Tag Archives: Cal Falcons

Big Red and Arthur nest building, 3D legs for geese, Ravens eat Shadow and Jackie’s eggs…Wednesday in Bird World

8 March 2023

Good Morning Everyone,

I hope that your week is going well! We have been sent back into the deep freeze. This morning it was -21 C. It is -12 C now, with the promise of much warmer weather at the weekend. Yippeee. When it is really cold, I keep the door to the conservatory closed. Missy and Lewis do not like it these days! They stand and stare but quickly settle into the other living area with nice windows looking out to the birds. Lewis has taken a keen interest in them as of late. It is nice to see both kittens enjoying the out-of-doors safely indoors!

We are going to start with Jackie and Shadow. It is terrific that Ravens ate the two eggs of our beloved couple. I have never said that before! The Ravens arrived at the Big Bear nest at 15:01. They were cautious, looking out for the eagle pair and then getting busy consuming the eggs. Jackie and Shadow can move forward. I have used, and so have many others, the term ‘second clutch’ about the Big Bear nest, but that is the wrong term. The appropriate wording is ‘replacement clutch’ about when the first clutch of eggs is non-viable or lost to predators. At least when they return to the nest, the eggs will be gone. Jackie and Shadow will have closure. Thanks, ‘B’ for letting me know about this!

Jackie and Shadow are going to be on television. Here is the information if you get CBS.

There are currently 2 eggs at the Two Harbours nest of Chase & Cholyn, 1 egg at Sauces with Jak and Audacity (please keep sending best wishes to them), and three eggs at Bald Canyon. I have had no news or seen anything about the Fraser Point nest of Andor & Cruz (they are showing highlights). For those anxious to discover what is happening with Thunder and Akecheta’s nest, Dr Sharpe is travelling to the area at the weekend and will send out a report confirming if there are eggs.

This has just been posted from the IWS Tuesday late.

Akecheta shows up at the old West End nest site where three eaglets fledged last year. Time is 11:31 on the 7th of March.

He was still there at 12:11 enjoying the sun and the view.

Bald Canyon Eggs. Three always make me nervous. Two eaglets are a handful. It is difficult to image the resources and feedings required for three in comparison.

Cholyn at Two Harbours incubating her two eggs. I believe she is 25 years old this year.

Some of the best news is that Jak and Audacity’s seventh egg is still in tact. Today is day 9.

The Channel Islands Bald Eagles are part of a reintroduction project by the Institute for Wildlife Studies. Most of us know Dr Sharpe and his team from the intervention efforts at three of the nests during the 2022 breeding season: eaglet rescue at West End, eaglet rescue at Two Harbours, and Victor removed to rehab from the Fraser Point nest.

You might not know the history of DDT on the Channel Islands. Here is an introductory excerpt from the IWS website:

Bald eagles were present on the Channel Islands until the mid-1950s or early 1960s, but no successful nesting activity was known. The reasons for the decline and eventual disappearance of bald eagles on the Channel Islands are not completely understood. Possible causes include shooting, egg collecting, nest destruction, poisoning, removal of young from nests, and nest disturbance (Kiff 1980). The most likely cause of population declines, however, was the production and use of the industrial pesticide DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-trichloro ethane). Between 1947 and 1961 an estimated 37 to 53 million liters of DDT-contaminated acid sludge, containing 348-696 metric tons of DDT, were disposed of in an ocean dump site 16 km northwest of Catalina Island. In addition, it was estimated that another 1800 metric tons of DDT were discharged from the Joint Water Pollution Control Plant outfall, 3.3 km offshore of Palos Verdes Peninsula (Chartrand et al. 1985). The introduction of DDT into the Santa Monica Basin marine ecosystem was implicated in the decline of two other piscivorous bird populations on the Channel Islands, the brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) and the double-crested cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) (Risebrough et al. 1971, Gress et al. 1973). These declines coincided with the decline of bald eagles as a breeding species on the Channel Islands.

I have mentioned it before, but DDT was also sprayed on Big Bear Lake. The toll this believed to be harmless insecticide wrought on all wildlife is unbelievable and ongoing.

Here are the links to all of the Channel Islands cameras including the falcons.

We are three days away from pip watch at the WRDC nest of Ron and Rose in Miami. It is hot at the nest! 86 degrees F. Oh, goodness. We will get to see how eaglets do in the heat. You have observed them when it is cold and snowy.

Pepe and Muhlady have had a wonderful year. Tico and Pearl were on the nest Tuesday at 15:10, having some fish. They are observed flying around the area. Excellent.

On Tuesday, M15 had to contend with an intruder who even entered the nest. Still, he brought in 3 fish, and two prey items – an odd bit of something and a road kill possum. M15 is a constant observer – either in the nest or on the branch – of how the eaglets are doing with their self-feeding. Each of us must be smiling from ear to ear. We all have favourites every year, and 22 has certainly won over the hearts and minds of so many. No longer submissive and cowering but strong and surviving.

Mid-afternoon, Dad brings in a fish and feeds the other eaglet the rest of the road kill.

At 1646, Dad is in the nest cleaning up some of the tidbits that would attract predators and feeding the eaglets their final meal for the day (presumably). E22 is right up there snatching and grabbing that old possum!

Good Night SW Florida. Where is R23-3? Am I missing something?

The two eaglets at Duke Farms each ate well on Tuesday. They are sure growing! Fuzzy little ones with big crops.

In Louisiana, KNF-E1-03, Trey, was almost hit by a falling perch branch!

At the nest of Big Red and Arthur, Arthur flew into the nest early (0626) with more greenery. He checked out the nest bowl and off he went!

Big Red was in later inspecting everything that Arthur did just to make sure it is perfect.

The snow is starting to fall on the nest of our adorable Red-tail Hawks Tuesday evening. It is -1 C with 25 kph winds. Very windy!

The osplets at Mooring Park in Naples, Florida appear to be doing quite well.

Mum Sally needed a quick early morning break.

After the osplets hatch, the Mom stays in the nest most of the time. That said, she does take breaks, and, at this nest, Dad can be seen relieving her so she can have a stretch and a relaxation break. Still, his primary role is food delivery – ‘Daddy Door Dash’ and security. Alan Poole reminds us that the number of fish deliveries doubles and triples in the first 20 days after hatch. This is a rapid growth period.

Ospreys are semi-precocial. This means that they are not as developed as ducks or chickens who, after 24 hours, can walk, are covered with feathers, and feed themselves. Ducks and chickens are precocial. On the other hand, Songbirds are born altricial –naked and require complete care. Osplets are in between. They need their parents to feed them. They cannot regulate their temperature until they are 2 to 3 weeks old.

In terms of growth, osplets should “triple their body weight in the first eight days after hatch and then double that again in the next four days”, according to Poole. By the time they are a month old, they will be 70-80% of their adult size if all has gone well.

The GHOs in Corona, California are growing. That nest is getting tight. All four are doing well. The fourth hatch – about a 1/4 of the size of the oldest – has had some personal feedings.

We all knew it…just from the size, but it has now been confirmed. Sweet Pea or South Plateau Royal Cam chick is a male! A little boy. So nice for a change.

Making News:

We have seen 3-D printers make beaks for eagles and bits and bobs for humans, but, we have been waiting for legs. Now, when will we see these on an eagle? Surely they can use their mind to clinch the toes and talons, right?

Each of us wants to know what happens when one of the birds fledges. This is especially true when they have had a tragedy, such as ND17, when it fell from the collapsing nest. In the UK, at Balgavies Lach, Blue 640, known as The Bairn, did just that – fell out of a collapsing tree, too. That juvenile was spotted in Senegal! It survived its first migration. This is the reason for a huge celebration.

Now this is exciting!

Do you live near enough to the Audubon Centre of Prey in Maitland, Florida, to go for a celebration of baby owls? Oh, it looks like fun! What a great way to get items needed for the rehabilitation of our raptors.

The Cal Falcons t-shirt and hoodie fundraiser has begun for 2023. This design is fantastic, and on Wednesday, 8 March, if Annie is on time, she will lay her 3rd egg around 1600 scrape time.

To look at the options in colour and style, head off to: https://www.customink.com/fundraising/campanile-falcons23 The proceeds go to Cal Falcons not into a generic fundraising at Berkeley.

The Institute of Wildlife Studies (Dr Sharpe) is having their annual fundraiser, also.

Wisdom, the oldest living banded albatross in the world (early 70s) is a grandmother again!

Thank you so very much for being with me today. Keep an eye on Annie and Lou’s scrape and, of course, the WRDC nest of Ron and Rose as pip watch approaches. Take care all. See you soon.

Thank you so much to the following for their notes, posts, tweets, videos, and streaming cams that make up my blog today: ‘B’, ‘H’, FOBBV, Jana Maria Johnson Jamar and FOBBV, IWS, IWS and Explore.org, Jann Gallivan and CIEL, WRDC, Superbeaks, SW Florida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Duke Farms, Tonya and KNF-E1, Cornell RTH, Moorings Park Ospreys, Corona California Owl Cam, Sharon Dunne and the Royal Cam Albatross Group NZ, David Attenborough Fans, Ospreys, The Telegraph, Audubon Centre for Birds of Prey, Cal Falsons, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatross and Petrels.

1 owlet for Bonnie and Clyde, Intruder at SW Florida, Beaking at Duke Farms…Tuesday in Bird World

7 March 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

I hope that the beginning of the week started well for you. We are so happy to have you with us today. There is just too much going on at the nests! Osprey cams are coming online because the ospreys are arriving in the US! The eagles have returned to their nest in Glacier Gardens in Alaska, eggs are being laid, and it is getting hard to remember everything that is going on. And, yes, the beaking has started at Duke Farms for no reason other than dominance. This behaviour will probably start at Moorings Park, too. Just hold your breath.

Monday was an interesting one with the kittens. Missy and Lewis have shown that they have a keen interest in ‘things’ in packets. Missy loves savoury Japanese snacks. Lewis will eat anything, and I mean anything, but he is especially fond of sweet things such as Japanese strawberry-filled crepes. Lewis will carry the little packets away while Missy is the ‘opener’. She would be great at unzipping fish for the Es. Today, a small pack of Madelines was on the island. Madeleines are delicate cakes that are the size of a cookie and in the shape of a shell. The French bakeries in my City make delicious ones. They were meant to go with Monday night’s after-dinner coffee. At 1900 the Madelines were nowhere to be found. Did I put them up, and did I forget? A thorough look in all of the drawers and cupboards turned up nothing.

Missey: ‘I didn’t take the cookies!’ [Any Mum who believes that has her head stuck in the sand!!!!!!]. Just look at that sweet face.

Lewis is now in a ‘cookie coma’.

It took ages to find the cookie packet! With Lewis practising opening doors, it seems the only safe place for any bags of treats – human or feline – is up high under lock and key!

Lewis did get another cupboard door open, too. Inside was a small vase with a handful of Canada Geese feathers picked up at the park over the summer when the geese were moulting. He was running all over the house and having such a time! Sort of playing ‘hockey’ with that feather batting it around. Such energy and agility.

Oops!

Next to boxes with paper wrapping or paper bags (cut the handles), the feathers proved to be great toys.

Lewis is often a very bad influence on Missy! He is not afraid of anything, and his battery never dies. Some of the cell phone companies should find out what his secret is! (He seriously makes me tired just watching him most days).

Missy waits for Lewis to get the paper out of the box. They will play with it for hours.

What joy these two rescue babies have brought. I cannot imagine life without them!

In the Mailbox:

‘N’ writes: Are ospreys born blind? I just saw this on a chat.

Oh, thanks, ‘N’ for sending in that question. Ironically, I saw that and a few other statements on a streaming chat today, too, and was puzzled by it. The leading authority on Ospreys in the US is Alan Poole.

The chicks are born with a furry down that is tan in colour with the distinctive black stripe down the back and the dark eye line to help them with the glare. This is not down as we think of it but it is “actually made up of feathers, simple unbranched feathers” (Poole, 97) – forming what looks like a fuzzy appearance. This helps them regulate their temperature. Now this is the important part to the answer of your question and I want to quote Poole. “Osprey hatchlings are known as ‘semi-precocial’ which means they are a step back in the development from the precocial young of chickens or ducks” (98). “Osprey hatchlings are a step ahead of their altricial young of songbirds, which are born largely naked and barely able to move much of anything beyond their heads or necks to beg for food.”

Two key terms are the thrust of the answer to the question. Precocial. The goslings and ducklings jump out of the nest after 24 hours and can care for themselves. They walk and feed. They turn to their parents for warmth and security. Altrial hatchlings are entirely dependent on their parents. So, what about Ospreys? Well, they are in the middle. They are not born blind like owlets. [A 2010 article from the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey says they are “born semi-altricial, or blind, feathered, and completely helpless.”] It does take a few days for their eyes to focus completely, but they are semi-Precocial, not semi-altricial. This is the bobblehead phase. They see a ‘beak’ and think of food. It could be their sibling!

Ospreys do not normally leave fish in the nest because it attracts predators or intruders. Normally the female will feed the begging chicks before she feeds herself. The new hatchlings can eat 10 small meals a day, the female taking the fish down to the open beak of the osplet.

Here is a good talk by Poole about Ospreys on YouTube. You can watch it in chunks:

If you are looking for a really good book with great images of the behaviours and development of Ospreys, I recommend Alan Poole’s book, Ospreys. The Revival of a Global Raptor. It also includes a section on threats and solutions. It is currently priced at $54 CDN or about $40 US on Amazon. You can also check any of the used book sellers, such as Abe Books or Thrift Books. I have this one and his earlier addition and both were purchased used.

There are many good volumes on Ospreys and over the course of the nest month I will be mentioning my favourites from the UK. Osprey season is starting – learn as much as you can!

At the Nests:

At the KNF-E3 nest, Nugget has branched at 67 days old! Congratulations everyone. Way to go Nugget.

At the nest of Connie and Clive, Connick is perching (standing on the rim of the nest like E21 and 22 at SW Florida).

I love the hatchling ospreys. However, those two little fluff balls at Duke Farms are adorable. However, the beaking has started. Thankfully, they are both about the same size, and hopefully, all of this will end soon.

Fan of Liberty and Freedom at Glacier Gardens in Alaska? Well, the streaming cam is back on early because the beloved couple was on the nest together on Monday.

Here is the link to their cam:

https://www.youtube.com/live/zukDc5a9_RE?feature=share

And guess what? the Ospreys are back at Dahlgren!!!!!! Oh, I wonder how many stuffies will land on the nest with Jack and Harriet this year?

Here is a video that HeidiMc did of the afternoon feedings at the Moorings Park Osprey nest. Sally sure does love her fish! Notice that the chicks are not yet screaming for food when she is eating! Their necks will get stronger, so they do not flop around. They need to hold their heads steady and have those beaks wide open. Otherwise, Mum does not think they are hungry!

The beak that is open is going to get the fish.

Wow, what a Dad. Harry brought in a late fish for Sally and the Bobs. Time 20:09. The Bobs were hungry. Just fantastic.

Turn around little ones!

The first GHO owlet hatched around 05:44 at the nest of Bonnie and Clyde on Farmer Derek’s property in Kansas. Apparently, the name already chosen is Butch Cassidy. After the event, Bonnie and Clyde were vocalising loudly, and Clyde flew to the nest tree.

Clyde is directly below Bonnie on another branch.

The voting has begun for the Corona Owlets of Owlvira and Hoots. If you go to the YouTube live cam page for the Corona Owls, click on the tab at the top to vote. The names have been organised in groups of four possible choices, with ‘Peanut’ appearing multiple times!

M15 brought in a squirrel and 2 fish to the SW Florida nest today despite the presence of a sub-adult at the nest tree. Doing good, Dad.

This was the 16:14 fish that M15 dropped and flew. Those eaglets are quick and it was a scramble. At one point, each appeared to have a piece of fish.

E21 and 22 are perching and working their wings (21 more than 22 with the wings).

M15 appears to have been alone all day. No sightings of R23-3. Everyone is wondering where she is. Does her absence have anything to do with the intruder? This morning, a posting from SW Florida indicated three eagles around the property yesterday. I presume it was M15; we know the sub-adult and, most likely, R23-3.

Good Night, Dad. You are amazing. Your kids are perching and flapping. Today 21 is 60 days old, and 22 is 58 days old. It is hard to imagine that they could take their first flights in less than three weeks. You have put us all to shame because we doubted you…no one will ever forget your great efforts. When someone asks: can a single parent Bald Eagle raise one-month-old eaglets on their own? The answer will be, ‘Of course, M15 did it!’ *

Question: Who (or what) is on the branch below towards the road?

The IR seems to be picking up two figures on the other cam. I do not believe it is R23-3. She would most likely be on the same branch close to M15.

Annie and Lou are taking turns incubating the eggs at The Campanile on the campus of UC-Berkeley. Looks like a bit of delayed incubation. Will we see a third egg on Wednesday?

At the nest of Big Red and Arthur, something caused Dad to work frantically on the nest today. Does he know something we don’t?

On March 4th at 19:15:49 that Jackie looked down at her eggs, reflecting on them before leaving them and the nest. Shadow was flying off, and she paused. A woman on FOBBV wrote that she believes eagles have feelings after seeing Jackie’s behaviour. Of course, they do. Of course. We collectively grieve with Jackie and Shadow as their hope for a family this year dissolved on a cold winter’s day in Big Bear Valley.

Making News:

Oh, I love this. We see so many lonely widowed Canada Geese in my city. These are domesticated geese, but how wonderful…a romance ad answered for a goose! Single mingles for Geese.

Widowed-cemetery-goose-finds-companionship-through-a-personal-ad-CBC-RadioDownload

Speaking of geese…remember the Canada Goose couple that took over the old Decorah Bald Eagle nest last year and raised those goslings? They could be back!

This article came in the mailbox from Geemeff. It would be fantastic if every organisation controlling an area where our waterfowl breed would close the space off during breeding season. All too many – at least here in Winnipeg – chase the geese and ducks or send their dogs running. It is horrible treatment and causes great stress to the birds.

https://www.kpax.com/news/local-news/flathead-county/large-section-of-flathead-lake-north-shore-closed-for-seasonal-waterfowl-production

After at least eight years in the making, The High Seas Treaty has passed. This treaty will protect 30% of the high seas. While not everyone agrees about every point, most biologists believe this will go a long way to helping with climate change. It will also help our seabirds!

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/05/high-seas-treaty-agreement-to-protect-international-waters-finally-reached-at-un?CMP=share_btn_link

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

My sincere thanks to the following that sent me notes, posted announcements, videos, and stories or have streaming cams that formed part of my blog today: ‘L’, ‘A’, ‘N’, ‘H’, ‘Geemeff’, Alan Poole, Amazon.com, Rhonda A and the KNF-E3 Eagle nest, Window to Wildlife, Ondabebe and Window to Wildlife, Duke Farms, Glacier Gardens, Dahlgren Osprey Cam, Heidi Mc and Moorings Park Osprey, Moorings Park Osprey, Farmer Derek, Corona California Owls, SW Florida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Cal Falcons, Cornell RTH, FOBBV, CBC Radio, Laura Rose and the Decorah Eagles Love Nest, kpax.com, and The Guardian.

NOTE: A few single-parent bald eagles have successfully raised their entire clutch to fledge. I am thinking of Decorah, who had three eaglets in the nest. You might know of others. Let me know!

Annie and Lou have the 2nd egg…Monday in Bird World

Good Morning Everyone,

In the Mailbox:

‘J’ asks: “I was just wondering if you could talk about R23-3’s damaged talon. Do they heal? Will the actual nail fall off? Will it grow back?”

These are great questions; they have been on everyone’s mind since we first saw R23-3’s injured feet. First, let’s get to some facts in case some do not know. Those talons (and beaks) carry the eagle’s prey and nesting materials to the nest. They are also used to fight their enemies. Talons are essential for the eagle’s survival. Each foot has four talons, three in the front and one in the back, the hallux. The talons are made out of keratin. It is a protein. Human hair and nails are also made out of keratin.

So have a good look at the image below. Do you remember where the main injuries were on R23-3’s feet and talons? She appeared to have multiple marks and gouges, with one main injury on DIGIT IV, the Outer Talon. We saw it early as black, and I even called her ‘black taloned’. I feared that the injury was necrotic and would eventually kill her. There was no soft tissue swelling, just a deep gouge with a dark, dry scab. That scab eventually came off. The female adult appears to be eating and in good health. She enjoys her baths with M15 and socialising with him in the pond and on the branch. In other words, she is not lethargic.

That hallux is important because it digs into the prey items and allows the raptors to carry their food to where they will eat it or feed their young. The talons are grey in colour when the eaglets are in the nest and turn a shiny black as they age and fledge. They will remain that shiny black throughout their lives..

Now back to the question. The injuries on the female R23-3 appear to be healing. She has yet to lose her talon. If the entire talon were to be pulled out, growing a new one would be a very slow process. You might recall that Ervie, the third hatch Osprey at Port Lincoln in 2022, lost a talon. It was believed to be pulled out when he was fishing, but we do not know. It took nearly 8 months to see any growth in that talon.

We know that the female can bring carrion to the nest tree. We have seen her. She is also eating, arriving with a crop when she has yet to take a fish from the nest. We have yet to see the female actively hunting and carrying a large, heavy prey item to the nest tree. We, therefore, cannot make any observations on her ability or lack of ability to transport prey with that right foot.

If the foot continues to heal as it appears to, this female will be fine. Some eagles are flying and living with only one leg, as we have witnessed this year or managing with a leg with an old injury that did not heal properly, as Ma Berry did for years at Berry College. Feet get damaged regularly. V3’s feet are rough at the NEFl nest (with Gabby). Let us wait and watch to see how she does!

Hard to see the full extent of the injuries in the image below. We can, however, determine which is the most injured toe on the right foot.

We can also see some damage on the left foot.

It must be noted that Peregrine Falcons have been observed with talons with broken ends, which do not appear to grow back. In other words, the entire black talon needs to be pulled out and it is possible that it will regrow slowly.

In the News:

How might climate change impact the Northern Hemisphere’s sea birds? This is a great article coming out of Birdlife International on this topic. Have a read!

https://www.birdlife.org/news/2023/03/02/what-climate-change-looks-like-for-north-east-atlantic-seabirds/

Nest News:

Have you been missing Indigo? wondering if he was still around the scrape on the campus of Charles Sturt University in Orange, Australia? thinking that Diamond and Xavier might be having some peace and quiet? No. Indigo is still there! Elain caught him on video!

Jackie and Shadow are so loved. They get more visitors to their streaming cam in the Big Bear Valley east of Los Angeles than any other eagle family in the US. We are saddened by the non-viability of their first clutch of eggs in 2023. It is not clear whether or not they will lay more eggs. The couple has left these two and the wind and ice are pelting down. Love you, Jackie and Shadow! Today, they made the USToday News. Thanks, ‘B’, for letting me know!

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/animalkind/2023/03/05/big-bear-bald-eagle-live-nest-cam/11377425002/

M15 is on top of his game. On Sunday, the single parent delivered 3 fish to the nest of E21 and 22 before noon! Way to go, Dad! There were a total of five for the entire day.

Gosh, these eaglets are gorgeous.

The tails indicate the difference. E22 on the left and E21 on the right. Otherwise it is really difficult to tell them apart.

Such beautiful and precious babies. E21 below panting to keep cool.

The end of the day posting from SW Florida Eagles:

I mentioned that Duke Farms’s male will be 23 this year. That hatch date is 11 March. He was taken in as a foster eaglet at Duke Farms when he was a fortnight old. His two recently hatched eaglets are growing and are ever so strong! Just fluffy little snow people…adorable.

The osplets at Moorings Park in Naples, Florida are doing great. No worries at this nest so far.

Monday morning there was some frustration on the osprey nest by the osplets. Sally was hungry and there was a lot of fish. Harry finally gave her a break so that she could eat. The little osplets sure wanted some fish! They were up and waiting as Mum ate. There is nothing to worry about. At this stage of their development, they will eat a little fish many times a day not a lot of fish a few times.

At the Achieva Osprey nest, Jack and Diane have been doing incubation rotations. There are still some days til pip watch for these two.

Big Red and Arthur continue to work on the nest and mate on the light stands. Eggs soon, please!

Big Red and Arthur’s 2022 hatch, L4, remains on the Cornell Campus. Bravo! They are paying her no mind and she is going on about her business hunting in a very prey rich territory.

Happy Hatch Day!

There are now four eggs at the Peregrine Falcon nest in Japan. Will there be a 5th?

Watching for the second egg to be laid at Cal Falcons. Annie has been in the scrape box most of the day.

At 14:51 there was still just one egg. Soon!

At 15:09, Lou is on incubation duties.

‘H’ sent me news that the second egg arrived around 0430 Monday 6 March. Thanks, ‘H’.

Lou is getting the hang of ‘enfluffeling’!

Connie and Clive’s only eaglet, Connick, is looking for roles in more superhero movies. Looks at those legs!!!!! Wow. This eaglet is big and strong.

Connick is a huge, beautiful, well-nourished eaglet! Sometimes there is no place to go when the sun is hot on the nest. Connick can regulate his temperature now.

Gabby and V3 are both at the nest tree today. V3 provided for Gabby the security she needed with so many intruders and hopeful suitors. This nest is pleasantly peaceful now. Have you noticed that it is the same at SW Florida except for the GHOs?

Thanks, ‘T’ for the head’s up. The West End streaming cam was panning around, and guess who the camera caught? Akecheta!!!!!! Oh, it would be grand if they could figure out how to get this camera to focus on the new nest of Thunder and Akecheta. The time is 13:13 Sunday, 5 March. Nice to see you, Dad.

We may not be able to get everyone to stop using rodenticide but each of us can start by remembering that ‘Raptors are the Solution.’ If you know of someone with rodent problems, discuss with them why you do not use these highly designed poisons. If they have domestic pets, it might help save their lives, too. My cat Duncan would still be alive if a neighbour had not used this terrible poison and if Duncan had not caught the mouse that ate it. We will simply not be able to convince everyone but it is worth a try.

I want to thank Dave Hancock and all the folks in British Columbia who work tirelessly to support the well-being of Bald Eagles. There are more Bald Eagles in British Columbia than anywhere in the world. Due to climate change and rising temperatures during breeding and nesting season, Dave Hancock has also been working on eagle nest shades. He is an amazing man who has spent his entire life trying to improve their lives. Some of you will be familiar with the nest cams in British Columbia. They also have a web site with lots of information on eagles.

At the Corona, California GHO nest, the four owlets appear to be very healthy. The fourth is tiny, but size does not mean it is not well. Owlvira seems to be able to manage to feed all of them quite well. Potential names have been posted on chat, and now those are being put into a list for voting.

You can see the size difference in the image below as all are snuggled upright to stay warm.

Thanks so much for being with me today. Take care of yourselves! See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their notes, their posts, tweets, videos, and streaming cams that help make up my blog today: ‘B’, ‘H’, ‘A’, ‘J’, Superbeaks, Lady Deeagle55 and Superbeaks, Avianreport.com, SWFlorida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Birdlife.org, Elain and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, SWEagleCam.com, Duke Farms, Moorings Park Ospreys, HeidiMc and Achieva Credit Union, Cornell RTH, @Cornellhawks, Kakapo Recovery, JPFalcon Cam, Cal Falcons, SKHideaways and Cal Falcons, Window to Wildlife, NEFL-AEF, IWS and Explore.org, Raptors are the Solution, Hancock Wildlife Foundation, and California Corona Owls.

2nd egg for Chase & Cholyn, Tico forced to fledge, and more…Sunday in Bird World

5 March 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

It was a beautiful day on the Canadian prairies on Saturday, and I did not stay as alert to what was happening on the nests as I might usually. Sometimes that is a good thing! It gave me some time to spend with the kittens in the conservatory, which I enjoy doing. Lewis is a particularly hyper kitty. It is no surprise. He chased toys all over an aquarium the first time we saw him. Missy was quiet like she is now. Indeed, she hardly ever meows but has the sweetest purr. She leaves all the haggling for food and treats to Lewis, a task he particularly enjoys. In early November, both kittens could fit with room to spare on the top spot of the cat tree. No more! Lewis even hangs off the edge.

Lewis enjoys being a dare-devil!

He certainly has a great view of the garden!

Missy was too busy watching birds out of the window to worry if Lewis was going to fall down.

They had a lovely day. Missy even got to see Mr Woodpecker!

M15 continues to bring in prey items. E22 got the first on Saturday which appeared to be a squirrel, bunny, or roadkill. After that, E22 continued to mantle and got the fish. E 21 would steal it from between 22’s legs. You must dig those talons in, 22! Both are eating well, and there is no cause for concern unless something catastrophic happens at the nest.

At 12:06, M15 came to the nest and broke a fish into two pieces (or what it looked like) so each eaglet could eat. He fed one, and the other ate. It seriously doesn’t get better than this. He is an incredible dad who has made several deliveries to his 8-week-old eaglets on Saturday. They will be on the nest for 10-11 weeks til they fledge. At that time, M15 will help them get their flight muscles strong and their flying good while providing prey and teaching them to hunt. I know that we did not ever think we would see this day a month ago but wow. Isn’t it grand?

Each has been working on and off again with the head of an Armoured Catfish that came in around 15:20:41.

E22 mantled the fish head, but then E21 took it.

Around 1700, E22 was still chewing on that old catfish head while 21 had found a dried fish tail hidden in the rim of the nest. Then 21 got excited and started jumping and flapping! 22 could care less. He continued eating!

Good Night M15, R23-3, E21 and 22. Sweet Eaglet Dreams.

There have been two deliveries at the SW Florida nest before 1100. They came around 10:00 and another nice fish at 10:43.

Both eaglets have been spending time on the rim of the nest.

Our great Dad.

Word has come from ‘H’ this morning that Pearl flew to the nest on Saturday and landed on Tico, forcing him to fledge. He has not been seen at the nest since.

Tico was seen across the street with his foot caught in a vine upside down last night. He freed himself. There have been boots on the ground looking for him. They believe he could be in the woods.

If you have been watching the Bald Eagle nest at Camp Margaritaville in Auburndale, Florida, CM2 has passed. This little one was harassed and hurt from the time it hatched for no obvious reasons, as there was plenty of food in the nest. (There is a stocked pond). Whether it died on Friday or Saturday is unknown, but the cause was siblicide. The eaglet suffered greatly. Sometimes we must be grateful that the suffering ends for these precious little ones. Thanks, ‘H’ for alerting me to this tragedy.

Annie arrives to incubate her and Lou’s first egg of the season…talking to it! How precious. Time 08:39:37 4 March.

Cal Falcons tells us when to expect the next egg.

This is a view of Bald Canyon. Thank you, Gracie Shepherd. If you want to see all of the IWS streaming cams from the Channel Islands, go to iws.org and click on the name of the nest in the listings on the left.

Gabby and V3 continue to put a smile on my face. V3 is a good provider and a fantastic security guard. Have you noticed that there are seemingly no more intruders coming to the nest except for the odd fly through juvenile?

V3’s talons have had a rough time lately.

The two eaglets at Duke Farms are growing and eating and are such cute fuzzy little bobbleheads. They look like miniature teddy bears. Did you know that their Dad, A/59 is 23 years old? He is! There is lots of food in this nest!

Jackie and Shadow are spending less time on the eggs. Right now, I wish the Ravens would come and take them so the eagles could move forward. They did visit today. It must be difficult for the eagles to destroy their own eggs.

They might have another clutch, but they might not. If those eggs weren’t in the nest, it would give them some closure. So sad for these two. Amazing parents who gave us Spirit – 1 year and 1 day since her hatch.

At the MN-DNR nest of Nancy and Beau, one egg remains. One broke after Nancy worked hard to protect the two eggs during a strong winter storm. The songbirds are announcing spring is coming. You can hear them in the background of the streaming cam. It is lovely.

Cholyn and Chase are still incubating a single egg at Two Harbours in the Channel Islands. Folks were watching for a second egg and Cholyn did not disappoint. That egg arrived around 18:14:24 Saturday 4 March.

Maria dk caught the moment on video:

Everyone is holding their breath and sending the most positive wishes to Jak and Audacity who are still incubating egg #7 after the eighth egg broke.

‘H’ had me laughing and well, anytime there is siblicide, we look to find the joy in the birds. Dear Angus loves to stand on the back of Florence. Poor thing!

Harry and Sally are doing a fantastic job of being first-time parents. Their osplets both hatched on 3 March. The oldest at 01:29 and the youngest at 20:03. Now, if every female raptor (osprey or eagle) could manage their delayed incubation so that the hatches were this close or closer, the world of raptors would be a much more equitable place.

Seriously, how much more cuteness do we need? Just look at those two lined up so nicely for fish.

We are still some days before pip watch at Achieva in St Petersburg, Florida. The first egg is 25 days old today – so 10-11 days from now, probably making that the 15th of March.

Rosie and Richmond were both on the Whirley Crane today. It seems to take them a few days to get re-acquainted each year but, for us, it is nice to have both of them safe at home.

The Welsh take their ospreys seriously. The final touches to the Dyfi nest of Idris and Telyn were put into place as the team awaits the couple’s arrival from their winter migration. Ospreys were seen over Suffolk today, heading north!

The Patuxent River Park Osprey platform cams are streaming, and the first bird arrived on Saturday. It is happening – everything is starting at once!!!!!!

Small and lost Atlantic Puff is saved from highway collision in New Brunswick, Canada.

Little-Atlantic-puffin-rescued-on-busy-N.B.-roadway-CBC-NewsDownload

Happy Hatch Day! Another Kakapo celebrates. This is so wonderful. 55 hatched in 2022 and they are still alive!

What should and what can we do to stop the destruction of nature on our doorsteps? There is a new word for it, ‘ecocide’.

 This wholesale demolition of nature is described as ecocide – a term put forward by the Stop Ecocide Foundation as “unlawful or wanton acts committed with knowledge that there is a substantial likelihood of severe and either widespread or long-term damage to the environment being caused by those acts”. Although no law has yet been passed, we know ecocide when we see it. It is a moral red line that is being crossed.

While this is about a particular acerage being taken over in the UK, the concerns extend to the entire globe.

“The dismantling of nature’s complexity can no longer be seen as acceptable fallout to maintain the way we have become accustomed to living, and to support the “growth” agenda to which we have become addicted. The planet is perilously close to ecosystem collapse. Humanity created the problem. It is our job to fix it – now.”

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/02/we-must-call-out-the-ecocide-on-our-doorstep?CMP=share_btn_link

Big Red has been at the Fernow Light stand nests. Progress is really being made and we are within 9 days of what could be the first egg laid.

Did you watch Bonnie and Clyde raise Lily and Tiger on the Bald Eagle nest on Farmer Derek’s Property in 2021? Well, their eggs are getting closer to hatching this year. Egg 1 is 33 days old, and egg 2 is 30 days old. The incubation period for GHOs is normally 30-37 days….so guess what? We are there.

Guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Thank you, ‘A’ for the link. Sweet Pea is a proficient gardener. Watch out for the squiggling in the nest and those paddles!

Last but certainly not least is a march and a call to end rodenticide poisons. We must all band together to stop these deadly toxins that kill rodents, our beautiful raptors, and other mammals! Raising awareness helps.

It is so nice to have you with us in Bird World. Please take care. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, their tweets, their posts, their videos, and their streaming cams that help make up the news in my blog today: ‘A’, ‘H’, SW Florida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Camp Margaritaville Bald Eagles, Lady Deeagle55 and Superbeaks, Maria dk and IWS and Explore.org, Cal Falcons, Gracie Shepherd and Raptors of the World, NEFL-AEF, Duke Farms, FOBBV, MN-DNR, IWS and Explore.org, Window to Wildlife, Moorings Park Ospreys, Achieva Credit Union, Golden Gate Audubon, Patuxent River Park, CBC.ca, Kakapo Recovery, The Guardian, Cornell RTH Cam, Farmer Derek, Lady Hawk and NZ DOC, Terry Carman Bald Eagle Live Nest Cams and News.

Is it an egg for Cholyn! Sad news from San Jose, 2nd hatch at Duke Farms…Wednesday in Bird World

1 March 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

It is so lovely to have you with us today! It is the middle of the week, the first day of March. Spring is officially three weeks away. Can’t you hear the geese honking and the songbirds in the trees? or see the birds pulling worms from the soft, moist earth?

It is -18 Tuesday morning on the Canadian Prairies. The sun is shining, and the wind is brisk at 11 kph, but only at times. It promises to be a beautiful bright day.

Looking out at the duck pond, now frozen, there is a promise of their return in a few months. Oh, what joy!

Remember. Being outside in nature, even for a few minutes, benefits our physical and mental health. Even sitting by the pond, anticipating the arrival of geese and ducks, was uplifting, no matter how cold it was this morning. So, please, think about it, put your coat on and get moving if possible.

Everyone is looking forward to the arrival of the waterfowl. It is a mark that spring is arriving.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/27/country-diary-grebes-in-the-harbour-a-curlew-in-the-rushes?CMP=share_btn_link

As I get ready to turn the computer off, it looks like Cholyn might be ready to lay the first egg of the 2023 breeding season on the nest she shares with Chase, Two Harbours, in the Channel Islands. It is 18:32 nest time in California.

And, yes, it is egg one for Chase and Cholyn! Chase gets a look. Remember that Cholyn is Thunder’s Mum. (Thunder and Akecheta on West End)

There is sad news from San Jose, California. You might recall that Annie and Grinnell’s 2019 hatch Sequoia had bonded with mate Shasta at the San Jose City Hall scrape. We were so looking forward to their eggs this spring. Shasta has sadly died from injuries obtained from a collision. Here is the last image of Shasta and the announcement.

At the scrape of Sequoia’s Mum, Annie, at The Campanile, Mum was scraping in the box and waiting to see if Lou would deliver prey there today.

The falcon cams are starting to come on line around the world. So much is happening!

There is always a worry when a big strong eaglet comes bursting out of the shell, and that was what happened when the first hatch entered the world at Duke Farms in Hillsborough, New Jersey. Well, swift on the heels of that hatch came number two! This should be a good year. Dad has loaded up the nest with fish. I have already counted at least four large ones ready to be eaten! Of course, they are gifts for Mum, too!

0719 Tuesday morning. Hatch 1 is ready for breakfish.

1418. The second hatch is completely out of the shell.

1421. Dad has come to see the new baby.

Mum wants to keep the pair warm and dry.

Wednesday breakfast and both little cuddles are up and eating at Duke Farms.

M15 brought in a squirrel and what appeared to be two fish to the SW Florida eagle nest. Both ate. How much is difficult to tell but 22 was doing his best snatch and grab!

At 17:53:09, a small fish was dropped into the nest by M15. E22 got it and it was gone in a flash! Way to go 22.

Vija catches 22 doing a great snatch and grab!

M15 and R23-3 had spa time at the pond.

And, last night, the GHO knocked the female off the branch of the nest tree.

Audacity laid a 7th egg at the Santa Cruz Sauces Canyon Bald Eagle nest. Fingers crossed! Will seven be their lucky number? At the same time, one cannot help but wonder what toll all this egg-laying is taking on Audacity’s body.

US Steel has its first egg. It was laid at 18:56:50. The reveal was at 1901. Congratulations, Claire and Irvin.

Pittsburgh-Hayes has two eggs. The first was laid on 17 February, with the second arriving on the 20th.

Meanwhile, The Majestics Mom and new mate, Beau, at the Denton Home Bald Eagle nest in Iowa are incubating three eggs.

Take a look at Connick. Did anyone say female lately?

Another gorgeous only eaglet, KNF-E1-03 (Trey) looks like it could also be a female.

At the Decorah Eagle nest in Iowa, a squirrel climbed into the nest cup and started chewing on the egg while the eagles were away. Observers believe the egg is in tact, thankfully.

Gabby and V3 might not have eggs this year, but they are spending a lot of time together at the nest tree. Yesterday there was a beautiful visitor to the nest. Have a look! What a gorgeous bird; believed to be about 2.5 years old from the plumage development. They do some looking for scraps and even lay down in the nest. You can hear Gabby warning them from the Wallenda branch.

It is still winter in Minnesota – just like here, 8 hours north. Nancy and Beau have two eggs that they are incubating. It is their first year as a couple. Fingers crossed.

In Poland, the White-tailed eagles are in the nest in the Tucholskie Forest today. She is the female named Tule, and the male is Borek.

One week ago the couple came and began working on nestorations.

The information below one of the streaming videos of the nest gives the following information. Additional information at another site indicates that the couple are now incubating at least one egg.

The nest of white-tailed eagles in the Woziwoda Forest District has grown significantly this year and is over 2 meters high and in diameter. It is a powerful structure that weighs probably around 200-300 kg. Eagles appear at the nest in the afternoons and from mid-January on warmer days they report new material. Both male Borek and female Tula participate in all works. Soon the first egg will appear in the nest, because both birds are kneading the nest hole with their bodies and legs. The female is still not sleeping in the nest yet. Only when she stays in it for the first time for the night will it be a sign that she has laid an egg.

Changing incubation duties.

For those watching the Osprey nests in Florida, the first pip should come at Moorings Park in Naples this Thursday or Friday, the 2nd or 3rd of March. The next nest would be the Venice Golf and Country Club on the 13th and 14th of March. Achieva would follow them.

The adults at Moorings Park are Sally and Harry.

Florence and Angus are still bonding at the Captiva Osprey nest. Still no eggs. Hopeful.

Two more Kakapo named!

In England, there have been calls to end or substantially shorten the Woodcock hunting season. Congratulations Nature England for getting a review! That is positive news.

Flaco is still doing well in New York City’s Central Park. There are no current plans to try and bait the little Eurasian Owl and return it to its cage at the Zoo. If you want to keep up with what is happening with Flaco, the best news comes out of urbanhawks.com You can also find the latest news there on Pale Male and other raptors and concerns who live in the Central Park area.

I wanted to check on Karl II and his family – to see if any had started moving north. No. Waba is still in Sudan, and to the surprise of everyone, Udu has spent the winter in Turkey. No signal transmissions from Bonus, Karl II, or Kaia yet.

There is so much beginning to happen. You can feel the energy; before long, eaglets will be fledging at SW Florida, Ospreys hatching, and more eggs in the Channel Islands. We will not be able to keep up! Oh, and the UK Ospreys will return to their spring and summer breeding grounds.

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

If you want to join our Bird World family, please subscribe. It is always free. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Thank you to the following for their notes, their streaming cams, their videos, and posts that help make up my newsletter today: The Guardian, IWS, Sharon Pollock and Raptors of the World, Cal Falcons, Duke Farms, SW Florida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Vija and SW Florida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Lady Hawk and SW Florida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Sherry Morris and CIEL, Pix Cams, Denton Homes, Window to Wildlife, Raptor Resource Project and Explore.org, Bird Cam Network, Tucholskie Eagle Cam, Kakapo Recovery, @Jeff Knott, Urban Hawks, and Looduskalender English Forum, Following Karl II’s Family.

Daddy Door Dash does great…Monday in Bird World

27 February 2022

Oh, good morning, everyone! Lewis hopes that you had an extraordinary wonderful weekend full of treats! He has been enjoying some strawberry-filled Japanese crepes lately – just little bites – and he loves them! I must go into a room and lock the door to keep him away! He does not understand, ‘Sweets are not good for a cat’s teeth!’

Sunday was a rather fantastic day in the garden! Mr Woodpecker was in ‘Abigale’s tree’. Mr Crow came here. Oh, it is so nice to see you! And then, there was the rabbit. I don’t want the rabbits here, but, it was such a delight to see one alive. The feline pets that frequent the feeders kill the rabbits for fun. It isn’t their fault. Their owners let them outside when it is clearly against city by-laws.

So what is Abigale’s tree? We started ‘re-foresting’ our city lot by planting trees for family members and cats when they died. Now the garden is getting full. It is a nice escape for the birds in the City, cool in the summer and lots of food in the winter. Abigale was the big ‘Blue’ Abyssinian cat. She was huge, adorable, and ever so gentle.

Mr Crow reminds me of E22, who is always ‘sqeeing’ for food even if he has a fish tail in his mouth!

There is wonderment when seeing wildlife in a big city. It makes me so happy and tells me that, hopefully, when we are gone, they will take over and have the run of the place again.

M15 delivered one earlier prey item on the SW Florida nest on Sunday before dropping a nice fish off at 13:09:30. (The female took the possum tail from an early delivery). E21 got that breakfast and the 13:09 prey item, too. 22 has been calling to Dad, who has been on the tree branch ever since. M15 is ignoring 22. I don’t believe 22 got any of the earlier breakfast, and he is hungry. This is the problem with Dad needing to play the double role of Mum and Dad. He is making drops, and the eaglets are dealing with food as they would if they were in the real world. In other words, the eaglets mostly have to fend for themselves in terms of eating. It is good. These are great lessons. Sometimes it would be nice to see Dad feeding the babies, but it could also draw the female to the nest. On Saturday, M15 delivered 5 fish and 2 prey items to the nest!

E21 is being cautious. It knows that 22 is hungry and could grab that fish. I hope 21 leaves something because 22 mantled the early fish and then lost it to 21 and hasn’t eaten. It looks like there is a lot left. Hurry up 21 so 22 can have some before ‘she’ comes.

I need to continue reminding myself that E22 got a super duper feeding from Dad Saturday afternoon! Yes, M15 does still feed them. E22 did eat a lot on Saturday. Must not panic if he doesn’t get fish today. That is the mantra.

The fact of the matter is that E21 is not as good at self-feeding as 22 who had to figure all of this out to survive. E22 is now ‘under’ 21’s tail and will steal that fish! The time is 13:30.

Thank you, big sibling! There is enough for 22 to have a meal. E22 eating at 133953.

At 135223, E22 eats the fish tail.

There was another delivery at 14:19:06. Both eaglets ate off this fish. It went back and forth, and each wound up with a good-sized crop. Then Daddy Door Dash M15 flew in with another fish at 16:36:59.

Notice that 21 has a piece of leftover fish from 22 and is reaching over to Dad’s beak to be fed! Too funny. E22 is absolutely stuffed.

E22 with his big crop. I wonder if he will also want some of the last fish of the day?

No. That was the quickest feed. E21 got it all, and 22 didn’t care; he was too full to care. That is a brilliant way to end the day! It was another excellent day at the SW Florida nest of M15 and the Es. Harriet would be proud.

Too funny. By 1652, 22 is digging around an old fish head for flakes of prey.

The Es had a great day in terms of food.

A very good radio interview. You might have to cut and paste the title into the news organization.

M15, you are magnificent. Sweet Eagle Dreams.

The Es had breakfast around 10:28:45. 21 was more or less fed by Dad, while 22 snatched and grabbed some nice pieces of the prey. Thank you, M15!

It is a much nicer day at the Big Bear Valley nest of Jackie and Shadow. Still, snow on the nest, but the storm that raged for several days has passed. Sadly, the two eggs in the nest are now well beyond the viable dates. Egg 1 was laid on the 11th of January, making it 46 days old and egg 2 was laid on the 14th, 43 days old. There is time for a second clutch.

Yes, it is Connick! Blink, and they do grow up. Those ebony-coloured feathers are now making this little one look immensely grown up. Connick is on the rails. In the second image, you can see that thermal down that will help Connick regulate its temperature and keep him dry.

Louis has flown into the KNF-E1 nest in the Kisatchie National Forest. I want you to look at the size of E1-03. Sure looks like they have a female this year at this nest after two previous male fledges.

Not much longer til branching!

Do you need to see baby eaglets? Well, get ready! The first egg at Duke Farms was pipped at 21:31:13 Saturday night, the 26th!

The eaglet at Duke Farms is making progress Monday morning. Dad has been on the nest checking how things are going.

Just a few hours before the pip at Duke Farms in New Jersey, Denton Homes in Iowa had their third egg!

SK Hideaways shows us that Lou is growing up. Annie gets a whole prey item all to herself. Brilliant!

Making News:

Going for a walk on flooded lanes and being the only one there with a Golden Plover. Rather idyllic, right?

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/23/country-diary-for-a-moment-its-just-me-and-a-golden-plover?CMP=share_btn_link

CROW has had an intake with Red Tide poisoning in Florida.

Yesterday I posted an image of the Stellar’s Eagle that flies back and forth from Canada to Maine. This eagle is far from home. Here is an image from Hokkaido, Japan where the eagle should be!

Remember this if you should spot a new hatch GHO on the ground. Call your local wildlife rehabilitation centre and wait. And then suggest the laundry basket for the nest if they don’t know this trick of CROW.

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

Thank you to the following for their notes, tweets, posts, videos, and streaming cams that make up my blog today: Superbeaks, SW Florida Eagles and D Pritchett, Lady Hawk and SW Florida Eagles and D Pritchett, Tonya Irwin and Raptors of the World, FOBBV, Window to Wildlife, KNF-E1, Duke Farms, Sherri van Syckel and Bald Eagles Live Nest Cams and News, SK Hideaways and Cal Falcons, The Guardian, CROW, and Jonathan Wadsworth Photography and Birds of Prey.

Cal Falcon Male is named Lou; 22 horks a huge piece of fish; Did M15 mate with one of the females?…Thursday in Bird World

23 February 2022

Good Morning Everyone!

As I write this, it is 1900 on the Canadian Prairies, and the temperature has risen to -20 C from -29 C this morning. Frigid temperatures such as this will prevail into late Sunday. With the strong winds, this Arctic front is bringing us wind chill temperatures of -45 C. Did I mention that humans should hibernate? Or that I am thrilled to have central heating? And fluffy warm socks?

First up, the name of the new male falcon at Cal Falcons is Lou! It makes perfect sense!!!!!!!!! A woman and a scientist, and Annie’s partner in life. Let’s hope that Lou will be around for some time so that Annie can stop having to break in a new partner. She has had 3 in a year. Berkeley Edu explains the connection!!!!!!!!!

“Lou is the current mate of Annie, Berkeley’s longtime female falcon, who lost her previous mates — Grinnell and Alden — in 2022. The name is a nod to Louise Kellogg (1879-1967), a Berkeley alumna who was the partner of Annie’s namesake, Annie Alexander (1867-1950). Alexander was an explorer and naturalist who founded the UC Museum of Paleontology and the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology.”

Good Morning Everyone from the Es…. look at them. How adorable and healthy. ‘A’ mentioned to me the sharp beaks and that these sweet innocents could take my arm off if they wanted. True. The Es should be the size of nice turkeys by now thanks to the persistence of M15.

Still, couldn’t you just stare at those sweet faces all day? Now we have to watch carefully as it will get much more difficult to know who is who.

M15, you are incredible. Working hard to prepare these babies to fly free.

Watching Dad fly over?

There were several food deliveries at the SW Florida eagle nest by M15 on Wednesday up to mid-afternoon at 14:06. There was the first one at 08:27 when 22 figured to walk around to the left side of Dad so he could eat some fish. Good strategy. Then at 11:13:28. It looks like another around 12:54 when 22 grabs half a fish and spends the next ten minutes horking it. Then there was the 14:06. All in all, both have eaten well, and we should applaud 22 for figuring out some good strategies to go along with his very proficient snatch-and-grab technique.

At 12:57, 22 gets the last of the tail down.

At the same time, it must be pointed out that E22 wing flapping ON THE RAILS at 11:44. Yes, seriously. Can we use the word ‘dare devil’?

22 eating at the end of the 14:06 delivery. He gets a lot of fish during this meal. M15 obliged by moving the fish about as well, which always tends to help 22. At the same time, M15 is trying to get 22 to step up and eat. He will need to be brave, really brave, out in that world of eagles.

M15 knows what goes on at the nest. He watches and he must be proud of 22 today.

Prey item 6 came in around 17:03:19, and the ‘black-taloned’ female was above watching. She had already eaten an entire fish that M15 brought in around 16:12. She landed in the nest, gave M15 a flap to leave, and ate the entire fish. It took about half an hour. The Es stayed submissive but kept on about their business. She ate and ate and had a huge crop after. She did not harm the eaglets.
Meanwhile, Dad went to get another meal for them. M15 and R-23-3 may be forming a partnership. We will wait and see. I hope, if this is the case that she is strong and formidable.

16:39. Finishing up.

At 16:42, after eating, look at her crop! She is an opportunist.

This time she only hovered over M15 while he fed the eaglets. Both 21 and 22 got food. She did not get in the nest, and M15 seems to have dismissed her. She flew away.

17:03

She returned. There is a lot of confusion over the identity of this female and whether or not it is the ‘black talon’ one or the one without an inury. The angle makes it difficult to see the top of the toe but, there does appear to be damage to a toe if you look carefully…the black park looks like the flesh part not the black talon.

And is this an attempted mating? M15 is no stranger to mating. Remember Harriet kicking him all the time? This female does not move her tail over, and M15 is near the head. There appears to be no connection. It looks like he just jumped on her back for a second. Perhaps to get her moving? I wonder.

Guarding the territory together.

Humans are still dropping off food at the nest or hiring courier services to pick up fillets of salmon and leave them at the base of the nest tree!!!!!! Can you believe this? No wonder the additional raptors – that could put the family in harm – are hanging around the nest tree!!!!!!!! Salmon. Gracious. This food has also drawn carrion eaters to an area they did not know existed. Now they do. Donate the money to CROW but do not put the SW Florida Eagle family in long-term danger. Killing with Kindness.

Delivery-services-reportedly-being-used-to-bring-food-to-Harriet-and-M15s-North-Fort-Myers-nest-WDownload

Everyone knows I love cats and I am a day late because of the time difference. My apologies to our friends in Japan. Yesterday was ‘National Cat Day’ in Japan. I have seen these cats at the stations. They are marvellous. So today, I am slipping in a little ‘cat’ to the newsletter in celebration.

In Brittany, they are topping off trees to encourage Osprey nesting! What a concept – helping our raptors instead of tearing their nests down. Love it.

 https://www.francebleu.fr/infos/environnement/un-premier-nid-de-balbuzard-pecheur-en-foret-de-rennes-des-arbres-etetes-pour-favoriser-le-retour-du-rapace-8446484. Plus d’informations sur https://www.francebleu.fr.

A new phase has arrived at the Royal Cam nest on Taiaroa Head. SP chick has been left alone in the nest, with no parent, today. It is the post-guard phase. It is also raining. I found that this always made my heart sink, and yet they do so well. I wonder how much gardening SP will do? And let us all hope that no visitors torment the wee one.

SP will now wait for the parents to return with food. If there are issues, it is comforting to know that Ranger Sharyn and her team do supplemental feedings!

The little one did not have to wait long until Mum was home with a meal. Easing Sweet Pea into the post-guard stage. Brilliant. L fed her chick, stayed with her, left, returned, and left again. She is easing her baby into being alone. Letting SP know she will return.

The weather at Big Bear continues to be cold and windy. Jackie is rolling and keeping the eggs warm—no indication of an official pip call. My heart is beginning to ache for these two, and wanting to be wrong. Wanting a pip.

Such commitment. Everyone is hoping for a miracle.

Happy Hatch Day to two Kakapo!

Decoys can also be used to lure waterfowl to safe enclosures!

Angus and Florence could give us some funny moments during the 2023 breeding season. So far, Angus has shoved Florence off the nest, making her dangle from one talon. Then he worried about what he had done and tried to help, or so it appeared. Then there are eight fish…I wonder what else is coming our way?

Gary gives us an update on why there might be only one egg for Liberty and Guardian this year at the Redding Eagle nest.

Sunnie Day posted one of those good news stories, and I wanted to share it with you. They saw they got help when they couldn’t untangle the eagle, and then 50 lbs of fish came in to help feed the raptor. The generosity of kind people. It exists.

Do you live within driving distance of the Kistachie National Forest in Louisiana? Would you like a guided tour of the area and a chance to see the nests with a scope? Check it out!

The voting has closed for the name of Annie’s ‘new guy’. Annie has even voted. Which name did she choose? Well, of course, it had to be Lou.

Thank you so very much for joining me today. Take care! See you soon.

If you want to join our Bird World family, please subscribe. I try to only fill your inbox with one newsletter a day. You can unsubscribe at any time!

Thank you so much to the following for their notes, observations, posts, tweets, videos, and streaming cams that make up my newsletter today: ‘A’, ‘H’, Cal Falcons Cam, Berkeley.edu, SWFL Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, WGCU, Japan: The Government of Japan, Francebleau.fr, NZ DOC, FOBBV, Kakapo Recovery, Archipelago Research and Conservation, WRDC, Gary and FORE, Sunnie Day FB, Blackland Prairie Raptor Centre, and US Forestry Service.

Ervie, SWFlorida, more eggs…Tuesday in Bird World

21 February 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

Oh, it is nippy cold on the Canadian Prairies. The weather people got everything turned upside down, leaving us thinking that the holiday weekend was to be warm and delightful. We also received a good bit of snow that is causing havoc over the snow that melted and turned to ice. It is currently -19 with brisk 15 kph winds. I am beginning to wonder why humans don’t hibernate! It is to be -29 C tomorrow morning. We are more than back in the deep freeze.

Today I will hop around a lot of nests. They have been neglected because my almost full attention has been on M15 and his eaglets. I will say again that he is doing a tremendous job. There have been enormous hurdles for him, including losing Harriet. I hope she doesn’t mind. My friend ‘A; says that the eaglets gave M15 something to live for after Harriet. It took him a few days for it all to sink in, but he has come about and, quite honestly, is one of the most democratic adults feeding eaglets I have ever seen. ‘A’ reminded me of what I already knew but had lost in the density of it all – that M15 always took care of the underdog on the nest even when Harriet did not. Looking at the history of the SW Florida nest, it was fascinating how many eaglets those two had fledged since 2015 when M15 became the man of the hour. What also interested me was that these eaglets survived…the prior history with Ozzie is not nearly as good. There was good DNA, with Harriet and M15 producing strong, independent, healthy eaglets. What M15 looks for in his next mate, his second by all accounts would be a fierce female like Harriet. As much as we waffle on our feelings about the female with the black talon, she may be precisely what he is looking for in a future mate.

Making News:

Ervie. Our dear Ervie. It is so nice for someone to take and post photos of you living the good life in Port Lincoln. There is no word from your sister, Zoe. Indeed, they are having problems with many of the satellite trackers. Let us hope that is all that is wrong…Glad you are safe!

When you think of Ospreys, do you think of Bahrain?

We all watched and held our breaths, hoping that Karl II and his Black Stork family – mate Kaia, offspring Waba and foster, Bonus – would not travel through Ukraine on their way to Africa. Many asked what the cost to wildlife is. An article in The Guardian examines the cost to nature.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/feb/20/ukraine-war-cost-for-nature-russia?CMP=share_btn_link

Did you know that Ostrich feathers are still considered a luxury item and there is high demand for them?

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/20/ostrich-feathers-farming-south-africa-fashion-luxury-a-photo-essay?CMP=share_btn_link

Broken wing and extensive lacerations for this eagle caught in a fence. Help came in time, and today, that raptor is flying again. Thanks, Everyone.

Severely-injured-bald-eagle-flying-again-in-West-Virginia-News-timeswv.com_Download

Two of the 55 Kakapo chicks hatched in 2022 are celebrating one-year-old hatch day. They get their names today. Well done, everyone.

Did you know that the USFWS believes there are now 316,000 Bald Eagles in the US? Many in Florida are making their nests on the old NASA site during the winter.

https://www.foxweather.com/earth-space/american-bald-eagles-florida-kennedy-space-center

In the Nests:

Richmond is looking for Rosie to arrive any day! He has arrived at the nest as he will do from now until she returns from her migration.

Staying in San Francisco. There might still be time to vote on Annie’s mate.

All of the eaglets are growing up fast. E22 is so good at stealing fish from Dad and then feeding himself. Nugget was doing the same thing…but, what did Nugget eat?

Connie and Clive are also beginning to teach Connick to self-feed. They dropped a fish into the nest that was unzipped and watched from the upper branches til Connick was interested and pecking and getting some fish. After he gave it a good try, Mum flew down and fed the entire fish to her baby!

At the KNF-E1 nest of Anna and Louis, that eaglet – this has to be a beautiful female – is now self-feeding, too. They are all progressing just as they should.

Meanwhile, B16 is being filled up to the brim by Pa at the Berry College Eagle nest.

Well, I missed it watching M15 and the Es but, it seems that Pearl and Tico have fledged!!!!!!

Gary seems to think things at the Redding nest of Liberty and Guardian are returning to normal. Guardian brings a Coot to Liberty. Liberty loved that meal. The first egg collapsed and the couple have incubated the second egg nearly fully time.

Some great highlights of the 20th in Orange Australia. Indigo is still with us!

At noon on 20 February, 8868 people were watching to see if Jackie and Shadow will have a pip in their eggs today.

Still waiting and hoping.

‘H’ sends word that Angus has brought two fish to Florence today at Captiva. She has also caught one of her own. August has also only kicked her out of the nest once! Courtship after losing a mate is interesting, complex, and often confusing.

E21 and E22 are turning six weeks old. M15 has to be given many awards for his dedication to raising these two. He is quite amazing.

The eaglets at SWFlorida had a nice big fish on Monday morning at 10:50:18.

Both ate, but 22 is getting so darn good at snatching and grabbing. He got some of the fish – a nice big piece and then the tail – and put them down with one gulp. 22 is so far ahead in this area of learning. It is grand. This nest is preparing them for anything and everything that could meet in the outside world.

E21’s large wings!

Two fish came in the late afternoon. One was around 15:55, and the other was at 16:54. E22 got the best of those meals. 21 did a bit of nipping at 16:11:45 so that he could eat! Meanwhile, E22 did his famous snatch-and-grab and wound up with a rather great ending to the day regarding food.

22 appears to ‘hork’ another tail. 22 might move away from 21 at times but, he is determined and is really able to deal quickly if a piece of food presents itself. Well done, 22.

At one point, the camera had M15 on the nest tree.

The female with what appears to be a large crop is down by the pond.

At another time, both were at the pond. I will imagine that M15 caught that last nice fish here. It is 14:16. M15 is on the right. He looks like he has eaten and has a nice crop.

Here is a video by Eagle Goddess of the pair at the pond.

Who’s guarding? Who’s sleeping?

The day went without incident on the nest, which is all that matters. And then came the GHO strike at 21:24:40. M15 cannot get a break. Sara McDavid caught the auction for us.

https://www.youtube.com/live/5aL2OA1jOq0?feature=share

Minnesota had some of the snow that swept through this area. Nancy woke up with no snow, and then it came on Monday, and then it was gone again. If there is to be a third egg, it should arrive today for Nancy and Beau.

The eagles at Pittsburgh-Hayes welcomed their second egg on Monday. Congratulations, everyone. The time was just after 17:17. Mum seed to have about a three-minute labour.

The Majestic’s Mum at the Denton Homes nest in Iowa laid her first egg with a new mate, Beau, on the 20th. Dad and the three eaglets died of Avian Flu last year. It was so sad.

There is also the first egg at Decorah North for Mr North and DNF. Happened around 2000.

It appears that Big Red has not decided where the 2023 nest will be but she has definitely rejected the Fernow Tower Light stand potentially because of the construction work across Tower Road. Today Suzanne Arnold Horning found the couple delivering sticks to the smoke stacks.

There is just too much happening all at once in Bird World, which is what we thought when the other Bald Eagle nests came into play. All in all, it was a good day.

Thank you so very much for being with me today. Please take care of yourself. See you soon!

Thank you so much to the following for their notes, news, posts, videos, tweets, and streaming cams that make up my newsletter today: ‘H’, ‘A’, Sandra Wallace and Friends of Osprey, Howard King @BirdsofBahrain, The Guardian, Golden Gate Audubon, Cal Falcons, Tonya Irwin and KNF-E3, Window to Wildlife, KNF-E1, Berry College Eagles, Superbeaks, Gary and FORE, Elain and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, FOBBV, SWFlorida Eagles and D Pritchett, MN-DNR, Pix Cam, Raptor Resource Project and Explore.org, and Suzanne Arnold Horning and the Cornell Hawk Cam Chatters.

E22 steals fish and self-feeds, Big Red switches site of nest?…It is Monday in Bird World

20 February 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

There is lots of news in Bird World. My focus continues to be on the nest of Bald Eagles M15, E21 and E22 in Fort Myers, Florida, at the moment. There is drama going on at the ND-LEEF Bald Eagle nest in South Bend, Indiana and the Osprey nest on Captiva. Keeping an eye on those as well.

‘M’ sent me an excellent article from The Guardian on the ten birds that most changed the world. Please have a read! We can all learn something…I did. And it was nice to see that the Sparrow made it to the list along with some of your favourites, such as the Eagle.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/19/dodo-eagle-sparrow-the-10-birds-that-changed-the-world-for-ever

Big Red seems unhappy with the building works across Tower Road from the Fernow Light Stand. She is moving sticks to another light tower that may not have a streaming cam. This would be a source of great sadness and anxiety among the thousands of people who look forward to this twenty-year-old RTH laying eggs and raising her eyases.

An image of the Fernow Light Tower nest. You can see some of the building equipment at the Rice Building.

CROW continues to monitor the situation. M15 is doing a fantastic job protecting and feeding the eaglets. I hope that he can keep it up; it is so much better if they are raised by him and fledge their nest. I don’t like how the female eagle looks at the two eaglets in the first image below. Her presence is now concerning and could be very dangerous to the eaglets. I once thought this was not the case, but her actions yesterday changed my mind.

If you missed my report on Sunday, the female Bald Eagle, VF3, with the necrotic talon, kicked M15 off the nest and attacked E22 three times when it tried to get food. Here is a video containing those terrifying 11 minutes and 52 seconds.

The female was on the nest tree earlier with prey. Some believed she might feed the eaglets. She did not; she flew off with it after plucked the fur off the item. The situation is growing dangerous as this female is now emboldened to treat M15 with contempt. It is essential for the Es that Dad not get injured so that he can continue to provide food for them. If you are wondering why he does not fight her, this is the reason. She is also much larger than he is, and despite her injured talon, she is strong. I do not think she will go away quickly, if at all.

M15 flew in with another Armoured Catfish at 15:42:21. While he is vocalising to the female who is identified as FV3, Dad just carries on. Perhaps we are the ones worrying and he isn’t! Both eaglets ate, with 22 getting some nice bites.

M15 appears nervous when he is in the nest feeding the eaglets.

At 1700, M15 flew in with a nice morsel, a leftover from his good evening meal. E22 claimed it and ate it! Well done, E22.

M15 did eat well. He had an enormous crop.

The Es are waiting for breakfast on Monday. 21 is on the right, with 22 on the left. Please take a look at the difference.

The Es had a nice big fish for breakfast. M15 brought it to the nest at 10:50:18. 21 eats first, then 22, and then 22 gets a touch insisting that 22 move away. 22 goes into submission. There is nothing to fear. 22 turns around and does the snatch-and-grab that will help him survive in the wild.

Is it another Armoured Catfish?

22 is doing clean-up duty.

Should birdwatchers be afraid? are we vermin?

Some good news regarding Sequoia and Sasha at San Jose City Hall.

Speaking of egg laying, Gabby fooled me with all that nesting behaviour.

They are a gorgeous couple together. Gabby is just smitten by V3.

V3 keeping guard.

No egg!

Annie has been hanging around the scrape.

Here are the names for final voting for the new male. We should know soon!

Vote-now-Here-are-the-finalists-in-Berkeleys-falcon-naming-contest-Berkeley-NewsDownload

Jackie and Shadow are still incubating eggs, and the Ravens remain around the nest tree, making a nuisance out of themselves. The eggs are probably not viable – I have thought that since the first day – that Saturday – they stayed away when the earthquakes were in the Valley. I ‘want’ to be fooled by their behaviour. Last year Spirit hatched on day 40.

Shadow.

The male has been incubating the eggs at Metro Aviation Bald Eagle nest in Louisiana. The female flew in today and taloned one of them. They are not viable and this might allow the pair to move forward.

Do you watch the Golden Eagles in Romania? Lucina and Caliman were in the nest in the forest today! I love these Golden Eagles, but this nest is not for the faint-hearted. The oldest eaglet in a Golden Eagle nest will almost, without exception, kill its younger sibling. This is called obligate siblicide.

The causes of obligate siblicide in specific eagle species are discussed in this academic paper. Some of the conclusions are below. This will help explain some behaviour that you have seen on nests previously. The observations also apply to Golden Eagles.

Sibblingaggression-Ibis-PDF-2Download

These observations suggest that the availability of food does not affect the chances of survival of the second chick in those species in which it never, or very rarely survives. The critical factor appears to be the interval between hatching, which is clearly variable. If, at the hatch of the second chick, the first is already skilful at taking pieces of flesh offeredby the parent, then the younger sibling exerts little influence on the behaviour of the adult. At feeding times, it is offered fewer pieces of food and these, moreover, are proffered only briefly and in an inadequate fashion. The second chick soon dies of starvation. Attacks on it by its sibling are, by comparison unimportant.

If, on the other hand, the interval between hatching is short, then the second chick can develop normally so long as it is protected from its sibling’s attacks by the brooding female parent. As soon as brooding is interrupted, the younger chick is subjected to the attack of the older. It is intimidated, no longer participates in feeding and flees to the edge of the eyrie. This process of the acceptance of intimidation, observed in the Lesser Spotted Eagle, quickly leads to the elimination of one chick, even when two of equal size are experimentally placed together, and explains why two chicks cannot normally be reared.

Bernd-Ulrich Meyburg, Sibling aggression and mortality among nesting eagles

These particular species of eagles are one reason that so many people turn to the gentle Albatross for respite.

Of course, if you are ‘into Eagles’ like most of us are (as well as the Albatross, the parrots, the budgies, the terns….), single chick eagle nests from the start normally bring a lot of joy. Just like little B16 at the Berry College Eagle nest in Georgia.

Zoe. What can we say? According to the Friends of Osprey FB group, Fran Solly and Buzz Hockaday have been up to where Zoe last sent a transmission. That place was Point Drummond near Mount Hope. On all occasions, they did not see her. If she is out of cell coverage range, it ‘feels’ unusual as she was so quick to fly about previously. Let us hope it is a faulty transmitter and that nothing has happened to Zoe.

Point Drummond. This was the site of the last transmission from Zoe. Is it at all possible she flew out over the sea?

Lori Covert has already named the new female at Captiva with Angus. The name is Florence. According to ‘H’, Angus has provided fish, has tried mating unsuccessfully with the new gal, and then has kicked her off the nest. The relationship is a bit topsy-turvy. We wait to see how this works out.

Thank you so very much for being with me today. Please take care of yourself. We hope to see you with us again in Bird World.

If you would like to subscribe to our newsletter, it is easy. Just fill in the form below. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, tweets, and streaming cams which make up my blog today: ‘M’, ‘H’, The Guardian, Cornell RTH Cam, @CornellHawks, SWFlorida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, @Geemeff, Karen Enright and Orange Australia Peregrine Falcons FB, NEFL-AEF, Cal Falcons, Berkeley News, FOBBV, Tonya Irwin and Raptors of the Word, Golden Eagle Nest Bucovina, Research Gate, Cornell Lab and NZ DOC, Berry College Eagles, Friends of Osprey FB, Google Maps, and Kakapo Recovery.

Death spiral at Centreport, food fest at SWFlorida…Friday in Bird World

17 February 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

I am writing this late Thursday evening. Tomorrow is one of those days with a thousand little things to do and it is going to start early. It is currently -18 C on the Canadian Prairies and nearing 40 degrees C in Melbourne. I so hope our Australian friends do not go from rains and flooding to fires this year. Keep them all in your thoughts.

February is a month that is full of winter activities in Canada. In Winnipeg, from the 17th – 26th, it is the Festival du Voyaguer. Celebrated in the French area of our City, St Boniface, it is a time to come together doing winter activities, music, arts and culture, games, in celebration of the voyageur, Métis, and Indigenous histories or our province. There is amazing French and Indigenous food, snow shoeing, maple sugar candy…sledding. It is the largest French cultural event in this region of Canada. Lots of fun! I am definitely looking forward to a sleigh ride on either Saturday or Sunday.

First up, I have received word from ‘H’ that the new male D4 whose eggs Mum is likely to lay any time at CentrePort is injured or dead and has not returned to the nest. Would the D% male destroy the eggs of D4? Ospreys sure do and it is quite possible. We wait to see. The new male being called D5 is at the nest. Here is that death spiral – slo-mo and at the end the real time. Took seconds.

Today I made some video clips for us because you really need to just watch how well 22 did (with some intimidation from 21). It was a very special day on this nest.

I had received word that one of the persons that I go to for eagle advice had sound knowledge that there are three female eagles around the SWFlorida nest. After reading and looking and being terribly confused, it appears that there is some clarity as to what happened yesterday even though many will not agree. One of the issues was the camera moving and well, confusion over which female was which. The very hungry female was booted out of the nest and did not return today. The other female who has been on the branch did return last night and stood guard while M15 slept. At least that is my take on all of this based on reports from the ground. — At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter. No one was injured. M15 was back to his amazing self on Thursday delivering many meals and everyone had nice crops including Dad – it made me joyful to see his crop so full. He had been neglecting himself to feed the babies it seemed.

And then there is more confusing spreading this morning by another post…I prefer to focus on M15 and the eaglets…but I will put this here as I know almost everyone is interested.

The deliveries could well be good today at SWFlorida. M15 brought in a nice fish at 12:34. It was a whole one and he had some bites…it is not until 3 and a half minutes into the feeding that 22 figures out how to get some of that fish. He did well. Have a look! (22 is very nervous and 21 earlier raised its neck and moved towards 22 – all it took to get the little one to move out of the way of dad’s beak).

M15 brought in the innards of some animal at 13:36. At the time of his arrival, he had a nice crop so Dad had a good meal somewhere.

And so did the Es, both of them. E22 wanted to eat, tried to shy, and then went for it. You will see both 21 and 22 working nice pieces. Excellent.

It did turn out to be a good day and E22 mustered up some courage again and had some food. It doesn’t take much and now 21 has taken to wing flapping, too…but..E22 is getting its mojo back with every bite. He sticks with Dad and winds up with a nice crop! Yes, you can pull out the tissues now. I sure did.

Ah..looking out over the rails with a crop..lovely.

E22 had a nice crop after that feeding…and then at 17:17:16, M15 brought in a whole Armoured Catfish. 22 was right there…and 22 was fed until 17:37 when he couldn’t eat anymore and went over to the rim. E21 wasn’t bothered…full and wanting to sleep. They had lots and lots of food today!

Great job getting the fish flakes out of that!

M15 with his massive crop ready for night duty. He continues to look tired but…he ate well today and he has too…he is hunting for 3! So proud of you dad..with everything going on you did great today. Keep up the good work. Your babies are getting their juvenile feathers..

Sadly, Angus and Mabel continue to have an intruder, the same female intruder? at their nest. Mabel is desperately trying to hang on to Angus and her nest. Heidi Mc caught Angus chasing the intruder off the nest and then, she got her leg caught in nest material. There is a video of this curious interaction below.

Angus appears upset. Is he is trying to help her. The female was unharmed. She flew away and returned to the nest. Mabel has not been seen since morning. Will this female be Angus’s new mate? Did Mabel leave the territory?

This is a video of the skirmishes on the first day. If you are not aware of what is happening.

This is the video of the female hanging off the edge of the nest today. We wait to see…if Mabel doesn’t return and this female is consistently on the nest…well,…what do we think?

Even at 1700 Thursday evening, Angus was still having problems with intruders.

Amidst all the chaos on Wednesday, two nests have eggs that had troubles last year. Bella and Smitty at the NCTC nest and Nancy and her new beau at MN-DNR have their first egg of the 2023 season. In 2022, an injury that kept Bella from the nest for 21 days and an intruding female meant that the loved couple did not have any eggs to hatch. Nancy lost her young mate, Harry, and a shortage of food caused siblicide with only E-1 surviving. It pushed E-2 off the nest! Hoping for much better results this year although things seem pretty tumultuous all over Bird World at the moment.

Paul K caught the arrival of Bella and Smitty’s egg:

The gorgeous Nancy at the MN-DNR nest incubating her first egg of the 2023 season. New mate is Beau.

Nancy and Beau’s first egg is making the news.

https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/minnesota/a-sure-sign-that-spring-is-coming-first-egg-visible-in-minnesota-dnrs-eaglecam-nest

Liberty and Guardian seem to be having intruders again today. They have been in and out of the nest and on and off the egg – although they would also be practising delayed incubation. The egg was left for the longest from 09:57-12:54 (so far) on Thursday. A Magpie has been eating scraps off the nest. Oh, for some stability! These two are fantastic parents.

Want to see one of the most precious eagle eggs. It is number 5 for this season and it belongs to Audacity and Jak at Sauces Canyon, Santa Cruz Island in the Channel Islands. The other four broke easily because of the thin shell due to DDT contamination in the food of the eaglets..the soil, the water, everything at the end being so much more concentrated than at the other end of the islands. Oh, let us all hope for this one egg to make it for this tenacious couple.

Gorgeous Jackie on those two precious eggs Thursday night. Pip watch started yesterday. We have seen eggs survive 5 hours at a stretch in frigid temperatures. The nests also hold the heat. But whether or not these two eggs of Jackie and Shadow are viable is, of course, not known until it is too late for them to be hatching. The couple have been seen mating and it is possible they think there is something wrong — but we wait. Miracles happen. If not this clutch, there is time for another.

At the PA Farm Country Bald Eagle, we now have four eggs. This beautiful couple – Lisa and Oliver – had four eggs hatch last year…sadly that little cutie pie fourth hatch died of hypothermia when it could not get under Mum on a very frigid night.

Nests really have been neglected by me with all the troubles at the SWFlorida nest..hope for stability! Thursday was an especially good day for everyone – M15, 21 and 22.

Connick is growing like a bad weed but, on Thursday, he decided that in addition to fish, he would try eating a plastic washer that came to the nest. This should show up in a pellet.

Diamond is home and Elain has it on video for us. Sorry folks – lots of videos today. Sometimes it is good to see – especially if it is 22 doing the old snatch and grab!

Some news of interest to our Albatross fans…

Other news from our Albatross, Wisdom is a grandmother (image below with her distinctive band). Wisdom is the oldest Laysan Albatross in the world at 70+ years. She is still raising chicks.

Every species of bird gives us new and interesting opportunities to learn. I know that many head over to the Albatross and the Royal Cam family when they need to sit and feel warm and fuzzy. There is absolutely nothing so moving as seeing those albatross parents look down at their chick – the love just radiates out everywhere. I would also recommend to you having a change of pace and instead of just watching the Bald Eagles and Ospreys with all their drama (OK…Annie at Cal Falcons has had a revolving door of tragedy lately), try the hawks. There was something so magical about Big Red and Arthur having four eggs last year and raising four eyases to fledge…and little L4 clamouring over its big sibs to get right under Mum’s beak for food. There wasn’t any fear in that one…and she still resides on the territory of her parents hunting successfully and looking so much like her mother that you would think they were twins. While some things are the same, certain behaviours are different. Watch and compare with some of the other species…see what you learn!

Everyone was devastated when Sue and Otto died of Avian Flu earlier this year. They were the long-term Red-tail Hawk residents at Syracuse University. Their son, Jesse, has taken over Dad’s territory with his new mate Sarah. We wish them a long and healthy life!

There is a new Red-tail Hawk couple on steaming cam and this time the female is unusual. She is leucistic, the partial or total loss of pigmentation. Angel is 7 years old and her new mate, unnamed male, replacing her previous mate, Mohawk, is 3 years old. Their nest is in an undisclosed location for their safety in Tennessee. Right now they are nest building. There are very few Red-tail Hawk streaming cams in the world. The most well know is Big Red at the Cornell Campus and her mate, Arthur. This is another wonderful opportunity to see these amazing hawks raise their eyases…so different than eagles and ospreys. I find them comforting compared to the drama at some of the other raptor nests.

Here is the link to Angel’s cam:

https://www.youtube.com/live/WQ0mCowoEUI?feature=share

And, of course, absolutely, there is Big Red and her family on the Cornell Campus. Their streaming cam is up and running just in time!

https://www.youtube.com/live/ouQL2Gg-rXI?feature=share

And last…one nest where the eagles still stay on alert, where the female calls the male and he comes flying in, where both are healthy with Chrome-Yellow Beaks and talons…it is, of course, Gabby and V3. She calls, he comes. Adorable. They have been at the nest tree a lot today. I continue to ask: Do they know something that we do not?

Look at the colour of the talons…and check out the feet.

Gabby is stunning…I have wished that we could get her with M15.

V3 still has some old injuries on his talons healing (at the back). Always check out the colour of those beaks and talons. Gabby is incredibly healthy…just bright chrome-yellow.

Thank you so much for being with me today. Please check out the hawks and send all your positive wishes to all of the nests. Anything can happen and when it does it can cause so much turmoil and even death. The raptors need all the love we can send them. And take care of yourselves. I look forward to seeing you soon!

Oh, and I almost forgot. Two things. The Great Backyard Bird Count is underway. Please join in. Here is the information:

The final vote and names to be voted on will be announced tomorrow at Cal Falcons.

Thank you to the following for their notes, their posts, their videos, announcements that make up my blog today: ‘H’, ‘A’, Bald Eagles of Centreport, Stephanie L Hope and SWFlorida Eagles and D Pritchett, SWFL Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Window to Wildlife, Heidi Mc and Window to Wildlife, Paul K and NCTC Bald Eagle Cam, MN-DNR, Duluth News Tribune, FORE, IWS and Explore.org, FOBBV, Elain and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, Friends of Midway Atoll, Red-tailed Hawk Tales, Sherri Van Syckel and Bald Eagles Live Nest Cam News, Cornell Lab, and Cal Falcons.

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