Isn’t she gorgeous? Anyone who has followed this nest will know that this is Iris, the grand dame of Ospreys in the US.
Everyone loves Iris. Many are baffled about her relationship with Louis since her long time mate, Stanley, died. Each of us has an opinion about that relationship with Louis and many long for Iris to have another mate and raise chicks. I have always felt that she earned the right to a summer and a winter holiday.
Dr Erick Greene is one of the lead researchers at the Montana Osprey Project in Missoula, Montana. He has studied the Clarke-Fork River, the heat that is killing the trout, and the decline in the Osprey population. He knows everything there is to know about Iris and more.
Today he posted this message about Iris to help us understand what is driving the situation with her and Louis. Please read it carefully. Dr Greene points out that Louis is not the culprit – humans changing the environment are the issue. Something to think about not only in regard to Iris but also to other Osprey nests in the Pacific NW that suffered from heat last year.
Thank you Dr Greene for taking the time to inform us!
I love this image of Iris taken shortly after she returned from her migration in 2022.
In other Bird World news, Nancy brought in a very large fish to the MN-DNR nest at 11:22 and her and E1 had a good feed! This is a relief.
We continue to hope that Harry is off healing and will return to the nest. How sad for Nancy if her wonderful young mate of two years has been severely injured or killed. Nancy seems to be getting a time to rest. Maybe the intruders are gone. I hope that both her and E1 survive. I know she can handle this if there are no interruptions.
The four Ls at the nest of Big Red and Arthur are exceptional. L4’s eyes are not yet focused and it wound up beaking one of the older siblings who caused it to beak another. It is funny to watch. They do not hurt one another and everything will settle down once the little one, a week younger, gets its eyes clear and can hold its head straight. Meanwhile, Arthur continues to fill the pantry.
It is really hot on the light stand at the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest. The two remaining chicks on the nest are doing great. No problems!
The Decorah North eaglets continue to do well amidst worries in the region of Avian Flu. They are looking really good! This is great news.
All of the eaglets at the West End nest of Thunder and Akecheta on the Channel Islands have been named. 23 D is a male and is named Sky. 24 D is a male and is Ahote meaning ‘restless one’. 25 D is the female and she is Kana’kini. Lovely.
I found this great article that shows you what Dr Sharpe has to undergo to get out to the eagles in Catalina and do the work for them that he does – such as two rescues and banding in a period of ten days recently.
I really hope you enjoy that article about Dr Sharpe. Want top see someone going well beyond for the eagles, Dr Sharpe is your person!
Thank you for joining me today. Take care all. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams or their FB pages where I took my screen captures: Explore.org and the Institute for Wildlife Studies, UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey Cam, Cornell Bird Lab RTH, MN-DNR, the Montana Ospreys FB, and the Montana Osprey Project.
Eggs are starting to hatch in some of the European stork nests as well as the falcon nests in North America and the UK. It is a really exciting time for bird lovers of all species. Even the White-bellied Sea Eagles (WBSE) are starting to work on their nest in Sydney, Australia. I cannot believe how fast time flies – like a falcon!
This morning, 1 May, at the nest of Wilma and Wilfried in Lindheim, Germany, the 5 White Stork eggs began to hatch shortly after dawn. Two hatched right away and a third is pipping. Hopefully, the other two will come quickly also. The previous male at this nest, Wilheim, lived to be 30 years old, disappearing in 2020.
Lindheim is a short distance north and slightly west of Frankfurt.
The countryside is gorgeous.
Here is a link to this streaming cam:
Bukachek and Betty have five White Stork eggs at their nest in Mlade Buky, The Czech Republic, too. Soon there will be storks hatching everywhere! If you travel to Spain and Portugal you will also see storks everywhere- nests on top of all the buildings! I am told that this is true in parts of Poland – . Storks are symbols of joy and the promise of a bright future. No wonder they are looked after so well and welcomed.
Here is the streaming cam for Bukachek and Betty:
At the Black Stork nest of Karl II and Kaia in the Karula Forest in Estonia, Kaia shows Karl II their fourth egg this morning. Karl II is the banded stork with the transmitter. Kaia is so tiny. This is their second season together. Last year there were three hatches and each fledged.
This is the link to Karl II and Kaia’s streaming cam:
The White-tail eaglets in the Tucholskie Forest in Poland had a big feed resulting in huge crops and sound sleep.
This is the link to this camera:
At the Weissenburg Peregrine Falcon nest, three of the four eggs have hatched. The first hatch was on 12 April quickly followed by the second on the 13th and the third on the 14th. The fourth egg was deemed to be non-viable. The chicks will be ringed when they are older.
Oh, a little cuddle puddle.
This is the link to the streaming cam for the falcons:
That is a quick look at some of the nests in Europe that you may or may not be familiar.
Oh, goodness, you want to see little eyases in the US? There are three – one newly hatched – at the Manchester, New Hampshire scrape! So cute…There is one more egg to hatch but it might not. There is no pip. And sometimes only one out of three or four falcon eggs hatch. The smallest wee babe hatched during the early morning hours and is already dry while the others know to hold those pink beaks high and keep them open for food
Here is the link to the falcon streaming cam in Manchester, NH:
There are also two eyases at the falcon scrape in Utica. These two hatched on the 27th of April. You can see how quickly they have grown compared to the wee ones at Manchester. Cute.
Here is the link to the streaming cam at Utica, NY:
It is early morning in Captiva and Middle (Little) is waiting in his tree perch for Andy to bring a fish to the nest. Squint. It is the tree in front of the palm and Middle Little is at 3 o’clock. Just a tiny white dot.
Big Red and Arthur have already had a change in brooding. Gosh, Big Red must get ‘stiff’ hunched over those four wiggly eyases all night.
Just look at Arthur! Lots of people doubted if he would be able to cover all those chicks. Arthur, you look like a pro!
Breakfast for the Ls as the sun rises.
It is raining in many parts of the US and the three eaglets at the Pittsburgh-Hayes nest are positively soaked this morning.
Mum is trying to keep the two at the US Steel Irwin Plant nest dry – but the poor babies aren’t babies anymore!
It looks like it is a little wet at the Dale Hollow Bald Eagle nest where Big and Middle are waiting for breakfast to arrive.
It is raining at the site of the Minnesota DNR Bald Eagle nest of Nancy and ‘missing’ Harry. There is only one eaglet on the nest. Yesterday, E1 shoved E2 off the nest. Its injuries were such that it had to be euthanized.
The male, Harry, disappeared Tuesday evening. On Wednesday, Nancy caught a huge fish and brought it to the nest. Both of the eaglets were full as was Mum. She has, as far as I know, not been able to hunt since then. This means that E1 and Nancy have not eaten since Wednesday. There is an intruder that is stopping Nancy from leaving her eaglet. — This could turn into a very sad situation quickly for all.
Nancy tried to feed her only eaglet from the old bones in the nest yesterday.
She has found something this morning. Wet and continuing sadness, possibly.
The two surviving osplets at the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest are getting their beautiful juvenile feathers. Both are eating and the tension at the nest does not appear to have returned.
If you missed the Ventana Wildlife Society’s Zoom chat a few days ago, they have archived that discussion about the California Condors. They are in the process of rebuilding the ‘pen’ at Big Sur after the Dolan fire two years ago. Redwood Queen has an egg that could hatch any moment and much more news.
This is the latest tracking received on our sweetie pie, Ervie. He made a visit to Boston Island on the 29th! Wow. Ervie still hangs around the hotel and his favourite tree in Port Lincoln most of the time. I wonder how that talon of his is growing and healing? Ervie, if you could pay a visit to the barge we might be able to check! It sure would be nice to see you.
And last for this morning but absolutely never the least – the Peregrine Falcon scrape at The Campanile on the grounds of UC-Berkeley. It is the home of Annie and Alden (and 2 eggs of Grinnell’s). Cal Falcons likes data and they are predicting, from past experience, when Annie’s eggs will hatch.
Now I cannot be there but if you live in the San Francisco area, why not join Sean and Lynne and all the other CalFalcon lovers on 6 May? It looks like fun!
The ground in southern Manitoba is soaked and the water in the rivers continues to climb. Deer are trying to find dry ground, many walking along the railway lines that are slightly higher, in search of a spot and some food. Some communities are completely flooded. So far we have managed to keep the bird seed relatively dry in the garden despite the rain. The migrating birds continue to arrive and this includes the Ospreys that were spotted yesterday.
Our mayor, Brian Bowman, posted some images from inside the floodway yesterday. Some individuals are having trouble with seepage and flooding – I am fine. Thank you for all of your concern but so far, so good! This is a view of our downtown area facing St Boniface, the wonderful French area of our City. That large building is the Human Rights Museum.
@Brian Bowman Mayor’s Office
If I missed your favourite nests, I will try and include them in the next report. Thank you so much for joining me. Take care everyone. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cam and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Cornell Bird Lab RTH, MN-DNR, Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife, Pix Cams, Mayor Brian Bowman FB, DHEC, Cal Falcons, UFlorida-Gainesville Ospreys, Bielik Online Bory Tucholskie, Storchennest Lindheim, Ziva Kamera Mlade Buky, Utica Falcons, Peregrine Networks, Port Lincoln Osprey Project FB, and Eagle Club of Estonia.
The father, Harry, – his second year as a young Dad in 2022 – went missing Tuesday evening. Nancy the Mum hunted and got a huge fish on the nest on Wednesday for E1 and E2 when Harry did not return. Since they were small, E1 had marginalized E2, beaking it, and not allowing it to eat. Three weeks ago, according to my great source “P” who loved that eaglet and watched that nest, E2 was self feeding. Sadly, E1 became more and more aggressive with the absence of Harry and regular food deliveries. On Friday, it tried to push E2 off the nest. Today, it tried again in the morning and was successful in the afternoon. This is siblicide. Nancy has not been able to go and hunt since Wednesday because of the adult eagle intruder in the area. A search party extended 3 miles and did not find Harry. I hope that Harry is only slightly injured and is resting and healing away from the territory and will return like Bella did.
The boots on the ground found E2. He was taken into care.
Sadly, this is the last announcement from the MN-DNR.
He was a vibrant young eaglet with so much promise. Fly high Little One, fly high.
Thank you again to “P” for keeping me constantly informed. I know how much she loves this wee babe.
The youngest eaglet of Harry and Nancy has been located and is being taken into care.
My very reliable eagle source just sent me the following information. Nancy hunted on Wed when Harry didn’t show up. Nancy brought in a monster fish and another later. Both chicks fed and had huge crops. On Thursday there was an adult intruder. Nancy could not go far and yesterday people searching for Harry and intruder. Today, more people by the nest and raining most of the morning. Thank you ‘P’. As we all know the female will protect the chicks if there are avian or human intruders about. Let us hope that the rain stops and they find E2 and the nest can become quiet so Nancy can hunt more. She is perfectly capable like the Decorah Mum in doing so. The search area for Harry extended 3 miles and the team did not find him. This does remind me of Bella when she totally left the area for quiet to heal.
This is excellent news. Thanks as always “P” for keeping me updated.
UPDATE 2: My very reliable eagle source just sent me the following information. Nancy hunted on Wed when Harry didn’t show up. Nancy brought in a monster fish and another later. Both chicks fed and had huge crops. On Thursday there was an adult intruder. Nancy could not go far and yesterday people searching for Harry and intruder. Today, more people by the nest and raining most of the morning. Thank you ‘P’. As we all know the female will protect the chicks if there are avian or human intruders about. Let us hope that the rain stops and they find E2 and the nest can become quiet so Nancy can hunt more. She is perfectly capable like the Decorah Mum in doing so. The search area for Harry extended 3 miles and the team did not find him. This does remind me of Bella.
UPDATE: Terrible turn of events. The youngest eaglet was pushed off of the MN-DNR nest by the eldest. This was a second attempt and it was successful. It is possible that there will be a search for it and for Harry. Meanwhile, Nancy is feeding the eldest.
It is rainy, grey, damp, dreary in the garden this morning but, it could be worse! The rain is not torrential and the wee birds are not scurrying to get under the eaves to hang on to the vines. What a miserable spring ‘welcome home’ they are having!
Bird World news today includes some items from late Friday, also.
As I mentioned yesterday, Harry has been missing from the MN-DNR nest since late Tuesday. Things appear not to be going well. As Paul Kolnik mentioned on Eagles 101 FB page, there is a duck pond right below the nest. I don’t like seeing waterfowl on a nest these days due to H5N1 but it is better than having starving chicks.
Yesterday, the nest was volatile with the biggest trying to push the youngest off the nest. Nancy flew up and saved the day. I remember – was it Ma Decorah – that quickly went into action feeding her eaglets and they thrived and fledged- after the dad went missing. These are older chicks. Nancy can hunt! Get going, Nancy!
Nancy sits in the tree and there are more attacks this morning. The chicks – if they have not eaten since Tuesday – are in dire straits. I use the word ‘if’ because I have not seen a feeding, you might have. #1 continues its attack on #2. These two have had problems all season but now it is entirely worse. This is another form of siblicide – pushing sibling off the nest to their death and of course the attacks.
#2 chick might just want to jump off the nest to save its life. This was also this morning. Nancy is up in the tree. I am shocked if she has not brought food to the nest. Nests can turn on a dime. If you have seen Nancy bring prey, please let me know. TY.
Big Red looked tired last year with the Ks but she looks healthy and energized this year. It must have been a good year for prey for her during the non-breeding season. As ‘W’ put it, Arthur looks like he is in ‘shock’. Add one more eaglet and the work seems to be so much more strenuous. The pantry is full and L4 is eating fine. Big Red will not let her kids go hungry!!!!!!! Right now she needs Arthur because the hawklets are so young. They still have their fuzzy white down and need to be brooded. I giggled. No one thought Arthur could get the hawklets under him – well, he did this morning early when BR took a much needed break.
Arthur looks down at some of the Ls with the same loving eyes as Big Red.
You can still see the crop on the hawklet as Arthur gets up to let Big Red feed the gang —- you will always hear that Big Red does not like her kids to be hungry. She doesn’t. At 19 years old, she knows that to get them to quiet down they have to be full to the brim and then some!
Arthur is a great provider and mate. Big Red really picked a good one when she bonded with Arthur before he even had his red tail.
The nest cup is nice and deep and it is getting more and more fur lined. That would certainly make for not only a warm nest but a comfortable one for Big Red and Arthur. Imagine twisting and turning with babies under you and getting poked by sharp sticks.
L4 is on the left and is being fed.
Full and settled for the moment!
The two hawklets in the Presidio nest in San Francisco are doing great! Both are losing their soft fluffy down. You can see a few dandelions that will be gone soon. The white down on the head seems to be the last thing to change. They will be preening a lot to help with the itch but also they are learning to keep their feathers in tip top condition.
Mark your calendars for May 5-6 which is the hatch watch for Annie, Alden, and Grinnell’s eggs at The Campanile on the grounds of UC-Berkeley.
When Jasper and Rocket were younger, Rocket was the champion for snatch and grab because Jasper was dominant. After fledging – and some time prior – Jasper started getting really good at stealing the prey. After fledging, Jasper continued to perfect this to the detriment of Rocket who might be much more hungry. So yesterday when Rocket got the big fish and ate the entire thing – horking down the tail so we could see it on camera – it simply felt good! Way to go Rocket. Got your mojo back?
Jasper looked on in shock as Rocket grabbed the fish tail and down it went. Jasper really must have believed that Rocket was going to leave her something. No way, not today.
A massive feast landed on the Decorah North Nest of Mr North and Mrs DNF yesterday. Here is a video of that arrival and feeding. Turn down your sound!
Are you a fan of the Finnish Osprey nests? This announcement was posted this morning.
Finnish nest #4. 30 April 2022
Here is the link to Satakunnan #4 streaming cam:
There are 10 Osprey nests in Finland (this is what I was told last year). Here is the female on nest #5.
In the information section on YouTube, you will find the links to all of the cameras that are currently live in Finland. I am including only two here this morning.
Here is the link to Satakunnan Saakset #5:
At the Captiva nest in Florida, Andy has brought in Middle (LittleO’s) lunch.
Middle or Little O is the male of the fledglings. Little or MiniO is the female and Lori Covert, the owner of the property, has observed Little or MiniO diving for their own fish. Isn’t that wonderful? Lori does not know if Little or MiniO, the last to fledge, has been successful with their fishing but she is sure out there perfecting her survival skills.
I know that many watch the Osprey nest in Bremen, Maine. The adults this year are Steve and Calli. Steve brought the breakfast fish and Calli took off with it this morning. No eggs yet.
Here is the link to Steve and Callie’s Osprey cam – especially for those of you that are having withdrawal symptoms from Captiva!
I just wonder how many are watching the UK Osprey nests? I would definitely encourage you. (Unless there are severe weather issues, all of the nests below are excellent! There are many Pacific NW Osprey nests that I do not recommend such as Cowlings PUD, etc). Mary Kerr compiled a listing of the hatch watch dates for several of the nests in the UK. I know that she will not mind my sharing them while at the same time giving her credit for all the math – I did manage a B+ in Advanced Trigonometry in Uni but I can’t add!!!!!!! LOL. Here are those dates:
Manton Bay at Rutland Water: Blue 33 (11) and Maya: 7 May
Loch of the Lowes: Laddie LM12 and Blue NC0: 19 May
Dyfi: Idris and Telyn: 23 May
Glaslyn: Aran and Mrs G: 26 May
Loch Arkaig: Louis and Dorcha: 31 May
At the Pont Cresor nest in Glaslyn, Aeron Z2 and Blue O14 laid their first egg yesterday, 29 April so they are going to be much later than the nests mentioned above. I have said many times ‘why’ I prefer the UK Osprey nests but there really is something good about not allowing humans to have motor boats racing around and fishing – the silence of the lochs and the fish for the birds makes for good conditions. I just hope the nests avoid the terrible storms that have been coming to the UK.
Thank you for joining me today. Take care everyone. Please send your positive wishes to the MN-DNR. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Cornell RTH, Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife, Audubon and Explore.org, Explore.org, Bald Eagles 101, MN-DNR, NEFlorida-AEF, Cal Falcons, Presidio Trust, Ospreys (Pandion haliaetus), and Lounais Suomen Saakset.
In all the flurry of the goslings jumping at Decorah yesterday and the fourth egg hatching for Big Red and Arthur, there was one thing that I missed. Please send your positive wishes to Nancy and the two eaglets on the MN-DNR nest. Sadly, Harry has been missing since Tuesday evening, the 26th.
The two eaglets are old enough for Nancy to go out hunting. No doubt she will take care of them and her. Harry was such a fantastic mate. This is very, very sad news.
Everything is going great at the nest of Big Red and Arthur. Big Red is such a fantastic mother. She has them all lined up to eat and she knows to get L1 fed full so it goes to sleep and the three others can eat. They are all doing well and Arthur has the larder packed with prey.
They are adorable. Big Red brought the greenery in this morning. The needles and the bark have oils and vapors that discourage the growth of fungal spores. They also retard bacteria growth and repel insects. Big Red and Arthur tend to get their greenery from Hemlock, White Pine, and Cypress while hawks in other areas, such as the West, select Juniper and Douglas Fir.
The blood on the back of the wee one is from prey. It is not injured!
Precious. They hatched on the 21, 24, 25, and 28 of April.
Here is news from Winnipeg. Isn’t she gorgeous? This is Ella and Dennis Swayze – an excellent wildlife photographer – caught this image of her and posted it giving us an update on Ella’s scrape. We have four eggs! I will be posting the link to the streaming cam as soon as it is live.
Out of habit and concern, I continue to check the West End nest of Thunder and Akecheta and the Two Harbours nest of Chase and Cholyn to make sure all of the eaglets are present.
There is Chase with TH1 today. That bush blew in and will probably leave when gusts arrive. The baby is fine from its fall. Hungry and growing and losing the few dandelions that were on its head.
All three eaglets are at home with Thunder this afternoon. Hopefully they will all stay on top of that cliff nest until it is time to fledge.
I am not 100% certain but I believe it was Middle that got the fish. He saw the adult coming and immediately was ready to mantle the delivery! Good work. Big looked on from where she was perched on the nest rim.
The eaglet was quick – hungry! Notice the crop on the eaglet perched on the rim of the nest. You can see that crop better – and how big it is – in the second image below.
That was a great mantling job!!!!!!!
Middle is really going to enjoy that fish.
Why do I think it is Middle? Middle never stops chirping when it is eating. Everything looks fine at Dale Hollow.
There is still a bit more of a white terminal band on Middle – not really a band as in hawks and falcons – but enough of a white ruffle to still identify.
There are three eaglets at the Notre Dame St Patrick’s County Park nest in South Bend, Indiana. ND15 is the oldest. ND16 is one day younger than ND15. ND17 is 5 days younger than ND15. So there is a span of five days between the oldest and the youngest. So far they have had a squirrel and a turtle today.
Little Bob is sound asleep with a really nice crop!
Here is a link to their streaming cam:
Still having eaglet withdrawal, there is also the Decorah North nest of Mr North and Mrs DNF. The eaglets are approximately one month old and cute as buttons! Are buttons cute? Who started that saying?
Here is the link to the Decorah North camera:
It is really hot on the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest today. The two osplets had crops early on but I cannot rewind the camera to find the time of the feeding. It appears that they would very much like more fish brought in!
You can see the filled crop squish out at the side as the osplet presses against the twig.
Trying to stay cool.
They sure can make one nervous hanging over the edge of that nest like that!
Today, there are two nestlings at the Osprey nest of Jack and Harriet in King William, Virginia. Congratulations!
Something to put a smile on your face for a Friday. The smallest at Pittsburgh-Hays has discovered ‘the Quarterback Sneak’. Look at it grab those bites between Mum’s legs!
Lori Covert has been watching Andy and Lena and Middle (LittleO) and Little (MiniO). Andy brought a fish to the nest for Middle (Little O). Little or MiniO was seen right on Andy’s tail by Lori when he was diving. He made the dive about 10 ft or 2.5 metres from her kayak!!!!!!! What luck. He subsequently got a fish for Little or MiniO. Both kids fed. Everyone is OK at Captiva. Fantastic.
This is how Lori described it: “And MiniO was literally right on his tail feathers for the whole dive! Afterward they circled around for a couple of minutes then MiniO went back to the perch and Andy delivered the fish to LittleO.”
An article from The Smithsonian Magazine on H5N1 Avian Flu:
Thank you so much for joining me this evening. Take care everyone. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams, FB pages or Twitter feeds where I took my screen captures: MN-DNR, Cornell RTH, MB Birding, Explore.org, DHEC, ND-LEEF, UF-G Ospreys, Dahlgren Ospreys, Pix Cams, and Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife.
How many weekends have I mentioned that southern Manitoba would be having a weather event? Well, this has to be the 3rd or 4th. Keeping track of them might make me miserable. But yes, we will have another 50mm of precipitation starting late Friday evening and into Saturday. Is it possible we will go straight from winter to summer? Spring and fall seem to be getting eliminated.
Well, let us start with the sad and end with something nicer.
Mother Goose got her 5 babies down from the eagle nest in Decorah, Iowa on the second try. The 6th egg was non-viable and the 5th gosling had only hatched the night before. It was not yet 24 hours old as I understand it.
Three of the goslings were with the parents and a volunteer with the Raptor Research Project found the fourth immediately. Mother and Father Goose called and looked for the 5th baby as did boots on the ground. Sadly, it was found deceased. The remaining four are very healthy and let us wish them a good life.
My friend ‘R’ in Pennsylvania sent me a copy of a poster. Thank you, ‘R’. The more we know, the better equipped we are to deal with situations. This is particularly geared to backyard poultry. As all of you are aware, the H5N1 strain of the Avian Flu is taking its toll on waterfowl and raptors that eat bird. Many have ‘free range’ flocks that sell eggs from chickens and ducks that are allowed to roam free. You might know of someone who could benefit from this information from the PA State Department of Agriculture.
Intruders. The birds in the SF Bay area have been having a lot of intruders – many of them lethal. Richmond and Rosie can hardly take a breath without someone, many times another Osprey, coming to their nest where they are incubating three eggs!
Oh, the female eaglet of Thunder and Akecheta has the most beautiful name. Kana’kini. My possibly poor translation is kana – powerful, and kini is beautiful and gorgeous. If that is correct it fits well with this very stunning powerful female eaglet.
Kana’kini certainly has big powerful legs. Get out the worry beads. She is jumping and flapping on the nest! But I want you to look at the small male to the right. Look at that crop! Apparently it is crab that Thunder brought to the nest. Just look at that!
Big Red is another gorgeous powerful female. I cannot explain it but the last time I checked L4 was still working away at hatching. The time of the first pip had to not so accurate???? Even if L4 does not hatch, just look at our Red-tail Hawk Mama gazing lovingly down at one of the Ls.
It was such a relief yesterday for Lori Covert to confirm that both of the fledglings of the Captiva Osprey nest are alive, flying with their parents, and obviously being fed. Little or MiniO is getting food off camera and well, ‘Lena’s boy’ Middle or LittleO loves to eat at the nest.
TH1 is in the Two Harbours nest tonight! Do you always check, too? Those railings that Dr Sharpe and his volunteers brought and fixed continue to keep the wee one end. It will not be long until Dr Sharpe is back up to the nest banding Chase and Cholyn’s only baby.
It looks like Harry and Nancy at the MN-DNR eagle nest are doing some branching demonstrations for the two big eaglets.
Lady Hawk did a great video of Harriet and M15’s E19 and E20 playing down at the pond yesterday. Oh, they are beautiful strong eaglets.
Port Lincoln has been cleaning up the barge with the Osprey’s nest getting it ready for the 2022 season for Mum and Dad. There is also a new sign for all those people who feel entitled to distress the raptors.
So far, so good with all the nests. Be sure to make a note that 5-6 of May (that is next week) is hatch watch for Annie, Alden, and Grinnell at the CalFalcons scrape. Tomorrow I hope to check on some of the European Osprey and eagle nests.
Take care everyone. Thanks so much for joining me. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Explore.org, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Cornell Bird Lab RTH, Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife, and MN-DNR.
It is Thursday but, for some reason, it feels like Saturday. I could not possibly tell you why. Does this ever happen to you? It has also been quite a number of hours waiting. Waiting for the goslings Mum to take the leap and them to follow at Decorah and waiting for L4 at Big Red and Arthur’s nest on the Cornell Campus.
It is nearing 08:30 Saturday morning in Decorah, Iowa. The precipitation that was falling earlier appears to have stopped. One little gosling was thirsty and drank the drops on Mother Goose’s feathers – and so did Mother Goose. How long has she been on the nest without getting off? 48 hours? She must be hungry and very thirsty since she has not been able to leave since the wee ones began hatching. It is quite windy. Will that impact the timing for leaving the nest?
They are certainly squiggly and – well, curious little ones. Adorable.
Mother Goose’s body and system of wings and tail opening and lowering reminds me of one of those big cargo planes where they raise the tail up and lower a ramp. Did they look at a goose for the design?
Watching and listening for her Mate.
It is 10:46 in Decorah. Mother Goose continues to look and listen for the ‘Go’ sign. I wonder how much those wind gusts impact the decision? There are five, BTW, goslings. It appears the sixth egg has not hatched.
There are 1878 people watching and waiting the Decorah Mother Goose nest. Splendid. It is a joyful change. Those fuzzy little yellow goslings with the black legs and webbed feet, black bill, and black dot on their head and back are darlings. They are also precocial. They hatch with down, can walk and swim, and can feed themselves. They will stay to learn from Mum and Dad and for safety.
The first time it didn’t work. Mother Goose jumped down at 12:02 CDT but the goslings did not follow. Mother and Father Goose called and called. It was windy. So, Mum returned, gathered up the kids and got them warm and waited for a bit. Then she tried it again! This time everything went perfectly. She hesitated at the spot where she was jumping so the goslings would see and follow her from there.
This time they seem to be paying more attention to what Mum is doing.
Gosh they are cute.
At first, we held our breath. Only three???
The parents were calling and looking for the other two.
Four of the goslings are with the parents. One is missing in the tall grass. There are volunteers from Raptor Resource Project on the ground helping to find the baby. There is lots of grass for it to eat and water. It is just a matter of time til all are together. It was a beautiful nest to watch.
Thank you to the person who did the video of the goslings getting down. Notice that the Sparrow and the Starling come in to get some of that nice fluffy down for their nests.
There are the four. The parents are hanging around. With them and the boots on the ground, I am really hopeful that the youngest gosling will be reunited with its family shortly. It hatched last night and is 24 hours younger than the other siblings.
One woman said that this is more nerve-wrecking than watching an eaglet fledge. Yes, it truly is! Especially when you think they will get caught in the twigs on the nest trying to get down.
We are waiting for L4. There may have been a pip on the 25th of April at 0655 but this is still only a possibility. The little one is still hammering away. Because so many people watch the eagle and osprey nests, it is worrying when you realize that there will be a week’s difference between L1 and L4. Falcon and hawk nestlings are not like eagle and ospreys. Yes, they appear to be ‘beaking’ but it is because their eyesight has not cleared and every black beak with pink inside – just like Big Red – is a potential food source. The experts have said there should not be any worries as long as there is lots of food. That said, this is the first time Big Red has had 4 eggs. So we wait. Hopefully that hatch will occur today.
Big Red likes to keep her kids full to the brim and Arthur is an excellent hunter. There is a pile of prey on the nest already and apparently there are lots of squirrels and chipmunks, voles, etc in the Finger Lakes area this year.
Progress. I sure hope that L4 doesn’t tire itself out getting out. It happens.
The first osplet has hatched at the Dahlgren Osprey Nest for Jack and Harriet at 22:06:43 on the 27th of April (yesterday). Their nest is located at the mouth of the Machodoc Creek in King George, Virginia. Thankfully many of the toys that Jack brings in have found themselves either blown off the nest or moved to the edges so that they do not harm the wee babies.
Jack brought in a nice fish. Harriet would much rather have a fish than have a toy! It is hard to see but the chick is in that deep egg cup. The first feeding of the wee one happened around 10:00 Thursday the 28th.
If you are looking for more Osprey nests to watch or want to check out a new one, here is a good resource with a description of each nest and a link:
Ospreys come to Canada near the end of April or early May for breeding. One of our national news casters covered the arrival of the couple at Dartmouth, Nova Scotia named Oscar and Ethel.
I am looking forward to the flood waters subsiding and travelling on some of the rural roads to check on the Osprey nests in Manitoba.
At the Osprey nest in Lyn Brenig, Wales, LM6 and LD2 have their second egg of the season. Oh, bless their hearts that they returned. The community worked so hard to get a new platform up where their old nest had been when it was chainsawed down last year. There was no promise that they would return but, now – wow. Two eggs with the promise of a third probably.
This is the link to the Lyn Brenig streaming cam:
We are about a week away from the hatch at The Campanile. Alden has been a terrific mate. Him and Rosie seem to be working – as my mother would have said, ‘like a well oiled clock’. Here they are changing incubation duties.
Life seems to be good in Bird World. I did a quick check on all the nests and even the ones that have eaten duck seem to be alright. What an exciting day with those goslings finally getting off the eagle’s nest and down into the water. They are so adorable. I will now turn my attention to Big Red and L4 while I continue reading that amazing book, The Eagle Man about the life of Charles Broly. It is excellent. What is surprising, so far, is that many of the concerns that the Broly’s had in the early 1950s still seem to be prevalent today. One day I hope to get around to writing a review for all of you. If you see a copy, grab it. I would not have thought a book about eagles and eagle banding would be a page turner but it is.
Thank you so much for joining me today. Take care everyone. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for the streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Explore.org, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Dahlgren Osprey Cam, Lyn Brenig Osprey Cam, and Cal Falcons.
Yesterday Dr Sharpe rescued Chase and Cholyn’s only eaglet from the side of the cliff face.
Today, Lori Covert, the owner of the property which is home to the Captiva Osprey and Bald Eagles nests saw the entire family flying in the mangroves. Yes! The entire family: Andy, Lena, Middle (or LittleO) and Little (or MiniO). What a relief to know that Little MiniO is fine and well and being cared for and with the parents!
Middle of LittleO flew up to the nest for some fish and this finding means that Andy is finding fish for Little or MiniO and feeding her off nest. Fantastic news.
More good news comes from Wales. Last year someone with a chain saw cut down the platform that LJ2 and LM6 were using for their nest. It was traumatic that they did not have chicks last year. A new platform has been erected and the pair have laid their first egg this morning at 08:24. And, yes, there is heightened security at the site this year.
‘B’ sent me a video that is a recap of the season so far at the Cal Falcon nest. You might want to have a look. Even though it is hard, it is wonderful to be able to see and remember Grinnell.
The two eyases at the Anacapa Peregrine cliff scrape are doing fantastic, too.
Here is a link to that cam:
There are at least four goslings, perhaps five, now at the Decorah Mother Goose nest. Everyone is anxious for Mum to fly down and the goslings to join her. There is at least one more egg to hatch and she may wait to see if it will hatch. There are also wind gusts at the site.
She is very patient with that little one.
Each one of the triplets is accounted for on the West End nest. They have been wingersizing in the afternoon and I just checked and they are all home. Relief.
There was a shift change at the Cornell Red tail hawk nest of Big Red and Arthur.
That gave us a chance to see the three Ls and to check on the hatch of L4. You can clearly see the egg tooth working away. And it was moving so the chick is alive. I understand that part of the shell as fallen in on itself. Big Red may do her famous rolling trick to help it once it gets closer to hatch.
The pantry is well stocked. Arthur has been very busy.
Everyone go awwwwwwah. Arthur is so cute and he does just fine brooding the babies. He loves to look after them!
The eaglets at the MN-DNR are alive and the leaves and tree are swaying in the wind. The camera had frozen this morning.
The two eagles at the Dale Hollow nest are also doing just fine. They are sure interested in the world beyond the nest!
That is a quick rap of the good news on the nests today. Thank you so much for joining me. Remember to head over to the Decorah Eagle nest to see the fun with the Canada Goose and her goslings! Take care. See you soon.
Thanks to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Explore.org, Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife, Cornell RTH, DHEC, and MN-DNR.
There is lots of Bird World news but the most important is what is currently happening on the side of a cliff face in the Channel Islands.
Cholyn flew off the Two Harbours nest around 14:32 and the wee eaglet caught on to her talon and was tossed. It is clinging to the edge of the cliff.
Here is the link to that camera. Dr Sharpe and the staff at the IWS are aware of the situation.
I am a supporter of the Kakapo Recovery in New Zealand. The effort put into caring for these flightless parrots and trying to ensure that they do not go extinct is simply more than incredible. However, I had no idea that there was a streaming cam showing Rakiura and her two foster chicks on Whenua Hou Island. Here is that link:
A short while ago, Mrs G, the oldest Osprey in the UK laid her 60th egg – the third for what we hope is the complete clutch for her and Aran at the Glaslyn nest in Wales. The time was 21:44.
Sad news has come to me from ‘B’ who saw an article about Avian Flu and the death of a Peregrine Mum who was incubating eggs in Omaha – another case in the Midwest corridor. Here is the link to the story of this scrape on the Woodmen Life Tower. ‘B’ did some further searching and discovered that there had been an outbreak of Avian Flu at a local poultry farm in the area a couple of weeks prior to this death. This is terrible news.
For those of you following the Denton Homes nest in Iowa, you will know that the three nestlings died. It appears that the adult female at the nest has consumed at least one of the carcasses. (The bodies were not removed for testing. It is unclear to me why if the H5N1 spreads so easily they would not have at least been removed and disposed of properly to stop the spread).
The fourth egg at the nest of Big Red and Arthur had a pip yesterday late. There is no word on its progress today. Big Red got up for a break and – wow – let Arthur come and incubate the kids. He also did some allo-preening of one of the chicks. Allo-preening helps remove bits and bobs of material on another bird – it gentle and often, if you watch the Royal Albatross looks very soothing. When birds clean their own feathers it is called preening.
Arthur looks so comfortable taking care of the Ls. Hopefully Big Red will let him do this more often.
It is a good thing they have been working on the rails!
Cornell posted a short video of the wee ones tussling. The hawks and falcons cannot see well when they hatch and every beak is a potential for food. This behaviour will stop in about a week. Just relax and giggle.
Both of Nancy and Harry’s eaglets at the MN-DNR appear to be alright today.
All eaglets up and accounted for at the West End nest of Thunder and Akecheta.
I did not get to check every nest like I wanted to this afternoon and I must leave for a bit. I am going to close with a really important posting from A Place Called Hope. This stuff needs to be taken off the market!
One of the wildlife rehab clinics that I really respect in the US has posted a warning that I want to share with you. Please read the information so that you can pass this on to anyone who might be using this product. Your domestic pets and the raptors will thank you!
I am, at this time, not aware of any other issues other than the chick at the side of the cliff at Two Harbours. The Bald Eagles cannot rescue the chick themselves. This would be up to Dr Sharpe and his team like the rescue of the youngest eaglet at The West End a little over a week ago. The two ospreys at the UFlorida-Gainesville nest appear to have stopped the rivalry and when I have checked both have eaten fine. If the 4th egg of Big Red is to hatch we will know by tomorrow morning. Personally I would prefer 3!
Take care everyone. Send uplifting positive energy to that wee babe on the side of the cliff at Two Harbours. Thank you for joining me today. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cam and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: A Place Called Hope, Cornell Bird Lab RTH, Explore.org, and the MN-DNR.
