Category Archives: Florida Bald Eagles

The menace that is Malta, Collins Street female injured?…Saturday in Bird World

7 October 2023

Good Morning Everyone!

Thank you so much for your comments and letters. I appreciate hearing about your pets and your experiences with feline teeth – thank you for sharing and caring. I am pleased to report that the pain medication has helped Lewis, and he is eating well again. At this very moment, Lewis and Missey are glued to the living room window. A Hairy Woodpecker is going after one of the corner cedar shakes!

Hope and Calico are oblivious to everything going on with Lewis. They are just happy – loving watching the birds, playing and having stories. We are certainly going through novels!

It is interesting to watch Calico get settled for ‘a story’. She now expects this and curls up on my lap. The little one watches carefully from the edge of the chair as she is doing below. It is certainly one way to plough through books that have been sitting waiting to be read! It is wonderful.

Calico is putting on weight. Talk about a gentle soul. You can see that the dining room table in the conservatory is still their ‘safe dark’ spot…with its duvets piled on the floor for warmth and layers and layers to cover the top and the sides. It is getting cooler at night now that we are into October and the girls get the heat turned on once the sun goes down.

We punched the holes in a small pumpkin and filled them with peanut butter. It sits on the log Little Red uses to jump to the table feeder. Let’s see if this pumpkin treat works! Clearly will not win any awards for beauty but we will wait to see if it is something that the squirrels will enjoy.

In Canada, this is Thanksgiving weekend. The celebration is on Monday and coincides with what was traditionally the end of harvest and giving thanks for the land’s bounty. (Quite different than the American Thanksgiving).

I am so grateful to the garden animals that they will get special treats on Monday.

We are going to Australia right away. It is hot and the wind is really blowing. ‘A’ has already pointed out an interesting problem. M15’s mate at SW Florida has been named F23. We have F22, a falcon, at Collins Street. We are both hoping that there will not be another F23 this year anywhere or it will get confusing.

‘A’ has been watching the Sea Eagles and reports, “SE32 won the fish Dad brought in late this morning (6 October) at WBSE. He held onto it, mantled it, protected it from SE31 and self-fed most of it, before allowing SE31 to take the final piece. The head and tail had been removed from what was originally a medium-large fish, so with the fish unzipped, SE32 was able to get in some wonderful practice, and by the end, he was doing really well. He did get the majority of the fish, finishing with a very nice crop. He was obviously hungry, as he was simply fearless in claiming and hanging onto that food. At one point, there was some serious fighting over the fish (lunging with beaks was involved, along with much flapping), but SE32 fought his sister with great determination while hanging on tightly to his fish. He was NOT letting go. I was so proud of him. After watching that self-feeding, and the consequent boost to SE32’s confidence, I am way less concerned now than I was yesterday. Even though the food supply at this nest has not been as good as I would have liked over recent days, at least SE32 is not now missing out on his share of what there is. Both are doing a lot of wingercising and are looking strong and steady on their feet, with excellent balance. SE32 is doing more hopping than his sister, bounding across the nest like a small wallaby. 

There has been little or no sound or sign of crows or currawongs this season, though I don’t remember seeing them much or at all in previous seasons either until fledge day arrived. I remain hopeful that these two, with their strong relationship, will return to the nest after fledging, if only to be together. I do wish Dad and Lady would spend more time over the next week or two imprinting this nest in the eaglets’ minds as a smorgasbord of delicacies to which they will definitely return once they take the plunge. I think back to last year – in particular, the way SE29, after fledging, came back to sleep at the nest with SE30 each night and what may have happened had SE29 not gone into care the day before SE30 fledged. These two have a very similar relationship to the one between SE29 and SE30 last year, so there is a chance their bond will again help them survive after fledging this year.”

Please keep the female at Collins Street, F22 in your warm thoughts. ‘H’ just sent me the latest posting by Victor Hurley that explains why we have seen M22 incubating the eggs so much!

What a delight it is to watch Diamond and Xavier with the two eyases. The closeness in time of the hatch has made all the difference. These two are developing well – each getting their portion of food. You can see a slight difference in size but this is not hampering the second hatch at all. Xavier is working hard to get prey to the scrape and is doing a fantastic job despite some high winds that have been in the area. The temperature remains around 18-20 C.

Diamond got upset. A Currawong flew past the scrape!!!!!!!!!!! She is not going to let that bird get near her precious babies.

If you missed Dr Victor Hurley’s talk on Peregrine Falcons in Victoria Australia, here is that link.

Gabby and V3 continue to make restorations at The Hamlet. V3 has certainly won the heats and minds of everyone for his staunch protection of the territory around the nest. We are all hoping for little eaglets this year!

Anna’s injury is really improved. You might recall she even had problems landing. Well, that wasn’t the case on Friday when the landed on the nest with a nice fish and began chortling. How wonderful! Nice to see this improvement.

Osprey Season is over in North America, the UK, and Europe. Jeff Kear has posted a very informative article by the Scottish Wildlife Trust about their feathers that you might still find useful as we prepare for hatch at Port Lincoln.

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Please keep your positive thoughts going for the migrating ospreys. Things in West Africa are changing and the once pristine habitat is being altered – either by climate or by habitat loss due to human expansion.

This is tragic. As you will remember from yesterday’s blog, there are Ospreys who navigate a route from their spring/summer breeding area in the UK to the precise concrete pillar. Our dear Seren 5F is being impacted. So what happens to those birds when the water and fish dry up or are irreparably flooded?

Countries do listen especially if tourists decide not to travel. Let those that allow poaching – Malta and Cyprus – know how you feel by travelling elsewhere – to places that value nature and wildlife.

Malta has long been a place that is renowned for its illegal songbird poaching.

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The fact that Malta lies on the flyway that links Europe with Africa and the winter home of these migrating birds is particularly problematic.

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Owls. I have a love-hate relationship with them – and get bloody upset when they start knocking M15 off the perch or fly in and take our precious osprey babies. Did you know that there are 234 different species of owls living around the world, from the ice-cold Arctic to the tropics and the deserts? Their keen eyesight and hearing and specialist feathers help them hunt at night – they are the silent killers.

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Thank you so much for being with me today! We will be planting trees later today. It is Re-Leaf day and there are three Azur Maples arriving to add some more colour to the garden. Take care all. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, articles, videos, pictures, and streaming cams that helped me to write my newsletter this morning: ‘A, Geemeff, H’, Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, Liznm, Victor Hurley, NEFL-AEF, Tonya Irwin, Jeff Kear, The Scottish Wildlife Trust, Chris Wood, Geemeff, Conservation Science and Practice, Responsible Travel, Google Maps, Cambridge Core, and Cornell Bird Lab.

Friday in Bird World

6 October 2023

Good Morning Everyone!

Thank you so much for all your good wishes for Lewis. We are taking it all one day at a time. After many consultations with vets (5 this morning), Lewis is on anti-inflammatory pain relief and will be tested for feline FIV on Wednesday. This is a holiday weekend and this is the earliest booking we could get. All decisions will be made based on the results of that test. Feline FIV is like human AIDS. Many feral cats have FIV. Our Humane Society used to test for this at intake but the explosion of pets during Covid – and their subsequent dumping – meant they could not keep up and the lab cost of each test also soared. ‘Feline immunodeficiency virus, or cat FIV, is a retrovirus infection first discovered in cats in the U.S. The virus is often referred to as cat HIV or cat AIDS because it has a similar effect on felines. FIV-positive cats may have the virus in their system for years before showing signs of illness.’ One of the signs is the gums and teeth so we are waiting for testing with Lewis.

One reader’s grandmother advised her never to do anything but to wait…wait until you have all the answers. That is what I am doing. I have found all manner of mobile vet clinics that do specialised care. What a blessing as Lewis was simply overwhelmed with anxiety when he was at the clinic. He is such a sweet boy. To my knowledge, he is only a danger to Hope. Missey is FIV negative and has been vaccinated and so is Calico. Hope cannot have her vaccinations until she is spayed in three weeks. So they are separated and Calico remains separate, too. Lewis and Missey have always been together and she brings him a lot of comfort.

The vet advised that he only have soft food but, I decided, in the end, to put out his favourite hard food, some soft food from a tin, and a lovely bowl of roasted organic chicken for his supper. He ate a little from all the bowls. Poor fella. The girls had some as well. One day at a time. He also had some breakfast. Sadly there is no cure for this disease and sometimes you never see the cat’s activation of the disease til they are much older. Your warm wishes for him are much appreciated.

Lewis and Missey looking out the little window together this evening.

Lewis votes for ‘Wallander’ as one of the best TV shows on BritBox.

The winner of Australia’s Bird of the year for 2023 is –

Looking at the birds. Today brought a single story that just made me so joyful. Tearful.

There are many amazing Ospreys. This is about one amazing female Osprey. She flies more than 4500 km from her nest in Wales to Africa, landing on the same concrete post yearly. Those living in The Gambia wait to see her arrive. What a comfort to know that Llyn Clywedog’s Blue 5F Seren arrived at her winter home safely again this year. It does just bring tears to your eyes. Ten years. A decade.

Migration is the single most perilous event in the lives of the ospreys. Many never make it their first year to a winter abode where they will live, maturing for the next two years. This amazing female – the fantastic mate of Dylan – has been doing this repeatedly. What an amazing bird she is. Let us all hope that her winter home continues to exist amidst much habitat loss for the birds in the region. Send positive wishes that she avoids Avian Flu and returns in April to her nest to raise more amazing chicks. She lost one this year to the goshawk – taken while feeding them. Such a tragedy.

Here is an article form Natural Resources on Seren.

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Some information on Osprey migration to remind you of the reasons and perils these magnificent birds (and all other migrating birds) undertake.

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The migration map for all species for 5 October in North America.

Checking on the migration status of Karl II and his Black Stork family for 5 October.

Kaia is in Israel!

Last data from Karl II he was in Turkey.

Kalvi is in Bulgaria.

Little Waba is in Romania.

Bonus’s tracker quit transmitting some time ago. His status is unknown.

Please go and vote for names for the two falcons at Orange. This year the choice is from local mammals that live in the area.

Gabby and V3 are thinking about eggs. Moss came in to line the nest bowl today. Looking good in The Hamlet!

The Pritchetts have ended the wait and all the anxiety surround ‘a name’ for M15’s new female. Like him, she has a gender designation and the year she came to the nest. F23.

One of the pair flies away. You can see that in the images 2/3. Going to get more moss!

At Orange, ‘H’ caught Xavier delivering breakfast to his lovely family. These two chicks are doing so well. They are being fed equally, and there are no problems with their size, etc. It is wonderful to see!

At Port Lincoln, Dad has been delivering fish. Here is the daily observations from yesterday.

Imncubation continues at Collins Street.

The Sea Eagles are beautiful. They are growing up too fast, and we should be looking for branching shortly. Too soon they will fledge. Just look at those beauties.

The NZ DOC ranges had their best year ever. 33 chicks Royal Albatross chicks fledged off Taiaroa. Congratulations!

Here is the complete story:

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The heating planet and seas will have a direct impact on the ability of our beloved Royal Albatross (and all other sea birds and those that rely on fish from the sea, rivers, and lakes) to survive. What are some scientists saying?

‘As Carbon Brief has pointed out, it makes three main points. The first is that some important clean energy tech – solar energy, electric cars and battery production – is now being rolled out at a record pace, in line with what is needed to reach global net zero emissions by 2050. Under the IEA’s pathway to zero, solar and EVs could provide one-third of the global emissions cuts needed by 2030. This tells us that rapid change is possible. In the case of solar, it suggests that it can leapfrog fossil fuels as a primary energy source in the developing world, if influential countries tailor their support in that direction.’

This could be one of the solutions for our birds – solar power is growing in many industries, including fishing boats. Now, if we could get them to limit their catch, set their lines at night – or even have a 5-year moratorium on any fishing – might the seas recover?

Feeding cats is a problem and I must be much more diligent to ensure that my family of felines only eats sustainable products. I will keep you informed as I work my way through this process of Dolphin Friendly, no bycatch brands. If you have been studying this, please let me know what you have discovered!

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From ‘H’ this morning – a wonderful thought to share with all of you.

We know that leaving our gardens for the winter is the best thing we can do for the insects, the animals, and the birds. One of the elders in our province tells us, ‘We don’t cut into Mother Earth with metal blades; we cover her with a blanket and tuck her in for the long sleep.’ Wise words.

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

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, photographs, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ‘B, H, K’, Birdlife Australia, Jane Dell and UK Osprey Info, Natural Resources Wales, Birdfact, RSPB, SAVE, Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, Sunnie Day, Looduskalender Forum, Donatella Preston, Lady Hawk and SW Florida Eagle Cam, NEFL-AEF, Heidi M, PLO, NZ DOC, The Guardian, Holly Parsons, and Sydney Sea Eagle Cam.

Thursday in Bird World

5 October 2023

Dear Readers, Good Morning!

I hope that this newsletter finds each of you well and happy.

Thank you so much for your continued kind wishes. Your warm thoughts and notes are always appreciated.

Wednesday. It had been on my calendar for several weeks. It was the day that the three older kittens had to go in for their shots, and Missey and Lewis had to have their annual check. My vet is very busy and I so hoped that my Covid test would show negative and the clinic would allow me to come with the babies. They did. It all worked but it turned out quite differently than I anticipated. I am hoping that soon things will become ‘calm’ – boring. Gosh, boring would be so nice.

Off we went – three cats – one huge hard carrier for Lewis and two soft-sided ones for Missey and Calico. They were all darlings, thankfully, on the way in and out of the car and to the clinic.

Lewis peeking out.

Calico is in there!

Missey’s eyes are always so expressive. She was allowed to wander freely around the examination room.

Calico passed her check-up with flying colours. She has healed nicely and is the proper weight with nothing untoward. The vet said she can continue to nurse Hope as long as she wants -it wouldn’t hurt either. Eventually, Calico will have enough and stop it all but it could be some time. I do not care as long as they are healthy. Missey was a tad ‘pleasantly plump’ – the problem associated with her still eating kitten hard food, which is being corrected. Nothing major. Missey’s teeth were sparkling white with good, strong gums. She had her shots and explored the room – a confident, dominant female cat. Quiet, confident, secure. Lewis, on the other hand, is insecure and quite frightened. As it turns out, he was so stressed that the vet did little with him besides checking his teeth and giving him his shots.

But Lewis had a serious problem, and I did not even notice. Lewis’s gums are swollen and red. Lewis, poor dear darling Lewis, needs all his teeth, but the canines, pulled. Cats are able, I was told, to live fine eating soft food.

Lewis was not tested for AIDS when he was adopted. The Humane Society used to test for the disease but stopped when the costs skyrocketed. So, we do not know if he has AIDS, which could cause his body to respond this way. If he has AIDS, is there any point in agreeing to have the surgery – which, according to the vet – is major? So, all of these things begin to twirl through your head. Is Lewis in pain? How long? Why didn’t I notice? But he is still eating. So, is this an issue of over-treating? or good sound vet advice? Too many things to think about. Tomorrow, I will walk in the park and sit with the ducks. Perhaps an answer will rise to the surface.

It took the wind out of me and so, this newsletter is shorter.

Geemeff sent me the most amazing article on Godwits, weather, and migration. We know about the extreme distances that Godwits fly to get to their winter homes but this is the tale of the return trip due to weather. Incredible story!

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All of the Royal Cam chicks have fledged at Taiaroa Head. We now wait to see which adults will return for the upcoming breeding season. I am particularly interested to see if there is any remote possibility that OGK might appear. He has not been seen since the 19th of May 2022.

The joy and love continue to radiate out of the scrape at Orange. Two beautiful eyases. Both are fed well, both are a good size to one another. It is all good.

‘A’ remarks, “Those eyases are just darling. When isn’t a scrape containing fluffy chicks the most wonderful thing? Those sweet little squeaks (before they become ear-splitting shrieks) are the cutest sound, and I love the noise they make when their squeak is suddenly cut off by a mouthful of meat). Not to mention mum’s adorable chups to get them to open their little beaks. So cute. One chup and the little mouths automatically spring open. Both the chicks appear to be healthy, strong and eating well. Today, they were fed seven times through the day, and Diamond appears to be feeding both of them at each feed. She is carefully making sure that each chick is getting fed and she is being very patient in doing so. This is helped by the lack of a significant size difference, although of course chick two is a little less stable than chick one in terms of knowing which direction is front. It can, however, hold its little head up very well and is pretty stable when it does so, meaning it is able to eat when it eventually works out how to face mum (which it usually does within a couple of minutes of the feeding beginning). Xavier is not getting nearly as much chick time as he would like (of course) though Diamond is very tolerant of him remaining on the ledge if he wants to, sometimes even when she is feeding the chicks. She is especially okay with him being there very early in the mornings, when he was coming for lengthy periods before the chicks came along (and he was there for a couple of hours before both hatches). This is new, as was Diamond actually allowing Xavier egg/chick time when chick two was only halfway out of its egg! Now that’s something I never thought I’d see. So these two lovebirds are very comfortable with each other now, in season seven or eight or whatever this is for them (Xavier arrived in 2016, I believe, but they weren’t his chicks that year, so although Xavier raised three chicks with Diamond in 2016, their first season breeding together would have been 2017).” 

Want to take part in the naming of the chicks? Holly Parsons tells us how.

There is a bit of excitement going on in Surrey at the Hancock Wildlife Foundation with the arrival of this Bald Eagle couple.

An owl attacked the juvenile at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest Wednesday night. Thankfully the fledgling returned to the nest seemingly unharmed. Time: 1957.

Gabby and V3 were at the nest on Wednesday. We are all hopeful.

This gave me a chuckle!

Everything is good at SW Florida with M15 and F23. Lots of bonding!

Contentment at Collins Street. It is supposed to be very hot for these falcons because it is an El Nino year. So thankful they have a reprieve for a few days and wish that a shade would be put in place above them.

El Nino is heating the oceans, too, and our seabirds might be seeing some change to their ability to find food. In the Caribbean where my son lives, outside his office, the coral is bleaching because the ocean is so hot. “The symbiotic algae inside the coral can not take hot water for a long time and die. The algae provide energy for the coral and without it they will die also.”

The Sea Eaglets continue to get more beautiful each day but as ‘A’ remarks there is some concern about the level of prey deliveries, “

I am far more concerned about the food situation at WBSE. There was one day this week when I saw no food brought to the nest at all. I may have missed something small, but certainly nothing large enough to feed them both. (It is possible for example that I missed a small fish that was immediately claimed and horked down by SE31, but I don’t think so – I certainly scanned through the footage incredibly carefully). So I am a little concerned. The parents don’t seem to be worried about it, sitting in the nest tree and not heading off to hunt for most of the day. At 07:46 this morning, they were mating on the branch behind the nest (within full view of the children, too!). So their minds are perhaps on other things. The wind this morning was extremely strong and worsened as the morning went on. Around 09:28, it was blowing a gale when Dad flew in, The kids were very hopeful, lining up at the table, but although it appeared Dad had been fishing, as he was shaking water from his feathers, he had no food in his talons. Lady flew in around 09:33 and took up a submissive position, though Dad decided not to mount her. This is bonding behaviour, I presume, though I’m wondering why it’s being considered necessary at this point of the season. Fishing would be more useful, though in that wind, it would definitely be difficult. The whole tree was tossing wildly today. Shortly before 09:58 both parents flew off, first one then, a moment later, the other. At 10:03:45 Dad flies in with a smallish whole fish. SE32 immediately claims and mantles the prey be can he keep it? SE32 is not good at unzipping a whole fish but he is trying. SE31 watches for a chance to steal the fish. SE32 is not giving her one. At 10:07, he still has the fish. Whether he is getting any bites off it is another question (and impossible to answer, as the eaglets have their backs to the camera and we cannot see much of what is happening, only who is in possession of the fish, currently still SE32). SE32 is doing a great job of mantling the fish and seems to be getting some bites from it, but about a minute later, SE31 succeeds in stealing the fish, and we can see that SE32 has got very little from it at all. He waits for a chance to steal the fish back but gets no chance until about 10:20, when he makes a frantic grab for the last piece, realising he is about to miss out altogether. SE31 responds to this by horking the remaining food down in one go. She has had a very nice breakfast. SE32 has eaten nothing. During the self-feeding by SE31, SE32 twice backed up for a PS, on one occasion trying three times, and I saw nothing come out on any of these tries. So it appears likely that food is being brought very irregularly to the nest and what food there is largely gets eaten by SE31, as SE32’s self-feeding skills simply aren’t good enough and he is not getting a chance to practise them much! When those large eels are brought in, as happened two days ago, I think, there is probably enough food to keep them going for that day and the next, and I think there had been a late afternoon eel the day before the (probably) food-free day, but perhaps Lady and Dad are encouraging these two to fledge. Surely not. Perhaps it’s just the bad weather the whole southeast of Australia has been having, with lots of rain and quite heavy winds at times too.”

The pair made another milestone on their way to fledging. They did sleep standing up just like Lady and Dad.

At the same time incubation continues at Port Lincoln with an average of two fish coming in per day for Mum.

Thank you for being with me this morning. Please send your good wishes to our dear Lewis today. Take care all.

Thank you to the following for their notes, photographs, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog this morning: ‘A, C, Geemeff, H’, BBC Royal Albatross Centre, Charles Sturt University, Holly Parsons, Hancock Wildlife Foundation, MN Landscape Arboretum, NEFL-AEF, Carol S Rifkin, SW Florida Eagle Cam, lady hawk, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, and PLO.

Eagles at work…Ervie goes fishing…Wednesday in Bird World

4 October 2023

Good Morning to Everyone!

It rained off and on during Tuesday until later in the afternoon when the sky broke open, and a little blue appeared. It warmed up and became a nice day.

I had to get some fresh air. Having been inside the house or in the garden for more than ten days, I started getting a little housebound, frayed at my edges. So, off to the park for a walk around the pond. No one was around except some ducks and geese! It was lovely! No one to pass this wretched Covid to, but oh, how lovely to be with the birds for a few minutes. I am beginning to feel better, but this Covid is tricky. You get up and get around, and it comes back for you, so be careful and do not overdo it if you get the virus.

Fall is in full swing. Migration is more than halfway over. The Snow Geese have appeared in the South while the Canada Geese fly over them, heading to warmer climates. Various types of sparrows and wrens remain in the garden along with the regulars. It was so nice to be still able to see ducks, though. Gosh, I love ducks. There was not one with Angel Wing, and I did not see any with broken legs or wings today. That was joyful.

The water is pretty much clear with the aerators working full time.

A male Wood Duck in transition. Getting those feathers.

Two little female Wood Ducks paddling away. Lovely.

And isn’t this wonderful. Bazz Hockaday posted a video of Ervie fishing on the Friends of Sth Aus Osprey FB page. Here are a couple of screen grabs from that video of our dear Ervie.

The latest stats from Hawk Mountain in PA as to their migration count. Some, more than others, have made their way through. Will the huge osprey deaths in the NE have an impact on Osprey migration numbers?

The Woodland Trust published its season highlights – fantastic. Oh, that Tawny Owl!

Is there a problem with trees in Nebraska? Have a read.

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Xavier is the cutest! How fortunate are we to watch this family deal with their two new hatchlings? There is a rumour that the other egg might be hatching. If that is the case let there be Starlings – thousands of Starlings and parrots descending into the area for Xavier’s hunting!

Adorable.

Teamwork is happening at SW Florida! I love these videos because they are not from the streaming cam – you get to see more of what is going on as M15 and his new mate work to get their nest in order.

V3 was at the NE Florida Bald Eagle nest but was there another male visitor on Tuesday?

Gabby was with V3 on Monday night and you can tell when she sees him that he is the one for this gal. Let’s go home – the rest of you!

Beautiful Day at Superbeaks!

Eagles at the Duke Farms nest early on Tuesday.

The male at Pittsburgh-Hayes has been missing since 7 September. It is not looking good.

Didn’t see anyone at the US Steel nest on Tuesday.

Waiting to see if Jackie and Shadow show up at Big Bear on Tuesday. Aren’t those diamonds pouring down on that nest just gorgeous?

And they did – after 1800 again!

Eagles arriving early morning at the Kistachie NKF E-1 nest.

The falcons in the CBD Melbourne are certainly enjoying the cooler weather this week. There is plenty of time to enjoy Xavier and Diamond’s chicks before these hatch!

So when will the chicks in Melbourne hatch? ‘H’ has been doing some sleuthing. She writes, “There is differing information among sources online, but the majority of sources state 33-35 days is typical for the first hatch…   Victor Hurley stated in one of his FFS from last season that the incubation period is approximately 32 days, and can be as long as 40 days. The four eggs at Collins Street this year were laid on:  9/3 (21:15), 9/6 (07:25), 9/8 16:44), 9/11 07:48).  So, 33 days from the date of the penultimate egg is 10/11.

If the 11th is correct then we are within a week of pip watch for Melbourne.

Family portrait at the Sydney Olympic Forest. I have tried not to get attached to these two but how can you not? They are wonderful and Lady and Dad are the best.

At Port Lincoln, Dad brought a whole fish and a partial one on Tuesday. As of Wednesday, the eggs are 28, 25, and 22 days old. Ways to go for hatch.

In New Zealand, the Kakapo are getting annual health checks and battery changeovers. It will not be long til the Kakapo Recovery begins its annual fundraiser. Want to adopt a Kakapo? Check out their FB page!

Cornell catches up with Christian Cooper in a Q & A.

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Work is being done to transform one of the Caribbean islands into a nature haven. How many times have I wished to live in a country that devoted its resources to wildlife and nature instead of factories and selling? Ever heard of Redonda?

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In the UK, there is a delay in the decision to outlaw lead ammunition. Why oh why? We know the result of using lead in hunting and fishing – look at those beautiful raptors flooding the wildlife clinics this fall with toxic lead poisoning. Time to change!

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

Thank you to the following for the photographs, videos, posts, and streaming cams that helped me to compose my blog today: ‘Geemeff, H, SP’, Bazz Hockaday, Hawk Mountain, The Woodland Trust, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, SK Hideaways, MLizPhotos, Wskrsnwings, NEFL-AEF, Superbeaks, Duke Farms, Pix Cams, FOBBV, KNF-E1, Collins Street by Mirvac, Sydney Sea Eagles, PLO, Living Bird Magazine, Raptor Persecution UK, and Kakapo Recovery.

Second hatch for Xavier and Diamond…Tuesday in Bird World

3 October 2023

Good Morning!

Thank you so much for your good wishes. The cats are very good healing therapy and I am getting there. Indeed, I thought Covid was over til last evening when the dizziness and nausea returned. Hopefully in the next couple of days.

We woke to lightning and heavy rain this morning. The conservatory was lit up like a Halloween pumpkin. It did not bother the kittens as much as it did me!

Missey and Lewis have been enjoying a ‘cat video’ with squirrels and birds!

Hope and Calico prefer watching the ‘real’ things when they are not napping!

Lewis has been having fun with some new little crochet toys full of catnip. He remains the sweetest thing except for Missey’s food or Calico!

There is a second hatch in progress at Orange as I am writing this! That first little one is sure strong. Remember: the chicks will not be able to ‘see’ clearly until about 5 days from hatch. Oh, if there are to be three let them all be strong and healthy with lots of prey this summer so Xavier doesn’t have to work so hard! Will it be a year for Cicadas? Does anyone remember Izzi and his ‘Cicada popsicles’?

Poor Xavier. He has come in with breakfast for Diamond and wee eyas one. Now he is wondering if he will have to sit on the ledge all day?? How is that second hatch progressing?

There it is and already the new hatch is being encouraged to take a bite of prey.

Diamond is tired. She has been going at this for 48 hours – rubbing the eggs around in the pebbles helping to get that shell off a little quicker, if possible, without hurting the little one. So happy these two are close in the time they hatched. Now, the big question is: will there be three?

There is much hope for these two hatches at orange. Both of the chicks are very, very strong this year – each reaching up and wanting food right away when offered. Isn’t it lovely? A remarks, “Oh my goodness! Number two isn’t even dry yet and it’s up and begging for food. And EATING several mouthfuls. It’s not even half an hour old. I’m so glad this one is a strong one. I like a strong younger chick. Now we hope the third egg remains as a pillow and football! Amazing. Such a strong chick.”

V3 has been at the nest tree in The Hamlet waiting for Gabby. Are those new battle wounds?

‘A’ remarks, “V3 spent a lot of the morning in the nest tree this morning. Later in the day, both V3 and Gabby spent the early evening doing nest work together. See from about 06:40pm onwards. According to our BOTG, they are perched and tucked together again tonight in the lumber yard. It is so good to see them working together on the nest. V3 is showing quite a few fresh wounds on his feet, so has obviously been defending Gabby and their territory whether or not he has been at the nest tree. Over the past two days, he has spent the majority of the time on or near the nest tree and has obviously decided the time has come to make a stand. It may be that he has been successful in persuading A2 and A3 to move along. We do hope so. These two need to get on with their season.” 

At the nest of M15, our fabulous dad and his new mate are getting on with things – restorations and bonding!

Lady Hawk catches the action between M15 and his new lady.

Shadow and Jackie were up at the crack of dawn working on their nest.

A new male has been coming around Bella at the NCTC nest. Smitty has been missing since the 21st of September.

Tonya Irvin has some concerns about Anna at the KNF-E1 nest.

WBSE 31 and 32 – oh, so adorable. Getting bigger and stronger by the day.

Looks like that promised rain in Melbourne is going to materialise and help keep our falcons a little cooler! Sure liking those temperatures for the coming week.

Liznm gives us a good look at one of those magnificent prey deliveries at Collins Street!

Mum is still waiting for Dad to bring in a fish for breakfast at Port Lincoln. I find this a bit discouraging – it is after 1000. Let’s hope the pace and quantity of the fish drastically improves once those eggs hatch.

This month’s Condor Chat from Ventana Wildlife Society.

Audubon has released its study of summer heat and shorebirds.

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Thank you so much for being with me today! Check out the two new hatches at Orange. If you are feeling ‘blue’, they will put a smile on your face.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, streaming cams, and articles that helped me to compose my blog this morning: ‘A’, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, NEFL-AEF, SW Florida Eagle Cam, FOBBV, Deb Steyck and the NCTC, Tonya Irvin and Raptors of the World, Sydney Sea Eagles, Lizmn and 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, PLO, Ventana Wildlife Society, and Audubon Florida.

Monday in Bird World

2 October 2023

Good Morning Everyone,

Gosh, it is fantastic to bring some good news!

Sunday was a beautiful day on the Canadian Prairies. The garden temperature went to 24 C and was 21 C at 1730! The little songbirds were having a joyous time flittering about in the birdbaths. Calico and Hope watched from the Conservatory window.

Calico went out into the main house with Missey again today. Everything went well. These two get along and are not a threat to one another. Calico is quick and she got into the kitchen and Lewis darted at her. It was not as horrific as I imagined but, I am still not quite ready to handle a big confrontation. Hopefully the lingering dizziness from the Covid will be gone by tomorrow and we can give Lewis a go at being a gentleman.

Meanwhile, Calico is still in full Mamma mode so she is also a little rough at the edges. She immediately goes into protective mode if either Missey or Lewis appear to be getting near to Hope.

Calico is producing much milk for Hope, and our little lass got caught in the act! Hope is three months old today. She has been with us now for an entire month and I finally figured out how to ‘catch’ her without causing undue trauma. She went into a tiny padded ‘tent’ tonight. It is perfect. She needs her worming medicine so tomorrow we are going to accomplish that. At the same time I will give her some different tasty treats – that gooey chicken that comes in a tube – to get her to think only of yummy snacks and me. The way to Hope’s heart is directly related to treats and playing.

Hope is almost as big as Mamma but, I can tell when I pick up Calico and hold her close (she still loves being held and having our cheeks rub one another) that she is gaining weight. That makes me so happy.

There is good news coming out of Bird World. As I write this Sunday evening (20:13), there is an indication that the second chick at Orange is hatching! ‘A’ writes: “We can hear chirping from the second egg at Orange and several keen-eyed observers believe they can see a pip. Certainly, there is peeping on the box camera that is not coming from the chick that has been born. So chatters and mods alike are fairly confident that eyas number two is on its way. This was a very quick hatch – Indigo was the fastest ever at this scrape until this one, which I believe may have been faster (I’m not certain on that, but it was certainly a relatively quick hatch). The chick looks very large – some are saying it hatched because it could no longer fit in that egg! It was more a case of bursting out than breaking out. 

Diamond tried to feed the sweet little thing at three hours of age, at which point it was still exhausted and barely able to lift its head in response to mum’s gentle urgings. (It did manage to lift it though – it’s a strong little person – but of course was not interested in eating yet.) Mum is just a little overexcited I think.”

A very contented Xavier perched on the ledge while his second chick hatches. Oh, the fact that these two could be so close together is a blessing.

The first feeding of Diamond and Xavier’s baby.

And another…

The other good news coming on Sunday is the return of V3 to the streaming cam at the NEFL Bald Eagle nest of Gabby. ‘A’ caught up with some of the intrigue coming from the chat, “There is good news from NEFL, where V3 and Gabby were both seen at the nest tree during the day after Gabby had spent the night (it rained heavily pretty much all night and she was absolutely saturated) perched on Wallenda (in the nest tree). Our BOTG confirm that Gabby and V3 are perched and tucked for the night at the lumber yard tonight. This is such happy news. I think we are all rooting for Gabby and V3.”

Oh, let us hope that V3 and Gabby are left alone to raise a family this year.

Things are also going exceptionally well at Fort Myers. What a delight it is to see M15 with a new mate and a new beginning. He was everyone’s hero last year raising E21 and 22 from the beginning of February when Harriet disappeared. There was concern that M15 might lose his territory that he shared with Harriet without a mate – remember all those females? So it is heartwarming to see him working on a nest with his new mate.

Lady Hawk put together a compilation of images for us of the season beginning.

Mum and Dad waiting at Port Lincoln and Melbourne.

SE31 and 32 continue to grow their beautiful juvenile plumage. They are much more sturdy on their legs and we should be looking for branching shortly.

There are a couple of other things that I want to share with you. Geemeff sent me links to two videos. One is a short news blast about Tarzan, the logging horse, working with its handler at Lock Arkaig to rid the Caledonian forests of the invasive American Spruce trees. I love this quieter and more gentle to-the-land approach to solving the problem of non-native species.

The second is the third and final part of a series on wildlife in Scotland – the challenges and the solutions being undertaken. There are Ospreys!!!!!!!!!!! I hope that while we are in the middle of nest building or incubation you enjoy these.

A memorial service was held for Su and Otto, the long term resident Red-tail Hawks at Syracuse University on Sunday.

Lastly, two prominent male Bald Eagles are missing. Smitty, the mate of Bella, at the NCTC Bald Eagle nest, has not been seen since the 21st of September. The Dad at Pittsburgh-Hayes has been missing since 7 September and I will sadly be adding him to our Memorial Wall in a few days. Please send positive thoughts to both families.

Pip watch at Orange now for the second egg.

Thank you so much for being with me this morning. Please take care. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my newsletter this morning: ‘A, Geemeff’, NEFL-AEF, Lady Hawk and SW Florida Eagle Cam, Geemeff, Sydney Sea Eagles, 367 Collins St by Mirvac, PLO, and Red-tail Hawk Tales.

Cheeping can be heard at Orange…Sunday in Bird World

1 October 2023

Good Morning,

Gosh, we watched that big beautiful Harvest Moon as it welcomed us into the month of October. What a view through the roof of the Conservatory!

As I write, it is 25 degrees C, a gorgeous fall day with blue skies and vibrant yellow leaves poking their way through the window frame. The Blue Jays are visiting the table feeder, and Dyson has been scurrying about.

Hope reminded me that Uncle Claudio said to use the ‘Marigolds’ on the upholstery, and the cat hair would come right off. Marigolds are rubber gloves used for washing up. They have little prickles on the underneath that work wonders lifting cat hair. Rub the gloves in circles. Incredible. Thanks, Uncle Claudio!

Hope also likes to help sweep up, but I’m not sure she would care for hoovering. She had such fun with the little broom this afternoon. She will not allow me to stroke her unless she is distracted. Hope will also come up close if Calico is sleeping on my lap. If I pretend to be asleep on the couch, she will come and sleep on my leg. It is slow going, but we will get there! I wish she had been found as a wee kitten, not a 9-week-old, very independent lass.

Things with Covid – the sore throat is gone. The wobblies have passed, and I no longer have a temperature. The Covid test is still showing positive, but things are beginning to look up, and this will pass in a couple of days. You need to take care. There are now reports of Covid cases almost everywhere (did they ever really cease? No). Make sure you are prepared. Did I mention throat lozenges? Aspirin or related products to reduce fever? Nothing tastes good, but you must eat to maintain your strength. So, have things that are easy to make and might make you want to have a bite. Who cares if you eat soup, biscuits (cookies), Ice cream, and frozen dinners for a week? Whatever motivates you. I did find oranges were one of the real treats once my throat quit hurting.

The kittens and I listened to Ferris Akel’s tour today while cleaning. There were some nice waterfowl and wading birds on Saturday.

There were Cormorants.

The first thing I will do when I am negative is to go and see the geese landing on their way south! Can’t wait. Maybe there will be a Cormorant or two with them.

The latest announcement from the SW Florida Eagle nest:

The view Saturday night at Fort Myers.

The weather was not good at The Hamlet. Gabby was alone on the Walleda Branch all night. Where is V3? My heart aches for our girl.

Fish continue to be delivered to Lil’Arb at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Nest – three came in by 1200 on Saturday! The fishing is good, the weather is fine – no reason to take off. This Dad is amazing – what a change from an inexperienced Mum. This fledgling is getting a right good start to his migration.

Cheeping can be heard on the microphone at Orange! Turn your volume up in the ledge cam (not the side like this image), and – well, we are almost there! Xavier and Diamond must be so excited.

Xavier really wanted some egg time and he tried to convince Diamond to leave and let him but, no way. The couple appeared to chat and listen to the eggs. They know their baby/babies are almost here. In fact, Diamond is acting a wee bit suspicious as I finish up the blog this morning. Fingers crossed.

Birdie Cam got these adorable falcons and their egg time competition on video!

‘A’ writes: “”This is the cutest event of the day at Orange, given the hatch probably won’t occur until after midnight so will be tomorrow’s cutest event. At 11:42:45 this morning (Sunday 1 October), Xavier put up a phenomenal three-minute battle for the right to brood the eggs. (He must know that his egg time is fast running out and his precious eggs will soon become open screeching little beaks, though he adores them as well of course.) At any rate, I have NEVER seen him put up such an effort to win the right to brood eggs. And he very nearly won! Well, technically he did win, but then Diamond had a stern word to him and shortly before 11:46, he decided that perhaps he had better get up and retreat. But the effort he made to actually get onto those eggs in the first place truly has to be seen to be believed. I am certain there will be internet video posted of it – I am looking for it now. But it really was fantastic, and illustrates perfectly why we all adore this sweet little falcon so very very much. He is a one-off.”

It is possible that something is happening with the egg on the left after 1500. Or. perhaps we are all just seeing things because we want to!

At Sydney, the Sea Eagles are jumping and flapping all over the nest.

‘A’ notes, “At WBSE Dad brought in a headless medium-sized fish soon after 11:44 and although SE31 tried to steal it from him, he retained control of it and fed the entire thing to SE32. Right at the end, when SE31 pushed right up to Dad’s beak, SE32, who ate lying duckling style throughout the meal, had his eye on a line below SE31 – he was ready to grab for that fish tail the moment it became accessible. He was like lightning, grabbing and turning away with his prize in a single movement, then horking down the tail with any remaining flesh attached. Dad picked up a small leftover piece and fed that to SE32 as well, finished any remaining flakes himself, and left SE32 with a nice crop and SE31, for once, disappointed. The new self-feeding regime has left SE32 with a bit of a dilemma, as he is not large enough or aggressive enough to beat his sister in a battle for the prey, whereas he was fine with sitting and sharing at the table. So until he improves his ability to win the prey, retain it and self-feed effectively from it, he will be losing out on his share of the food. So that fish was a nice bonus for his day.” 

32 waiting!

Gosh, it is a beautiful view at Superbeaks. That saturated colour is gorgeous. I’m looking forward to this year. Thank you to everyone who introduced me to this nest last year!

Sticks are being moved at Big Bear. Jackie and Shadow have been working diligently. What a relief to see these two together, no intruders, bonding and working for their future – oh, please let them have one nice healthy eaglet this year.

Thunder visited the West End nest on Saturday gazing out over the water. She is lovely.

Connie and Clive have been working on their nest at Captiva.

Trudi Kron reports that Nancy and Beau have been working on their new nest, across the road from the one that collapsed last year, killing their surviving eaglet. It is not known if the Minnesota DNR will be able to install a cam so that we can watch their activities for the coming year.

Martin and Rosa weren’t seen on the Dulles-Greenway Nest when I was checking but the camera crew caught the squirrel who is nesting in the lower part of the nest with its little one!

The heat started at Melbourne after 0900 when Mum began to pant heavily to try and regulate her temperature. It is a cooler day, only 19 C – on Sunday in Melbourne. Rain is forecast for Tuesday and Wednesday after the heat rises again on Monday to 28 C.

Keeping an eye on Mum and Dad2 at Port Lincoln. Still a ways until we will have pip watch here on the barge.

The latest map of our Black Storks from Karula and their migration. Thanks Maria Marika!

Too many species are facing extinction. What can we do? Lots. We will talk about that when I am feeling better, but each day, you can help the birds and the wildlife where you live, those birds out your back door that bring you joy with their song. Could you put out water? For drinking. For baths. If you can afford it, put out food for them. It took me a while, but I finally found farmers in my province who deliver Black Oil seed right to my door. They even have a fantastic seed mixture. By cutting out all of the people in the middle, the savings I have made means that I can continue supporting the hundreds of birds that come during the day to the garden. More and more farmers are diversifying. Many discovered the farm-to-table movement during Covid 19. They can get more money for their products and offer their customers savings. Could you check it out? It could change your birding life. [If you live in Manitoba and would like to know the contact information for local delivery by farmers providing bird seed, send me an e-mail: maryannsteggles@icloud.com].

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Ducks are being rescued in Australia.

Thank you for being with me this morning. So excited for what is happening at Orange. Xavier just be sooooooo excited. Take care. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my newsletter this morning: ‘A’, Ferris Akel, Nancy Babineau and SW Florida Eagle Cam, NEFL-AEF, MN Landscape Arboretum, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, Birdie Cam and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, Sydney Sea Eagles, Superbeaks, FOBBV, IWS/Explore, Window to Wildlife, Trudi Kron, Dulles-Greenway, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Maria Marika, The Guardian, and Western Australian SeaBird Rescue.

Pip Watch at Orange, camera on at SWFlorida…Saturday in Bird World

30 September 2023

Good Morning,

I hope you are all well – and, please, stay that way. New masking restrictions are coming into play in various provinces in Canada as this new Covid variant takes hold. I slept almost all Friday curled up with Calico in the conservatory. Oh, what a loving cat she is. I wouldn’t take a million dollars for her and Hope! Or Missey and Lewis. Several have written about wanting to adopt Hope. I could never separate her and Calico. Their story makes me believe that magical things can happen.

The pair of them continue to play like kittens, and we count the days until I am well and can manage the four to ensure their lives together, living in the open, are safe for all. They all deserve it. Hope watched the Blue Jays cracking open the Black Oil seeds at the table feeder and the leaves blowing across the garden and deck. We have started a new book – new to them anyway. The Meaning of Geese. I read it in the winter and came to love the Siberian geese in parts of the UK. As our geese fly in to fatten up and head South, it is a good reminder of how wonderful these birds are. I hope they like it!

We are heading to the 1st of October in Orange, and we are on ‘pip’ watch for Diamond and Xavier. Should the first laid egg be fertile and viable, we should be seeing some action soon. We are holding our breath.

I will raise many eyebrows, and some of you will yell at me, but I hope that Diamond and Xavier have one strong hatch. Let’s see another Izzi in this scrape – not a strong first hatch and a weaker second one with feather development issues.

Keep your eyes on Orange.

Elain did ‘Highlights of Prince Manaaki’ for all those missing that cute little bundle of fluff who turned into a Royal Albatross. Loved watching him garden!

Expecting to see one of the Sea Eaglets interested in that parent branch shortly.

‘A’ has been watching them but had missed the singing, “I found the sea eaglets ‘singing’ with their parents the most adorable thing. Thank you so much for drawing my attention to that. Of course, as it happened at 05:25 and was not something that I picked up while scrolling through the footage, I would have missed it otherwise. Aren’t they looking beautiful? As I have mentioned over the past fortnight, the world beyond their nest has been fascinating to them, especially SE32, and I am truly hoping this will make them less fearful of the currawongs and crows. They are both much larger birds than the blue jays that bothered Angel. 

It is hot in Melbourne, and it is not even 0900. Why didn’t someone do something about the sun on that scrape? or remove that scrape box altogether?

A noticed this, “Poor mum is doing the morning shift at Collins Street and she has been panting since before 9am. Tonight, our clocks go forward an hour, meaning the shadow will not hit the scrape until an hour later than it is currently doing, and this will gradually get worse as time progresses. Today, mum is absolutely baking. It is SO hot out there. I hate to think of what it will be like in three or four weeks time when those babies have natal down rather than thermal down and the parents are going to have to shade them for at least three hours each day. Not sure how dad is going to manage that when he is already having problems brooding the four eggs (though he is valiant in his efforts and always finds a way somehow).”

The sight of the eyases almost roasting last year still haunts many of us. 

It is going to be 30 degrees today, which means it will be a lot hotter on that ledge. Sending out positive thoughts to our lovely Melbourne Couple.

At Port Lincoln, the oldest egg is now 24 days old. We still have a ways to go before hatch!

Egg dates: 6, 9, and 12 September.

Looks who is back fishing at Delamere.

A rallying call to vote for the Peregrine Falcon as Australia’s 2023 bird of the year. Remember go to The Guardian to vote!

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A really quick check at some of the Bald Eagle nests – almost without exception, the Bald Eagles are busy readying their nests for next season.

Pepe and Muhlady paid an early morning visit to Superbeaks.

Jackie and Shadow returned after 1800 to work on their nest at Big Bear Lake on Friday.

Baiba catches that first stick delivery by Shadow in video.

Life is still – seemingly – unsettled for Gabby at NE Florida. No confirmation of who came to the nest on Friday.

Raining hard at ‘The Hamlet’ and no one knows who is on or off the nest.

Anna is still having trouble with her injured leg at the KNF nest that she shares with her mate, Louis.

Connie and Clive are working on their nest at Captiva. Wishing them a good year.

Checking on our Black stork family from Estonia, Karl II and Kaia almost took the same flight path – like almost identical – to get to Bursa, Turkey.

Kalvi is in Bulgaria.

Waba continues to fish on the Danube River in Romania.

The RSPB’s State of Nature (in the UK) report is out and it makes for some very grim reading. The main threats to wildlife are: “The changes in the way we manage our land for farming, and climate change were the biggest causes of wildlife decline on our land, rivers and lakes. At sea, and around our coasts, it was as a result of unsustainable fishing, climate change and marine development.”

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Do you have a garden? Do you have friends or relatives that do? Have they given away all the cucumbers and zucchini they can to their friends and still have more? What about that kale? Wildlife Rehab Centres always need fresh vegetables for their patients. Your local wildlife rehab clinic will be so grateful for the food gifts.

Thank you for being with me today. Cameras will be turned on Saturday at SWFlorida! Go and watch M15 and his new mate kick off a new season. Take care of yourself. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, videos, posts, photos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me: ‘A’, Charles Sturt FalconCam, Elain and NZ DOC, Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, PLO, Pam Hewstone and Friends of Osprey Sth Australia, The Guardian, Superbeaks, FOBBV, Baiba and FOBBV, NEFL-AEF, Tonya Irvin and KNF E-1, Looduskalender, and the RSPB.

Jackie and Shadow are back…Friday in Bird World

29 September 2023

Good Morning Everyone,

Thank you for all your wonderful ‘get well’ notes.

Thursday was worse. I thought things would be better, but the day started much worse. I am doing what the doctor orders – drinking lots of water or tea and sleeping as much as possible. Thankfully, there is not much happening in Bird World. In Winnipeg, the Snow Geese are arriving! The Canada Geese are leaving. The Robins continue to fly through. Migration is going both ways.

The hardest thing about being sick is seeing Calico watching me from the glass door, wanting more stories! Oh, that kitten – she still is a kitten (hard to believe with what she has been through), and she loves to curl up on my lap and listen to a good book. You can tell which ones she likes. It must be the author’s words – she prefers one to another. We have now finished five books in the last month. Today marks a month and three days that Calico has lived in the house. On 2 October, Hope will have been with us for a month. She listens to the stories but prefers to play. It is lovely. Cannot imagine life without the four of them, 16 legs and how many bags of litter a month? And I’m not too fond of cat food. It is just too funny. Hope loves sardines. One good thing about having Covid is I cannot smell them.

It rained, and the wind was blowing leaves everywhere. The Blue Jays were in the garden along with Dyson and Little Red. Hope and Calico spend time atop their ‘tent’ enclosure. Hope enjoys looking at what is happening outside. Missey and Calico have a truce, and there is no more animosity at the glass door. Even Lewis has calmed down. As soon as I am up to it, they will all be inside the main part of the house together.

‘L’ asked me how I taught Hope to do the High 5s. I didn’t. She taught me!

Hope’s eyes remind me of Missey’s!

Hope is so healthy. Look at those fat little legs. Calico still lets her nurse. You might be able to tell, but dear Calico is putting on a little weight. She no longer looks starving and sunken in with her bones being the most significant thing you first see.

Lewis is a big boy. He doesn’t know it, but he will get a new toy – a reward – if he can be gentle when Calico enters the living area with Hope in a few days.

No more growling or hissing at the door between Calico, Missey, or Lewis. It is lovely.

Calico is a gentle soul. I cannot imagine anyone dumping this wonderful kitten in the cold of winter.

Hope, Calico, Missey and Lewis have decided that instead of making pumpkin pie with our little pumpkin, we will put peanut butter in holes and leave it out for the squirrels. Want to join us? You could do this with your children or you could do it after you have your Halloween pumpkin. Just load up a bunch of holes with peanut butter!

I have been so sick or busy that I missed it. Voting time for The Guardian’s favourite Australian Bird. The Peregrine Falcon is in 8th place so far. Check it out; pick your favourite. You can vote every day! You do not have to be Australia, but there are funds to help with conservation, so please go and vote.

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This will just warm your hearts. SE31 and 32 join in the morning duet with Mum and Dad. Oh, I used to love to sit and watch SE26. 26 loved to sing the duet. It was so beautiful.

Watching these two and this beautiful family is so bitter sweet. I wish there was so solution to the Currawongs.

They are becoming very interested in what is happening outside the nest.

It doesn’t get much sicker than this. The migrating birds are not protected in places like Malta because of politics. So, vote with your wallet. Refuse to travel to countries where there are laws to protect migrating birds and those laws are flippantly disobeyed by the hunters. Malta. Lebanon. There are others but those are on the top of my list today.

I wept for my friends in Latvia. They work so hard to try and build the small numbers of birds in their country to something significant, and then to have that beautiful fledgling of this year blown out of the sky for no reason other than someone could aim a gun and pull a trigger for fun. It makes my blood boil.

The end of the season at the Royal Albatross Colony as only 4 are left to take off to the skies and the open sea. Cornell did a short you tube video on what you can expect for September-October.

The Snow Geese might be flying over Minnesota to get to Canada and further north but Dad is still at the Landscape Arboretum in Minnesota bringing fish to Lil’ Arb.

Look who was home today! Jackie and Shadow. What a delight to see these two working on their nest together. It is such a relief to see mated pairs return together to their nests uninjured.

Cali Condor has it in a video.

At the Pritchett Farm, M15 and the new female continue to bond and work on their nest. The season looks promising. Please send out positive energy so that these two can start their lives together in peace.

Things continue to ‘feel’ unsettled at the NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest. There have been visitors to the Northeast Bald Eagle nest. Unconfirmed. V3 did not visit the nest on Thursday. Gabby was briefly there. Unknown was on the nest later.

Gabby is not happy. Has your heart dropped down to your ankles yet? Will this be a repeat of 2022?

We all love the underdogs that survive, and Flaco is one of those. This Eurasian Owl escaped from its cage at the Central Park Zoo and is now enjoying a life of freedom. Bruce Yolton follows him for us daily as he finds food and survives in the wilds of New York City! Bruce has recently posted some good (and short) videos about Flake’s activities. I hope you are enjoying them.

New York City has hired specialists to help deal with its rat problem, especially since the pandemic. The worry has been the use of rodenticides. We must all remember that Raptors are the solution – the answer to problems with rats and mice. Falco loves this great big rat (it looks like that to me because of the tail).

Well, we are nearly there. It can take as long as 72 hours from a the sighting of the first pip (little chip in the egg) to the eyas being fully hatched. All eyes are on Orange!

At Port Lincoln, Mum gets off the eggs, very excited. Dad2 is flying in with the second fish of the morning – a headless offering which will give Mum a nice round crop. We get a good look at the eggs!

I am holding my breath. This nest has broken our hearts more than once. Will there be a change with the new lad? Will he be a sufficient provider for all the chicks to survive? We wait.

For those new to watching Ospreys develop, the Manitoba Osprey Project put together an informative and concise sheet on what to expect. It will help you as you watch these adorable little dinosaurs. You can click on any of the tabs for the Montana file below to find out other information.

Remember. The Port Lincoln Ospreys are Eastern Ospreys. The Montana Ospreys are Western. Eastern Ospreys do not migrate. Western Ospreys do (for the most part – exceptions are in the warmer climates of the southern US). Western Ospreys vary in their dates for fledging, but many studies indicate a date of 52.8 days after hatch (51-54 days). The average fledge date in Australia is 69 days (Kangaroo Island studies).

Timeline-Montana-Osprey-Project-University-Of-MontanaDownload

Mum looks pretty comfortable at 367 Collins Street. It is nearing noon on Thursday, and she does not seem heat-stressed. This is good. We should be able to enjoy the Orange hatchlings for a bit before focusing on the white fluff balls hatching on this ledge high over the CBD in Melbourne.

Last, let us check on the status of migration for Karl II and his family. This year’s fledgling, Kalvi, is in Bulgaria on the 28th.

Waba (2022 fledgling) is in Romania fishing at the Danube River.

Karl II is in Turkey!

Kaia is also in Turkey!

Thank you so much for being with me today. Please keep your eyes on the scrape of Diamond and Xavier at Orange! Pip watch is soon. Take care.

Thank you to the following for their notes, articles, videos, posts, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ‘Geemeff’, The Guardian, SK Hideaways and Sydney Sea Eagles, Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, Birdlife Malta, Cornell Bird Lab, MN Landscape Arboretum, Cali Condor and FOBBV, FOBBV, Saunders Real Life Photography, NEFL-AEF, Bruce Yolton, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, PLO, University of Montana, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, and the Looduskalender Forum.

Thursday in Bird World

28 September 2023

Oh, goodness. Good Morning, Everyone.

Wednesday afternoon I was feeling so poorly that I wasn’t even certain I would make it to send off even a smidgen of a newsletter. Covid is making its way around the world. This new strain is everywhere. My tip is to make a little preparation kit – ensure you have a good working thermometer, cough drops (my throat was the first sign), whatever you use to bring down a fever, and pet food if you have pets or birds. Pick up those free Covid testing kits. Get in some easy-to-make comfort foods however you define them. I promise you that you will not feel like eating anything, so make sure you have some things that will spur you into eating. Put cold bottles (glass) of water in the fridge. Drink them, and drink lots of tea! With lemon and honey, I scraped some fresh ginger, which helped the throat. But most of all, sleep. Permit yourself to fall asleep at any time of the day.

Hope cannot get enough play time. She doesn’t understand why my energy is so low! Right now she would rather fly around the conservatory – over the table, under the chair, up to the top of the cat tree, down to the purple chair – she has a route. Oh, what energy! Our little butter ball kitten isn’t a butterball anymore.

The kittens have not liked this. There has not been the usual 5 or 6 story times during the day which also include little snacks and treats. But, I tell them that things will be back to normal soon!

One of the bright spots of the morning was looking out and seeing a beautiful sunflower, one of the last growing, a present from the birds and squirrels. This beautiful yellow flower could not have opened up more opportunely!

‘J’ sent a note saying that there are beautiful pictures of the Centreport Eagles on FB – better than on the live cam. Check them out. Schwartz was interviewed about the return of the Bald Eagles to Long Island.

Bald-eagles-making-a-big-comeback-on-Long-Island-and-local-photographers-are-loving-it-CBS-New-YoDownload

Ervie continues to do some long flights during the day. Oh, Ervie. Boston Island was far enough!!!!!!!!

Ernie’s older sister, Calypso, is taking fish to a nest. Everyone is hopeful that this might signal that her and her mate will be thinking about breeding next season.

Hartley and Monty didn’t want to be left out of the bonding videos! This coming season will be their second together. Can’t wait.

Rosa has checked out the new Dulles-Greenway nest after the old nest collapsed at the end of the breeding season this year. It looks like one or all of the three juveniles from last season have been around the nest at one time or another.

It was raining on the Sydney Sea Eagles when they woke to a new day. Several hours later, everything was starting to dry. ‘A’ remarks, “In Sydney, the sea eaglets are miserable. Soaking wet and not enjoying it. They woke early, shortly after 5am, and SE32 began gnawing at nestovers (there appeared to be a leg bone involved). He was getting lots of small bites off the bone and was getting great practice at self-feeding, but not enough to challenge SE31 when the breakfish arrived around 06:15. She claimed the headless fish immediately, leaving SE32 to closely watch her as she self-fed.”

‘A’ continues, “Today was a learning day at WBSE. SE32 started the day shortly after 5am, self-feeding on what looked like a leg bone. He was pulling off lots of very small pieces but at least he was learning. Two part fish were then brought in by around 7am, and SE31 ate most of both. SE32 did manage to steal a fish from his sister a couple of times, but continually tried unsuccessfully to swallow it whole, so she always managed to steal it back. He did get a couple of bites in the process, at one point holding a part fish down really well and pulling several large bites off it, but his sister was more accomplished and is self-feeding like an adult. Then, at around 10am, mum brought in half a fish and tried to feed SE32, who proceeded to steal the fish from mum but then lost it to SE31. Eventually, around 15:12 a nice fish was brought in and SE32 was fed most of it. SE31 tried to push in about eight or nine minutes into the feeding but mum was very determined to feed SE32. I am convinced she was trying to ensure SE32 got fed (she had tried to do that with the part fish around 10am but he had been a little too ambitious, stealing and then quickly losing it). Poor little eaglets were absolutely soaked from before dawn today. It was miserably wet in Sydney.” 

Our first-time Mum at the MN Landscape Arboretum nest lost two osplets, and well, she could have had the one survivor die as well, but she figured it out, and Dad is making sure that their only baby is fit for migration. Six fish on Wednesday. Six. What a Dad. One beautiful survivor. It reminds me a bit of Hope. If Calico had only enough milk for one, Hope was the survivor – the Mini.

There has been a fledge and a return at Osprey House in Australia. Nine weeks and 2 days old. Two self-feeding, one fledge. Doing well.

At the Charles Sturt University Falcon scrape in Orange, Australia, ‘A’ notes, “At Orange, poor Xavier has just lost the argument over the eggs and has reluctantly got up and left at Diamond’s insistence. As is usually the case, Diamond has returned with a respectable crop. Oh Xavier is SUCH a handsome falcon. The moon is almost full tonight – 98.3% apparently. It will be 100% at three minutes to eight tomorrow evening (Friday 29 September) in eastern Australia. Diamond is silhouetted in the moonlight. We are within two days of pip watch. I cannot believe the time has gone so fast. Again, I hope no more than two of those eggs hatch. There is still a while to go at Port Lincoln (at least two and probably two and a half weeks). Collins Street is about a week ahead of Port Lincoln, so perhaps ten days till pip watch.”

Remember. Falcons and hawks develop much faster than eagles and ospreys. Here is an image chart for the development. You can compare the images to the eyases at Orange.

The-Canadian-Peregrine-Foundation-Peregrine-Falcon-developmentDownload

Here is a little more information, general information, on falcon breeding, scrapes and nest sites, and eyas’ development.

Peregrine-Falcon-Nest-Sites-and-Breeding-Habits-The-RSPBDownload

Falco is continuing to live around the area of Central Park where he escaped from his enclosure at the zoo. Bruce Yolton tracks the urban hawks of NYC in his blog. Here is his latest short video on this beautiful Eurasian Owl who has defied the odds and survived.

Some information on Eurasian Owls – maybe you have never heard of them!

Eurasian-Eagle-owl-The-Peregrine-FundDownload

The general rules of spotting an injured bird! Please don’t give water or food unless told to do so. Get a box with a blanket and air holes. Dark and safe. Keep warm. Get to the clinic asap.

Remember: If you can pick up a raptor, it is ill and/or injured. Get help.

‘H’ brings us up to date with what is going on at Captiva!

The Captiva Eagle Cam went live yesterday evening (if you don’t already know).

Captiva Eagle Cam – Connie and Clive

Also, the Captiva Osprey cam was struck by lightning, and may not be up until November.  This is a link to a short video from Conner explaining a few things about the Captiva nests cams.

Message from Connor Re Captiva cams

Looks like there is some action at the WRDC nest this morning. Thanks, ‘H’. Love watching them move around those big sticks for the rim!

Protecting nature. It isn’t being well cared for where I live. The public has to let its voice – no matter where you live – be heard. We are heading for a provincial election on the 2nd of October. Will anything change?

Nature-protection-an-afterthought-–-Winnipeg-Free-PressDownload

Would you happen to know what the American Flyways Initiative is? If not, educate yourself as to why these major migratory routes and all the land and water along them need protection (and improvement to habitat).

Think Mini. Think all of the ospreys, hawks, and other raptors and songbirds that you love. These flyways are the transport corridors from their winter to summer homes and we must protect them.

The-Americas-Flyways-Initiative-launches-investing-billions-to-save-birds-landscapes-and-livelihooDownload

Tonya Irwin has issued a long correction on FB stating that the female who was injured on the E1 nest with Louis is not Anna. I hope that this is not a ‘bad’ sign for our beloved female.

Thank you for being with me today. Take care, everyone! Stay safe

Thank you to everyone for their notes, articles, videos, and streaming cams that helped me write my newsletter this morning: ‘A, H, JJ, J’, CBS NewYork, PLO, SK Hideaways and the San Jose CH Peregrine Falcons, Dulles-Greenway, Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, MN Landscape Arboretum, Osprey House Environmental Centre, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, CDN Peregrine Foundation, RSPB, Bruce Yolton, The Peregrine Fund, The Global Bird Rescue, HeidiMc and the WRDC, The Free Press, and Birdlife International.