Eyes on eggs: ‘Pip Watch 2025' will soon begin at the Big Bear bald eagle nest

There will be more pinecones than paparazzi present at this special Southern California spot, and while a red carpet will be lacking, a bounty of sticks and bits of forest-y fluff will more than make up for the omission.

It's true that something special is set to sparkle in Hollywood March 2 — the 97th Academy Awards, of course — but a pair of world-famous superstars located about 100 miles due east of the ceremony will be simultaneously capturing thousands of hearts.

The envelope, please: We are, of course, turning a celebratory spotlight on Jackie and Shadow, the bonded pair of bald eagles of Big Bear Lake.

The famous birds won't go home with a gleaming statue as March 2025 begins, but the duo may find themselves with a brand-new chick, or two, or three, if the clutch of eggs they've been tending for several weeks proves to be viable.

For March 1 marks the beginning of Pip Watch, an exciting moment for those bird enthusiasts observing the pair's fascinating day-to-day lives courtesy of a nest-close camera.

A pip is the small opening that first appears on an egg when a chick begins to make its hard-earned exit. It's not just the shell they must fell; there are inner membranes to contend with, too, making an eaglet's age-old egress an impressive feat.

The start date for Pip Watch 2025 wasn't randomly chosen, of course; the incubation period for Jackie and Shadow's past eggs has lasted a bit longer than 35 days, which is about the length of time it takes a bald eagle egg to hatch.

Jackie laid her first 2025 egg Jan. 22, with egg #2 following on Jan. 25 and egg number three arriving Jan. 28.

The Big Bear bald eagles practice delayed incubation, which means that if a pip is to form on one or more of the eggs, it may not happen right at the 38-day mark.

The 38th day after the first egg is laid has been the sweet spot for the Big Bear bald eagles in the past, though, again, nature is on its own schedule.

Pip Watch generally extends over a few days, with thousands of fans actively searching for that first tiny mark on the egg's surface.

Which, yes, might be a smudge or smear or dirt. But no shame should be felt, feather fans, for it is easy to get excited by the most minute mark appearing on an egg when Pip Watch fever hits.

In fact, pretty much every Jackie and Shadow follower, even those who know patience is key, can succumb to Pip-Watch-itis, something that results when each microscopic blemish on an egg can raise a hope-filled viewer's heartrate.

A lighthearted warning should be included here, however: It may be hard to step away from the screen once Pip Watch commences, for every time the incubating eagle briefly rises from the eggs — and both Jackie and Shadow take their turns keeping the eggs toasty in eagle-tarian fashion — you'll want to sneak a peek at any pips.

Friends of Big Bear Valley, the nonprofit nature organization that operates the nest camera, offers regular updates about the birds that are both engaging and educational, if you need a guide during this exciting time.

A recent social media post from the group revealed how an eaglet exits an egg, an admiringly arduous process that doesn't happen all at once or even in especially fast fashion.

Surely the arrival of an eaglet, or three, is worthy of a shiny statue or a red carpet.

Still, we're fairly sure Jackie and Shadow are glad to stick with their sticks and home in the sky as they await the arrival of any babies.