservatorship instead. The "Save Moon Camp" fundraiser is the most ambitious effort in the history of Friends of Big Bear Valley and has raised over $2.3 million to date.