20 May 2026
This month brought very sad news when both eaglets at the Glen Hazel bald eagle nest became extremely ill and passed away on 17 & 18 May.
Later that day Tamarack Wildlife Center addressed many questions about the eagles’ illness and next steps (see Tamarack’s full statement at end of this article).
The information that stood out for me was this:
The eaglets likely passed from Avian Influenza. Their symptoms and the progression of the illness is consistent with Avian Influenza, and they could have contracted it from ingesting goslings and geese that had been brought to the nest as food. We cannot know for certain without testing, but this is the most likely cause based on the evidence.
— Tamarack Wildlife Center: Glen Hazel Nest Status, 18 May 2026, posted in Eagles and Eyes Wide Open on Facebook
Highly pathogenic avian influenza, H5N1 (HPAI) arrived in North America in 2021 and in eastern Pennsylvania in January 2025. A small outbreak was detected in Pittsburgh that month but did not spread widely. Pittsburgh has been largely insulated from HPAI because we are not a migratory hotspot for ducks and geese and we don’t have a lot of poultry farms.
Ducks, geese, chickens and pheasants figure heavily in the spread of avian influenza because they are most susceptible to catching it. Interestingly they are closely related and stand alone in the phylogenomic supertree (pink square below). Birds that are not related to ducks and chickens, and birds that don’t flock are very unlikely to catch the disease.
Unfortunately birds of prey can contract the illness if they eat an infected bird. Many peregrines in coastal Virginia have died because they eat a lot of waterfowl (Avian Flu is Taking a Toll on Virginia Coastal Peregrines). Our own eaglets died after eating Canada geese and goslings.
Sadly, avian flu has come home to roost.
Glen Hazel Nest Status Update from Carol Holmgren, Executive Director, Tamarack Wildlife Center
May 18, 2026 – GLEN HAZEL NEST STATUS
Our hearts go out to all who love these eagles and are grieving. We have been blessed with 100% survivorship of eaglets from the Hays/Glen Hazel eagle nests over the past 14 years, while it is typical for 30% of eaglets to not survive until fledging age.
Kudos to the Glen Hazel moderator team for promptly noticing signs of illness in the chicks and notifying Tamarack Wildlife Center’s Executive Director and Licensed Rehabilitator Carol Holmgren on Friday morning, May 15. Carol immediately reached out to Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) and Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) colleagues, to loop them in that day, and has been in conversation since then. A few updates:
• It is FWS policy to let nature take its course at eagle’s nests and only approve intervention when there is a threat to the eagles that has a clear human cause such as fishing line entanglement or swallowing a fish hook. In this instance, the eaglets were ill, but not with a clear human cause where FWS and PGC would approve intervention. Much as that is difficult for us to witness, it is part of the natural history that eagles live with daily.
• The eaglets likely passed from Avian Influenza. Their symptoms and the progression of the illness is consistent with Avian Influenza, and they could have contracted it from ingesting goslings and geese that had been brought to the nest as food. We cannot know for certain without testing, but this is the most likely cause based on the evidence.
• The adults may also have been exposed to the virus. They typically have a stronger immune system than the young birds, and may be able to fight off the virus. Time will tell. We will be monitoring them. There is no treatment that can be given while they are free-flying. If one is on the ground due to illness, it may be able to be treated by a rehabilitator.
• Our hope is that their immune systems are strong and they can remain healthy.
• Our highest concerns at this point are 1. supporting the health of the remaining adult eagles and 2. caring for the moderators and community who love these eagles.
• Now that the two eaglets have passed, PGC has had extensive discussions about the risks vs benefits of accessing the nest to retrieve the now two deceased eaglets. They have decided not to pursue retrieval, in part to not stress the adult eagles through human presence at the nest.
• There is no practical benefit to confirming that the eaglets succumbed to Avian Influenza, beyond the human desire to know. The disease is known to be endemic in Pennsylvania now and there are no management actions that would be taken with that information.
• Due to the regulations and Acts protecting eagles and their nests, any access to the nest would also require both PGC and FWS support.
• PGC will be continuing to monitor the situation. If an eaglet should fall to the ground, they may pursue retrieval and testing since stress on the adult birds would be less, and FWS approval would not be needed.
Below is the full statement shared by our colleagues in PGC today. We appreciate the thoughtfulness with which they have considered this situation, and their continued collaboration.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission (PGC) appreciates the concerns of the public regarding the eagles in the Glen Hazel Eagle Nest Cam, located in Allegheny County.
Wildlife watching opportunities, especially ones that can occur from anywhere thanks to wildlife cameras and digital technology, are a popular way for the public to learn and love wildlife.
Unfortunately, nature can be hard to watch at times. When situations occur on live wildlife webcams, including this eagle’s nest, human intervention is not always recommended or possible.
PGC evaluated the situation carefully and considered many factors including human safety and exposure to potential pathogens. Additionally, human intervention could further stress the adult eagles. Any actions must also comply with federal regulations related to the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. At this time, we have chosen to not intervene. If a safer opportunity presents itself in the future, we may pursue disease testing to hopefully determine what caused the death of these eaglets.
— PixCams Glen Hazel nest status on Facebook: Statement from Tamarack
