A struggling young eaglet being watched live on a webcam by thousands died last week in Maine after wildlife experts made the decision to allow nature to take its course.
Despite an outcry from Internet viewers from all areas of the United States watching webcam video of the young bird that was not being fed by its parents, wildlife officials said they would not intervene or interfere with the eagle's nest.
Although such reactions by the public are understandable, officials said, the cameras are there to observe natural processes of nesting eagles.
That can sometimes include fledglings dying from starvation or even being killed by siblings, they said.
"The nest cam is more of a mirror to reflect what's going on with all eagle nests," Maine state raptor specialist Erynn Call said. "It's not to be used as a baby monitor to intervene when we see something that makes us feel sad as humans."
Web cam operators are finding themselves in the middle between a public that wants a happy version of nature and wildlife officials who say nature must be allowed its natural course.
Jason Damata from explore.org, which runs around 50 wildlife webcams, agrees with those who say nature -- even nature in the raw -- must be left alone.
"Every year, we show polar bears that are starving while waiting for the ice to freeze," he says. "People are like, 'Feed the bears!' No, we're not going to feed the bears."
Cuddly animals can trigger an understandable empathy in people, says University of Chicago behavioral science professor Nicholas Eply.
That's especially true if a single creature is the focus rather than a larger group that may be suffering, he says.
Individual animals are often the primary focus of nature webcams, with hundreds following animals varying from polar bears to puffins to peregrine falcons.
Viewers are given close-up and personal views of the animals -- but they don't always get warm and cuddly.
What viewers of the Maine eaglet saw is not uncommon in the approximately 600 nests found across the state, Call said.
If even one of the usual two eaglets in a nest survives to leave the nest that's considered a successful outcome, she said.
So despite public outcry in response to an animal in trouble, most wildlife officials say their preferred response is to leave hands off.
"The general view is not to intervene," says Patrick Keenan from the Biodiversity Research Institute in Maine. "These are wildlife. They're not pets."
