High in a towering sycamore tree near the Potomac River in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, a bald eagle named Bella is showing the world just how far a mother will go to protect her young. Buried up to her neck in snow, Bella remains fiercely committed to her eggs — and her resilience is nothing short of extraordinary.
Each year since 2011, Bella and her mate, Smitty, have returned to the same nest, 100 feet above ground, to raise their chicks. And each year, they remind everyone watching what devoted parents bald eagles truly are.
“The eagles are amazingly good parents,” said Randy Robinson, an instructional systems specialist with the National Conservation Training Center (NCTC), during a recent livestream. “They will sit on the eggs night and day, 24/7.”
While both parents share nesting duties, Bella takes on most of the incubation, spending about 80 percent of her time perched on the nest while Smitty handles hunting and providing food. Through freezing rain, sleet, hail, and snow — even the kind that buries her in a white blanket — Bella stays put.
As you can see here:
“She doesn’t move an inch, even in the worst storms,” Robinson said.
This early-in-the-year nesting strategy, though tough, has its rewards. Eagles lay their eggs in January or February, meaning their chicks typically hatch by mid-March — just as food becomes more abundant. It’s a calculated trade-off: endure the cold, and their young have a better chance at thriving.
Thanks to their thick down feathers and strong instincts, these majestic birds are built for such challenges. Bella’s body heat is carefully transferred to the eggs through a specialized featherless patch on her belly, known as a brood pouch.
She also rotates the eggs regularly to ensure even warmth and fluffs the grass beneath them to keep the nest soft and insulated.
And once the eggs hatch? The hard work continues. For about 12 weeks, the chicks will remain in the nest, building strength until they’re ready to fly. Even after they take flight, Smitty and Bella will continue feeding and teaching their young to survive.
The National Conservation Training Center has given nature lovers around the world a front-row seat to this breathtaking process through their live eagle nest camera. And with each passing storm and each determined glance from Bella, viewers are reminded of the quiet, powerful strength of parental love — even when it’s buried in snow.
You can watch Bella and Smitty’s nest live here.
