Category Archives: zoo

More Osprey eggs…Sunday in Bird World

28 April 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

When I set off to check on the Stellar’s Sea Eagle at our local zoo, it was windy, and the temperature in Winnipeg was 5 degrees C. The clouds parted, and the dreary day hinted at in the early hours soon gave way to bright blue skies and sun. It was glorious. I am so grateful to be able to get out and about exploring. It is never taken for granted. Each day is a unique treasure filled with discoveries.

At the far end of the zoo in the Asian area is one very handsome Stellar’s Sea Eagle. I love standing and watching him. Today they were cleaning out a part of his huge enclosure and he was just perched paying no mind. I wonder how long this beautiful creature has lived in a cage?

You might recall that a Stellar’s Sea Eagle landed on the eastern coast of Canada in November 2021. The huge eagle eventually travelled to Maine before returning to Canada. How it got from its regular home in Russia is unknown.

Birders-scramble-for-rare-sighting-of-Stellers-sea-eagle-in-small-N.S.-community-CBC-NewsDownload

Red-tail Hawk

The male Reeve’s Pheasant has the longest feather of any bird globally at 2.4 metres. The layers and layers of curved feathers are quite amazing. I was mesmerised by the limited colour pattern and how using only black, white, and a golden orange-yellow nature created such spectacular plumage to attract a female!

A lone Grey Wolf captured a lot of attention.

I spotted a pair of Eastern Phoebes in the trees. They are classified as ‘flycatchers’ and are one of the first birds to arrive in Manitoba in the spring, normally in March. They depart in September after making their mud nests and raising their young. They incubate four to eight pure white eggs for 16 days. They normally have two broods every breeding season. They are gorgeous little birds with a grey-green-slightly brown head (like a light olive khaki colour) and back with creamy white underparts tinged with a slight yellow-green-grey. Their bill is black and distinctive.

Hugo Yugo is having a bit of a rest before getting into more mischief. She loves to carry objects in her mouth, including the tub stopper, any earrings that get left out, keys, bags of cookies, necklaces, pens and pencils, cables for computers and cameras, and earbuds. Nothing appears to be safe these days. She also likes to hide them.

Gosh, I adore this little ginger. She is such a character – there is never a dull moment and I cannot imagine, for a single second, my life without her.

You will remember agonising over whether Tuffy at Moorings Park would live or die. Today, almost fully feathered (if not completely), Tuffy is a prime example of why you never give up hope for these little ones. I think that it is also a good example of why you do not turn away. We will never appreciate the struggles that the raptors have if we do not hang in there with them through the good, the bad, and the sheer ugly.

Look at Tuffy’s eyes light up when he sees a fish dinner. What a darling.

‘H’ captured that feeding on video for us. Please have a look. You can watch this on YouTube by clicking the YT link at the bottom left.

Many do not make it. In 2023, out of 339 eggs ‘H’ and I monitored, fourteen died from siblicide. In comparison, eighteen starved to death due to circumstances not related to siblicide and 36 did not hatch.

Asha and Brodie have their third egg at Loch Garten. Proud Mum shows off those eggs!

Aran and Elen have their third egg at 0807 on the 28th – this morning – at Glaslyn. Aran was on the perch giving support.

Mrs O at Tweed Valley laid her third egg on the 27th.

Johnny and June have their second egg at Fenwick Island in Delaware at 0810 on the 28th.

The Ravens took the eggs of Milda and Hugo ending another sad year for this gorgeous Latvian female White-tail eagle. She is now free to find food and not sit incubating and starving – and allowing her health to deteriorate.

There is an egg in the nest of the Lesser Spotted Eagles, Anna and Andres. I have included the link Sassa Bird provided.

This is one of the most interesting articles about the Lesser Spotted Eagle and should alert any potential viewers to the fact that under normal conditions, if there is a second hatch, it is killed by the first even if there is plenty of food present. (I have posted it previously). It is the definition difference between siblicide – the killing of siblings when there is only food for perhaps one – and enough food but the first hatch, the dominant bird, kills the second for no apparent reason.

1-PDF-On-Cainism-in-the-Lesser-Spotted-Eagle-Aquila-pomarina-and-a-possible-Explanation-for-thDownload

E23 is still home and still learning about those annoying small birds.

Edie feeding the two osplets at Captiva. It will be easier when they are not bobbling!

The male brought in a fresh fish at the Frenchman’s Creek osprey platform. He called the female several times while one of the osplets played tug-o-war with the fish. When the female did not come, he began to feed the chick/s. This is good news! These chicks will, despite everything, probably fledge. Thank goodness.

There are three eggs at the Radford University osprey nest in Bradford, Virginia. Thanks, ‘PB’ for mentioning this nest!

This is the link to their streaming cam:

Still snowing at some of the osprey nests in Finland.

Lots of shift changes at the nest of Big Red and Arthur – with two wiggling chicks underneath!

Meal before bedtime. Arthur has the pantry nicely stocked.

There is quite a wiggly nest full at Cal Falcons and everyone is hungry!

Gosh, we have fallen in love with Archie.

‘A’ writes, “

dinner at Cal Falcons was a lengthy affair, beginning at around 17:58 and still continuing more than 25 minutes later, with mum e-chupping to encourage the chicks to open their beaks just one more time. The two youngest chicks were at the front of the pack for this feeding, and were fed first, which was great, as the youngest is often stuck at the back and can miss out altogether at some feedings. Annie is very diligent about feeding all four, though, most of the time. At this feeding, she brought in a very large piece of prepared prey (she was gone about five minutes, unusually, and of course Archie came in to keep an eye on the eyases while she was gone – he is ADORABLE). 

By 18:23, the younger ones at the front appear to have got a second wind and are again accepting bites of food. Annie is amazing. She has been feeding for 25 minutes, and remember this lot is under a week old. I cannot imagine how much work poor mum is going to be doing feeding these four over the next four weeks or so, until they begin to learn to self-feed. And so far, dad has been fantastic in terms of ensuring a pantry full of delicious well-prepared meat for the family. But of course that load is going to increase dramatically week by week, as these four grow rapidly. So both parents are really going to have their work cut out for them. I do wish them both well in this huge endeavour. Annie is not used to raising four, and we have no idea of Archie’s parental experience, if any. It will be a big task for them both. Annie is still feeding at 18:25. By 18:27, there are finally no more takers and Annie eats a bit herself before taking the carcass (not much edible remains) back to the pantry. We can hearing Archie vocalising in the background – he sounds displeased though I have no idea why (and whether that vocal is indeed one of displeasure, but it is certainly very much like the one Annie uses when she is ‘warning’ that she is not happy with or about something or someone). But surely, after that thorough a feeding, all four eyases will sleep with happy tummies tonight. “

Two little hungry osplets at Captiva.

Nesting material is finally coming in to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest. It even looked like Dad was telling Mum to incubate the egg that she kept wanting to cover up – it was the egg left out in the rain and uncovered on Friday.

‘AE’ shares news of Monty and Hartley. “From 6:05pm last night and until 6:38am today Monty was the one doing the overnight incubation duty. Hartley had visited the nest ledge. Monty never got up from the eggs so Hartley took herself over to the sunshade where she spent the entire night!”

Betsy and Frederick have three eggs. There was a wee break in the incubation to fix up some rails. Good idea!

Screen captures of Iris and Louis from Saturday. There was concern over an injury to Louis’s chest. You can see what could b e the injury on the chest close to the left wing. I realise that everyone in the world would like Iris to have a dedicated mate, but I don’t want Louis to be injured and possibly die due to an infection if that is a deep gouge with a piece of wood in it as some believe. Starr is at the baseball park, and if she doesn’t have eggs, she will soon. We know what will happen if Iris lays eggs, and that is fine – she will be free from the duties of raising chicks, which I clearly believe has lengthened her life. She eats well and cares for herself year-round. Most research indicates that female raptors lose at least 30% of their body weight, raising babies.

Swoop and the new female at Dunrovin are working on the nest. Look at that long strip of nesting material! An intruder was about and Swoop was in the nest quickly in protective mode.

There is some concern over the GH owlet at Wolf Bay. It has been slightly lethargic most of the day.

‘AE’ got a great screen capture of JBS20’s feet! She said, “Gotta love those feet! I never appreciated orange bird feet so much until I started watching bird cams. He’s waiting for breakfast to be delivered.”

Prey delivered, JBS20 eventually arrives to eat leftovers.

Swampy appears to be doing just fine since he fell from the nest to the branch and fledged and returned. Everyone keep sending him good wishes.

Have you been watching the FOLFAN eagles? Here is the latest.

All three eaglets at Little Miami Conservancy are doing fantastic. Look at the nice crop on the third hatch.

The two eaglets at the ND-LEEF nest both went to bed with full crops. I did not notice any aggression at the last feeding of the day. They both look like they are doing well.

I have written ‘R’ who is observing the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest of Talon and Stella. It looked to me that the two osplets had only one feeding on Saturday and that it was hot. Mum shaded them, but was on and off the nest. Is the Dad missing? One osplet, the third hatch, has already died of siblicide. At one time, Talon was bringing in plenty of fish. Something is amiss. Will another so-let’s life be in jeopardy? or both?

Bradley still loves eating his Puffer Fish on the natal nest!

The thawing of the permafrost is going to have a significant impact on birds and their migration. Many that travel to the UK for the winter from Scandinavia, Greenland, and Siberia, may stop migrating. What else is happening with the permafrost thaw?

Climate-change-is-impacting-bird-migration-patterns.-Heres-what-we-know-CBC-NewsDownload
The-Changing-Tundra-and-What-It-Means-for-Birds-American-Bird-ConservancyDownload
Arctic-permafrost-now-a-net-source-of-greenhouse-gases-say-scientists-BirdGuidesDownload

Another deliberate killing of a raptor – this time a Red Kite.

Red-kite-shot-dead-near-Swindon-–-Wiltshire-Police-appeal-for-information-–-Raptor-Persecution-UKDownload

Incubation continues at Great Bay Ospreys.

Your smile for the day comes from the Venice Golf and Country Club Osprey platform where the nest is full. Aren’t those three gorgeous in their juvenile plumage? The oldest is almost as big as the female.

Thank you so much for being with me today. Please take care. We want you back with us soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, observations, videos, articles, images, posts, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, AE, Geemeff, H, MP, PB’, CBC News, Moorings Park Ospreys, Heidi McGrue, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Tweed Valley Osprey Project, RSPB Loch Garten, LDF, Sassa Bird, Research Gate (B-U Meyburg), Frenchman’s Creek, Radford University Osprey Cam, Finnish Osprey Foundation, Cornell RTH Cam, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, Window to Wildlife, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, San Jose City Hall Falcon Cam, OBX Osprey Cam, Montana Osprey Project, Dunrovin Ranch, Wolf Bay, JB Sands Wetlands, Eagle Country, American Eagle Foundation, Little Miami Conservancy, ND-LEEF, UFlorida-Gainesville, Port Lincoln Ospreys, American Bird Conservancy, BirdGuides, Raptor Persecution UK, and VGCCO.

Nest Takeovers, Little Bit ND 17’s Mum missing…Sunday in Bird World

19 February 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

Gosh, it was a gorgeous day on the Canadian Prairies…it was so nice that I spent the entire day in the conservatory with the kittens watching and counting birds and watching the cams. Gabby had me fooled into thinking she was going to lay an egg today!

Cornell has posted the results so far for the Great Bird Count: “Halftime for the 4-day Great Backyard Bird Count—and the results so far are impressive. More than 200,000 bird enthusiasts have reported 6,426 species on 125,101 checklists and 103,207 sightings saved in Merlin. Bird reports are coming in from 182 countries so far.” That is very impressive.

It is difficult not to take pictures of Missy all day. She loves to pose! Lewis can’t slow down. He would rather terrorise the toys or his tail.

As spring is only a little over a month away, the bright-white dots on the Starlings’s sides, flank, and belly are getting lighter and some are disappearing. These suet cylinders are just the best thing for us in the winter. No mess. No waste. Everyone likes them but the woodpeckers and Black-capped Chickadees.

Things continue to be unsettled in various parts of Bird World this morning and yet, the eagles and ospreys just go on with their lives. They can teach us a lot of good lessons if we listen! Sometimes it is just difficult to watch a day longer. Take a break. It will be good for you. Much of the time the birds bring us great joy. Their lives touch ours and we often feel like we know the bird families better than our neighbours or friends. And then something happens and it feels like it has happened to ‘our family’ — and it has. Our connection to these beautiful raptors is not insignificant. Think about it. Sometimes things do not go the way we want them to. But when it goes well, there is nothing more adrenalin pumping and happy…hysterical joy. So take a moment if you are stressed…and then come back and share the joy.

First up, we have some more sad news – another female Bald Eagle is MIA. Our dear Little Bit ND-17’s mother has been missing since the morning of 15 February. A female intruder has been landing on the nest. We wait to see if Mum returns.

Is it OK to say that things are really getting nasty out there with so many eagles – males and females – wanting nests and mates?

Dad tussling with female intruder who flew onto nest. At other times it appears he might tolerate her a little.

ND-17 was one of the great success stories of last year – at a time when most of us were frantic that he would die of starvation. Today, Paul Kolnik posted a memory of the day that Little Bit fell off this nest…we waited, we pleaded, we wrote letters…and then, really just in time to save him, the Humane Indiana Wildlife came to his rescue. He ate, he learned to fly and his wings got strong and he learned to hunt prey and then — he came home to the park to live in the wild. It was wonderful to have the BOGs sending in photos of his great progress and to watch him near the river.

This is another lesson for all of us. If you can pick up a raptor, something is wrong. Get help immediately. This precious little one that ate squirrel pellets to survive deserved nothing less – and he lived! Always grateful to the wildlife clinic that gave him a chance at life. Always.

Mum and Dad worked so hard to rebuild their nest in St Joseph’s Park in South Bend, Indiana after it completely collapsed last year causing – ultimately – ND 17 (Little Bit) to eventually go into care. It is hard to see these adults come come back and rebuild and work for their future – just like Harriet and M15 – and have things thrown apart by possible intruders.

Intruders are everywhere. Even Annie at Cal Falcons had to engage with a Red-tailed Hawk!

Everyone waited and watched as Mabel and Angus readied their Osprey nest and we just knew that we were going to have eggs for Valentine’s. Again everything turns on a dime. Mabel is gone. Did she tire of battling the female intruder? or was she so injured she had to leave? or was it worse? It is absolutely not clear what happened to Mabel. And it is definitely not certain that there will be any eggs on this brand new nest platform this year unless Angus leaves and a bonded pair come to the nest right ready for their eggs to be laid.

There was an intruder attack on the NCTC nest of Bella and Smitty. Bella laid her first egg on the 15th and her second on Saturday at 18:55–the attack was only 47 minutes earlier. Please keep this couple and all the raptor families under attack in your most positive thoughts.

Connick is really growing up and this is a great video of him winging it. You can see those new juvenile feathers coming in with their quills, Connick’s big strong legs and her amazing tail.

Gosh, the meals might be very different with the TBD male at the Cal Falcons scrape. He brought a Greater Yellowlegs, a shore bird, to his gal on the 17th. He’s learning!!!!!!!

Thank you to ‘B’ who sent a really nice article about Mr P and Lotus at the National Arboretum in Washington, DC. The couple have moved their nest and are, this year, among several very popular Bald Eagles who have decided for new housing. At the West End we have Thunder and Akecheta and at Fraser Point, Andor and Cruz, too.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/02/17/bald-eagles-national-arboretum-dc/

There is great news coming out of New York City. Flaco will be allowed to live free and not pursued or returned to the Zoo. He is living the good life and has proven that he can take care of himself.

Now – for all the raptors that live around Central Park – if the City and residents plus all those businesses – would not allow rodenticide, Flaco and his pals could clean up the place without their lives being in danger.

I wanted you to see where Flaco was…the arrow for the video only works if you go to the person’s twitter feed unfortunately.

It opens with our friend Indigo screaming into the scrape…Elain’s highlights from the Charles Sturt University Falcon Cam in Orange, Australia. Indigo is a darling and he looks so much like Izzi…so happy all members of the family have returned to the scrape and are safe and sound.

Not a day can go by without checking in with M15 and the eaglets, E21 and 22. On Saturday morning at 0735, M15 comes in with a fish..many thought that it was a small fish. In fact, M15 took advantage and gave the eaglets some teaching moments. He left the head for one and a portion of flesh and the tail for the other. They worked on those for a bit. 21, of course, ate first and 22 had to resort to his amazing snatch and grabs. 22 also got the tail – smart – out of the pile and dismissed with it nicely. 22 is doing well…he really is. Still a bit timid but on Saturday he ate well as he had done on Friday with that rabbit and innards.

While 21 battles with that Armoured catfish head, 22 got the juicy and meaty tail!

At 1400, M15 comes in with another fish. This time 21 appears to get it all with 22 searching the nest for scraps which he finds! 21 was still eating at 15:11. It was a nice fish. Too bad 22 didn’t turn around…but, hey. They have eaten well in the past few days. There are no worries.

This amazing Dad did not disappoint. He flew into the nest an Armoured Catfish around 15:52ish. 22 got the lot of it and, of course, the event was not without some anxiety as the female with the black talon flew onto the rim of the nest. She did not bother the eaglets. Instead she watched M15 feed 22. Then she flew off.

M15 gave her a piece of his mind and she will fly away…he did his job. He fed the eaglets!

At 1600 the female is watching Dad.

Seconds later she flies away leaving 22 and the eaglets. 22 would like more but, he will in fact, wind up with a crop. 21 was full from the earlier feeding. you can see s/he still has a crop in the image below. Timing is perfect for 22.

At 16:38 M15 is back with a nice chunk of ‘fish’? and 22 gets right over there at Dad’s beak. 21 does not care. He is asleep on the rails. 22 gets some super nice bites of fish…well done 22. You don’t have to snatch and grab. It was a much more civilised meal for you. It lasted 10 minutes.

One of the females landed on the nest tree with prey. She flew off with the prey. Was she thinking of feeding the Es? or just needed a plucking post? The Es continue to wait for breakfast on Sunday morning…

There is something ‘up’ at the NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest of Gabby and V3. Gabby was on the nest again today…They are a beautiful couple and the area is so much more secure and stable since V3 took control.

V3 and Gabby have been scanning the horizon for intruders and at 1800, Gabby is back in the nest.

Nancy and Beau have their second egg – arriving right on time – at the MN-DNR nest. Congratulations!

Liberty and Guardian seem to be back to their old selves after their first egg collapsed.

https://www.youtube.com/live/0EmSL0K_XGA?feature=share

Congratulations to Valentine who – for the first time in their life – mantled and claimed their own fix from Dad Alex at the KNF-E3 nest. Thanks Rhonda for the video! Oh, this is just brilliant. A beautiful execution by Valentine.

Missy and Pa have a little while to go until B16 is mantling a fish and taking it but…in all honesty, it won’t be long. B16 is 29 days old today. This is one big eaglet just like KNF-E1 03 (Trey).

At the National Arboretum, Mr P is decidedly hanging out at the old nest after it seems Lotus insisted on having a new one deep into the forest.

There are Peregrine Falcons almost everywhere and Tom and Azina at the Charing Cross Hospital scrape box are getting to know what it is that Azina prefers for her gift meal.

Every morning when we wake up, we need to thank the wildlife rehabilitation centres, their staff, and the army of volunteers they have who save our birds when they get themselves in trouble.

The dumping of shot game birds in the UK has now found its way to Wales. Go to Raptor Persecution UK for the whole nauseating story…

Question I keep getting asked: Do I think Jackie and Shadow’s eggs are viable? I would hate to speculate. Eggs have been left for long periods of time and miraculously hatched. It depends on the circumstances and we don’t know what all of those are. I continue to remind myself that the first egg might not hatch but the second could. If that is the case then I will not give up until the 25th which is 6 days away. That would be the last day for egg 2 to be viable. If they do not hatch, I hope the Ravens take them so Jackie can lay new eggs in the nest without the issue of having the other two there as well.

It is possible that the UK Ospreys are beginning to pack their bags in Africa and start their journey to their spring and summer breeding grounds…I am so excited.

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

Thank you to the following for their notes, tweets, videos, announcements, and streaming cams that make up my blog today: ‘B’, ‘H’, ND-LEEF, Paul Kolnik and Bald Eagles 101, Cal Falcons, D Steyck and the NCTC Eagles, Window to Wildlife, The Washington Post, MSN, Stella Hamilton, Elain and the Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, SWFL Eagles and D Pritchett, Paul Kolnik and Bald Eagles Live Nest Cams and News, MN-DNR, FORE, Rhonda A and KNF E-3, Berry College, Mr P and Lotus Twitter, FaB Peregrines, Terry Carman and Bald Eagles Live Nest News and Cams, Raptor Persecution UK.

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Birds at the Zoo…and breakfast with the Australian nests

28 October 2022

Hello Everyone!

So happy to have you here with me. I set out ‘in my mind’ last evening that I would get up early and head out to find Snowy Owls sitting on large round hay bales near Oak Hammock Marsh. I got a text from a friend – ‘no’ owls seen. So, determined to see a Snowy Owl today, I did something entirely different! I went to the zoo.

How long has it been since you have been to a zoo? With all the criticism against keeping animals in small cages, our Assiniboine Park Zoo set out to try and make the enclosures for the animals considerably larger. At the same time they addressed issues of ‘boredom’ and the environments that the animals would live in if they were out in the wild. It was a much more pleasant place to visit because of those major changes.

One of the zoo volunteers saw me looking at the map and asked me what I wanted to see. The answer was Snowy Owls and Birds. I wonder if they were disappointed that I didn’t say ‘tiger’ or ‘cougar’. As it happened we were very close to the Snow Owls and it was feeding time. Fluffy yellow chicks raised specifically for the purpose were being dished out. For several seconds, it seemed that a woman standing near to me was going to pass out she was so overcome by seeing the owls eat the chicks. I stood in wonderment trying to figure out if she thought that they ate lettuce – our zoo purchases an inordinate amount of Romaine lettuce – or fruit. It is a good thing that she was away from the cougar or the Stellar’s Eagle compounds at that specific moment.

The real character of the entire four hours was the Toucan. He made eye contact immediately. What an incredibly beautiful bird he is.

This is the Toco Toucan. They are the largest of the species at 62 cm long with a bill/beak that is 17 cm long. Their lifespan is approximately 20 years. The Toco Toucan is native to South American rainforests where its numbers are decreasing due to deforestation.

I wish we could have had a conversation. This chap was a real cutie pie.

These little Sun Conures were tiny in comparison to the Toco Toucan. No wonder they have the ‘sun’ as part of their name. Oh, those faces ranging from yellow to orange to red are the colours we painted the sun as children. They are native to northeastern South America. They are approximately 30 cm in length but these certainly did not look that big unless you count that long olive green tail in the measurement! These little cuties were using their bill and their feet to dig around the edge of their enclosure. They have a stubby quite muscular tongue that helps them move their food around in their mouth.

This beautiful Golden Eagle was finishing up its breakfast and not the least bit interested in anyone looking at it. What a beauty. It is one of the largest birds of prey in North America, about the same size as a Bald Eagle. Unlike a Bald Eagle whose legs and talons are bare, the Golden Eagle has feathers on its legs. In Canada, they are ‘at risk’. Their meals consist of small mammals such as rabbits and squirrels.

The Stellar’s Sea Eagle is the largest of the sea eagles. With its striking bright yellow beak and legs and its espresso brown/black and white plumage, it is easy to recognize this raptor. It has a wedge-tail and fine pointed wings. They are rare. In the northern areas they will stand on the ice and fish and love the salmon in the north. It is thought that they almost exclusively breed in the north of Russia. You may recall that there is a Stellar’s Sea Eagle that has come to Newfoundland, Canada travelling south to parts of New England. I believe it is back in Newfoundland.

There were so many little Red Squirrels. This one is eating a ‘helicopter’, the seed of the Maple Tree.

Little Red stuffed these Maple Tree seeds in every part of the old shed. There were boxes full. Never knew if he used them for insulation to stay warm as well as eating. There is a large box full of them in his new home if he ever moves in!

It was great fun. Lovely to see families out with small children running about. Next time you are looking for a place to go – think the zoo!

A very small fish landed on the Port Lincoln Osprey barge at 061847. Middle got some of the tail but Big got most of it at 062652.

Breakfast arrived at 0618 on the ledge of 367 Collins Street for the Melbourne Four. Another plucking lesson, too!

This big one has run off with a nice piece and is self-feeding.

After eating it was running to get those legs strong, finding scraps of prey, and flapping those wings. What a brilliant place for these eyases to get exercise! I wonder how being able to run and flap freely – running a great distance – might give these falcons an edge in terms of physical strength that would help them survive? Just a thought!

This is the Recap for the morning feedings at Orange. Goodness Xavier has been busy hunting!

BirdieCam​ RECAP: 6:07:33 starling, X leaves, 6:20:58 D feeds; 6:38:31 X w/RRP?, he feeds; 09.13.33 X w/Noisy Friarbird, D feeds

Everyone has had breakfast, some more than others. Wish for fish – a big one for Port Lincoln.

Take care all. This is just a quick check and all are doing well at the 3 nests we are watching in Australia.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Port Lincoln Ospreys, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross.