Tag Archives: Captiva Ospreys

Late Tuesday in Bird World

05 April 2022

Good Afternoon Everyone. It does not feel like spring on the Canadian Prairies. The sky is snow white, the snow is melting, and it reminds me of the first winter I spent in the United Kingdom when I was cold to the bone and came to appreciate heavy wool sweaters and a warm fire! Canada Geese continue to fly into the city while fears of a flood are mounting. The river is rising and rising and rising some more.

I want to thank those individuals – in addition to each of you – that stepped up to help Little Middle or to help me find people to help: Keith Buch (falconer), Ron Magill (Miami Zoo Goodwill Ambassador and Communications Director who retrieved the monofilament line from R2 in the WRDC nest), Resee Collins (Eagle & Rehabilitation Permit Coordinator, Migratory Birds & Science Applications, USFWS Interior Regions 2 – 4), Rusty Boles, Al Cerere, founder of the AEF, and Jessica Halls with the American Eagle Foundation.

As of yesterday, Jessica Halls was awaiting permission from the Army to enter their property; the nest is on their land. It came to my attention that a video showing River removing monofilament line was posted yesterday. I shared that knowledge with Jessica. I have not seen the footage. If the line is off the nest, great! Jessica is in charge and is working to verify if that is true. I have every faith in each of these individuals – their only concern, as is ours, is the health and well being of the eaglets. I want to give them a big shout out for stepping up and helping in any way they could. Little Middle and the Dale Hollow nest are now in their expert hands.

At 09:342 this morning it appears that DH15 or Little Middle still could have some monofilament line around that left foot area. It seems to move. I took an overall image showing the date and time stamp and then blew up the area with Little Middle.

Jessica will certainly ascertain if that is fishing line. We have done our due diligence and hope for a happy ending for Little Middle. He has eaten well today! He is more mobile than earlier. And with the rain, the nest and the eaglets will be turning into soggy little birds.

At 12:21 there is an image of a wet Big walking over to River to eat. Does Big have fishing line over its back? or is it nesting material? I don’t want to be the person that sees monofilament line where it isn’t. There is enough real line along the shores of the two rivers that impact my City and our wildlife.

River is staying in the nest with the eaglets – too big to fit under Mum unless she wants to pop the umbrella for them.

I had a wonderful note from ‘MR’ from New York who wants me to mention the Peregrine Falcon nest in Utica, New York. So many of you adore the falcons and would like to see more ‘good’ nests. The couple are Astrid and Ares. Astrid laid her third egg on the 4th of April.

The group is really organized. They have an excellent web page with both current and historic information. There is also daily information so be sure to check out the ‘latest news’ section. There are six – yes, 6 – cameras. Here is the fish eye view:

You can find everything you needed to know on the website including access to the six cameras. Here is the link:

The first egg of 2024 has arrived!!

They also have a FB group called Watch Utica. Why not check them out?

The first egg is hatching at the US Steel Bald Eagle nest. The chick is making excellent progress and appears strong. Here is a short video of that action:

There is another hatch in progress as of 09:43 nest time at Two Harbours. Chase and Cholyn are getting ready to welcome a sibling for Thunder over at the West End nest!

Here is the link to their camera:

Kincaid from the KNF nest in Louisiana and the second eaglet of Anna and Louis fledged yesterday morning. It happened at 08:17. Congratulations to Cody, Steve, and everyone at the Kisatchie National Forest. It was a great year. This is a wonderful eagle nest to watch. Cody and Steve are always working on improving the camera and the sound and are often on chat to answer questions. The mod is also wonderful – Eagles at Work.

This is an image from today. Unlike Kisatchie who fledged last year and never returned to the nest, Kincaid has been lured back by his/her love of fish. S/He had the opportunity to eat three fish so far today. Fantastic. As we all know, the fledglings that return to the nest, get better at flying and learn how to hunt/fish have a much better chance at survival. Hopefully we will be able to see more of Kincaid over the next 2 or 3 weeks. S/he is a gorgeous fledgling.

Life continues to be good at the West End nest of Thunder, Akecheta, and the triplets. They are so big now and have all of their thermal down. There is a hint of feathers coming!

The naming contest for Jackie and Shadow’s only eaglet this year is set to be announced. The deadline was 4 April. The children from the grade three class of a local school pick the name from randomly drawn submissions. Can’t wait. Baby is getting quite big!!!

The two nestlings at the Decorah North nest of Mr North and Mrs DNF are thriving. Aren’t they cute? And seemingly well behaved.

The two eaglets of Harry and Nancy are also thriving. Harry continues to load the nest with prey.

No worries for the triplets at the Pittsburgh-Hayes nest. They are all growing and doing quite well, transitioning from wee white fuzzy babes to getting their thermal down.

There is really good news at the Dyfi Osprey nest in Wales. Idris is home!!!!! He is often called Daddy Long Legs and no matter short or long, welcome home. Telyn has been waiting for you.

Dr Bast at the CROW Clinic has issued a statement on the death of the eldest osprey on the Captiva Nest. The chick died suddenly on the 15th of March. There were, of course, worries that it was the highly pathogenic Avian Flu, H5N1, that is spreading through the region. However, the other two osplets continued to thrive. Here is that announcement:

I am so grateful for all the wildlife rehabbers who work tirelessly – and through donations – to care for injured wildlife or in this case to rush to retrieve a dead chick to find out the cause of death. Thank you CROW.

It is that time of years. Birds are returning, local counts are being undertaken, and everyone with a camera is out trying to get that ‘great’ shot or to fill in their ‘Life List’ of birds. Cornell posted these guidelines for the photographers. Even if you don’t take pictures, it is always good to respect the space of our friends – feather, furred, or scaled.

https://www.birdwatchingdaily.com/photography/how-to-photograph-birds/an-expert-photographers-advice-on-bird-photography-ethics/?fbclid=IwAR2WfnduKUY-ca7SommdVF1aWF54fveZmQGIzB3zTzj4iDLknVxwMjuZe9w

The tributes continue to come in for our dear Grinnell. It is so wonderful that a falcon could bring such joy to so very, very many. The role that birds play in enriching our lives should never be underestimated. Many who write to me feel closer to their bird friends than to humans. They find great solace in watching their lives and the care they give to their families. Grinnell certainly did all of that!

https://www.dailycal.org/2022/04/04/devastated-and-heartbroken-grinnells-death-rocks-campus-community/

The ‘New Guy’ continues to bring Annie prey late at night, to help her protect the nest, and incubate the eggs. He is certainly rising to the occasion.

Karl II’s transmission for today has not come in. He was in Belarus yesterday having made it through the Ukraine without a problem.

I want to close today with a few images of the Canada Geese that I have been out counting for the past several days and for the rest of the week. As I said, I adore them! Some absolutely do not.

The local nature centre puts up wonderful nests and provides the straw – if the geese want to use them. This one did. Her mate is on the boardwalk and has decided that I will not walk through! I did turn around.

I remember when the geese used to arrive the middle of April. Now it is in March and we continue to have snow, rain, and melting snow. It is hard to find food.

The geese scour everywhere hoping to find a morsel of grass – green or dry. It doesn’t seem to matter.

There are geese everywhere!!!!!!!!

Thank you so much for joining me today. Take care of yourself. I look forward to seeing you soon!

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and FB pages where I took my screen captures: CROW, Pix Cams, Explore.org, Friends of Big Bear Valley, Dale Hollow Eagle Cam, Dyfi Osprey Nest, MN-DNR, KNF, and Utica Falcons.

Sunday in Bird World

3 April 2022

It was cold, damp, and dreary counting Canada Geese this morning. I did not take my camera – it is bulky and heavy – but I will return and take some images for everyone early this week. There are Canada Geese everywhere there is a large puddle!!!!!!

There is lots going on in Bird World – too much to keep straight. I want to start with dear Annie at the UC-Berkley Campanile. When Grinnell was killed we thought all was lost. Turns out Annie has her own ‘saviour’. It is thought that Annie laid an egg on Thursday but not in the scrape box. Cal Falcons felt that she thought she could only take care of 2 by herself. On time, she laid egg 4 and that is the big news. By my reckoning, this egg belongs to the new man since it takes approximately 2.5 days for Annie to make an egg. Oh, I hope this turns out well. It would be wonderful to see the last two chicks of Grinnell be healthy and fledge.

He’s a little raggle-taggled compared to Grinnell. I wonder how old you are Annie’s new man??

He is certainly trying to show Annie he has good intentions and is a good hunter.

Last evening Annie accepted ‘dinner in the scrape’ from the new lad. She stashed it for later and returned to incubate but how sweet was that?! Everyone remains hopeful.

Many of you are falcon fans. I have discovered a new scrape on top of the stadium at Michigan State University. It is brand new as of January 2022 so nothing is known, as far as I know, about the falcon couple. Here is that link – and there are 3 eggs!

Here is the link!

Michigan is working to reintroduce falcons into the state and there is another scrape that is funded by the Lansing Board of Water and Light.

How long do Red-tail Hawks live in the wild? I believe that Pale Male will be 33 this year. Him and Octavia have not had any clutches for the past two years. It will be three this year. Robert Yolton writes a wonderful blog on the wildlife around New York City’s Central Park. He found Pale Male eating a brown rat yesterday and took some video. His feathers appear to be fading a bit but what a legend Pale Male is.

Have you seen the free movie about Pale Male and how the community, including Mary Tyler Moore, lobbied and picketed for him and his mate to keep their nest on one of the nicest pieces of real estate in NYC? If not, watch it or save it for when you need something uplighting. The voices of people can really make a difference to the lives of these fantastic raptors. We just need the right person to hear us!

https://www.thelegendofpalemale.net/

Pa Berry and Missy at the Berry College Bald Eagle nest have been trying to coax 78-day-old B15 into the nest for some food. Missy has been watching her first fledgling closely making sure that he is learning to fly and land but not venturing far from the nest. Late this morning B15 returned to the nest and Dad flew in with a fish immediately for his boy.

Meanwhile Kincaid is branching higher and higher at the Kistachie National Forest nest near Alexandria, Louisiana. No one will ever know for sure if Kincaid is a male or a female; the eaglet will not be banded. But from the size comparison with Mum and Dad at this stage – right before fledge – most think Kincaid is a female. She is definitely a sweet eagle. Anna and Louis did a fine job this season. Hats off to everyone at KNF who worked so hard to get the two camera system in place, for taking the time to mod the chat and answer questions most of the day.

Closely watching the progress of Karl II, the patriarch of the Karula National Forest Black Stork nest in Estonia, as he flies over a war zone to get to his nest. Isn’t he gorgeous? This image was taken in 2017. He is still as handsome!

Who doesn’t know CROW? and who doesn’t wish we could wiggle our noses and get them to land at the Dale Hollow nest to check on that monofilament line? Made famous for their rescue of E17 and E18 of the SWFlorida Bald eagle nest when they had non-human caused conjunctivitis, CROW this morning cleaned out an Osprey nest full of human garbage. It is a threat to the wildlife – just like all those toys at Dahlgren are, sadly.

Oh, the Osprey chicks of Andy and Lena have been so neglected by me. They are just gorgeous and getting way too big too fast. So happy for Andy and Lena. After two horrible years, it looks like they will fledge two this year.

There was a statement on a FB group about the number of eggs in a Bald Eagle clutch. They said it was ‘rare’ for three and rare for three to survive. (They did not mention the rarity of siblicide twice at the same nest). I dug around and found a very interesting study on the change of clutch size in Bald Eagles in the Chesapeake Bay area of the US. It is really interesting ready. The author, writing in 2017, begins with the age of egg collection and continues to 2011 demonstrating that the size of the clutches has increased significantly since the beginning of the 20th century. It is not onerous reading. Very insightful.

Clutch size in Chesapeake Bay bald eagles: an unexpected history

Dave Hancock of Hancock Wildlife in British Columbia did a study and found that the average for that province’s Bald Eagles in terms of clutch size is 2.

https://hancockwildlife.org/hancock-wildlife-reference/bald-eagle-biology/eggs-incubation-hatching/

There are a number of 3 chick clutches currently being watched by us as well as one with 4, the PA Farm Bald Eagle nest. Pittsburgh-Hayes consistently has three and Redding would once again had three this year had their one egg not gotten broken. One of the most visited Bald Eagle sites is the West End where there are three eaglets this year. I wonder if this varies by region? Will look to see if I can find any solid information for us.

Deb Steyck made a video yesterday of the four at PA Farm being fed.

Meanwhile, Mr President seems to be really loving being a Dad again after 4 years and Lotus is figuring out everything as a first time Mum rather quickly. This is one spoiled little nestling that will grow fast and strong if Mr President’s prey deliveries are any indication of what is to come.

In contrast, nothing arrived on the Dale Hollow Bald Eagles nest until a two-bite teaser appeared at 11:24:55. We all know who ate that! These eaglets hatched on the 28th of February. Jackie and Shadow’s only chick hatched on 3 March. The Big Bear eaglet had been fed 8 times by 16:00 yesterday. The Dale Hollow nest continues to baffle me.

The eaglets are hungry.

At 12:31:34 a small fish was brought to the nest. Almost before the parent landed, Big went and began beaking Little Middle. Big’s beak is large and it can still encase Little Middle with its body hurting him. Big is a big bird.

To survive, Middle Little gets that head down and stays put.

I do not believe there will be enough for Little Middle to have any fish. I hope to be wrong. I also hope that the parent would change the direction they are feeding so Little Middle could move. It appears from the image above that the fishing line could be around some of the right talons??? But that is anything but 100%.

It is 12:44 and Little Middle has made no attempt to move to get any fish.

The fish is all gone at 12:45:24. Little Middle is still maintaining submissive posture. While it had been hoped that the attacks would stop, they continue because of the erratic fish deliveries. Like children, eaglets on the nest need some stability or they go into survival mode. Remember, Big wants to survive so it protects what it sees as a low supply of food. Middle Little protects itself for another time by being submissive and putting its head down. No sense in fighting a sibling that is twice your size.

A nest that is much calmer is that of Big Red and Arthur, the Red tail Hawks at Cornell who continue to incubate their four eggs which will hatch later this month.

Big Red is 19 years old this year and is the most well known RTH in the world. She is an incredible mother.
Cute Little Arthur has learned how to puff up his feathers to keep those four eggs warm and dry!

And the last check of the day, the two eagles that hatched on March 20 and 23 are doing remarkably well at the Redding Bald Eagle nest of Liberty and Guardian. They have sure grown out of the cute fluff ball stage now.

Liberty looks down at his two chicks while Guardian is aerating the nest.

It has been a busy day at the nests, many I did not get to check. Hopefully later. Thank you to everyone who has commented or sent me an e-mail. The inbox is full. I plan to have responded to everyone by tomorrow (Monday) at noon. Thank you so much for your patience and for your caring for Little Middle and all the birds. Your kind gestures bright light in a world that feels somewhat dark right now. Each of the nests seems to be doing exceptionally well. Dahlgren needs its garbage cleared, Richmond and Rosie have a good nest structure, West End babies fed well, and I have to check in with Chase and Cholyn to see if Thunder has a sibling. We continue to wait for the arrival of Ospreys Dylan, Aran, and Idris in the UK and for Iris in Montana.

Take care all. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and FB pages where I took my screen captures: Eagle Club of Estonia, Dale Hollow Eagle Cam, Cal
Falcons, MSU Fisheries and Wildlife Club, Lansing Board of Water and Light Peregrine Falcons, Berry College, KNF, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, CROW, Cornell Red Tail Hawks, and NADC-AEF.

Late Saturday News in Bird World

2 April 2022

I have tried desperately to get an image of both of Little Middle’s legs since I took my walk in the woods. This is the best I could do. At 11:34:26 Little Middle is facing the rim. He moves to the right but the footage of that .79 seconds is not there. At 11:35:15 Little Middle is facing the right – the gap did not allow for a look at that left leg that was having problems with the monofilament line cutting the flesh yesterday. It continues to be hard to get a clear look at the legs and talons.

The first image was taken at 08:22. The line is around the talons of the left foot. Cannot see if the line is anywhere else. It appears that Little Middle is not pulling the nesting material behind him anymore. Whether or not that is a good thing is not known. Where is that long piece of monofilament?

This image of Middle Little attempting to walk standing up was taken after noon. The talons appear not to have the line tightly around them on the left foot. This is good. The right foot appears to be clear in this instance.

These images were taken at 15:48. I tried to blow them up as best I could. The right leg and talons appear alright to me.

The toes on the left foot are not would tight like yesterday. It appears there is still line on toe 2 and 3.

I want to thank each and everyone of you that wrote in concerned about Middle Little. ‘L’ has been speaking with Al Cerere, the founder of The American Eagle Foundation, which has its home in Tennessee where this nest is. Al is no longer the Director but he cares about eagles, is extremely well respected, and can get action. He returned ‘L’ phone call and asked this afternoon how long the line has been attached to Middle Little, the age of the eaglets, and the height of the tree. This is excellent. Through the help of Paul Kolnik with the Bald Eagles 101 FB group I have been put in contact with individuals in the area but on the Kentucky side that might have some leverage. Another wonderful sleuth, ‘L’ has gotten me the numbers of the State Ornithologist in TN. Ron Magill at the Miami Zoo is among the several dozen individuals that have been contacted. I remain hopeful – that Mother Nature will get that line off or that an intervention can occur.

Today, the FB group for the Dale Hollow Eagles posted a message. It was copied and sent to me by ‘C’ who lives in Belgium. It said: “”Dale Hollow Eagle Cam. If someone acted to help one baby, both babies would most likely die or the nest would be abandoned by the parents. Let the experts handle the situation. I know it can hurt to see one of the babies die, but it happens.”

I would really like to know the experts that they are quoting!

There are many FB groups connected with nests that have nothing to do with the owner or operator of the camera. A good example is the Cornell Red Tail Hawk cam at Ithaca. The FB group is run by a group of people that love Big Red and Arthur. They have no influence at all as to what happens on that nest. I know – I do their puzzles. Toni Castelli-Rosen lives in California and she is the administrator of the group! We post about the nest comings and goings but we have no influence on anyone. So, it is difficult to know in what capacity that message was posted. Even some of the chats connected with cameras have no one associated with the nest moderating them – for example, Achieva Osprey in St. Petersburg, Florida. In the situation we find ourselves in with regard to River and Obey’s nest and eaglet, it is always best to let the real eagle experts figure out how best to handle this. I am a little shocked that the people from Dale Hollow immediately believe that this is not something that can be undertaken!

In instances such as this, it is best to rely on what you have seen with your own eyes in terms of deciding whether the message is true or false. We have seen rescues on many nests including the Captiva Osprey to obtain Big’s body for testing, at SWFlorida where Harriet returned quickly, at Captiva Bald Eagles where it was fishing line, etc. Each was successful. Ron Magill took the monofilament line off R2 at the Miami Zoo nest last week!

By luck, I found this today when I began to search who had control over the camera and the nest. It is very informative.

This is the link to this page: http://daleholloweaglecam.net/

The phone has been disconnected.

I remain hopeful that one of the leading experts on eagles will have some influence to get help for Little Middle OR the line will come off on its own. I know that none of us would want to endanger the life of any bird.

The young male that is trying to woo Annie might be around. She is looking up. Last night he brought her what looked like a nicely plucked pigeon. She did not accept the prey gift. Perhaps she is still trying to decide – accepting the prey is akin to making a lifetime commitment!

Annie is so beautiful. I continue to try and write a tribute to Grinnell and I find I am having a hard time separating the two. It was always ‘Annie and Grinnell’.

We wait to see what Annie decides!

The youngest eaglet on the NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest of Samson and Gabby, Rocket NE27, branched this morning around 07:57.

Everyone is preening at the Captiva Osprey nest of Andy and Lena!

Such good camouflage on the nest, too, in case of predators. The osplets are too large for the Crows to bother and it looks like Andy and Lena are going to fledge two lovely birds this season. Isn’t it wonderful for them? Still no word on the cause of Big’s death.

DC9 is barely hatched and already this little fluff ball that was mostly ’round’ yesterday is getting elongated! DC9 hatched on 28 March.

Happiness is always checking in at the West End Eagle nest of Thunder and Akecheta.

These kids are all spread out today!

I will continually report on the spring migration of Karl II because of his satellite tracker and the locations that he must fly through. I am grateful to Anne7 from Looduskalender Forum for posting this information. I don’t think she will mind that I share it with you.

I am waiting to find out how tall the tree is for the new nest at Dale Hollow. I know nothing might come of it but Al Cerere is asking the right questions and if someone can help, he can get things moving. I owe you big time, ‘L’. Thank you for pressing on to get in touch with him. At the moment River is on the nest calling Obey to bring in a fish.

Thank you for joining me today. Thank you to all of you for your efforts and your positive wishes for Middle Little. Take care of yourselves. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams or pages where I took my screen captures: Dale Hollow Eagle Cam, Looduskalender Forum, NADC-AEF, NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF, Captiva Osprey Nest and Window on Wildlife, West End Bald Eagles, and Cal Falcons.

Late Friday in Bird World

1 April 2022

I want to thank everyone who sent notes and who contacted folks in Tennessee around the Dale Hollow area. When I came home from my appointment, it was late but I realized that the issue is knowing who to call. Many of us live in various parts of the world. We know who helps there. But not in Tennessee. As I sat and pondered the dilemma, I remembered that Ron Magill of the Miami Zoo had recently rescued R2, the youngest fledgling of Rita and Ron at the Zoo, because of monofilament line. It is a long shot but, perhaps, he knows someone in Tennessee who believes in action not apathy! So I e-mailed him. Each of us can say that we have tried to help Little Middle in our way. Sometime we succeed and sometimes we don’t. I continue to hope for this little one who has been through so much and now this.

The good news is rather perplexing but, it is good news. Yesterday the male Peregrine Falcon, Grinnell, who had been with his bonded mate Annie for five successful seasons breeding on The Campanile – and they had two eggs laid for their sixth season – was killed. Annie was due to lay her third egg yesterday. She did not lay in in the scrape box at The Campanile. This raises an interesting question. If Annie did lay a third egg – dispose of it somewhere – was she aware that Grinnell had been killed? did she think she could only care for two chicks herself? The researchers at Cal Falcons believe this could be the case. Who knew what when??? As everyone watched Annie thinking there would be a third egg last evening and upset because we believed she did not know about Grinnell, Annie was kerchuffing to another falcon. I believed that it was possibly one of the female juveniles hanging about. But was it the male? This morning Annie and the male had two bonding sessions in the scrape box. I understand from the Cal Falcons FB page that Annie and the male were seen mating. This is certainly not normal and Annie’s behaviour has taken many by surprise. This afternoon the male incubated the two eggs for a short time. Is this the same male Annie was with when Grinnell was in the wildlife rehab clinic at the end of October? Who is he? Will he help Annie with the eggs? will he bring her prey? will he bring prey to the hatchings. I live in hope for Annie as well as Little Middle.

It is curious.

Annie and the male bonding in the scrape for the first time today.

Second bonding.

Male incubates eggs.

It is 17:30 in California and Annie is incubating the eggs.

There were several large fish on the Dale Hollow Nest when I left the house this afternoon. I was away for approximately 5 hours. The fish are either covered up or were eaten. Rewinding the camera did not help me. Little Middle still has the monofilament line around his legs and talons but he was eating, had a crop, and could move about. Continue to send your best wishes to this wee babe.

‘L’ sent me a note and said that another juvenile fledgling has a hook and line attached to it. This is E20 from the SWFlorida Nest of Harriet and M15. And, I mentioned Ron Magill, because he rescued R2, the youngest of Ron and Rita’s chicks the other day because of fishing line. SWFlorida will have CROW involved if there is a way to lure E19 to the nest. It is difficult once they fly. Here in a week, three known instances of fishing line and/or hooks. It is a growing and tragic problem for wildlife. People need to clean up after themselves, scour the shoreline when they are, get out in boats and get this stuff off the trees and their roots in the water. Please spread the word.

Sharon Dunne posted this image on the SWFL website. I know she will not mind if I share it with you.

There it is. If anyone can help, CROW can and E20s nest is in their region!

One of the most frustrating things that I have written about over the past few years is the need for emergency phone numbers should someone watching a streaming cam see something happening that needs attention. How we get the cams to do this is beyond me. We had some success last year but knowing who to contact is essential.

I have not been able to check on all the nests I had hoped to for this posting. I did look at Akecheta and Thunder because they give me a smile and all is well.

Akecheta trying to keep his babies cool.

Everything is fine at the Captiva Osprey nest of Andy and Lena.

There is BTW an osplet in the care of CROW from Captiva but it is from a different nest.

These two have really grown and thrived. Middle has the darkest plumage in the front. Little loves to look over the edge and the feathering is slightly lighter.

DC9 is the cutest, fluffiest little baby – the recent hatch of Mr President and Lotus at the National Arboretum Bald Eagle nest in DC. Just imagine a piece of fishing line here! I bet someone would be up there to make things right in a matter of hours.

Just look at those precious wings, that little fat bottom, and tail. So cuddly.

The two recently hatched babies at the nest at Decorah North, Iowa, are doing alright as well. It is so odd. Some eaglets hatch and appear to be wearing ‘goggles’.

It often takes two if you have triplets! Mum and Dad at Pittsburgh-Hayes may be used to fledging three but it is always a challenge.

Harry continues to fill the pantry with ever more prey for the two eaglets he shares with Nancy at the Minnesota DNR nest.

I hope these two are good to one another. There is lots of food!

The wee one at Dulles-Greenaway seems just fine. Martin and Rosa really make sure it is fed. What a beautiful place for a nest.

I wanted also to continue to check on Karl II’s progress to Estonia and can do so because of Anne7’s good reporting on Looduskalender Forum. I had so hoped that he would veer to the West. But he flew north and then returned to Moldova. But today the GPS coverage is erratic I am told and he is not in a good place. He is at Berdichev, Ukraine. There are issues with cell coverage and this is an area of attacks in this horrible war. I hope Karl II is safe. We need some good news – lots of it. Take care Karl II. We need you home!

This is the distance. Very close to major military activity and if flying north going through Belarus.

This is just a quick peek. I would love to wake up in the morning and find that someone had removed the monofilament from both DH15 and E20 who also has a hook. I want to hear that all is well with Annie and that the 4th eaglet on the PA Farm nest is eating well. No more monofilament. If we see three instances in a week on monitored nests wonder what it is like in the wild? It appears that leisure activities that humans undertake like fishing and hunting are life threatening to wildlife. So sad.

Please excuse my grammar and typos. It has been a long day and I didn’t get a chance to proof read this blog.

Thank you for joining me. Please take good care. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Dale Hollow Bald Eagles, West End Bald Eagles and the Institute of Wildlife Studies, Sharon Dunne and her posting on the SWFlorida FB page, Dulles-Greenaway Eagles, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, MN DNR, Pittsburg Hayes and Pix Cams, Explore.org, Looduskalender Forum, Cal Falcons, and the NADC-AEF.

Late Wednesday – Early Thursday in Bird World

30-31 March 2022

Wednesday was a day with super highs and lowest lows in the animal world. A group of hunters in the UK chased a Buck for 7 hours straight until it collapsed and died. Seriously horrific. River brought in a beautiful fish for the kids at the nest she shares with her mate, Obey, at Dale Hollow Lake. This is in northern Tennessee bordering Kentucky. It had a hook and fishing line. River broke the line and tossed the hook over the edge of the nest but some line remains and some – not sure how much – is on Middle Little’s foot. I hope it works itself off naturally without cutting into the talons and leg. Poor thing. Little Middle has been through so much. I could not – and still can’t – believe this happened. One of our readers has the e-mail of Al Cerere that started the American Eagle Foundation with its headquarters in Tennessee. Perhaps he can help Little Middle in some way. Thank you, ‘L’ for reaching out to him. Fires are raging the Pigeon Forge Tennessee home to Dollywood and the AEF Ambassador Eagles – and Al will also be busy with this. The wildfire is being monitored and there are plans for evacuation. In the positive column, White YW arrived today to join his mate, Blue 35, on the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest in Cumbria. Last year they almost arrived at the same time. So excited. These are Tiny Little’s parents!! It is a great nest but an aggravation as there is no rewind!

Akecheta feeding his triplets always puts a smile on my face! Just looking at them gives me hope.

All is well with the West End triplets this morning, Thursday the 31st.

The triplets at Pittsburgh-Hayes are also doing well. A dry morning has turned, however, into a miserable one and the three will need to stay dry and snug until it passes.

The storm that hit points to the west that is hitting Pittsburgh is starting to blow in Washington, DC where Mr President and Lotus have their only nestling to keep dry, warm, and fed.

There is lots of food but it is difficult to feed a new hatch in torrential rains!

There are storms moving through large swaths of US. The storm and heavy rain at Berry College where B15 has his nest with parents Pa Berry and Missy is just starting.

This morning at 09:17:55 Pa Berry and Missy’s eaglet B15 fledged!!!!!!! Here is B15 at 09:00.

I cropped the image so you can find B15 easier. It is the black silhouette at the top centre flying out of the frame.

Parent is on the nest trying to lure B15 back with a fish for breakfast – nice reward! Send positive wishes that B15 stays for the 4-5 weeks to learn its flying and continue to get prey from parents!

Gold stars go out to Rosie and Richmond. My goodness they have been working hard to get their Osprey nest on the Whirley Crane in the Richmond Shipping Yards fit for eggs. Well done!

Middle and Little (or Little and Mini) at the Captiva Osprey nest are ‘itchy’. Unless they are eating it is extremely difficult to get a good image of both of them standing together!

There is still no news on the cause of Big’s death. That was 15 March. Only 16 days ago. It could be another week or more.

A lesson learned that many wildlife rehabbers know is that if there is a nest where an eaglet needs to be removed so the others thrive, remove the oldest. Not the youngest. Both Middle and Little have done well, getting along perfectly well since the death of Big. I don’t want this to sound callous but it is the thing to remember. Often we think the one that needs food needs to be removed but it is actually the oldest who will do well in care while the young does best on the nest.

A sub-adult or juvenile White-bellied sea eagle has return to the nest in the Sydney Olympic Park. Is this 25, 26, or 27 or 28? They are attempting to identify the bird. This is done, ironically, through the talons I believe.

Sea Eaglet is quite hungry but lovely to see. I wonder if this is not WBSE 27 that went into care twice? Will confirm when anything is posted.

The Black Stork Karl II flew into the Ukraine and instead of heading north headed back south to where it was on the 29th. Did something scare it? Individuals are hopeful that Karl II will go a different route to the west. Fingers crossed.

There is a fish pool at Mindic where Karl II can get food.

I have no information on the situation with regard to Little Middle at the Dale Hollow Nest. Yesterday River brought in a fish that had a hook and line stuck in its side. River removed the hook breaking the line. She threw the hook over the nest. Monofilament line remained and it got on D15 Little Middle’s left foot. This morning at 08:28:09 there is a clear view of the issue. The line, at that time, had wrapped around the 4th toe the hallux needed to carry fish and the third and over the first toe. Last night it was only around the top of the foot. It is tighter. Little Middle ate well last night. I did not see it eat this morning. Here is an image of that line:

I posted the image and the issue on Bald Eagles 101 this morning and send a message to the USFWS at Cookeville, TN.

If you feel so inclined, here are some phone numbers of appropriate authorities to call in Tennessee. Remember that Carol Moore called The Raptor Centre who was to call the USFWS yesterday. I believe this was done. It is unclear if there is any way to access the nest. Some trees are just not safe for someone to climb. It is imperative to remember that this is a human caused issue and, as such, warrants an intervention if, indeed, it is at all possible to do so. What we do not know is if there is any way to access the tree. That said, here are some phone numbers in the area if you feel you would like to add your voice. The Mid-South Raptor Center at Celina TN. 901-685-8827. The Army Corp of Engineers that own the property is 931-243-3135. The Cookeville USFWS is 931-528-6481.

There is no guarantee that anyone will do anything. I was hopeful that this morning Little Middle would be relieved. It is possible that there is absolutely no access to the nest. As one of my falconer friends reminded me yesterday, ‘Nature kicks you right in the gut just when you think everything is going well’. And it couldn’t be truer. Little Middle was clever and eating and Big didn’t bother it yesterday like the days before. Both of them are 31 days old today, 32 if you count hatch. Being gutted is pretty much what it feels like this morning but I live with hope.

Speaking of hope, Cal Falcons has estimated that Annie will lay her 3rd egg tonight around 21:10!!!!!!!!! I can’t wait!!!!!!! Something positive to look forward to.

Thank you so much for joining me today. I wish beyond wishes that I had good news for you about Little Middle. Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: West End Eagles and the Institute for Wildlife Studies, Pix Cakm, NADC-AEF, Berry College, SF Ospreys and Golden Gate Audubon, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, Sydney Sea Eagles at BirdLife Australia Discovery Centre, Anne7 at Looduskalender Forum, and Dale Hollow Eagles.

Late Tuesday and early Wednesday in Bird World

29-30 March 2022

One of the most wonderful things about birds is the fact that they just carry on. Whether or not they are buried in snow, soaked to the core from torrential rains, or thrown about their nests with huge wind gusts, they just get up and get on with it. They give me hope and most always put a smile on my face. There is a rhythm to their lives that provides us as watchers with hope and solace.

Most love to watch as the parents feed their young – from the tiniest saliva bites for new hatchlings to that third week when the crops get so full they look like they will pop to surrendering the prey on the nests when the babies are self-feeding. Most of the parents give it their all. I cannot imagine for an instant what it must be like to feed four bobble heads and keep them alive. A human who has four infants would find that a huge challenge. It makes me appreciate the birds even more.

All lined up nicely for Mum Thunder. There has not been any discord at this nest. I continue to remind people that the youngest, in the middle of the image below, is four days younger than the eldest. Little Bit at Dale Hollow was three days younger.

Thunder taking care and feeding the triplets.

Thunder and Akecheta are up early feeding the triplets this morning.

Both eaglets at the Dale Hollow nest of River and Obey are are 30 days old today. At 06:48:21 a parent flew in with a sucker, not huge but not a bad breakfast.

Little Middle never knows what kind of mood Big will be in so he immediately begins to move to get away and let Big go eat.

He walks down to the rim watching and listening. The adult has not begun to feed Big. The parent is sitting and watching- not only the happenings on the nest but also in the territory of the nest.

Big has moved over to the fish and on a side that would separate Little Middle from the feeding. The adult is looking around and still not feeding. Middle Little is cautious but this time hurries up along the rim making its way up to the table! Smart. Little Middle waited too long last night and lost out on the fish. He is hungry this morning.

The parent feeds Middle Little all of the first bites. Big does nothing. Just watches.

The adult feeds a tiny portion of the fish to the two and then abruptly flies off at 07:17:58.

Little Middle is working on his balance and does a great PS.

Both eaglets settle down and wait for the parent to return. What a great start to the morning. Is it magic when they turn a month old they become civil? We wait to see.

First time mothers with bobble head babies seem to have some difficulty figuring out the right angle to hold the beak and feed the little one. Last year I thought Anna and the Kistachie National Forest nest would never figure out how to feed Kisatchie! They both got it! And Lotus and the wee one at the National Arboretum Nest in DC will get there, too. It is truly difficult to hit a bobbling target!

It looks like Mr President is asking Lotus how much more fish he needs to bring to the nest!!!!!

It is Wednesday morning and all is well with the new hatchling of Mr President and Lotus. Oh, it is so sweet.

Easy to see the egg tooth – the white bit at the tip of the black beak – that hammered away at that shell. Oh, so clean and white.

Turn your beak sideways, Lotus!

Liberty and Guardian have a couple of cuties that are not having any problems getting down to feeding.

I keep asking Liberty if she would please feed them so we could see. It doesn’t seem to be working! The little ones have had lots of meals on Tuesday with Liberty keeping her back to the camera. Too funny.

I wonder how many are following the Great Horned Owls that took over the Osprey nest near Savannah on Skidaway Island? The nestling has grown in remarkable time. It is just starting to get the tufts on top of its head. No one knows what the actual purpose of the tufts is. Does it help camouflage the owls by breaking up the line of the head? or are they there to show the mood of the owl? Little Grey is alone on the nest except when a parent comes to bring food or feed it. Cornell took a video clip of Dad delivering a duck dinner to Little Grey.

It may be cool in Big Bear Valley but the snow and rain have stopped. Jackie and Shadow did super taking turns brooding and feeding throughout the storm. The chick hatched on 3 March making it 27 days old today.

Yes, you are cute.

Before I forget, the results of the naming contest for Jackie and Shadow’s eaglet will be announced after the area has its spring break. That would be 4 April. Can’t wait!

Abby and Blazer’s eaglets have their juvenile plumage. The sun is setting and sending a soft golden glow on the pair of eaglets being fed this evening. They are never too old to want to be fed by Mum.

The surviving eaglet at Duke Farms hatched on the 24th of February making it 34 days old today if you count hatch days. It is really growing and covered in thermal down with its contour and wing feathers growing in nicely.

Mum and Dad were both on the nest for the feeding as the sun gently sinks into the horizon Tuesday night.

It looks like the Duke Farms eaglet is having fresh squirrel for breakfast on Wednesday.

The triplets at Pittsburgh-Hayes are growing and behaving themselves at meal time! What a nice relief.

Mum is up early making sure everyone gets a good start. This nest will require lots of prey and many feedings to make sure each gets enough.

The parents are old hands at taking care of triplets. They fledged three last year!

Wow! What a difference. Just imagine. Before you blink, those three nestlings at Pittsburgh Hayes pictured above will be the size of Jasper and Rocket at the NE Florida nest of Samson and Gabby! And they will be self-feeding.

Here is a video of Jasper and Rocket enjoying a live fish! It is one of the many lessons the parents teach them so they can deal with all situations in the wild and survive.

All is well with Andy and Lena at the Captiva Osprey nest in Florida this morning. It is getting more and more difficult to tell Middle from Little at this nest. That is fantastic. There continues to be no word on the cause of Big’s sudden death.

In the world of UK Ospreys returning from migration, a super Mum, Blue 35 (2010) has arrived at her nest at Foulshaw Moss in Cumbria. She landed at 13:09. Last year Blue 35 was tired of the two older and much larger siblings eating all the fish and Tiny Little Bob not getting much. There is Tiny Little on the far left.

So Blue 35 pulled a fast one. She fed the two large siblings til they were full and flew off with the rest of the fish. When they went to sleep, she returned to the nest and fed Tiny Little Bob. Tears flowed with joy! With the help of Mum and Dad’s (White YW) great fishing, Tiny Little grew and grew becoming the dominant osplet on the nest.

So welcome back, Blue 35. What a great Mum you are.

I continue to follow the Black Stork Karl II’s migration from the Sudan to his nest in the Karula National Forest in Estonia. Here is the route that he took last spring returning home. His migration pattern is in royal blue.

If he stays to the west and if the fighting and burning are not bad, well, fingers crossed! We want them to stay way to the west of Odessa and Kiev.

There is severe weather coming to parts of the United States that will impact many of the nests that you are watching. If you live in this area, please stay safe and watch for the storm warnings. Send all positive wishes for our birds that are outside in a nest when raging winds, rain, and tornadoes hit.

It has been a good start to the morning at all of the nests. We can’t ask for anything better than Little Middle getting to share a fish breakfast with Big without a single second of intimidation.

Thank you to everyone who worried about our snow and ice. The snow is still here on the ground and it is a dreary grey-white morning but everything is fine. Thank you for being with us this morning. Send all your best wishes for continuing prey and health for all of the bird birds. Also, take care of yourself. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Cumbrian Wildlife Trust, NEFlorida Bald Eagles-AEF, Looduskalender Forum, Friends of Big Bear Valley, Dale Hollow Bald Eagles, West End Bald Eagles, Redding Bald Eagles, Pix Cams, Cornell Bird Lab and Audubon, CNN Weather Tracker, NADC-AEF, Eagle Country, and Duke Farms.

Late Monday and Tuesday news in Bird World

28-29 March 2022

This is actually more a quick glimpse of late Monday activities in Bird World up to noon on Tuesday.

At 20:57:27 Monday night, you could see an eaglet with the two halves of the egg acting as book marks at the National Arboretum Bald Eagle nest in DC. It is home of Mr President and Lotus. They lost their first eaglet to a tragic accident during pipping so it looks like once the AEF officially announcements the hatch, it is congratulations!

At 07:07, you can get a good luck of the dried fluffy baby. Congratulations Mr President and Lotus. This is wonderful news. May DC9 stay healthy! This is now the historic moment of having a hatchling in the DC nest for the first time in four years.

Oh, you are cute and you are blessed. You will be an only eaglet like Jackie and Shadow’s baby.

Here is a really short video of that hatch.

Jackie and Shadow have certainly had a terrible day with the strong winds, rain and ice pellets.

There is snow on the Big Bear nest this morning but the winds have lessened. Thank goodness. Everyone is just fine!

What a gorgeous landscape!

Samson made the egg cup quite deep the other day knowing that the baby would be snug as a bug when the storm hit. Lovely family.

Amanda777 made a short video of Jackie feeding the baby in the snow.

The rain and the winds stopped on Monday for the West End eagle nest of Thunder and Akecheta. This morning it is beautiful. Someone who knows fish species told me that the red flesh fish that are brought to the nest are Alders. They are apparently quite good if you like to smoke your fish.

How many stared at Annie in the scrape watching for every moment? CalFalcons predicted around 20:10. I hung on waiting for a little longer only to get up later and, thankfully, to a note from ‘B’ discovered that second precious egg of her and Grinnell’s had been laid around 21:18:37. Thank you! Both were clearly visible at 21:41:17 when Annie rose up to display those beautiful deep red eggs.

CalFalcons made a quick video of Annie laying that second egg.

Here are the two eggs this morning! Good thing egg collectors have learned that their actions almost made many bird species extinct in the late 19th century and early 20th. They are beautiful! We will look forward to them being fuzzy white eyases in 33-35 days.

While I was watching Annie I was also checking on Karl II. Oh, bless that Black Stork’s heart! Now if he will continue his north westerly route avoiding the area of The Ukraine…Fingers crossed. Looking forward to having him back on his nest at the Karula National Forest in Estonia.

He spent the night in Motoseni, Romania.

My happiness at Karl II’s route was matched by Obey flying into the Dale Hollow nest at 18:02:32 with a small fish last evening. At 18:02:51 Little Middle went into submission.

Big had finished at least a fish and a half, if not two, one hour earlier. Big could not be hungry!

Watching and watching and listening, Little Middle gets to the rim, head down.

He sits up and looks over hoping, perhaps, that Big wouldn’t finish that small fish! Big did not attack.

Little Middle moves around the nest. Big doesn’t do anything. Is there any fish left?

He gets up there, beside Big.

Little Middle gets his first bite at 18:09:22.

Little Middle got the remainder of the fish thanks to Obey. The tail was gone at 18:14:12. Not a long feeding and not a lot of fish but Little Middle had a crop. Oh, I would love to see this wee one get to eat an entire fish by itself! Talk about a growth spirt.

I loved this image of Little Middle looking up at his Dad. Obey has done some nice feedings for the wee one, holding back, going slower, moving the fish. It is nice to know that Little Middle went to bed with a full tummy.

This morning a really large fish on to the Dale Hollow nest. I cannot comment on what happened prior to 08:14 on the feed as it will not rewind beyond this and I could not check this nest earlier. It appears that the two eaglets were fed half of the large fish with half remaining on the nest. There is no discord between them after 08:14 so maybe there wasn’t any! I live with hope.

It appears that Big ate first and Middle moved in later. That would be my guess based on past experience.

Big is obviously full.

The parent turns the other way to feed Little Middle. Big has moved away already having consumed 1/3 of the big fish. There will still be fish left when Middle finishes eating.

I have included the three images below. It is hard to get a sense of the true difference in size or even the actual size of the eaglets.

It is nice to see them looking out at the big world together. Big has almost lost her dandelions and, of course, Middle Little had his pulled off so he is ahead with that regard.

Little Middle is surely growing and has some nice blood feathers at the tip of its wings coming in. Big has quite a few. Both are doing a lot of preening. Hopefully more fish will come in today – surely there will be!

Everything continues to go well for Andy and Lena and the two Osplets at the Captiva Osprey nest in Florida. Both are healthy and continue to eat well and grow in their juvenile plumage.

Every once in awhile you can get a glimpse of all the triplets at the Pittsburgh-Hayes Bald Eagle nest. It can be tricky though. I have waited and waited with no luck!

The two eaglets of Liberty and Guardian seem to be going through the bobbling head phase. One had a great PS this morning while the other stood up and watched it. Cute. Their rain has stopped and they are drying out.

There was a Great Horned Owl that landed below the nest in the middle of the night. Hope it stays away!!!!!

There are so many nests to cover and Ospreys arriving or not. It is difficult now to keep track of all that is going on. I have not seen any announcements of any of the monitored nest Ospreys returning in the UK since Telyn arrived at Dyfi late Monday. I will continue to monitor that situation.

Thank you for joining me this morning for a bit of a hop, skip, and jump through the nests. We are expecting rain and then 100% chance of more snow – just when we thought spring was coming!!!!!!! I recall actually having snow on the 15th of May one year. Hopefully it will not be that late in 2022. Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures and video clips: Friends of Big Bear Valley, Dale Hollow Eagles, Cal Falcons, Pix Cam, Redding Bald Eagles, Captiva Ospreys, Looduskalender Forum, West End Eagles and the Institute of Wildlife Studies, and the NADC-AEF.

Monday in Bird World including full report on Dale Hollow

28 March 2022

I thought that my blog would appear tonight but the day got flipped so it is out by noon but, if there is an evening report, it will be quite late.

The weather in California is not good. The storm hitting the Channel Islands is intensifying while it is yet to hit Big Bear Valley. One with rain and high, high winds – the other with high, high winds and snow.

The weather forecast was dire for Jackie and Shadow at Big Bear Lake with high winds and snow. The wind is currently blowing at 14 mph with a temperature of 38 F.

The winds remain with the snow expected to arrive today.

At 10:47, the weather is better for Jackie and the baby.

Those same winds are hitting the Channel Islands and the nest of Thunder and Akecheta at the West End. In still images you cannot see the wind or hear it but for Thunder, Akecheta, and the trio it is blowing at 29 mph.

The winds turned into winds and rain. Akecheta is hunkered down on those three babies so nothing will happen to them! Please keep this family in your thoughts today and send them positive energy. The storm is, at present, much worse here than at Big Bear.

Here is a video clip I took so that you can see the intensity of what the eagles are facing.

At 09:47:

Akecheta and kids at 10:44. Soaked.

It is raining on the Redding California nest of Liberty and Guardian but so far they seem to be spared the high winds that West End and Big Bear are getting.

It started out foggy for the east coast of Florida a the nest of Samson and Gabby in Jacksonville. The fog will burn off and it is going to be nice for our eaglets, Jasper and Rocket, who are working on wingersizing and getting their balance down perfectly. Both are self-feeding and well branching and hatching is going to come soon.

Jasper hatched on the 23rd of January (04:06am) and Rocket on the 25th (02:24am). Jasper is 63 days old and Rocket is 61.

Note: The information on the streaming cam indicates that the pair are only 21 hours apart but the hatch times listed must then be incorrect. Whatever the date it will be another 2 weeks when we will really be looking for fledging.

At the Dale Hollow Nest of Big and Middle Little, Middle Little is crying to be fed despite 6 fish being delivered to the nest on Sunday, Little Middle got hardly any food after noon because of Big’s intimidations and beakings. River brought a fish to the nest at 06:54:39 but did not feed them. They are both hungry and a little restless.

They look like wooly insulation today.

River arrived at 10:18:14 to feed the eaglets. Big went up immediately. Little Middle observed and then moved to the left of the nest – and River changed her position so she could feed it and Big – separated by her body! Well done, River! Both got to share the small fish and both had crops, not huge but they both ate well enough. Now we need more fish!

River used her ‘eagle eyes’ to notice that Little Middle was moving up and wanted food. See how she turned to face the rim which protected Little Middle from Big.

Did you know that the term ‘eagle eye’ was first used in the 1500s before science understood eagle vision. Eagles have 5x the amount of light cells packed into a square inch. Humans can see at 110 degrees with both eyes, eagles have two foveae (the place in the retina where the cells that sense light are located) in each eye. They can see much better in all directions – including almost 360 degrees of peripheral vision, according to Sibley.

Both eaglets are getting some of their blood feathers – more, of course, on Big.

Some of you have commented about a chat at Dale Hollow. The chat for Dale Hollow appeared yesterday and then today for a bit. According to one of the moderators, it is only on when the cameras are re-booted and probably won’t be on at any regular times if at all.

The eaglets are 28 days old – 4 weeks. Remember when you look at their size that only 51 minutes separates them in terms of hatch time. Big is just huge. You can easily see those wing and contour feathers coming in on Big in the image below. Look at the tip of the wing.

River flew in with a nice fish at 11:50:51.

Notice Big’s large crop from eating almost an entire fish earlier as she moves over to get fed. Little Middle puts its head down.

But wait! Is Big too full? ready to cast a pellet? (they don’t always want to eat them) The adult is stretching out to feed Little Middle! Oh, kiss that eagle!

Big decides it wants some fish, too. But there is no discord. Eventually the adult moves away to the other rim so that the two are divided.

Just look at Little Middle’s crop!!!!!!!!!!! Yahoooooooooo.

Excellent. Little Middle made up for missing much of the earlier fish and winds up with an enormous crop. Well done, Little Middle.

It has been awhile since we had a really good look at the osplets on the Captiva Osprey nest. With the death of Big on the 15th (cause unknown still), the two remaining chicks have thrived with absolutely no discord. Today they are standing and it is seriously difficult to tell Middle from Little.

They are seriously beautiful little Ospreys and it is wonderful for Andy and Lena to continue to have two healthy babies who look like they will fledge without a problem.

Can you tell between Middle and Little? It is difficult. Middle is standing in the image below. Its feathers are a little darker having grown out longer.

Harry is keeping the MN DNR nest full of prey – talk about choice! – for his two wee ones and Nancy. Their weather is so much nicer than in other parts of the US.

It is cool in Ithaca where Big Red and Arthur have their nest with some snow falling on occasion. Big Red and Arthur are incubating four eggs – a first for this nest and a rather rare event even if hawks can lay up to 5 eggs. Ironically, the University of Syracuse RTHs now have four eggs, too!

The same snow that is falling in Ithaca is hitting Pittsburgh and the Bald eagle nest out in Hayes even more. Mum and Dad are brooding three chicks. Stay warm!

There was a pip in the second egg at the National Arboretum nest. Here is an image of the egg during a shift change today and the adult. Will hopefully have good news tomorrow on a successful hatch for Mr President and Lotus.

In the image below, taken at 09:22 this morning, you can clearly see the egg tooth chipping away. Oh, my goodness, fingers crossed for these two.

Here is a recent video of the hatch for Mr President and Lotus as it progresses:

There was some speculation about the Dale Hollow nest when the camera was turned away from the nest. It appears, from comments I saw by the woman who does the videos, that at one time or another – perhaps during that long view – Little Bit was removed from the nest and probably fed to Big. Several of you thought that was the case. Eaglets from other nest also brought on. Good sleuthing. Sad.

Thank you for joining me today. Please take care. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their streaming cam: Friends of Big Bear Valley, West End Bald Eagles and the Institute of Wildlife, Dale Hollow Eagles, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, Pix cams, NADC-AEF, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, MN DNR, Redding Eagles, and NEFlorida Bald Eagles and AEF.

Late Friday in Bird World and all is well

25 March 2022

Viewers of the Decorah North Bald Eagle nest of Mr North and Mrs DNF were frightened today when 47 mph gusts hit the nest. Those winds will continue until tomorrow. Hatching is never planned and that little one is making keen progress from its pip this afternoon at 12:46. It is being rocked and kept warm.

In 2018 this nest collapsed. It was rebuilt and re-enforced so despite the winds, everything should be fine. Hope.

And then it snowed at Decorah North! The baby is hatching. Dad has come in to take over so Mum can have a break.

It is still unclear what is happening at the Sauces Bald Eagle nest on Santa Cruz in the Channel Islands. This is the nest of Jak and Audacity.

View of the egg this morning. It is getting more possible that the egg is non-viable. Too bad they couldn’t have one of of the 4 and one out of several triplet nests that have hatched.

If you missed it, the big news today is the discovery that there are four eaglets on the nest at the PA Farm Bald Eagles. This is extremely rare. I knew about 1000 Islands in Wisconsin last year. Someone wrote that Norfolk had four eaglets in 2011.

Congratulations to to Mr President and Lotus and the National Arboretum Bald Eagle nest. First hatch after 3 bare seasons. Here is the announcement.

Congratulations Mr President and Lotus. Meet the newly hatched DC8!

Thunder has been bringing in crib railing to the West End nest and wow, it is working in one area of the nest. Thunder watches to see if these three lively eaglets will remain contained!

Sometimes but not when Dad Akecheta wants to feed them the Cormorant that Mum brought in today. Sweet babies. Seriously sweet babies.

We are all going to have to get our worry beads out. These kids of Thunder and Akecheta’s do not sit still!

Sorry for all the videos. The wind doesn’t really show in the stills and it is nice to see the four eaglets bobble. In this last one for the day, put out by Cal Falcons, Annie and Grinnell get down to business. Eggs tomorrow? Sunday? Gosh, I hope the romance drama has settled out on The Campanile.

Since the last feeding right after 12 noon when Little Middle had a huge crop, a fish head was brought in at 12:59:56. River fed Big until 13:08:18 and stopped. Little Middle did not bother to go up. It was more than full and why set off Big? River moves up to the fish head at 15:01:11.

River steps on Little Middle’s head and he pulls back, frightened.

Little Middle looks up at the feeding at 15:16.

Little Middle isn’t quite sure what to do. He has looked eyes with Big. (Often never a good idea as it sets the larger sibling off).

At 15:16:48, River pulls the fish head between the two eaglets. It is now closer so she can feed Little Middle.

A bite to Big and then a bite to Little Middle.

Same again, one for Big and one for Little Middle.

Then several more bites for Little Middle. More for Big and then the feeding stops by 15:30. It was slow. Not much fish on the head. But slow is good. Big gets full faster!

At 16:50;56 River flies in with a teaser fish?? Like a 3 or 4 bite fish??

She offers the first bite to Little Middle who was the closest at 16:51:31. I am watching this live and have no idea how well that gesture is going to play out with Big.

At 16:53:59 Little Middle moves cautiously and with head down away from the feeding. Big has done nothing that I can see – other than her sheer presence – to frighten the little one. I cannot imagine what it is like being that so frightened.

River obviously likes this species of fish. She is taking big bites and eating them herself. I wonder what it is?

Big gets full at 16:55:59 and River begins feeding Little Middle off the fish head.

Little is still being fed at 17:10. Life is good. River returns to clean up scraps around 18:00. Feeds Big a few bites. Little Middle doesn’t bother.

I checked on Estonian Black Stork Karl II’s progress and note that he has flown west. I wish that he would fly a little more west and head to his home in the Karula National Forest through Romania.

On the 23rd of March, Karl was feeding at the north end of the Beysehir Lake in Turkey. I so wanted him to turn west and not go straight north to the nature reserves around Odessa in the Ukraine. He left that feeding area and flew NW! 285 km

Today, he flew 308 km. He is west of Istanbul, west of the Black Sea.

Here is another map. Will Karl II turn to feed along the shores of the Black Sea or will he continue to fly north away from the war in the Ukraine? If he continues to fly west away from the conflict this is quite wonderful. How did he know?

The sun is setting on another good day at the Captiva Osprey nest in Florida. Lena and Andy have done well. Both Middle and Little are getting beautiful juvenile feathering. So happy for them. There continues to be no word from the second lab on what suddenly killed Big on the 15th of March in the morning. You can clearly rule out some physical cause such as choking on a pellet. I believe you can rule out Avian Flu, too as the UGA Vet School would have been able to test for that.

Mum and Dad at the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge have been making more and more frequent appearances there. Both were on the barge today and on the 23rd I did get a shot of Mum eating a fish. Would love to see our Ervie again. He is staying close to home. Here is Ervie’s latest tracking.

It is a good day in Bird World (except for Sauces, sadly). Little Middle is going to sleep full even if nothing else appears on the nest. Big settled during the afternoon but Little Middle remains scared. That is probably for the best. He recovers faster than last week and has eaten almost all day.

Thank you for joining me. Take care everyone. I look forward to seeing you soon.

Thanks to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, Explore.org, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Looduskalender, Dale Hollow Bald Eagles, Cal Falcons, West End Bald Eagles and the Institute for Wildlife Studiews, AEF NADC, and the PA Game Commission.

Wednesday Morning in Bird World

23 March 2022

Many of you have been watching the Captiva Osprey nest in Florida along with me. It is the home of Lena and Andy and their chicks. The oldest sibling, Big Bob, passed away on the 15th of March around 08:39. This was a shock to everyone as all of the osplets appeared to be in good health. Big Bob’s body was take to the University of Georgia at Athens where a necroscopy was undertaken because CROW did not have the sophisticated equipment to conduct the tests. It was originally anticipated that the cause of Big’s death would be know at the end of that week. it has been announced that the tests are now being run by a national laboratory with even more sensitive testing equipment than the UGA Vet School.*

Andy, Lena, and the two remaining chicks are doing very well. Little’s plumage is almost catching up to Middle’s and they are relatively equal in size. Gorgeous Ospreys.

Andy is arriving with a morning Mullet appetizer at 08:14:57.

Look at those beautiful ‘babies’. Middle is on the left and Little is on the right.

Andy is off to get a bigger fish so he can eat the head and have some breakfast, too. He brought in the tiny teaser Mullet in tact. Look at the back plumage. Soon we will have difficulty telling the two chicks apart.

At the Red-tail Hawk nest of Big Red and Arthur, Arthur flies in to relieve Big Red at 06:40. He already has her breakfast waiting for her and she is off!

Arthur got to incubate their eggs for about forty-minutes before Big Red returned to take over.

Big Bob and Middle Bob had a really good feed yesterday morning at the Dale Hollow Nest. That Coot that filled both of them up to the brim and more was a blessing since it appears that nothing came on the nest but a small unidentified object (rat? small squirrel skin?) later. That said, the camera was diverted to the lake in the early evening. It appears – but I cannot confirm 100% – that River was digging in the nest at the time. It also appears that she found Little Bit’s body and fed it to Big. Again, I cannot confirm that for certain. It was only by going back and slowly moving the feed that we were able to catch the momentary checks on the nest.

Both were very hungry this morning and Big let it be known that whatever was coming in, he ate first. The parent arrived empty taloned.

A little later the parent returned and fed the unidentified object to the right of it above to Big. Middle did not venture up to even sniff the prey knowing that Big is very hungry and not in a good mood.

I will monitor the Dale Hollow nest again before I finish and bring any updates below. I find myself returning to the West End nest of Thunder and Akecheta. Thunder looks on with pride last evening as Akecheta feeds the three eaglets. We are all so proud of how far Akecheta has come – a doting, loving, protective Dad at age six. I also like to point out that the smallest chick on the West End nest is 4 days younger than the oldest. The youngest chick at Dale Hollow was only 3 days younger than the oldest.

This is an amazing image!

The eaglet on the Big Bear Valley nest was left alone this morning as Jackie and Shadow appeared to be on high alert.

While everyone is anxiously awaiting and mapping the return of the UK Ospreys on charts, graphs, and maps, thousands are awaiting the arrival of the oldest female Osprey in the world, Iris, from her winter migration. Her spring and summer home is the Clark-Fork River area of Missoula Montana and her nest is on a platform a parking area of the Riverside Clinic. Workers have been busy putting up fencing so no one will get too close to the nest and frighten Iris away.

At the SWFlorida nest of Harriet and M15, E20 officially fledged yesterday, the 22nd of March.

E20 had fludged after E19 fledged on the 21st. Congratulations to the SWFlorida Bald Eagle nest for two successful fledges and a fantastic year. Thank you to the D Pritchett family for caring so much for their eagles and for allowing us to enjoy watching their daily lives.

At the Redding Bald Eagle nest of Liberty and Guardian, the parents are celebrating the successful hatch of chick # 2 at 08:47 this morning, the 23rd of March. Chick #1 hatched on the 20th.

In the wee hours of the Morning at the WRDC nest in the Miami Zoo, R1 was accidentally pushed off the nest. I have no further news on the status of R1 at this time. Will update later if there is news.

R1 was spotted at the base of the tree. It then flew – yes, flew! – to an adjoining tree! R1 is fine. Not to be left behind, R2 the only eaglet on the nest at 12:30 is appearing to want to join its sibling. Wow. This is all good news!

The surviving oldest eaglet on the Duke Farms nest is continuing to do very well.

Lots of people are busy watching the Sauces Bald Eagle cam hoping for that pip! Jak and Audacity are getting anxious, too!

It was announced that there will be a live chat with Dr. Sharpe today on bald eagles on the islands, restoration, nesting, at 2 pm Eastern/11 am Pacific on the Live Chat Channel https://youtu.be/4nSIhl1fOFk

I want to end this here so that you have an opportunity to know about Dr Sharpe’s talk.

It is 11:37 nest time at Dale Hollow. No prey brought in yet. Middle flapping its wings.

Thank you so much for joining me this morning. I will have a late report today. Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams: Redding Bald Eagles, Explore.org and the Institute of Wildlife Studies, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, Duke Farms, Friends of Big Bear Valley, SWFlorida and D Pritchett, WRDC, Cornell Bird Lab and the Montana Osprey project, and Dale Hollow Eagles.