Late Monday in Bird World

3 February 2024

Greetings Everyone,

Oh, I wish I could bottle up the warmth of this island and send it to all of you. The sun, the quiet, the clean air, the sounds of birds and amphibians, and all the local roosters just lift your spirits so much. One of the nicest things is eating outside! And not having to have a coat or boots on. I am feeling blessed.

Our breakfast guest was a Brown Trembler. She comes every morning and evening when we are outside. She must be related to puppy!

eBird describes thus: “A bright-eyed, hefty billed bird of forests and scrublands. Tends to hold its tail cocked up and wings drooped, especially when feeding. Typically appears almost entirely warm brown; dark above and paler below with some gray on head. Gray Trembler lacks the brown hues of Brown Trembler and has some degree of white below. White-breasted Thrasher has largely bright white underparts and a dark red eye (not yellow as in Brown Trembler). Song is a slow jumble of rich whistles and high-pitched sibilant notes. Calls include scattered whistles and harsh scolding notes.”

It is Monday and we head home on Thursday arriving on Friday. There is currently snow falling because the young man is going to go and shovel. Oh, I wish I could twitch my nose and fetch The Girls to Guadeloupe for the rest of the winter. The idea of going back to that cold is not appealing.

One of the best things about this holiday has been doing nothing. Everyone in the village is rushing around the large beach near town, Grand Anse. It is crawling with tourists. The parking lots are full. We came to be outside but have opted to stay away from the chaos. So far it has been the right decision. While I do not rush after a new bird to add to the Life List, it has happened with ease just walking through the garden here. In fact, there is a Guadeloupe Woodpecker visiting regularly. It is larger, I believe, than the Hairy Woodpeckers that visit my garden. The plumage is a glossy black with a shocking red iridescent breast.

“guadeloupe woodpecker” by abcdefgewing is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.

To some, it sounds odd to travel so far to do nothing, but nothing is perfect. As you might recall, our son lives on the island of Grenada and we always enjoy our trips there – the great food, the white sand beaches, and the birds. This trip is different. It feels good just to stop – to feel the wind and the sun on our faces and to listen to these some 290 species of birds. I just wish I could see them and that Merlin had them in their sound ID!!!!!!!!!!

Two lovely young ladies from Paris had grilled fish dinners with us sitting on the sandy beach! Talk about delicious. They even said that Donald was ‘cool’. That sure boosted his ego!!!!!!!!!!

The mantra everywhere is embrace ‘local’. The fish came with either white rice or rice and beans. The ladies have a set menu and the porc ragut and the creole poulet were already gone when we arrived. Just as well. I am not a fish lover and this fish was good!!!!!!!!

The camera is now up and running at the West End nest. Thunder is confirmed as being at the nest. There is another male eagle. Tonight I am waiting for any confirmation about Akecheta.

Visitor at the West End nest with Thunder??? It is very foggy – I can’t tell who is who. This male visitor has two silver bands, one on each leg. As the fog clears, the cam is getting some better images. It would appear that it is not our beloved Akecheta. https://youtu.be/KJN5edaYWXk?

Jak and Audacity have their first egg at Sauces laid on our anniversary 2/2.

Reminders around the Internet that Harriet disappeared two years ago today, too. 2/2/2023. M15 did such an amazing job raising E21 and E22 alone. We were so proud of him. And while we miss Harriet, F23 has proven to be an exceptional mother. We continue to send positive wishes to F23 and M15 as they recover from the loss of E24 and 25 to HPAI. May they live long and have many healthy eaglets in the years to come.

If you missed it, both eggs have now hatched at the E3 nest in the Kistachie National Forest of Alex II and Andria II.

Everything appears to be fabulous with Gabby, Beau, and NE31.

There appears to be a female interested in Jack’s outstanding nest at the Achieva Credit Union in St Petersburg, Florida. Way to woo them, Jack!

They look pretty happy. Lots of nice bark coming. Maybe this is the best nest this platform could ever wish for?????!!!!!!!!!!!

The Royal Cam chick has been switched out for another. RLK does not seem to have enough food for the wee one, so it has been placed with an adult who does. LGL is said to be some 500 km away from the nest, foraging. Send a big shout-out to the fantastic rangers in New Zealand who take such good care in monitoring the needs of these babies and act immediately when help is required. They are incredible.

And then they brought fed chick back to dad! Fantastic. I hope RLK gets to go and eat soon! https://youtu.be/Q85Zm_Iug6Y?

At Captiva on Sunday with Dasher and Dancer.

The GHO at the Pine Island Osprey nest attacked the female in the middle of the night and then stood over the eggs. It is not clear, but it would appear that the eggs are unharmed, but the female osprey might have been injured. I suggest not getting attached to this nest because of the GHO. Think Lake Murray! This owl is just waiting. That is very sad, but it is a reality. Brace yourself and hope for the best.

Harry and Harriet and eagle love in a snowy nest in Michigan. The couple had three eggs and fledged three eaglets in 2024. Looks like a good nest to watch!

You waited. We hoped that Angel and Tom were OK and here they are! The cam is back. Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/live/rBhM-FCiw_4?

Why are birds dying in a rainforest?

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/30/birds-dying-pristine-amazon-climate-crisis-aoe?CMP=share_btn_url

Thank you for being with us today. Please take care. I do not plan to post again until very late Wednesday or Thursday before we fly out.

Thank you to the following for their notes, comments, posts, images, videos and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: eBird, OpenVerse, Wings of Whimsy, IWS/Explore, Kisatchie National Forest E3 Bald Eagle Cam, NZ DOC, limn, Window to Wildlife, Pine Island Osprey Cam, NEFL-AEF, Achieva Credit Union, Great Lakes Bald Eagle Cam, Window to Wildlife, The Guardian