Cornell Red Tail Hawks – Page 11

Friday in Bird World

26 April 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

‘The Girls’ are just fine. We are enjoying Amy Tan’s new book and read an entry or two every evening. Oh, how I wish I had the time to learn to draw like Tan! This morning we are enjoying having no heat on in the house and listening to the Chickadees sing to us. The sky is heavy overcast and I am hoping for a lot of rain.

Hugo Yugo is quite the character and if anything happens one has to look no farther than a little ginger cat. She has ‘decided’ that the butcher block area is ‘hers’ especially when we are away. The key is not to leave anything there that could be knocked, eaten, or tossed off to the floor. This included a yummy packet of cookies today. It appeared she had knocked them off and then played hockey with the bits and bobs. Either ‘on’ or ‘off’ and nothing in between, looking for mischief at every turn. We picked up a small bag of tiny pinecones today in the hope that they would be of interest!

She is ready to run! This look just spells trouble.

Missey has decided that she likes the vintage wicker cat carrier.

‘The Boyfriend’ comes about 4 to 5 times a day. I am constantly checking his water bowl sine it has been so warm. Must find another place for his feeding location soon.

It was 24 degrees C in Winnipeg on Thursday, 25 April. Unbelievable for this time of year. The soil is so dry that when I was going down country roads it blew everywhere. We need moisture! After such a successful Wednesday at Delta Marsh and Delta Beach, it was time to go and check on the pelicans.

The American White Pelican lives on our main lakes and near the dam at Lockport, Manitoba. They arrive in April and set off for their southern winter grounds in September. They fish by diving into the surface of the water to get small fish. The ones with the barnacle-like disk on their bill are breeding pelicans. The others are not. They make scrape nests lined with pebbles or lay their 1-3 eggs on mounds of debris. Normally only one chick survives because of the high percentage of siblicide associated with this species.

There were hundreds and hundreds of them on the river.

The one below is a breeder. Notice the keel plate on the upper mandible – the barnacle-like protuberance – indicating a breeding bird.

The only other birds that I saw, other than a few ducks, were a small group of Ring-billed Gulls.

Have a giggle. Thanks, ‘MB’ for the link – Silly Idris wants incubation time!

Big Red and Arthur had their first hatch on Thursday morning. Oh, goodness, gracious.

‘A’ gives us her perspective: “Wasn’t it lovely to see a hawklet hatch yesterday? We could see the half shell shortly before 13:00 and we get our first really good look at the still-damp hatchling at around 14:33, at which point mum decides it is ready to be fed. It is able to sit up strongly and hold up its head (though the baby fox that’s on the menu today retains a little more fur than is ideal for the baby’s first feeding). I must say the sight of that crushed and mangled shell does worry me slightly. We have had several of these this season, most with happy endings but at least one (at SWFL) with a very sad outcome. Let’s hope the other eggs are not in this condition. Arthur is a very proud dad. Are there pips on egg 2 and/or egg 3? That was definitely egg one that hatched, based on the amount of speckling, which means the pip I thought I saw (which was on egg 2, I’m fairly certain) was likely not a pip, as the mark in question still appears to be on that second egg and has not enlarged at all. Thus, it is probably something stuck to the egg. Still, we are expecting pips in eggs 2 and 3 at any time, based on the timing of the delayed incubation principle followed at Cal Falcons. I believe Big Red did something similar here.”

Oren and Ruth have their first hatch, too!

It is sometimes hard to hit a moving beak especially if you are a new Mum and have two little osplet heads bobbling about. Aren’t they cute? The two at Captiva CO7 and CO8. Both have had fish.

That other egg in the Captiva nest. Well, if you read the chat, you might think that a 45-day-old osprey egg – the first to be laid – might hatch tomorrow. Think about that. The average for osprey eggs to hatch is 36.5-38 days, according to the data that ‘H’ and I have collected (as well as many others). At 40 days, we would give up hope -. There is no way that a 45 day old egg will hatch! So sit back and enjoy the two of them.

It looks like dear Tuffy is going to survive Ruffie. Tuffie is now 31 days old and has beautiful, beautiful juvenile feathers.

‘A’ gets pretty excited watching the Cal Falcons. This is from a day ago. “At Cal Falcons we get our first proper view of hatch four, fully out of the egg and still very damp, when mum heads off to the pantry at about 13:43. Of course the little one is not nearly ready to eat and its eyes are still closed. It looks tiny without its fluff. The other three are all fed – again, Annie is careful to make sure all those little beaks are filled several times each. I always worry that one of the three doesn’t get as much as the other two at a feeding, but it never the same eyas as at the feeding before, so she makes sure that with frequent feedings for these youngsters, no-one actually goes hungry. They are ADORABLE. When we first see them as a fluffy cuddle puddle, I wonder how quickly even Annie will become way too small to brood them. They are a largish pile already, and Archie’s valiant efforts at brooding will be entertaining! Oh he is a darling little mate. Don’t you just love the way he leaves beautifully prepared food within 10 or 15 seconds of the nest – Annie seems to be able to collect perfect prey from the pantry in an incredibly short time when she heads off for food – she’s always back within 20 seconds or so with nutritious-looking meat without inedible parts attached. He does a great job. Of course Annie cleans up any bits that are not suitable for feeding to the babies.

By 14:53, Annie is up and heading for the pantry again. This time, the new hatch is dry and fluffy but not yet ready for a feeding. Still, it has been out of its egg for about 90 minutes or so and already, it seems strong. Archie is quick;ly onto the scrape in case anyone is chilly or a bit lonely, e-chupping to Annie as he checks the kids. But again, Annie is back within 20 seconds, the prey this time a little more feathered than usual, and Annie takes a couple of minutes to prepare the food herself. She then proceeds to feed the chicks yet again, and Archie stays a while to watch the meal. Chick number 3 has front position for this feeding and is doing particularly well. A couple of minutes in, the little fourth hatch pokes its head through the fluff and appears at the front of the line, beside chick 3. It opens its tiny beak, whether for a yawn or for food, I cannot be certain. Oh they are just TOO sweet. Mum has her work cut out for her!

Archie is still there at 14:55, when chick 4 stands up (it has to pull its head out from between the others, which puts it into the back row at the table) and opens its beak!!! This chick is less than two hours old (it’s probably been officially out of its egg for about 90 minutes at this point), and it is already standing, holding its head up and opening its beak for food. Wow! At 14:56 Archie continues to watch closely, appearing absolutely fascinated. He is on the edge of the scrape, within inches of the little cohort of chicks standing in the middle of the scrape, little beaks open wide. Small squeaks for now – just imagine how noisy these cuties are going to become en masse!!

Mum is ignoring the fourth hatch, which is at the back of the group and is much shorter than the others so hard for mum to reach. At one point, the baby is even jumping in an attempt to gain her attention! It reminds me of Rubus, and appears to have similar leaping abilities. At such a young age, its strength and balance is truly astonishing. It tries several tactics to try and get mum’s attention but to no avail. Shortly after 14:59 it stands up at the back of the group and appears in danger of falling over backwards. This concerns Archie, who moves around behind hatch 4 to make sure it is okay. He is such a sweetheart. He seems to want something to feed to those open beaks, and e-chups to Annie. I think he’s counting the bunch and realising he now has four children!!!! (No, that’s anthropomorphising, but he definitely appears to be worried by the fact that the youngest hatch, at the back, has not been fed despite all its efforts. Mum continues to try and coax the older three to eat, without success, but continues to ignore hatch 4. Watch at around 15:00 to see Archie’s reaction to this. He seems to very badly want to grab that bite of food from mum and distribute it himself. But of course he doesn’t.

Interesting. I’ve never seen a parental interaction quite like that. He actually seemed to make a half effort at grabbing the food from Annie’s beak to feed the chicks himself. Archie stays beside the chicks, watching with great intensity. Everything Annie does, every movement from the chicks, he absorbs. He is totally engrossed. Several times, he appears to consider taking the food from Annie’s beak, apparently wanting to feed the youngest hatch, at the back, which still has not been fed any food, despite its continual begging for something, its little beak wide open like its older siblings. Of course it does not yet need to eat, only two hours out /of its egg, but it wants to and is trying to, so I am surprised that Annie is ignoring it completely. She is usually really good at reaching the one at the back or the chick facing the wrong way. Perhaps she simply thinks this one is so young, she doesn’t need to include it in feedings yet. I do hope so. Otherwise, this one looks determined and strong, so I suspect it will rapidly learn how to get itself into the front row. It will jump like Rubus if it has to, I suspect, based on what it has been doing this afternoon. I will check for feedings later in the afternoon to see if chick 4 did get fed today.”

A story too good not to tell. A 17 year old male Peregrine Falcon has a mate and a clutch. His name is Dipper.

Frenchman’s Creek has received many letters from concerned viewers of their osprey cam. ‘MP’ wrote and got a response stating, “They were in contact with the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission in Florida and several ornithologists who told them of the situation; and per expert opinion, human intervention is neither necessary nor permitted at this time.”

The female was on the nest feeding one of the osplets today while the other was self-feeding.

‘MP’ reports that the first egg of the season has been laid at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest on Thursday the 25th.

There are two osplets at Lake Murray and there is a hint of the third egg perhaps pipping. We will see tomorrow.

The third osplet at Lake Murray arrived overnight. Thanks, ‘H’.

One of the Decorah North eaglets has a fishing hook issue. This would qualify for intervention because it is a human-caused problem. Can they get a permit? Is it possible to get a cherry picker up to help? We wait. Poor baby. Please send positive wishes.

Swampy is on the nest and is being fed well. He was eating a fish and there are now two more as I write on the nest for later! Thanks Abby and Blaze.

The two eaglets at Cardinal Land Conservancy have been named Arnie and Neil.

Murphy has a new eaglet to raise!

News from ND-LEEF:

‘H’ caught an Osprey landing on the Cape Henlopen State Park platform – a change from the Black Vultures. Ospreys have not used this nest since the tragedies of 2022 when the Dad was found dead, the Mum chased off nest by intruding and overtaking ospreys, and the chicks starved on the platform as a result.

Glaslyn: Elen and Aran have their second egg of the season at 12:44 on Thursday the 25th.

It actually appears that there is a new male at the nest of Iris at Hellgate Canyon in Missoula who has been bringing fish and there might have been a successful mating. Many believed it was Louis, but after much comparison it appears it is a new male to be named by Dr Greene. Well, this could be an interesting year. Iris certainly likes his fish and heaven only knows she deserves someone to care for her! This is certainly a twist that I did not anticipate.

The Fraser Point eaglet has been named – and we will be waiting to hear the name of the other one.

Both Bald Canyon Eaglets were named.

Dorcha cannot get a break this year! Poor gal just wants to incubate in peace and quiet.

Dorcha takes off with the ‘brunch or lunch’ fish. Louis was late – keeping intruders away?

Jackie and Shadow and the dawn.

New female replacing Charlotte at Charlo Montana is a 14 year old.

Six goslings taking the leap of faith seen from the US Steel Eagle cam. Fantastic. You might have watched the second leap of faith at Decorah. One gosling made it down to the adults. Volunteers looked and found a second at the bottom of the nest tree that night but parents were elsewhere. I do not think that they found the third. I will try to get more up to date news.

https://fb.watch/rGWOx8ZXEE

Thanks so much for being with me today! Take care everyone. We hope to see you soon.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, tweets, images, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘A, Geemeff, H, MB, MP’, Dyfi Osprey Project, Cornell RTH, Suzanne Arnold Horning, @CornellHawks, Red-tail Hawk Tales, Window to Wildlife, Heidi McGrue, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, Linda McElroy, Frenchman’s Creek, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Lake Murray, Raptor Resource Project/Explore, Laura Rose, Eagle Country, Cardinal Land Conservancy, World Bird Sanctuary, Carol Mandis-beadle, IWS/Explore, Geemeff, Pam Breci, and PIX Cams.

*Every effort has been made to credit individuals for their notes, videos, photographs, etc. If I have inadvertently missed someone, please let me know so I can rectify that oversight.*

Archie saves the Day…Swampy falls off nest…Wednesday in Bird World

24 April 2024

Hello Everyone,

Thank you to everyone who sent me a note about the little Tern’s rescue in Hawaii. Anyone can be a hero. You just have to stop and care enough to help. That is what ‘S’ did—empathy, patience, concern, and commitment. So stop the next time you see a goose crossing the road with goslings. Make others stop til they get across safely. Help the bird that has fallen out of the nest by calling the proper authorities to help. Do you have the local wildlife rescue in your phone contacts? Keep a shovel – one of those small folding ones is ideal – in your trunk. See a dead animal on the road. Pull over safely. Slow the traffic, and with your shovel, move it safely from the road so the carrion eaters can have a meal. — This also applies to urban streets. Put the dead animals away from the curb so the Crows can have a meal instead of relying on the junk food in the dumpsters. There is so much we can all do, and sometimes that means simply a shallow bowl of water – believe me, it can save the lives of so many birds. They need water! If you know of building supervisors who put poison out for the pigeons, find a way to persuade them to stop. The urban raptors rely on pigeons, and if they are poisoned, they will not only die, but their chicks could also get sick and die. Other ways include donating clean old towels, sheets, and items to your local wildlife rehabilitation clinic – and volunteering. It doesn’t have to be money.

Tuesday was a lovely day in the garden. The Blue Jays arrived before the squirrels and started helping themselves to the peanut pile. The peanut pile on the big table feeder started like this. The Jays shake the peanuts. They want to ensure they get a shell with two good nuts inside it, not an empty one! So shake, shake, shake. They spend a lot of time selecting just the right one.

A few hours later, Dyson was digging to find a peanut! Normally she is out with her kits well before the Jays arrive, but not today. But never fear, Dyson returned the minute she heard more peanuts being added and had quite the fill.

This little kit hit the jackpot a new seed cylinder!

Wild Birds Unlimited’s website has some interesting facts about Blue Jays. Here are a few about caching nuts that you might find interesting.

Research studies have recorded Blue Jays making over 1,000 trips per day when hiding food.

In one research study, 50 Blue Jays were observed selecting and caching 150,000 acorns over a period of 28 days. Each bird cached a total of 3,000 acorns by selecting and hiding an average of 107 acorns per day.

In another research study, Blue Jays were observed storing over 2,000 beach tree nuts in one month.

A Blue Jay was observed packing over 100 sunflower seeds into it’s gullet during just one visit to a feeder.

Amy Tan’s latest book arrived in the post on Tuesday.

I had been looking forward to its arrival since I watched the NYC Audubon interview with Tan and saw her lovely drawings and ‘felt’ over the virtual miles her passion for the ordinary – but always extraordinary – birds that live in her garden. The book did not disappoint – I am only 3 hours into reading it, steady, but excited. It is written like a journal with particular birds and entries for particular days out of a huge selection the author had to choose from.

I chose this illustration because it is beautiful and because the Juncos are in my garden now. Tan captured their remarkable plumage.

Of course, I love Mr. Crow and his family, and it is clear that Tan has closely observed the behaviour of her Corvids.

Moving on to Bird World…

UPDATE: Swampy officially flew and officially fledged off the branch of the tree Wednesday morning. To my knowledge, Swampy was never fed by the adults while on that branch nor the day prior. I hope this baby has some food soon – . I will however leave you with the story below and a great capture by ‘H’.

We begin with another sad, or potentially sad and lethal, story from Eagle Country. On the morning of Tuesday, April 23rd, Swampy was flapping his/her wings and slipping off the nest. This sent shock waves through viewers, who conjured in their minds Meadow, the younger sibling, being blown off the other side of the nest and eventually dying. I couldn’t believe my eyes – and the thought “This can’t be happening again” repeated itself over and over again during the day.

The time was 0811. Swampy was seen on a lower branch like Meadow. Is it possible that we will now lose Swampy?

Some Osprey nests in the UK get refurbished during the off-season. The rails are built up and wired together. Sticks are brought in to make the nests safe and help the tired migrating birds when they return from West Africa (or wherever they over wintered). Why don’t those individuals who own the streaming cams to these nests do the same? Get up there when permits are not required. Make sure that nests are solid and safe. Heaven only knows that it is difficult for the raptors to find nesting materials in some places because of habitat loss. In this instance, had that rim been secured, neither eaglet would have fallen off. (No, I am not blaming Eagle Country, but I am certainly suggesting they get a climber up there and repair this nest!)

Swampy is on the opposite side of the tree but we cannot assume s/he is uninjured just like we could not tell that Meadow was emaciated. Swampy could be also. And s/he could be injured. Swampy is ready to fledge, however, so this is a plus.

Swampy was perched on the branch. I don’t want to be cynical but we know that Meadow was emaciated and it looks like Swampy is going to suffer the same fate unless an adult gets some food to their eaglet.

The newly hatched osplet at Captiva is tired. The last time I checked on Tuesday, CO7 had not been fed. Oh, goodness gracious, Edie, get to feeding your baby. Yes, of course, it can wait but many are getting bites within a few hours of hatch! Forgive me, but this year’s first-time eagle parents have caused me to become overly worrisome around first-time Dads and/or Mums. Some are naturals; others are not.

Family portrait at Captiva. Proud parents. Will this be an only osplet?

Captiva chick eating well and Jack with the pantry packed.

First egg at Llyn Brenig at 1740 on the 23rd. Blue 372 finally has her own nest with LJ2. Everyone can rest easy now. She was out searching for a mate and now she is going to have a family. Well done 372!

‘A’ gets quite excited about those little fluff balls. “And we are still waiting on number four, who is making progress. The fluffy three that we have already are looking strong and healthy. The littlest one couldn’t seem to work out which way was front at the 6am feeding but Annie is such an experienced mum and by about 06:06, she is ensuring that the baby of the three gets some bites. It is strong too, and is really holding its own and keeping its little head up, occasionally using its tiny wings for balance. Oh Mary Ann, they are just the sweetest, most darling little creatures. Every time I see a falcon hatch, it’s just like the very first time. They warm my heart in exactly the same way as the first hatch I saw. The wonder of it never wanes. And watching these devoted, gentle, patient parents is so lovely. I do love the safety of this scrape for the chicks. It seems like a good place for a chick to grow up and find its feet, as it were. Much safer than a ledge on a high rise like Collins Street, or even that box in the sky at Orange, where the chicks always terrify us with their proximity to the edge before they have the ability to fly. Here, they have that rooftop to chase each other about and flap and play. It’s a lovely playroom for them. Four. Wow. This is going to be interesting. “

Archie meets the third chick.

Archie does wonders. How many times have we seen eaglets get hypothermia when not under Mum or Dad. Well, Archie saves the day at Cal Falcons!

If you need cheering up, head over to Cal Falcons. It will work wonders.

‘AE’ wrote and wondered about the Mum at Frenchman’s Creek. The female has been in and has fed at least one of the osplets. There has been some animosity between the osplets. They are undoubtedly frustrated and hungry despite a nest full of fish and self-feeding.

Tuffy is really growing and his beautiful feathers continue to come in. He had a reasonably good day on Tuesday, but it was not without Ruffie pushing her weight around, literally.

A large fish came in at 2008. Tuffy looks over as Ruffie is filling up. Notice that Tuffy does have a crop (thank goodness). It is during this meal that Ruffie decides to show her dominance.

It was impossible to tell if Tuffy got any fish because of the placement of Sally. He certainly was fish calling while Sally was eating – but, as mentioned before, he had a crop and he will go to bed feeling full. Sally horked the fish tail at 2105.

Once again, dear Milda is alone and trying to fend for herself and now an eaglet that has hatched. It has snowed in Latvia, a late spring snow, and Milda has to leave to find food. Will she have a chick survive this year? Milda was away for more than one and a half hours in the freezing temperature.

Many have been concerned about Tom. He is believed to have made an appearance, however short, Tuesday at the nest.

Blue NCO laid the third egg at Loch of the Lowes on Tuesday.

The first egg was laid at the Kent Island Chesapeake Conservancy nest of Tom and Audrey on Tuesday in the US.

The third egg appears to have been laid at Steelscape on Tuesday.

In the UK on Wednesday, there were more eggs:

Loch Garten: Asha and Brodie have their second egg at 1406.

Tweed Valley: Mrs O and FKO have their second egg at 1000.

Emyr Evans gives us a science lesson after Telyn lays her third egg on the 18th:

Telyn-Lays-Three-Eggs-in-2024-Without-Delay-Dyfi-Osprey-Project Download

There are eggs at other nests as well and some sorting out who their mates will be. It has been a long week and I feel like my head has been crushed entering all the data for all the nests this season. Soon, we will be ‘bored’ waiting for hatch while they incubate! So if you are missing a little osplet and want to see one, try Captiva. In the meantime, I am anxiously awaiting hatch at Big Red and Arthur’s nest on the Cornell Campus.

‘A’ has been watching Big Red’s nest too and adds: “When Big Red actually stands up briefly to change position just after 17:36:30, is that a large pip I see on the top of the right-hand egg (as we look at it) nearest the camera? It looks like the second egg to me from the speckling (the egg at the front on the left appears to have more markings and was therefore probably the first egg laid) but the ‘pip’ is at the correct end of the egg and it sure looks to me like a chick is on the way out.”

I suppose we can look forward to tomorrow morning (24 April) to see whether I am right. Certainly, we have to be on pip watch at Cornell by now.

Oh those three at Cal Falcons are adorable. I did expect number four to have joined us by now but there have been so few opportunities to see that egg today, and I am unsure whether or not it is hatching. We may end up with three eyases and a Dudley, which would be fine. But I will try and scroll back to get a good view of that egg.

I am SO hoping I am right about the pip at Cornell, and it is so easy to misread anything from a shadow to some nest material stuck to an egg, especially when you are desperate to see a pip or even a hole. In this case, one minute I suspect we may be up to the small hole stage and the next I am thinking it is just something stuck to the egg.

We watch, we wait, we cross everything for the little ones in the hope that they can safely make their way into the world in good shape – certainly, it will be to loving parents..”

Please do not use glue traps….EVER. Another reason why. Tell your friends and family and your retailers. They are outlawed where I live but they are still for sale on many retailer’s shelves.

The other campaign is rodenticides. This beautiful owl family lost its life – the Mum GHO and the three owlets because of rat poison. Remember ‘Rodents are the Answer’ – they eat more rats and mice than you could imagine getting in sticky tape or eating poison and you don’t have to worry about your domestic pets dying, too. (Images and original posting on Cornell Hawk Chatters by Harold Wilson as a call to stop this senseless tragedy).

White-tail Eagles breed for the very first time in centuries in Belgium. But why? Find out.

White-tailed-Eagle-breeds-in-Belgium-for-first-time-in-500-years-BirdGuides Download

In New Zealand, the songs of birds are returning to the urban environment. Maybe this could happen around the planet. What do you think?

Penguins-in-the-pond-kiwi-in-the-back-yard-how-a-city-brought-back-its-birds-Birds-The-Guardia Download

It never stops. How long will the public put up with a select view and their weekend shooting parties killing off beautiful raptors because they eat grouse? It never seems to end…Hen Harriers one day, Buzzards the next.

Buzzard-shot-killed-near-Ilkley-Moor-West-Yorkshire-–-Raptor-Persecution-UK Download

Do you know someone who might like this position monitoring raptors in Wales

Job-opportunity-Welsh-Raptor-Monitoring-Coordinator-–-Raptor-Persecution-UK Download

Thank you so much for being with me today. Tomorrow I am going out to Delta Marsh to catch the shorebirds that are arriving. It is going to be a long day and I look forward to hopefully having some images for you. Take care. See you soon!

Thank you to the following or their notes, posts, videos, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, AE, G, H, PB’, Amy Tan, Wild Birds Unlimited, Eagle Country, Moorings Park, Window to Wildlife, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, Heidi McGrue, LDF, Chesapeake Conservancy, Dyfi Osprey Project, Cornell RTH Cam, Steelscape, The Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL), Frenchman’s Creek Osprey Cam, World Bird Sanctuary, H W and Cornell Hawk Chatters, BirdGuides, and Raptor Persecution UK.

*Disclaimer: I have made every effort to credit those individuals who send me notes and those who create the videos and other content. Please let me know if I have failed to recognise someone.*

Earth Day…Sunday in Bird World

21 April 2024

Good Morning,

Earth day is the 22nd of April but we have celebrations today across my City so that everyone can participate as Monday is not a holiday.

Today is Earth Day. It is a day for us to remember that conservation, sustainability, biodiversity, and working together to help create a healthier planet for our wildlife and us are paramount. There are many events and initiatives. “The 2024 theme for Earth Day, “Planet vs. Plastics”, calls to advocate for widespread awareness of the health risk of plastics, rapidly phase out all single-use plastics, urgently push for a strong global agreement on plastic pollution, and demand an end to fast fashion.” (Canada Gov). “For over 50 years, Earth Day has been celebrated across the planet as a way to educate the masses about the environment, enact conservation efforts, and promote action towards the environmental movement. It’s a day of action to adjust human behavior and create policy changes for the good of Mother Earth. The annual event is marked with a wide range of events that are coordinated globally by earthday.org—reaching 1 billion people in more than 193 countries!” (Pioneer Woman)

‘The Girls’ and I are working hard to completely end our use of plastics and continue to ‘forest’ our urban garden. This year we will be planting 5 native shrubs along with four new native trees. It only makes a dent. The City’s Million Dollar Tree Project has only planted 44,000 trees, and the City has been cutting down diseased trees to the point that neighbourhoods have lost their gorgeous ambience with the birds and squirrels losing homes. We can all help by doing our part – and often it is close to home. What will you be doing to celebrate Earth Day? I suggest a short walk or a sit outside!

Correction: At the Lake Murray Osprey Platform in 2023, the third hatch was the victim of siblicide. The older two were taken from the nest by the GHO.

Morning Updates to eggs and hatches: The first egg has been laid at Tweed Valley by Mrs O and FKO at 11:35. Likewise, Asha at RSPB Loch Garten has laid her first egg at 10:47. Flo and Harry at Alyth have egg three at 06:53 and the first hatch has happened overnight at Lake Murray in the US.

Dorcha has not been able to catch a break so far this season.

We have been watching several nests getting ready for hatch watch. We should be having pip/hatch watch for Big Red and Arthur at Cornell in a week. On Saturday Arthur spent a lot of time incubating the eggs before Big Red took over later in the day. I wonder if her leg is bothering her and if it helps to have Arthur there during the day since she has to be there all night and if the position over the eggs doesn’t put strain on that leg.

But what is happening at Captiva? The first egg is 42 days old today. Too late to hatch. That would make the second egg 39 days and well, if it was the one that was crushed and went into a bean shape, then that leaves us with eggs 3 and 4. Will they be viable? Egg 3 is 36 days and should pip right away and hatch soon I it is going to. It is late and some believe that no osprey eggs ever hatch this late on the Barrier Islands.

Moorings Park. Harry Delivered a Fish at 0907 much to the delight of Sally who chirped when she saw him approaching the nest.

Harry comes in with a second small fish at 1044 and Tuffy will get some bites this time. Fish were small. Hoping for larger ones.

Tuffy with his/her feathers coming in.

Harry brought in a nice big chunk of fish at 1412 and Tuffy did get some of that fish. Ruffie is being a bit of an agro.

Fish at 1648.

Tuffy had some first bites – for about seven minutes -.

Tuffy had a good day and notice in the last image how ‘healthy’ and how beautiful he is.

It is Sunday morning and Tuffy is enjoying breakfast.

E23 still likes to be a ‘nestling’ and F23 and M15 like having her/him at home. This nest is a very good reminder of how post-fledge should work – fledgling returns to nest, adults bring food, fledgling learns to fly better and strengthen their wings, fledgling observes and learns to hunt all the while being fed by adults.

Thankfully M15 and F23’s nest is reasonably secure but those GHOs did visit. The GHOs and Canada Geese are taking over the eagle and osprey nests at other sites. This situation is not good at Cape May Meadows as ‘H’ is watching for Hera to lay her first egg. GHOs are formidable enemies and are top Apex raptors. They have taken many osplets off nests and injured and killed other raptors. They might be ‘wise’ – all of our feathered friends are – but they are also dangerous, not soft and cuddly!

GHOs took over the Wolf Bay Osprey platform this year in Alabama. I thought there were two owlets but only one is on the nest and waiting for adults to deliver food. Do you follow this nest? Do you know what happened to the other owlet?

Late spring snows have been hitting the nests in and around Montana and Colorado.

This is Boulder County Fairgrounds on Saturday.

The snow is gone at Dunrovin and Swoop is on the nest with his potential new mate.

Three eggs at Clark PUD.

It is nice in Scotland and Blue NCO was right on time with her second egg.

There are now three eggs at the Foulshaw Moss nest of White YW and Blue 35 in the Lake District.

The cam at UFlorida-Gainesville is frozen. There has been rain or so it appears. Do we still have three osplets? Can’t tell. They are under Mum.

At Tweed Valley, it seems to be a bit of a nest swap.

I have been very worried about the fate of Black-Stork Karl II’s family since he was electrocuted in Turkey last fall on his migration south. I have contacted Maria Marika on Saturday and there is no news. She is also concerned about Kaia. The younger storks she tells me return to the north the end of April. I hope we have some news of Bonus and Waba. Last word on Bonus was his battery did not charge on 28 August 2023.

The Royal Albatross Centre asks us to imagine what it would be like if there were no albatrosses. Today, they are protected (have a read how this happened), but what will happen with warming seas and overfishing and if the long haul trawlers do not change the way they load their lines.

I was able to confirm from ‘VV’ that Star and Louis did return before Iris. For a moment I fantasied about whether or not, if Star had not returned, would Louis turn out to be a good mate and provide for Iris and any osplets. — Well, squash that idea.

Loch Garten. Impossible to tell if there are any eggs. Look at that nest!

Great Bay has three eggs. The last one was laid on the 19th of April.

I don’t know why, but I still worry about that tiny third hatch at Little Miami Conservancy.

Bonnie and Clyde’s two eagles at Cardinal Land Conservancy are doing quite well.

Oh, just look at them all lined up being so civilised. They have their Mohawks and are getting their pin feathers – these are the Majestic eaglets from Denton Homes near Decorah, Iowa.

Almost at the precise stage of development, the Decorah North eaglets are quickly losing the downy soft white plumage of their heads and their pin feathers are clearly noticeable.

It was raining in Texas. JBS20 was lured to the nest for a meal.

ND-LEEF eaglets are getting their thermal down and are doing well – it is so good to see so many healthy and well cared or.

Swampy is still on the nest but continues to branch higher and higher. S/he will take to the skies shortly. Let us all hope that Swampy returns to the nest over and over again like JBS20, E23, Cal, and the others who have survived this year to fly.

I realise that camera angles make objects appear larger or smaller depending on the position and angle. That said, just look at how large the eldest chick of Thunder and Akecheta is compared to Akecheta!

Andor and Cruz with their two eaglets. What a beautiful image.

Well, I will say it. I wish more food were coming to the Duke Farms nest for the two eaglets.

Sassa Bird reports that White-tail Eagle Milda, whose partner Hugo has disappeared, finally had a full crop after leaving the nest on Saturday to eat. The eggs were not harmed in her absence.

Have you seen this very informative 25 minute film about the White-tail Eagles in Latvia? Please watch! These are such beautiful and rare birds. It follows the life of the couple from nest building, to an egg tragedy, to a fledge.

Close monitoring of the nests and the eagles in Latvia gives researchers much information on these large raptors.

Latvijas-valsts-mezi-Monitoring-Shows-White-tailed-Eagle-Nesting-Success-This-Year Download

The Bearded Tit is a gorgeous little bird. Do you know it?

Country-diary-Holding-our-breath-as-we-watch-the-bearded-tits-Environment-The-Guardian Download

Thank you so very much for being with me today. We look forward to having you with us again soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, H, MM, SB, SP, VV’, Earthday.org, Geemeff, Cornell RTH Cam, Window to Wildlife, Moorings Park Ospreys, SK Hideaways, Heidi MC, Wolf Bay, Boulder County, Dunrovin Ranch, Clark PUD, Colin Douglas, Cumbria Wildlife Trust, UFlorida-Gainsville Osprey Cam, Tweed Valley Osprey Project, Royal Albatross Centre, Montana Osprey Project, RSPB Loch Garten, Great Bay Ospreys, Little Miami Conservancy, Cardinal Land Trust, Denton Homes, Raptor Resource Project/Explore, JB Sands Wetlands, ND-LEEF, Eagle Country, IWS/Explore, Duke Farms, Sassa Bird, the LDF, and The Guardian.

Dorcha is injured…Saturday in Bird World

20 April 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

We woke up to a little more snow Friday morning after the rain and snow mixed on Thursday. It is quite cool at 0 degrees C today compared to other days, and it is quite windy. That snow continued on and off during the day and has now accumulated late Friday night. I feel for the birds who do not know if it is winter or spring. They do better in the snow than in the rain as some of the food does not get sloppy and wet. There were hundreds and hundreds today and south of where I live, people had hundreds of Robins on their lawns pulling up worms!

I should introduce new readers to some of the garden animals so they know who I am constantly mentioning.

Dyson is the matriarch of the Grey Squirrel family. She is named after the inventor of the famous vacuum cleaner because of her skill in ‘sucking up peanuts’ faster than anyone! She is at least five years old; my diary tells me seven. Last year, she had three kits. They still come to the garden. She is much adored and has her own fan club! She is extremely healthy this spring. I love how her little fingers cup the small Black-oil seed and peanuts.

Little Red lived in our garden shed until it had to be torn down for the conservatory two years ago. I tried to build him a new house. Then we purchased a special squirrel house from Finland – Little Red didn’t like it and then Dyson ate the wood around the hole so she could get in and eat the peanuts I had placed in there to lure Little Red. Little Red was always alone. Then Miss Little Red arrived and well, now we have at least four Reds living in and about the garden.

A baby?

There are also Mr and Mrs Blue Jay, who are the parents of Junior, who had his little jays starting two years ago. He does not migrate, and last summer, we had two Blue Jay families living within 10 metres of the garden. The fledglings arrived and ate at the feeders. There are currently six Blue Jays around. I cannot wait for this summer. The garden could be filled with Blue Jays!!!!! Their colours are so magnificent, and the white pattern on the tip of their tails is different for each one – that is how I identify them. Junior’s feathers are a bit of a mess right now. It looks like he has been in a fight, as it seems a bit early for moulting. Indeed some of the feathers appear broken.

Then there is Mr and Mrs Downy, Mr and Mrs Hairy, and Mr Pileated that come throughout the day. I caught Mrs Downy on the suet this afternoon.

The European Starlings are having a feast in the large table feeder. Today they seem to be attracted to the suet while the squirrels – both Dyson and the three kits from last summer – and the two little Reds – forage for peanuts. I have not seen the Blue Jays so far and it is 1322 Friday afternoon.

Four cats bring me more joy than anyone could ever imagine. Missey arrived with Lewis on 2 November 2022; they were adopted from the Humane Society, which takes in stray cats and kittens. Sadly, we lost Lewis in September 2023. Calico lived in the garden and was dumped as a kitten (or so it seems). I lured her into being friends in the winter of 2023 and then once she had her kittens – only one survived (Baby Hope) – they moved into the house. It was quite the ordeal tracking her and then hoping the kitten would find us (it had left their nest and was eight weeks old). The most recent addition is Hugo Yugo, who is a rescue. Her mother was starved when she was carrying her seven kittens. As a consequence, Hugo Yugo continues to be the size of an 8-10 week old kitten despite the fact that she is now eight and a half months old. She was supposed to be a male but turned out to be a Ginger Female (only 20% of Gingers are female). She is a character. I would not part with any of them. They create a life around me that is like a symphony.

Missey has been talking to the Dark-eyed Juncos through the window and Hugo Yugo along with Calico and Baby Hope went into a food coma and have yet to surface.

Mamma Calico and Baby Hope. They posed. I could not believe it. My heart just stops every time I see them together – and they are like this most of the day unless eating or playing. Inseparable. Calico raised Hope. She would come and eat and run back to take care of her quickly. Hope was the healthiest feral kitten I had ever seen. Calico did a superb job. Cannot imagine them living on the streets.

And for those wondering who I am, well, I am a Retired Professor who has undertaken a long-term study of siblicide on Osprey nests. Last year, I increased the number of eggs observed to 341 with ‘H’. This year, we are aiming for 500. The results will be published when we have good annual comparisons – starting with 2 years and then moving next to 5 years. In 2023, many chicks were lost due to a Nor-eastern in the Chesapeake Bay Area and overfishing of the Menhaden. Perhaps that will not happen this year. I am not desensitised to the tragic events on the nests that have deaths – I take each one pretty hard. It is the joy of seeing the chick we might believed would perish thrive – to wonder at their perseverance, determination, and cleverness. Ultimately, I would like to see if these beaten chicks that do survive the nest to fledge have a higher return rate in the second year. Sadly, due to the fact that so few nests band their osplets, it is impossible to determine.

I want everyone to enjoy nature. To marvel at how beautiful the world is right outside our own windows and to realise how important it is to get out and breathe the air and listen to the birdsong. Life is stressful and it is one proven way to calm ourselves down!

Friday was a day for egg laying…I continue to tell everyone to mark their calendars. That third week in May is going to be a very busy one.

On Friday afternoon, 19 April, Dorcha was injured in an encounter with a large raptor—a golden eagle or a Sea Eagle—at Loch Arkaig. According to Geemeff, Ravens were escorting the large raptor out of the area when Dorcha got involved. Dorcha returned to the nest at 1501 with scratches, blood, and an injured leg.

The injuries to the right leg – it looks like a large puncture to me – can clearly be seen when Dorcha gets up from incubating her egg when Louis brings her a fish.

Poor Dorcha. She was due to lay her third egg and she did at 02:26 Saturday morning, the 20th of April. Hard incubation should begin.

I am expecting the third egg if there is to be one at Loch of the Lowes today, the 20th.

All eyes are on the eggs of Big Red and Arthur on the Cornell Campus anxiously awaiting the sign of the first pip.

Positively nothing at the nest of Angel and Tom. Is Tom missing? ‘A’ seems to think he is.

At Eagle Country, Swampy is going higher on the natal nest tree. S/he will fledge shortly. What a seemingly strong and healthy eaglet.

Tuffy had a Good Friday. Harry delivered a huge Tilapia at 0941 at the Moorings Park nest on Friday. Tuffy was in and out of the feeding, but by 1055 was finished and had a nice crop!

Tuffy has had big crops all Friday. This little one is eating well.

Later than the image above, after another fish. Harry must have an excellent spot to land these whoppers…

A fish arrived at 1423. Tuffy had a nice crop at the end of that meal, too!

Tuffy had a crop when the 1602 fish arrived. He looked but didn’t bother to go over and eat. He was full already.

A little bit of a fish came at 1831..Tuffy even got some!

It ‘feels’ like Tuffy and Ruffie have done nothing but eat all day. Each time I go and check Tuffy is up at the beak. If this little one continues to eat this much fish per day, we will have to change the middle letters of its name from ‘F’ to ‘B’. Sssshhhh. Don’t say it out loud. We don’t want to give the second hatch a complex. All kidding aside, Tuffy did really well on Friday. In fact, both were so full that Sally got to finish off a nice fish as the sun was setting on the nest.

First egg for Cowlitz PUD is 18 April! Love these folks. They put up metal fish grates to protect the osplets from being taken by the Bald Eagles!

Egg #1 or Bruce and Naha at Seaside on the 18th of April, too!

We have an egg at Oyster Bay on Long Island.

‘H’ reports: “Opal did it again…she laid the 4th egg at 17.46.” I caution new observers that this is a tough nest to watch if all eggs hatch and fish deliveries are few. Siblicide warning.

All three chicks at the Venice Golf and Country club platform look fine.

The camera has gone black again at Frenchman’s Creek. Now it is only listed as Private so I presume residents only that wish to sign up. We will sadly never know the fate of the two older osplets. I hope that they continue to self feed and that someone from Frenchman’s Creek will let us know if they fledge.

All three eaglets at Little Miami Conservancy have nice crops on Friday.

Snow on Finland’s Osprey nests.

Egg three at Llyn Clywedog nest of Seren and Dylan arrives on the 19th as well.

‘L’ reports: “New female at Charlo is OJ (Wakati) from 2018 Dunrovin nest. She’s got her leg banded.” This might get interesting. Happy for you Charlie if Charlotte does not show up!

Lucy and Kenny’s three eggs at Lake Murray Ospreys. For new viewers, a GHO took all three chicks off this nest in 2023. Former mate, Ricky died and difficult for Mum to feed, hunt, and offer security.

Iris was at her nest in Missoula, Montana on Friday.

It is hard to believe that these two are Liberty and Guardian’s little eaglets.

Lots of soft bedding for the two tiny eaglets at Fort St Vrain – and a good thing, too, as the snow began to fall Friday evening.

Port Tobacco’s only eaglet appears to be doing just dandy!

Do you have a dream to see the geese that winter in the UK? Before the climate changes so much that they stay in Greenland and Siberia? Here is a file to help you identify them. It is on my bucket list!

Guide-to-Britains-geese-species-how-to-identify-and-where-to-see-Countryfile.com_Download

We know how Ospreys connect people! Here is an article on three special women whose lives are intertwined by these fish eating birds.

The-Osprey-Connection-Audubon Download

To my knowledge, all nests are doing well. The snow has again started, and I am behind in my data entry. I will check on some of the eagle nests tomorrow, along with what is happening at our hawk and osprey nests. Take care everyone. Thank you for being with us today.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, images, articles, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, H, L, PB’, The Woodland Trust, Geemeff, The Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL), Cornell RTH Cam, Window to Wildlife, Eagle Country, Moorings Park, Cowlitz PUD, Seaside, PSEG, Forsythe Osprey Cam, VGCCO, Little Miami Conservancy, Finnish Osprey Foundation, Llyn Clywedog and CarnyXWild, Charlo Montana, Lake Murray Ospreys, Montana Osprey Project, FORE, XCel Energy, Port Tobacco Eagle Cam, BBC Countryfile, and Audubon.

*Disclaimer: Every effort is made to acknowledge those that provide information and material for my posting. If I have failed to credit someone, please do let me know so that I can correct this. Thank you,’

JBS20 returns to the nest…Whitetail eagle crosses the English Channel…Wednesday in Bird World

17 April 2024

Good Morning!

Oh, it has rained on and off all day. During the break some very beautiful birds came to the feeders.

Purple Finch, Adult Male, Eastern. He is a beauty. Look at that underbelly with that iridescent pink on white. Or that solid pink necklace and darker red head. He is pretty gorgeous. Tory Peterson described the Purple Finch as a “sparrow dipped in raspberry juice”. How fitting.

Male Hairy Woodpecker moulting.

Baby House Sparrow. They have been busy.

The Blue Jays were very busy getting peanuts while the rain stopped.

The Dark-eyed Juncos are everywhere searching for those tiny Millet seeds I toss on the deck for them.

This is a non-breeding European Starling.

The girls were busy. They spend a lot of time watching the garden now that so many birds are there – normally a couple of hundred at a time. There is something always moving! Today, the rain also fascinated them.

Hugo Yugo is fascinated by the outside.

Calico watching the Juncos hop around during the rain.

The rain pouring down.

Missey is the only one that enjoys her collar and tag. She is the sweetest most compliant cat never fussing for a second when her teeth are cleaned or her nails trimmed.

Baby Hope.

Hugo Yugo looking up at Baby Hope getting ready to pounce and knock her of the top of the cat tree.

Some really good things happened on Tuesday marked by the expected, but still sad, passing of osplet three at Frenchman’s Creek. Eggs were laid, ospreys returned to their nests, and a fledgling was lured by Dad back at JB Sands Wetlands. The eaglet is safe, strong, and hungry. JBS 20 is now tired, too. Flying is hard work!

Louis and Dorcha have their second egg at Loch Arkaig! Oh, so happy.

The first egg for Laddie LM12 and Blue NCO at 10:49 on the 17th of April at Loch of the Lowes.

There is the first egg at Poole Harbour, too for CJ7 and Blue 022 at 15:40 on the 16th. We are going to be really, really busy right after the middle of May!

I would like to go back to Meadow or a moment. Many of us were confused by the statement of Audubon on the 8th of April that Meadow had no fractures in the X-Rays and then to read that s/he did, indeed, have fracture that caused the eaglet to be euthanised along with his other condition. A very knowledgeable individual who worked in veterinary medicine wrote to me. Meadow was diagnosed with Aspergillosis. “Aspergillosis is a noncontagious, opportunistic fungal infection—is caused by Aspergillus species. It is also known as a mycotic infection, which may cause a fungal pneumonia. Certain species have been reported to be more at risk for Aspergillus infection…Aspergillosis is a difficult disease to treat and cure, and treatment can take months. At the beginning of treatment, hospitalization is often required. Diagnostic testing for aspergillosis includes: blood work, fungal culture, serology, imaging, and endoscopy. Treatment includes: stabilization, stress reduction, fluid therapy with crystalloids, and correction of fluid deficiencies. Typically, birds present with vague and nonspecific signs (depression, inappetence, difficulty breathing, reluctance to fly/perch, drooped wings). Initial physical examination findings typically include weight loss, respiratory abnormalities (dyspnea, tachypnea, cyanosis), lethargy, polyuria/polydipsia, vocalizing, open-beak breathing, tail bobbing, and/or enlarged nares. Some affected birds can have biliverdinuria (biliverdinuria is a condition in birds that causes urine to turn green or yellow). It is associated normally with liver disease which results in poor feather quality.”

I understand that the diagnostics required are a complete blood count, radiographs that might show subtle lesions and later pneumonia or a breakdown of sections of bones, the thickening of the air acts. Serology or antibody tests are required along with DNA testing. Of course, on top of this, Meadow needed to be fed various types of food to get its strength up. We know our eaglet gained weight and then refused to eat, further complicating its progress. I was told that the disease causes great trauma to the patient. Add to that the physical trauma of falling out of the tree and having to survive on the branch for a period of 24 hours plus, without food and in the heat, makes the chances of surviving somewhat tenuous. With everything going on with Meadow, they could have easily missed the fractures and, this individual said, …”I don’t believe s/he would have survived the procedures to determine everything that was wrong (sic); or at the very least it would have been inhumane to put her/him through it all.” I am very grateful for these insights and thank ‘MP’ for taking the time to write to me so that we can all understand the great difficulties that Meadow was experiencing that ultimately led to euthanasia.

Wow. The second Isle of Wight White-tailed Eagle has crossed the English Channel. What an incredible distance!

‘H’ is so excited. Della laid the first egg of the Osprey season for 2024 at Mispillion Harbour Tuesday morning – and she got to see it when it happened on screen!

As you are aware, yesterday ‘H’ and I quit counting bites that Tuffy received at the meals in the afternoon. It was readily apparent that two events had happened. First, Harry is having great fishing and the fish that come to the nest are, by and large, very, very big. He delivered at least 5 a day, but often 7. The second event is the osplets have now exited the Reptilian Phase and have their feathers. The video that Heidi put together demonstrates precisely what Tuesday was like on the nest – best siblings, good buddies, sharing meals! It is wonderful! Smile and enjoy every minute.

BHA writes that the first egg was laid at the Port of Ridgefield Osprey nest in Washington State on April 16. This nest is new to the streaming cam community.

PB sent a message that the couple at the Omaha Public Power District nest at Fort Calhoun Station in Nebraska also have their first egg on the 16th of April. Gosh, we are going to be busy looking trying to keep up with all the hatches coming in May!

The two lads at the Duke Farms Eagle nest have been named by local school children. H44 is Cookie and H45 is Snickers! Cute.

There is a petition to change the speed limit and put up markers by the SW Florida nest of M15 and F23. This morning I was watching the Glacier Gardens new nest of Liberty and Freedom. You should see the fast traffic by that nest. In North America, many raptor nests are located near urban areas with high traffic. The first that comes to mind is Big Red and Arthur’s nest at Cornell. Thanks to a small group of dedicated locals, markers go up and the area is monitored when the hawklets fledge. I would like to see the traffic stopped at Cornell for those two months til the fledglings disperse from that area. All areas near raptor nests should be required to slow or stop, if at all possible, during fledging time including Glacier Gardens. Do you live near an active raptor nest near a busy highway or road? See what your Council says about traffic calming during this time! Smile and be persuasive.

No-birdsong-no-water-in-the-creek-no-beating-wings-how-a-haven-for-nature-fell-silent-Climate-c Download

Thank you to so many for caring and for all the messages about the situation at Frenchman’s Creek. . The third osplet passed after having a couple of seizures on Tuesday 16 April 2024. The nest was full of fish and the oldest sibling continued to beak it. We might never know what caused this turn of events. We will hope that Mum is able to continue feeding the new older siblings to fledge, but there could be something wrong with her. The older are trying to self-feed. The nest remains full of fish, and well, we wait to see how this nest sorts itself out. It is always difficult to lose a chick but one with its juvenile feathers is even more disturbing.

There is a new female Blue 500 at Border Ospreys to replace Samson’s Juno who did not return.

SEEING-DOUBLE-–-Border-Ospreys Download

Blue 5F Seren has laid the second egg of the season on the nest she shares with Dylan at Llyn Clywedog. The time was 1318.

There are two beautiful White-tailed eaglets in a gorgeous tree in Poland!

We are on pip watch at the Captiva Osprey nest of Jack and Edie. Three out of four eggs remain.

There is no activity on the nest of Angel and Tom in Tennessee. ‘A’ brings us up to date as she impatiently waits for eggs: “I am SO impatient for Angel and Tom, but now that they have returned to their nest and are bringing bark to line the nest bowl daily, suddenly Tom disappears. It has been more than three days since he was last sighted at the nest, and the farmer says he has not spotted him anywhere around the property either (as I mentioned in my comment on your blog, he has not spotted a second nest either, or seen activity from Angel and Tom to suggest that there is one, which is one positive).I am seriously concerned at his non-appearance, as he had been a regular shadow for Angel, but I do try to reassure myself with two things.First, it is now up to Angel to lay. The nest is prepared – there is nothing further it needs or can fit really. And second, Tom’s plumage is the most perfect camouflage. These RTHs, as hawklets, as juveniles and as adults, are almost impossible to see amidst the dappled beams of sunlight and the various branches and leaves. So it would be quite possible for Tom to be perched quite near you and not see him at all. Okay, they’re not quite owl-like in that respect but they are good. Very good. Except of course for darling Angel, whose colouring probably makes her the preferred target she obviously is for those damned blue jays. In any event, there will be no eggs without Tom. So obviously, we are exceptionally worried and very much hoping these two have their own quiet private place where they have been canoodling and mating and generally doing their thing out of the way of prying human eyes. Talons crossed. “

Electra and her mate have returned to Cowlitz PUD in Washington State on Tuesday.

Ospreys are reported on the Exshaw platform near Canmore, Alberta. The streaming cam is not turned on as yet. ‘H’ reports that Soo and Olsen are at Osoyoos! The ospreys are coming north!

For those new to either Exshaw or Osoyoos, I would watch these with caution. There was a nest take over at Exshaw in 2023, the male was presumed killed, the intruders attacked the osplets. One osplet died on the nest and the other survived but no one knows how after she was repeatedly attacked and taken off the nest by the aggressive adult intruders. The Osoyoos nest suffers from the frequent heat domes that hit that area of British Columbia causing few fish to come to the nest and they are small. Chicks have been lost. One fledged last year.

*Caution*. Little Miami Conservancy. The little one LM7 did get some food but has been bonked by the older siblings that have kept it from eating at some meals.

Look where Swampy is! Having branched yesterday s/he is exploring higher.

The two eaglets at Redding are covered with thermal down. Aren’t they adorable?

They are fine at Kansas City also! Wichita and Cheyenne are growing nicely.

The two surviving eaglets at Fort St Vrain appear to be alright. One is an expert at getting out of the egg bowl!

Juvenile fledgling R6 of the WRDC nest visited home on Tuesday.

Decorah is getting rain! That thermal down is working like a great raincoat for the two eaglets of Mr and Mrs North.

We are anxiously awaiting for a pip at the Cornell Red-tail Hawk nest of Big Red and Arthur later this week.

*Caution*. The third osplet at VGCCO had a nice private feeding for about half an hour on Tuesday. Whew! It was intimidated by the older sibling most of the day.

Mamma Cruz takes good care of her two eaglets while Andor keeps that pantry filled.

Chandler was on and off the Port Tobacco nest multiple times on Tuesday. Some had been concerned that he was missing.

Dad and Gigi taking care of the two eaglets at the ND-LEEF nest in South Bend. They are getting their thermal down.

At the White-tail Eagle nest of Milda in Latvia, her new mate Hugo has been missing for a number of days. She is incubating two eggs and had not eaten for four days. On Tuesday she left the eggs a couple of times – and I hope she had some food. It will be impossible for her to raise these two eaglets on her own, sadly. She tried before. My heart goes out to her.

We know that there are areas that need more platforms for Ospreys, but as Port Lincoln points out, there is also a need for perches for our fish hawks.

Remember. If you know of an Osprey nest that I have not mentioned, please let me know the details. Happy to spread the word!

One of my favourite books next to Soaring with Fidel by David Gessner is being republished by Cornell!

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

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, streaming cams, and articles that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, AE, BHA, Geemeff, H, J, KR, MM, MP, PB, SB, TK’, JB Sands Wetlands, Geemeff, The Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL), Trudi Kron, Roy Dennis Foundation, Poole Harbour Ospreys, Heidi Mc, Moorings Park Ospreys, Port of Ridgefield Osprey Canm, OPPD, Duke Farms, Glacier Gardens, The Guardian, Frenchman’s Creek Osprey Cam, Border Ospreys, Sassa Bird, Window to Wildlife, Cowlitz PUD, Osoyoos Osprey Cam, Little Miami Conservancy, Eagle Country, FORE, FARMER DEREK, Fort St Vrain, WRDC, Raptor Resource Project, Cornell RTH, VGCCO, IWS/Explore, Port Tobacco, ND-LEEF, the LDF, Port Lincoln Ospreys, and David Gessner (Ospreys P).

An egg, a fledge and 632 bites of fish for Tuffy…Sunday in Bird World

14 April 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

And now for some really good news before we even begin. Louis and Dorcha at Loch Arkaig have their first egg of the season! Thanks, Geemeff. This is a good nest to watch. Louis is an excellent provider although they have had their tragedies and triumphs in the past couple of years.

JBS20 fledged this morning without an issue at 08:09:10. The wind was blowing and the eaglet was antsy. Perfect form. Mum waits for the return.

It is nearing 1700 on Saturday on the Canadian Prairies when I start writing this post. I am sitting on my deck basking in the blue sky, the sounds of the songbirds in the garden, and not knowing what to think of the 20 C temperature. It is, by and large, summer.

Baby Hope is looking more and more like Mamma Calico every day. Hope just chills on the back of the sofa in the Conservatory (or glass room as we seem to be calling it) while the others try for the best spot at the open window to smell the fresh air and listen to the birds.

Mamma got to be Queen for a Day.

Of course, Hugo Yugo has the best seat in the house. I would like to give some of Hugo Yugo’s attitude to our little second and third hatches. She has never taken any ‘gruff’ from the bigger and older cats. She just pushes her way in there and gets what she wants — and she never looks them in the eye. First rule to being a little eaglet or an osplet- do not look the older one in the eye when they are in a mood.

The arrivals in the garden today include House Finches, Song Sparrows, Northern Flickers, and Cedar Waxwings to add to the Crows, European Starlings, Grackles, House Sparrows, Blue Jays, and Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers.

I walked along the river, and I was unsure whether to believe my eyes. I did not have my camera with the long lens with me. Still, it looked like a family of Hooded Mergansers. This seriously cannot be possible. The Wood Ducks just arrived at the park. In fact, today I managed to go for a long, long walk at the nature centre and a stroll around St Vital Park to welcome the Wood Ducks while scowling at the water quality and the fact that with no rain, the pond is drying up. Is there a way and a will for our City to fill it? Then, it was a walk down the path by the river with a lovely ice cream cone.

Nothing is green except for a few patches of grass, here and there. I watched five Robins pulling worms from an area where it had rained. What a beautiful sight. Seeing Robins – for me, anyway – is a rare occurrence. They hardly ever come to the garden and – wow, there were five!

Some of the geese have discovered they like bird seed.

These geese were trying to find some plants to eat under the dry grasses.

The geese were particularly aggressive to one another at the park.

The waterfowl in the river. They turned out to be Common Goldeneyes. The ones with the white patch are the males. These are divers not dabblers. They arrive in Manitoba in late March and will migrate in November.

As you can see, I took my own advice and stayed outside most of the day. Going for a walk and stopping to just notice our environment is a good way to relieve any kind of stress. I hope you will get outside soon, too! — As a result, my post is rather short today. There is no news on Meadow and I am going to assume that the old saying applies – “no news is good news”.

It has been a hard week at the nests – well, it has been a difficult season, and it isn’t over. We often think that if there is only one chick on a nest that it will have an easy life, but that is not always the case. Little B17 showed us that. The nests get damp, there is mould, there are diseases, intruders, lack of prey and loss of habitat -. A very good nest can change over night and become a tragedy. Likewise, a nest that is in trouble, can turn around. A good example of that is Duke Farms this year. We can only hope that all goes well especially for those little third hatches. One nest that still hangs in the balance is Moorings Park – if you are concerned about beaking, do not watch this nest at this time. Give it a week – let us hope that the aggression will end with the transition out of the Reptilian Phase.

But all is not negative. There are so many good nests out there to watch but, for now, ‘H’ and I are keeping track of Moorings Park and any potential Osprey nests with conflict because that is what we do. For those new to watching Ospreys, I would caution against Moorings Park for the time being – give it another week and let’s see what happens.

At Moorings Park poor little Tuffy got really beaten by Ruffy on Saturday. Ruffy reminds me of Zoe. I cannot shake her from my head but the brutal attacks on Tuffy that ‘H’ documents below when there is plenty of fish and Ruffy is full to the tip of its beak reminds me too much of that first hatch Osprey at Port Lincoln that killed her two siblings. I hope Ruffy grows out of this attitude. — Please read ‘H’s’ narrative of the day. We must find that golden lining and it does come to Tuffy on Saturday. And just a note. The research that I have done alone and over the past two years with ‘H’ has demonstrated that on average an osplet can live (stay alive but not thrive) on about 100 good bites of fish a day when a nest is stressed. As today’s title suggests, Tuffy got much more than that today.

So, thank you again, ‘H’ for your great eye and constant vigilance: “At 0929 Harry delivered the first fish of the day, a huge whole tilapia, and Ruffie intimidated Tuffy to the side rails, but also followed him and beaked him. The size of the fish almost ensured that Tuffy would get fed eventually. Sally started to work on the fish, and at 0932 Ruffie started to eat. At 0947 Ruffie took a little break just to go over and beak Tuffy. Ruffie also periodically went half way over to Tuffy just to intimidate and warn him. At 1019 Ruffie went all the way to the rail to beak Tuffy. At 1023 Ruffie moved away from the table. Tuffy began to make his way to Sally, but had to get past Ruffie first…Tuffy didn’t make it, Ruffie beaked him and then she ate some more. At 1025 Ruffie moved away from Sally again, and Tuffy shuffled toward Sally, and got his first fish bite, but was intimidated by Ruffie and Ruffie ate some more. By 1029 Ruffie had moved further away from Sally creating a wider swath for Tuffy to traverse without having to come too close to Ruffie. Once at the table, Tuffy ate two more bites, but Ruffie beaked him and then she ate some more. At 1031 Ruffie backed away, and there was still a lot of the fish remaining. Tuffy got another bite to eat, and Ruffie attacked him brutally, beaking and biting him on his head, neck and wing. Ruffie ate some more until 1035, and then moved away. Tuffy stayed tucked in submission and Sally was the only one eating. Finally, at 1037 Tuffy tried to get closer to Sally, but Ruffie intimidated him, and Ruffie ate some more. The same scenario repeated at 1038. I noticed at that time, when Tuffy was tucked that his head had a small bloody spot, the back of his neck was red, and there was a pink area on his wing. Harry landed on the nest at 1039 due to an intruder issue. At 1041, Tuffy raised up and finally got another bite of fish, and he received several fish bits before Ruffie intimidated him, and Ruffie ate some more. At that point Tuffy had only eaten 9 bites of fish since the fish was delivered over an hour ago. At 1044 Ruffie moved away, and it just so happened that Sally turned slightly so that Tuffy was on the other side of her from Ruffie. Tuffy ate and ate! He had eaten a total of 74 bites by 1050, when Sally shifted, and Tuffy was once again exposed to Ruffie. When Ruffie saw Tuffy eating, she charged and intimidated him. There was still a lot of fish left, and Ruffie ate some more. Sounding like a broken record… At 1058 Ruffie moved away, Tuffy ate a few bites, then was intimidated by Ruffie, and Ruffie ate some more. When Ruffie moved away, Tuffy got a few more bites until 1102, when he was intimidated by Ruffie. This time Ruffie did not eat, but simply went away. Go now Tuffy… Tuffy was getting fed, but slowly because Sally was spending a lot of time pulling on fish skin… “feed faster please Sally!” By 1104 Tuffy had eaten 94 bites before being intimidated by Ruffie. Ruffie ate, and moved away at 1106. Then Tuffy ate again. At 1109 Ruffie intimidated Tuffy into a tuck, and Ruffie ate a few bites. When Tuffy resumed eating Sally was feeding faster. Tuffy had eaten 150 bites by 1114; 190 bites by 1119. Then Sally labored pulling on fish skin again… “please hurry up Sally, stuff the kid as fast as you can before Ruffie comes back!” Tuffy had eaten 217 bites by 1122, but then Sally began intruder-alarming, and she jumped up and accidentally landed on Tuffy. Harry arrived. 1123: “get up Tuffy, the intruder is gone”… but he stayed down. Was he hurt? Whew, 1124 Tuffy got up and resumed eating. Ruffie was still laying down across the nest. Tuffy had eaten 230 bites by 1126. At that time, Harry quickly flew off the nest after an intruder, and so did Sally, and she took the fish with her! Ah, but she immediately returned to the nest and still had the fish. Tuffy resumes eating at 1127. Ruffie was still too full to move, and had not been a problem since 1109. At 1129 this was now a two-hour feeding and Tuffy had eaten 250 bites of fish. 1129 there was another intruder issue, Harry was back, Tuffy pancaked. Feeding of Tuffy resumed at 1130, and by 1133 Tuffy had eaten a total of 265 bites of fish… at which time the live stream went down. There was still a little bit of fish remaining at that time.

…The live stream returned 40 minutes later at 1211, and Sally was feeding Ruffie from part of a fish. In my opinion, there had not been ’40 minutes of fish’ remaining on the earlier fish. I would estimate the previous fish would have only lasted about another 10 minutes or so. I wonder if Harry had delivered a small headless fish while the live stream was offline. At any rate, we returned live to find Tuffy on the furthest rail sticks, about as far as he could go without falling off the nest. It was obvious that he had been forced into into that precarious position. And, he was boxed in by the positions of Sally and Ruffie feeding right behind him. At 1219 Sally moved the fish and Ruffie followed, allowing Tuffy a space to climb back into the nest. This kid sure has a difficult life! Tuffy circumnavigated the perimeter of the nest attempting to come around the other side of Sally, but as he got near, he was cut off by Ruffie. By 1226 Tuffy was beside Mom and got two bites, then was intimidated by Ruffie. Another bite of fish, then Ruffie was on him, and a couple more bites and was intimidated by Ruffie who was no longer eating but was stationed right at Tuffy’s tail. At 1231 Ruffie ate some more. At 1237 Ruffie finally moved away, and Tuffy was fed. Tuffy had eaten 32 bites by 1241, and then Ruffie charged in front of Sally to beak Tuffy. Sally and Ruffie finished the fish, and Sally fed Tuffy a couple scraps later. Total for Tuffy at this meal (that we observed) was 34 bites of fish. Because of Tuffy’s position on the nest when the live stream returned, he was most likely forced to the nest edge by Ruffie, and I doubt that Tuffy had anything to eat from this fish while the live stream was down.

…At 1605 Harry dropped off a headless, medium sized fish. Ruffie began to be fed and Tuffy stayed away, waiting his turn. At 1610 Ruffie intimidated Tuffy just for the heck of it, Tuffy tucked. And she again intimidated Tuffy at 1611, so Tuffy moved further away. At 1625 Ruffie moved away from Sally, but Tuffy did not approach, and stayed on the far rim. He knew he had no clear path to get to Sally where Ruffy would not be able to attack him. At 1627 Ruffie ate some more. Ruffie seemed to be finished eating at 1629, and at 1630 Tuffy started to make his move, but about halfway to the feeding line, Ruffie cut him off, and Tuffy ended up tucked at the rail on the other side of the nest. By 1631 the fish was gone. It takes a really big, long-lasting fish for Tuffy to have a chance to eat.

‘H’ continues, “Harry delivered a large headless fish at 1658. It wasn’t just the size of the fish that meant Tuffy was likely to be fed, but also because it was delivered so close to Ruffie’s last meal, and Ruffie would still be full. To start, it just so happened that Sally was positioned in a way that Tuffy could be on the opposite side of her from Ruffie. Sally was preferentially feeding Tuffy to her left. Several times Ruffie tried to get at Tuffy by going under Sally’s chin, but was not able to do so. Eventually, Ruffie’s actions disrupted Sally and she had to move, which exposed Tuffy, and sure enough Ruffie inflicted a brutal and prolonged attack on Tuffy. Sally ate, and Ruffie was not very hungry. At 1705 Ruffie moved away, but Tuffy was hesitant and stayed tucked for a bit. By 1706 Tuffy was at Mom’s beak and being fed. Tuffy had eaten a total of 34 bites by 1707 when Ruffie returned, and Tuffy tucked. Ruffie moved away again at 1713, and Tuffy had a long private feeding. At 1723 Sally moved the fish a little closer to Ruffie and offered her some, but she wasn’t interested. Tuffy moved closer to Mom and started to eat again. To say Ruffie was more relaxed than earlier in the day would be an understatement. By 1725 Tuffy was still eating and Ruffie was standing close by, just watching him eat. At 1742 Tuffy was so crop-heavy he had to go lay down. Sally finished the fish. Total bites of fish for Tuffy at this meal = 249. So far today, Tuffy has eaten approximately 548 bites of fish.”

..At 1900 Harry brought in the fifth fish of the day, a large headless fish. Tuffy moved aside a little bit, and Ruffie started to eat. Tuffy was able to get 6 bites before he was intimidated by Ruffie, then he got a couple more bites at 1904, and by 1906 they were both being fed. From what he has been put through, Tuffy was understandably a little skittish of Ruffie, and Tuffy moved away a few times, even though Ruffie was not acting in a threatening way. Ruffie laid down at 1916, and Tuffy kept on eating. At 1917 Tuffy took a little break and laid down, but went back for more at 1919. By 1924 Tuffy was refusing most of Sally’s offerings, and Sally finished the fish at 1928. Tuffy ate at least 84 bites of fish at this meal. Total for the day = 632 bites of fish for Tuffy !

Remember – it is not the number of fish but the size that matters. Five large headless fish are much better than 8 small ones!

My inbox was flooded most of yesterday with concern for Tuffy. Those that stayed throughout the day even thought Ruffy might kill Tuffy. It was then such a relief to see the little one with that full crop. ‘H’ caught it as did many others including ‘PB’.

‘H’ is also monitoring a few other nests. She reports that Opal laid egg 2 at the Forsythe Nest and egg 3 arrived at Carthage today, too.

Each one of these nests brought some bitter sadness to viewers last year.

Forsythe (Caution watching this nest):

Carthage (Caution watching this nest):

There are now three chicks at Fort St Vrain in Colorado. Like many of you, I hoped that the third egg would not hatch. The two older siblings are just so much bigger than the little one. We will wait and see how this will all work out. Last year one of the two eaglets was dragged off the nest by a raccoon and killed. This appeared to be in retaliation for the eagles taking one of the baby raccoons to feed to the chicks. A predator baffle has been installed at the nest for this year.

Sunnie Day posted a note on FB about the female at Fort St Vrain: “Mom was banded in Colorado in May 15, 2002. she is 22 years old! She has hatched 36 eaglets. “

I cannot say how this nest will behave in terms of beaking yet.

In contrast, the three osplets at the Venice Golf and Country Club appear to be fine. There is plenty of fish in the area and this nest is recommended. The osplets are out of the Reptilian phase, also. They are all getting their juvenile feathers. Perhaps I have missed it, but life seems pretty civil compared to Moorings Park. Please feel free to correct me!

The first egg of the season was laid at the Osprey nest of Dylan and Blue 5F Seren at Llyn Clywedog on Saturday. This couple have successfully fledged a number of eaglets, many of them returning in their second year. Sadly, last year, one of the osplets was taken by a goshawk when Seren was feeding.

There is a difference between the nests of the UK and the US. First, there are far fewer Ospreys in the UK. Many of them have their nests in living trees. They are rural as opposed to living in cities near people. The nests are located near reservoirs or lochs full of fish. In the seven years that I have been researching siblicide, the incidence of this in the UK has been minimal. Loch of the Lowes is one exception that comes to mind. These are good osprey nests to watch. If I were to recommend just one, it would be the nest of Idris and Telyn at Dyfi in Wales for those just learning about UK Ospreys.

Iris worked on her nest at Hellgate Canyon in Missoula, Montana to everyone’s surprise and delight on Saturday. Maybe she just had a tour of the area after she arrived and now she is ready to work on her always amazing nest. (This nest is good to watch because it is Iris, but there will be no chicks. Since 2018, there have been no chicks because the male she has bonded with, Louis, has another nest with Star at the baseball field). Most of us hope that Iris lays her eggs, the Crows eat them, and she has a lovely summer to herself eating trout!

Intruders have been bothering Hera and Zeus and there was some concern for Hera earlier.

Harriet did not return from her migration to Dunrovin. Swoop might have a new female partner. This is the latest.

Now nests that I certainly recommend include the falcons and the hawks. There is little to no sibling aggression. We will be looking for a hatch in about ten days with Annie and Archie. Archie is a first-time Dad – or is he? He can certainly incubate eggs. Maybe he lost his mate, too. In fact, poor Annie has had four mates in four years. That gives you some idea of the dangers that the males face in this urban environment.

Archie loves incubating the eggs!

The little eyases are hatching in Osaka!

And you have to watch Big Red and Arthur, the Cornell Red-tail Hawks! Big Red is twenty-one years old. When her long term mate, Ezra was killed, Big Red chose a very young Arthur – he didn’t even have his red tail which is a marker when the birds turn a year old. Watchers thought she was ‘nuts’. Well, she wasn’t. She trained Arthur and he is an amazing Dad and an incredible hunter. The year was 2017. They had their first chicks in 2018. In all the years, possibly eighteen, that Big Red has raised hawklets, only one has failed to fledge and that was K2 who had to be removed from the nest due to a jaw issue. She was later euthanised.

There are several really good eagle nests. The West End nest of Akecheta and Thunder is top notch.

But what about the nest of Liberty and Guardian in Redding, California? Their two eaglets are younger and they are doing well. (One egg broke).

The Duke Farms nest has turned around. At one point, the bites of fish that Jersey got were counted. Ringing is expected on Monday morning with measurements. Recommend to watch or fledge.

‘L’ found a recent image of Wisdom, the oldest banded Albatross in the world, taken by the USFWS on Midway Atoll. Wisdom is on the right. She is in her 70s.

‘L’ sends us images from the birds at the Fairhope Pier on the Gulf of Mexico in Alabama. An Osprey couple make their home on the lighthouse while a Blue Heron suns itself among the gulls. Thank you for sharing your day – this is where everyone should be, if they can – outside!

Osprey are on the light platform.

Birds never want to pose for a good picture – right when ‘L’ got close enough for the Heron to be in focus! Gosh, isn’t this the problem trying to photograph wildlife?!!!!!!! Or cats.

Just look at those legs.

They are beautiful. There are parakeets in London and in San Francisco and I bet some of you can tell me more places. Here is a beautifully photographed article in a French magazine about the “Parakeets of Paris.”

The-Parakeets-of-Paris Download

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

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, photographs, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘Geemeff, H, J, L, PB’, Geemeff, JBS Wetlands, Moorings Park Ospreys, Forsythe Ospreys, Carthage Ospreys, Fort St Vrain, SDNP, VGCCO, CarnyXWild and Llyn Clywedog, Montana Osprey Project, SK Hideaways, Osaka Peregrine Falcons, Heidi Mc and Joy of Ospreys, Pam Breci and Joy of Ospreys, Cornell RTH, IWS/Explore, FORE, Duke Farms, USFWS, and MFCH.

*Disclaimer: I make every effort to acknowledge those that send me photographs, videos, articles, etc. If I fail to recognise someone, please let me know and I will rectify the situation. Thank you.*

Scout kills second eaglet, second clutch for Jak and Audacity…Friday in Bird World

Good Morning,

Thank you to everyone who sent me news. It is much appreciated and to ‘H’ who delivers a great narrative of the day at the Moorings Park Osprey nest.

We are going to start with two items that should put a big smile on your fast. First is a video o Tuffy being ‘ruffy’. The second is a screen capture of either Cheyenne or Wichita. The prey must be plentiful in Kansas!

I asked Heidi Mc to make a YouTube video of Tuffy showing its attitude to Ruffy. She did, and here it is! Gosh, that little one has some spunk, which has kept it alive. Thanks, ‘H’.

1 minute 38 seconds. Watch that little one and notice its fat little bottom.

What do you think this eaglet had for lunch? Look at the size of that crop – and then look at the overall health of this chick. Unbelievable. FARMER DEREK must have lost of prey on his property.

Isn’t this a beautiful bird?

Stop for a moment and just look at the colours as they blend together from the matte black beak to the deepest navy-black, blending into a dark iridescent purple-blue, a royal blue and then a turquoise before breaking off into a Khaki and brown. The tail is a wedge, and that is a big, strong beak for a large bird.

Do you recognise this bird? Do you have these where you live?

The Common Grackle, but there isn’t anything ‘common’ about it as far as I can see. This is an adult male. The first three are in the garden for 2024. They arrive in April and stay until October. Often they will make a nest in the garden and have successfully fledged ‘gracklets’. That was an event – all the aunties and uncles came from afar, landing on the overhead wires to see the little one leave the nest. It was a community event, and well, it should be because most are lost to Mr Crow and his family right after hatching.

UPDATE: Scout has killed the second eaglet. Friday 12 April.

On the morning of 11 April, the second egg of Bella and Scout hatched. Scout was confused. He poked but did not appear to harm the chick. Bella returned and dug the egg cup quite deep and then left later and returned. Bella protected the eaglet and also had a tug-o-war with Scout over a fish. She needed to eat and she wanted the fish left on the nest to feed the baby. It appeared that Bella was trying to tell this to Scout – he flew off with the fish! This nest feels ‘unsettled’ to me in that Scout doesn’t understand that he needs to provide security and food. Let’s see how he does with the little one, too.

Bella brooding newly hatched chick.

You can see the little head of the eaglet below.

Bella on the chick after eating telling Scout, who is mantling the fish, to leave it alone!

It is going to be a rough few days at the NCTC nest until such time as Scout figures out his role as father and mate.

Ruffy continues to attack Tuffy even if she is full. ‘H’ reports: .”..At 1220 Harry delivered a large headless tilapia. Ruffie rushed to the table, but Tuffy stayed back. At 1227 Tuffy got up and looked at Ruffie, who shot him a glance that said “don’t even try it kid.” Ruffie walked away from the table at 1231, and there was still a lot of fish left. It took Tuffy a couple of minutes to move from the rail, since he knew that Ruffie’s reach has been extended lately. At 1233 Tuffy moved toward the center of the nest, and Sally picked up the fish and met him half way. Tuffy ate 24 bites by 1236. Then Ruffie approached and intimidated Tuffy into moving away, Ruffie ate a couple bites, then left. Tuffy turned toward Sally, got one more bite, and Ruffie beaked and bit him severely on the back of his neck. After that beating, Tuffy stayed tucked for 5 minutes, even though Ruffie was at the rail, not eating. At 1241 Tuffy met Sally in the center of the nest and he ate 5 more bites before Ruffy again approached him and intimidated him into moving away. This scenario played out a few more times, where Tuffy would get a bite or two, Ruffy would intimidate him and he’d move away. Tuffy had eaten a total of 52 bites by 1251. Ruffie started eating again at 1252, and the fish was gone at 1256. Tuffy had managed to eat enough to have a moderate crop.”

…At 1430 Harry dropped off a very large headless tilapia. Tuffy made no effort to get to the table. He stayed away from Ruffie, and he was waiting his turn. At 1441 Tuffy started to make his move…shuffling slowly around the perimeter of the nest, and by 1443 he was close to Sally’s right side. Ruffy didn’t seem to mind. At 1444 Ruffy was sated and moved away from the table. Ruffie laid down on the other side of the nest, and was not worried about Tuffy eating. So, Tuffy started to eat…and eat…and eat. By 1453 Tuffy had eaten 90 bites of fish, took a PS break, and rested a minute before going back for more. Tuffy had eaten 150 bites by 1506, and then laid down to take another break. It really was a huge fish and Sally was still eating, and Ruffie was still sleeping. So, at 1512 Tuffy went back for more! By 1516 Tuffy had eaten 179 bites…and then took another break. Sally kept pulling on all that fish skin. Was Tuffy done? Nope…at 1521 he went back for more. At 1523 Tuffy was finally done when Sally ate the fish tail. Tuffy had eaten at least 191 bites of fish!

‘H’ gives us a late report: “…Despite the wind and rain, Harry brought the 4th fish of the day at 1818, another headless tilapia. Ruffie intimidated Tuffy…Ruffie was fed…and Tuffy stayed back. At 1823 Tuffy approached, and when he got up near Ruffies left shoulder, Ruffie promptly beaked him. When Tuffie finally came out of his submission-tuck at 1831, he was immediately intimidated by Ruffie, and Tuffy waddled away. At 1840 Tuffy again tried to approach the feeding line and was beaked as soon as Ruffie saw him. A persistent Tuffy was near Ruffie’s right side at 1846, and Ruffy gave him ‘the look’. At 1847 Ruffie finally walked away, but the fish was gone. Sally was eating scraps off the nest. Nothing for Tuffy at this meal. Tuffy has eaten pretty well today, though. He has eaten approximately 345 bites of fish at three earlier meals.”

Audacity has laid another egg!

At Big Bear one of the three unviable eggs has cracked.

Then Jackie and Shadow say goodbye to their dream.

The third egg arrived at the OuterBanks nest around 0848 on 11 April.

These three osplets at Frenchman’s Creek are rapidly getting their juvenile plumage. They are gorgeous.

I have a huge soft spot for the Decorah North Bald Eagle family. This fierce Mamma has the sweetest babies.

Two bobbleheads at Fort St Vrain. Cuties. Be thankful for all those that survive this year.

There are three eaglets at the Sutton Centre in Bartlesville Oklahoma.

Mason and Dixie are all grown up.

No egg yet at the Loch Arkaig nest of Dorcha and Louis but an interesting visitor. Have a look and see how big an osprey is compared to a Great Tit.

Bette and Bukachek have two eggs at their nest in Mlady Buky.

Waiting for eggs at the Black Stork nest in Latvia in Kurzeme.

Beautiful Big Red and cutie pie Arthur. It won’t be long til there are four little hawk lets in the nest at Cornell.

The four eggs were laid on March 17, March 20, March 23, and March 26. I am looking for pip watch on the 22-24 April.

Cute little falcon in Japan has hatched. Looking at that white fluff with that little pink beak and legs should get you all excited for the arrival of Annie and Archie’s chicks!!!!!!!

Send your warm thoughts to Iris at Hellgate Canyon. The Matriarch of Ospreys returned to Missoula from her migration and moved some sticks about on the 5th of April. Iris is normally seen working on her nest or eating one of her whoppers on the owl pole. She has not been seen. We can speculate on many things, but it would be pointless. Let us hope that she is thriving at a new nest with a new beau!

‘J’ reports that the banding at Duke Farms has changed: “Due to the forecast of rain and wind tomorrow, the DF banding is postponed for the safety of the chicks and climber. The banding is rescheduled for Monday the 15th at 10am.”

I was asked for the links to donate to the folks at the Tampa Bay Raptor Centre (they rescued Meadow and are fixing the Achieva nest) and Audubon for Meadow. Thanks ‘J’ for these:

The full link for a donation to Audubon Florida is:
https://act.audubon.org/onlineactions/ar8crC6bIUGX9UsdFBWdnw2

To donate to the Raptor Center of Tampa Bay:
https://www.raptorcenteroftampabay.org/donate
Yesterday they took in another bald eagle, number 19 this year.

Did you know that the flame retardants used on furniture, clothing, etc. – that were banned a decade ago – continue to plague the small Apex predators such as falcons and hawks?

“As globally distributed apex predators, the peregrine falcon is the ideal canary in the coal mine for monitoring flame retardant pollution in the environment. Flame retardants phased out a decade ago are still accumulating in these birds and into their eggs, which indicates that the threats of these chemicals to wildlife and people can far outlast their production.”

Researchers measured concentrations of a suite of old and newer halogenated flame retardants in peregrine falcon eggs collected from multiple locations in the U.S. (New Jersey, California, Chesapeake Bay, and Pennsylvania) and Canada (Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia, and New Brunswick) between 1984 and 2016. It is the largest investigation to date of flame retardants in peregrine falcons in terms of both time and space.”

Peregrine-falcons-expose-lasting-harms-of-flame-retardant-use Download

‘AE’ reminds us that some enhancements to the Migratory Bird Act are going to the US Senate.

U.S.-House-Passes-Legislation-Supporting-Migratory-Birds-Across-the-Hemisphere-Audubon Download

That is my ‘brief’ (LOL, it turned out longer than anticipated) report for today. Tomorrow’s will be short as well with things back to normal on Sunday! Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to ‘AE, Geemeff, H, J, OB, SP’, Heidi MC, Kansas City Bald Eagles, NCTC Bald Eagle Nest, Sharon Pollock, Moorings Park Osprey, Gracie Shepherd, FOBBV, Outerbanks/Carova Osprey Nest, Baiba, SK Hideaways, Frenchman’s Creek Ospreys, Raptor Resource Project, Ft St Vrain Bald Eagles, Superbeaks, Geemeff, Mlady Buky Storks, LDF, Cornell RTH, Japanese Peregrine Falcon Cam, Physical Org, and Audubon.

Big Red has an injury…Tuesday in Bird World

2 April 2024

Hello Everyone,

UPDATED CORRECTION: IT IS LIBERTY AND GUARDIAN’S FIRST CLUTCH. ONE EGG BROKE. I APOLOGISE FOR ANY CONFUSION WHEN I SAID IT WAS THEIR SECOND. REMEMBERING WRONG! THANK YOU SP.

We are starting with Big Red. Many of us watched and wondered about Big Red. Several reported seeing a limp before eggs arrived including myself. It appears that our much beloved Red-tail Hawk at the Cornell Campus has sustained an injury to her foot. Please read the article below for all the information and send positive energy to Big Red, Arthur, and their four eggs.

Big-Red-Begins-2024-Breeding-Season-With-Toe-Injury-Cornell-Lab-Bird-Cams-Cornell-Lab-Bird-Cams Download

The warmth of the sun is pouring into the conservatory. Hugo Yugo is asleep in the blue chair while Missey eyes the top of the cat tree. A woodpecker is at the square suet feeder while the Blue Jays flit back and forth from their nest tree to the feeder loaded with peanuts. Dyson and the last year’s kits have already been to eat and Little Red is still scurrying about.

There is something comforting and stabilising about nature and the change of the seasons. No matter what happens in our lives, life outside of ‘us’ continues. That natural rhythm gives me hope every year as life returns to the garden. The soil warms, the first Crocus will appear, and then the tulips. The leaf buds will pop open on the lilac bushes, and the fragrance of the flowers will envelop the entire space around the third week in May. This year also brings new promise as the Black-capped Chickadees are making a nest in two trees in the garden. It is a first. Normally, they nest in the very large Blue Spruce across the road. If deemed safe, Junior and his mate will bring the new Blue Jay fledglings this summer, and we will also have a deck full of baby Crows. Seriously, I cannot wait. That reminds me – both ‘Boyfriends’ have been to the feeding station today. Are they brothers?

The top is the ‘original’ Boyfriend that came to the deck with Calico. He has 2/3 of a white bow tie.

This one has only a part of a bow tie. The one below is actually the friendlier of the pair.

The central heating is off, and nothing made me think I needed a jumper or socks this morning. Today will be a day for a trip to the country or time spent whipping the deck into shape. It is getting there. This year, I will put up privacy screens to become a trellis for climbing flowers for the hummers and bees. Everything is going to be red – hopefully, it will be inviting. There is a new outdoor carpet to replace the old soiled and faded one. I dislike them immensely, those carpets. Most are plastic. This one is made out of recycled fizzy drink bottles, but the energy consumed in manufacturing the original bottles and now this carpet is probably much. I should try and find out. I have the carpet for a single reason – the feral cats. It covers the spaces between the boards and keeps the snow and rain from going under the deck where the outdoor cats often sleep.

It all feels different today – like spring really is coming. It was something we would only dream of on 1 April several years ago.

Megan Boardman spent Easter weekend at Rutland Water, where she took some amazing images of the Ospreys. Megan has happily and generously allowed me to share these with you. She holds the copyright. Do not share them with anyone – just enjoy them here. Thank you, Megan!

Maya in the nest with Blue 33 on the perch.

Megan caught the moment that the intruder arrived at the nest as Maya was laying her first egg. Blue 33 went into action to chase them away!

The first chase.

The intruder comes for the second time. Megan says that it was ‘an action filled day’.

Megan writes, “After things calm down (and first egg laid during the chaos), 33 brings fluff to the nest and Maya flies to wash her talons.”

I am a sap for Blue 33. Here he is protecting Maya again today.

Maya laid their second egg at Rutland this morning.

Sadly, intruders can cause damage and on Monday one of those caused Mother Goose to lose one of her eggs at Decorah.

As you will note from Alison’s terrific commentary, Leaper and Little Jersey are doing quite well at Duke Farms. There has been a big turnaround in food deliveries and life has settled back to being civilised. It is the ‘cherry’ on top of the sundae when life returns to normal without an eaglet being lost in the process.

‘A’ stayed up til the middle of the night (she lives in Australia) to give you this morning round up at Duke. “

Another fish came in at Duke Farms, courtesy of dad, just before 08:05. It is whole and medium in size. There is still half of the breakfast fish left nearby on the nest. Mum is brooding the eaglets and doesn’t get up. Dad leaves again 30 seconds later, knowing better than to attempt to take any fish with him. It is raining this morning, and mum shelters the eaglets, doing her best mumbrella. Just before 08:11, dad is in with ANOTHER fish, a little smaller than the last one but whole. Dad stands there for a bit, periodically looking down at his fish, then flies off the nest at 08:11:50. At 11:04:35, dad is in with yet another whole fish. This is getting ridiculous. He surveys the fish buffet in front of him – three whole fish and a half fish left over from breakfast – actually looking from one to another, to another. I think even he is astonished. Dad leaves at 11:04:49.

At around 11:20, mum finally gets up and shakes her wings to get rid of the water, while the chicks scramble to get up from beneath her. This leaves Jersey front and centre at the table, and as mum flaps her wings to remove the water, one of her wings strikes Leaper, who immediately grabs Jersey by the back of the nape, though she quickly lets go and herself goes into submission. She is quickly up again while Jersey remains tucked. Mum surveys the brunch selection and chooses the smallest of the three whole fish to begin feeding Leaper. Jersey remains tucked though facing the table. Leaper interrupts her eating to back up for a huge PS (11:21:26) then returns to the table. Jersey remains tucked until 11:23:25, when he lifts his head and turns away from the food. Mum is now eating herself. She is hungry. She downs the last third of the fish, including the tail, as a single mouthful.

She then moves to a second whole fish. Leaper, who had left the feeding and sat down on the far side of Jersey, who had finally turned towards the table, suddenly changes her mind, turns around and heads back towards mum. This causes Jersey to turn away from the table again. Seeing that mum is offering bites to Leaper, who is refusing almost all of them, Jersey gains the courage to turn around and move up to the table beside his sister, though he is still nervous. Mum ignores both of them, continuing to eat herself. She appears very hungry. It’s a while since I’ve seen her eat fast and greedily like this. She sure deserves it. When Leaper shakes her head, Jersey leans away slightly. He remains nervous.

Finally, mum reaches out towards Jersey with a bite. He shuffles a couple of paces closer to mum, half-turning away from Leaper as he does so, and grabs the bite. It is his first of the feeding. (Leaper has eaten about half a fish at this feeding so far.) Mum continues to feed Jersey big juicy fishy bites with no objection from Leaper, who is full, so sits watching her brother eat. He is still a bit slow to take bites, nervous of his sister, and is still grabbing at the food rather than eating in a leisurely and relaxed manner. At 11:27:20 Leaper moves towards mum, causing Jersey to turn away, but she is just changing position and has finished eating, so Jersey immediately looks over his shoulder and grabs the next bite. He then eats and eats, and some of the bites are very large. It is a lovely juicy fleshy fish.

Around 11:29, he refuses a bite – he is too full (he started the feeding with a crop from breakfast), so does a crop drop and accepts the next bite offered. She is very patient with him, offering pieces several times, moving slowly and carefully around him so as not to startle him, turning her head to make a bite easier for him to access – she really is a special mum. I have grown to love and admire her so much over the past week. She has been amazing. Jersey is still eating at 11:30 but is looking as though he cannot fit much more. There is still one whole fish and two half fish (one large, one smaller) left on the nest. Both eaglets have gigantic crops. Again. He refuses a big bite at 11:30:30. Mum waits for a bit, and at 11:31:16 Jersey accepts the next bite she offers and then continues to eat. At 11:32, having refused a bite, Jersey crop drops but still cannot fit in the next bite mum offers either.

After a short period where he was too full to take the proffered bites, Jersey resumes accepting food. Mum is stuffing him to the brim. A couple of crop drops shortly before 11:35 don’t make enough room for more food, so Jersey refuses some bites but then accepts a very large piece, and another bite, around 11:35:30. Mum is working on the last of this second fish now. The rain, which has never entirely stopped, is now getting steadily heavier and the eaglets are starting to look more than a little damp. By 11:36 mum is eating virtually all of the mouthfuls herself. She tries hard to persuade him to take just one more bite around 11:37 but he says no, eventually underlining his point by backing off and then turning away. The feed officially ends.

Jersey is full and being soaked by the rain, so he heads for the centre of the nest and tries to dive headfirst under his sister, but is thwarted by her immense crop. He tries again, and there is some general shuffling of eaglets, after which he succeeds in tucking some of his head under Leaper’s crop He keeps trying to find a way to burrow under his sister, and eventually, at 11:40, mum comes over from where she has been standing on the rails, does a little aerating behind the two eaglets, and then settles down to shelter the pair from the continuing rain. What a wonderful mum.

There is still one medium-large whole fish and one large part of another fish on the nest, along with a scattering of leftovers from the two fish that have already been almost completely demolished this morning (mum has left the second one as a skeleton with something that looks like a jawbone attached to one end and perhaps part of a tail at the other – slim pickings from that carcass I suspect). So there is lunch and dinner on this nest already, regardless of how busy an afternoon the parents have. Now that the rain appears to have set in, that may be a very good thing.

At 12:26, mum stands up and flaps her wings, sending sprays of water in all directions. Another burst of flapping, and she leaves the nest soon after. The eaglets snuggle up together – it is still raining steadily, though not too heavily. As I type this, it is 13:10 and Jersey is sleeping with his head tucked as far under his sister’s right wing as possible. Both are in food comas, even as they are being soaked by the continuing rainfall. They have their thermal down now – this is the world of grown-up eaglets. (I think they’d prefer being brooded by mum over youthful independence just now.) I hope their mumbrella is back soon. I do hope she is not out fishing!!”

Monday morning and that beautiful peachy orange of the sun is waking up the land at Decorah North.

Those babies are kissed by its rays and Mum is ready with breakfast.

Guardian and Liberty laid a second clutch. They so wanted a family and here they are with two little bobbleheads at Redding. Doesn’t it feel nice?

The breakfast fish seems to be coming in around 0900 or 1000 at Moorings Park. Perhaps I am missing an earlier delivery. Little Tuffie did not seem interested in the first feeding but caught up during the second. The fish was nice and big and there was still much good flesh left for the third meal.

Both osplets are scooting out of the egg cup but Ruffy is the real expert so far.

Due to Ruffy’s long neck and bigger size, Tuffy has to work a bit harder to get food.

Look closely. They are changing. The back of their heads. The feathers are disappearing and that black oily tar colour is appearing as the two softly enter the Reptilian stage.

Notice the difference in plumage at Frenchman’s Creek Osprey nest. These three are getting their juvenile feathers. A really big fish is on the nest for breakfast Monday and the little third hatch is up at Mum’s beak getting first bites.

It looks like the third hatch got a bit of a private feeding later.

‘AE’ sent some images of the Patchogue Osprey platform. Mum and Dad have worked hard to repair the disturbance caused when the nest was flipped upside down. The egg area is quite small compared to last year but it appears that the eggs will not roll out. Might we hope for only two? And as ‘AE’ notes, the plastic bags continue to be brought to the nest.

She also sent us a screen capture of the eaglet at JB Sands Wetlands. Just look at how big s/he is! Dad did a fine job caring for the eaglet and Mum just like Arthur is doing for Big Red. Look at those gorgeous wings!

‘MP’ writes that Barbara Walker, the Manager of the Tampa Bay Raptor Rescue, has undertaken to put up the necessary deterrents out of ‘high quality’ materials at the Achieva Credit Union Osprey nest of Jack and Diane who lost their eggs and two-day old chick. The precise reason for the eggs to be found under the nest and the demise of the little osplet has never been determined. Thank you, Barbara! – from all of us.

Watching for Iris to return to Hellgate Canyon.

The Owl Pole where Iris loves to eat the whoppers she pulls out of the local river.

Iris’s nest. It will be the best nest on the continent – Iris does an amazing job of keeping it in tiptop condition. Her ‘train’ is also waiting. When she arrives you will hear my scream all the way to Rio! Or Melbourne.

LJ2 working on the nest at Llyn Brenig.

Libby and Branson have returned to their nest at the Lochter Activity Centre in Scotland.

Today there were four eagles at the Dulles-Greenway nest.

The couple at the Wetlands Institute Osprey nest (there are five and this is one of them) are back working on their nest this year in hopes of raising a family.

There is a pip on Monday afternoon at the ND-LEEF nest! Congratulations!

Is there a second hatch at Centreport?

At the NCTC nest of Bella and Scout, the rain is coming down. Bella is protecting her precious eggs in the hope of fledging eaglets off this nest this year.

Chicks doing well at Little Miami Conservancy. And another one hatched this morning, LM3. Now there are three.

A lovely radio interview on BBC Radio Scotland about Louis and Dorcha at Loch Arkaig.

Dorcha and Louis make the BBC news.

Louis pretending he is a penguin delivering Dorcha a fish!

The Greens Ledge Light Preservation Society has put up a new nest for Ollie and his mate at Norwalk. It is a beauty. His nest often got washed out to sea with the high tides. They hope this will help. Ollie has returned home and is waiting for his mate. There is also a new camera. I am trying to locate the link for you.

Note the lovely mesh below the frame.

This was a storm that hit Ollie’s nest in 2022. The nest is on Long Island Sound.

Many have asked about Dmitri. You will recall he rescued the little storklet – the one Mamma Stork was killing – and raised it to fledge. Then Dmitri required surgery. He is well and fixing the stork nest for this year! Thank you to all who helped. He says he is “so happy to be alive and for the birds arriving back from Africa”.

At Utica, Astrid has laid her fourth falcon egg of the season!

Which brings me to Angel and Tom. Our dear ‘A’ is very worried about them and the fact that there are no eggs. I wonder if it is possible that they have another nest this year? or are they just a little late?

The latest word on R6:

The White Storks in Goggling Germany now have 5 eggs!

I love gulls and I purchase chips for them whenever I am at the beach or at Lockport by the dam. Do you feed gulls chips?

Justice-for-gulls-They-steal-our-chips-–-but-also-deserve-our-love-empathy-and-respect-Birds-T Download

Did I ever tell you how marvellous it is to still have story time with the girls? At least once a day, and always at 1900, we gather in the conservatory and I read to the cats. It all began with Calico and her needing to recognise my voice and to trust me. She was in a little room, my old office, and I would go in with a book and her meal. She would eat, cuddle on my lap (yes I sat on the floor) and I would read to her. She has a preference for certain author’s voices. It has been a wonderful way for me to keep up with my reading and for all four of them to gather together. I now know that volunteers at the raptor centres read to the ambassador birds. They are no different than humans – all living things need stimulation and love. I ordered a number of books before the end of 2023 because part of my year was a promise to cut down on the book orders. I have ordered three books so far which has to be an all time low for me during the winter when there is time to read! So, ‘The Girls’ and I are working through that stack of books during story time. Next up is Chris Packham’s Birdwatching From Beginning to Birder. Will keep you posted as we finish up Tim Mackrill’s The Osprey. Review coming up later this week.

Missey looking at the bookshelf to see if she can find a book for story time.

It was a delight to see that animal skins and feathers are being banned from fashion week in Copenhagen. It could be the start of something special. No more animals bred and kept for the fashion industry!

Skins-and-feathers-are-as-cruel-as-fur-the-fashion-industry-is-told-Fashion-The-Guardian Download

Thank you so much for being with me today. All of the nests appear to be doing fine with the exception of Big Bear and Two Harbours where disappointment at a lack of hatch touches all of our hearts. All of the eaglets in the nest and all eggs being incubated appear to be in good order this Tuesday morning. Take care everyone. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, photographs, videos, screen captures, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘A, AE, Geemeff, H, J, MB, MP, SP, TU’, Cornell Bird Lab, Megan Boardman, LRWT, SK Hideaways, Duke Farms, Raptor Resource Project, FORE, Moorings Park Ospreys, Frenchman’s Creek, AE-PSEG, MP-Achieva, Montana Osprey Project, Llyn Brenig, Lochter Activity Centre, Dulles Greenway, Wetlands Institute, ND-LEE, Centreport Eagles, Little Miami Conservancy, BBC Radio Scotland, BBC, Geemeff, LRWT, Greens Ledge Light Preservation Society, @Stork40, Utica Falcon Cam, Windows to Wildlife, Jeanne Kaufman, The Guardian, Goggling Germany White Storks and SPO, and Amazon.

The boys are back in town…Sunday in Bird World

31 March 2024

Good Morning Everyone!

For those celebrating Easter, may you have a lovely peaceful day full of family and friends.

Calico made me promise – since I embarrassed her so much several weeks ago – that I would show you her new ‘slender’ figure. She has lost more than two pounds on her new cat food and is really beginning to run and play with the other girls.

Calico is actually sitting under a chair staying out of Hugo Yugo and Baby Hope’s way. They have been jostling for the ‘Queen of the Cat’ Tree crown all morning.

Baby Hope held the throne, the orb, and the sceptre for a few minutes. She basked in the happiness of being able to have a front row seat in order to see the little squirrels running back and forth with their peanuts.

It was only a short time until Hugo Yugo ousted Hope. And then it began all over again!

They make me tired.

There were four Blue Jays in the garden today! It looks like both bonded pairs have returned. I watched carefully. The pair whose tree was cut down has found a new home and Junior and his partner are in the Maple across the back lane.

I did not come up with the title today. Jeff Kear wrote it in a comment, but it is so true. Now, I can’t get the tune out of my mind. The Boys are truly back in town. Idris and Aran returned to Telyn and Elen and their nests in Wales on Saturday, March 30th.

All is well in Glaslyn. Aran and his new mate, Elen, will have their second breeding year together. They had two lovely fledglings in 2023, and Elen proved to be an incredible first-time mother.

Aran marked his arrival with a huge fish! I bet that tasted good after such a long migration.

Idris brought a huge fish for Telyn and then worked on their nest. Talk about egg-cited. Joan Brady got the screen capture!

Dorcha also arrived on Saturday, arriving at the nest and soaking wet. Louis was quick to get a fish to her and pick up on their bonding! She always reminds me of Mrs G with that gorgeous dark plumage.

Louis and Dorcha’s reunion.

If you missed it, Blue 33 and Maya have the first egg of the UK Osprey season for 2024. Her gentle little chirps called out to Blue 33 to come and see.

Each of us has a warm spot for a bird – maybe several. Tegid, Z1 of the “White Egg”, was one of Monty’s lads. He has a mate – an Unringed Female -and they have been raising osplets at a private nest in Wales for several years. Tegid is the brother of Aeron Z2 at the Port Cresor nest near Glaslyn’s Aran and Elen.

Dylan and Seren’s lad, Blue 496 from 2021, landed at Lock Arkaig, and then, guess what? He flew home to be near Mum and Dad, landing on nest two at Llyn Clywedog on Saturday. Oh, and might we hope for a beautiful female to arrive, too?

No ospreys at Llyn Brenig yet.

BirdGuides celebrates the arrival of CJ7 and Blue 022 at Poole Harbour.

Poole-Harbour-Ospreys-return-BirdGuides Download

Everything is calm at the Duke Farms nest, and Jersey had at least one massive crop on Saturday. Jersey and Leaper even ate side by side. Can you believe it?

The time stamps and big crops tell the story of the morning.

At 1640 there were lots of fish tails on the Duke Farms nest. Looks like no one is going to go hungry today.

‘A’ gives us another terrific narrative of what part of the day at Duke Farms nest was like for little Jersey! “Jersey gets fed a very good breakfast. He did start off snatching at the bites but gained confidence as the feeding progressed and he suffered no attacks from his sister. It was wonderful to watch. Such a happy wee eaglet. Just after 9am, he takes a huge piece and turns away to eat it. Leaper has decided she could do with seconds so has headed back to the table. Mum has a bite to offer Jersey, but is waiting for him to finish dealing with the immense piece he had just grabbed. As Leaper approaches Jersey, she decides it would be a good idea to pacify her by giving her that bite. She gets another, and considers giving it to Leaper, but changes her mind and turns towards Jersey, again waiting for him to have an empty beak! As Leaper moves closer to him, Jersey gets nervous and turns away, so mum gives a couple of bites to Leaper. But Jersey regains his confidence and moves back towards mum, so that he is actually pushing in front of Leaper. Mum is working hard on the last piece of the fish. The second she has it ready, Jersey snatches it, even before she has raised her head to offer him the bite. The fish is finished. Mum moves around the nest looking for stray pieces, which she feeds Leaper, who happens to be closest when she finds a scrap or two. Jersey has a very nice crop. At 09:02:35, mum finds the other half of the fish dad brought in at 08:55 – it appears he bit it in half and mum has only fed the chicks one of the two halves. She gives two bites to Leaper and then drags the partial fish over to where Jersey is on the rails and begins feeding him again. She drags the fish even closer to Jersey and further away from Leaper. This is definitely the larger half of the fish. Jersey is now less nervous, with Leaper quite a distance from him. He eats and eats. When mum offers him the tail, sideways, he politely refuses it so mum downs it herself. She cleans the table, feeding Jersey any leftovers she can find and he takes them, even though his crop is now noticeably larger than his head. Just as the final flake is gone, at 09:09:45, dad is in with another fish. He has unzipped it a little on one side but it is otherwise whole. Mum immediately takes charge of the fish. Both eaglets have absolutely gigantic crops and surely could not fit another single bite. Jersey staggers over to Leaper and flops down beside her, forming a fuzzy ball of happy eaglet in the centre of the nest. Dad comes over to check on their bedding, spreading a little grass behind the pair. TOO cute. He is still on the nest and has turned back to survey his fish. Mum begins her warning vocals (the ‘do not even think about taking this fish’ ones). The look on her face is absolutely clear. This is a mum protecting her babies’ food. She means business. Dad is suitably chagrined and leaves at 09:10:20. Obviously aware the eaglets need no more food at this moment, she heads into the centre of the nest to check on her eaglets. She does a little aerating and tidying, feeds a tiny food scrap or two to Leaper. Jersey turns around to face the table. The two are now both facing the same way but still snuggled up close. Just look at those cute little tail buds and round bottoms. Both are looking a bit woolly and oh so cute. Little Jersey only has half his white head feathers, Leaper having spat out the others after ripping them from Jersey’s head last week. Jersey has quite the individual hair style as a result. Mum returns to the fish and looks around and upwards. She vocalises threateningly at something above from 09:18:25-34 (probably warning dad not to take the fish if she leaves it). She continues to look around in all directions for another minute or two. More threatening vocals from 09:19 to 09:19:15. She is sitting over the fish and has her very stern look on. At 09:22:30 dad lands on the opposite side of the nest with YET ANOTHER whole fish. This one is medium-sized and very much still alive. Mum stays where she is but immediately begins with her warning vocals. He stays where he is, surveying his fish. Mum is not looking his way, so he is perhaps assessing his options. What does a man have to do to get a decent sushi breakfast around here after all? This is his third fish of the morning. When is it his turn to eat? But mum continues with her unambiguous warnings. Dad is looking down at the fish, then up at mum, then back to his fish. It is just TOO funny. I wonder who will win this battle of wills? Any bets? Of course, mum. Dad admits defeat, and shortly after 09:24, he flies off the nest. I’m starting to feel a bit sorry for dad. Eat the next catch away from the nest, I suggest. He deserves one. Mum goes and stands over the floppy fish perhaps to protect the chicks from it. There is some shuffling in the cuddle puddle as Jersey makes his way to the table and moves confidently up to mum’s beak, with Leaper literally against his back. Just after 09:31, mum begins feeding Jersey, and despite the massive crop he has, he takes the bites. Leaper is in a food coma. Jersey should be too, but having learnt the hard way that you eat whatever is in front of you, he is stuffing himself further. By 09:32, after a dozen or so bites, he is having trouble, so tries a couple of small crop drops. Mum waits for him. He continues to eat. Mum downs the tail. At about 09:33:30, another small crop drop. He is really struggling now. That crop looks uncomfortable but he soldiers on. Another small crop drop just after 09:34. He takes four or five tries at the next bite and eventually swallows it. Another small crop drop. This crop is getting ridiculous. His crop drops are small – I am not sure whether he has much room for them either!! Perhaps he has not yet fully mastered the technique. By 09:35:30 mum is having to literally force food into Jersey, who is leaning back, away from the food, as if to say ‘please mum, no more!’ but she is slow on the uptake and keeps offering the piece. Sometimes after four or five attempts, usually involving the spitting out of the food, Jersey usually manages to get the bite down. But at this point, he really has had significantly more than enough. Around 09:37 Jersey seems to get a second wind (or a second stomach), as he leans forward to grab a couple of big bites. But it is short-lived and by 09:37:30, he cannot eat another flake.”

Thank you, ‘A’ – we love your narratives. You should write a book!

Leaper and Jersey shared breakfast Sunday morning. Jersey is doing the snatch and grab but still nervous if their beaks touch. Meanwhile, both are learning how to scale a fish! Fingers crossed for another good day with lots of fish in the nest. Notice that both have their thermal down and that their pin feathers are coming in.

In San Jose, Hartley laid her fourth egg of the 2024 Peregrine Falcon season keeping up with Annie and Archie. Monty, you are going to be busy!

Monty managed all those eggs for incubation!

The camera is back up and running and sometimes off again at Two Harbours. The egg is rolled. No visible pip yet.

Chase and Cholyn are 26 years old and have been together for 21 years. This only egg was laid on the 22nd of February. Today it is 39 days old. I am hoping for a pip under there!

Pair of eaglets at Decorah North are sooooo cute.

The pair at Little Miami Conservancy are pretty sweet, too.

The view isn’t as good as some, but the pair at Kansas City are also doing very well.

There is a big of a mystery going on at Berry College. Missey continues to cover up newly hatched B17 and the egg is now completely covered – B17 is sitting on the grasses covering the egg. That egg is 40 days old today and Missey knew it was unviable.

Port Tobacco’s only eaglet is doing just fine.

Second eaglet Sunday morning at Denton Homes.

At Bluff City, Oliver is growing nicely.

At Johnson City, JC23 and JC24 are getting their juvenile feathers.

Ruffie and Tuffy had an early breakfast fish from Harry at Moorings Park and several fish throughout the day. Food is plentiful.

Tom is home with Audrey at the Chesapeake Conservancy Osprey nest.

The ospreys at Moraine have a beautiful nest! Thanks, ‘L’!

Big Red and Arthur continue incubating their four eggs. Meanwhile there is no sign of an egg with Angel and Tom.

R6 fledged today from the WRDC nest!

Dedication and love. Plus hope. Sadly, there will not be a hatch at Big Bear this year for Jackie and Shadow. If only someone had airlifted an eaglet in for them.

Across the US, in NE Florida, Gabby and Beau continue to work on their nest with dreams of 2025, too.

In Eagle Country, Swampy and Meadow dream about flying – while they wait for the right time to arrive.

Toni Hoover reports that Rosa is back with Lewis in the nest at Dulles-Greenway.

Both Ospreys are home at the very popular German nest, Goitzsche Wildnis.

There is an osprey back at Great Bay. Sadly, the couple lost all their chicks in 2023 due to weather and starvation (one had to be euthanised). The nest is in Greenland, New Hampshire.

There are two little Great Horned owlets at the Wolf Bay Osprey Nest in Alabama this year.

The third hatch at the Venice Golf and Country Club is so tiny compared to its two older siblings who are entering the reptilian phase. For some reason, this nest is making me a little bit nervous this year.

Nest renovations are well underway for the pair at the Bridge Golf Club osprey platform.

In the UK, Black-necked Grebes had a remarkable breeding year. Bravo!

Black-necked-Grebes-thriving-on-RSPB-reserves-BirdGuides Download

A lovely opinion piece sent to me by my friend Wicky Woo for all of us to enjoy! Birding is one of the best ways to avoid the therapists’s couch!!!!!!!! That is what Calico tells me.

Opinion-When-I-Became-a-Birder-Almost-Everything-Else-Fell-Into-Place-The-New-York-Times Download

Thought or the week:

Thank you so much for being with us today. It was busy. There are nests not included, but as far as I know, JB Sands and Frenchman’s Creek. I have not heard of a hatch at Gainesville, but we are monitoring Two Harbours. There is a rumour of a hatch at Centreport on the 29th of March but no confirmation of feeding, and there is a pip watch underway Saturday night at ND-LEEF. Take care everyone. See you soon! For those celebrating Easter, the very best wishes for the day.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, articles, images, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, H, J, L, SP, WW’, Jeff Kear, Dyfi Osprey Project, Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn, Geemeff, LRWT, Welsh Osprey, The Woodland Trust, Llyn Brenig, Bridge Golf Club Osprey Cam, BirdGuides, Duke Farms, SK Hideaways, IWS/Explore.org, Raptor Resource Project, Little Miami Conservancy, Farmer Derek, Sharon Lee, Port Tobacco, Yale Sharon, Bluff City-ETSU, Johnson City-ETSU, Moorings Park, Heidi McGrue, PIX Cams, Cornell RTH cam, Wolf Bay, FOBBV, NEFL-AEF, Toni Hoover, Goitzsche Wildness, Eagle Country, The New York Times, and David Suzuki.

Friday in Bird World

29 March 2024

Hello Everyone! Good Morning.

Birds are so beautiful. Anyone that has watched a House Sparrow closely will know that it is not just dull brown but is a range of colours from an espresso chocolate with brick red touches to taupe and oatmeal – all the latest catwalk colours. My Blue Jays that grace my garden feeders and look so beautiful when the lilac blossoms appear beside them, are anything but simple blue. Have you ever thought about drawing or painting birds? or making birds out of textiles? Begin your day with a look at these talented individuals and their attempts. Why not try yours?

The-Joys-of-Sketching-Birds-The-New-York-Times Download

The wind has finally left, and the temperature in Winnipeg is currently +1 C. It is sunny and gorgeous, and everyone has a hop in their step. It is the beginning of a very long weekend for those who work, and all of the students have been out of school this week for their spring break (public schools, K-12). It is funny when one is retired – there is hardly ever any need to know what day it is unless it is when the City picks up the recycling bins.

‘The Girls’ continue to enjoy the conservatory and the heat pouring in from the sun. What a change in 24-48 hours! They are napping and jostling for the top spot on the cat tree. Of course, Hugo Yugo is the reigning ‘Queen’ of the Tree. She won’t let anyone kick her off that little square and I am certain that she reminds Calico and Missey that they are too big to fit there even if they would like to sun themselves.

Hope tried and gave up. Hugo Yugo sometimes bites her, and they play fight, but here she is just pushing her off the top.

Hugo Yugo was rather ‘smug’ in her victory. You could hear her – ‘na, na, na, na, na, na’.

She is so tiny but she certainly rules the roost around her. She is fearless. I can only imagine what she would do to Leaper on that Duke Farms nest! That eaglet wouldn’t be trying to take her food!!!!!!! It would be lucky to have any feathers left on its head for bad behaviour.

Baby Hope decided to go and sleep with Mamma.

Thank you to everyone who commented or sent a note thanking me and ‘A’ – and especially ‘A’ for her wonderful narrative about the Duke Farms eagle nest. We are happy to inform you of what is happening at the Duke Farms Bald Eagle nest. It is difficult to watch a nest with the potential of siblicide. We both understand that, and believe me, it breaks my heart and brings me to tears, too. However, there is the most ecstatic happiness when a nest turns around and what could have been a dire situation becomes hopeful. That is where we are at Duke Farms right now. Hopeful.

I also want to thank you for your birthday wishes, your supporting remarks about the overfishing, and your shock at the loss of any information about Mr President and Lotus – they were two very loved eagles and we are disappointed not to know how their lives and breeding season are going. We wish them well.

And then this was posted this morning! Congratulations Mr President and Lotus on your little eaglet.

On Thursday morning, Jersey got a private feeding after Leaper was full. The time was around 10:30. At first, Jersey did the snatch and grab, eating as many bites as it could while Leaper was going into a food coma. You could tell that Jersey was very nervous. Mum kept a keen eye. She was feeding Jersey and then Leaper began to move. At that point, Mum looked at her little baby and moved the fish back on the rim of the nest. Leaper put its head down and Mum began to feed Jersey again. This time it was more relaxed. By 1038, Jersey had a nice crop. The feeding continued until 1040 when little Jersey flapped its wings in happiness with a fully crop and was off to sleep. What a relief to see these developments. Mum is completely aware of what is happening on the nest and is making every effort for Jersey to survive.

There were two more feedings. Jersey ate well at 1428 but is very tense. Any sudden movement will see Jersey draw back, not quite going into a submissive pose but well aware. Leaper leaves Jersey alone and by 1436 Jersey has a nice crop. A wonderful blessing. The little one has had a very good day. There will be one last feed on the small bit of remaining fish and Leaper will get all of it.

Little Jersey does not attempt to go to Mum’s beak at the last feeding. Indeed, even in the earlier feeding, Jersey would not eat even if offered fish bites until Leaper was completely finished. This is the cost of the fear that was imposed on the second hatch over the last weekend. Jersey is getting its confidence, but it will be some time before it feels able to eat freely – without the fear of being beaked and shaken – if Leaper is awake and watching.

I know that everyone likes ‘A’s comments so I have them here in full for the entire day for Thursday at Duke Farms:

I was really having difficulty distinguishing mum from dad mid-morning. Based on head shape and feeding style, I really think it may have been dad (he eats more bites than he gives out and he also gives very small bites – or occasionally very large ones – but brooding the eaglets after the late morning feeding was something mum is far more likely to have done than dad. That being said, the following can be considered to apply to either parent – sometimes, it’s so hard to tell when only one of them is there.

Both eaglets already had a crop and there was an almost untouched whole fish lying on the nest when what looked like dad flew onto the nest with a talonful of dried grasses (what is it with dad and grass, usually dry?) at around 10:20 this morning (28 March). They had been in a cuddle puddle in the middle of the nest when big sister leant over Jersey to line up a large PS. When dad arrived, he buried the fish in grass, then dug it out and starts eating it. Leaper is interested and sits up, watching. When dad offers her a bite and she leans over to take it, Jersey gets up and huddles into his submission pose, back to the food. There has been no hint of aggression from Leaper, and they have been happily cuddling all morning.

Dad went to a different feeding school from mum – he eats three or four bites for every one he offers a chick and he hands out the tiniest pieces. More token gestures often than beakfuls. Jersey realises he has nothing to fear and sits up, turns around a bit, looks over his shoulder towards the food, then shuffles forward towards dad. He loses courage when Leaper leans forward for a bite, and again turns away But his head is still up, and he soon turns around again, approaches dad, sidles closer and gets offered a bite. Leaper is right beside him at the table and closer to dad, so Jersey again hesitates and waits. He stretches, turns away again, waits, watches.

Eventually, shortly before 10:30, Leaper has had enough and turns away. Jersey moves up to dad (or is it mum?). Leaper changes her mind and turns back for just one more bite. Jersey waits. Leaper is done. Jersey grabs for a bite but misses in his haste. It’s a bony bite and dad eats it. The next grab is successful and Jersey takes a large piece. He moves closer and eats. Dad is eating a lot himself, but he is also feeding Jersey. Jersey continues to eat. Leaper, lying in the middle of the nest, is playing with dad’s tail, which periodically brushes Leaper when dad turns to feed a bite to Jersey. It’s an idyllic scene.

Soon after 10:40, the little one has eaten enough and turns away. He has a large crop and he has not been beaten for a day and a half now. He is so happy about that that he stretches and flaps his wee wings, nearly losing his balance in the process. Dad flies off the nest. Jersey flops down beside Leaper, so close that his wing is on her head. After a moment, he stands up again, turns towards his sister and stumbles across her, stepping on her beak in the process. She makes no objection to his extreme clumsiness and the pair end up in a cuddle puddle in the centre of the nest.

Just before 11:02, mum (or is it dad?) returns clutching a huge bunch of twigs, lined up as if in a carefully bundled package of sticks of equal length and circumference, though surely I must be seeing things. He (or she) spreads the grass around, then when the kids don’t wake up, returns to eating the leftover fish. Leaper’s interest is soon aroused and she reaches for a bite. Jersey lifts his head and stretches but is too full to bother getting up. As dad is eating rather than feeding, Leaper turns away and stretches, leaning over Jersey as she does so, but there is no fear from Jersey.

She spreads her nesting material all over the nest, around the eaglet pile, and just before 11:15, she flies off the nest. The eaglets return to sleeping. Watch Leaper allopreening Jersey just before 11:17. TOO adorable.

Just after 11:40 mum (or is it dad?) is back with a long stick, which she carefully places. She then settles down to brood the eaglets. Jersey heads underneath mum, his little bottom sticking out in front of her, which is fortunate because just after 11:42, he does a healthy large PS.

Mum brings in a good-sized whole fresh fish just before 14:10. Leaper immediately heads to the table while Jersey stays where he is, lying duckling style in the middle of the nest. He does not go into submission and Leaper does nothing to intimidate or hurt him. Even when Leaper makes contact with Jersey while leaning forward for a bite, all Jersey does is languidly stretch one leg out towards Leaper. No fear. No aggression.

At 14:17 Jersey stands up and positions for a PS (healthy and large at 14:17:30). He then turns his back to the feeding but does not go into submission. Instead, he sits there, preening, while mum feeds Leaper. Pecking order is being respected. At 14:18:30 Leaper has had enough and turns away. Jersey starts to sidle around the nest towards the table but Leaper stretches and flaps her wings, startling her sibling. Mum leans over to offer more food to Leaper, who continues eating. Jersey gradually heads around the nest towards the table.

He retreats again, back around the nest, then back to the middle, where he again positions for a PS. This one (14:17:30) is even larger than the last! After several false starts and a number of attempts that he chickened out of, Jersey eventually gets up to the table at 14:21:20. Leaper, who has turned away and returned to the table several times, is still eating. About ten seconds later, mum offers Jersey a bite but he is too nervous to take it. He has no basis for fear, having not suffered any aggression from Leaper today that I have witnessed.

Soon after 14:22, so close to mum it is awkward for him to access her beak, Jersey finally has the courage to take a bite. There is still a lot of fish left, and Jersey still has a crop from this morning’s feedings. Mum feeds Jersey, who takes everything he is offered. Leaper watches from the centre of the nest, where she is lying duckling style, tired of carrying her giant crop no doubt. She is relaxed and happy, without any grudge against his little brother, who continues to fill up on this nice fish. Mum is feeding him as much fish as he will take from her.

Afterwards, mum broods the babies. As always, the little one burrows under mum head-first. At 15:39, mum gets up and leaves the nest. Jersey doesn’t even wake up. He’s working hard, growing, converting all that fishy protein into eaglet. At 15:42:43, Jersey has woken up, backed up, and produces yet another large, healthy PS. He’s been processing a lot of food the past two days. So good to see. He stumbles onto the sleeping Leaper, disturbs his sister again while preening (his feathers are coming through – Jersey has been very itchy this afternoon) and generally annoys his sibling, who merely stretches out a leg. Jersey plays with a stick and returns to a lot of preening. His right wing is covering Leaper’s head! Leaper stretches out a wing and a leg to reclaim her space and slumbers on.

Jersey continues preening for a few minutes, then finally flops down beside Leaper, who chooses this moment to wake and stand up. Jersey is anticipating retaliation, as he has been all over his sister in the past ten minutes or so as his preening has been quite vigorous plus he has overbalanced several times and fallen onto her. So he goes into submission just in case. But Leaper just lies down again. At 15:53:47, he does YET ANOTHER PS, this one somewhat smaller than the last three but still respectable. He really is very itchy and cannot seem to stop grooming.

Just after 16:57, mum is back with yet more grasses. She spreads them about the nest and leaves again before 16:59. At 17:00 Leaper does a good PS. The two have been snuggling in the centre of the nest all afternoon, changing position occasionally, and sometimes being clumsy, stumbling over each other or onto each other. This can make Jersey slightly nervous, but his reaction to that at this stage of the day is now to stand up and turn away rather than to cower in submission.

At 17:00:32, Jersey reaches over and gently pecks at Leaper, having just pecked at a piece of bark in front of him. Initially, it appears she will retaliate. She stands up, leaning forwards and spreading her wings as if about to launch an attack on Jersey. But Jersey’s response is to stand up, head held high. As he resumes preening, Leaper leans forward to groom her own underside, bringing her close to Jersey, who reacts by leaning back slightly, beak open, and keeping his head up. This is an eaglet who seems prepared to defend himself against an attack. He is not reacting by automatically going into submission. He is quite literally standing up for himself. This is very interesting to watch. It is now nearly two full days of food for Jersey and no beatings from Leaper.

At 17:01:07, with Leaper standing up and Jersey, lying in front of her, Jersey makes the fatal error of staring his sister in the eyes. There is a pause. Jersey continues to watch Leaper. At 17:01:15, Leaper pulls herself up, spreads her wings and leans over Jersey, who stands and turns away in the one movement, still watching Leaper. Leaper pecks Jersey, just once, at 17:01:18, then continues flapping her wings. Jersey remains submissive, as Leaper twice overbalances and falls onto Jersey with her wingercising. Leaper does a little more preening, then snuggles back down beside Jersey. At 17:04:12, Jersey’s little head pops up and he and his sister are snuggled side by side, the best of mates again.

This was the only episode of bonking I saw today (28 March) or yesterday (27 March), and it really was a single peck to the side/back of the head to reinforce pecking order. Obviously, Jersey needed a reminder about the ‘looking one’s older sister in the eyes’ rule. But it was nothing resembling an attack. Let’s see how it impacts Jersey’s confidence tomorrow (29 March). He has eaten very well today. He looks strong and he is getting more confident. He is growing every day and learning vital life lessons. We can only hope the food keeps coming onto this nest. I am confident that as long as it does, Jersey will survive to fledge.

Check the ‘synchronised watching’ at 17:28:43-47 (something, presumably a parent, is above). I love it when a scrape full of falcon eyases does some synchronised watching of a passing parent. TOO adorable.

Just before 18:54, Jersey is standing and flapping his little wings. This suddenly annoys his sister, pecks him (again, just once) in the side of the head. It takes him by surprise and he goes into submission. A few seconds later, at 18:54:44, mum lands on the nest and begins feeding Leaper the meagre pickings from a small bony piece of leftover fish. Jersey remains in submission until 18:58:24, when he raises his head and flops onto his tummy, though he remains with his back to the table.

Around 19:07 he gets up and looks over his shoulder towards mum. He still has a good crop (as does Leaper, who is eating but the bites are small). By 19:08:30 the fish is gone and Leaper turns back towards Jersey. Another big PS for Leaper at 19:08:53, who then snuggles up with Jersey for the night. Mum settles in to brood her babies.

All in all, it has been an interesting day. Jersey has eaten well, and although there were two occasions when Leaper pecked at her sibling, these could certainly not be classified as attacks, and I doubt they will intimidate Jersey much when it comes to eating tomorrow. We will see what the day brings. But today’s two minor incidents were the usual pecking order behaviour of an average nest, not the vicious beatings we were witnessing four days ago.

Jersey is not yet out of the woods by a long shot. But things are improving by the day as his confidence grows, and today was another step in the right direction

It is raining Ospreys in the UK. They must all have felt the wind currents were favourable as quite a number landed on their nests all over the UK.

One of the first was Louis at the Lock Arkaig nest 2 that he shares with Dorcha. Geemeff heard him coming before he even arrived!

Blue HKO, otherwise known as ‘Flora’, the mate of Unringed Harry at the Alyth SS nest, arrived home on Thursday, too.

It was not clear how happy Blue 5F Seren was to find snow on her nest at Llyn Clywedog in Wales when she arrived Thursday! Wonder when Dylan will get home?

Dylan must have been right behind her!

The getting reacquainted is often cumbersome unless, of course, you are Laddie!

At Foulshaw Moss in Cumbria, White YW welcomed his long-time mate, Blue 35 who arrived Thursday. (White YW arrived on the 24th)

The Real Saunders Photography caught E23 lying and being chased by smaller birds – just like he will for the rest of his life. The image is magical and majestic. What a glorious fledgling E23 is!

E23 took a rabbit from Dad and flew off with it – oh, E23 you are learning so fast.

Meadow and Swampy are not flying yet, but it won’t be long. On Thursday, both demonstrated that they could clean up a large fish in record time. Once rivals, the pair shared part of the carcass.

Liberty and Guardian have their second pip – and by the time you read this – a probably second hatch at Redding. Isn’t this incredible? Congratulations.

I would so wish too see this happen at Sauces and Big Bear.

Names have been given for the two osplets at Moorings Park. The eldest is to be called Ruffie and the youngest is Tuffie.

Oh, gosh, these two are so cute. Their fat little bottoms and tiny little tails.

Every year, I used to discuss the beauty of the babies with a dear friend who has now passed. She preferred the White-bellied sea eaglets and I the osplets and little red-tail hawklets.

Egg number 5 has been laid by Mother Goose at Decorah.

The kids at Decorah North are doing very well, indeed. Mr North keeps the food coming and from the look of DNF, no one should mess with her nest! Dad brought in what appears to be road kill later. And this reminds me! Please keep a small shovel in the trunk of your car. Whenever you see road kill, either in the City or in the suburbs or the country, stop your car safely and remove the dead animal to a place where the other animals can feed of it without fear of being hit by a car.

The eaglet at Port Tobacco has a very full crop!

Big Red and Arthur diligently keeping those four precious eggs warm.

Noble and Whitley on the Crooked Lake Osprey nest. What a gorgeous area.

Second to last. I am certain you can tell that I adore Akecheta. Here is a nest with three eaglets – and not their first clutch to hatch three. Thunder is a rigid disciplinarian and it has made all the difference in the world. At the same time, Akecheta keeps that nest filled with fish. So civilised. Just makes my heart beat a little more joyful seeing them together with the three eaglets.

‘A’ agrees: “

At WE, we have two parents doing the most wonderful job. By 16:17 yesterday afternoon (28 March), when Thunder had finished giving the three eaglets yet another feeding, just check out those massive crops. So when Akecheta landed with yet another big fish at 16:17:09, no-one really had much room left to fit in any more food, as all three were in food comas. Shortly after 18:14 Akecheta returned with a huge amount of dry grass and spread it about where the chicks sleep. Mum continued to try to feed the babies, and managed to get them to accept a few bites. Everyone went to bed with large crops. SEDs on this nest. .

The WE nest spends much of the time looking like a fishmonger’s shop. My goodness there were a lot of fish sitting there late yesterday afternoon, two of them sizable leftovers, the other piece smaller. Seconds before 18:00, Thunder arrived back to take over looking after the eaglets for the night. Akecheta left soon afterwards. Mum first fed a few bites to any takers but the kids were pretty full, so she had a snack, checking repeatedly to see if the chicks are hungry. They were not. She had a good meal and the family settled for the night.

There is some niggle between the siblings but nothing to worry about. No-one is getting hurt or intimidated or stopped from eating. They are just the usual feisty offspring this couple seems to produce.”

I always look forward to what Dani Connor Wild is doing. She has just posted a video about her life living four hours south of the Arctic Circle when it is -37 C. Watch it for the beautiful images of Golden Eagles and get the tissue at the end when she shows some quick images of the Penguins in Antarctica. Fortunately, the penguins are not showing any symptoms of bird flu while, at the same time, testing positive. See article below. This is hopeful news.

‘Cautious-optimism-as-penguins-test-positive-for-bird-flu-but-show-no-symptoms-Bird-flu-The-Gua Download

Have you ever wondered if birds dream?

What-Birds-Dreams-Can-Tell-Us-About-Our-Own-The-New-York-Times Download

Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. We hope to 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: ‘A, Geemeff, H, J, SP’, Sue Greely, Duke Farms, The Woodland Trust, Geemeff, Jeff Kear, Clywedog Osprey Cam, Real Saunders Photography, Lady Hawk, Eagle Country, Meredith Gertz, Beth Lorenzo, Moorings Park Ospreys, Raptor Resource Project/Explore.org, Port Tobacco Eagle Cam, Cornell RTH, Timothy Dygert Osprey Cam, IWS/Explore.org, Dani Connor Wild, The Guardian, and The New York Times.

Category Archives: Cornell Red Tail Hawks

Friday in Bird World

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Friday in Bird World

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