Thank you so much for your prayers, your notes, e-mails, and comments. I really appreciate them. Don is very, very ill. At the moment, he has multiple infections, and he is not responding. He remains in a state of delirium, the same as he was Thursday morning when he went into the hospital. He has the best of care and there is someone with him 24/7 and the doctor has asked me to take a day off and take care of myself. I have done everything I possibly can and now we wait. Ann is going to be with him today and she will let me know if he is improving or if I need to grab Toby and get to the hospital fast. Otherwise, I am going to try and recharge my depleted batteries a bit.
The good news (and then the bad) is that Don responded to the antibiotics and had a good visit with Ann. He was ‘bright eyed and bushy tailed’ as my mother would have said. He also had a good visit with his brother. And then – he fell. They are supposed to have someone with him 24/7. That did not happen. He injured his upper right arm, his right ribs, and hit his head on a concrete floor. He knew me and he knew Toby when we got to the hospital but it is clear he is not the same as he had been a few hours earlier. I don’t get ‘worked up’ easily but when I do – watch out. All I can say is that he is monitored at home and has never fallen. When he wandered, he only made it to the neighbour’s house and then we had that fixed so he could be in the garden but not beyond it and sometimes only in the house. So when someone tells me that they are concerned for his safety at home and he needs 24/7 care, is this the best they can do?—–Thank you for letting me vent!
Before the fall, Ann took it. I even talked to him on the phone and it was all good:
The big news for the day in Bird World is that Gabby has returned safely to the NE Florida Bald Eagle nest she shares with Beau (who has already arrived).
I want to thank Geemeff for their wonderful summaries and videos from Loch Arkaig all season. You will see that they are off on their own adventure – migrating away from the UK to enjoy some other climates. Bon Voyage, Geemeff! Likes the ospreys – travel safe, eat well, and come back safely!!!!!
Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Saturday 29th August 2026
A peaceful calm day with just a little harassment by the Hoodies, but Juniper managed to keep both of Louis’ two deliveries safe from them. The second fish was the season’s first mackerel, polished off by Juniper in under twenty minutes, which took the Nest Two tally to four hundred and seventy three. Will Juniper stick around long enough for the tally to reach five hundred? As always, it’s wait and see but the days are drawing in and warmer climes will start beckoning. The weather was mild and settled but that’s set to change to persistent cloud cover and periodic spells of rain overnight with a low of 12°C, and cool and wet tomorrow with a high of just 16°C.
I’m off on an adventure of my own tomorrow, so I’ll take this opportunity to give my best wishes to everyone until we meet again for Season Eleven, and wish our feathered family fair winds and plenty of fish on their journey south.
Maya and Blue 33 were still enjoying one another’s company at Rutland’s Manton Bay nest after the kids had flown the coop yesterday. I love how they enjoy spending time together. I have only seen Blue 33 today.
Latest report from Usk Valley in Wales – ospreys still hitting the nest.
Some gorgeous images of Wensi – thank you cam operator, again.
Thank you for being with us today. It is a gorgeous evening and Toby and I are off for a walk. He was fantastic at the hospital and proved how good he is at being a therapy dog to everyone who wanted to sit and pat him for awhile.
Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to Geemeff, to the AEF, to everyone who created videos, to Jeff Kear and UK Osprey Information, to those who write newsletters, and to the owners of the streaming cams that let us see these amazing birds. We are grateful.
First up – Happy Birthday to David Attenborough who is 100 today. What an incredible individual.
Second, remember that Saturday is Migratory Bird Day. Please take part in one of the counts, including the Cornell Bird Labs count. Check out their website.
It was 15 C with a gentle, albeit sometimes coolish breeze in Winnipeg today. The sky was blue with a few of those big cottonball clouds. Ring-billed Gulls were heard overhead flying between the two rivers in our City. In the garden, a host of White-crowned Sparrows were foraging and bathing. We have three bird baths up now, with notes to clean them every other day if not daily. Half a dozen Starlings were here along with the single Robin that visited the other day, a few Dark-eyed Juncos, flocks of sparrows, the Blue Jays and Crows. I am not good at identifying individual species of sparrows, so we just say ‘House Sparrows’!
Toby had his walk with us, and Ann arrived determined to make Don very tired with a solid two-and-a-half-hour walk at the zoo today. It worked!
One of the most troubling local news items is that the City and the Parks Department are culling goose eggs. There are ‘too many’ geese! I have criticised New Zealand for doing this, and now it is here, right at my favourite park. Didn’t someone tell them that Avian Flu took the lives of no fewer than 100,000 Canada Geese last fall in Manitoba’s north? We actually don’t know the full number of geese and other waterfowl that died, as many lakes in the north are quite remote. I was seething. I am not quite sure what the priority is for our City. New houses are going up on agricultural land. They are close together, identical, built quickly with few, if any, trees. The City is closing local wading pools in areas where the children need a free summer pastime. Crime rates are up, property theft is rampant, and drugs and weapons are always in the news. Winnipeg used to be relatively ‘sleepy’. Population growth, poverty, a lack of parenting for many reasons, including economic ones, where both parents have to work 2 or 3 jobs just to barely pay the bills, are contributors. I want to emphasise that I am referring to the ‘City’ government. In general, I am pretty happy with our provincial government. But enough…I do not have a television, and any news that I watch comes from YouTube live events. Watching birds and just sitting with my eyes closed, even for ten minutes, on the deck, listening to birdsong, is so nice. The violence that does make the news is hard to take and yet, I am reminded every day of the goodness of people.
The Lily Society is naming a Day Lily after our neighbour who died in a house fire. He was, as I understand it, one of the founding members and experimented with hybridising lilies. He had a lovely garden full of them. Today, they were removed and will become part of a memorial garden. Very thoughtful. Kindness also comes in the form of my neighbours working on my deck to make it safer and, of course, Jane feeding Brock and loving him. I am so grateful for this single block of individuals who could brighten anyone’s day.
Before we shift to Bird World news, I wanted to send a photo of our little herb and salad garden. It is doing very well. In a couple of weeks, we will be planting outside, but we will keep this one going constantly. From left to right, there is basil, dill, and then two different types of lettuce. I had to exchange the short dowels for the longer 45 cm ones yesterday. The dill is intense and very delicious.
I have had so much information backed up that I want to share with you. So there are a lot of files today – I hope that there is something of value for you.
Please mark Saturday in your calendars. It is World Migratory Bird Day.
AI answers: World Migratory Bird Day 2026 focuses on the theme “Every Bird Counts – Your Observations Matter!”, highlighting community science and citizen observations for bird conservation. The main peak days are Saturday, May 9, 2026 (Northern Hemisphere) and Saturday, October 10, 2026 (Southern Hemisphere), featuring global events and bird counting efforts like on eBird.
Key Aspects of 2026 Campaign:
Theme: The theme highlights the importance of individual contributions through citizen science to track and protect migratory birds.
Key Dates: May 9 and October 10, 2026, align with peak bird migration periods.
Activities: Participation includes monitoring, bird counting, and educational events.
Featured Events: A special 2026 event will take place on May 9th at Lois Hole Centennial Provincial Park in Alberta, Canada, including the “Wings of Survival” talk.
Global Participation: Coordinated by groups like Environment for the Americas, the campaign encourages recording sightings on eBird. World Migratory Bird Day +6
World Migratory Bird Day is a global effort to raise awareness about the need for the conservation of migratory birds and their habitats.
If you live in or near NYC, here are some events on Saturday but do check out your local birding groups.
This Saturday is World Migratory Bird Day, a global migration celebration. Each spring and fall, birds travel anywhere from a few hundred miles to tens of thousands! You can see these amazing journeys on display right now as birds stop in our parks and green spaces to rest and refuel.
Join our FREE outings throughout the boroughs to spot stunning spring migrants:
Manhattan: Drop-in Ecology Session at Jefferson Market Garden
It isn’t just the birds that need our help. Geemeff sent me the following to share with all of you.
This poor 46 year old Orangutan is alone in a concrete enclosure and has been that way most of her life. Opal has been offered a more suitable home but her owners have refused. It’s a truly dreadful situation for a sentient being, and completely unnecessary.
Hawk Mountain’s signature live raptor program, Raptors Up Close! offers the chance to see live hawks and owls, and to learn what puts these winged predators at the top of nature’s food chain. This program guarantees that you will see a live raptor during your visit and is appropriate for visitors of all ages.
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Friday 8th May 2026Another calm day on both nests today, with fish delivered, eaten, and in one case lost! Garry LV0 delivered two fish to Aurora 536 but unhappily she dropped the biggest one and sensibly ate most of the small second one on the nest before departing, leaving Garry to incubate their single egg. His tally now stands at fifty one fish. Louis delivered three fish to Dorcha, taking the nest total to forty seven and his own tally to forty five. Due to some stick
manoeuvring, the three eggs on Nest Two are now visible but given the birds’ quest to make the perfect nest, future adjustments might well block the view again. Today’s bonus item is in honour of
Sir David Attenborough’s 100th birthday: a documentary about Ospreys narrated by him and featuring Roy Dennis.Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/FE_fGP965Uo N2 Louis doesn’t notice a tiny visitor after Dorcha left with fish one 08.01.09https://youtu.be/Ogyo5DjA4sM N2 A second fish arrives for Dorcha 16.14.44
There is some concern at the Dale Hollow Nest that the adults have not returned to feed the three eaglets since the AEF removed the fishing line yesterday. I have not been able to watch that nest closely today to see whether any deliveries have been made. Maybe you know?
But for now a big thank you to the AEF who took over the Dale Hollow Nest after the two fiasco years of 2022 and 2023.
At the nest of Big Red and Arthur, there are two hatches that have survived a very soggy nest with damp. Big Red loves to give them ‘big’ bites. The first chick died trying to hatch, and I fear that this might well be the case with the last. We have to wait and see. There are, however, two fine little bobbleheads at present and a nest full of every kind of soggy prey.
If you missed it, we do have two eggs at Iris’s nest!
Last, but never least, SK Hideaways gives us a smile from the nest of Jackie, Shadow, Sandy, and Luna: https://youtu.be/U-hHp0IQR4o?
Good night, everyone! Take care of yourselves. Remember the bird count on Saturday, but most importantly, go outside, look, listen, and smell the spring air. See you soon.
My guardian angel waiting for me to finish this so we can have a game of fetch before bed.
Thank you to all the contributors tonight – Geemeff, SK Hideaways, those who post on FB, the authors of all the amazing articles, and the owners of the streaming cams that allow us into the lives of our beloved birds.
Just a quick spin around a few nests. It seems we cannot take our eyes off the screens for a second!
Iris has laid her second egg just minutes ago at the Hellgate Canyon nest in Missoula, Montana.
At 65 days of age, Winken at the Moorings Park nest has fledged and returned to the nest. The take off was graceful but the landing will require more practice!
It appears that the AEF’s Dale Hollow rescue was a success. Cameras were off, and by my count, all three eaglets are in the nest, and there is no fishing line. Thanks, AEF, and all involved.
We have a hatch underway at the nest of Big Red and Arthur. Thankfully that nest is starting to dry out after torrential rains the other day.
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Thursday 7th May 2026
Another routine day for both nests – just the odd alarm call but no intruders seen, reasonable weather, and both Louis and Garry LV0 brought one fish each for their respective partners Dorcha and Aurora 536. The Nest One tally rises to forty nine, and the Nest Two tally to forty four. Dorcha had to wait until tea time before her fish arrived, and gave Louis a telling off. Later when he didn’t give up the eggs on her return to the nest, he got a thorough dusting from her tail feathers! Light rain started falling around 9pm and is set to continue through the night and well into tomorrow, with occasional sunny spells.
It was a beautiful day today, and we got out for a walk. It was so nice. Toby and I even managed to sit out in the garden and listen to the birds. We were surprised by the list that Merlin could hear that we could not see! Don’s medication has changed. He is less and less engaged in daily life and that is so sad. He did join us for the walk and I anticipate that Ann will take him to the nature centre tomorrow. Being outside is good for everyone – including those with dementia.
Thanks so much for being with us. Take care!
Thank you to ‘PB’ for alerting me to Iris’s egg as I was checking on Dale Hollow! Thank you to Geemeff for her Loch Arkaig summary, Heidi for her post about Winken, and to the owners of the streaming cams that allow all of this to happen. We are so very grateful.
Latest Update from Cornell: “The final Red-tailed Hawk egg began to show signs of hatching early on the morning on May 7 on day 36 of incubation. Watching closely, movement can be seen from the “pip,” or small hole in the egg, throughout the video. The hatching process can take 12–24 hours to complete, or longer in some cases.”
There is a rescue underway at Dale Hollow Eagle nest (see below).
I have to say that I have never been a ‘Hallmark Person’ – someone who sends cards and celebrates special days just because some company came up with an idea for making more and more money from us. This especially goes to Mother’s and Father’s Days because so many were raised by their Grandmothers who really were their Mums (like me, so mine could work), others had parents who died or abandoned them…sometimes when a day is happy for someone, it is a total sadness day for someone else.
That said, this year we are really going to give a shout out to the most incredible raptor Mum that I have seen in years. If I could send her a bouquet of fish and a card with fish that popped up, I would. They are all heroes who have overcome more challenges than we witness, but this year, a few stand out, and one, in particular.
The top Raptor Mum Award has to go to Jill at the Achieva Osprey Platform. I would love to know if anyone has witnessed a female leave their babies at such a young age when she realised that the little one was doing to die if more fish didn’t get on the nest.
So, let’s look back for a minute. Big hatched on 27 March, with Little following five days later, on 2 April. Yes, look at that spread. There were three eggs – Heidi and I have decided that Big was egg 1 and Little was egg 3.
The first time that Jill left the nest to catch a catfish was on the 15th of April. At the beginning, she only left the chicks around 1700-1800. She would leave and return in 25-30 minutes with a large catfish. As Jack’s deliveries diminished and the chicks’ need for more fish grew, Jill began going out twice a day. She would often wait to see if Jack would bring a morning fish, and if he hadn’t by 1030 or 1100, she would go fishing. Those trips to bring fish to the nest have now increased to three as she often now goes out after 1900.
Jill took a real risk leaving her tiny babies vulnerable. Jack was not there protecting them. He was not bringing food. Jill was starving. What choice did she have? Stay on the nest and watch her babies die? Abandon the chicks? She did neither. With bold determination, both babies appear to be growing and healthy. I wonder how many other osplets would have survived if their Mums would leave the nest and go and fish for them?
‘MP’ took this screen capture commenting what a beautiful wing pattern that it is —- and it is precisely perfect. Not a feather out of place!
‘PB’ keeps a good eye on what Jill is doing – and how Little is growing bigger and bolder.
My runner-up is Mrs T at the Trempealeau Bald Eagle nest, who, seeing her mate feed his chicks and another mate across the lake, was able to keep one of her eaglets alive by going out hunting and fishing.
There are two notable senior females that we could not miss on this Mother’s Day – Iris and Big Red.
Iris is at least thirty years old.
AI overview:
“Iris, the renowned 28-plus-year-old osprey at Hellgate Canyon, is estimated to have successfully fledged over 30 to 40 chicks in her lifetime. As of the 2024 season, she was still actively breeding, and she returned for the 2026 season to her nest at Missoula.
Total Lifetime Estimated Chicks: 30–40+
Recent Activity: In 2024, she successfully raised two chicks with her mate, Finnegan: Sum-eh and Antali.
Status: She is considered one of the oldest known living ospreys, nesting at the Hellgate Canyon site since at least the early 2000s.
Iris has had several mates over her long residency in Montana, including Stanley, Louis, and her more recent mates, consistently returning to the same area to nest”.
There is a published book that I have that show the move from the utility pole to Iris’s current nest that had a good history and images. (I need to find it!)
The other is Big Red, the Red-tailed Hawk whose nest is on the Cornell Campus at Ithaca, New York. She hatched in 2003 and was banded in October of that same year at Brooktondale, New York. Her natal nest is 7 miles from her breeding nest. Her first mate is believed to be Ezra (he was on camera when it began in 2012) but, no one knows for sure. Big Red probably started breeding by 2006.
Two separate AI entries, the first for Ezra and then Arthur:
AI:
“Big Red and her mate Ezra successfully raised 15 chicks together over the five years (2012–2016) they were followed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Bird Cams.
Key Details on Big Red and Ezra’s Offspring:
Timeframe: They nested together on the Cornell campus from 2012 until Ezra’s death in March 2017.
Consistency: The pair typically raised 3 chicks per year, with successful breeding seasons recorded on camera each year from 2012–2016.
Legacy: Ezra was known for his dedication to his family, often feeding the chicks and protecting them during harsh weather.
After Ezra’s passing in 2017, Big Red paired with a new mate, Arthur, in 2018.”
“As of the end of the 2024 season, Big Red and her mate, Arthur, have successfully raised 20 chicks to fledging at Cornell University since pairing up in 2018. Known for regularly laying 3 eggs in many seasons, she has produced a high volume of chicks, often laying 4 eggs in 2022 and 2024.
Key Details on Big Red’s Broods:
Total Fledged (approx. 2018–2024): 20 chicks.
Recent Seasons (2025–2026): In 2025, she laid 3 eggs. As of early May 2026, she is actively raising a new brood.
High-Volume Years: Big Red laid 4 eggs in 2022 and 2024.
Big Red is a highly successful Red-tailed Hawk monitored by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Bird Cams, and her nesting, egg-laying, and chick-rearing are tracked yearly.
We know that Big Red also laid a clutch of 4 eggs in 2026 as we are watching that nest now. The first hatch died during hatch. It is unclear as of 7 May if the remaining egg is viable. There are two chicks on the nest, cute little bobble heads.
In my memory, only one chick failed to fledge til this year, and that was K3, who had an issue with their jaw. K3 was rescued but did not survive. E3 is an ambassador for Cornell. Several died from window collisions on campus and one from West Nile Virus, last year. They are not ringed so we do not know the dispersal area.
Other brief news:
Johnson City’s eaglets are almost ready to fledge.
Ruth and Oren’s little hawklets at Syracuse University are doing fine.
Rescue Underway!
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Wednesday 6th May 2026
Another calm routine day where not a lot happened, just fish deliveries and changeovers of egg-sitters. Garry LV0 brought Aurora 536 two fish, taking his tally to forty eight, and Louis brought one fish for Dorcha, taking the nest total to forty three. The weather was settled but is forecast to change to light rain showers with light winds overnight and through to tomorrow afternoon. Both nests fall under the Inver Mallie weather forecast area: https://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/2646094.
Wish everyone well, that is going to help the near-to-fledge eaglet at Dale Hollow and send positive energy to Big Red’s nest for a successful last hatch! There is lots of food for three!!!!!! Arthur is keeping that nest well stocked, no matter the weather.
Take care everyone…remember to think of those who cared and raised you no matter their gender this coming weekend. See you soon.
Thank you to ‘MP and PB’ for allowing me to use their screen captures of Jill at Achieva and for keeping me in touch with her remarkable journey of motherhood. I am grateful to all the owners of the streaming cams that allow us to witness the lives of these birds and to the AEF for their determination to help eagles when possible. I am always grateful to Geemeff for their summaries and videos of the day’s happening at the two Loch Arkaig nests!
It is summer – just joking – but Tuesday was an amazing day to stand outside and sniff the fresh air. The snow is melting in areas where the sun shines, and the streets are full of puddles. Sadly, some people are not aware that if they drive like Ayrton Senna, they will splash everyone in sight! One of our local nature centres is having a contest to guess the arrival of the first Canada Goose, and we are getting ready for one of the major festivals in our city, Festival du Voyageur. I wonder if there will be any snow or if it will be too warm for the international ice sculpture contest? I love the Maple Candy – pouring hot Maple Syrup over clean snow. It is delicious and stiffens up like the best taffy.
I had tea with my best mate today and outside her window was a doe and fawn. Got the doe right before she was going to crunch a munch one of the plants. There are 8 deer that live in the park. In the spring, my friend has a pond and there is at least one pair of ducks that make it their home. It is lovely to visit and get to see them.
I am glad that this deer is not being hunted. For several years we have been taking about the disastrous effects of lead poisoning in our raptors. Hunting, fishing, military weapons all contribute to the high death rates. Hunters kill the deer and clean out their innards, leaving those in the field full of lead shot. The raptors or carrion eaters feast on this and they can die.
The wildlife rehab that took care of our little sweetie ND17, Humane Indiana Wildlife, has a sad story for us – with lots of information. Please spread the word to anyone you know that hunts and fishes that they should not be using lead in any form. Educate them nicely as to why. Be your best persuasive self.
Oh, gosh, golly. We have the first egg of the 2024 season in the Channel Islands. Thunder laid it today and that precious egg was seen at 1539. Congratulations!
And a big shout out to Dr Peter Sharpe, who retired, took the transportation – the car, the boat, climbed up the cliffs – and installed a fanatic camera!
I wonder how long it will be until Thunder’s parents, Chase and Cholyn, lay their first egg at Two Harbours.
At Sauces, Jak and Audacity are hopeful and working away. They should be an inspiration to all of us to never give up!
There is chirping at Eagle Country for Abby and Blazer. We will have a hatch soon! You can clearly hear that gentle cheeping…how exciting. This one may have hatched by Wednesday morning.
There is not a lot of bird news. A huge male eagle, quite a handsome fellow, landed on Gabby and Beau’s tree today. Thanks ‘J’ for the image captures.
Gabby just kept on incubating that egg. Today is day 39.
E23 is working on standing steady, using its wings for balance. There were several hiccups on Tuesday, but the little one is determined. E23 is also working its wings and looking over the rails to what lies beyond the nest and the Pritchett property. A huge fish came into the nest, but E23 was not hungry, having a large crop that had lasted most of the day.
Cal and Lusa had big crops, too! It isn’t easy to see them in the shade of the nest tree now. Those gorgeous and shiny espresso juvenile feathers blend in well with the dark shade. But check out those feet – look at that deep, bright chrome yellow. Clive and Connie’s eaglets are extremely healthy. This is the colour you want to see on the feet of all your raptors. Look and remember.
My goodness. After the ‘fish drought’ at the WRDC nest, you would think fish were falling from the sky. The nest had no less than two large whole fish today along with a bird. R6 appears to be doing just fine. Hopefully he got rid of any human garbage (aka the nappy) when he cast that very large pellet.
The WRDC issued the following statement on Tuesday, the 30th. A very thorough and reassuring post on the happenings at the nest.
You can now see both eaglets at the John Bunker Sands Wetlands nest. The first hatch is doing quite well and is much larger than the second one. I sat and yelled at Mum to feed it mid-afternoon after it woke up and wanted food. She kept feeding the big one and herself. If you are watching this nest really close, please let me know how the wee one is faring. BTW. The sound at this nest is first-rate. You can hear the little squees quite clearly. They are so cute.
If you haven’t marked your calendars, pip watch for Jackie and Shadow begins on the 29th of February. That is 35 days. In the past, Jackie’s eggs have hatched between 38-39 days. Hold your breath. Let’s all send the most positive wishes we can to our Big Bear couple.
I missed posting the news so thanks, Geemeff. Bluff City had its first egg on the 28th.
If you are looking for Owlvira, it appears that she has made her nest this year in a nearby hawk nest and not the nest she used in 2022-23.
If you are having ‘Owl Withdrawal’, I suggest you keep an eye on Bonnie and Clyde at Farmer Derek’s nest. These two kicked out a young pair of Bald Eagles several years ago to raise their first two owlets – Tiger and Lily. Today, they have been heard hooting and mating and Clyde brought Bonnie a food gift at 18:28 on the nest.
Clyde is in the nest cup. Look at that great camouflage!
In Latvia, the White-tail Eagles are returning. What a joyous occasion. The YouTube video for the 30th of January is from the Kemeri National Park. It is the third largest park in the country with numerous water features and lakes. 57% of the area is covered by forests – these are two perfect considerations for the White-tail Eagles when looking for food or nesting sites.
Did you know that there are five different types of eagles that live in Latvia? They are the Golden Eagle which is the most common. Then there. is the Short-toed that breed in Latvia. Sadly, many are shot when migrating to Africa over Malta. The Lesser-Spotted, and the Greater Spotted along with the White-tailed. The White-tailed Eagles are the largest and are easily identified by their entirely white tail. They eat fish and water fowl – the latter of which – caused the HPAI outbreak in 2022. Some charts also identify the Osprey as an eagle in Latvia so you will see titles like ‘Six types of eagles live in Latvia’. I do not include Ospreys with eagles but some do!
My favourite Latvia White-tailed Eagle is Milda. I watched her nest when she was with her late mate, Ramis. She is now bonded with Voldis and they fledged two eaglets in 2023. Milda arrived at her nest in Durbe County on the 30th of January, too!
Sally is beginning to look a little ‘eggy’ at Moorings Park but, as of 1900 Tuesday the 30th there was no egg. Sally and Harry spent time at the nest on Tuesday.
The Royal Cam chick is really growing! We can clearly see it during feedings.
Checking on Annie at The Campanile. She was calling from the scrape. You could see her on the ledge cam and then from inside the scrape. I am waiting to see if this new mate shows up. No. Annie left the scrape at 1701.
More Hen Harriers were illegally killed in 2023 than at any other time. Outrageous.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care! We hope to see you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ’Geemeff, J’, Humane Indiana Wildlife, IWS/Explore, Eagle Country, NEFL-AEF, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Window to Wildlife, WRDC, John Bunker Sands Wetlands Eagle Cam, FOBBV, ETSU Eagles, Owl Cam, Farmer Derek, Cal Falcons, LDF, Trine, Moorings Park, Lady Hawk, Cal Falcons, and Raptor Persecution UK.
It is another coolish day. They continue to mention snow coming! But how pleasant was it to wake up to three Baltimore Orioles already in the garden. My dial for being irritated at some birds preventing others from eating goes from mildly irked to outrage. The male Baltimore Orioles prevent the females from having the oranges or jelly! So I took the tiniest little bowls and put grape jelly in them. There are six. Surely the males can’t be at each one of them if they are eating jelly! Aaaargh.
Do we think those pesky eyases of Annie, Grinnell, and Alden told Mum what they did when Dad Alden was trying to feed them? As ‘B’ said – it is very apparent that this is Alden’s first adventure with chicks! Alden you are adorable and you are determined to figure this out and be a great Dad! Annie is giving the chicks their breakfast and later, Alden is in to give Annie a break so she can eat, too. He is doing a great job brooding and shading the chicks.
Seeing Ervie at the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge is such a treat and now he has been there several days in a row! It is definitely taking a long time for that talon to grow in. It is growing and that is wonderful. Has Ervie lived on Puffer Fish all this time? He sure seems quick to catch them! And is Dad still bringing him a fish once in awhile? I collected a few more images of one of our favourite Osprey fledglings to share with you. We never know when it will be the last time to see him.
Ervie had at least two fish. It is not clear if the earliest was a puffer or was a fish brought by Dad. I think it was Dad.
A shot I shared last evening showing that talon growing in ever so slowly.
Ervie should have perfected his fishing skills by the time that talon is in. My gosh. Will it be in by Christmas? It certainly has a long way to go and I wonder if he wears it down using it??
Ervie looks really healthy and strong despite the talon issue. I wonder how many Puffers he has caught and eaten? Ervie is also very handsome! Sadly his injury has probably allowed us to see him all the time – or maybe Ervie is also, in addition, a home body. Wonder what Mum and Dad will do when breeding season is very close?
Richmond and Rosie now have their full cohort of chicks. SF Ospreys made a video of that second hatch. You can see that first little cutie, too. Two Bobs.
The first chick hatched for Laddie LM12 and Blue NC0 at Loch of the Lowes. No more than it was getting out of the last of the shell, Blue NC0 had to fight off an intruder. It has been terrible for them this year. Fingers crossed that their presence does not do any harm to the chicks!
There is a fish ready and waiting!
It certainly is prime Osprey real estate. No one is allowed on the loch from April to September during breeding season. Nothing to disturb the Ospreys! Can you imagine how nice this would be elsewhere? Why do humans with motorized recreational vehicles have precedence? Why not canoes or kayaks?
Speaking of water, the river level around the ND-LEEF Bald Eagle nest is dropping and this might help with fish deliveries to the nest. Little 17 will be in need of food today for sure. Both parents have touched at the nest but I have seen no deliveries. (0730 and 0830)
It has been very hot at the Llyn Clywedog Nest. Seren Blue 5F hasn’t had a fish either. Dylan is a great provider so hopefully as it gets cooler in the evening something will come to the nest. Seren should be hearing chicks as we are on pip watch for these two. The wet and cold weather really hampered the breeding season of the Welsh Ospreys last year. Seren laid three eggs but only one hatched. Still, they raised the Biggest Bob ever in Welsh Osprey history in 2021. Everyone thought the chick was a huge female – not so. An enormous male!!!!!!! Blue 496 weighed 1400 grams.
Seren is an incredible Mum. She spent a couple of years at the Pont Cresor nest in a polygamous relationship with Aran. After two seasons of unsuccessful breeding, she flew the coop and found Dylan at Llyn Clywedog. Dylan has been here since 2016. The couple have been a mated pair since 2020. Seren spends her winters in The Gambia. Chris Woods has tracke her there to the same tree every year!
The image by Chris Wood made the rounds of some of the FB groups so I do hope that it is alright to include it here. We are all very grateful for his efforts in tracking down the Ospreys at the Tanji Quarry in The Gambia during the winter months!
Chris reported this year that they are taking lots of sand from the Tanji Quarry and he is wishing that they would stop for the sake of the birds.
The American Eagle Foundation has put together a slide show of this seasons activities at the Northeast Florida nest of Samson, Gabby, Jasper, and Rocket.
I am very happy to report that the Kestrel chicks – the smallest three – that Robert Fuller took out of the nest and raised til they were strong enough to go back with the others have been returned to Father Kestrel who is now in charge of six growing nestlings! Fantastic. A good intervention on the part of a human when the female disappeared. Father Kestrel has accomplished being both security, prey provider, and feeder!
Dad delivered a fish to the UFlorida-Gainesville nest at 11:42. Middle was right on the ball and mantled and grabbed that fish and started self feeding! Mum is going to fly in and feed the chicks but this is the second time today that Middle has been working on self-feeding. So proud of this little one. It is no longer as intimidated by Big as it was.
Our Middle is doing fabulous. So proud of him. He is now big enough that Big really cannot intimidate him like he could even a week ago.
All five of the eyases at the Manchester New Hampshire scrape are doing great.
The five at the Belgian scrape in Oundenaare Tower are sleeping on a feather bed and loosing their baby down. All are flapping and it is getting a little crowded inside that box.
The Anacapa eyases are also doing great. I love that they live in the cliffs in a natural setting. Everyone is working on self-feeding.
The only problem nest that I can see is the ND-LEEF one. I have not, however, checked all of the nests this morning. It is time to go out and work on that penthouse for Little Red! Before the snow arrives.
Thank you so much for joining me this morning. Take care everyone, see you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Explore.org, Cal Falcons, Port Lincoln Ospreys, SF Ospreys and Golden Gate Audubon, Scottish Wildlife Trust, ND-LEEF, CarnyxWildd, Chris Wood, Robert Fuller, AEF, UFlorida-Gainesville Ospreys, Peregrine Networks, and Oundenaare Tower Falcons.
Good Afternoon Everyone. It looks pretty quiet out in Bird World this morning.
The two eaglets of Rita and Ron’s, R1 and R2, continue to sleep and eat without any observable ill effects from the rat dinner that they had yesterday. Fingers crossed. They are such beautiful and healthy little ones, curious about the world beyond the nest. Hopefully we can all go ‘whew’ after this fright is over – let’s celebrate on Monday.
They are very mobile, scooting around on the nest, balancing themselves with their wings.
This is Ron feeding the little ones. He isn’t as good as Rita but he tries.
There is an active pip watch at the Bald Eagle nest of Pa Berry and Missy in Georgia. B15 is doing well. Right now it also looks like Mt Berry could be in line for some of that winter weather making its way across parts of the United States. I really hope they get little or nothing. It isn’t nice to have a hatch when the snow and ice are coming down.
Pa Berry was on the nest with Missy on alert this morning.
B15 seems to have a good appetite.
Chatters are working on names for the little eaglet at the Kistachie National Forest (KNF) Bald Eagle Nest. The deadline for submissions is 30 January. Late this morning Louis flew in with a Coot to add to the 4 or 5 fish already on the nest.
The area is experiencing high winds today and are under a high wind advisory. It is also very cool in the forest at 8 degrees C.
This little one is the cutest little roly-poly I have seen in a long time. Anna has the feeding down and the baby is happy to have those nice bites of fish!
It is hard to imagine that E19 and E20 were this small a few weeks ago! Now they are at the big clown feet stage and their feathering is coming in nicely. I wonder if Harriet left this fish to see if anyone would try and nibble?
While other parts of the US are being hit with tsunami warnings, record levels of snow and ice, Florida is having a heat warning and should be getting some rain from that system.
Here is a lovely little video of E19 and E20 having their fish breakfast!
Finally, the pip watch for Gabby and Samson will be coming at the end of the week! I am so excited.
There have been intruders and both Gabby and Samson have been watching and listening carefully this afternoon.
How gorgeous!
An alert.
Time for some territorial defense.
All is well. Whew.
This nest is an active site for intruders. Gabby and Samson have to always be vigilant.
The two little eaglets are getting their feathers at the Hilton Head Island Trust Bald Eagle nest in South Carolina. There is no roll back. All I can say is that they appear to be eating well, growing at the right pace, and Mitch seems to have food on the nest for Harriet to feed the wee ones.
If you are in the line of the storms, tsunamis, and heat warning areas of the US or elsewhere, please take care. I will continue to monitor the WRDC nest of Ron and Rita with the hope that the rat did not get sluggy because of rodenticide poisoning. Ervie is on the barge and I will also check in with him and everyone else at the PLO later today. Thank you so much for joining me.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screencaptures: Berry College Bald Eagles, SWFlorida and D Pritchett, KNF Bald Eagle Cam, NEFlorida and the AEF, WRDC, and Hilton Head Island Trust.
As Bald Eagle season quickly approaches, I am reminded that everyone has a few favourite eagle nests. Some like to cheer Jackie and Shadow at Big Bear while others like Harriet and M15 at the Southwest Florida nest or Samson and Gabby at the Northeast Florida nest. Others love Mr and Mrs North at the Decorah Eagles, the Pittsburg-Hayes or the new couple, Anna and Louis, who had the first eagle fledge from a nest in Kisatchie National Forest since 2013, last year. I could list so many because there are so many streaming cams on Bald Eagle nests in the United States. It is their National Bird and there is a lot of patriotism surrounding some of the nests! Some individuals do not like to watch birds eating birds and mammals but, did you know that the diet of the Alaskan Bald Eagles is almost exclusively salmon? the same will apply to many of the Bald Eagles out in British Columbia. Bald Eagles eat what is in front of them; they are opportunists. So the diet will vary regionally. Sadly, they also eat carrion, dead animals, many of which are on the highways and the eagles get hurt or killed flying down to get the food or the remains left from hunters full of lead shot.
I caught up with a few of the Bald Eagle couples recently. Anna and Louis have returned to the nest they used in the Kisatchie National Forest. Cody and Steve have really worked on the camera situation and there is now sound, too. You have a broken screen showing the landscape and then another view looking directly down into the nest. Cody and Steve are part of the forestry staff. They also ‘man’ the chat. I am terribly grateful for their active involvement in the nest. They have worked hard to make it a fabulous viewing and learning experience for all of us. It was a real joy to watch the first time parents figure out how to parent a growing eaglet last year!
Samson and Gabby have been working on their nest for quite some time. It is comforting to wake up in the mornings and see them roosting on the branch together.
I use that word ‘comforting’ because at any moment something could happen to one or both of the adults. That is certainly the history of Samson’s parents, Romeo and Juliet, who raised their young in this nest. So for both of them to show up every morning and every evening is simply – well, it takes a lot of weight off the mind. Of course, the same applies to all birds on all nests.
Here is a very short slide show that someone posted showing various stages of Legacy’s development last year. Legacy was such a sweetheart. Samson and Gabby did not hold back on the teaching. They had to be parents and siblings, too, so that Legacy would learn how to live in the world beyond the nest.
You may also remember all of the worries over Legacy’s survival when she got Avian Pox. It was a mild case and she not only survived but, also thrived. Legacy became a gorgeous strong fledgling.
Harriet and M15 are getting ready for another season. Harriet has been bringing in monstrous size sticks (someone referred to them as logs) to the nest in Fort Myers. I am so excited.
E17 and E18 were riots last year. I originally thought 17 was going to kill 18. You might recall they were sent to CROW for their eye infection and 17 had ‘time out’. I think the two of them in care for those five days melted everyone’s hearts. Harriet and M15 are old hands at raising chicks and when the pair got into too much bonking, both parents stepped in and fed one or the other. By the time the pair fledged, they were inseparable, best buddies.
Lady Hawk catches one of their first ‘rock’em sock’ems’.
Here they are as fledglings battling over a prey drop. There was not a dry eye in the house when these two finally flew away to find their own territory.
Harriet and M15 have been at the nest since September working on it for another year. What a beautiful couple!
If you have been watching the territorial battles going on at the Captiva Nest on Santibel Island in Florida, word has come that the former male adult, Joe, has reclaimed his nest. I cannot confirm this as none of the eagles have leg bands. That is what someone posted on the Bald Eagle 101 FB page.
I will have lots more Bald Eagle news in the days to come. There are also other birds beginning to get their nests ready for breeding season. Jack and Diane have been at the Captiva Osprey Nest in St Petersburg, Florida and the Royal Albatross are arriving at Taiaroa Head, NZ. There are now 80 adults there. One of the founders of the colony was Grandma and this is a lovely video on the importance of her to the present and future of the colony.
A quick check on the Australian falcon nests show that all are doing fine. The Collins Street Four run up and down the gutter. As a result their legs are getting really strong. Diamond continues to get Yurruga to stretch for food so that she will strengthen her neck. At the 12:23:40 fish drop on the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge, Little Bob didn’t think he wanted any food at first. Then he changed his mind and went barreling in between Middle and Big so he could get to Mum’s beak. Neither of them blinked. This nest is so civil! Ringing will take place sometime during the first week of November and one or all three will be fitted with a GPS satellite tracker. (I was told all three awhile ago).
For those who want to see the Season of the Osprey, this is a reminder that it is showing in the US tomorrow. Please check your local stations for the correct time in your region.
Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. Have a great day wherever you are.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: the KNF Bald Eagle Cam, NEFlorida and the AEF, SWFlorida and the Pritchett family, and the Port Lincoln Osprey Project.
