17 March 2022
This year it seems that couples who have had difficulties in the last year or two are having success. I hope that this is the case with Milda and her new mate at the White-tailed Eagle nest near Kurzume in Durbe Municipality, Latvia.
On the map below you can see Kurzeme in the western region of Latvia.
Last year Milda lost her long time mate, Raimis, right after she had laid her eggs. Milda and Raimis had successfully bred on the nest in 2018, 2019, and 2020. 2021 would have been their 4th breeding season. It is believed that Raimis was killed or injured in a territorial dispute and did not return to the nest.
Milda tried to incubate those eggs in the cold weather without eating. She did so for eight full days. What an incredibly devoted mother. She had to eat and left the two eggs for approximately 5-6 hours in the cold weather of April. To everyone’s surprise, the two eggs hatched. But Milda was starving and there was little food and an on again off again male who watched the two chicks freeze to death while Milda foraged. It was a horribly sad ending for the breeding year but, much was learned about eggs and outside temperature. We also know that these big nests hold a lot of heat.
So this is a new year and Milda has laid her first egg at 18:09 on Thursday the 17th of March. Congratulations to Milda and her mate who I hope is as devoted to her as she is to her eggs and chicks.
The nest is in a forest area high up on Spruce Tree. The region is so beautiful. It will change from winter into spring before your eyes.
You can join in with all the other fans of Milda by going to the streaming cam below. There are some great chat moderators there to help you, too!
White-tailed Eagles are extremely rare in the Balkan Region. This nest has been used since 2014 and it is hoped that this year it will be successful for this fabulous Mum.
This is exciting. I am so happy for Milda. Thank you for joining me!
Thank you to the Latvian Fund for Nature for their streaming cam where I took my screen captures.
