Port Lincoln Kids doing well

Many will disagree with me about whether or not birds getting pin feathers are ‘cute’. When I went back to check on the Port Lincoln osplets and their feeding times yesterday, there was this moment when all are so full they are in ‘food coma’ – passed out on the nest.

Just look at those fat little bottoms and those stubby tails! Now what is that if it isn’t cute?

The Port Lincoln kids had the following food deliveries on 2 October: 6:09:52, 9:16:15, 13:10:09, 13:59:11 (?), 16:10:51, 17:14:02, and 18:41:50.

Here are just a few images from those feedings.

This is the second delivery of the day.

Here is number three. Mom is sure being kept busy this year feeding the trio.

All lined up behaving themselves.

All lined up nicely waiting their turn, once again. No shoving, no beaking. Polite kids. This time Little Bob is in the middle but, often, now, it is difficult to tell who is who! Remarkable.

This is the way it should be and this is why everyone watching this Osprey nest in Australia should be overcome with joy. These parents are working so well together and so hard this year to ensure that each one of these chicks is successful.

Dad has been fantastic to bring in the fish. He always has a nice crop. Hoping that mom is getting enough fish from the feedings. These three sure can pack it away!

All of the chicks went to bed quite full. Dad and Mum are really helping them during this ‘big’ growth period with lots of fish. If there has been beaking, I have missed it. This nest just feels happy – and it should – everyone is doing well.

A quick check on the Melbourne Peregrine Falcon nest. I am only going to show you one image. You can see that the parents are ready with additional pigeon if it is needed.

That is Dad in the scrape and Mom behind just in case. It must have been a little overwhelming to see ‘four’ mouths instead of the usual three.

If you are not familiar with Peregrine Falcons, it is safe to say that the incidents of siblicide are minimal. That is because the chicks hatch so close to one another. It is the same with other hawks. There is always concern for the little one but, in this instance, there should be no worries. These four will be fed – a mouth open and it will get food.

There they are singing like members of a choir. The last hatch will not yet eat as much as the bigger ones and it will go into food coma quicker but the parents will make sure all get food. No worries!

I am trying to read three books at once. They are all good. Still, I hope to finish Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin’s Back to Nature. How to Love Life – and save it, soon. While the focus is definitely on the United Kingdom during the first year of the pandemic, the central core of the book can be applied to all of us. During the lockdowns we discovered our gardens, the birds, and our love for nature. Packham challenges us to take those interests and concern and bring them forward: if wildlife and the wild helped us through that abyss, then we need to help them now! Wise words.

It is another beautiful fall morning on the Canadian prairies. The sky is blue and the sun is shining bright and it is a good day for a walk around the wetlands. Hopefully there will be some interesting bird images for you later today. Meanwhile, Grey Squirrel would like his morning peanuts.

Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. And to those who have written lately, thank you. You are never an intrusion – never!

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: the Port Lincoln Osprey Project and the 367 Collins Street Falcons by Mirvac.