We hope the weekend has been good for you and everyone you love.
Saturday was a wonderful day on the Canadian Prairies. It was warmer, -7 C , but a little windy. No snow!
The birds and squirrels enjoyed the contents of the basket, just without the basket! Both Crows came to feed along with more than fifty Starlings, more Sparrows than I could count, a Little Woodpecker (Mrs Downy), and ALL of the squirrels, including dear Dyson. There was, sadly, only one Blue Jay. I have not gotten close enough to tell if Mr or Mrs Junior is missing. It just saddens me. Brock had his meal. So, for the most part, all is good with the world in the garden.
The deer were across from the park near me when we left them a large bag of apples, sweet potatoes, and carrots Saturday afternoon. The conservation officers disapprove. Four of us feed them because there is no food except the shrubs and Brandon Cedars planted in people’s front gardens for them since their forest area was cleared.
There were deer at another park. It is such a pleasure to see them. It is a large area with lots of bush. They appeared healthy and people driving through were very cautious of their presence. What a change from those near to where I live that drive way too fast.
It was a lovely day. Good food, many laughs, and time outside.
I did little checking on the birds. Let’s see what is happening with a few of them.
SK Hideaways gives us Hartley and Monty with a brand new brilliant camera at San Jose. Gosh, aren’t they adorable?! I love peregrine falcons except for the anxiety and challenges they face living in an urban environment like these two. https://youtu.be/cKE8Habt8BU?
At Port Lincoln yesterday. No fish have been delivered yet on Sunday.
Mum brought in a massive fish on Sunday at 1122, and it looks like Wilko claimed it.
The cuteness factor is in the nest of M15 and F23. No other place! Well, not yet.
‘J’ writes: “I think both of the E’s are going to be mighty survivors, both feisty as can be! F23 must also be a buddha reincarnation. She takes M15’s shenanigans in stride and now completely ignores her kids pulling her feathers.” We all agree!
The rebuilding at Johnson City ETSU has begun. Jolene and Boone will make quick work of all that is required.
‘I did not catch Jackie or Shadow at the nest in Big Bear Valley.
There has been some concern for what is happening at the NE Florida nest of Gabby and Beau. Some chatters are worried that something is the matter. Gabby is giving Beau much more incubation time than she did last year. Last year, Beau wasn’t ready. this year it appears he is and he is happily looking after those eggs. Gabby appears to be fine but leaving the eggs which seems odd. Send good energy please just in case.
Ban one and keep another. Killing any bees is not good for the planet.
The recent outbreaks at several poultry operations in northwest Iowa are connected to a virus circulating in wild birds. A different strain infected 13 dairies and 3 poultry operations in late May and June.
Looking to help. Donate produce to your local wildlife rehab clinic! Leave food for squirrels, not just birds!
Recent research shows that 40% of the food in North America is wasted. Calico’s Tip for the Day: Buy Less, Use it All, Never throw anything away!
My son is visiting Curacao for a wee holiday. He posted a beautiful photo of a Common Ground Dove on her nest. Isn’t she gorgeous? This is the tinest dove living in the Caribbean. It grows only to a length of 16 cm or a fraction over 6 inches.
I am used to seeing the Zenaida or Eared Dove. I could tell this one by the yellow on its beak. The Audubon Field Guide describes its habitat thus: “Farms, orchards, wood edges, roadsides. Mostly in semi-open habitats with low brush and grass. In the southeast, found mostly in brushy fields, understory of open pine woods, forest edges. In southwest, occurs in similar habitats including orchards, ranch yards, mesquite thickets along streams.”
All About Birds describes its feeding habits, “Common Ground Doves make their living by gleaning small seeds from wild grasses and weeds. They are also common visitors to bird feeders. They may specialize on certain seeds during the summer, when food is abundant, but eat a variety of seeds during winter. Ground doves also feed on small berries and insects. In spring and summer they may eat snail shells, possibly to replenish the calcium devoted to eggs and crop-milk during nesting.”
Their challenges are habitat loss, including areas where they can nest, cat predation or accidentally by people, and car collisions. They are currently of low concern in terms of conservation.
Hugo Yugo wishes everyone sweet dreams.
Thank you for being with us today. Please take care of yourself. It is very busy everywhere, and people are not watching or taking care on the roads. Most of all, breathe. Take time to enjoy the very simple pleasures. Take a walk. Listen to the birds. Watch them. Take any loads off your shoulders. Be kind. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write this post today: ‘A, CM, J’, SK Hideaways, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Bart M and the PLO, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Lady Hawk, ETSU-Johnson City, FOBBV, NEFL-AEF, The Guardian, National Geographic, Wild Souls Wildlife Rescue and Rehab, Iowa Public Radio, Audubon Field Guide, Cornell Bird Lab All About Birds
The inbox lit up. Everyone is excited. She did it. There are now two eggs for Beau and Gabby at around 1824. Thanks, ‘A and J and everyone else that came after’!
Beau arrives to aerate the nest and roll the two eggs. Thanks, ‘J’
Hugo Yugo has her dental surgery scheduled for Monday due to a cancellation at the veterinary clinic. I am so happy. She will not have to suffer waiting til the first week in January. HY will go in for her blood work this afternoon. As I write this, Brock is eating, which always brings a smile to my face. I’m not sure how he manages to survive temperatures below -30°C, but he looks good this morning with no frostbite on his ears.
HY. What a little sweetie.
Hugo Yugo’s sidekick, Missey, has been busy checking out the animals on their little woodland tree. Last year, with her brother Lewis, Missey almost destroyed this tiny tree!!!!!!!! She was eating the flocking off the branches. it is a wonder there wasn’t a huge vet bill. This year her focus is on removing the animals, and the other three think are cat toys. Ugh. Can you hear me growling?
I cannot imagine a world without birds singing and, yet, in my own neighbourhood, it is our garden where the song is happening. No where else. Plug your ears and image not a single bird singing – ever again. Let’s do something about it before that happens!
Why are birds important? and their song? “But does the silencing of our soundscapes matter to us? The short answer is yes. There is growing evidence about the health benefits of spending time in nature, including reducing risks of heart disease, diabetes and anxiety. Yet while the general benefits of being outside in nature may seem intuitive, the contributions of natural sounds to this are less understood.”
Help create a time of giving and caring instead of consumerism.
Beau and Gabby have been incubating like synchronised swimmers. It has been a joy to watch them this season. As I write this, there is still only one egg. If there is to be only one, then goodness, I hope it is fertile, hatches, is healthy, and fledges. I cannot imagine another disappointment for her. She, of course, will take it all in stride and not be openly bothered. We have so much to learn from the raptors.
Beau on the nest incubating. The couple have been on and off all day.
We have a real treat from SK Hideaways. No more murmurations where they live so they went to find them! https://youtu.be/WVeEWdDAO7A?
This is also wonderful. A young person who is so creative. Look at the detail in the bird cards – a large % going to the Sussex Wildlife Trust!
A long time Bald Eagle ambassador at the Audubon Centre for Birds of Prey, Paige, has died.
It appears that they are looking for Kasse. Isn’t the tracker working? I hope that Kasse has followed Mum to go fishing. Bart is waiting for Fran to wake up to see if she has the tracking for the kids.
One osprey on the barge.
All four were found on the old barge. There has been no breakfast.
At the Loch Arkaig, Geemeff has found some visitors. Ospreys not expected for 100 days or so! “Sparrowhawk on Nest Two and a Raven on Nest One. They visited within an hour of each other after weeks of no activity. Mind you, the nest cams have been down quite a bit due to lack of solar power, so who knows what we might have missed.” https://youtu.be/2VYIExWjaig
Winston, the Black Bear Cub rescue in Manitoba, is thriving.
I need to check the comments on time. ‘AE and MP’ note that Jack was on the Achieva Credit Union nest on the 7th of December. Thank you!
Jack is one of the male ospreys that I have not kept an adequate file on his head marks. I wonder if this is him? What has happened to Diane?
I did not see anyone in the scrape at the Campanile.
There is someone at the San Jose City Hall!
Thunder and Akecheta were at the West End nest.
I haven’t seen anyone at Two Harbours recently. If you have, please let me know!
Pip watch continues at SW Florida! Did I put my vote in for Saturday? A sub-adult landed on the rails and F23 valiantly defended the nest and eggs.
It is highlights at Fraser Point. Go and have a look. Take a tissue – so many images of little eaglets that we loved so much.
Calico loves Junior the Squirrel:
Calico is finalising her favourite books. It is a bit of a laugh because she has slipped in a few from earlier—her all-time favourites!
Calico’s Tip of the Day comes with an image from Happy Kitty FB. It is winter, and in Manitoba it has been -40 C. The temperatures are going to get warmer for a few days, but the animals that live outside are hungry. Rapid habitat loss has brought them into urban spaces looking for food in Mexico, in Canada, in various other parts of North America. Please help if you can!
Please forgive all typos. I still have my cold, but it has been an unlucky day for accidents. I slipped on the ice and injured my left wrist and then I cut the middle finger of my left hand rather deeply. Like the thumb, it is incredible how much you use that finger. My keyboarding was kind of pecking tonight…so typos and grammar – look the other way, please! I should be back to normal soon.
Thank you for being with us today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, AE, Geemeff, J, MP’ NEFL-AEF, The Guardian, SKHideaways, Sussex Wildlife Trust, Audubon Center for Birds of Prey, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Heidi Mc, Judy Harrington, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Black Bear Rescue Manitoba, Achieva Credit Union, Cal Falcons, SJ City Hall Falcons, IWS/Explore.org, Gracie Shepherd, Walmer the Rescued Squirrel, Happy Kitty FB
Our thoughts are with all the humans and non-humans living along the coast of California and Oregon where a 7.4 earthquake has hit. For my readers and their families, we are thinking of you and wish everyone to be safe.
In the movie, Seven Years in Tibet, there is a scene where they are building the movie theatre for the Dalai Lama. The Tibetans are anguished about the killing of the worms. The Dalai Lama suggests to Heinrich Harrer that he is very clever and he can find a way to construct the building without killing. He explained to the Austrian that all life is sacred and should be respected. I wish a wave would pass around the world where everyone would treat all living beings with great compassion.
It is +4 C in Winnipeg. The snow that fell is all melting. Any ice build up is also melted or melting. It is 1400 and we will have sunlight for another hour and a half. The birds are busy eating. What is worrying me for the last few days is that I have only seen one Blue Jay. Did one decide to migrate late? or did something happen? or are they just coming at different times and I think it is one but it is two? I would like to see them together.
The Girls are enjoying the warm sunshine today. Calico is on the table by my side. She loves being super warm and does not complain when I wrap her up in the duvet at night.
Some of you have asked about the fate of the Canada Goose. As I understand, all of the geese rescued from the wildlife centre are safe along with the one that we saved yesterday. They will spend their winter here in a warm environment with plenty of food and medical care if necessary.
We have cleared the way to set up the Reolink camera and found the perfect spot to install the solar panel. Then we both realised that the camera only operates at -10 C. While it is warm today, in a few days, the reading will have dropped substantially. We are going to set the camera up to see if it works and maybe keep it outside until the temperature dips to -27 C mid-week. It will be a way to test it and give us something to look forward to in the spring.
It seems that we are now in a snowfall warning for Sunday and could get up to 10-20 cm or 4-8 inches. That wasn’t on my phone! Will see if it happens. That camera might have to wait.
‘B’ sent me an article about the geneticists at Stanford solving the mystery of ‘orange’ cats. Of course, both of us wonder why Hugo Yugo is orange after reading it. I wrote my son to see if he could help us. Here is the article, any thoughts?
I wonder if Kasse is going to fledge. She really got some good lift after Wilko took his first flight. Heidi caught it in video and while most people were watching Wilko, it was Kasse that caught my attention.
Yesterday Dad brought in one fish and there were two supplementary fish. Today, Mum brought in a fish early, 0721. Wilko wanted it, but Mum prevailed. It was small and each got a meal. I hope Mum got some, too. Wilko got the tail!
This is what happened today. Mum, you are amazing! And so are you Fish Fairies.
The only surviving chick out of three at the Osprey House Environment Centre in Australia is Marina. She has caught her first fish! Marina fledged on the 29th of September.
There was another good mating at the NE Florida Bald Eagle nest. Will this be the one that gives us that first egg? We wait. https://youtu.be/CedSKh1oIZA?
Xavier and Diamond have been in and out of the scrape. My heart breaks for them.
Is it possible to get a dedicated group of BOGs to be there when the chicks fledge so that they can check all the trees and know where the fledglings are if they are injured, help can come quickly.
An announcement from Window to Wildlife regarding the Captiva Osprey Cam:
Some cute little Eurasian Hobbys to keep you entranced – it part of a series from the 2024 nesting period. https://youtu.be/TLOLFuMo-40?
No eagles but a squirrel did visit the MN-DNR Bald Eagle nest on Saturday.
Harry and Harriet are building their nest and – wait – is that snow?! It is Michigan, it is winter! https://youtu.be/pYWYnmfyiWA?
Ferris Akel tours the area around Ithaca on Saturday. He did not find Big Red and Arthur, but there was an impressive number of waterfowl on Cayuga Lake.
Calico was watching Ferris.
Coots.
American Black Ducks and several species of swans.
I like checking in with Ferris who catches the changing seasons in the Ithaca and bird arrivals and departures. I also like to check in with Bruce Yolton who chases down raptors in New York City.
Yolton captured a gorgeous Great Horned Owl in the City a couple of days ago. The GHO was interested in the rodents below on a branch. Great little video! You can find his blog at urbanhawks.com https://youtu.be/ghU7O15gOBQ?
I love Puffins. Doesn’t everyone? Can we end them starving?
“BirdLife, the RSPB, 31 NGOs and the wind sector sent letters to the Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans and asked him to be the champion for the ocean he promised to be. Can he turn the tide for starving Puffins?”
There are so many talented wildlife photographers who read my blog in the UK. Please send your photos to the RSPB – be part of their cover story!
Finally, the Grouse hunting estates in Scotland are under pressure to change their ways – and they don’t even recognise that they need to stop killing raptors illegally.
Every National Park – every area where there is a high concentration of wildlife – should be making it safer for them to cross the roads!
The Christmas Bird Counts are huge events internationally. Please check with your local birding associations and see how you can take part.
So far, it is quiet, which is a good thing in Bird World. Soon, we will have some eaglets in SW Florida, and by the end of the month, all of the eagle nests will have at least one egg (we hope). We look forward to Kasse fledging, which will happen anytime. She is ready. I was happy to see supplementary fish still being provided. Thank you, fish fairies. These fledglings use much energy and have yet to catch their food. In fact, Marina took over two months to catch her own fish after fledging at Osprey House Environmental Centre.
This afternoon Missey and Baby Hope posed for new photos.
Meanwhile, one of Dyson’s kits was outside enjoying peanuts. The three kits chased one another all over the garden. They were so happy to have a warm day and lots and lots of peanuts!
Their baskets for the winter solstice are being prepared. We have various types of prepared bird seed, hazelnuts, Butter Bark, suet balls, pieces of pear and apple to be prepared on the day. Looking for more ideas! It is our way of thanking them for being such a huge part of our lives!
Thank you so much for being with us today. Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘B, Heidi, J’, sfgate.com, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Heidi McGrue, Osprey House Environment Centre, American Eagle Nest Cam Highlights, SK Hideaways, BVS Girl, Tonya Irwin and Kisatachie National Forest Eagle Cam Fans FB, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, Window to Wildlife, Marek Palicka, MN-DNR Eagle Cam, Wings of Whimsy, Ferris Akel Tours, Bruce Yolton, The Guardian, Birdlife International. RSPB England, Raptor Persecution UK, Parks Canada, Missey and Baby Hope
The two doe and fawns did not return to the park. City workers have been digging up the street for the past two days. That said, we believe that the four have safely found their way to the river and, we hope, are back in a larger park area away from traffic.
I could easily be fooled into thinking this is Calico. It is Baby Hope. Every day she looks more and more like her Mum. She will be 17 months old on 2 December.
She was looking out the window at the birds. There is an increasing number of European Starlings with two crows, two Blue Jays, five grey squirrels, two red squirrels, and about 100 sparrows. The winter weather and cold have made everyone hungry.
One of the most remarkable transformations within the house and among The Girls. Baby Hope has taken up with Missey. Hope rubs her head lovingly against Missey’s just like she used to do with Calico. It happened slowly, Calico distancing herself from her daughter. So, as you can imagine, I am delighted. Missey is the perfect Mum – she continues to care for Hugo Yugo and there is no reason to believe that she will not continue to bond with Hope.
The two Crows are now coming every day for peanuts. One is quite large and the other is the smaller from the summer. A bonded pair. The fledglings have not been seen since the end of the summer/beginning of the fall. After they finished the peanuts (shared with the others), they ate a nice big pizza!
It is wonderful to see them come to the garden every morning. It is not that long until spring! Yes, I keep telling myself that very thing as more snow falls.
There is little happening in Bird World. We are waiting for Wilko and Kasse to be ringed, and I would like to have a more positive sighting of Yira. There are many more Bald Eagle nests to lay eggs in the coming weeks.
Gabby and Beau continue to work on their nest. When will we have their first egg.
Cali Condor wonders if the sub-adult visiting Big Bear might be Spirit. How wonderful if it were! https://youtu.be/wehjVdpEF_Q?
At the Coobowie Osprey nest, Libby has fledged. This is the nest in South Australia that initially had four chicks. Libby is the oldest.
Mum, Wilko, and Kasse are waiting for their breakfast.
Yesterday, Kasse, Wilko, Mum and Dad had six supplementary fish.
Today it is so windy that neither Dad or Mum will surely be able to catch fish. Fish Fairy!!!!!!!!! We need you.
I really hope that Wilko doesn’t decide to stand up and start flapping his wings. He could wind up in Melbourne with these high gusts!
Incubation continues for M15 and F23.
We know that M15 is one of the most capable male Bald Eagles around. We watched him raise his two eaglets alone after Harriet disappeared. Now he would like a little more incubation time! https://youtu.be/D5tdZyavHcw?
The Hilton Head Land Trust caught a Bald Eagle on the nest that the GHOs hope will be theirs. https://youtu.be/DqylzZ66z98?
Calico’s Tip of the Day: Mark the date. December 3rd is Giving Tuesday. Many wildlife groups rely on donations and Giving Tuesday is often coupled with a doubling of your donation by other donors. If you can, could you help? With the cost of living escalating, so many cannot so every dollar helps. Small or large, no one cares. It all adds up!
Thank you for being with us today. Please take care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘J’, NEFL-AEF, Cali Condor, Friends of Osprey Sth Aus, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Bart M and PLO Obs Board, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Androcat, Hilton Head Land Trust, SK Hideaways, LDF, Hob Osterlund, Backyard Birds of North America, Gardenista, Eagle Country and nature chatter, Owl Cam
It snowed on and off all day. This morning there were five grey squirrels at the feeders – five in sight, altogether. Dyson, the three kits, and another one. Is it Dyson’s mate?
A cutie.
Then these four. Each appears to be healthy. They have their heavy winter coats and are so beautiful against the snow.
Starlings came. So did the Blue Jays, Crows, and Sparrows. Everyone was hungry. They are working away at the suet cylinder. Calico and I hope to get into the kitchen and make some suet cookies to hang throughout the lilacs. Where does the time go? How did I ever teach, assist in running a school of art, and take care of a home?
Oh, it is always so lovely to see them. However, Brock (aka The Boyfriend) did not come at his usual time. It worried me. Several hours later, Calico came in and kept patting me and meowing. Brock was here! Communication. Brock prefers wet food, but it freezes, and it is so hard to watch for him when we have busy days. This was amazing.
A shout out to ‘H’ and ‘J’ for some news you will all want to hear.
Sadly, I have added Bald Eagle Abby and mate of Blaze at Eagle Country to our Memorial Wall. She has been MIA long enough for Eagle Country to declare her deceased. A new female is now at the nest with Blaze.
This is the new female Skye.
Link to all of the Eagle Country cams – and they have a lot of them on this nest!
Mark your calendars. ‘H’ informs me: “Banding for Wilko and Kasse at PLO: Weather permitting, Saturday 11/30. Alternate dates 12/1 or 12/2.” It makes me sad. They will soon fledge after this and I find myself hoping that they are male so they hang around, but we need some females down there for Ervie!!!!!!! I sure hope Wilko doesn’t fledge or the ringing will be canceled.
SK Hideaways has posted a video showing what appears to be one of the adults in flight traning with another bird. Is this training with Yira? or is this Diamond and Xavier flying together? passing prey? I want to believe it is Yira.
Oh, it is a bright morning at Port Lincoln. We have lots of wingers going on! Everyone is anticipating the arrival of the morning fish.
The Fish Fairy arrived at mid-morning much to the delight of Mum, Wilko, and Kasse. Just look at all the nice fish! They were hungry. This is so good.
They will sure make quick work of those fish! Seven were delivered. Wilko was unafraid!
Dad came and took one of the fish for himself leaving Mum and the kids six. Wilko is trying to unzip one.
Look at the time. Almost all of the fish are gone.
Wind and rain came later to Port Lincoln.
‘A’ writes: “I see on the Port Lincoln chat that you have nominated Kasse as female and Wilko as male, and based on relative size and their behaviours, I absolutely agree with you. I initially thought they might both be male, because they got along so well, but at this stage, Kasse is absolutely huge, so large that she really must be a female. Wilko is a cute and brave little man. How much did he make you laugh today, standing up to defend the nest against the potentially dangerous Hat? And as for Kasse, she pancaked beautifully at the approach of the Fish Fairy’s vessel and stayed flat to the nest, her eyes wide in amazement as the Hat deposited a veritable fish-shop display window onto the nest right in front of her. In fact, she remained pancaked for about five minutes, until Mum literally landed on her head! I also admit to laughing uncontrollably at the sight of Kasse literally being stood on her head overbalancing while grabbing a bite just after 10:25. TOO funny. She did eventually manage to regain her footing but it took her quite a while.
These two are adorable. Kasse has absolutely no fear of her older sibling, and I do think their behaviour definitely supports your opinion. The older they have got, the more obvious those genders have been, with lots of small interactions suggesting that Wilko is indeed the older brother, with Kasse the younger sister. I always think that for stress-free viewing, this is by far the best option (apart from two males on the nest). If we are going to have a behaviourally dominant female on a nest, it is best that she be the youngest, as it gives her a bit of spunk to survive being bottom of the pecking order and means her older sibling is not too aggressive. That of course is what has happened here in my opinion. But they are both gorgeous, very healthy and have a magnificent mum. I could not agree more with your assessment of this osprey mum. She has been incredible this season, including taking over fishing duties whenever it has been necessary. Just a really special bird. “
Gabby and Beau are diligently working on their nest in NE Florida. They seem to do this early in the morning when it is cooler.
A gorgeous day at the Captiva Bald Eagle cam.
‘J’ copied Rita’s History Monday for us: “It’s time for Rita’s History Monday! Now that Rita’s offspring, #98, was off on her eagle adventure, attention once again focused on the fallen nest. Year after year it fell apart, and as Lloyd Brown of Wildlife Rescue and Ron Magill of Zoo Miami examined the condition of what little was left, they felt that it would be in the best interest of the eagles to install a more secure platform in a more stable spot in the tree. It is said that Bald Eagles mate for life, and they also have nest fidelity, so they return to the same nest tree each year. The remnants of the old nest were 95 feet high, up in a spindly part of a Casaurina (Australian) Pine. There was concern that if the eagles returned and tried to rebuild in that unstable spot, the nest would likely fail again. With approval from US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), they researched the best type of platform that could be used in that type of tree. So, in preparation for Season 2022, a new nest platform was installed! The platform is made of a 5 foot wide wooden papasan chair that was lined with plastic mesh to provide drainage and airflow. This type of nest has been successfully used for other Bald Eagle nest platforms. They carefully secured it in the tree and partially filled it with small sticks and pine needles to make it more inviting. We waited and hoped that the eagles would return. But, that’s not all folks! The community was also in for a great surprise! Stay tuned for more exciting news and thank you for liking and sharing the history of Rita.”
Xavier is arriving with cicadas. Does anyone remember Izzi eating all those cicadas like they were ice lollies? Oh, how I miss that lovely boy. https://youtu.be/ayiv0X4Z9Sg?
The Peregrines Zen and Zara – SK Hideways shows us their ‘need for speed when a Merlin is concerned! https://youtu.be/-wfh2voivv0?
The Girls and I have been reading books. We have a small stack to get through but we have finished reading Serviceberries. I will talk about that on Thanksgiving Day. The book that Calico really wants me to mention is certainly an exceptional book for young people, but Heidi is going to tell me it is equally terrific for adults, and she would be right. The book is An Anthology of Exquisite Birds by Ben Hoare. This weighty volume has been reviewed, and its gorgeous drawings have received critical acclaim. It is full of fun facts and information in a way that it is different from your normal field guide. It keeps you engaged. I wanted to know more about these exotic birds – well, at least exotic to me! One of my favourite illustrations was the Superb Fairywren.
There are 224 pages, including an entry on my beloved House Sparrows. They noted that thousands of years ago, ‘house sparrows lived only in Europe and Western Asia.’ (189). Today, they are located on every continent except Antarctica. Many loathe having them at their feeders along with European Starlings, and yet, for the decades that birds have been coming to the garden, I cannot honestly cite either one as bullies. Everyone seems to have a turn. One day, after observing the Starlings for several hours, they actually ‘lined up’ to get to the feeder, flying from the neighbour’s tall tree to those at the back of the garden. Then, a few would fly to Abigail’s tree, waiting their turn in line for the big tray feeder. It looked exceptionally well organized. For the life of me, I simply cannot abide by those that go to the end of the earth to find ways to stop these two species from getting seed at their feeders. If a human or non human is hungry, then why not feed it? Does it really matter what feather pattern the birds have? At some time in the future, perhaps sooner than they might realize, the sparrow’s song might be the only one in the garden. At the same time, their numbers are declining. Research indicates that sparrow numbers are declining worldwide. The North American Breeding Bird Survey estimates that the total numbers of sparrows declined by 80% between 1966 and 2019. In Europe, numbers are down by approximately 60%.
This is the list of birds included in this beautiful encyclopedia of sorts that also includes information on feathers, nests, beaks, etc.
I didn’t ask permission to post these page images, but I hope the publisher will realize that Calico’s Ten Golden Paw Award is, precisely, a golden recommendation! If you have someone struggling to find a birthday gift or a holiday present, this could solve your struggles. It is $21.40 US from the online retailers. It’s a perfect price point, too. It is an excellent book to hold and read. Good paper, gold tipped pages matching the amazing cover, below.
Be careful for the deer. The four deer were running around trying to find food this morning. We had a huge box of apples, carrots, cabbage, etc and could not find them despite the fact they had been near to our house 45 minutes prior. Tomorrow we will leave the food at the park. There were City workers doing something to the road next to where they stay so no one saw them there.
You can see the snow that fell on our garden by looking at the top of the table. The tracks belong to Brock who has chosen to come and go to a place where he feels safe. Oh, maybe one day he will trust us enough to just step inside. For now, we hope he is warm. It is -5 C and feels like -10.
Thank you for being with us today. Take care everyone. We hope to see you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, H, J’, Eagle Country, MN-DNR, SK Hideaways, Port Lincoln Ospreys, NEFL-AEF, Window to Wildlife, Rita the Eagle FB, Nesting Birdlife and More, SK Hideaways, An Anthology of Exquisite Birds by Ben Hoare, The Guardian, The Cornell Bird Lab, Ventana Wildlife Society, John Debacker, USFWS
The following information has been provided by my friend, Holly Parsons, who has been following Cilla Kinross’s comments in the chat The latest news on Garrama is that he has been taken into care. Holly wrote me earlier that Cilla Kinross had located Garrama and was able to hold him and remove the sheaths from his tail feathers. As we know, if you can hold a raptor without them tearing off your arm, they are not well. Kinross contacted WIRES for advice.
I am over the moon. Garrama fledged early and the weather almost immediately turned to rain with possible thunderstorms. I cannot tell you how my heart sank in those circumstances. In the past, similar combinations have resulted in the death of the fledgling. So now Garrama will have a chance!
It was a drizzly Wednesday morning on the Canadian Prairies. The bare trees, grey sky, and snow north of us were enough to send us walking in the Chickadee forest while we could.
I just love these little songbirds. They are so precious. It is hard to imagine that stay in Manitoba even in the coldest of winters.
I am so glad that we did that!
Around 1800, I accidentally tipped over a pot of boiling water on my right hand and part of my right arm. Calico will provide you with tips on what to do if this happens to you, but for now, I’m keeping this post brief. I’ll be taking a day off to allow my injuries to heal.
In Bird World:
Good news coming from Montana. Thank you, Dr Greene!
Dad came in with a small partial fish (an appetizer for the two kiddos and Mum) at around 0629 at Port Lincoln. The local herons had been fishing off the barge and walking around with their catch. I wish they had given it to Wilko and Kasse. Maybe the Fish Fairies will come today.
Wilko did some hovers. Everyone is guessing their genders. What do you think? I am going to vote for Wilko as a male and Kasse as a female.
It is now past 1300 and no other delivery but that tiny partial fish. I hope the fairies come or one of the adults gets a big fish on the nest to these cuties.
Would you like to guess the gender of Wilko and Kasse? If you want to, then you must put your guess in the chat in this format: Gender guess: Wilko XXXX, Kasse XXXX.
Yira is 41 days old and would benefit from a few more days in the scrape. Seriously, the longer they stay at home the more success they have in the wild. They are just that bigger – and hopefully full when they fly in case they don’t get fed right away.
Yira had a prey delivery and Garrama has been seen and the staff member at Orange said they were doing well. That is excellent news.
The oldest from Orange:
There is only one eyas left on the ledge at Melbourne. One flew, the other fludged, and is believed to have righted itself. Images of remaining falcon and video of the fledge! https://youtu.be/MoyS1jlbgd8?
A note from Victor Hurley:
I asked AI to provide me with information on the survival rate of fledgling falcons in urban areas. This is what AI generated:
“Peregrine falcons can survive well in cities, and some say New York City has the largest urban population of the species. Here are some factors that help peregrine falcons survive in cities:
Nesting: Peregrines nest on ledges of tall buildings, such as church towers. These ledges are similar to the cliff faces and rock outcrops that peregrines would naturally use for nesting.
Food: Peregrines feed on the large populations of pigeons and starlings in cities.They dive and catch their prey in mid-air.
Fewer predators: Peregrines have few predators in urban areas. In remote areas, great horned owls, martins, and some snakes prey on young falcons.
Nest boxes: Nest boxes can help reduce weather-related mortality.
Rescue: Rescuing grounded fledglings can increase survival.
Some other things to know about peregrine falcons include:
Peregrines are known for their fast flying, diving at speeds of over 200 mph.
The most common cause of death for peregrines is exposure to wet and/or cold weather when they are very young.
Collisions with human structures and vehicles are another common cause of death for peregrines in human environments. “
Post-fledge survival and dispersal of peregrine falcon chicks – some information you might find interesting despite it coming from a different region.
It is more detailed, more scientific, but some of you will appreciate this article on how falcons choose breeding spots with the question of urban versus rural.
There has been no word on the state of WBSE 33 who is in care.
Do you live in Northumberland?
It made my heart skip a beat and put a big smile on my face! Big Red was spotted. Her and Arthur should be checking the nest soon if they already haven’t.
Calico’s Tip. If you spill boiling water anywhere on you, the first thing you need to do is to begin running cold water over the burned area. Leave the water running for 20 minutes or until the ‘burn feeling’ has gone away. Then get plastic wrap (Glad Wrap, Cling Film, etc) and wrap the burned area. This is to stop any infection. If you have any blisters, do not pop them. Take something for pain. If you are concerned, seek medical attention particularly if you have blisters. Blisters means that the burn has gone deeper.
Thank you for being with us. Please take care. I will see you on Sunday morning!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘EJ’, Holly Parsons, Montana Osprey Cam, Port Lincoln Osprey Cam, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, SK Hideaways, Victoria Hurley, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, Holly Parsons, AI, Digital Commons, Journal of Urban Ecology, RSPB Birders, Cornell Hawk Chatters, The Dodo
Thank you for your good wishes for Hugo Yugo. As I write this, she is pretty sick. She ate a little food on Saturday night and drank water on Sunday morning. She was able to keep it down. I am preparing to feed her with a syringe with ground-up kibble mixed with kitten milk to keep her going until she can see the vet on Wednesday. I will feed her every 1.5 hours. It is now late Sunday evening. Hugo Yugo had another feeding and instead of going straight to hide in my room on my pillow, she plunked herself down on the foot stool to watch her sisters. It feels like an improvement. And yes, we fed her with a syringe until nearly midnight when she ate on her own. Tears.
She is now cuddled with her Missey. This is fantastic.
I am really, really tired of hearing about our wildlife being killed unnecessarily. It has been a week that just keeps on giving!
New research shows that skyscrapers are killing millions of birds annually during migration. It doesn’t have to happen. What is wrong with people?
It just seems there have been so many deaths associated with humans where I live lately. There were the eight bald eagles in the field (COD pending), then the two local foxes whose den was destroyed at the site of new condos – the one being hit by a car on a busy street last night and the other on a busy bridge. My fear is that they were targeted – the driver of the vehicle either baiting them or driving around til they saw them out and speeding up. I am worried about Dyson and her kids who now run across a street that has nothing to slow down the would be Formula 3 drivers since their trees were cut down. We went to get Hugo Yugo more kitten milk and noticed the large tree at the intersection where the Blue Jays nest has a vast orange circle on it this morning, indicating it is now destined to be cut down. When they are finished, we will not have a tree anywhere in sight higher than a meter. Our street was fully canopied two years ago after the leaves came out. It was gorgeous. Looks like the barren moonscape now. The trees the City planted will take 25 years even to become a size for animals to use. The ones being cut down were planted in 1902. If I could scoop up all the garden animals and The Boyfriend and move them, I would leave.
Oh, enough of my rant. The animals are so used to me that I can now sit on the upper deck and photograph them while they forage.
Just look at Dyson. She is not young. She is a real Senior citizen in the squirrel community, but, more important, she is the matriarch.
It is not a great image, but look at that strong back leg of Dyson’s as she gets ready to jump down with her precious peanut.
One of Dyson’s three kits. Isn’t it cute?
And another kit. The three of them were running around the garden with their Mum. They don’t mind me at all. I feel so privileged – and, of course, these are the reasons that I could never leave here – just vacation elsewhere. There is no natural food or not much for them anymore. The Squirrels used to eat the ‘helicopters’ (the seeds) of the Maple Trees but there are no more Maples and no one had the foresight to plant Oak trees!!!!!!!!!!! So no acorns. I did catch Little Red at the very top of the crab apple tree getting the little apples, though. That is not enough to sustain even him, however.
This is how it starts out in the morning. Today, I discovered that the Blue Jays get busy pecking the peanuts and shooting the ones they don’t like off the feeding tray! Dyson & Co thank them for sure. Junior is also stuffing peanuts down its throat like Mr Crow – like a pouch as in pelican. :))
Both Crows visited today.
Oh, the joy they bring! Just look at that face on the Crow above. I cannot imagine anyone harming them.
Isn’t this a gorgeous image? Don Dennis photographed this Bald Eagle couple on Russell Lake, Nova Scotia on Saturday, 9 November 2024. Many more will be coming to our prey-rich Atlantic province for the winter! Don is an excellent photographer. It looks like these two were deep in conversation. I love the evergreens and then that touch of autumn foliage.
At Port Lincoln, breakfast came early. Kasse ate last, but the milestone reached was by Wilko who stood up to eat! He is becoming a ‘big boy’.
Wilko stands up tall part way through the feeding to eat! Way to go, Wilko.
Now it is Kasse’s turn for some fish!
At Collins Street, the parents want the triplets to fledge. They deliver prey and take it away flying by to tease them to use those wings and chase them! It is all coming far too soon for Melbourne and Orange. https://youtu.be/l-xDYFIszYQ?
Diamond and Xavier are not withholding prey!
No news really for the fledgling WBSE. It kind of worries me. The one was in the bushes the other day. Will someone check? I wonder. One had their wing caught eons ago in branches down low and couldn’t get away.
At Hilton Head Bald Eagle nest, we have a takeover (or potential take over bid) by the GHOs. The nest was battered by Hurricane Milton. Wonder where the eagles will nest? https://youtu.be/5WqBTRFWqZ4?
Meanwhile at NE Florida, Gabby and Beau worked tirelessly on Sunday getting that nest ready for those precious eggs (fingers crossed).
It rained in Iowa. I did not see any eagles working on the nest at Decorah North. Rain started later in the afternoon.
Eagles were present at Denton Homes.
Beautiful sunset over the Captiva Bald Eagle nest of Connie and Clive.
I hope they don’t mind. Karl II was the most amazing Black Stork father and he deserves to always be remembered on ‘Father’s Day in Estonia’ and every where around the world where he was loved.
The latest from Sharon Dunne on the Royal Albatross chicks and their flight to the waters off Chile.
Rita the Eagle Monday Facts.
Live in Vancouver? There is a fundraiser for The Nest Companion Bird Car & Rehabilitation Society.
There are still hundreds if not thousands of Canada Geese in Winnipeg who have not migrated. In SW Manitoba, the Sandhill Cranes are still flying south. It is the middle of November!
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, comments, images, posts, videos, and streaming cams: ‘A, Connie and Don Dennis,H, J’, Heidi McGrue, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, SK Hideaways, Judy Harrington, Hilton Head Land Trust, NEFL-AEF, Raptor Resource Project/explore.org, Denton Homes, Window to Wildlife, Heidi McGrue, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Cali Condor, ETSU-Bluff City, ETSU-Johnson City, Raptor Persecution UK, Madli Allsoo, Sharon Dunne, Rita the Eagle, The Nest Companion Bird Care & Rehabilitation Society
Bald Eagles are still abundant in Manitoba. The climate creates good conditions for prey as their territories move northward, so many will winter here. But what I woke up to on Saturday could have been better, much better.
I want to thank Ruth Hiebert for allowing images and a narrative of the horror she found in a field in southern Manitoba. She immediately contacted the Conservation Officer. She checked on Saturday, and the eagle carcasses were removed. She hopes to discover what happened to them, and I will pass on any news.
I am going to speculate, and yes, an egg could come on my face, but I haven’t seen eagles die of Avian Flu at the same time in the same place as this. I haven’t seen it with poisoning, either. Perhaps you have. I have, however, seen it when shooting is the issue. If that is the case, we should know soon. If it isn’t, it will be a while. So many dead in the same place is beyond sad.
That was the first news that I woke up to on Saturday morning. The only way to shake off something like that is to go out in nature, to feel the wind and the warmth of the sun, to hear the song of the birds, and that is precisely what we did. We walked the entire 4km trail and more with no less than a hundred Black-capped Chickadees taking seed from our hands! What a day. Little wind. Nice sky. 15 C – the middle of November. Everyone on the trails, most walking their dogs, was joyful to the extreme because of the weather.
The Chickadees were caching some of their Black Oil Seed in the crevices of the trees like this one.
The White-breasted Nuthatch would not take seed from our hand, but wanted it on the path.
At home, there was also a celebration. For the first time in a long, long time, I saw Dyson and her three kits in the garden together. They are all alive. In an urban environment, with their trees cut down, they have to run across busy streets; this is amazing. Tears. Tears and more tears. Dyson is the equivalent of a Senior Citizen in the Squirrel World. She has survived being poisoned, run over, or trapped and removed from the area. We are so pleased to see her and the three kids. Photos on Monday!
A remarks: “Fledge watch formally begins on 12 November at Orange, I believe, which is Tuesday. I think they are a little further behind the Collins Street three than that but time will tell. Garrama is having difficulty getting fed now that he has to fight his giant sister for every mouthful, usually without parental intervention. Xavier is so much smaller than Yira that he doesn’t dare interfere once she has claimed a piece of prey, while Diamond does sometimes assert maternal authority and feed the chicks herself, under which conditions Garrama gets at least some food. Otherwise, he is reduced to finding leftover scraps around the scrape, and I suspect he will be somewhat relieved when Yira fledges and he gets the food to himself for a few days before it’s his turn to take the plunge. “
No fish yet at Port Lincoln. Mum, Wilko, and Kasse are waiting to see if Dad returns with a good breakfast. Otherwise, I bet those fairies are waiting in the wings to help.
Dad came through with a partial ‘flat’? fish at 10:34. Notice how big Kasse is – larger than Wilko!
Kasse still has the white stripe on the back.
Big stretch as Mum toe dances and calls as Dad is arriving with the fish.
‘A’ gives us the day’s run down at PLO: “At Port Lincoln, our osplets are SO cute and they’ve had a pretty good day. Breakfast was a large whole fish that arrived courtesy of Dad at 10:34. At 13:55, he brought in a small tidbit in the form of a fish tail. At this point, Mum decided to get involved and brought in an extra-large whole fish at 14:49. Impressive work, Mum! The resulting feeding lasted for NEARLY AN HOUR. Both osplets got plenty to eat today, and there is still plenty of time for another fish to be brought in before dark (it’s only just after 4pm at Port Lincoln right now). “
There are still three eyases on the ledge at 367 Collins Street in the Central Business District of Melbourne as of 1017 Sunday morning.
Latest sea eagle report:
‘
There are no other nests with eggs at the time of writing that I am aware.
Beau and Gabby were at the nest. Female eagles have three periods where they are fertile and will want to mate. Of course, Eagles bond at other times, but Saturday, Gabby was not in the mood. Sorry Beau!
That precious egg of M15 and F23’s is never left for very long without someone around.
Gracie Shepherd got the shift change! Watching the care and attention these eagles give to their first egg of the season is hugely moving. I cannot comprehend why anyone would ever wish to harm one of their species. They are parents who care and who are concerned for their young just like us.
Connick leaves the Audubon Centre for Birds of Prey and heads north to the Smithsonian. Connie and Clive’s little one, who fell from the nest and had feather development issues, will live an excellent life without the fear of being shot or poisoned. Let’s hope he can educate people to care for wildlife including these majestic birds.
Take a look at this!
More sadness near the grouse hunting estates in Perthshire, Scotland.
Now a smile. This Sharp-shinned Grouse has all the right moves, ladies.
Lady Hawk posted information about Lucina, the female at the Wild Bucovina Golden Eagle nest in Romania. Lady Hawk’s take from the information that is current is that Lucina died of either lead or rodenticide poisoning. The font is small so please refer to Lady Hawk’s FB page.
Audubon Florida’s Eagle Watch report looks at the challenges, some new, and the successes of the 2023-24 season. Those challenges include nest removal!
Last, a learning experience from the Toronto Field Naturalists on hawk migration and raptors. https://youtu.be/hrQk8Dg1Ebo?
Thank you so much for being with us today. Take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, images, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, J, Ruth Hiebert’, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Port Lincoln Ospreys, NEFL-AEF, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Gracie Shepherd and SW Florida Eagle Cam, Window to Wildlife, Deb Stecyk, Audubon Centre for Birds of Prey, USFWS Columbia Pacific Northwest, USFWS, Lady Hawk FB, Audubon Florida, The Guardian, Toronto Field Naturalists.
Monday was a rainy grey day on the Canadian Prairies, but the weather wasn’t what weighed on my mind. While driving past what was once a vibrant golf course, I reflected on how the University of Manitoba is transforming it into a site for student and faculty housing, along with a grocery store. Although this project aimed to enhance campus life, it comes at a significant cost to our local wildlife. Once again, we are witnessing a concerning loss of habitat. Our city is rapidly becoming a place devoid of the natural spaces that our feathered friends depend on. Without grass for the Canada Geese to forage, trees for nesting, and adequate food sources, we risk the disappearance of these beautiful creatures. While there are a few ponds near housing developments, they lack the connectivity necessary to foster a thriving ecosystem. We must reconsider our development priorities to ensure that we do not sacrifice our local wildlife in pursuit of urban expansion.
Nearer to home, ‘The Boyfriend’ finally relaxed and ate his food out of a dish right outside the garden door! Yahoo.
Calico looked on and wasn’t so happy. “How come he gets more cat food than we do?” was what all the squawking was about.
Baby Hope was not bothered about our visitor this morning. Odd. I hope she isn’t feeling unwell. She is normally standing at the window watching ‘The Boyfriend.’
At the feeders, the European Starlings were eating suet as fast as they could before the rain came.
In my mailbox was a sad note from ‘J’. The beautiful female Golden Eagle from the Bucovino nest in Romania has died. Her name was Lucina and many of you will have watched her raise her annual eaglet for the past four years. Her mate was Calliman. Here is the announcement. On the Memorial Page, Lucina is #183 and 2024 is not yet over.
This is Lady Hawk’s video about the death and a warning – it shows the body of Lucina. https://youtu.be/J0eH1vIyKto?
Lucina and Calliman in February of 2024 working on their nest.
Condolences to all who loved this beautiful female who took such amazing care of her babies raising four to fledge in four years. Fly high, Lucina!
At Port Lincoln, a nice whole fish arrived on the nest. Was it Dad? or a fairy? The camera turned away right at the time of delivery. It doesn’t matter. What does is that Wilko and Kasse get the calories they need to develop properly.
Mum is such a treasure. Both are going to be full. Just look at how their tails and the beautiful juvenile plumage are growing.
Mum managed some bites of fish for herself and then the rains began. Both Wilko and Kasse tried so hard to get under Mum!
Mum wiggled and squiggled and got both her babies under her as the drops became heavier and heavier.
Dad flies in with a big crop and a partial fish for Mum and the kids.
The partial fish is completely gone in ten minutes.
With the heat heating the ledge at 367 Collins Street, F23 and the triplets take refuge in the cool shade of the North end scrape. They are quickly losing those baby feathers. My goodness. Soon these three will look like Mum and Dad.
The latest news from Sydney on the Sea Eaglets, SE33 and SE34.
‘A’ has the latest ranger report: “November 5: Both parents were seen down on the river early in the morning, and several more times. One juvenile was seen on the island at around 7:30am and it was quiet later, so may have been fed. There have still been no eagle visits back to the nest. I was watching from just before 1pm – both parents and one juvenile on the island. I saw the juvenile fly and change position and both parents took off. One returned with a fish at 13:10. It flew past the juvenile, ate some and spent some time, it seemed, trying to encourage the young one to take the fish or come closer. Finally, at 13:46, the juvenile stood beside the parent and was fed. It did not seem to try to grab the fish or feed itself. Just after 2pm, the adults flew off and the young one may have been self-feeding for a while. I did not see it perch anywhere else on the river, though it did fly about at one stage. When I left, before 3pm, both adults were out of sight. Swoopers have not bothered them much on the island today. Later in the afternoon, one adult and juvenile could still be seen on the island.”
It is precisely the same at 367 Collins Street where the chicks are similar ages. They are meeting milestones at both scrapes just as they should. Despite their determination, each Mum eventually takes the prey so that all chicks are fed. Beautiful. https://youtu.be/mNsKgks91lA?
‘A’ comments: “At Collins Street, the littles are very mobile, and currently we have two at the sheltered end, very much awake and looking mischievous, while the third sleeps in the unsheltered scrape at the other end. The three tend to sleep at the northern end but seem to like to move about between the two scrapes during the day. It is a great relief to mum and dad, who no longer have to worry about brooding or sheltering the trio. Feeding, on the other hand, is a loud and vigorous affair, the remnants of which are really starting to pile up in the gutter. I remember reading somewhere that a messy scrapeI r (full of feathers and streaked with PSs) was evidence of a healthy brood. Collins Street appears to support this view! The trio are SO adorable. Very active and exploratory. I wonder who will be first to fly onto the window ledges – the Collins Street equivalent of ‘branching’. I do so love the sound of gutter stomping in the springtime. “
At Growing Home near Sydney, Bubba is waiting for breakfast. S/he will not have to wait long.
The wind is helping move the mess of nesting material at the Achieva Osprey nest in St. Petersburg, Florida. I wish a colossal gust would just come and rip it off. We can see the large drainage holes where the chick from 2024 might have fallen to its death. (No one seems sure of the exact cause of its demise – was it a predator?). A predator baffle has been installed, but I do not believe the tree has been trimmed so raccoons can climb and jump to the nest. No organization has yet taken the holes seriously enough to want to help put stainless mesh to protect the chicks and eggs.
Ron and Rose were at the WRDC working to get their nest ready for this years breeding season that is set to begin with the first eggs begin laid in three weeks or less.
Poor E1 F3 picked a mate, E1 M2, that loves catching turtles. Tonya Irwin caught the moment that the ‘gift of turtle’ that the male had brought to Kistachie National Forest Nest E1 F3 bite and hung on to the female’s talon!!!!!!! Ouch.
‘J’ sends us news about the Kakapo and in particular, Kumi, who will be 20 years old next year. Isn’t he gorgeous? He is up for adoption as part of the fundraising efforts of the Kakapo Recovery. For details, see their website.
In Canada, many organizations are joining together to purchase land to create or expand wetland areas. One of the most active is Ducks Unlimited. Similar projects are helping internationally and this is one reason that waterfowl numbers are climbing while so many others, like Prairie Songbirds, are declining in population numbers rapidly.
We must educate our youth about the privilege of living alongside wildlife. At the same time, we need to guide them to understand the importance of protecting their habitat rather than destroying it!
Join the Ventana Wildlife Society on Wednesday for the release of the Rookies into the wild of Big Sur and Pinnacle. (Go to the website of the Ventana Wildlife Society to sign up).
Thank you so much for being with us today. Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, information, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, J’, Lady Hawk, Bucovina Golden Eagles, Port Lincoln Ospreys, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Judy Harrington and the Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, Liznm, Charles Sturt Falcon Project and Cilla Kinross, Growing Home Osprey Cam, Achieva Credit Union, WRDC Eagle Cam, Tonya Irwin, Kistachie National Forest Eagle Cam E1, Kakapo Recover, Suffolk Wilderness Trust, Friends of the SIBC, Ventana Wildlife Society.
Thank you so much for being with us. It is nearly the end of October! Tomorrow is Halloween. The following day is All Souls Day, and when I lived in England, we were preparing to celebrate Guy Fawke’s Day on the 5th of November. I have lots of beautiful memories of ‘Guys’ in wagons, bonfires, and jacket potatoes in the back garden with friends. It marked fall. The back garden of our house on Gorse Road in Grantham had fruit trees, mostly apples and plums. They were delicious and by the beginning of November all had been picked and eaten or given to friends and neighbours. The ones that had fallen were left for the hedgehogs to eat. Shallow bowls of water were always left on the back step for them, too. When we first moved to the UK, hedgehogs were the stuff of children’s stories. Our son decided to bring one inside the house. Yes, those of you who are British will know what happened next! Fleas flew everywhere. It was a solid cloud. Our dear little friend quickly found its way back to the orchard – and if memory holds, not a single other hedgehog made its way into the house.
The past several years have been really challenging. I never know if I am waking up to a toddler or a teenager. It is difficult navigating through life with a partner whose Lewy Body Dementia is getting worse. I have learned more about dementia in the last couple of years than I ever imagined. Well, to begin with, I never imagined caring for a person with dementia a decade younger than I am, but it happens more often than you might think. There are beautiful moments, and then, in a blink, his world and mine change. I have learned to grasp onto those times and hold them tight. Thank you for bearing with me through these transitions. My reports are not as long and do not include as much academic information – Bird World is relatively quiet right now (thank goodness) and my real focus is always the ospreys. Thankfully, the Northern Hemisphere’s breeding season is not here yet and will not be in full swing until the new year. In the meantime, I am so grateful for the garden animals and The Girls and for the fact that I can go for long extended walks in the parks and forests near to where I live. It all helps keep my mind in balance!
I did have a laugh. One long time reader and friend thought that Missey had done Calico in. No, Calico was not eaten by Missey! Yes, I know Missey looks huge in the images. She is large; she is a Maine Coon, but she is also mostly fur. Missey does look formidable, something out of a medieval forest lurking with magical creatures. Calico is, however, very much alive and well. Both Calico and Missey like to think that they are the boss, but the real boss of the house is Hugo Yugo. She is the tiniest, bossiest little ginger female I have ever met. She will rush to finish her food dish and then leap off the counter and run to push Calico away from her dish so she can eat it. That single fact has helped Calico lose all that weight. Just look at how trim she is. The vet will be pleased when she sees her in November for her annual check up. When we brought Calico in from the cold outdoors, we did not know when she was born. The vet guessed how old she was and based on that we picked November 2 for her birthday. This, of course, means that we will be having another one of those wild parties on Saturday.
Sadly, as The Girls have now all passed the year mark, they do not run and play at night like they used to. I surely miss that!
The real boss of the house! And if you are wondering, Hugo Yugo did run and jump on Calico to get that spot in the purple chair.
I have said it once and I will say it a million times, Baby Hope is nothing short of the sweetest thing around. Look at her staring at Hugo Yugo as HY is getting ready to leap to the top of the cat tree.
Calico and Baby Hope never cause an instant of trouble. It is always Hugo Yugo and Missey. If things are falling down in the middle of the night, you can count on it being those two.
Two Crows were at the big tray feeder. I counted. This one carefully took six peanuts including this one, the seventh, in his beak. Incredible. The Crows are ‘off’ the cheesy dogs. I also find that very interesting. They started wanting only peanuts in early September. We start out with huge piles on the tray feeders – big and small – and scattered on the deck for the squirrels. They will be gone within an hour! I am not kidding you.
Junior and the Mrs were also after those peanuts. Just look at that pile of peanuts on both those feeders. These Corvids are busy! They are in competition with three grey squirrels and two red ones.
Just a quick note. Yesterday I included the day’s sightings at some of the Bald Eagle nests. I did not mean to imply that eagles had not visited ETSU-Johnson City. I had just not seen them yesterday. Boone and Jolene have been regularly visiting the nest and refurbishing it!
Wildlife groups and rehabilitation clinics continue to plead with people not to use the fake spider webs. Here is another one:
What is going on in Bird World? Well, the focus is on the Sea Eaglets at the Olympic Park in Sydney. And the questions that are on everyone’s mind are these: Are the eaglets eating (either being fed or getting their own prey? OR Will they wind up grounded near the Discovery Centre and wind up in care – which if they are not so emaciated, would not be so bad. As far as I can tell the only bad scenario is that these fledglings are not seen fed and are not grounded by the Discovery Centre so they can be rescued. So fingers crossed. I will post all the news that I can find.
“October 29: Eagles were seen on the river around 7:30 –then shortly after on the mangroves – one with a fish. While doing surveys in the wetlands nearby between 7am and 8:30, there was no sign of either eaglet. Around 8:15, an eaglet was seen flying across the Armory grassland, being chased by the usual swoopers. It was seen on top of one of the old Navy-era mounds, then flew off again. One eaglet was reported by a member of the public along one of the pathways, but was gone when we investigated. We think this is SE34 and it is flying strongly and moving about. There were more sightings during the day, and one of the eaglets was seen from the ferry, flying along the river. Early evening, Dad was seen with a bird, taking it to River Roost. Neither eagle returned to the nest today. At dusk, the adults were at River Roost. The picture is from a sighting yesterday.”
‘A’ remarks: “I can hear those damned currawongs from the open WBSE tab, which I check regularly in the hope that one time, I will see an eaglet back on the nest, eating some fish. But all I hear are currawongs. It’s worrying, and oh so sad. I really thought this year might be different, due to the lengthier time the youngsters spent dealing with the swoopers while still having the nest as their ‘safe spot’. But it seems not. And what is really worrying to me is that it seems to be the parents who are letting the eaglets down. I was hoping that, like last season, the parents would help the eaglets by feeding them and showing them where the fish were. Watching their parents hunt would surely have helped immensely. But apparently this is not happening. “
In the Central Business District of Melbourne, there is a peregrine falcon scrape. Everyone held their breath as one of the chicks got a little too close to the ledge. https://youtu.be/0nKnS5II4rU?
They are getting their juvenile feathers as you can see clearly in the images below. They will be walking soon, tall and strong. They are learning to pluck by watching the parents who are bringing the prey to the nest and plucking it before them.
‘A’ remarks: “At Collins Street, the littles are self-feeding, and at least from dad’s point of view, it may well have reached the dump and depart phase. He brought some prey early, about 06:12, but one of the humongous fluffballs grabbed it from him and dad considered, then thought better of trying to retrieve it. The triumphant chick took its prize down into the gutter to eat it in peace, so dad retrieved what looked like a very long leg (or perhaps a piece of wing) from the scrape and began feeding it to one of the others.
The third chick sat motionless, intently watching the scene unfold, from the back corner of the scrape. Eventually, it moved forward and into the feeding line. When dad responded by offering it food, it stole the entire piece and took it back into its corner of the scrape, where it proceeded to self-feed. Dad continued feeding what was left of his leftovers to the remaining chick.
So in the end, everyone ate breakfast, but it was hardly the most organised or coordinated of feedings. Everyone ate in their own place and in their own time. Dad just went with the flow, handling the situation with aplomb. These three are already a massive handful for their parents, especially poor little dad, who is dwarfed by his offspring. This family is just TOO funny. “
These kids at Collins Street are so precocious. They are developing right where they should and one decided to take the prey from Dad and high tail it to the other end of the ledge!
Oops. Dad arrived Wednesday morning on the ledge and those triplets let him know that he can only come with his talons full! https://youtu.be/ej47XnKN9JE?
At Port Lincoln, Wilko eats first but Kasse wants some fish and gets some! He scoots up and Mum notices. ‘A’ comments: “At Port Lincoln, there was a bit of bonking at 06:32, but dad brought in a small whole fish at 06:41 and everyone was happy. Kasse is up off hisd tarsi and onto his feet today. He seems to have a fascination with feet that reminds me of a sweet girl called Lindsay. She too had to be reminded that other people’s toes were not toys. But Kasse is playing with Wilco’s toes and with mum’s. Just adorable. “
Diamond feeds Yira and Garramma their second breakfast. Xavier had a good go for a few minutes!
Black Stork Migration. Here is the Bird Map chart for the 30th of October. Waba still appears to be in the very south of Egypt at his last transmission.
Despite the fact that ospreys are what make me wake up in the morning, I love all birds and there are some that pull at my heart strings more than others. Jackie and Shadow are one of those couples. Jackie was at the nest looking at it and out over the territory while Shadow was finding the best sticks for cot rails. This couple lives in hope – the eternal hope that maybe this year they will be able to raise another eaglet together.
Polar Bears. The Canadian province where I live is often called the world’s Polar Bear capital. At our local zoo, three live in a large open space with pools and dens built a few years ago. In the north, in Churchill, the bears are hungry. If they come into the town three times, they are shot. Not tranquilized, but killed. They are hungry. The sea ice has retreated, and there are fewer seals they rely on for food. It is hot in Churchill and parts of the Arctic. It is unclear when the entire ecosystem that supports them will collapse, but there is evidence to show that it is beginning to happen sooner than expected. So what about captivity, like our zoo? What are the pros? And cons?
This is a good read. It asks a lot of important questions.
What a great post from Connie Dennis in Nova Scotia. How often do we hear people say or read that our dear feathered friends, mammals, and fish do not have feelings? They are sentient beings; their behaviour towards these beautiful creatures will surely change once people recognize this. For a good read on animals and birds as sentient beings look no further than Marc Bekoff, The Emotional Lives of Animals.
The trailer for the documentary on California Condors from the Ventana Wildlife Society: https://youtu.be/dgCVAA-NNig?
Geemeff sends us some really good news. Don’t we wish we could get together and buy the Chesapeake Bay and stop the fishing? They say, “One more parcel of land for nature, one less for the #IdiotsWithGuns who like to kill in the name of so-called ‘sport’.
While that is a good thought-provoking read about polar bears, we are going to close today with a good news story about a juvenile rescue. We need these good stories!
Thank you so much for being with us today. Take care everyone. Stay safe out there.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, images, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, J, SA’ Valerie Wright , Judy Harrington, Kerry Allen, Sydney Sea Eagle Cam, Deborah Victoriana, SK Hideaways, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, Falcon Cam Project, NEFL-AEF, Androcat, Charter Group Birdcams, The Guardian, Connie Dennis, Ventana Wildlife Society, Tamarack Wildlife Centre.
