Late Wednesday in Bird World

Big Red and Arthur were doing a late afternoon check on their nest on the Cornell Campus at Ithaca today.

Oh, Big Red, you are gorgeous. 19 years old and the Queen of the Red-tail Hawks.

We could just be 4 weeks away!!!!!!!!

For anyone who doesn’t think they will enjoy watching hawks raise eyases, I want to urge you to watch this couple. Big Red is often encased in snow, almost blow off the nest by winds, wet to the bone and she keeps those eggs and her babies dry! Everyone eats at Big Red’s table. Here is a link to the camera. There are two of them and one has an active chat with hawk experts at specific times of the day.

There is a new beer being launched in Scotland that will be supporting Scottish Ospreys! Now that is an idea.

https://www.bellfieldbrewery.com/blogs/news/osprey-platform-ipa-launched?fbclid=IwAR01zn5vD2Qjl9BH3b3J9jSsaTURzjvpNjPS7flDq0N-rGHwZJVBiTl5bME

So far, it seems to have been a pretty good day on the NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest. I won’t say it is a grand day but Little Bit got fed and is clever at figuring out how to do an end run around big sib. The intruders have been coming for more than a week. Parents are on constant alert and that certainly impacts the amount of food brought to the nest. But…both eaglets are fine!

Lady Hawk posted a video of Gabby giving NE27 a private feeding last night. Here it is:

It always warms our hearts when the little one is fed and happy!

There is a hatch happening at the Captiva Osprey Nest. The landowner is unclear whether to take the camera down or not. Right now it is up and running. All we can do is wish Andy and Lena our best – that this year will be their year with a successful fledging of all the chicks!

Rimu Fruit. Do you know what that is? and why it is important?

Kakapo chicks are hatching. The food that they require is Rimu Fruit. Dr Andrew Digby who is one of the leads in taking care of the eggs and chicks announced today that the Rimy Fruit is ripening. The fruit that you can see – dark purple – is high in calcium and vitamin D. Oh, this is fantastic. It means that the chicks have a better chance of survival this year!

Many of us followed the Love Trio Bald Eagles on the Mississippi Flyway near Fulton, Illinois and enjoyed how Starr worked with Valor I and II to raise three healthy eaglets to fledge year after year. This year there will be no trio. It was confirmed that Valor I is with a new female named Jolene at their own nest. Starr and Valor II remain together!

My daughter seems to have a rabbit that likes to sit under her bird feeder. Indeed, she says that this time of year she is feeding squirrels and the rabbit. So proud of her. All of the wildlife is hungry and they struggle during the winter where we live.

Thank you for sharing with us!

Today during my walk people were leaving handfuls of bird seed around the English Gardens for the squirrels and the chickadees that are currently there. We had a lot in our pockets, too!

It feels like the end of a long day. The sun is shining and there is so much snow no one knows what to do with it! It is also getting very cold. Down to -32 C in a couple of hours.

That is it for today. The Port Lincoln Camera was going on and off. Last time I checked Ervie and Dad were both on the barge in the shed and a few minutes later, our dear Ervie was up in the nest and Dad was gone. Is he going to get Ervie breakfast? I wonder. Ervie, you know that you are really lucky, right? Dad is doing an amazing job of taking care of you his big boy.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and FP where I took my screen captures: Kakapo Recovery, NEFlorida and the AEF, Port Lincoln Osprey, and Cornell Bird Labs.