First eggs for Liberty and Guardian and Mr North and Mrs DNF…Sadly, Lusa has died…Friday in Bird World

16 February 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

Goodness, it turned cold on the Canadian Prairies on Thursday. The temperature is currently -16 C and will drop to -19 C overnight. We have become very spoiled by those -4 C temps that allow us to go outside. The one difference was waking up to a bright blue sky and sunshine – always an indicator of a cold day. ‘The girls’ have decided it is a good day to sleep. Indeed, they had their breakfast and piled into my bed and now, at mid-afternoon, they are still there. No meowing for food or anything. Just a cuddle puddle to keep warm. The central heating is working – but, I made the decision to roast them a chicken and the heat from the little oven is so close to the thermostat that the unit thinks the house is warmer than it is. They will survive and so will I!

Many of you have pets, and I know dog owners are always so excited when their dogs wag their tails and are eager to see them. It is, indeed, the same with ‘The Girls’ who scurry to the middle of the kitchen first thing in the morning to say hello and remind me of ‘cat food’ (gosh, I hate wet cat food). They are so precious to me. I still tear up, looking at Calico and Hope. Hugo Yugo is entirely another story. Having wished for a miniature cat all my life, the last one is! She is nothing short of an adorable bag of energy. If you are looking for mellow, however, you cannot beat a Maine Coon. Whoever lost Missey lost the calmest and most patient cat I have ever met. I continue to marvel at my luck at having all of them with me – just like you do with your pets. They keep us sane.

Thank you for your notes after hearing about Rita being in her new enclosure. Please know that you are not alone when you say that you feel she is alone or that it is also sad knowing that Ron does not know what happened to his beloved mate of so many years. I agree. I have argued that if a Canada Goose is injured, it should go into rehab with its partner, not be left alone in a parking lot, which has happened in Winnipeg. It is more difficult to capture a Bald Eagle, and I am not sure what the response should be, but we know it is stressful on the mate who does not know what happened. Ron has moved on with Rita, and they have now raised three beautiful eaglets together. He seems quite content.

Moving on to bird news – not as much today as yesterday!

Redwood Queen (190) is one of my favourite California Condors. The way she defended Iniko during the Dolan Fire in 2020 was incredible. Now, she has lost Phoenix, her partner after King Pin died in that fire of 2020.

I really encourage you to add the Condor cams to your viewing list. They are so endangered, and we need to know their plight so that we can fight for the use of non-lead in all hunting, fishing, and military uses, as it is one way they die a slow and horrible death if not found and treated.

‘B’ sent me word that Amber at the IWS (she climbs those cliffs with Dr Sharpe and puts on tags) is taking a break and Dr Sharpe is stepping in as her replacement. While I adore Dr Sharpe and his sheer dedication to the Channel Islands Bald Eagles, I do hope that there is nothing untoward with Amber and that she will be back soon!

Just look at this new platform. How do you spell wowzers?

There are now three eggs at Port Tobacco Bald Eagle nest. Wow. Three eggs! Is this a norm for this year? Congratulations Chandler and Hope.

Lots of activity with Bella and Scout but no eggs yet at the NCTC nest.

While we are waiting for eggs at some of the eagle nests still, Arthur is really stepping up the pace at the Cornell nest preparing for the Ns with Big Red. We are one month away from egg watch.

The following two images are screen captures form Heidi Mc’s video of R6 celebrating his/her one month milestone on Valentine’s Day.

Adorable family portrait.

UPDATE: Lusa died around 0322. I am keeping what I wrote yesterday evening here.

Both Cal and Lusa appeared to eatThursday afternoon. This is a very good sign as there were worries over Lusa’s foot injury. Keep sending positive energy to this nest.

Connor did a video discussion about Lusa, what might be going on, and the legal and logistical issues regarding an intervention.

Connor’s video:  https://youtu.be/0f8S8cQZRzE?feature=shared

Connor is Not concerned about the toe. The amount of blood is not concerning but, his worried about Lusa’s not eating and their lethargy. Please go to YouTube and watch this presentation. It is very informative. As you can see above, Lusa has eaten, so this is good. The video was recorded at 1000 EDT on the 15th so well before Lusa ate.

Just look at Swampy and Meadow! Thank you Cam Op for getting us these fantastic close-ups of this wonderful feeding. Both are going to pop. Isn’t this wonderful. I so worried about Meadow and all got sorted thanks to the hunting abilities of Blaze and the steadfastness of Abby.

We are 13 days away from hatch at Big Bear.

The eggs look fine. We are, as I reminded you, 13 days away from hatch. Jackie and Shadow should begin to hear their little one pecking away around the 27th. Meanwhile, continue with positive wishes while we hold our breath for these two. The world is watching and hoping for these loved birds in the Big Bear Valley.

Good gracious. An intruder landing on the nest tree is all Jackie and Shadow need right now.

Isn’t she beautiful? Mrs DNF? She is positively glowing. The first egg of the season was laid at their nest in Iowa on the 15th. Mr North came to check it out. Congratulations Iowa!

Here is the video of the first egg at Decorah. The Raptor Resource Project says: “Congratulations to DNF and Mr. North! DNF laid her first egg of 2024 today at 2:12 PM CT. She tends to lay her eggs about 72 hours apart, give or take a little, so we’ll be watching for egg #2 on Sunday, February 18 at about 2:12 PM – although it could be a little earlier or a little later. As you watch the video, listen for her soft chirps and look for egg labor beginning at about three minutes.”

The first egg for Liberty and Guardian was in the nest – and the camera stream was down.

Gary came back to show us the action on video!

The Bald Eagle streaming cam and the eagles are back for their 8th season at Lakes Folsom and Natoma. The lakes are located in Sacramento County, California.

Here is the link to the streaming cam:

Whitetail eagles are busy fixing up their nest in Rasene, Latvia.

Newmann is home at Great Spirit Bluff. Last year he finished the hob of raising the eyases alone. Marvellous Dad!

Beau and Gabby. A beautiful couple destined, it seems, to wait another year for a family together.

This makes me sick just like the raising of the ducks at the ponds and then allowing people to shoot them down as they stand. Seriously, why do we think we are so advanced over the other animals? We certainly don’t act like it!

The New Guy at Cal Falcons is yet to be named, but he showed up with some crop. Incredible. Let us hope he is as good a hunter when there are 3 or 4 mouths to feed!

More information and pictures of Rita in her new enclosure at Marathon comes from ‘J’. It is an exceptional space. I hope that those of you who live close will travel to see Rita and send back reports!

We are readying for the Great Bird Count and for spring migration to begin. Migration connects countries around the world by the flyways that the migrating birds use. We need to protect those flyways. Birdlife International looks at why nature and the flyways are important.

Remember. Please get involved in the Great Bird Count. There are not enough scientists to count the birds. They need us! So take 15 minutes a day – that is all you need – to help count! It starts today and it is not too late for you to register. I will be counting the birds that come to my garden for the next four days – join me. Count your garden birds, too!

Oh, I love it. Bradley lands on the nest with a Puffer Fish at 10:48! He has been taking lessons from his big brother, Ervie, for sure. Isn’t this fantastic? Make sure you keep tuning in. I don’t know about anyone else, but it was a lot of fun watching Ervie with those Puffers.

Thank you for being with us today. What a perfect way to end the blog – a Pufferfish back on the Port Lincoln Barge. Oh, Bradley, you just put smiles on hundreds of faces. Take care everyone. We hope to see you soon.

Thank you to the following for their comments, videos, articles, streaming cams and tweets that helped me write my post this morning: ‘A, B, Geemeff, H, J’, Ventana Wildlife Society, Wildlife at Osprey House, Port Tobacco Eagle Cam, NCTC, Cornell Bird Lab RTH Cam, Heidi Mc and the WRDC, Window to Wildlife, Connor at W to Wildlife, Eagle Country, FOBBV, SK Hideaways, Minette Murk, Raptor Resource Project/Explore.org, Vicki Jacques, Gary’s Eagle Videos, FOLFAN Eagle Can, NDF, Ashley Wilson, NEFL-AEF, Geemeff, Cal Falcons, Marathon Wild Bird Centre, Birdlife International, Cornell Lab, and PLO.