The recent eagle-cam drama has proved that nature isn’t always pretty, but it does what it has to in order to maintain population control.

Over the course of the last few days, a nature camera covering an eagle nest in Hanover broadcast what could have been confused for a soap opera. A raptor dubbed “Lucy” invaded the nest of male Freedom and female Liberty, ousting Liberty in a fight. The nest and eggs were left unattended on Wednesday, and Lucy returned to eat them on Thursday.

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Freedom quickly took Lucy on as his new nesting partner, upsetting plenty of viewers in the process.

While the entire storyline may come off as shocking to some fans, Carbon County Environmental Education Center chief naturalist Susan Gallagher said that it isn’t surprising.

“I can tell you that I have some personal experience as a wildlife rehabilitator with adult eagles that fought with each other. I don’t think it’s that uncommon. I think it’s only unusual in that people now get a front-row seat,” she said. “It’s not uncommon for raptors to fight over mates, nest sites or territories.”

Some people, including resident bird watcher Barry Reed, were curious as to how the intruder got into the territory in the first place.

“Watching the nest in Franklin Township last year, I watched the male a number of times perched within a 100 yards of the nest, and when a red-tail, crows, ravens, or even a vulture got anywhere near his nest, mate, and young he immediately hustled in and chased the intruders from the area,” he said. “Why he allowed the other female there surprises me ... That’s one of the reasons I find nature so intriguing.”

Gallagher said that while the fighting may be a bit traumatic, it is actually a good sign of a strong population.

“When we go back to the 1980s, and we had our lowest densities of nesting eagles, I think we had only two or three nesting pairs. Now, we’re either at or near 300. The habitat can only support so many, and you reach what we call a ‘carrying capacity.’ When you get to that point, Mother Nature kind of kicks in its own population control. That’s what you’re seeing, competition for nest sites or the most suitable mates,” she said.

William Williams, information and education supervisor for the Game Commission’s Northeast Region, said that eagles tend to prefer to nest in the higher portions of pines and other conifer trees, usually within a few hundred meters of a stream, lake or river.

“With more eagles out there, there are less prime areas for nesting. There are going to be more battles for those prime nesting locations,” he said.

Gallagher explained that birds of prey reproduce according to the availability of food sources, so there are never too many eagles, owls, red-tailed hawks or other raptors. However, she does admit that this doesn’t take the sting out of the affair.

“When we start watching them on cameras every day, getting to know them and naming them, it’s a little bit harder to accept, but this happens in nature all the time,” Gallagher said.

Hopefully, with the increased attention to the nest cameras, people will become more aware of the hazards — both natural and man-made — that eagles experience, she added.

As for the fate of Liberty, no one is certain right now, but Gallagher said it is possible that she will find a new home and family.

“I don’t think there’s a lot of data on that, as far as what happens when one bird gets ousted from a site,” she said. “That’s not to say that this female who was booted won’t find a new mate and a new nest site someplace else That may very well happen too, and I’m interested in finding out, just like everybody else.”