Category Archives: Big Red and Arthur

Hatches, eggs, and full crops…Monday in Bird World

13 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

Lots of things happening on Sunday. If you missed it – I sure did – Mum and Dad had their first hatch of the season at the PSEG Osprey platform in Patchogue on Long Island early Sunday morning. Thanks, ‘MP’.

Oh, that baby is so tiny!

And now it is Monday morning and we have hatch two at Patchogue – I didn’t miss this one! Dad was right there with a big fish for Mum and both of the babies.

Farther north, Dory and Skiff laid their second egg at the Audubon Boathouse.

Iris laid her third egg (the first one got kicked out of the nest) on Sunday. Iris and New Guy are incubating two eggs now.

Iris is happy. She is getting 2 or 3 nice fish a day! Glad to see this guy is keeping up with his end of the bargain and you-know-who seems to be staying home.

After the loss of Laddie and her eggs, Blue NCO returns to her nest at Loch of the Lowes on Sunday. Geemeff adds, “Approx 18.30 Calls are heard off camera, then NC0 appears. She’s been absent for a few days, staying away more frequently since dear Laddie’s untimely death and the destruction of their eggs by the Pale Male on 7th May. She flies onto the nest and perches, moves onto the nest, calling. Then a male appears, not the Pale Male but the new Dark Male who’s also been hanging around. He doesn’t have any fish so she quickly gets rid of him, and departs herself around 7pm.”

On Sunday, the first fish came early and good thing. It was hot and I have not seen another for a number of hours. ‘H’ and I both watched that 0607 feeding. ‘H’s notes: “I counted bites, but as it turned out, I did not need to.  Little ate first, and one of the older ones joined in several minutes later.  There was no beaking.  The third sibling joined in later, and again no beaking.  Little was sort of crowded out, but not pushed out.  Later, Little pushed his way back to the feeding line and the three osplets ate peacefully side by side.  Unbelievable!  There was still a little bit of fish remaining at 0641, but Lucy had no takers, as everyone was full.  (if you’re counting…Little ate 114 bites of fish).” That is a good start to what looks like a hot, hot Sunday.

I just feel very unsettled about Lake Murray and the third hatch. I want to be proven wrong.

Ah, it is the end of the day at Lake Murray. Kenny brought in a big fish. Just look at three’s crop. A good start to the day, a not so good at all middle, and a good ending for our little one.

‘H’ agrees! “Lake Murray ended on a high note, 183 bites for Little at the last meal.”  And this is her full report for the day: “

5/12 Lake Murray osprey nest:  Little (C3) has a very difficult life.  His/her two older siblings (C1, C2) are so much bigger, stronger, and dominant.  They are 21, 19, and 16 days old on 5/12.  Big and Middle both pick on Little, but I think Big is responsible for most of the attacks on Little. 

The first meal of the day, at 0607, was a complete surprise… in that it was peaceful!  Go figure.  Little ate first and had a long private feeding before the other two sleepyheads even got ‘out of bed’.  After a long while, Big and Middle joined in the feeding and there was harmony!  I was in shock… I couldn’t believe Little’s good fortune.  Thank goodness for small miracles.  Little ate 114 bites of fish at this meal.  After that, the day went downhill quickly for Little.  Kenny would bring 5 more fish to the nest that day.  At the first four of those meals, Big and Middle were merciless… attacking Little multiple times to keep him from eating.  Some of the attacks were quite brutal.  At meals two through five, Little ate 0, 2, 6, and 1 bite of fish.  Then, at 1800, the last fish of the day… Kenny delivered a large whole fish.  I knew that the size of the fish, especially late in the day after Big and Middle had been stuffed all day… would significantly improve Little’s chances for a good meal.  Little did not get to eat right away.  He was beaked and kept from participating in the meal.  At one point both of the larger siblings went after Little simultaneously.  At 1816 Lucy did something very cool… she moved the fish all the way across the nest to where Little was, and Little was fed 14 bites before he was attacked.  It was not until 1832 that Little ate his next bite of fish, in fact he managed to eat 12 more bites before he was savagely attacked by Big.  Slowly but surely, the two older chicks were getting full.  Little would sneak up to Lucy and get a few bites of fish here and there whenever he could.  By 1850 Little was receiving a mostly private feeding.  Lucy was feeding as quickly as she could, and Little was often seen crop-dropping.  Little ate until 1906, and had eaten approximately 183 bites of fish at this meal. 

I really like this ‘kid’.  Little has a determined nature about him, and it seemed that he was always scheming to find a way to get back to Lucy to be fed.  Little reminds me of Tuffy at Moorings Park.  One big difference is, Tuffy only had one older dominant sibling to contend with, while Little has two.”

Sure nice to see that top on Three. Thank goodness for those late day big catches.

I keep saying that Harry and Sally have the most beautiful osplets. It is the richness of those deep espresso-black feathers set against that gorgeous landscape. Tuffy survived Ruffie. Sometimes you have to look several times to tell which one is which now.

‘H’ reports on Captiva: “5/12, Captiva osprey nest: The siblings are 19 and 17 days old on 5/12.  There is no question that CO7 is dominant, and behaves aggressively toward its younger sibling, generally making life quite difficult at times for CO8.  Many times CO7 gets quite a bit more to eat at a meal than CO8.  But, by the end of the day CO8 will usually have his/her crop filled a few times.  CO7 seems to calm down a bit by the afternoon, and that improves CO8’s chances for a good meal.  Yesterday evening however, CO8 took advantage of CO7’s improved demeanor and CO8 started a fight!  Those fights never turn out well for CO8…s/he will learn, lol!

First-time parents, Edie and Jack, have proven to be wonderful parents.  Jack is a good provider, supplying the nest with ample fish.  And, Jack often participates in the feeding of his offspring.  On 5/11 there was a long dual feeding, where Edie fed CO7, and Jack fed CO8.  On 5/12 Jack fed CO8 a long private feeding from 17:03 to 17:21, until CO7 (displaying his Dr. Jekyll persona) sidled-on-up beside CO8, and the two temporary besties ate side by side, fed by Papa Jack.  Both osplets ended up with good crops.

This nest is doing well, although there are times when I’m sure CO8 would beg to differ!”

We now have a full clutch for the Seili Osprey nest in Finland. Way to go Hildur.

There is at least one egg at the Juurusvesi nest also with Ania and Bartek.

The third egg hatched at Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home Ospreys on Sunday.

The first hatch happened at the Outerbanks nest some time over night.

Hatch at Carthage!

There is still no sign of a pip in the second egg at Rutland’s Manton Bay nest of Blue 33 and Maya.

Dorcha shows off her gorgeous plumage and wings while she waits for the eggs to hatch at Loch Arkaig.

At Frenchman’s Creek, an adult was on the nest feeding one of the fledglings. Later a fledgling was on the nest alone. It is impossible to know if it is the same fledgling or if both juveniles were at the nest on Sunday.

The Venice Golf and Country Club Osprey cam was offline on Sunday every time I checked. The same was true for the University of Florida-Gainesville Osprey cam. Very disappointing. They got a new camera this year and it is terrible.

Big Red is always a pick of one of my favourite raptor mothers. She is just in her glory when there are chicks in the nest.

The nest of Ruth and Oren looks so tiny to me compared to the sq footage of Big Red’s penthouse. You can see the ‘ear’ of the hawks. Look below the eye in the top image at the little black circle. It will be covered with feathers.

Did you know about this Red-tail Hawk nest at Wake Forest? Look at the different ages of the three in terms of their feather development.

The only word is ‘adorable’.

Oh, goodness. They are self-feeding!

‘A’ loves these little ones: “The 11:31am feeding at Cal Falcons this morning (12 May) was yet another of Annie’s perfectly shared efforts. As always, the chicks got to the table in their own time and order, with the youngest taking a while to wake up (at which point it immediately grabbed centre front position and began eating voraciously, as always) and one of the older chicks didn’t join in until last of the four. But despite this, Annie managed, as always, to share the food with such perfection that the four ended up with crops of almost identical size after the feeding. All were bulging in that rather ugly manner, where there are not enough feathers to cover the large bulge, and Annie’s job was done for another few hours. They are eating less often, as I mentioned, but are polishing off entire birds at a meal now instead of having leftovers. There is rarely anything remaining. This time, though, when the meal ends just before 11:43, there are a couple of bones left on the scrape, a little bit of juicy-looking flesh attached, presumably for the chicks to begin nibbling on themselves. Chick number three has a go, and the youngest, behind it, is fascinated by the sight, peering over to watch closely what its sibling is doing.It’s easy to see who is the smartest eyas in this scrape. (To be honest, it’s been obvious from the beginning – this little one has been a dynamo since day one.)  These four are doing superbly well. They spend most of their day growing with all their might, but they are starting to get more curious about the world beyond the scrape. Those feathers are coming in nicely, and they are starting to stand up and attempt to walk a few steps on their feet before reverting to their tarsi. I just cannot believe they will be banded in only three days.”

Larry’s chicks benefit from Larry having learned how to be a great Mum from Annie.

If you need to understand the words ‘hope’ and ‘resilience’, look no further than Jak and Audacity at the Sauces Canyon Bald Eagle nest.

The adults at Decorah North are showing the eaglets where to go to branch. It will not be long!

Reign and Manini are looking really good at the Fraser Point nest of Andor and Cruz.

The baby at Little Miami Conservancy ended the day with a really nice crop.

The trio at the West End nest of Thunder and Akeheta are eating well. Check out this ‘ps’.

I ‘think’ this darling is little Treasure.

Look who is on the JB Sands Wetlands eagle nest on Mother’s Day! So nice to see you JBS20. Aren’t you lucky? Someone brought you lunch!

Precious storklet of Bety and Bukacek.

There are four storklets on the streaming cam at Knepp Farm in the UK. In 2020 the first white storklets from the rewinding programme hatched at Knepp Farm. They were the first wild chicks hatched in Britain in 600 years! The last nesting pair were seen in Edinburgh in 1416. No one knows for certain why they completely disappeared but they were on medieval menus, they were killed for food, and what about their feathers? Maybe egg collectors, too.

The adults, Anna and Bartek, stay in the nest at night together with their storklets.

Things are getting busy at Sydney. ‘A’ reports:

“May 12: The eagles appeared to have been at Goat Island last night, and were heard duetting early, at 7:15am. They were seen leaving at 10:30am and were seen shortly after at Burns Bay and then heard duetting. Mid-afternoon, at 2pm, Dad showed up at the nest, followed shortly after by Lady. They flew off and then returned just after 5pm. Both were then at home for the night.”

Oh, how I do love Swifts.

Birdwatch-the-invincible-swift-effortless-master-of-the-air-Environment-The-GuardianDownload

Last year our hearts broke for Little Mini at Patchogue. She had survived being the tiniest little fourth hatch and then she injured her leg. Many knew the story of Ma Berry and we have seen other raptors that have survived with disabilities. ‘Geemeff’ sent me the following article. We really need to think inclusion not euthanasia. This is the story of a shorebird, a wading bird, with only one leg that is doing just fine, thank you.

Rare-wading-bird-with-one-leg-spotted-at-Northumberland-nature-reserveDownload

Good Night Gabby and Beau wherever you are.

Thank you so very much for being with me today. Take care everyone. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, images, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, H, MP’, Birdy Isac NY, Audubon/Explore, Montana Osprey Project, Geemeff, Lake Murray Ospreys, Moorings Park Ospreys, Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home Ospreys, LRWT, Frenchman’s Creek, Cornell RTH, Syracuse U-RTH Cam, Amy Bonis, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, Parks Conservancy, IWS/Explore, Raptor Research Project/Explore, Little Miami Conservancy, JB Sands Wetlands, The Guardian, Chronicle Live, Knepp Farm, Window to Wildlife, Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, Outerbanks Ospreys, Finnish Osprey Foundation, and NEF-AEF.

*Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to thank those who supplied information, images, etc, for my post this morning. If there is an error or omission, please let me know!*

Mason fudges and gains control…Sunday in Bird World

12 May 2024

I wish all mothers—that is, anyone in the world who has ever cared for another living, breathing soul (feathered, furred, gilled, scaled, or human)—a very happy day today.

Ah, it was hot on Saturday, but the skies were clear, and it was a good day to head to Delta Beach – or so I thought – when I left the City. The wind began to pick up as I neared the wetlands at the south end of Lake Manitoba. By the time I was on top of the lookout tower, they were so gusty that it felt like one could be blown to Oz. The wind and the heat did not do much for bird watching. The Black-winged and Yellow-headed Blackbirds and the Robin and Song Sparrows were out. A few geese and ducks and a pod of American Pelicans were flying overhead. The Bald Eagle in the nest was hunkered down tight and the frogs were so loud you could not hear a thing. It was a long drive there and back with onerous black clouds overhead and heavy rain on and off on the return.

Pelicans flew overhead.

A Common Tern has a small fish.

A female Yellow Warbler liked to play hide and seek with me in the thick of the tree.

The Killdeer ran up and down the beach in front of the Bald Eagle’s nest.

If you squint you can just barely make out the head of the adult on the nest. This nest makes me really nervous. It is not supported on one side.

Before I left, I checked on the third hatch at Lake Murray. It had some of the first two fish and on my return I did a quick recent check and the little one had a crop.

Felt relatively satisfied that the little one had done alright.

I did a few nest checks in the early evening, but the girls feel a tad neglected, and Calico has stretched out on top of the book we are reading. She is sending a loud message – as loud as Mr Crow, who quickly tells me that the hot dog dish is empty and needs replenishment. What a character they both are! I have noticed that I am later in sending out my post in the summer so, a warning that the post will go out by noon – Winnipeg time from now until the fall. (So you don’t worry that something has happened…you are all so sweet).

‘H’ sends us an exciting report that Mason fledged and then recovered and flew back to the nest. Way to go, Mason!

Two other updates from ‘H’: “

“5/11, Chesapeake, Kent Island osprey nest of Audrey and Tom:  Audrey laid the second egg of her second clutch at approximately 18:30.  Unfortunately, the egg was broken either during laying or shortly thereafter.”

“5/11, Fortis Exshaw osprey nest of Louise and Harvie:  Louise laid their third egg at 22:24, but we have yet to see the egg”

The first hatch at Manton Bay is a cute pie. That baby hatched at 23:19 on Friday the 10th of May.

I know that Redwood Queen is a favourite of many of you for her heroic attempt to save her chick Iniko during the Dolan Fire. Iniko was saved but Redwood Queen lost her mate King Pin. Now she has a new baby with Zenith and it warms my heart.

At Cornell, N1 and N2 are sleeping with their dinner. All that prey and two chicks – these two are growing fast!

I love seeing the comparison of the tree nest and the urban nest on a human light stand. I wonder how many trees Big Red has to choose from and why she choose the light stand? There is certainly much more room for the chicks to run and flap.

‘A’ loves this nest and writes, “Oren has brought in even more green oak leaf sprigs to their RTH nest, and it is full of greenery. I do hope it helps control the insects on the nest (I presume that’s the idea). It does look very festive and cosy. Ruth is preening her sleeping hawklets, and breakfast has not yet been served (it is 12 May and still very very early). The three are doing exceptionally well, with devoted parents and lots of food. They are such cuties. It has been raining a lot at the nest for the past two or three days and poor Ruth has looked absolutely miserable, but her hawklets have remained warm and dry in her underfluffies throughout. They really are very well cared for, these three. “

I have every confidence that if this precious egg of Iris and the New Guy hatches, the NG will supply plenty of fish for Mamma Iris and baby. We could be witnessing something wonderful and remember, I always wanted Iris to have a holiday from Louis. She seems contented and it is so nice to see someone bring her fish and care for her.

Another great mate is Louis at Loch Arkaig! So far they have kept the intruders away.

Remember that banding for the Cal falcons who are getting their tail feathers is on the 15th.

‘A’ writes: “I do so love a falcon scrape. That youngest at Cal Falcons is significantly smaller than its three siblings, who hatched within about 24 hours of each other, with the fourth chick coming nearly three days later (because of course Annie started hard incubation after laying egg three). So it has always been much smaller, but right from the beginning, it has been a little jumping bean just like Rubus, competing vigorously for bites. 

The four are being given far fewer feedings per day than was the case a week or ten days ago. They lay about the scrape for more than five hours between feedings today, until the 16:07 feeding, which began with the youngest and one of its older siblings grabbing big juicy bites until they were joined by another of the older chicks, and then finally, the fourth one joined in. By the time chick four arrived, the older of the initial two feeders had given up, the younger one never gives up, and the second two to line up were getting the most of the food. By the time the meal was over, all four had large crops that, if measured, would have been extremely close to being exactly equal in size. Seriously. That’s how good a parent Annie is when feeding her chicks. And if necessary, she would have moved the food, or her own position, or both, to ensure that all four were fed an adequate meal. No-one goes hungry at Annie’s table. 

The eyases compete for bites, and sometimes have a tug of prey over a bite, but not once is there any hint of aggression towards a sibling. Never. Not once. It is a beautiful thing to watch, and I do keep wondering how it is that good falcon parents can dole out food fairly to a clutch double the size of most eagle clutches, fledging four chicks instead of one or two. So I still cannot work out how sibling rivalry helps.”

Feathered kids also copy their parent’s behaviour.

‘H’ has been tracking several nests. One is at the Patuxent River Park and she reports that there are now three little bobbleheads.

There are concerns for Swampy from Eagle Country. Swampy was last seen on 9 May at 1006.

Sharon Lee also shows us where Dixie and Mason have gotten to on the natal tree.

Cute little White-tail eaglet peeking out from the adult at the Kemeri nest in Latvia. The other White-tail Eagle nest of Milda in Durbe County in Latvia failed this year.

One beautiful Golden Eaglet in Estonia.

Altyn and Nova, Eastern Imperial Eagles, have two eggs in their nest that they are waiting to hatch. Egg dates were 17 and 20 of April. In about ten days we should have a hatch!

The first of the two eggs of Bety and Bukacek in Mlade Buky has hatched on the 12th of May.

Thank you so much for being with me today. Keep an eye out on Mlade Buky and Manton Bay. Those last eggs should be hatching!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘A, H’, Lake Murray ospreys, Heidi McGrue, Chesapeake Conservancy, Fortis Exshaw, LRWT, Lady Hawk, Cornell RTH, Syracuse University RTH Cam, Montana Osprey Project, Geemeff, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, Patuxent River Park, Eagle Country, LDF, Eagle Club of Estonia, Alton and Nova RU Imperial Eagle Cam, and Mlade Buky Stork Cam.

Hatch at Manton Bay…Saturday in Bird World

11 May 2024

Hello Everyone!

A young woman came to relieve me of a pile of ‘junk’ – for lack of a better word – Friday morning. She was coming and going from 0900-1330. During that time, I was using lots of energy (LOL) watching the Canada Goose cam at McEuen Park in Coeur de’ Alene, Idaho. The goslings hatched on Thursday and would be ready to jump. The mother dithered for hours. Three or more.

The minute I went to pay for the cleaning and hauling – turning my back to the computer -well, they jumped! There is no rewind on HDonTap streaming channels. I hope they made it!

‘H’ turned and blinked and then there were four eggs at the Osprey Nest at McEuen Park. What’s with all the four egg clutches this year?

Things happen quickly.

The first hatch of an osplet on a streaming cam happened at Rutland’s Manton Bay nest of Blue 33 and Maya on 10 May.

‘MP’ sends good news. It looks like the female is listening to the male at Minnesota Landscape and is working on a proper nest for their chicks. Now, let’s see if he can convince her to feed all of them when they hatch! ‘MP’ notes there are even flowers! Lovely.

‘MP’ adds: “The female was on the perch and dropped her fish on the ground and she beelined it on the ground. She didn’t seem to know exactly where it was when she got there however. I’ve often wondered if adult osprey ever drop their fish while eating it. Well, she did! “

Lake Murray makes me so nervous. That nest always does. That third hatch needs some fish. I am worried we could be losing this baby. ‘H’ kept track and confers. She notes, “5/10 Lake Murray – Kenny has delivered 4 fish so far today (by 18:00), but it is not enough for his family.  Perhaps he will bring in a late fish and Little will be able to eat a decent meal before nightfall.  At 0903 Kenny delivered a partial fish.  Little was beaked by Big several different times.  It wasn’t until 0919, when Little had managed to position himself on the other side of Lucy that he was able to be fed.  He ate 19 bites of fish, but then the fish was gone.  At 1154 Kenny brought in a small whole fish which did not last very long, and due to aggression from both of its siblings, Little never made it to the table.  Kenny delivered a large whole fish at 1538.  Little suffered several vicious attacks from both of the older siblings, and was prevented from eating.  At 1802 Kenny delivered another large whole fish, and the two older osplets still had large crops, but they still would not let Little eat.  Finally, by 1810 Little had managed to position himself on the other side of Lucy and she fed him several bites of fish.  Unfortunately, Lucy soon shifted her position which in turn exposed Little and he was beaked.  Little ate 24 bites of fish at this meal. So far today, Little has only eaten 43 bites of fish.”

The little one got a couple of bites. Look at the crop on the one osplet and the size difference.

It was hot in San Francisco. Archie was in the shape panting. The Fab Four were in the shade keeping cool. Remember – we are four days away from banding at The Campanile.

Larry’s chicks are doing fantastic. You can easily tell, from the plumage, the oldest and the youngest.

In contrast, Monty and Hartley’s chicks are still pink with soft white down.

Hartley feeds the chicks.

Last year we struggled with that one little hatch at the Evergy Energy scrape in Topeka. There are eggs again this year – well, at least one so far.

Our little fluff balls at Salisbury Cathedral’s scrape box.

It was so nice to hear that my statement about ‘the green perfect lawn’ and all the companies trying to part you with your money while, at the same time, killing the bees and other pollinators, insects, and birds, touched your hearts. ‘B’ found a very timely article in The Washington Post that was published on Friday about all the reasons not to mow your lawn! Have a read. Think about it.

Years ago, one of my neighbours caught the attention of the perfect lawn brigade. They did absolutely everything to try and persuade the City to force him to clean up his garden. We will just call him ‘the man living at the corner’ was Cornell educated in math. He is quite brilliant and, also, a little ahead of his time. He had a pollinator garden and was rewinding before anyone even knew the terms. ‘The Man Living at the Corner’ won his argument and for the past twenty years has tried to educate people in biodiversity and wilding. He doesn’t own a lawn mower.

The other ad that is prominent is tree trimming. Isn’t this nesting season?

Why-stop-mowing-your-lawn-and-what-happens-when-you-go-no-mow-Washington-PostDownload

Big Red was drenched earlier on Friday. If you stopped in to check on her, you probably felt really sorry for her. She kept N1 and N2 perfectly warm and dry.

We know that the Port Lincoln ospreys fish at Delamere. Ervie learned from Dad and so did his brothers, Bradley and Giliath. Well Bazz Hockaday posted some footage so we could see what Delamere looks like! Thank you!

Missing Karl II and his family.

The golden glow of the evening falls softly on Tuffy after Harry delivers a late evening fish.

Enjoy them while you can!

‘H’ reports on Captiva: “5/10, Captiva osprey nest:  At 0703 Jack arrived with a small fish tail.  Edie fed both of the sleepy osplets.  Jack delivered a whole sheepshead at 0818…CO7 ate and CO8 waited its turn.  CO8 ate for about a minute at 0827, but was then beaked by CO7.  At 0832 and 0840 CO8 started to eat, but was beaked by CO7.  Ditto at 0844.  At 0846 CO7 moved away and it was ‘go-time’ for CO8.  CO8 had eaten for about 3 minutes when Edie suddenly became disturbed by human activity below the nest, and she flew off.  Meal over, and CO8 only had a small crop.  At 1356 Jack arrived with a small partial fish.  CO8 moved toward Dad, but Edie was distracted and CO7 stayed in the shade of Mombrella.  It seemed as though CO7 was not even aware of Jack’s fish delivery…good one, Edie…keeping the fish out of view of CO7!  Jack fed CO8 for about 5 minutes…Yay, Jack!.  At 1542 Jack delivered a large prepared fish.  Most of the feeding was blocked from our view by Edie.  We didn’t know if CO8 was eating, but we also did not see CO8 scurry away from the table as if he had been beaked.  It was a very long feeding, and eventually Edie shifted and we were able to see both siblings being fed side by side, and both had large crops!”

The trio at Venice Golf and Country Club are doing so well. I can hardly tell them apart.

Liberty and Guardian’s eaglets have been named.

Clair and Irvin’s only eaglet USS7 at the US Steel Plant nest in Pittsburgh has been named Lucky.

In Montana, the New Guy continues to bring whoppers for Iris to eat and dutifully incubates their only egg.

South African wildcats are eating seabirds.

This-South-African-Wildcat-Has-a-Taste-for-Endangered-Seabirds-Hakai-MagazineDownload

Thank you for being with me today. Please take care. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘B, H, MP’, McEuen Park, LRWT, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Lake Murray Ospreys, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, Parks Conservancy, San Jose City Hall, Energy Energy, Sue Smith, The Washington Post, Cornell RTH, Friends of Osprey Sth Aus, Bazz Hockaday, Eagle Club of Estonia, Moorings Park, Heidi McGrue, Window to Wildlife, VGCCO, Ofelia Finch, PIX Cams, Montana Osprey Pr9oject, and Haikai Magazine.

Friday in Bird World

10 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

Thursday was 23 C, clear blue skies, no wind. Today will go up to 27 degrees C. Thankfully we have had some rain. Where my son lives in the Caribbean, the rains did not come and the water supply for the entire island is drying up. The reservoir at Etang is beyond low and cannot be used and other areas are bone dry. My heart breaks for people struggling with a lack of basic resources like water.

Thank you again for all your good wishes. I am feeling better. Not 100%, but good enough to run more errands in the heat. When I left, Mr Crow had a full dish of cheesy dogs. When I got home – and he knew I was home – he returned cawing his head off for more! Their tree was cut down, and they have made their nest this year on top of a three-story apartment building about 100 metres from the food dish! He can hear me when I arrive home – and see me. Of course, Hugo Yugo thinks she should have some cheesy dog, too, which started all of the others prowling around the kitchen except for Baby Hope, who is a real angel.

At the Border Osprey platform, Augusta (Blue 500) laid her third egg at 1100. Congratulations!

Mark the date on your calendar. Cal Falcons will be banding Annie and Archie’s chicks on the 15th of May. Yes, you spotted that right – five days from now. That is hard to believe.

The Fab Four think they are starving!

The GH owlet at Wolf Bay has branched and will soon be flying.

The nest at Loch of the Lowes is now empty and abandoned for this year.

Still no hatch at Manton Bay. If the egg that was removed was the first one to be laid, then the next one is currently 33 days old today. Three more days and we should be ready for pip.

Just look at those legs on Ruffie! If I were taking bets I would say Ruffy – despite their aggression – is a male. Daddy Long Legs like Idris – or maybe it is just the camera angle.

Ruffie is really working its wings.

Gorgeous Tuffy. Look at that sweet face.

Did we have fledges and returns at Frenchman’s Creek? Looks like it. Bravo. And look at the nest. Not so many fish there.

Iris and the New Guy are not messing around. They protect that nest and their eggs. I wonder if Louis even knows what is happening? Surely he does. Maybe he has just given up and will take care of Starr and leave that area alone. He might not win a fight with this younger male.

The House Sparrows are busy nesting under the osprey nest at Dunrovin. No eggs yet for Swoop and Winnie.

I think I worry too much about the little one at Captiva. It is hot and the big one always monopolises the feedings. Hopefully ‘H’ will have a better report.

Will CO8 get some fish?

‘H’ has the answer: “CO7 continues to dominate CO8 at meal times.  But as we have seen at other nests, as long as there are regular fish deliveries, the non-dominant sibling usually fares better later in the day, after the dominant osplet has already had his/her crop stuffed a few times.

At 1636 the meal consisted of a whole sheepshead, and CO8 ate first, but only for a minute until he was intimidated by CO7.  CO8 thought about trying to eat at 1639 and 1655 but was beaked by CO7.  At 1657 CO7 moved away and CO8 was able to eat.  Then he made a very unwise move… after CO8 had been eating for 4 minutes, he suddenly and inexplicably turned around and beaked CO7!  Oh no, silly osplet, lol.  Well, of course CO7 retaliated, and CO8 moved away.  CO7 ate some more until 1704, at which time CO8 ate for the next 14 minutes.  CO8 had eaten for a total of about 19 minutes at this meal.

The next meal, at 1831, consisted of a prepared sheepshead.  The sibs were both little angels.  For the most part they ate side by side until 1853, and by that time they were both refusing Edie’s offerings.  Then Edie was able to feast on the large tail portion herself.”

Big Red was so smart when she picked Arthur. What a hunter. Thursday morning nets three chipmunks and a squirrel plus what has been eaten already. Their family will never go hungry!

Please ask me how much I wish they would band these two chicks so we could see if they return to the area or stay?

What a difference seeing the little hawklets in a tree nest at Syracuse instead of the light stand at Cornell.

Will there be any osplets at Llyn Brenig this year?

There is a full clutch at Fortis Exshaw.

The Decorah North eaglets are a little wet from the rain. Those little cutie pies are growing and grown and ready to fly soon.

It is all good at Little Miami. That baby made it! Unless something happens this nest will fledge three. Fantastic.

Port Tobacco is fantastic. That single chick had all the love and all the food.

At Duke Farms, Leaper is 10 weeks and 1 day old which means that we could be within fledge range in a week.

At Superbeaks, Mason and Dixie have both branched. That was a week ago. Stay tuned for fledging.

Concern for Little at Lake Murray continues as he gets shut out of many/most/all feedings. ‘H’ reports, “5/9, Kenney delivered a late partial fish at 1950.  Big and Middle still both had huge crops and were not very interested in eating.  Little ate for three minutes before he was beaked by Big.  Big ate for 3 minutes, then walked away.  Little was then fed by Lucy for 7 minutes, when she suddenly halted the feeding, but there was still a large piece of fish remaining.  At any rate, Little had a large crop to start the night.” Huge shout out to ‘H’ for monitoring this difficult nest.

I highly recommended Isabella Tree’s new book on the success of the rewinding at Knepp Farm. Birdlife International has just published its study on the positive impacts of conservation and biodiversity. We can make a difference is the mantra in both! Never give up. Do what you can.

Science-proves-conservation-works-BirdLife-InternationalDownload

Another senseless murder in Scotland. This time of a satellite tagged Golden Eagle.

Police-confirm-satellite-tagged-Golden-Eagle-was-persecuted-BirdGuidesDownload

There is a new condor baby in California. Congratulations Ventana Wildlife.

White Storks Beta and Bukacek incubating their two eggs. Soon!

The two White-tail eaglets at the Tucholskie National Forest in Poland are thriving.

Two beautiful osprey eggs at the Seilli nest in Finland for Onni and Stefu.

News from Kakapo Recovery on their pesky flightless parrots.

I saw my first Moorhen in Grenada in 2022. It is great to see that others love them, too! Their appearance is so distinctive. The adult body is all black – the beak is a deep rich orange -red with at the tip dipped in a pot of bright almost neon-yellow. Their legs are green! The day these birds got their first plumage someone was having fun with the colours. They are very distinctive and when you have seen one, you will always recognise them. There will never be any confusion with any other waterfowl.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/may/08/country-diary-these-plucky-moorhens-have-become-local-celebrities?CMP=share_btn_url

All About Birds says this, “The Common Gallinule swims like a duck and walks atop floating vegetation like a rail with its long and slender toes. This boldly marked rail has a brilliant red shield over the bill and a white racing stripe down its side. It squawks and whinnies from thick cover in marshes and ponds from Canada to Chile, peeking in and out of vegetation. This species was formerly called the Common Moorhen and is closely related to moorhen species in the Old World…Common Gallinules eat vegetation, seeds, snails, and insects. They pick sedge, grass, pondweed, duckweed, and flower seeds from the water surface or just below the surface. Gallinules flip over leaves with their feet to grab snails and insects hidden .” They will lay anywhere from 3-15 eggs (what a range!) in nests made near the water’s edge. The incubation period is, on average, three weeks and they have two broods per breeding season.

“madres e hijos, polla de agua alimentando a su polluelo – mom moorhen feeding their chick” by ferran pestaña is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

We can be thankful that the hunting season in Malta is now over, but it should never exist, and, of course, as this says will the police do anything now? Wildlife certainly deserves the protection accorded to it by law. And that surely isn’t happening.

I feel like I am reading the news from Scotland.

Man-accused-of-shooting-protected-western-marsh-harrierDownload

Oh, those ads for the perfect lawn make me so mad. Dead bees. Dead pollinators. Even dead birds. Tell them ‘No, thanks’.

Thank you so much for being with me today. Take care all. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, H, PB’, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, Wolf Bay, Scottish Wildlife Trust, LRWT, Moorings Park, Frenchman’s Creek, Montana Osprey Project, Dunrovin Ranch, Window to Wildlife, Cornell RTH, SU-RTH Cam, Stephanie Scofield, Heidi McGrue, Raptor Resource Project, Little Miami Conservancy, Port Tobacco, Duke Farms, Superbeaks, Lake Murray, Birdlife International, BirdGuides, Ventana Wildlife Society, Mlade Buky Stork Cam, Bielk OnLine Bory Tucholskie, Finnish Osprey Foundation, Kakapo Recovery, The Guardian, BirdLife Malta, Malta Today, All About Birds, and Openverse.

*Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to credit the individuals who provided the information in today’s posting. If there is something incorrect or there is an omission, please let me know.*

Gunshots at Loch of the Lowes…Thursday in Bird World

9 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

Ah, WordPress has finally written to tell me that I have used up all the storage they will allow me to have. This means that videos and documents are being removed from older posts beginning in 2017. I will not have to disturb the posts from 2023-24. Just wanted to let you know what was happening if you went back through old posts.

‘The Girls’ have been super today. Hugo Yugo has managed not to get into too much trouble. Mostly they have been overly busy watching the squirrels coming and going along with Mr and Mrs Crow.

Baby Hope will be a year old on 2 July. Gosh, the time has passed. This time last year I was trying to befriend Calico.

Hugo Yugo is determined to try every morsel of ‘human food’ that she can, and now, she has decided that the cheesy dogs that Mr and Mrs Crow get should also be included in her dish. No way! So, she is the sweetest when she is sleeping and not finding trouble to get into. Her tail is bigger than she is.

Calico is ‘cranky’. She is looking at Missey! Arch rivals these two are.

Missey is staring down Calico from the other side of the wicker. It is always a stand off.

As I write this, the four of them are lined up watching the ‘Boyfriend’ eat Mr and Mrs Crow’s food! It is 2100. Still light. Oh, I love this time of year.

Rocking news has come from Geemeff that three gunshots were heard on the Loch of the Lowes streaming cam on Wednesday. The Scottish Wildlife Trust that owns the land has been notified. Will they catch the culprits before they kill them all? This is beyond worrisome.

The Redding Eagles are: Sol and Luna! Lovely.

Lots of Peregrine Falcons this year – four at San Jose and four with Annie and Alden and four with Larry. Those are the ones we know about in California on streaming cams.

Annie and Archie’s kids are seriously cute.

Archie is the cutest.

But he definitely cannot brood the chicks anymore! Just look – the scrape is full.

Big Red and her two Red-tail Hawks. Always good.

In Montana, Iris and New Guy are not letting anything happen to the egg in the nest on a rainy day in Missoula. I love how these birds can count. New Guy is totally with the programme, but there was no way he was going to hunt and feed Louis’s DNA. Ospreys are so funny about that – kicking out the eggs – and then we have those wonderful falcons who help raise the chicks of another (Orange and Cal Falcons for two nests).

My heart skips two beats when the young fledglings return as 2 and 3 year olds. Another one today at Kielder Forest! It’s Elsin!!!!!!!!!

437Elsin-explores-Kielder-Forest-Kielder-OspreysDownload

Did you miss this magical flyover Louis and Dorcha’s nest (in off season)? Here is your chance to see this magnificent nest from a different point of view. With so few osprey nests in real trees in North America, this is wonderful to witness.

Here is dear Dorcha on that nest right now incubating.

The camera feed is so grainy at Collins Marsh. There are eggs, but it is not clear if there are two or three.

Bradley is often spotted on the barge at Port Lincoln eating his precious puffers, but we haven’t seen Giliath lately. Fran Solly found him! So nice to see you! Now let’s get Ervie, Bradley, Mum, and Dad up on that tree top with you for a family photo.

The first egg of the second clutch for Audrey and Tom was laid on Wednesday.

‘H’ stayed up because she knew that Dory (Dory and Skiff o the Audubon Boathouse) was ready to lay her first egg. Dory did. We are not sure if the mark on the egg is nesting material or if it cracked.

Tributes are beginning to appear as the finality and the horror of someone deliberately going to a quiet spot and shooting a beloved bird set in.

Poor NCO wants her and Laddie’s remaining egg, but the male at the loch doesn’t think so.

“Geemeff writes: “Resident female NC0 returns after the pale male had destroyed two of the eggs and pushed the third out of the nest bowl (https://youtu.be/YrHpV_j4PLs) earlier on the 7th. She moved it back into the nest bowl again, and overnight she guarded her egg and brooded it at times. In the morning, 8th May, she must have sensed the pale male was near as she started fish calling but those calls turned into alarm calls and she flew off. Moments later the pale male appeared and immediately set about throwing out the egg again. The sooner that egg gets crushed or thrown overboard the better, then NC0 can concentrate on finding a new mate – looks like pale male is putting himself forward as a candidate. He could seal the deal by bringing a fish, but will he?” Geemeff writes: “Resident female NC0 returns after the pale male had destroyed two of the eggs and pushed the third out of the nest bowl (https://youtu.be/YrHpV_j4PLs) earlier on the 7th. She moved it back into the nest bowl again, and overnight she guarded her egg and brooded it at times. In the morning, 8th May, she must have sensed the pale male was near as she started fish calling but those calls turned into alarm calls and she flew off. Moments later the pale male appeared and immediately set about throwing out the egg again. The sooner that egg gets crushed or thrown overboard the better, then NC0 can concentrate on finding a new mate – looks like pale male is putting himself forward as a candidate. He could seal the deal by bringing a fish, but will he?”

Later news from Geemeff:

Blue NCO is forced to move on now.

At Loch Arkaig, Louis sure enjoys some incubation time. Dorcha isn’t so sure.

Are you a fan of White YW and Blue 35 at Foulshaw Moss? If so, their eggs are due to hatch the 22nd of May. This is one of my favourite osprey nests although I am not a fan of the streaming cam. The nest area at Foulshaw Moss is one of the rarest and most threatened habitats in all of the United Kingdom and Europe. It is a raised bog. What is a bog? why is it so rare? and why do Ospreys and other wetland birds love this area in Cumbria so much?

Raised bogs are rare in lowland Britain because 94% of them have been drained so that trees could be planted. By planting the trees, which require water to grow, these former wetlands are anything but wet! The Foulshaw Moss raised bog is unique because of its peat. A Google search tells me that peat is “a brown deposit resembling soil, formed by the partial decomposition of vegetable matter in the wet acidic conditions of bogs and fens, and often cut out and dried for use as fuel and in gardening.” Peat was cut at the Cumbria site but the area still has a ‘dome’ of peat that is higher than the surrounding area. In 1998, the Cumbria Wildlife Trust purchased the property. Their goal was to reverse the damage caused by drainage and afforestation. It is now designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest and is highly protected.

This couple fledged one of my all time favourite third hatches, Tiny Little Bob, in 2021. When the chick was ringed, we finally find out that this determined third hatch is a male but maybe a female. The ringing data says male. S/he became a dominant bird and because they could not really tell at the ringing because of ‘her’ will to live, I am going with female. Here s/he is at various times in June. They will wear Darvic Ring Blue 463. I hope someday to hear this one survived.

Blue 35 was very crafty in making sure that Tiny Little got fed. She would sometimes remove fish from the nest and then return to feed her baby when the big ones were in food coma.

We have the names of the White Rock eaglets.

Thank you so much for being with me today. The gunshots and the killing of Laddie should alert each and every one of us to the dangers that our dear birds face alongside the loss of habitat and finding good quality food. I find this very disturbing.

‘The Girls’ and I have a new book to read and it is a stunner. Calico already has given it the thumbs up. You could buy it for the illustrations alone, but Calico is only interested in the story and the words and the hope that jumps off the pages. It is the twenty year history of the rewinding of Knepp Farm and it is more than magical. Isabella Tree should inspire all of us to continue to make our gardens count for wildlife – from the smallest insects to the largest mammals. Calico voted today that we plant a shade tree in honour of Tree’s efforts. In years to come, we hope that it along with the new Spruce tree that will have cones for the squirrels will provide shelter for the birds.

I hope they don’t mind! So you can see the quality of the inside. It is a great book to hold and read – Calico says everyone should read to their cats!

The message in Tree’s book is about hope and how we, as individuals, can help nature recover. The message from Jackie and Shadow is that nothing in life is too big to overcome. They do it with love.

Two reports from ‘H’ coming in this morning:

5/9: Fortis Exshaw osprey nest:  Louise laid egg #2 at 03:04.  And, her new mate has been named ‘Harvie’.  

5/9: South Cape May Meadows osprey nest of Hera and Zeus:  Hera laid egg #3 at 08:18.

‘L’ reports that we have a third egg at Charlo Montana with Charlie and his new mate, Lola.

‘A’ has been checking on on the Syracuse Red-tail Hawks: “

I just adore this pair. This morning, Oren arrived with a large sprig of greenery – it looked like oak leaves. He considered their placement quite carefully and eventually decided on using them as a quilt, gently placing the large sprig of leaves over the sleeping pile of hawklets. TOO adorable. Meanwhile, Ruth decides to feed the bird that has been thoughtfully left on the side of the nest for an early breakfast to the hawklets. One is late to the table, and largely misses out, getting only a few mouthfuls, because at the point Ruth decided it was the middle one’s turn (and it managed to wake itself up), things were getting a bit messy and feathery and in the end, Ruth just downed the entire thing herself. Impressive. 

These are two exquisite RTHs. Both are gorgeously marked, and appear very healthy. Ruth, like all RTH mums it seems, loves to allopreen her hawklets, and if her own underfluffies are anything to go by, this is a very good habit for these chicks to learn to get into. Those feathers could become quite a problem if left unpreened for too long, I would say. On the other hand, they do give Ruth impressive coverage. Yesterday, when it was raining for a lot of the day, she managed to keep her rapidly growing trio dry and warm in those underfluffies of hers. It really does look like the inside of a quilt. “

‘A’ also reports that the GH owlet at Wolf Bay has branched!

Thank you for being with us this morning! Take care. Lots of exciting things happening in Bird World. Check in to your favourite nest today and if the sky is blue and the sun is out – listen for the birds where you are!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, books, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘A, AE, Geemeff, H, L, PB, SP’, FORE, SK Hideaways, Cal Falcons, Cornell RTH, Pam Breci, Montana Ospreys, Kielder Ospreys, The Woodland Trust, The Scottish Wildlife Trust, Collins Marsh, Fran Solly, Chesapeake Conservancy, Audubon Boathouse, Mammy Bee Walk With Me, Syracuse RTH, SCMM, Fortis Exshaw, Cumbria Wildlife Trust, Trudi Kron, Isabella Tree and Amazon, and Geemeff.

*Disclaimer: Every effort is made to thank those that supply information for my post. If you see an error or omission, please let me know so it can be corrected.*

2nd Year Intruders…Wednesday in Bird World

8 May 2024

Good Morning,

One of my sweet helpers.

Remember that I mentioned those two year old returnees are coming! In the regions where banding is not done, you can never get as excited as those platforms that know their chicks have survived. Another one of Dylan and Seren’s fledglings has returned this year. Blue 555 from 2024 landed on Telyn who is incubating eggs at Dyfi a few miles away from his natal nest at Clywedog Reservoir.

Here is the sequence. Telyn hears/sees another osprey approaching. Blue 555 lands. Blue 555 is sent off by our excited mom-to-be. Idris arrives to save the day – all within about half a minute or less.

Telyn looks up.

Here comes 555.

Here comes Idris. No one is going to mess with his Telyn!

Did you see this? Murphy is a foster again!

At Captiva, Jack is keeping the fish coming and it was a good day for the little one. ‘H’ reports: ” CO8 did okay today, and basically I would have the same summary as yesterday. S/he takes a beating from CO7 at times, but it’s too soon to worry.  CO8 may not get as much to eat as CO7, but he did have a good crop a few times today.  Jack even fed CO8 for 8 minutes at meal #4. ” And then…”Jack delivered a large partial fish at 1907, that provided a long feeding for both of the siblings.  They ate side by side without any aggression, and both of them ended up stuffed.”

At Loch Arkaig, Louis has been busy and it was a late fish delivery for Dorcha.

Gosh, Louis is such an attentive mate. Some hardly bring the males any fish. I wonder what those new males will be like when chicks arrive?

Tuffy has grown into an exceptional osplet. Oh, how worried we were.

It appears that one or both of the osplets at Frenchman’s Creek have ‘branched’ to the camera pole OR the camera cannot get sight of one area of the nest. The shadows change and you can see the wings flapping.

The streaming cam at Redding is back up and running. Everyone is OK.

Mason is way up high in the natal tree at Superbeaks. Dixie looks out to the world beyond from the rails. These two will be flying soon. They are very active!

‘H’ reports on Lake Murray: “C3- ‘Little’ at Lake Murray is doing OK.  There is some aggression toward C3 by both older siblings, but there was only one meal on 5/7 where Little was shut out from the feeding.  Kenny is supplying lots of fish.”

‘A’ sent in a long report on several nests that she is tracking:

“I can hear Iris on an open tab – she is very chatty with her new man. He seems very proud of their eggs (they must be his and not Louis’ or he would doubtless have got rid of them by now). And – omigod, he’s brought in a tree now!!!! Sorry. I just turned over to Iris’ tab and what do I see? The most massive branch that resembles a small tree without leaves has been brought to the nest. I told you that yesterday he was bringing in some large, awkwardly shaped branches, but this one takes the cake. I wonder if he intends to plant a small forest around the outside of that nest. Or perhaps he too is worried about the dangers of an osplet being blown off that platform by that extra strong wind. But seriously, have a look at that tree! Talk about a laugh for the morning.”

Now, let us think about a time for us to begin to watch for these eggs to hatch of Iris and New Guy: 11 June? Pip watch? 

Cal appears to have dispersed. Today he is 140 days (exactly 20 weeks) old and it will be the seventh day since he was seen at or near the nest, though of course Connie and Clive are maintaining their territory. So the general consensus is that he has left to find his own mate and territory. Godspeed little one. You will always own a tiny piece of my heart. And remember, you fly for two, as you will also carry Lusa with you in your travels. How sad it is when we say goodbye to them, knowing their chances at reaching their first birthday are relatively low. All we can hope is that Cal learned well on the nest, with that bossy older sister, and has had the very best parental preparation for adulthood. He has great genes and we can only hope he gets the chance to pass them on. 

In Tennessee, Angel was last seen briefly (for just two minutes) early on the morning of 3 May, while Tom was there very briefly the following morning. There have been heavy thunderstorms in the area over the past couple of days, and they usually fail to appear on very wet days, but I think we have to admit now that the window is closing fast and that there will be no eggs for Angel and Tom this season. Now, we wish them a safe year until we see them next. Angel is such a rare beautiful creature, and I know her survival is far from assured. To add to the natural hazards they all face, she of course is unable to camouflage herself and even has to worry about unscrupulous individuals who have offered large sums of money to anyone prepared to divulge her whereabouts so she can be captured or killed as a trophy. I find it appalling that Connor has been offered tens of thousands of dollars for that information, though sadly it does not surprise any of us. 

At Taiaroa Head, our gorgeous boy was 7.9 kgs yesterday (7 May) at 105 days of age (the average for males of that age at this colony is 7.8 kg) – the same weight as the week before (when he had been fed by both mum and dad just before the weighing). Over the past week, he has had frequent feedings, with both parents visiting more than once, some feeds quite small and others larger. There had not been a feeding for a couple of days before this latest weighing, though, which accounts for his weight remaining the same as the week before. Mum came in yesterday afternoon and fed him around 4.15pm, and both our on-camera chicks have been fed this morning (8 May), with mum LGL feeding TF chick at 7.17am and dad BOK coming in to feed TFT chick shortly before 10am.  He is doing well, as are both his parents. Every time they leave on a foraging trip, we worry about when and whether they will return. Of course OGK never did. He has now, finally, been officially declared deceased at this point, as he would have returned to breed this season had he been capable of doing so. Sad news, but this year’s beautiful Royal Cam chick cannot but bring a smile to your face. His gorgeous plumage is pristine, revealing that he has lived his first 105 days of life without an incident of fear that has caused him to ‘spill’. So those snowy-white feathers are, in a sense, the sign of an stress-free childhood (or a very brave little chick or both). Whenever you need a smile, just turn to the albatross chicks on Taiaroa Head, where the rangers are constant and devoted guardians and we get to love our chicks for seven months or more. New Zealand truly is one of the most beautiful places on the planet. “

Those Cal Falcon chicks of Annie and Archie can put a smile on your day, too.

Annie and Grinnell’s grandchildren are ahead in development (they are obviously older). Look at their tail feathers and they are walking around the scrape. Larry (Annie and Grinnell’s daughter) and his mate are doing fantastic. What a treat to have a camera at their Alcatraz scrape!

Speaking of falcons, a wonderful soul posted an image of the screen at the CBD in Melbourne on FB and the falcons are there on the ledge! Maybe there will be chicks this year. I knew you would be excited.

Oh, I am getting excited that they might turn that Melbourne Live Stream on early. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they left it on all year?

The chat for the Cornell RTH is on the livestream and is open in the mornings. Check the time. Arthur had just brought in a nice little chippy for N1 and N2 when I tuned in.

Gosh those kids are cute. It won’t be long til they are pecking away at those chippies.

Watching for Rutland. The two eggs deemed unviable by Maya could have been the first ones that were laid so, it could be a few more days. Good news at LOTL. The new male has removed all the eggs from the egg bowl and maybe Blue NCO will start thinking he could be a ‘catch’. I am hoping so!

Thank you so much for being with me today. I am feeling better in the mornings and pretty horrible in the evenings still. The sun is out and it will be a good day for a walk, regardless. I am wondering if we have more little goslings hatching? Please take care. See you soon!

Thank you as always to those great people that send me news of the nests they are monitoring – I am calling them the Fabulous Four: ‘A, Geemeff, H, and SP’ along with all the others, the cams, the postings, the videos that helped me to write my post this morning including the Fab 4 and Dyfi Osprey Project, PBS, Window to Wildlife, Geemeff, Moorings Park, Frenchman’s Creek, FORE, Superbeaks, Lake Murray, Montana Osprey Project, NZ DOC, Cal Falcons, Parks Conservancy, Maya Rowe, and Cornell RTH.

Tuesday in Bird World

7 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

UPDATE: FALCON CHICKS IN OMAHA ARE DECEASED NOT OSPLETS! THEY HAVEN’T HATCHED YET.

Gosh. I wish I could tell you that we have blue skies here on the Prairies, but no, it is heavily overcast and windy and I suspect some more rain is coming. The rain we had last week while I was so very sick made the grass green and the heat has really popped the leaves.

On Monday Mr or is it Mrs? I think Mr Crow was in and out all day long getting pieces of cheesy dogs. I didn’t clock his comings and goings but it was consistent throughout the day to see him on the railing of the fence flying down to get a piece of food. There have to be babies in the nest for him to be coming and going so often. So, imagine, in a month, there could be baby crows pecking at the ceiling of the conservatory for more food! We become foster parents to them and the little Blue Jays that will hatch about the same time. Oh, I can’t wait.

There was no one at the duck pond when I walked around. To my great surprise, it appears the first two goslings have hatched.

There were Wood Ducks, Common Goldeneyes, Mallards, and Canada Geese. Phone photos from a distance are not great. Below is the female Common Goldeneye. She is knockout gorgeous with her ruffled light-espresso head tinged with a bit of auburn or henna, that piercing yellow eye, and a body of shades of brown-black, white, and grey—like practising hues and shades from design class only using brown touched with black instead of pure black. They are diving ducks that feed of pond plants, tubers, leeches, frogs, and small fish.

I was surprised at the lack of ducks. I wonder if there just isn’t enough plant food or them. There were only two male Wood Ducks. This was just sitting quietly by one of the incubating geese.

I left the park and headed to the nature centre. My body needed to walk out in the fresh air! There were bus loads of students doing things far away from the trails. The American Goldfinches have arrived along with the Harris Sparrows. I did not see any goslings but a few geese incubating. What struck me at both sites was the lack of geese incubating eggs. I hope they are just hiding.

The daffodils are just beginning to open and if you look closely you can see the canopy turning green.

It just felt so very good to be outside – walking. I am feeling a bit better every day, little by little. It isn’t COVID and keeps reminding me that this is probably a really bad case of food poisoning that is lingering. Thank you over and over for your good wishes.

At home, Hugo Yugo has been playing ‘cheese hockey’. This cat loves cheese. She also likes one big piece to bat all over the floor like a small soft toy. Oh, goodness, she has fun.

‘H’ is over the moon excited. It was a very sad year for Louise and her mate, Jasper, in 2023. Then we had to endure the intruders harming Banff, the only surviving chick, knocking her off the platform, etc. We think Banff survived all of that and it is good to have Louise. Oh, let this nest be peaceful in 2024. Louise deserves it.

The other excitement comes from the Osprey nest at Captiva where Jack got to get involved in a dual feeding with Edie. Way to go, Jack.

‘H’ comments:

Things can get pretty rambunctious between the siblings at meal times.  CO7 is older, bigger, and more dominant, but CO8 starts a few of the skirmishes as well.  CO7 will beak CO8 occasionally during a feeding, and cause him to be submissive, but there are also times when the chicks eat peacefully side by side. The fish have been plentiful and large, and at most meals, CO8 will receive at least one private feeding.  At this point in time, the dominance by CO7 is not so severe that it prevents CO8 from getting plenty to eat. 

Thanks, ‘H’.

There are always those nests that just make you happy. Annie’s has always been that way. Even through the loss of the mates – each one a darling – those chicks just make us smile even when they are covered in pin feathers.

One of the chicks is already wanting to climb out of the scrape. Gracious me.

Little hawklets with pinfeathers are also adorable. Like Annie, Big Red would never let one of her babies go to sleep hungry. At the Cornell, they not only get a fur lined egg cup but they can sleep on their own squirrel dreaming about having it for breakfast the next morning.

We have a name for the new female at Dunrovin.

The new gal at Charlo Montana has two eggs and her name is Lola.

Dorcha isn’t new and we do love you with your deep dark plumage, but there is a very soft spot in our hearts for Aila. Many of you started watching streaming cams during the pandemic. I imagine most of you found the nest of Louis and Aila at Loch Arkaig. 400,000 people did. We fell in love with that trio. At least one of them Doddie was spotted in 2023 up in the Shetland Islands as a returnee. I hope Little Captain and Vera are out there, too. You were much loved, Aila.

Iris gets a whole fish dinner while New Guy incubates the second egg.

Nesting material has been arriving at Sandpoint where there are already three beautiful Osprey eggs. Now imagine. Look to the left to that little pond. Think fish. Wouldn’t you like to stock it with about 400 fish (yes, we would have to feed them) for the ospreys? Keke and Leo would like that. Fish at the ready.

Ah, thank you ‘MP’. I am so glad to hear that the male at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is bringing fish even if they are sunfish!

All three at Little Miami are looking good but, just look at how big the baby is!

Kansas City Eaglets are fine.

Working through the fish at Frenchman’s Creek. If you had told me a fortnight ago that these two osplets would be healthy, being fed on a bed of rotting fish, I might not have believed you.

Maya sleeping. Best do it now. Those eggs could hatch any time.

Rolling the eggs at Dyfi with Idris and Telyn.

Look at that nice railing on the Glaslyn nest. Imagine there are people who fix this every year! I would love to have the rail fairies help out Superbeaks and Moorings Park.

Beautiful Poole Harbour.

Like everyone else, incubation continues at Llyn Brenig.

Hope has arrived home at the Snow Lane osprey platform in Newfoundland. She might have to fight for the nest.

Pigeons are more than falcon food. But, they deserve not to be poisoned. In both World Wars they helped. Here is a new story that ‘EJ’ found and sent to us -. Enjoy.

Remarkable-story-of-how-a-pigeon-saved-a-crew-of-World-War-II-bombers-GoodDownload

‘PB’ reports that all peregrine falcon chicks at the OPPD nest are deceased. She reports that they were not fed after hatching and it appeared the parents had no interest in feeding them. Could this be HPAI?

I loved it when ‘R’ recognised that I was a little ‘heated up’ when I wrote about the murder of Laddie. People get by with murdering birds because the legal system will not do a thing. Why does the judicial system not take things like stealing birds eggs – that wiped out entire populations -seriously? This is outrageous.

Serial-egg-thief-Daniel-Lingham-avoids-custodial-sentence-–-Raptor-Persecution-UKDownload

Shooting One to Save another? Thanks, ‘SP’.

They-Shoot-Owls-in-California-Dont-They-The-New-York-TimesDownload

Heart broken for Blue NCO who listens and waits for her Laddie.

Thank you for being with me today. Please take care of yourselves. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, reminders, streaming cams and images that helped me to write my post today: ‘PB, EJ, Geemeff, H, MP’, Heidi McGrue, Window to Wildlife, SK Hideaways, Cornell RTH Cam, Celia Osprey, Charlo Montana, Geemeff, Montana Osprey Project, Steelscape Ospreys, Little Miami Conservancy, Kansas City Bald Eagles, Frenchman’s Creek, LRWT, Dyfi Osprey Project, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Poole Harbour Osprey Project, Llyn Brenig, Gerard Hickey, GOOD, Raptor Persecution UK, The New York Times, and Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL).

*Disclaimer. Every effort is made to give credit to those that contributed to the post. If I have made an error or omission, please let me know so it can be corrected. Thank you.*

Iris will do it ‘her way’…Monday in Bird World

6 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

Thank you to everyone for your continued good wishes. I am very, very slowly feeling a wee bit better. A good friend dropped off two different types of Covid tests, just in case. Both were negative. So, not Covid. Whatever this is – well, I continue to say I do not wish it on anyone! Keep sending those positive vibes!!!!!!!!!

There is a rhythm to the events in the garden. The Juncos return first, then the White-throated Sparrow, and by then it is time for Mr and Mrs Crow to begin to bug me to fill up their food bowls. I have seen them during the winter but, for some reason, they return at the beginning of breeding season to remind me of their presence. I put out whatever I can gather from the fridge and from neighbours along with their usual cheesy dogs and hard boiled eggs along with cat kibble. This year events are earlier by about 14-16 days, but they are, nonetheless, happening in the same way. After spending the winter ignoring me, the first Crow has returned yesterday. In June, the little crows will come to get peanuts and to learn to dip them in the water. It is something that I look forward to with great delight.

The Crow first checked for peanuts and then went to chip away at one of the solid seed cylinders with large nuts and mealworms. It had previously been on the roof of the conservatory demanding treats! They watched as I filled the bowl with cheesy dogs, some cooked food from a neighbour including carrots….their favourite. (During the winter I have a secret feeding station for them).

The Baltimore Orioles will be here shortly. No matter what happens, the wildlife carry on, perhaps a little earlier, but what fun it will be to look forward to those little Crows splashing about, the baby Sparrows all puffed up sitting quietly waiting for the adults to tell them they can move, and the arrival of the Hummingbirds.

Calico talked to the Crow while it was coming and going during the day. Others slept.

We are now entering the period when the two year old returnees are causing havoc at the established nests – some of them their natal nests. We get a brief look at how this is impacting Kielder Forest, but it is happening everywhere.

Mainly-intruder-news-Kielder-OspreysDownload

There is no new news on the killing of LM12 Laddie near Loch of the Lowes. Scottish Wildlife Trust posted the following information on this amazing osprey.

Our hearts continue to break over this ‘murder’. Blue NCO continues to fish call and incubate the eggs although she is having to leave to try and feed herself.

There is always concern when there are three osplets and Lake Murray is no exception. ‘H’ is keeping a close watch.

The little one is trying. Just look at the size difference. Oh, I hope this sweet baby makes it. Fingers crossed.

The 1610 feeding – ‘H’ reports that all ate and there was no bonking. Yippee.

Wish that little one had some of the fish that landed at the Venice Golf Club. Mum might have even brought in two big fish. Wow.

Despite the mess, the two at Frenchman’s Creek are fine.

Both are eating at Captiva but there is still some unrest and bonking by the oldest.

Amongst the Ospreys there have been several nests that have had eggs out of sync. Today, ‘H’ notes that ” The Fenwick Island nest of Johnny and June: June laid eggs on 4/25 and 4/28, and both eggs were predated by a pair of crows on 4/28.  June’s third egg would have been due on 5/1.” ‘H’ notes that that egg did not arrive. We both wonder if this third egg that was laid on the 5th of May belongs to a first clutch or a new one. At Achieva, the egg dates were ‘off’ as well (normally every 72 hours). They were “1/28, 1/31, and 2/8”. (The last one could have been very, very late on the 7th but was not seen until the morning of the 8th).

We are wondering if these could be four egg clutches with the third egg laid somewhere else accidentally. It happens.

Tuffy still likes to be fed. Just look. Sally and Harry have the prettiest babies.

N1 and N2 could not be cuter. Look at the size of the crop on that little one.

Everyone loves Iris and each of us is worried, on the one hand, that raising a clutch of chicks might shorten her life or excited at the potential of the world’s oldest osprey getting to raise her first chick since 2018. I am just like all of you. I have been thrilled when Iris and Louis’s eggs have been taken by the Ravens and Iris has had a gentle summer fishing. Now that she has an attentive mate – and gosh, golly, Louis isn’t doing much about it – bringing her fish, I am getting rather excited and torn. I guess we wait and see what happens. Whatever it is, isn’t it nice seeing our Queen being treated well? Getting fish delivered to her for a change!

Here he is at 1640 bringing her another fish. I love this ‘Snake eyed guy’.

Iris flies off and takes it to the owl pole to eat.

There is something magical going on. Maybe it would always be Iris’s last year and maybe this is an extraordinary year for her. I watch with wonder.

Second egg expected. It was raining and I did not see anything. Iris not on the nest.

The New Guy is incubating the egg while Iris is off eating breakfast. Iris tells us ‘I will do it my way’.

The GH owlet at Wolf Bay is doing fine. Look at those legs!

Lady Hawk’s last coverage of E23, the darling of the SW Florida nest of M15 and his new mate, F23. Why oh why doesn’t someone band these hatches?

They are getting a little itchy at Cal Falcon scrape with all those pin feathers coming in.

If you need contentment:

‘PB’ reports that the second egg at Charlo Montana was laid on Sunday. It looks like her name is Lola.

‘H’ sent news that we have another egg at Cape May Meadows for Hera and Zeus. “5/6, The South Cape May Meadows osprey nest of Hera and Zeus:  Hera laid egg #2 at 06:29.”

Louis continues to take good care of Dorcha at Loch Arkaig. The killing of Laddie at Loch of the Lowes had made everyone nervous. So good to see the others at their nests as we wait for the first hatch at Rutland.

Adorable baby eaglet that fell out of the nest has a foster!

The eaglets at the Bald Canyon nest have names and both are happy that they are in the nest together! Another great rescue.

Muhlady and Pepe continue to provide prey on the nest for Dixie (fledged) and Mason (still at home). There are continual prey wars when there is a delivery. Both look to be doing very well.

Full crops for the two eaglets of Dad and Gigi at the ND-LEEF nest.

Those two will soon be as big as Jersey and Leaper at Duke Farms who are anxiously awaiting their first flight.

For the two eaglets of Liberty and Guardian at the Redding nest, the votes are now being submitted for the final round in naming. Make sure you vote! The deadline is 7 May – that is Tuesday!

Go to: https://forms.gle/BeWHaTi2s66CYdKo7

‘A’ sends us the latest from the Sydney Olympic Forest: “

May 5: Both eagles were at home last night and woke early, well before 6am, with duets and mating. They both left by 6:19am, and over the next hour or so, more duets could be heard. Mid-morning at 10:15am, neither could be seen at the river but were spotted at Goat Island. Mid-afternoon, both eagles were still there, and at 16:45pm, one was noted flying off to the west. Both turned up at the nest around 17:16pm – one may have brought a stick – then mating nearby. A duet, and mating again at 5:42pm, with Lady bowing her head to indicate she was ready and willing to mate. Both then settled by the nest for the night. There was rain on and off today.

May 6: There was lots of rain overnight, with both eagles close by. They were awake early, with mating, then both flew off and one returned with a stick. Then both were off again before 6:30am. At 9am, both were seen at the very muddy river , landing on River Roost. Shortly after, there was a duet at 9:15am, and then both were seen flying together, heading north and further. The rain had stopped by then, but it was very windy. There have been issues with the cameras today, with livestream not available for most of the day. One eagle was seen flying over the forest at around 3pm. Just after 4pm, it seemed that two eagles were at Goat Island. Neither was reported at the river at 4:30pm. Then we were able to see the adjacent camera live and saw Lady come home late. She seemed to have just eaten, wiping her bill. She then settled.

This is interesting, especially with Lady initiating mating. But is it really early for Lady and Dad or is it their normal pattern of behaviour? They presumably regularly engage year-round in various forms of bonding behaviours, including mating, to maintain the strength of their pair bond. Yes? So maybe it’s not at all early for them to engage in the early phases of nest-building. “This is interesting, especially with Lady initiating mating. But is it early for Lady and Dad or is it their normal pattern of behaviour? They presumably regularly engage year-round in various forms of bonding behaviours, including mating, to maintain the strength of their pair bond. Yes? So maybe it’s not at all early for them to be engaging in the early phases of nest-building. “

LGK comes in for a feeding for TF chick! Always good to put a smile on your face. TF is so fluffy – like a soft cloud floating around the hill.

There is a lot going on at the nests. I hope to be able to provide some news each day until such time as I am back 100%. We are waiting for hatch watch at Rutland! Take care. We hope to see you soon.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, H, PB’, Kielder Ospreys, Jeff Kear and SWT, Lake Murray Ospreys, VGCCO, Frenchman’s Creek, Window to Wildlife, Fenwick Island, Moorings Park, Cornell RTH, Montana Osprey Project, Wolf Bay, Lady Hawk, Cal Falcons, Charlo Montana, SK Hideaways, SCMM, Jann Nichols, Gracie Shepherd, Superheats, Geemeff, ND-LEEF, Duke Farms, FORE, Sea Eagle Cam.

Achieva has another egg…Wednesday in Bird World

1 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

I am sitting at a table overlooking Devonian Lake at the nature centre. There is a Mallard splashing and having a wonderful bath while two Canada Geese look on. A Franklin’s Gull is giving a ‘kek’ or alarm call while Eastern Phoebes and Red-winged Blackbirds are singing. The sky has a few clouds at the horizon and the sun is shining bright. There is a bit of a nippy wind. Even so, it is marvellous to be outside. It is the last day of April and now, tomorrow when I hit publish, it will be May Day. Time goes by way too quickly.

Then there were these beauties. Hooded Mergansers. Male on top. Female and male in second image. Notice the beautiful crested white head that is outlined in black. There is a white chest with two additional black lines and the most gorgeous brick-rust sides. Now look at the eyes. Yellow!

The male is the same brick rust colour all over. She has the wildest hair do- like someone who put their finger in an electric socket or went to one of the science museums and was at the Van de Graaff generators.

They are diving waterfowl feeding on small fish, snails, amphibians, and dragonfly larvae. They will nest in a tree stump near water or use nesting boxes. It would be rare for them to lay their 10-12 white eggs on the ground. Incubation lasts for 29-33 days.

I am being reminded that this is ‘baby season’. That is when wildlife rehabilitation centres are full of youngsters – eaglets, osplets, possums, squirrels, turtles, bunnies; you name it. Every centre has a list of items and ours just reminded everyone of its upcoming ‘baby shower’. So I thought that I would ask you if you have any of the following that you are no longer using (needs to be in good condition and clean or purchased new and donated) that could be used by your local rehab centre: over-the-door mirrors (used as an enrichment tool for waterfowl), mealworms, kiddie pools, pet crates of various sizes to help volunteers transport patients, birdseed, bleach, laundry detergent (not scented), paper towels, stock tanks, power washers, natural peanut butter and pecans. Then, of course, there are those things that I always natter about – clean used towels and sheets. A lot or a little – everything is appreciated!

Everyone was caught off guard when Diane laid her first egg of what could be termed a second clutch on Tuesday around 11:35. For those unaware, she had three eggs in an earlier clutch. One hatched and when the chick was a day old something happened. Chick and eggs disappeared. That is all we know.

Diane seemed as surprised as us! Guess we need an egg cup in that nest. Gosh, does anyone know if Tampa Bay Raptor Center finished with their upgrades to this nest?

Equally shocking is the fact that Iris’s new guy is still around. Louis has not been able to oust him. He brings Iris fish — I know we are all holding our breath to see how this will turn out. This guy has no idea that he has bonded with the Matriarch of all Ospreys. Is it possible Iris will raise chicks again?

Jackie consumes the third and final egg ending the 2024 breeding season with Shadow alongside.

Cal Falcons confirms that it is the first time in the history of their nest that a dual feeding has taken place. Way to go Archie.

Too big to fit under Annie?

In Australia, Diamond has had to fight off Cockatoos.

There is no indication that either of the two remaining eggs on Big Red’s nest have a pip. You can’t hear it, but that was a sigh of relief. Historically it will be the first time that an egg did not hatch on this nest. N1 and N2 are big and healthy and Arthur has filled the nest with enough food for six! The squirrel population is diminishing this year on the Cornell campus rapidly. For those that do not know, when Big Red was interviewing for a new mate, it was Arthur who didn’t even have his red tail yet that won her heart by catching so many squirrels. Big Red loves to eat a squirrel. It sealed the deal. He has been lining the nest on years that squirrels rebound on the university campus after he has decimated them their population the year prior.

It has to be a first – this many fish in an osprey nest waiting to be eaten (or not). Gosh, it has to be slimy to walk on that OR is it so hot that they are turning into dried fish? Any thoughts?

Harry kept the fish coming on the nest at Moorings Park. A whooper arrived at 1455! Tuffy was right there and ready. There had been another fish just two hours earlier! Even with intruders, Harry is a great fisher and this nest is doing well. Some tell me that they have difficulty telling Tuffy from Ruffie now. Isn’t that remarkable?

‘R’s report on Florida-Gainesville for Tuesday: “Stella brought 3 fish.  #1 dominated the first 2 feedings.  #2 had a nice big crop on feeding #3.”

There has been no sign of Talon now for several days and we must conclude that Stella is a single Mum.

This image is from Monday. There will be a lot said about the UFlorida-Gainesville camera and, sadly, none of it will be good. There is no rewind and you can view the prior days events but not the current one. Can you hear me growling

More intruders for Dorcha to have to deal with! And at Loch Garten, the Corvids are wanting Asha to get up off her eggs so they can eat them. These poor gals get no peace.

Gary LVO still works on the Loch Arkaig 1 nest in hopes of a family this season.

Then he brings Aida a fish! Sealing the deal.

Two eggs at Sandpoint on Tuesday.

‘H’ reports that Little at Lake Murray ate well on Tuesday. Yes!

Many are worried about LM12 Laddie at Loch of the Lowes. This is the latest.

All five goslings made the leap successfully off the Roger’s Place Osprey Platform.

Last egg for the Niagara Bee Ospreys.

This is today’s short report. There is a lot of incubation going on. Eaglets are growing and some are thinking about fledging. Osprey eggs are still being laid. Thanks for being with us! Take care.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘Geemeff, H, MP, PB, R, SP’, Achieva Credit Union, Montana Osprey Project, SK Hideaways, Cal Falcons, Cilla Kinross, Cornell RTH Cam, Frenchman’s Creek, Moorings Park Ospreys, University of Florida-Gainesville, Geemeff, Sandpoint Osprey Cam, Lake Murray ospreys, Jeff Kear, Owl Research ProjectExplore, and Niagara Bee.

Tuesday in Bird World

30 April 2024

Good Morning!

I have an early appointment tomorrow, so I apologise for this post going out late on Monday evening.

I so hope that your week started well. It was cold in Winnipeg. 5 C. We live on a weather roller coaster. One day, we put up the winter coats, and then we had to go and drag them back out again along with the toques. The leaves continue to break open on the lilacs; a few Dark-eyed Juncos are still here, along with the White-throated Sparrows and European Starlings. The normal garden birds are here all year, but this spring is different. There are so many Black-capped Chickadees that we have a chorus! It is incredibly beautiful. I will try to make a recording one day for all of you.

Gosh, it is a mixed bag. Eaglets are still growing, with many getting ready to branch and fledge. Falcons, along with the hawklets, are jumping and munching around the world. Osprey eggs are still being laid, and Europe will hatch some in the UK next week. I continue to be busy entering data – egg and hatches in our data forms, changes of partners. It seems a little more hectic than last year and yet, there are not nearly as many eggs in comparison. We are waiting for all of those in the NE to come on board! ‘H’ and I will not be able to catch our breath or have a cup of tea. Severna Park has one and the others are going to quickly follow suit.

If you are monitoring a nest that is not on a streaming cam, I would love to hear from you. In Manitoba, I watch three nests—one is at the University of Manitoba, and the couple has now returned for another year on top of a light stand. The other two are at different sites on Lake Winnipeg. No would would ever know about them and perhaps not about the nest you watch, so please, write to me. There is a comments section and you can always e-mail (maryannsteggles@icloud.com). My interest is in Osprey behaviour and, in particular, siblicide. If you see something, also let me know. I appreciate all the news I receive and try to answer within 24 hours. Sometimes it takes me longer to respond to the comments section, but I do read them daily. Thank you so much.

I will also try to get some good images of ‘The Girls’ this week. They are all fine, including Hugo Yugo, who is chasing Calico through the house. I’m not sure the attention is appreciated! I always wonder about Hugo Yugo. Today, I had a small Brioche roll, and she attacked it – so she loves cheese and bread. Did they give her grilled cheese sandwiches at her foster home? Or is it just her crazy character? She is so different from any cat I have ever owned. Some of you have told me about your lovely ginger cats, and it seems they are a force on their own.

At the nests –

At Superbeaks, ‘H’ caught Mason branching! Congratulations. What an exciting milestone.

My ‘inbox’ lit up like fireworks were going off – I kept hearing pings while I was at my appointment, and then there it was. The culprit was Connie, the resident female bald eagle at the Captiva nest, taking the opportunity to steal part of a fish off the Captiva Osprey nest of Jack and Edie. The problem: two little osplets were in that nest. Lady Luck was sure on hand as those two little ones were not pulled out of the nest along with the moss. My heart sank.

Many of you will have noticed that ospreys do not often leave fish on the nest. I often see comments in the chat asking why they don’t. Well, this is the reason for that. The male will remove the fish, and then he will return it if there is fish left after he eats. Some males have stashes. Leaving the fish on the nest invites predators or the nest cleaning Crows, Ravens, and Gulls to stop by for lunch. Food draws attention to a place we don’t want others to be. Today, Jack and Edie were lucky. Connie won’t forget. She lives right by them – she will swing by that nest to see if there is a fish. Why catch one when Jack and Edie will leave you a nice big piece? Oh…this could have been so tragic.

Heidi has it on video:

What would Connie do if she saw the fish at Frenchman’s Creek? The two kiddos are eating, sometimes being fed, and growing. It is hard to believe, but these two will probably fledge, and we should be ever so glad. The Dad has been feeding, and they are self-feeding, and the nest is still full. The Crows and Gulls and any other carrion eaters in the area will have a feast when these two leave the nest.

In the UK, Blue 372 laid her third egg at the Llyn Brenig nest on Monday the 29th of April.

The Fans of Redding Eagles (FORE) is looking for names for Liberty and Guardian’s two eaglets. Here is the information. The deadline is Wednesday.

At Leighton Moss, Yellow-legged Gulls have taken over the Osprey Platform.

At Moorings Park, dear not-so-little-anymore Tuffy is doing just fine. What a lovely little osplet he is. You just have to watch his behaviour and facial expressions and you will have a smile from ear to ear. He is growing, doing well, and unless some bloody tragedy happens, he should fledge. Meanwhile, Sally and Harry are busy with intruders just like most of the other nests. That is so sad because the exchanges sometimes become violent and one or the other, or both, could get injured or die.

Blue 33 taking an opportunity to cuddle with Maya. He loves doing that! In about six days, he is going to be busy fishing for a new set of osplets. First to lay their eggs, first to hatch. Can’t wait. Mark your calendars for pip watch 5-6 May at Rutland Water.

It was a soggy day for Blue NCO at Loch of the Lowes. Someone at the loch saw Laddie sitting near the nest yesterday, I believe it was. There have been worries that something had happened because of a lack of fish deliveries—and even I get nervous watching this nest. Siblicide is entirely possible. It has happened for the past two years.

I am starting to wonder if the other two eggs on the nest of Big Red and Arthur will hatch. If they don’t, it is fine. Big Red had a leg injury that appears to have healed. Feeding four and caring for them might delight her and make her glow like the sun on a bright day, but caring for two is much easier. It might be nice to have a more relaxed year. N1 and N2 are rather feisty!

The camera operators really want to see those eggs clearly and it is hard. N1 loves to go after N2’s neck and twist it about. But, remember, this is really play fighting like Hugo Yugo does with her sisters. It is not the harm that we see on nests with either siblicide or Cainism.

Dear Archie must have had a chat with Annie and convinced her that he is perfectly capable of helping to feed the chicks. Tandem feeding. Monday 29 April. This should put a smile on your face.

It is frightening how fast these chicks of Annie and Archie are growing.

At Syracuse, there are two chicks and the other egg is pipping. Update: That chick has hatched!

‘J’ sent me a super reminder that the PA-DNR falcons have hatched! Here is the link to their cam with an image of the scrape with Mamma and eyases below.

https://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/falcon/falcon-cam-popup_v2.html

The news coming out of the UFlorida-Gainesville osprey platform of Stella and Talon is not good. The first chick died from siblicide. Talon is rarely seen – a Dad that was known for bringing a good amount of fish to the nest. Only one fish on Monday and the weather is to be quite hot according to ‘R’ who is monitoring the nest. So we have to think of dehydration. We could lose another chick, so sad.

‘R’ gives us an update: “1700 – Stella brings in big fish.  #2 learning how to hide behind her and getting some good bits, even a small crop.  #1 is brutal, but speed seems to be working. Talon is gone!” Sadly, another one to add to the Memorial Pages. Another Mum has to be everything to her chicks – security, hunter, and feeder. Thankfully they are well feathered and will be able to thermoregulate when she is out fishing.

The lives of males are often filled with danger that is not visible on camera.

All three are well at the Venice Golf and Country Club Osprey nest. Growing and growing. Sometimes it is hard to tell the third hatch now from the second.

The female at the Wells Fargo Osprey Cam in Des Moines, Iowa has laid a fourth egg on the 29th of April. Last year the couple fledged two chicks.

Two eggs visible at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest on Monday. These would be the first egg that got soaked and then buried as the third egg is not due to hatch yet.

Two cute little White-tail Eaglets in the Tucholskie Forest in Poland.

There is at least one egg at Pitkin County! The egg bowl is so deep.

A brief glimpse of some eggs at Clark PUD.

Male brings a really nice fish and relieves the female at the Kalakotkas 2 nest in Estonia.

‘H’ reports: “The Osoyoos osprey nest of Soo and Olsen: Soo laid their first egg of the season on 4/29, at 12:55:56. This was approximately three weeks earlier than last season.”

ZE brought a fish to the Goitzche-Wildnis nest in Germany and the female was really telling him not to eat it all! Cute.

The eaglet at Fraser Point has a name – ‘Reign’.

An Osprey nest in a tree in the US. How many of you can say you have seen this? (There are many, many in the UK and Europe using beautiful big trees).

The GH owlet at Wolf Bay in Alabama looks better. Heavy rain came late on Monday. The drops were so big that on the streaming cam they looked like snow. I have not seen a feeding, but those generally happen at dusk and dawn. If you have, please let me know.

Thank you so very much for being with us today. It is always a pleasure to hear from you and we look forward to having you with us again soon. Remember to look up!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ‘A, B, Geemeff, H, J, MM, PB, R’, Superbeaks, Heidi McGrue, Frenchman’s Creek, Llyn BGrenig, Julie LaLima, RSPB Leighton Moss, Moorings Park Ospreys, LRWT, Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL), Cornell RTH, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, SU RTH-Cam, PA-DNR, University of Florida-Gainesville, VGCCO, Iowa DNR, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Bieliki Online Bory Tucholskie, Pitkin County Open Space and Trails, Clark PUD, Eagle Club of Estonia, Osoyoos Ospreys, Goitzche-Wildnis, Gracie Shepherd and IWS/Explore.com, Connecticut Osprey Group, and Wolf Bay Ospreys.

*Disclaimer. Every effort is made to identify the individuals, groups, and institutions that supplied information for my post today. Please let me know if I missed anyone!*