PHOTO COURTESY OF dickpritchettrealestate.com/southwest-florida-eagle-cam/

For many, the highlight of the most interesting eagle nesting season in history of the Southwest Florida Eagle Cam, things got even more engrossing over was the return of eaglet E21, for five days after it fledged.

The eaglet then returned to the nest, allowing the worldwide fans of the Southwest Florida Eagle Cam to celebrate and breathe a collective sigh of relief.

For Ginnie Pritchett-McSpadden, co-founder of the eagle cam, it was a very happy occasion for those who keep track of the doings in and around the nest off Bayshore Road in North Fort Myers.

“We were surprised and overjoyed to see him return. It’s not uncommon for them to spend some time away from the nest because at their age they haven’t truly learned to use their wings,” Pritchett-McSpadden said of E21’s April 1-5 hiatus. “After all that has happened this season, this is a little speck of positive news.”

There was conjecture that M15 knew where E21 was and was helping the eaglet with food. There is no evidence of that, nor where E21 was, Pritchett-McSpadden said.

The homecoming was not incident free. Late that night, three owlets flew to the nest and took it over briefly, which was a first. Usually, they are a blip as they knock the eagles off their perch.

“They came into the nest looking for food and they ate a few bites of leftovers. They were there a good 10 to 15 minutes and were unguarded,” Pritchett-McSpadden said. “The owls took over a nest in the west pasture that Harriet and M15 built two years ago.”

For the next few weeks, the eaglets will remain at or near the nest as they learn how to fight, hunt for their own food and practice their flying skills.

Once they leave, things will get tough for the eaglets: They have about a 50/50 shot of surviving the first year, as their skills have not been perfected.

But the fact they even got this far is amazing — their mother, nest matriarch and fan favorite Harriet, went missing before the eaglets fledged, leaving M15 to do the job of two.

After that, it is anyone’s guess.

M15 is a bachelor again and there have been several eagles coming by the nest to intrude and maybe win M15’s heart.

“It’s been a whole season of unknowns. It’s special to see these eaglets fledge and be successful with a solo parent,” Pritchett-McSpadden said. “The next hurdle is of and when M15 will return to the nest. Will he return to the nest with a mate or will it be an entirely new couple?”