When we left Canada, it looked like this at the Montreal airport. There was heavy snow in the area that hit both Ottawa and Montreal. We wondered if we would take off. Thankfully, we did!
The learning curve upon arrival in Guadeloupe was high. I have to admit that my French is not that good! Renting a car might take only minutes in North America, but after a long day, it was a three-hour wait in 28-degree heat. Then, it was an arduous drive up and around the mountains to our cottage on the grounds of the Old Botanical Garden near Deschaines. The anxiety was worth it!
This is the view off the terrace of the cottage.
Complete with a dog that adopted the owners of the property – a Guadeloupe rescue. She is sweet. They even have cats!!!!!!! Who said we would be homesick?
It is Paradise. We are way up on the mountains in the rain forest and while it is 28 C, the breeze is vibrant, and we are not hot. Today was a wee trip into the small village to pick up a baguette and acquaint ourselves with what is available here. The nearest large supermarket is in Sainte-Rose. That is about 11 km away on a very winding road up and down and around the mountain. We opted to stay local. Tomorrow we will venture out to find one of the many restaurants that our host has recommended.
Now, skipping briefly to Bird World News:
The news has come that both E24 and E25 tested positive for HPAI. I do not know the strain but there is a new one in California, H5N9. I was also sent this information from my sidekick: “To the best of my knowledge… no one (bog’s) has reported seeing M15 today. F23 was recently seen at the pond, and looked okay. I’ll let you know anything I can find out. Crow made an announcement at the nest tree, and the vet said we should possibly be concerned about the parents for up to two weeks. They also said that HPAI is relatively new to the SWFL region.”
Please send this amazing couple your best wishes. It is not easy seeing the two children you cared for so much die before you and you are helpless. I still remember Joe (Connie’s former mate at Captiva) mourning over the loss of Peace and Hope (rodenticide poisoning several years ago). It haunts me – that figure of him looking down as the last one, apparently healthy, broke a blood feather and bled to death.
Barb Henry posted a screen capture of F23 down at the pond.
Wings of Whimsy’s tribute to the SW Florida Eagle family and to E24 and E25. Get the tissues. https://youtu.be/YcEUG9mZJKI?
We have the first egg at Moorings Park Osprey nest for Harry and Sally.
Jackie and Shadow have surprised us with three eggs. My goodness if this is a year for a miracle at their nest, is this an extra one for luck? What if all three hatch? Shadow will be busy!!!!!!
All is well at the nest of Gabby and Beau. Beau loves being a Dad!!!!!! He has really picked up on feeding NE31. Gabby joins him in this video: https://youtu.be/_rpYDa8AW6w?
OGK’s son, RLK, got to meet his newly hatched chick at the Royal Albatross Colony in New Zealand.
NZ DOC image shared by Sharon Dunne on the FB group:
There are some wonderful events to celebrate. Please send all of the nests your most positive wishes for success. They have many, many challenges to over come – both the wee ones and the parents.
Thank you for being with us for this brief recap of what has been happening. There is lots more news out in Bird World. We will be back with you later on Saturday from what can only be called ‘Paradise’ – Guadeloupe. Take care everyone.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, images, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write this post today: ‘H, J, PB’, CROW, Barb Henry and the NEFL and EFL Eaglecam Watchers, Wings of Whimsy, Moorings Park, FOBBV, SK Hideaways, NZ DOC, Sharon Dunne
Fortunately, there were some beautiful moments on Sunday that helped ease the sorrow of losing E24 at the SW Florida Bald Eagle nest, as well as the ongoing concern for dear Akecheta. As one of the chatters pointed out, his name means ‘fighter.’ We can only hope that he was able to utilize all the skills at his disposal so that when the cameras return, he will be there beside Thunder.
In fact, the Es were doing so well – meeting every milestone – and being so loved by M15 and F23 – that we were paying most of our attention to NE31 and to Jackie and Shadow. We never thought something would come out of ‘left field’ at M15 and F23’s nest. It reminds us never to take anything for granted!
E25 looks reasonably alert.
I will not be able to answer all of your letters today and I apologize as I know that everyone is grieving and is concerned by the odd behaviour of M15 and F23. Neither returned to the nest after E24 passed on Sunday. Heidi writes that F23 brought a fish to the nest this morning and E25 took a few bites. E25 should have been ravenous. I want us to prepare ourselves for the worst while hoping for the best.
I will not speculate as to what caused E24’s passing. The little one had a seizure prior to its collapse at 1841. It had been lethargic for a few hours.
Bird Flu is always one of the tragic diseases that comes to mind – and, again, I am not stating this is Bird Flu. HPAI is highly contagious and we should review aspects of it because it could impact our beloved raptor families this year. Almost exactly three years ago, I wrote about Avian Flu and a case that had hit Estonia in the spring of 2021. That was the very first time that the Virologist, Thijs Kuiken, knew of HPAI happening outside the normal time of autumn.
The excerpts below were written on the 18th of January 2022. Even if this is not Bird Flu at SW Florida, it is good to remind ourselves that this deadly disease is still ravaging the avian populations around the world.
On 6 January, the CBC announced that hundreds of birds in Newfoundland, Canada had contracted the H5N1 strain of avian flu.
What is extraordinary about this is that it is the same ‘highly pathogenic’ (HPAI) avian flu strain that killed the two White-tailed Eaglets in the Balkans last spring. The male had brought a stork or a crane onto the Estonian nest and the two chicks died as a result of eating it according to the autopsy conducted by Madis Leivits. Thijs Kuiken, Virologist from Erasmus University, Rotterdam said to me in an e-mail, ‘HPAI outbreaks in wildlife were restricted to autumn and winter, and had stopped altogether or were at low levels by the time spring arrived’. Kuiken notes that the incidence of HPAI is overlapping with the breading season of many wild animals that could have been impacted. Many chicks could have died.
Going back to the Newfoundland issue, the question is: how did it cross the Atlantic? Kuiken is working with the Newfoundland Government to discover how this might have happened.
Of further interest is the fact that the same HPAI strain was discovered The in a bird shot in South Carolina in late December 2021. No region appears to be untouched.
If you are interested in learning more about Avian flu and its impact, please read the following article by Dr Kuiken. It is very informative and can be understood easily without great scientific knowledge.
How will this impact the health of all wild birds in Europe and North America? What can be done? Some answers are in the article above. Perhaps it is time to really look at the factory farming of animals carefully and deliberately to a view of becoming more local.
Geemeff also sent me this very clear graphic that outlines how HPAI spreads.
It is hard to move on. There have been some shocking events already in Bald Eagle World that have hit us to our core. It is hard to put them in a box and celebrate the good, but we must do that. There are ways to halt the spread of Avian Flu and Thijs Kuiken writes about that in his articles. For now, though, I ask you to rejoice in the lives of the eagles that are with us, celebrate them, do not close your eyes because it is hard. To grive for these families – for Thunder as she might be mourning Akecheta – for F23 and M15 who have lost one of their children – is to show that you care. Cry. Kick the fridge if you must. It isn’t fair. Do whatever it is that shows your remarkable humanity. That is what makes the Bird World community special. We share in the triumphs and the losses day in and day out. I am so grateful for all of you because you care in a world that seems to be spinning crazily in the other direction. Hold on to that empathy. Send your love out. Mourn with these families.
Calico has been unwell and I found that 31 brought me a lot of comfort. There is something so special about new life and the hope that it brings to all of us, especially an eaglet that we so anxiously awaited to see for over two years!
Just look at those strong wings and fat little bottom. 31 has shown how strong it is from the moment it hatched and held its head up pretty high.
On Monday, NE31 was working its wings and pulling itself up higher in the egg bowl as Gabby was getting some fish for its snack. It will not be long until this one is clamouring out of that cup and up to the pantry! You will recall that Gabby gets them moving and up to the table as soon as she can. Food is a great motivator.
Right now, Gabby is on the big screen in our sitting room. She is looking up while 31 peeks out of her breast feathers. Relish ever precious moment.
Heidi reports that the deliveries at the WRDC nest of Ron and Rose have stepped up! Excellent news. There are lots of fish dinners for the family.
It was a very welcome sight at the Captiva nest when a very large fish came. And then, the eaglet stood and walked over and went – ‘hey, I can feed myself!”
Each nest is passing milestone after milestone daily. Dasher and Dancer are working their wings and getting those Hulk leg muscles stronger and stronger as the dandelion mohawks disappear.
It can’t be easy walking around on that nest. But to stand and flap wings using the tips for balance is a real achievement. Both eaglets are doing this.
Dasher is determined to get some fish flakes off that head.
Fish at John Bunker Sands, too!
I am grateful that Ospreys only (well 99.9% of the time) eat fish. (Mind you I know all the issues, as do you, about fish, but…). Wilko who is 114 days old is enjoying a fish. Kasse is 111 days old today.
On Monday, Mum brought in 2 fish and Dad delivered 1. Kasse had two meals and Wilko had a single dinner – at least that is what we can see on camera. No doubt these two fledglings are following their parents and others to the fishing grounds as they get older.
Jack continues to work on his nest. And what an amazing nest he has made! Bless his heart. The bark is coming in to line the area for eggs.
At the Royal Albatross colony, the Royal Cam chick had made 3 star like pips on the egg and is making good progress towards hatch. The first pip was spotted on the 23rd of January, and the egg was removed to prevent a fly strike. A warmed dummy egg was placed with the Royal Cam chick’s egg in an incubator. Fly strike spray was used on the nest to prevent any harm to the chick once it is returned upon hatch.
It is a white grey day in Winnipeg. It feels like it could rain. New suet cylinders are scattered throughout the lilac bushes that extend about 10 metres along the east side of the garden. The tube feeders are full of black oil seed while peanuts slide off the table feeders. There is Alfalfa for the deer and this evening, I will literally dump a huge bag of Black Oil Seed and half a huge bag of peanuts. This should last the birds and squirrels til we return home. The Cat Sitter, Gary, will make certain that The Girls are fed and have plenty of play time. He also takes care of Brock, Star, and the two other cats that come to the feral feeder. That heated double bowl for wet food and water has been such a blessing for the outdoor cats this year. If all goes to plan, they will have a small shed with heat lamps and straw for next winter.
On Tuesday we fly to Montreal. Keeping with our motto of ‘Stay Calm’, we will spend the night there before getting on the flight to Guadeloupe. We arrive there late afternoon on Wednesday. Can you tell we are not rushing anything? My plan is to have a post for you for Thursday evening unless there are some significant occurrences in Bird World. Until then, be easy on yourself. Grieve and then celebrate. We are so privileged to get to know these raptor families. They touch us in ways that one never expects.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, graphics, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this afternoon: ‘Geemeff, Heidi, SP’, IWS/Explore, NEFL-AEF, SW Florida Eagle Cam, CBC, BBC, The Correspondent, Window to Wildlife, WRDC, Achieva Credit Union, John Bunker Sands Wetlands, Port Lincoln Ospreys, NZ DOC and Cornell Bird Lab
Oh, it is a balmy day on the Canadian Prairies. -1 C. The sky is a clear blue with no clouds and the sun is so bright it is blinding. Gosh. Feeling like summer. Just kidding, but after -28 C with winds, it feels pretty nice. I plan to do some cleaning up of the feral cat area today. This morning Brock greeted me at the garden door. I think he has been missing out on some full dishes of food thanks to Star. I saw her last night, but not this morning.
From the inbox, everyone is getting excited about Saturday. Most of you are nervous at the same time about Beau’s reaction to the potential hatchlings. We can only send them good wishes. Whatever happens at the nest, Gabby will take it all in stride. She is pretty amazing. As are all the eagles. I long to be more like them.
Cornell Bird Lab reminds us that the Big Bird Count is coming. Please mark your calendars and take part. We need a really good look at what is happening to the birds this winter! Or summer if you are in the Southern Hemisphere.
I am giving a loud shout out to a young man in Virginia who is going to attend an event where he can talk to the politicians of Virginia in a hope to get them to stop Omega’s commercial fishing in the Chesapeake Bay. Dustin Byler is a sportsman. He wants to see the Striped Bass and Rockfish populations return to the Bay. I want to see Ospreys fed. We are on the same side!
It will help him if anyone who has observed or cares for the ospreys that died around the coast of the Chesapeake Bay contact him. Do for it for Cobey at Colonial Beach.
Cold weather is heading to Florida and the Eagles know it often before the weather people. M15 and F23 are taking lots of grasses to the nest to help the Es stay warm, too – they are too big to get under Mum comfortably! https://youtu.be/kWt4JkJuiks?
It’s Friday. We are one day away from pip watch at this nest!!!!!!!!!!!!!
These are the observations from Port Lincoln for Thursday:
Kasse on the nest after ousting Wilko on Friday.
Kasse grabbed that first fish delivery, the first one on Friday! In the image above she is enjoying that fish while Wilko is fish calling to Mum and Dad. Way to go Kasse.
The protests for more fish seem to fall on deaf ears. Hey! Where are the fairies? Are they still out of town?
Two well fed eaglets at Captiva. One really big sister and one tiny brother or so it appears.
Can’t take the eyes off that little one, C13. Just the cutest.
Scout and Bella at the NCTC nest on Thursday.
Eagle at Two Harbours on Thursday.
Harry and Sally are bonding and they have been making appearances at the nest at Moorings Park.
This is not the way to do this folks! Everything needs a plan and I am all for rewilding and reintroductions after careful consideration. Thankfully the lynx are safe.
Dyfi is working on a project and it is a hide. I am smiling.
Bird Flu has surfaced in Louisiana. Oh, please send your strongest wishes for our eagles (and for all birds) in that state.
An extremely rare sighting of a shorebird in the UK. “The least sandpiper (Calidris minutilla) is a new world species, breeding in Alaska and Arctic Canada, before heading south to overwinter in warmer climes, from the southern states of the US to Brazil. In Britain they are a rare vagrant, with fewer than 100 sightings recorded, virtually all in autumn.”
These are tiny shorebirds, 13-15 cm, 5-6 inches. They have piercing eyes. Could you take a look at their bill? It is only slightly curved and very pointed to help them get food. Their greenish-yellow legs are almost as long as they are tall. The underparts of their bodies are white. They have a beautiful variegated plumage pattern that ranges from white, cream, taupe, darker brown and espresso brown. They are gorgeous little shorebirds.
They feed in the mud along the shores especially areas where the tide is receding. They also feed higher up on the ground. Do you remember the shorebirds that I saw when I was in Nova Scotia? Think of these little beauties.
The Least Sandpiper is the smallest shorebird in the world, weighing in at about 1 ounce and measuring 5-6 inches long. Males are slightly smaller than females.
Eastern populations probably fly nonstop over the ocean from the Gulf of St. Lawrence and New England to wintering grounds in northeastern South America, a distance of about 1,800 to 2,500 miles.
Researchers studying Least Sandpipers discovered a new feeding mechanism. While probing damp mud with their bills, the sandpipers use the surface tension of the water to transport prey quickly from their bill tips to their mouths.
Least Sandpipers hunt for food on slightly drier, higher ground compared to other small sandpipers. Although numerous worldwide, they usually flock in smaller numbers—dozens rather than hundreds or thousands—than some other shorebirds.
The oldest Least Sandpiper on record was a female, and at least 15 years old when she was recaptured and released by a Nova Scotia researcher in 1985.
This bird almost certainly crossed the Atlantic a few months ago, but was not discovered until early January when a couple of sharp-eyed local birders at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust’s Steart Marshes reserve spotted it.”
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. 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: ‘J’, Cornell Bird Lab, Dustin Byler FB, Real Saunders Photography, NEFL-AEF, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Bart M and the PLO, Window to Wildlife, NCTC Eagle Nest, Moorings Park Osprey Cam, Frenchman’s Creek Osprey Cam, LDF, Audubon, Sky News, Dyfi Osprey Project, Openverse, All About Birds, The Guardian
First – just look at SE33 ready to take on the world! Just about.
SE33 is just gorgeous. Look at the amazing plumage pattern on those underwings! I wish this incredible eagle a long, long life, full of prey items, a wonderful mate, and lots of little eaglets. Do it for SE34, too – SE33, you have to live life to the fullest for both of you.
There will be some small squeeze treats for The Girls today to celebrate the anniversary of Hugo Yugo’s arrival. Was it as cold last year as it is this morning, -15 C. The sky is the most transparent, brightest blue we have seen for some time. There are sun dogs on either side, iridescent like someone sprayed gold and bronze paint on them. Sundogs are atmospheric optical phenomena that appear as bright light spots on either side of the sun at about 22 degrees. They are red on the inside and white on the outside. The sundog varies in shape and size of the ice crystals that create them. They appear when the sun or moon shines through a thin cirrus cloud of hexagonal ice crystals. The ice crystals then refract the light causing the sundogs to appear. Living in Winnipeg, you know it is very cold if you see them.
The snow that has fallen the past couple of days makes the outdoors seem even brighter. There are no girls in the conservatory. They had their breakfast and opted for the sitting room where it is warmer to their paws. I close off the conservatory at night, something that I did not do last year. I want to see if there is any savings. It might just equal out by having to heat it right up every morning.
In the garden, there are a few Sparrows, a single Red Squirrel and a dozen Starlings wanting breakfast. Someone ate all the cat kibble so that has been replaced in case Brock shows up. He seems to not like snow or cold weather. I do not blame him!
Oh, Dyson’s kits have shown up!
The wind is picking up. Both Crows have now arrived for peanuts so all we are missing in the garden count are the two Blue Jays.
I forgot to leave the kibble for the Starlings so out I go!
With the arrival of the egg for Ron and Rita at the WRDC, it is only a matter of days before we start seeing eggs in the other nests, I hope. Will Gabby and Beau be next?
Beau has been checking out the nest bowl all morning at NE Florida. He also brought Gabby a fish gift – an improvement on last year! Will Gabby get to be a Mum again? It has been some time. Beau has protected the nest and kept off any attempts at a takeover. He is a great protector. Last year, he didn’t know what to do. Let’s see what happens this year. I am just grateful that those eggs did not hatch last year.
All is well at SW Florida and Captiva. Incubation continues at both nests. We are now less than a fortnight away from hatch for M15 and F23 in Fort Myers, Florida.
The nest bowl at Captiva is soooo deep.
Liberty and Guardian have been at the nest and goodness. Let’s get these eaglets hatched and up and flying before the real heat arrives.
Skye and Blaze were both hit hard by a GHO during the night at Eagle Country. Both eagles returned to the nest in the morning. The presence of GHOs is becoming even more alarming this year as storms and fires have destroyed good nesting spots.
Adult Black-winged kites are about the size of small falcons. They are the softest light grey underneath with a steel blue grey plumage above, black shoulders and wing coverts that give them their name. They have bright yellow legs and distinctive red eyes. They live near farming lands with woods, semi-desert areas, and open savannahs. They are versatile in their hunting styles – hovering like kestrels or gliding low over the fields like a harrier. Their geographical location is Western Europe, SE Asia, the Indian subcontinent, and the coast of Africa.
The New York Times published an article about Bird Flu. We cannot dismiss it and West Nile Virus as contributing factors to raptor mortality this year, along with lead and rodenticide poisoning, loss of habitat, and direct human interaction such as shooting.
Do you know about the blue socks helping the Blue Booty? And the two brothers that are helping? Will and Matty? Socks are $16 US and shipping is free in the US. $5 internationally. —— Young people doing something wonderful for the world and especially if it involves feathers really warms my heart!
All About Birds Cool Facts about Blue-footed Booby:
To stay cool in very hot environments, Blue-footed Boobies sometimes defecate on their feet (a behavior called urohydrosis). They also flutter the skin of their throats (the gular pouch) by rapidly vibrating bones in their throat, which creates evaporative cooling through the open mouth.
The blue color of Blue-footed Booby’s feet varies in its intensity. Boobies with bluer feet appear to have more success in finding a mate than birds with duller blue feet. One study looked at foot color in relation to the health of young chicks and found that healthiest chicks tended to have fathers with intensely blue feet—possibly an indication of the father’s ability to keep himself well fed. Although the famous mating display might seem comical to humans, the display of foot color provides critical information on a bird’s health and ability to provide for young.
The Blue-footed Booby makes no nest, but lays its eggs on bare ground. The incubating birds defecate while on the nest, and the eggs become surrounded by a circular wall of excrement.
Calico’s Tip for the Day for those that have feral cat shelters and live in snowy areas:
It is hard to imagine, but an osprey was photographed in Cork, Ireland yesterday. It has not migrated. I wonder how many are still in England?
In 2024, the death rate for osprey chicks internationally was super high. It was 26.6%. These are clearly documented instances. We know of many other deaths related to starvation along the Chesapeake Bay, but we do not have enough detailed information on the nests to post the information on the data forms. The mortality figures would have been considerably higher.
As it stands, this is 6% higher than in 2023.
‘J’ sends the Rita the Eagle Update:
Thank you so much for being with us 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 blog today: ‘J, RP’, Judy Harrington, NEFL-AEF, SW Florida Eagle Cam, AEF, Window to Wildlife, FORE, Eagle Country, WATOP. Port Lincoln Ospreys, Review Bird Nest, The New York Times, Hob Osterlund, Sharon Dunne, Will and Matty, Cornell All About Birds, The Guardian, Winnipeg Missing and Found Cat Watch, International Osprey Data Project, Rita the Eagle and Marathon
The first thing. WBSE33 is thin but no fractures and will do well. Relief. But, how many of you remember Daisy the Duck who tried desperately to have ducklings on the nest but lost to the Crows two years in a row. Look at this little sweetie on that sea eaglet nest!
Thank you, and welcome to all our new subscribers. I have exited Twitter and will no longer be posting on that platform. You can now find me on Bluesky with the name OspreyLover. I will figure out how to post my blog there this weekend. Otherwise, the best way to be assured of getting Bird World news is by subscribing. The link is below. I will not send you spam. I will never have a fee for the blog. I publish only one post per day under normal conditions. If there is news that you would not wish to miss, then yes, there could be a second. You can unsubscribe at any time. Please feel free to share the blog with your friends and family. You can also find my blog on FaceBook or by going to maryannsteggles.com
Oh, goodness. A cold, fierce wind blew into Winnipeg Monday night and Tuesday morning. My Soleri chimes were waking up everyone. The outdoor carpet was tangled. Everything was tossed about. Thankfully, Friday is to be a bit warmer. It is time to find the ‘warmer’ coats and boots. Have them at the ready. That 10 C day should also give us time to finish up things for the soon-to-be-named tuxedo cat, ‘The Boyfriend’.
Hugo Yugo is 100% better and looking for more ways to get into mischief and have to have to go to the vet! We still cannot believe that she ate a shoestring with a knot. Incredible. You wouldn’t think she had been on death’s door. The mere fact that had she not passed this shoestring, she would have had to have undergone major surgery. It gives me chills.
These images were taken on Tuesday morning after the ‘expulsion’ Monday evening. Such a cheeky girl. Please believe me when I tell you that Hope is the ‘angel’ in the family of four girls. Hugo Yugo is still quite small for her age.
Darling Hope.
On Tuesday we stopped to remember dear Lewis who died on this day in 2023. He was the dear companion of Missey – and a great kitty to all.
Every year, I prepare myself for the little sea eaglets. They have such a beautiful life in the nest. We grow to love them dearly. Then there is the reality of their lives right after fledge. Heart-breaking. I hope SE33 survives. Some of its older siblings have survived in care. I hope SE33 is trained and released. Then it can have a life. It feels like a triple kick in the gut when the news arrives. Despite knowing to expect something, we always hope. We hope two eaglets will fly out of the nest to the River Roost. There, they would sit next to Lady and Dad, eat fish, and start a family with babies. So today, I am gutted.
In Montana, someone cut down Iris’s Owl Pole where she eats her fish. Dr Greene is investigating. I mean – seriously? Why would anyone do that? But then why would someone cut down the Llyn Brenig platform? Humans need more training so we can co-exist with wildlife in our shared world.
Muhlady laid her first egg on Tuesday. (I do not cover Superbeaks other than the very main points due to the restrictions of the cam owner).
There continues to be hurricanes that can alter the fate of some of the nests in Florida.
Migratory birds are under continuous threat. They are essential to the well-being of our planet.
In Port Lincoln, Dad is at the nest. Here is the obs board so far. Please note that Mum is fishing!!!!!!!! Way to go. I do not recall her fishing for the kids on the nest in past years. Thump me gently, as I could easily forget. This is excellent news. We know that the nests where females share fishing duties have a greater chance of success. I am smiling so big. I wish you could see it.
First fish is a large one that Mum caught right under the nest. Dad left his fish and then came back and took it. There is some dominance behaviour happening.
Early morning in Melbourne. The rain will come as it did in Orange. These three are staying home. As you know, females are larger. It takes longer for their bodies to bulk up and their feathers to come in because they have so many more to grow. That is also why they require more food and are aggressive. They need all they can get to be bigger and bigger. Let’s all be grateful that they are not flying. I wish Garrama had not gotten startled and flown because it began to rain right after.
Yira and Gammata are cute, adorable, and will be preparing to fledge. I worry about them, too. In the images, unless the camera is playing tricks on us, we can see the difference in size in what could be a female and a male for Diamond and Xavier.
Garrama fledged at 11:26:44 after beaky kisses with Yira.
Cute video of Bubba preparing to fledge in case you missed it. Thanks, Heidi. (I could not find the live stream today). https://youtu.be/Hbi_1T2zyfc?
Just look at Bubba! Oh, the benefits of being the only osplet on the nest.
There are three beautiful fully feathered osplets at the Coobowie platform in South Australia. This is wonderful news. This nest originally had four chicks, unheard of in Australia. Sadly, the fourth hatch died.
At Captiva Eagle Cam, Connie and Clive are there. When should we expect our first egg, do you think?
The nest at NE Florida looks ready.
It was windy in Iowa and from the historical records, we should not be expecting an egg with The Majestics at Denton Homes any time soon. Both eagles were at the nest late Monday night.
Gigi and the new male were at the ND-LEEF nest on Tuesday in South Bend, Indiana.
Hope and Chandler visited the nest at Port Tobacco separately. But like the ND-LEEF nest, they could both be sitting on branches above the nest. Sometimes you can see shadows.
At least one eagle at Avon Lake.
Beautiful Liberty and Guardian at the Redding nest on Tuesday together.
At the nest of Bonnie and Clyde, there is a possum! Oh, geez. I am glad there are not eggs to eat. I love this couple despite the fact that they ousted a young eagle couple and well, we know what GHOs do to young osplets. https://youtu.be/q6hxRXKEDxk?
The latest news from Hawk Mountain. Either some species have not started to move South or we have a huge problem. Take your time and look at the up to date numbers and the ten-year average. Others are doing better – the vultures and the Bald Eagles.
Wild bird numbers continue to decline dramatically.
Your smile today comes from Missey. I now know why I cannot grow ferns.
Thank you for being with us today. I have some good images to share with you. I just need time to get my long lens camera plugged in to download them. There are never enough hours in the day!!!!!!!! Take care everyone. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, images, articles, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, H, J’, Judy Harrington, Meterologist Bryan Bennett, BBC News, Port Lincoln Osprey Cam, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Growing Home, Dave Wetherall and Friends of Osprey Sth Aus, SK Hideaways, Growing Home, Window to Wildlife, NEFL-AEF, Denton Homes, ND-LEEF, Port Tobacco Eagle Cam, FORE, Farmer Derek, tulsaducati, Hawk Mountain, The Guardian, Raptor Persecution UK.
We hope that this post finds you having a great weekend. Full of curiosities and birds! Maybe cats, too!!!!!!!!
Update: First gutter stomp at Collins Street! Gosh, wonder what Mum is going to do now? https://youtu.be/uUg0pXetEOo?
Friday was just another gorgeous fall day near the Minas Basin and Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia. We returned to the Grand Pre Memorial Site, the church and the land of the Acadians that were deported by the British Planters. We enjoyed our walks here in August, the discovery of the juvenile eagle, and re-learning the history of the French settlers, the Acadians. Today, the adults raising the juvenile were soaring above their nest near the Blacksmith Shop. They were so high above me that any iphone photos were positively inadequate. Today, circling and soaring they went til finally they stopped and headed north towards the farmer’s fields. They are two of the eagles that feed on the fields near where I am staying. It felt wonderful. Seven or eight Blue Jays flitted about and the gulls continued scavaging on the newly plowed fields, too.
There was hardly anyone on the grounds of the UNESCO Heritage site. Peaceful would be the best word to describe the morning. It was precisely what I needed.
Saturday will be lovely, too, and it is Homecoming weekend at Acadia University where I taught and chaired the Fine Arts Department eons ago. We fly home early, early Monday morning so we will take full advantage of the wonderful fall weather today – and the good food to be found in the small villages up the mountain.
Ah, but moving on…We were here in August and I wrote about the Acadians. If you missed it, this is your brief refresher.
The Acadians began to settle the area just east of Wolfville, Nova Scotia in 1682. They worked very hard building dykes and taking advantage of the soil left by the tides. Their area became known as the ‘Breadbasket of Acadie’.
The Memorial Church: “The Memorial Church expresses the Acadian’s strong attachment to Grand-Pré National Historic Site of Canada. Built in 1922, with funds raised from Acadian communities throughout North America, the Memorial Church symbolizes the spirit of Acadian nationalism and the deep-seated desire to commemorate the tragedy of the Deportation. Architect René Fréchet of Moncton, New Brunswick, drew up the plans for the church, which reflect Normandy-style architecture of the 1700s. The design does not duplicate the original pre-Deportation church whose appearance is unknown. Archaeological excavations in 2001 suggest the Memorial Church was indeed built approximately where the original Grand-Pré parish church stood (Parks Canada)”.
Evangeline is the heroine of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem of the same name. She was not a real person, and you will not find her name on the list of deportees. Many believe, particularly those Acadians living in Louisiana, that she is Emmeline LaBiche, who reunited with her lover, Louis Arceneaux, in Saint Martinsville, Louisiana. The tragedy of this tale, unlike Longellow’s poem, where they never met again, is that Areneaux had wed someone else. It was too late for the couple.
Longfellow’s poem is symbolic of the breaking up of families and potential families caused by the British deportation of the Acadians. Many settled in Louisiana if they survived. The Treaty of Paris (1763) ended the Seven Years War and the hostilities between the French and British. It had a clause that allowed the Acadians to return to their land in Nova Scotia. Most never did.
The original well used by the Acadians and a piece of one of the original willow trees on the land.
The Deportation Cross. There are several deportation crosses – the one at the UNESCO site in Grand Pre (below), another at Hortonsville just 3.2 kms away that marks the site of the deportation of 1755 of more than 2000 Acadians, and at least one other in St Martinsville, Louisiana.
A view of the farming lands of the Acadians inside the dykes.
We had hoped the Memorial Church would be open as we did not go inside on our last visit. It wasn’t. You can walk through the grounds at your leisure, but the church and the interpretative centre are closed for the season. Everyone is preparing for winter and the falling leaves, now crunching beneath our feet, are a reminder that snow and much colder weather will be here sooner than we think.
Moving on to the birds…
F23 can get them back in the scrape and shelter them from whatever the Melbourne weather throws at that nest site! https://youtu.be/q9RZZgnuQv4?
At Port Lincoln, Wilko and Kasse had a nice early morning breakfast. Dad delivered fish, everyone ate and there was plenty left when Dad removed it so he could have some breakfast, too. Well done, Dad!
Oh, these two are changing right before our eyes. Look at all the down off that little head and the pin feathers coming in.
Later…Wilko and Kasse are wanting more fish, but nothing is arriving.
Wilko is such a reptile!
Two Sea eaglets still on the nest in the Olympic Forest.
Mum either headed out to get prey or went to the pantry. The triplets are sooooooo cute and they had a lovely breakfast while the sea eagles wait for theirs.
The chicks at Orange had their breakfast starting at 0811. It looks like it lasted 6 minutes before Diamond stopped feeding.
At the Growing Home Osprey platform, Bubba looks to have all of his/her juvenile plumage. Don’t you love how Dad spends so much time on the nest with Mum and Bubba? Except when he is fishing, of course!
Wondering about Gabby and Beau? Both were at the nest tree on Friday.
It was windy at Captiva – I only caught one eagle on cam, but that doesn’t mean that Connie and Clive were both not there! In fact, the mates are often on other branches and we can’t see them on the streaming cams and so we worry for nothing!
At SW Florida, F23 has brought in at least one pine cone to the nest along with lots of twigs. We are now past the middle of October. Eaglets are born in late December and early January with incubation being, on average, 35 days in Florida. Things will start to get serious in another month.
‘A’ sends us news of the recent Royal Albatross fledglings with trackers: “The leading two chicks from Taiaroa Head are more than halfway to Chile now. We have GPS data for five of the fledgees from this season and we can see their progress towards their summer fishing grounds off the coast of Chile. Meanwhile, previous seasons’ fledgees are returning to Taiaroa Head for their breeding season. We have lovely footage on the chat of a previous chick from the colony, now a nine-year-old male, returning to where he was born, presumably to find a mate. Let’s hope he is successful this season in finding Miss Right. These birds are exquisite and their wingspan is astounding. It never ceases to amaze me that they live for so long without setting foot on dry land and that after all those thousands of kilometres, they return to within 50 metres of the nest from which they fledged. Is that not just awesome? Nothing we as humans can do compares with the feats of some of the birds and animals we observe. How do we not have the utmost respect for these creatures instead of treating them as somehow inferior to us, fatally flawed humans? The outrageous arrogance of it never ceases to astound me. We should be breathless with wonder. Seriously.”
In the UK there is growing concern over laws to make it legal to carry chickens by their legs (don’t even get me started on animal cruelty) and by bird flu which seems to be reappearing in articles about various species from shorebirds to pheasants.
Do you live in Pennsylvania? If so, you might be interested in visiting the nocturnal animals! Here is the info for Zoo America. Thanks, ‘RP’.
Zoo America allows guests to meet nocturnal animals after hours at Creatures Of The Night
The program allows guests to learn about the Zoo’s nocturnal animals
HERSHEY, Pa. — For the next two weekends, you can explore ZooAmerica in Hersheypark after the sun goes down to meet their “Creatures Of The Night.”
The program allows guests to learn about the Zoo’s nocturnal animals, like owls, gray wolves and even skunks. This is the only time of the year the zoo is open after-hours.u
Organizers say it’s a fun way to get into the Halloween spirit and educate people on the animals’ nighttime habitats.
“It’s nice to learn about the animals we have in our environment,” Alicia Snyder, education specialist at ZooAmerica, said. “So since we’re ZooAmerica, we only have animals from North America. You might see them around your house. So usually if people see a skunk, they’re not gonna get close to it, which is good, but we should know that we should still take care of their environment.”
Creatures Of The Night also features Halloween crafts, a magic potion scavenger hunt, animal enrichment activities and special educational displays.
It runs Friday – Sunday over the next two weekends (Oct. 18 – 20 and Oct. 25 – 27) from 6 to 9 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. We look forward to having you with us again soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A,Geemeff, J, RP’, Sharon Pollock, SK Hideaways, Port Lincoln Ospreys, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, Olympic Park Eagles, Growing Home Osprey Cam, Window to Wildlife, NEFL-AEF, SW Florida Eagle Cam, The Guardian,BirdGuides, Zoo America.
It started out really windy and then the rain came. Now there are big clouds and the sun is out, but the phone tells me that more rain is expected in 17 minutes. It rained so hard at Hall’s Harbour that the side of the hill turned into a waterfall and tore out the road, a huge shock to everyone who lives and works there. They are expecting 43 feet tides on Saturday, something that is unprecedented No one knows what to expect. Will there be floods? The Hunter’s Full Moon is today, October 17. Full moons impact the tides being higher.
The long unpainted board above the little tug to the left marks a 41 foot tide. The tide is set to be 39 feet tonight which is slightly above the dark water mark on the boards.
While this is fascinating to someone living on the Prairies, this is not a curiosity to those that live in the area who have faced the mudslides and rising water.
We are not staying at Hall’s Harbour. Decades ago, before the fancy new restaurant, it was a favourite haunt of ours.
Our little cottage is on an appropriately named little lane near Grand Pre!
There were four Bald Eagles hunting on the dykelands this morning along with Crows and Gulls. They sit so still, just like hawks waiting for the small mammals to surface from the big clumps of soil that have been recently plowed. No doubt those fields are full of tasty voles.
Merlin identifies this gull as an Iceland Gull, a sub-species, a non-breeding Thayer’s Gull.
Our ride to Hall’s Harbour revealed fields of pumpkins, small stands of delicious apples for sale, and gorgeous foliage.
They have been harvesting pumpkins and squash from these vast fields for weeks.
There are stands everywhere where the honour system is in place. Pick your produce and put your money in the tin! It is that simple.
‘PB’ alerted me to the cameras at Captiva – both osprey and eagle cams are up and running! Thank you.
The little cuties went to bed with a full tummy at the Port Lincoln osprey barge on Wednesday. This was a great feeding. Wilko and Kasse are doing so well.
‘A’ remarks: “Unfortunately, we saw some aggression from Wilco yesterday morning as it decided to enforce pecking order on the nest. Kasse was completely bewildered, not having encountered this until now, and didn’t really know how to handle it. At one stage, he literally headed for the hills, but Wilco grabbed him by the back and dragged him down again. Certainly, Kasse’s major response was confusion, and I don’t think it is going to result in its being intimidated. We will wait and see. When the fish delivery arrived a little later, the pair were exemplary in their table manners and all was well.
Both of yesterday’s fish were magpie perch – large, striped and very much alive in the first case at least. Flopping around and bonking the babies. It took some time to come under control but luckily the littles are not quite as fragile at this age. Even so, they were a little taken aback to be attacked by breakfast. (Another magpie perch was brought in at 07:55 this morning – 17 October.)”
Breakfast at 367 Collins Street! Everyone is always full. What a great family.
It is very foggy at Orange. Diamond, Yira and Garramma are waiting for Xavier to be able to catch breakfast prey.
The sea eaglets are learning how to defend themselves against the Currawong attacks on the nest! https://youtu.be/dDhYLRxO-5M?
Thank you for being with me today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, J, PB’, Window to Wildlife, Judy Harrington and Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, Trudi Kron and JBS Sands Wetlands, NEFL-AEF, Gary’s Videos, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Raptor Persecution UK, SK Hideaways, The Guardian.
As is typical, I am writing my post on Saturday. I had hoped for some sun and wind to dry up all the rain, but, the rain is now coming down harder and harder. Three Crows were frantically pecking at the nut cylinder. I noticed that they gave each other space so that they could eat. All was going well until Dyson arrived! The Crows flew off. They returned later for a big bowl of cheesy dogs. I can see Junior at the feeder sorting through the peanuts. Where is Mrs Junior? It is always worrisome when one or the other does not show up at the morning feeder.
Dyson is moulting. She isn’t sick! She is so strong and healthy. It makes us happy to be a part of her life. I wish we could get the trees to grow faster or convince her to please just stay in our garden. No roads!
It has really started pouring. And yeah, Mrs Junior just flew in to get some peanuts!!!!!! Relief.
In Canada, Beaumont continues to deliver large fish to the nest where his two fledglings might like to scrap for the dinner! Both are eating well and Beaumont is making sure each is fed.
Dad and at least one chick are still at the LDF nest in Kuzeme Latvia.
Right now there is harmony and peace at the NE Florida nest of Gabby. She doesn’t seem to care if the male has necrotic feet in places. They are on the branches together, side by side at times, and in the nest making nestorations. If Gabby gets to raise little eaglets in peace this year, we should all jump up and down with joyful tears.
They have been on and off the nest on Saturday. The AEF has ‘temporarily’ designated the male as 24E1 (year, eagle, first visitor).
The eyes of the male visitor remind me so much of those of Samson. I know it isn’t, but for a split second.
The SW Florida streaming cams are up and ready for action starting today or tomorrow.
It was a beautiful day at the nest of Bella at the NCTC. Didn’t see any eagles.
You can help support conservation by buying stamps! Aren’t these beautiful?
These will be available in the new year. There are currently others for sale – some designed by adults and other junior winners. They are lovely.
The little eaglet in Australia is doing so well and this little fluffy bundle of joy has a name – Lukin.
Bradley and Shultzie. Yes! Good thing there are two perches. It’s always good, just like the Blue Jays, to get a total head count before sunset.
Judy Harrington brings us up to date with the Olympic Park Eagles.
The new pair in the USK Valley in Wales left late. They didn’t breed but hopes are high for 2025.
Bird Flu is possibly the reason for the decline in Peregrine Falcon populations in the US. Like everything else, it is still with us – it just isn’t making the news like it did. That is a shame.
Xavier flew out for the morning breakfast hunt. Diamond waits patiently to see what he will return with for her meal.
We blinked and the Olympic Park Eaglets grew and grew. When did this happen? They are more steady on their feet. Their wing feathers are growing in. They look like eagles, not nestlings. SE 34 is learning to self-feed.
Will we see the Royal Cam chick back on cam before fledge? Possibly not.
Pippa’s Mum is the first to return: Royal Cam chick Atawhai (Miss Pippa) and Lillibet’s Mum YRK is the first to return to Taiaroa this year. You will remember her amazing mate, OGK – some of us still tear up at the thought of him. OGK has not been seen since he went missing in 2022.
The Only Bob at Growing Home is so fortunate. It will never ever have to share a fish with a ravenous sibling. Look carefully. Tiny white bobblehead.
The fight for the survival of the osprey (and other wildlife) in the Chesapeake Bay is on and hinges on the curtailing of the industrial fishing of Menhaden.
There is always something to learn about migration: “For migrating birds, fall brings difficulty and danger. To reach warm winter climes, many birds must fly hundreds or thousands of miles, expend immense amounts of energy and successfully dodge storms, skyscrapers and other potential threats.
Still, scientists have long assumed that a basic trade-off made migration worth the gamble: Once birds arrived at their wintering grounds, they wouldn’t need to work so hard to stay warm, saving substantial amounts of energy. “But nobody ever tested this,” said Nils Linek, a behavioral ecologist at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior in Germany.
Now, Dr. Linek and his colleagues have done so. Their findings, based on a partially migratory population of German blackbirds, challenge the conventional wisdom. Even in the depths of winter, blackbirds basking in balmy southern Europe or northern Africa did not spend any less energy than those riding out the cold in Germany, the scientists found.”
Calico’s Tip for the Day. You have heard us mention numerous times the need to halt bird collisions. Residences indeed account for more deaths than skyscrapers. Hard to believe? I know, but it is true if you take all the deaths due to our windows collectively. So what is the problem? People do not know how to stop the birds from hitting their windows. Calico says that you must space the decals on the OUTSIDE of the window at least 5 cm or two inches apart. That’s right. You cannot just put one decal on the outside of your window and hope it will work; you never put it on the inside. The most economical method is window paint. Again, on the outside of the windows. I liked using the white or the yellow. Squiggle everywhere. Let your children or grandchildren help. The window paints come off easily.
Nova Scotia’s official bird (I know that everyone knew that, right?) on an iconic boat, the Bluenose II.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for the notes, posts, videos, articles, images, tweets, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘PB for today and for Saturday’s Tweet from Dr Greene’, Newfoundland Power, LDF, NEFL-AEF, NCTC, USFWS, Port Lincoln Osprey, Judy Harrington and Olympic Park Eagles, Jeff Kear and USK Valley Ospreys, Audubon, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, Olympic Park Eagles, The Royal Albatross Centre, Growing Home, Bryan Watts and the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, Sharon Dunne, Bluenose II, USFWS, Birdlife International, and The New York Times.
We went to the zoo today. The weather was a little cooler. What we did differently was we took the tram and had a great chat with the driver about how much the zoo has changed over the decades – from a zoo focused on the people visiting the animals to a focus solely on the welfare of the animals. Everyone used to love the petting zoo, but probably not the animals petted and pulled. Today, there are lots of goats doing silly goat things, a couple of llamas, and a pair of pigs. Our feathered friends are really no longer visible. Years ago the zoo was full of owls and peacocks – everywhere. Bird flu put an end to that. The geese and other waterfowl that had Avian Flu kept the birds inside and some could not be…I didn’t ask what happened to the, but I will. The birds were my favourite and I do miss them. Now, we rely on the polar bears and their antics. Most of the animals were outside today including the Tiger because of the cooler weather. More pictures next time!
Some of you will recall the Norwegian osplets that were translocated to Ireland. Well, guess what? A couple built a nest and fledged a chick this year! Bravo.
The oldest chick, a female, Glenwais, is still having Idris bring fish to the nest at Dyfi. She has not departed! Idris has been in Wales for 5 full months now. His talons must be itching to get to Africa!
Then she was seen soaring in the thermals at 11:16 Friday. It is believed it will be the last sighting and she is on her way South at the age of 102 days. Idris shows up with a fish waiting for a taker and no one is there.
Idris will feed up and leave. He will rejoin his mate Telyn at the nest late March or early April of 2025 if all goes well. What a wonderful year they had.
Blue 022 is still delivering to the nest at Poole Harbour. I checked late (so little rewind before dark) and caught him and one of the fledglings.
If you missed the August Condor chat of the Ventana Wildlife Society in California, which highlighted filmmaking and storytelling to get people interested in and concerned about the Condors, they have hired a staff member for videography, storytelling, and media. The full chat is in the link below. Meredith Evans is the new team member. Digital Communicator is the official title. Listen and see what they are doing! VWS Condors if their film channel on YouTube and they have a long range of videos including those about Red Wood Queen and at least two award winning films for you to watch. So check that out, too. This group is incredible and we need those condors!
Geemeff sends her daily summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust. Looking forward to her year summary which will be coming up!
Daily summary Friday 30th August 2024
Same as yesterday – wet and windy, no birds of any size or species. However, from Ian at the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation comes an update on our chick 1JW who’s in the care of Fundación Migres in Valencia: “The birds are all doing well. JW is still on the marsh with all the other chicks. They’ve settled into a routine now where they are feeding by taking fish from the feeding stations and flying off with it to eat on perches. They are starting to make longer flights and it won’t be too long before one of them leaves, but at the moment they all seem happy enough. Migration starts later in southern Europe so we would expect them to be around for a couple of weeks more.” Surprisingly, tonight’s weather forecast is clear skies and light winds, and sunny tomorrow with a high of
20°C. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.31.39 (05.39.07); Nest Two 21.30.23 (05.44.50) Today’s videos: none Bonus watch – Woodland Trust’s vital work to provide habitat our wildlife needs to survive and thrive, and support some of our most vulnerable species, including bats:https://youtu.be/VKkrnBYRcQA (watch to the end for the delightful bat soundscape) Compare and contrast our two resident females past and current: https://youtu.be/_23wRVnATc4 Golden goddess: Aila 2017 – 2020 (Classic Ospreys – Chopin) https://youtu.be/1syQj_jjjxw Golden variation: Dorcha 2021 – (Classic Ospreys – Bach)
Watch the Loch Arkaig Osprey livestream 24/7 and join in the conversation here:
At the Olympic Park Sea Eagle nest, the camera operator gave us a good look at SE33. Notice the down away from the front top of the head and the pin feathers coming through. This eaglet is changing before our eyes! They are both growing. We need SE34 to just get a little braver.
SE34 got a good feeding right before bedtime! Yippee.
‘A’ comments on the action at the Olympic Sea Eagle nest: “This morning, it was a super early breakfast at WbSE, too early for SE33, which meant SE34, although initially nervous because he could feel SE33 moving against him (stretching and changing position and so forth), ended up being fed a personal breakfast. He was starting to feel more comfortable by the time Dad flew off the nest tree shortly before 6am. He is still eating at 06:07, his sibling lying beside him but facing in the opposite direction and looking around, alert and very interested in its surroundings. By 06:09 Lady is really having to coax SE34, with SE33 repeatedly moving beside him, standing up and stretching its wings. By 06:10, SE33’s preening is spooking SE34 somewhat but he is nevertheless continuing to eat. By 06:11, SE33 has flopped back down again, appearing to still have a crop from last night. Lady is being very patient indeed with SE34, who keeps eating. At 06:12, SE34 is having difficulty swallowing a previous bite, but eventually does so and accepts another.
Lady is having a hard time getting bites off this carcass and at 06:13 gives a bite to SE33. And another. SE33 has clown feet and her head looks sleek without its fluff. Lady offers another bite to SE34, who accepts it. But that’s it. Breakfast is over, and by 06:14 Lady has flown off. Both eaglets have visible crops but SE34 did by far the best out of that feeding. He has a healthy crop and is looking very healthy. SE33 is sporting growing feathers along her wing.
As I type, Lady and Dad are again dueting, although we all wish they wouldn’t. Another egg is expected at Orange tomorrow lunchtime, apparently (Sunday Australian time, so in about 22 hours). I do NOT want a third egg for Diamond. That would not be at all good. I don’t have to elaborate to you on my reasons for that opinion but I would be surprised if you did not agree.
At 06:14:35, SE34 is sitting up, as is SE33, and the younger chick looks the older one in the eye. Oh dear. The resulting beak to the head is predictable, but SE34 quickly pops back up again.This annoys SE33, who repeats the beak to the back of his head, and gives him a third for good measure, leaving SE34 with his head tucked under. Lady flies down to check on the kids and ensure they are playing nice, but with nest hierarchy restored, things quickly return to normal, with both eaglets’ heads up and the pair interacting peacefully. She leaves them to it.
At 06:20, Lady flies down to the nest with a tiny morsel of leftover something. This causes SE33 to beak SE34, who ducks down but is still beaked a second time, so stays there. Lady feeds the older eaglet the few bites she can get off this piece, with SE34 remaining cautiously tucked throughout. By 06:27 mum is gone and the mini-feeding is done.
After this, the two eaglets were left alone for the rest of the morning and well into the afternoon (although with parental supervision from above for much of the time). At 14:57 Dad flew in with more nest material. The eaglets immediately line up at the table but there is nothing to eat. When Lady and Dad start dueting shortly after 13:00, SE34 appears to be attempting some sort of vocalisation to mimic his parents. Aw, too cute.
I have no idea what they are discussing but it could be the need for a late lunch, as the littles have not been fed since before dawn and it is now after 3pm. It will be starting to get dark in about two hours, and will be completely dark by 6pm. So unless the eaglets are to go without a second meal today, one of the parents needs to go fishing. So I would suspect this is what their conversation is about. We shall see. The key thing here is that Lady is looking after SE34, coaxing him to eat and being very patient in ensuring that he does. This morning’s breakfast was a real demonstration of that. Further, SE34 himself is taking more responsibility for getting himself fed. He was braver today and made efforts to ensure he was close to mum’s beak. He even grabbed a bite from in front of his sister at one stage, which was encouraging. Also, I notice that the size gap between these two, which shrank after they hatched and then blew out again over the past fortnight, again appears to have got a lot less noticeable. I am now starting to wonder once again whether we may in fact have two males on this nest. Certainly, SE33 does not have the full-on aggression we often see with females, though there has been some bonking in the interests of maintaining nest hierarchy, that has been all it is, with no unnecessary or prolonged acts of violence and no determination to prevent SE34 from eating. So It may well be that their similar sizes may indicate brothers, which could be a hopeful sign for the post-fledge period when we hope both will return to the nest to be fed. “
Gorgeous Mum at Port Lincoln incubating the two osprey eggs. Will there be a third?
Gorgeous Diamond doing the same. We have a few weeks to go – watching incubation is worse than watching paint dry. LOL.
Peregrine Falcon eggs are gorgeous. It is one of the problems. They were collected and that along with DDT drove the birds to the brink of extinction.
Diamond rejected the first Starling on Saturday morning but took the second then mated with Xavier on the roof of the tower.
At Hellgate Canyon, Antali was waiting on the perch when he sighted Finnegan flying to the nest with a lovely fish.
Antali and Sum-eh both at Hellgate Canyon Friday.
And again after lunch! Finnegan is quite amazing. He is making sure that his kids are fed and fed well so they are fit for migration. Most people wonder why the osplets don’t catch their own fish. In fact, it is very rare for fledglings to catch their own fish before they leave for migration. 61 million years of DNA teaches them – their instincts – they know how to fish.
A wide shot of C16 eating at the platform with the adult on the perch.
Junebug sleeping on the perch at Dunrovin.
Both osplets on the Newfoundland Power platform at Snow Lane.
The Omega ships ran out of Menhaden to catch.
On Thursday, August 29, Maya was still in the nest at Manton Bay. I didn’t get an image, but one is on the Friends of Loch Arkaig Ospreys FB group.
Fishing line showing up again and again this year as one of the worst thing impacting the lives of our birds (besides domestic cats). You can help by spreading the word to people to clean up after themselves when they go out for the day. Recepticals can be found at many fishing places now, use them and why not set up a clean up the shore day?
If you live near Winnipeg, it is the fun and frolicking Open House at Wildlife Haven coming up! Great time to see all of the facilities and meet all the ambassadors including Majestic, the Bald Eagle.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Take care everyone. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, images, articles, videos, and streaming cams: ‘A, Geemeff’, O Tuathall, Dyfi Osprey Project, Birds of Poole Harbour, Ventana Wildlife Society, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Olympic Park Eagles, Nesting Bird Life and More, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, Access Fund, 367 Collins Street Falcon Cam by Mirvac, SK Hideaways, The Guardian, Montana Osprey Project, Charlo Montana, Dunrovin Ranch, Newfoundland Power, Wm Dunn- Menhaden-Little Fish, Big Deal FB, and Wildlife Haven.
We are about 95% ready to leave tomorrow for our mini-break in Nova Scotia. Cat sitters, garden helpers, outside garden birds and animal helpers – well, it is all under control. Mr Crow & Gang have 12 kg of cheesy dogs, there are large pails with wild bird seed, black oil seed, and peanuts prepared for each day we are away to be distributed, cat food and anything a cat sitter could need is piled high on the island including some new treats and toys. ‘The Girls’ are smart and they have caught on to what is happening. They don’t know it but I am already missing them, too. It is the only thing I dislike about even being away one night – is missing them and not having Hugo Yugo snuggling under my chin at night.
I melt every time I look at Baby Hope. It is those celadon eyes.
Calico and I have been working on items to clean cat hair off of the chairs. We have discovered that those natural coconut scrubbers for dishes are fantastic. They look like a donut and are made from the fibres of the coconut shell.
Everyone shares the one little basket that is fixed so they can look down very low and watch Mr Crow eating his dinner.
Hugo Yugo Day 1 with us and now. She is not afraid of anything and is really pretty much the boss of the gang. Yes, she still looks like a kitten but she will be a year old on 2 September. She is a little ‘toughie’.
I have just received word from the Green Ledge Light Preservation Society that the two osplets in the storm along the coast of Connecticut created by Debby are both fine. Only a couple of sticks at the nest needed to be arranged! Amazing. I cannot tell you how relieved and happy I am for those two. knew you would want to know, too – and I want to give a shout-out to the staff at Green Ledge for letting me know so swiftly.
My goodness. Getting organized for a longer trip takes the cake. I am hope that the neighbour will follow the few instructions and feed the garden animals and water the plants. The cat sitter is fantastic so no worries there. ‘The Girls’ have gotten used to Gary. It looks like the weather will be good in Nova Scotia and I cannot wait to walk across a reasonably deserted country lane and sit and watch eagles soaring in the sky for feeding on the fish at the shore.
There will be no post Tuesday morning. I don’t get into the Halifax airport til late Monday evening despite having to leave the house at noon! I was a little shocked to see all the regulations for just flying within Canada. Goodness.
The news in Bird World is dwindling and that is a good thing. We want everyone out there to be safe and building their strength for migration. On my radar are only a handful of chicks to fledge including Antali and C16 and ours in Canada.
That cute little Hobby fledged. Just quick as a wink. They change from bobblehead to Hobby so quickly. I can’t get used to it. It is like the California Falcons – one minute they are hatching and the next they are flapping all the baby down off their wings preparing to fly.
SK Hideaways always does the best videos and here is hers of the little Hobby fledging! Check out her other posts too – especially if you are missing the Cal or San Jose Falcons!!!!!
We will be watching with great anticipation and much enthusiasm as Diamond and Xavier prepare for those eggies that Xavier loves so much.
Beautiful, beautiful little sea eaglets at the Olympic Park nest. Dad couldn’t be prouder. He even fed Lady some bits of bird today – romantic and sweet. The little ones are having some bonking fests. Do not worry. It will end.
‘A’ comments (paraphrased) – The bonking is well underway at WBSE (so far, SE34 is giving as good as s/he gets), it is reassuring because some claim that the WBSE is an obligate siblicide species. Obviously, that is not universally the case, and we therefore have to ask ourselves what is it about this nest that makes it one of the exceptions. I think Lady is the difference. The parents who show a conscious interest in ensuring the younger hatch is fed are the ones who can _ and regularly do – fledge two (or even three or four – look at West End, for example, and some of this season’s osprey nests that fledged four). Lady is careful to feed both her chicks (and Dad keeps the nest well supplied with fish – at least, he has done thus far). Surely this has to make a major difference. But of course we worry when we see sibling rivalry become aggression. I’m sure it will quickly settle down, especially given how very close these two are in size. It’s hard to tell them apart except by the remains of their tiny egg teeth.
There is a live Osprey chat tomorrow sponsored by Explore.org. Thanks to everyone who sent this notice to me. Sadly, I will be on the plane, but I hope they will archive the talk so those who miss it can check it out later. This is the link to join and set an alarm to alert you when the talk is starting:
Do you ever have to pinch yourself when you look at Iris and Finnegan and their two osplets? I still can hardly believe it. What an amazing year it has been, and what a challenging one for these two parents. The heat was enough to kill all the osplets off so many nests, and these two survived without a hiccup. Finn was an amazing fisher, and Iris didn’t allow any shenanigans between those chicks. Each was treated equally. Iris often fed little Antali when she might have wanted a little fish. But thanks to Finn, so many came to the nest that no one was ever hungry.
Antali watches Sum-eh fly all around the area and is often caught watching the train with Mum Iris. She is so protective of her babies. Soon Antali will be flying up and down the river chasing Dad for fish, too.
I am so in love with this family.
Iris made sure that Antali had some fish. She is really incredible. I am so glad that I got to witness her being a Mum to these two.
At Charlo, C16 continues their quest to take to the skies. C16 is really a gorgeous osplet. I am so happy that Lola and Charlie will have one to fledge. Maybe someone can work on some permanent cot rails for that platform during the off-season.
The Dunrovin Ranch chick is dreaming of flying, too – but still loves to be fed by Winnie. It has been doing some wingers but not to the extent of C16.
In Port Lincoln, Dad has been busy decorating the nest. He sure loves Turquoise. Later, he came in with a white piece of rope. I wonder if Mum would rather he was delivering fish? Port Lincoln will remove the ropes so they don’t harm the osplets! We will have eggs at Port Lincoln by the end of the month. I bet Bart is already a guessing pool on the date of the first one.
In New Zealand, the Kakapo are getting their health checks and new batteries for their transmitters. What a great job the Kakapo Recovery does in making these birds safe and keeping them well.
Geemeff’s Daily Summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Sunday 11th August 2024
The little songbirds were back on both Nest One and Nest two, but they were a supporting act to the main event – Ospreys turned up in the shape of Affric 152 and Garry LV0. They spent a fair bit of time together on Nest One, Garry brought a fish which was seized by Affric who proceeded to leave with it, return, munch a bit on the nest and leave with it again. After finishing it she returned and demanded more fish from Garry but only got a half-hearted mating attempt from him. The forecasted thundery showers didn’t materialise today but there’s a weather warning for the Highlands for thunderstorms starting at 2am tomorrow, and more rain throughout the night.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 22.14.16 (04.49.55); Nest Two 22.11.11 (05.04.26)
What would we do without Suzanne Arnold Horning? She chases Big Red and Arthur and the kiddos (when they are on the Cornell campus) and so generously posts her photographs on FB. This way we always know that our Red-tail Hawk Queen is safe and sound and living a good hawk life – or King if it is Arthur.
Another nest that has had me gobsmacked this season is the Newfoundland Power Snow Lane nest of Beaumont and Hope. I even went so far as to ask if ‘C’ had some historical images of Hope’s necklace and head markings. I could not believe she had gained such maternal instincts. It is her or her identical twin and this huge change in behaviour has meant that the two osplets did not starve, but look amazing in their juvenile plumage and will certainly (knock on wood) fledge!
Oh, that Boulder County nest is sure trying to get the award for the most bin bags in one season to land on an osprey nest. Caught the entire family at home on Sunday. All are safe.
Lots of very loud fish calling from the Poole Harbour nest. Blue 022 and CJ7 have been brilliant – being one of only a few nests to successfully fledge four osplets in the 2024 season. But, I bet they are tired. CJ7 will need to build her strength for migration. Blue 022 will stay behind being Daddy Door Dash til the kids depart. Hopefully he will have some time to eat some good fish alone to get himself ready. We will look forward to another grand year in 2025.
The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum fledgling is safe and getting those wings strong. Comes back for nice fish meals from Mum – fed on the rails like she always wants to do it.
Concerns raised that H5N1, the highly pathogenic bird flu, could break out in Australia in the spring.
Let’s get a ban on the commercial fishing for Menhaden and see if we cannot have a resurgence of healthy osprey families with two or three chicks fledging instead of one or none! Come on politicians. Stand up for wildlife.
Besides window strike, fishing line, hooks, baling twine – and how many more items that cause our feathered friends injury or death – did we ever think of soccer nets?
Always feel free to send me news. Always grateful! One person cannot keep up.
Polish White Storks continue their journeys after arriving in Africa.
A step in the right direction but an all out ban on fishing is needed. Thanks, ‘PB’.
Atlantic menhaden board votes to study more restrictions on controversial Chesapeake Bay fishery
The measure passed this week is meant to help protect birds and fish that rely on menhaden as a key food source. But researchers say more data is needed to understand the dynamics in the bay.
‘H’ reports:
8/11 Fortis Exshaw osprey nest: The intruder was still around, and she spent some time on the nest. She was not aggressive today, but Harvie did jump on her a couple of times to indicate his displeasure. At 0932, an osprey chased the intruder off of the nest-pole, but we couldn’t tell who flushed her off.
Harvie delivered at least 7 fish to the nest, and the intruder took the first one in the morning. All the rest of the fish went to the siblings. Our view is particularly bad in the evening due to the sun shining on the film coating the camera, and we could not tell who made the fish drop at 1855, but it was most likely Harvie. Also, a chick was seen eating a fish at 2116, but I couldn’t find a delivery for that fish through the glare. Besides Harvie’s deliveries, there were two other fish delivered today… and I still can’t wrap my head around this one: At 1242, the intruder landed in the nest with a partial fish, and one of the siblings took it. After about 3 minutes, the intruder left. I know…bizarre, right? Well, many of us scrutinized that osprey for identification, and we agreed that it was the intruder. Go figure. After the intruder flew off at 1245, she was not seen for the rest of the day. At 1630 an adult osprey landed on the t-perch beside one of the juvies, and provided a feeding for about 18 minutes. The t-perch is too far away for identification, but only Louise would have done that. Louise did the same thing once yesterday as well.
Nakoda, the only chick that hasn’t fledged, was on the nest-perch twice today. At 1352 Nakoda actually flew from a high hover and landed on the nest-perch. Nakoda did not fledge today, but s/he is ready.
8/11 Osoyoos osprey nest: Olsen delivered a large fish at 0735, and both chicks were able to do some self-feeding. Then the live stream froze for more that six hours. I did not see another fish delivered for the rest of the day. Chick 2 was seen doing some very nice hovering in the evening…Yay! Chick 1 fledged on 8/3 at 57 days of age. Chick 2 is 65 days old on 8/12.
8/11 Fenwick Island osprey nest (Captain Mac’s Fish House): The first part of this season was quite rocky as new parents Johnny and June struggled to get their act together. They had one chick to raise, and it has all worked out wonderfully. ‘Fen’ fledged today at 58 days of age. Fen took off from the perch, and made a nice landing back in the nest about 5 minutes later. Congratulations to Fen and his Mom and Dad!
Thank you so much for being with us today. I will report from the estuary with the eagles on Tuesday morning – it could be a little later than normal. Not sure. So please take care. We look forward to having you with us.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, announcements, photographs, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, C, Geemeff, H, J, L, PB’, Green Ledge Light Preservation Society, SK Hideaways, Cilla Kinross, Olympic Park Eagles, Explore, Montana Osprey Project, Charlo Montana, Dunrovin Ranch, PLO, Kakapo Recovery, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Suzanne Arnold Horning, Newfoundland Power, Boulder County Ospreys, BoPH, MN-LA Ospreys, The Guardian, Fairhaven Animal Control and Shelter, SOS Tesla, WHRO.org, Fortis-Exshaw, Fenwick Island, and Osoyoos Osprey Cam.
