27 December 2022
Good Morning,
We are out of the freezer but it is a dull day. -11 but getting warmer – up to -7. Grey. It is so nice to get up and not feel cold even when the furnace is blasting. Thoughts for all those people without power and who have been hit with relentless bad weather as well as for our bird friends who are getting hit by these weather bombs. To our friends in Australia who will be hit with +37 C temperatures today – stay cool!
I had a letter from ‘J’ the other day asking how on earth we manage when it is so cold, like -26 or -35 C. I will try and answer it but, first, a little story. When I first moved to Canada, it was entirely possible to have several months where the weather did not vary during the winter. It was always colder than -25, always. With climate change, we no longer have those very long stretches of being in such dire cold weather. The majority are, however, equipped for it. Our houses are well insulated from top to bottom. The window panes in my home are triple paned with argon gas between the panes and a coating that absorbs the sun for warmth in the winter and sends it back out for the heat of the summer. There are now companies who make nice looking winter clothing rated to -40 C. That includes coats and boots. The majority of cars also ‘plug in’. There is an electric heater to keep the oil warm. —– It is not so bad. Today, we are going to have a warming streak where the temperature will be only -7 C. It is those days that you want to get out and go for those walks in the forest and that is precisely what I hope to do on Wednesday!
A couple in Perthshire have a nesting Brown Honeyeater on their high-rise balcony! Oh, how super. Such an adorable little bird. They are abundant throughout Australia.
To bring a sense of excitement to your day, stop and watch this incredible video by Mark Smith of a young Brown Pelican trying to ‘eat’ an Osprey! Who will win?
Rare leucistic. Red-tail Hawk seen in Mystic, Connecticut. What a beauty!
Shadow and Jackie were there at sunrise —-continuing to do some tidying up on the nest. Must admit that I am getting really excited and hopeful that this wonderful couple can pull off another highly spirited eagle like Spirit who hatched in 2022. They are an incredible eagle couple. Wishing them the best.
No obvious eagle activity on the nest today in Minnesota but it looks like Nancy and her new man might have been around at sometime.
There is, however, lots going on at the E3 nest in the Kisatchie National Forest since the first eaglet hatched after 0300 on the 26th. Dad Alex has brought in a Coot and several Crappie. Adorable. The second egg is expected to hatch on the 28th.
A video of one of the feedings. Gosh this little eaglet is a cutie.
Pepe and Muhlady have been busy bringing in fish and feeding the eaglets but, those two are the best kept secrets. The parents seem determined for us not to get even a peek of them!
PePe brought in a nice catfish and Muhlady took a moment to look down at her growing youngsters.
Indigo had a green parrot today. Did he catch it? was it a prey drop from Dad or Mum? It is not clear but he did jump all around the scrape and guess what? Indigo ate every bite of that prey so when Diamond came in to check the corner for leftovers —- there weren’t any! It seems Indigo likes a parrot as much as his mother does. I wonder if Diamond would have searched if it had been a Starling?
You might well recall an image of Izzy with a green parrot (I think his was a Supreme Parrot) in quite a similar position as Indigo today.
In San Jose, another male was in the scrape box. This time it was Sequoia, the son of Grinnell and Annie, bonding with his mate. Oh, we will have another falcon scrape to watch with little eyases this year. This is wonderful.
It was Annie at The Campanile today. Where was the new guy? I might have missed him!
So who is visiting Gabby today? Your guess is as good as the next person. No one can keep up and there are so many marks that are similar with perhaps new eagles coming in, that it is impossible to keep up. And, last night, I went to sleep thinking this revolving door at NEFlorida was ending. Guess not.
Has she made a choice? Will he stay?
It has not been that long since the male at the Centrepoint Bald Eagle nest died. Mum, however, has a visiting ‘friend’ and she is warming up to this suitor.
The Bald Eagle couple at Fort St Vrain in Colorado lost one of their beautiful eaglets to a raccoon last year and fledged the other. Since then measures have been taken to prevent the raccoons from climbing up to the nest. How wonderful! The eagles are now working on their nest and were there today. Eggs are usually laid in mid-February.
Can you imagine heading out on a nice walk on Boxing Day and finding a river full of dead pheasants? What a horrible sight that must have been. Raptor Persecution UK is investigating. It is believed that the birds are ones that were killed as part of a shooting party on one of the nearby game estates or did they come from a pheasant farm. You can find the entire story at Raptor Persecution UK.
Of course some worry that the birds might have Avian Flu. Surely the proper authorities after having been notified of this travesty will investigate thoroughly.
It does look like Ron has made a choice with V2 female named Rose by the AEF. Heidi followed their courtship in a series of videos that you might enjoy watching. Thank you ‘H’.
A prey gift from Ron on Christmas Eve:
Nestorations and Bonding:
Ron and Rose’s relationship Blossoms:
Keeping your fingers crossed for Gabby!!!!!!!!!!! Ron certainly appears to be settled. Pip watch for Harriet and M15 is 3 January. Second egg at Kisatchie National Forest is the 28th. Must check on the dates for Connie and Clive as well as Missy and Pa Berry.
Take care everyone. Thank you so much for being with me. Stay safe and warm or cool depending on where you are. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their questions, announcements, postings, videos, and streaming cams that make up my screen captures in my blog: The Guardian, Mark Smith, News Times, FOBBV, MN-DNR, KNF-E3, Superbeaks, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, San Jose City Hall Falcon Cam, Cal Falcons, NEFL-AEF, Centreport Eagles, Ft St Brain, Raptor Persecution UK, ‘HM’ and her videos of the WRDC.
