5 October 2022
Hi Everyone,
This is a quick check in to see what is happening with a few of our nests.
The second hatch of Xavier and Diamond at Orange had its first bites of prey this morning. Goodness, there is certainly a difference in size. Diamond did a great job handling two different heights with one chick who can now see and another than can’t.
Just look at that big sibling flap its wings. Wow. What a strong chick!
The wee one is so tiny.
When eyas #2 connected with Mum’s beak and the prey, the first bite was quite a substantial one.
Both so very cute. It will be exciting to watch Xavier and Diamond with two chicks this year.
This is a video of the big sibling from the other day having an encounter with Dad and flipping over.
Yesterday it was pitching down rain in the Sydney Olympic Forest. SE29 and SE30 were having a bang-up time flapping in the pouring rain. Today, the camera appears to be down. So, we might not know if SE30 fledges or not. I suggest continually checking as it could come back online anytime.
It has been raining in Melbourne. Mum has fed the four eyases and is working really hard at being a great Mumbrella for the little ones. They are warm and dry.
Port Lincoln osplets were waiting for the first fish of the day. It looks like it will be a sunny morning in Port Lincoln turning cloudy with rain arriving around 1600. Hopefully Dad will get some good fishing in before those drops start falling.
In migration news: There is a lot of activity happening at the Mispillion Harbour Osprey platform in Delaware. And it is not necessarily ospreys! You might recall that a banded Peregrine Falcon arrived on the nest the other day drenched to the bone from the rain from Hurricane Ian. ‘H’ has been watching the nest and has been surprised to see at least one Bald Eagle on the nest today, if not two or three. They are not banded. Thank you ‘H’.
When I think of migration, Delaware doesn’t readily come to mind but I absolutely do not know why it doesn’t! After ‘H’ contacted me about the falcon and then the eagle – eagles bringing fish and turtles to the nest – I began to wonder what migration is like on the easter seaboard of the United States. Then I found this article on the birds that fly through there, some of them staying. I would also think that all birds would hug that shore, not flying out in the Atlantic so there would be tens if not hundreds of thousands of birds flying through.
Here is the video that ‘H’ made of the visit and uploaded to YouTube.
For those who are Jackie and Shadow fans, this much beloved Bald Eagle couple were working on their nest in Big Bear today.
Thank you for joining me for this quick check in. Isn’t that little one of Xavier and Diamond’s adorable — and there are two of them! Take care everyone. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Port Lincoln Ospreys, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Sea Eagles@Birdlife Australia Discovery Centre Sydney Olympic Park, and Mispillion Harbour and the Delaware DNR and ‘H’.
