18-19 June 2022
The record breaking rains coupled with our current heat warning mean that it feels like a rainforest on the Canadian Prairies. The songbirds are happy. The lilacs and vines have grown enough that they are providing cooling shade for the birds. The temperature drops tremendously – just like walking into the Bamboo Forest at Arashiyama outside of Kyoto – when you enter their area of the garden.
37 degrees C or 98.6 F today. Heat warning. Winter went to summer with tonnes of rain and flooding. The new normal?
Yesterday L4 was jumping all over the rails just as he had done the day before. The question on everyone’s mind was when is L4 going to fledge? Well, he flew this morning! 07:03:36. L4 landed in the trees across the street taking off from the rail where he loved to dance and jump. Congratulations! Big Red and Arthur have successfully fledged 4 hawks.
Ready…set…
Go!!!!!!!!! And L4 is off to the trees over by the Fernow Building across the street.
Rosie and Richmond’s two osplets were banded yesterday and the banders believe that they are two little boys by the leg measurements. Sweet. Today is the last day to vote on the name pairings! Here is the SF Bay Ospreys announcement:
The little Red-tail hawklet- Malala- that arrived for lunch and stayed to be adopted at the Bald Eagle nest on Gabriola Island (just off Vancouver Island) – has branched and is really growing. Consider its size compared to the eaglets and how fast it is at getting prey. Now think of Little Bit 17. ND15 and ND16 might be big but ND 17 is quick, like the hawklet, as lightning.
Yesterday Thunder and Akecheta’s triplets were on the nest together for awhile. So nice to see the Three Amigos. Beautiful, beautiful juvenile eagles.
Thunder’s sister at the Two Harbours nest of Chase & Cholyn is big and beautiful. Parents are bringing in the fish – there were three yesterday!
Spirit is a regular visitor to her Big Bear Valley natal nest. Her ‘eagle’ eyes see Jackie and Shadow coming in with fish and she is on that nest! Fabulous.
In the first image, Spirit has spotted a fish delivery. She rushes to the nest.
Those parents really have to be careful with those talons. Shadow’s beak is extremely sharp.
Whew.
It did not take long for Spirit to polish that fish off!
Remember when?
Saturday evening Mum arrived on the ND-LEEF nest and fed the three eaglets the rest of the raccoon. ND17 had a nice little crop after – he did appreciate the raccoon! 15 and 16 had some bites and left.
Sunday morning a really large fish was brought to the nest at 08:52. Little Bit 17 stole some of that fish at 09:01.
At 09:14:24 Little Bit 17 grabs more of that fish and rushes over to the rim to eat it while a big sibling stands behind him. I sure hope he got that nice tail portion!
Takoda is still branching – have not heard of a fledge at the National Arboretum nest in Washington, DC yet.
The nest of Aran and Mrs G is really getting to look like part of the field down below. All three of the chicks are doing grand.
Aran flew in with a really nice fish at 13:43! It was a lively one.
Not to be undone by Aran. Idris is on a roll and this morning he brought in a very rare Shad to the nest to the envy of all watching. Telyn was quite happy to take that whole fish and feed it to the Bobs!
CJ7 might be a first time mother but she is a really smart one. She had a nice piece of fish tucked under some nesting materials to feed the Bobs first thing this morning – they were hungry very early.
Blue 022 has proven himself to be a young but reliable Dad – several fish deliveries including this one at 15:47. Blue 022 is flying off and CJ7 is up and ready to feed the babies.
The three Bobs on the Manton Bay nest of Blue 33 and Maya are as big as Mum when she is feeding them. All bets are on for tomorrow (Monday the 20th) being banding day provided a boat and a bander are available.
Everyone is tired after a big meal.
The latest tracking for Ervie shows him staying around Port Lincoln and his unusual haunts. This comes from the 18th. Did he visit the barge?
Other quick news. News is coming from Patuxent River Park. An osplet fell through the platform because a Beaver chewed a large hole. A new platform is going up. Will follow up on this. There was a hatch at the MN Landscape Arboretum Ospreys on June 17 at 08:26:34. A pair of Ospreys landed on the Collins Marsh nest above the old fire viewing tower. I hope they do not stay. This nest needs to be removed and a new platform built with a ladder and a perch! And the pond needs to be stocked with fish for them. The fishing has been hard for Laddie and Loch of the Lowes with no fish delivery so far on Sunday. I sure hope Blue NC0 goes out fishing – the Bobs are too big to let starve!!!!!!! Has something happened to Laddie? If you watched the Decorah North nest, DN16 has fledged. The three Black Storklets of Jan and Janika have yet to be moved to their ‘forest room’. I am told it will be soon. This is the latest feeding video from Liz. They are getting their itchy feathers!
Happy Father’s Day to all those bird fathers out there caring for their mates and their chicks and/or eggs! Here is a lovely tribute from Cal Falcons – grab a tissue! Lindsay and Grinnell Jr are one of the positive things to come out of Bird World this year!
Take care everyone. It is a busy day on the nests with lots of things happening. Thank you so much for joining me today. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: SF Ospreys, GROWLS, Explore.org and the Institute for Wildlife Studies, FOBBV, NADC-AEF, Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn, Dyfi Osprey Project, Poole Harbour Ospreys, LRWT, Cornell RTH Cam, EMU and Liz, ND-LEEF, and Cal Falcons.
