Big Bear Eagles Welcome Third Egg

Here are the morning’s top stories on Friday, January 31, 2025…

• Fans are tuning into a new season of so-called eagle TV, a camera trained on the nest of two beloved eagles in Big Bear, east of Los Angeles, that live streams 24-7. Last year ended in heartbreak when the eagles’ eggs did not hatch. Fans around the world are hoping for a better ending this time. 
• A federal judge has ruled that Immigrations and Customs Enforcement can resume detaining immigrants at one of its largest California facilities near the Mojave Desert. The ruling lifts a COVID-era ban on receiving immigrants at the Adelanto Detention facility. 
• California’s western monarch butterfly population has dwindled to a near record low.
• Southern California Edison customers are going to be helping pay off around $1.7 billion worth of legal claims against the utility. The claims come from Californians impacted by the 2017 Thomas Fire and the resulting 2018 Montecito Debris Flows.

Bald Eagles Jackie And Shadow Lay Third Egg

There is a rare trifecta for a nest on the north side of Big Bear Lake. Last year was the first time bald eagles Jackie and Shadow had three eggs at once, but none of them hatched after weeks of waiting. The eagles have gained plenty of fame over the years as their nest is live-streamed 24-7.

Sandy Steers started the live feed. “I would stand out here, no matter what the weather, for a few hours a day just to watch this little chick on the nest,” she said. “And it was beautiful to watch, and it got me hooked into all of this.” Ever since the live stream debuted in 2015, it’s gained more and more viewers from around the world.

Jackie welcomed the third egg Tuesday evening. It was three days after she laid her second egg, which was three days after the first. Three to five days apart is the average for bald eagles, according to the Friends of Big Bear Valley, which manages the popular YouTube livestream of the birds.

Steers said with the devastating wildfires across Southern California, the cam has offered a bit of relief. “A lot of people have been tuning in because they want something pleasant, something that makes them feel good, that they can smile about to watch,” she said. “People say that it gives them hope that things can recover, and nature still continues on and keeps moving no matter what kind of things are going on.”

Adelanto ICE Facility To Resume Detaining Immigrants

A federal judge ruled last week that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) can resume detaining immigrants at its facility in the high desert, one of the largest in California.

U.S. District Judge Terry Hatter Jr.’s decision lifts a COVID-era ban on receiving immigrants at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. Hatter’s ruling is unrelated to former President Trump’s immigration plans. In 2020, he ordered ICE to release detainees after finding the agency failed to properly address the outbreak.

Until a final “fairness hearing” in March to close out the settlement, the facility can increase its detainee cap to 475. The facility’s full bed capacity is 1,490, as listed on facility operator GEO Group’s website.

The Adelanto ICE Processing Center has faced scrutiny for its conditions, including allegations of medical neglect and poor mental health care. A 2019 report highlighted concerns about substandard medical and mental health treatment of detainees at the facility.

Monarch Butterflies Are On The Decline In California

California’s iconic western monarch butterfly population saw a sharp decline this year, which biologists attribute to the hot summer and fall temperatures across the state affecting the species’ migratory path.

The latest Western Monarch Count by Xerces Society recorded 9,119 overwintering monarch butterflies — those that travel to warmer climates in the winter — in California, marking the second-lowest population since tracking began in 1997. This sharp decline follows three consecutive years of over 200,000 monarchs and remains well below the millions observed in the 1980s.

“The specific drop we saw this year largely attributed to the really hot temperatures and the drought that we saw across the West in July, somewhat into August and again in September and October, when that migratory generation should be making its way to the overwintering sites,” said Emma Pelton, an endangered species biologist with the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

The western monarch population, which migrates separately from eastern monarchs overwintering in Mexico, relies on California’s coastal tree groves for shelter. Experts say voluntary efforts like pollinator gardens have helped prevent even steeper declines but that broader policy changes are needed.

SoCal Edison Allowed To Raise Rates For 2017 Blaze

State utility regulators on Thursday approved a settlement that will require Southern California Edison customers to foot about $1.7 billion in claims from the 2017 Thomas Fire and the resulting 2018 Montecito Debris Flows.

The company’s equipment, investigators previously found, caused the December 2017 fire, which burned more than 280,000 acres in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, killing two people. Rainfall the following month led to debris flows that killed 23 people.

The settlement comes as Edison disputes evidence that its power lines may have ignited the Eaton fire in Los Angeles County earlier this month.