Jackie has died.

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• Fri, Aug 21

  Kaydee: FOBBV names the eagle who's been spending time with Shadow

  Speaking to NBC Los Angeles the evening after Jackie's death, FOBBV media manager Jenny Voisard said the chances are high that Shadow, now roughly 12 years old, will eventually find a new mate, though the group can't predict exactly what he'll do or when. In her words, "we don't know what he's going to do exactly; we can't predict those outcomes, but there's a good chance that he would want to stay in the territory... we don't want Shadow to be alone. I don't think his instincts would let him." Voisard said visiting eagles have already been seen near the territory, and FOBBV will see whether one is around at the right time and age to potentially form a bond. The live nest cams are staying up: FOBBV has no plans to remove them. Sandy and Luna, this year's fledglings, remain unseen on camera since July 23 and are believed to have already dispersed on their own journeys. Voisard also told ABC11 that Shadow "was very set on being here when he came to the territory in 2018, so we don't know if that means he'll want to stay," and noted a juvenile eagle was seen visiting the nest area on Monday, a sign that natural activity around the territory continues. One of the eagles that has been visiting now has a name. The Orange County Water District, which bands eagles born in its Prado Basin habitat each year, says a biologist has confirmed the eagle seen spending time with Shadow is KD1. In the district's own words: "you may know her as the young eagle who's been seen cozying up to Shadow in Big Bear. But to us, she's known as KD1." FOBBV's own August 13 Eagle Log entry gives the fuller account: a banded sub-adult was first seen on their cams in the habitat on August 6, and as the days went on it began perching near Shadow in several of his favored trees. KD1 was hatched in March 2022, making her about four and a half years old, and first visited the nest itself on August 10, just hours after Jackie's death was announced, stopping by a few more times since. FOBBV is careful to note that DNA testing was not done when KD1 was banded, so her sex can't be confirmed directly; comparing her size to Shadow's, she does appear larger, and female eagles typically run 25 to 33 percent bigger than males, which is the basis for calling her female. Speaking to CBS Los Angeles about what may come next for the nest, a field biologist said KD1, now approaching breeding age, "may be looking around, looking for habitat, looking for territories," as young eagles typically do outside breeding season, but was careful to note that her presence is not confirmation of anything: there is no guarantee she or any other visiting eagle will end up paired with Shadow. FOBBV's own words capture the uncertainty well: "Is this a new bond forming between these 2? Well, it could be and it may not be, only time will tell," adding that nothing will be clearer until breeding season, later this fall or winter. The clearest sign yet came on August 13. Per FOBBV's own Live Recap log, Shadow (S) entered the nest itself at 13:40, the first time he had stepped onto the nest since July 23, with the banded sub-adult KD1 following him in; both left a few minutes later. Video FOBBV shared shows KD1 moving sticks around the nest while Shadow watched without chasing her off, and at one point KD1 leaned over and briefly preened his wing feathers, a behavior called allopreening, before the two flew off together toward the Twin Pines tree. FOBBV and outlets covering the moment were careful to note that one preening interaction is not proof of a new pair bond; nesting season begins September 1, and FOBBV says it will take time, likely into the fall or winter breeding season, before anything is clearer. The day after, FOBBV's own Eagle Log carried a warmer, quieter account. On the morning of August 14, Shadow perched on the Lookout Snag before flying off, and mid-morning the group spotted KD1 on the Twin Pines. Shadow flew over to join her, and after sitting apart for a while he hopped to a branch just below her; the two spent several relaxing hours together before KD1 flew off. FOBBV titled the entry "You've Got A Friend" and closed it by remembering Jackie: "Jackie will always be in our hearts; she has left her mark on this beautiful nest and this magnificent valley. As we think of her in every moment, we look towards the sky above us for nature's untold story in the days and weeks to come." Some news coverage of the pair has used the nickname "Katie" for the visiting eagle; that is an informal nickname some fans and outlets have picked up, not a name FOBBV or the Orange County Water District use, so this page continues to call her KD1, her official band designation. FOBBV's own Live Recap log shows the two continuing to spend time together in the days since. On August 16, KD1 visited the nest basement twice during the day, and that evening she and Shadow settled into the Roost Tree together for the night, their first confirmed overnight roost together. They did the same again on the night of August 17, and per the Live Recap log they were together in the Roost Tree once more on the evening of August 18. It is their closest, most sustained time together so far, though FOBBV has not issued a new statement calling it anything more than that; the group continues to say nesting season begins September 1 and nothing will be clearer until then. On August 19, FOBBV made it official on Instagram: they have given KD1 a name, Kaydee. In FOBBV's own words: "Generally, Friends of Big Bear Valley does not give names to nest visitors unless they have been around long-term…until now. We have chosen to name KD1 Kaydee, whether or not they decide to stay in the area. We cannot know for sure if Kaydee is a female or not, we can only observe and let nature tell us the definitive answer to that question. With that being said, we are leaning towards female." The same post recapped the days since: Tuesday evening (Aug 18) the two roosted together in a favored tree; Wednesday morning (Aug 19) they both sang good mornings to the valley, a duet that lines up with vocals FOBBV's Live Recap log logged in that same early-morning window; that afternoon Shadow flew to the Twin Pines perch tree and Kaydee joined him less than a minute later, and the two stayed on separate branches for about three hours before Kaydee followed Shadow out just two seconds after he left ("Shadow has a shadow!" FOBBV wrote); and as evening came, the two were back together in the Roost Tree. FOBBV's own Live Recap log has since started labeling her simply "K" in its cam notes, alongside "S" for Shadow. The group again cautioned that nothing about a bond is confirmed and that breeding season, which would make things clearer, does not begin until later this fall or winter. FOBBV's own Live Recap log shows the pattern continuing since that post: Shadow and Kaydee, now logged simply as “S” and “K” in the cam notes, roosted together in the Roost Tree again on the nights of August 20 and August 21, their sixth straight night together as of this writing. FOBBV has not issued any new statement beyond what it said on August 19; nesting season, and any clearer sign of a bond, remains months away.

  FOBBV Instagram · Aug 19FOBBV Live Recap doc · Aug 13FOBBV Eagle Log · Aug 13Orange County Water District Facebook · Aug 7NBC Los Angeles · Aug 10ABC11 · Aug 11CBS Los Angeles · Aug 12ABC7 Los Angeles · Aug 14KESQ · Aug 13Victor Valley News · Aug 14FOBBV Eagle Log · Aug 14FOBBV Live Recap doc · Aug 18Popular Science · Aug 19FOBBV Live Recap doc · Aug 21
• Thu, Aug 20

  A community petition asks officials to let Jackie's remains return to Big Bear

  A Change.org petition, "Preserve and return Jackie the bald eagle to Big Bear Valley," started by a local resident, Sandra Sehl, has drawn roughly 970 signatures asking wildlife officials to pause any irreversible handling of Jackie's remains and determine whether she could be preserved intact and returned to Big Bear Valley through an educational, scientific, conservation, or memorial arrangement, envisioning a permanent local exhibit telling her story. This is a citizen-organized effort, not a proposal from CDFW, USFWS, ORC, or FOBBV, and none of those agencies has publicly responded to it. The official plan CDFW announced on August 11 stands unchanged: following her necropsy, Jackie's remains are headed to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Eagle Repository, which distributes eagle remains to enrolled tribal members for religious and cultural use.

  Change.org petition · Aug 20Orange County Register · Aug 20
• Wed, Aug 19

  FOBBV: agencies are planning an October 3 event to honor Jackie

  Friends of Big Bear Valley says several agencies in the Big Bear Valley have come together to discuss an event honoring Jackie, planned for October 3. In the same August 19 Instagram post where it named the visiting eagle Kaydee, FOBBV said it is running a poll in its YouTube channel's chat to gauge how many people would attend, so organizers can plan a venue of the right size; anyone interested can vote through FOBBV's YouTube channel. No further details, including the venue or which agencies are involved, have been announced yet. This is a separate, FOBBV-organized gathering from the informal memorial a private business, Fawn Park in Fawnskin, has been hosting on its own since mid-August.

  FOBBV Instagram · Aug 19
• Mon, Aug 17

  A minor league baseball team is dedicating a game to Jackie on Aug 23

  The Ontario Tower Buzzers, the Los Angeles Dodgers' Single-A minor league affiliate in Ontario, California, announced they are partnering with Friends of Big Bear Valley for "Fly High, Jackie Night," a tribute game on Sunday, August 23 against the Inland Empire 66ers at ONT Field, first pitch 5:05 p.m. The team says 50% of proceeds from tickets bought through FOBBV's dedicated ticket link will be donated to the nonprofit in Jackie's memory. This is the team's own announcement, made in partnership with FOBBV; FOBBV has not put out a separate statement of its own about the game.

  Ontario Tower Buzzers press release · Aug 17CBS Los Angeles · Aug 15
• Wed, Aug 12

  Community support tops 20,000 donations to Jackie's care fund

  The Ojai Raptor Center's Bald Eagle Rehabilitation Campaign has now logged more than 20,000 individual donations (20,317 as of today) from Jackie's worldwide family, with tributes continuing in the days since her death. The center continues to ask supporters to give through the official campaign page rather than by calling or texting the center directly, so its phone lines stay open for animals in urgent need.

  Ojai Raptor Center donation page · Aug 12

Watch the official Big Bear eagle cams

Friends of Big Bear Valley runs the live nest cameras — the original window into Jackie and Shadow's world. Jackie herself is recovering off-camera at the Ojai Raptor Center, but the cams still show the valley she knows best: Shadow keeping watch over the territory, with Sandy and Luna stopping by.

What nobody knows yet

A trustworthy page tells you what it doesn't know. If a claim you've seen answers one of these, it didn't come from an official source.

• The single underlying trigger for her severe anemia. CDFW and ORC's own FAQ detailed a blood clot in her wing and near one kidney, plus liver abnormalities, lung abnormalities, and an inadequate bone marrow response in her final days, but neither has identified one definitive cause for her decline.
• Results of the specialized heavy-metal toxicosis test, which CDFW said remained pending as of its August 11 statement.

Little lights left by the flock

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