Tag Archives: Collins Marsh Osprey chick has a crop

A joyful day

It was just so nice to start the day knowing that the Collins Marsh osprey chick was still with us. It was nothing short of a miracle that the very serious storm cells turned and headed away from the nest – and all the other Osprey nests in the area! Watching the satellite feed and then seeing those cells turn southeast – well, it was hard to believe. After 1am, the lightning strikes began to wane.

The site of the Collins Marsh nest is at the red pinpoint. In this area are also numerous Bald Eagle nests along with countless other Ospreys. The storm turned as it approached Lake Winniebago.

The little one has had several feedings today and, hopefully, this will be the last big drama this baby has to face before fledge.

‘S’ just wrote to tell me that the Dad on the Collins Marsh Nest had brought in a sizeable fish for Mum and babe just after 6pm. Many of the fish have been small. Thank you ‘S’. Much appreciated!

Right before the fish delivery the chick was being fed. Oh, what a lovely image – a little crop growing and mum on the nest feeding this very brave baby.

Here’s dad just about to leave after dropping off a bigger fish for these two. So glad that the waters were not stirred from the rain and storm last night.

Wee Bob had a nice crop. Mum is finishing up that nice fish. Both of them are going to sleep well tonight.

Everyone is celebrating the hatch of WBSE 27 and the pip of 28. Thankfully, they will be hatched close together. The sea eaglet bobbles are known for their sibling rivalry and fights over dominance in the nest. Perhaps this will help. We will see. For now, WBSE 27 is simply a little cutie leaning on ’28’.

This is not a great image of the chick. Apologies. But you can see the pip starting in the second egg.

Lady sure looks happy with that little fluff ball sticking out in front of her.

Two things to notice. First, that white line down the front of the beak is the egg tooth. It actually sticks up like a little spike. The chick uses it to pound away at the shell. It will eventually disappear as the beak grows. Secondly, if you are used to Bald Eagle babies, you will notice that the natal down on the White-bellied sea eaglet is white, not grey.

This is the first breakfast of fish for this little one.

We are having wildlife fires in Canada just like parts of the United States. On Vancouver Island, the Bald Eagle juveniles have been heavily impacted by the fires, the drought, and the lack of fish in some areas. There are lots of eagles, ospreys, and other species in care.

My daughter sent me an article this morning about how the people on Vancouver Island have joined together to provide fish for the Bald Eagles in care. It is one of those feel good comings together – just like the people of Mlade Buky who fed Father Stork and the little ones or the people of the Glaslyn Valley in Wales who provided fish for Aran and Mrs G when Aran was injured and could not fish for his family.

Here is the link to this wonderful story of a community helping these amazing birds.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/fish-for-hungry-baby-eagles-1.6121415

No one will ever hire me to be a wildlife photographer! I have a large lens that intimidates me at times but, after today, there will be another trip north to one of our provincial parks to take Osprey pictures ‘properly’.

This is the marshy wetland in front of the Osprey nest. There were lots of pelicans who did not want me to take their picture!

There is a mother and her two chicks in the nest. The mother is leaning down. Before I could get my camera ready the Dad had delivered a fish and left. My goodness. When this mother and the chicks saw the fish delivery getting closer, they were so loud that you could hear them easily 45 metres away.

You can see the profile of the mother better in the image below. The sky is so hazy because of the wildfires and smoke in the area.

This is an area of the park between the West and East entrance gates. This is where the Dad fishes.

Just across the road is this area full of pelicans fishing.

What you are seeing below is an Osprey platform that is unused. It is only about 7 metres from the road leading into and out of the park. The noise of the traffic would be a big deterrent to occupancy – at least to this auntie.

There is going to be camera and lens practice this weekend with a return visit before these juveniles fledge. As it turned out, the images taken with my phone were better than with my small camera. Next week, I will try and be brave when I use that other lens – like the Collins Marsh chick was during the storm.

Tiny Little has evaded me today. Hopefully tomorrow!

Thank you for joining me. It was so nice to get out of the city and get to see and hear the Ospreys that travel here to breed in the summer. It was a gift to see all four of the family today. Take care everyone. Keep sending warm wishes to the Collins Marsh nest. They are certainly working.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Sydney Sea Eagle, Birdlife Australia, and the Discovery Centre and the Collins Marsh Nature Reserve.

Sadness on Channel Islands Bald Eagle nest and other news from Bird World

There is sad news coming out of the Channel Islands Bald Eagle community. The male eagle, A64, Spirit, devoted mate to Cruz, was found floating in the ocean near Fraser Point on 21 July. The report stated that there appeared to be no traumatic injuries. Spirit’s mate, Cruz, has been seen at their nest. Condolences to all.

Deb Stecyk made a great video of this wonderful couple in 2018. Here it is:

The gusts have really been whipping the Fortis Alberta Exshaw Nest around this afternoon. For awhile it looked like the two chicks might get blown off. Mum was food calling and looking in the sky and you sure had a lot of sympathy for dad trying to fish and feed his family this afternoon. The weather station reports that the winds are blowing at 21 km/h. The gusts appear to be more than that. Hang on everyone!

Of course, you can’t even tell there is a breeze in a still photo!

The chicks are doing well on this nest. There seem to be no worries.

The wind was not blowing at the Fortis Alberta Red Deer Osprey Nest. Just look at how big and pretty Only Bob is getting! It really does help to be an only chick.

As the day heats up, Mum is making sure that this little one is good and shaded from the pounding heat of the sun.

The Only surviving Bob at the Collins Marsh Nest had a nice crop this morning. It is really, really hot on the top of that old wildfire tower. Both Mum and chick are really panting.

It was really nice to see a nice big crop on this little one today especially with the heat.

Tiny Little had breakfast and had an evening meal. Mom flew in to help but looks like Tiny Little did a pretty good job cleaning up. Our little one decided to sleep duckling style on the nest tonight. I like to think that all those lines are golden rays shining down and protecting this wee babe.

Other news coming out of Welsh Osprey nests is from Llyn Clywedog, the nest of Dylan and Seren. Only Bob, Blue 496, today flew from the nest with a good sized fish attached to its talons to eat it elsewhere. It is not clear if this is a first for Only Bob but it sure could be. Well done! Another milestone.

This is so fantastic. Dylan and Seren can be very proud of their 2021 fledgling Blue 396. He is doing so well in all aspects – flying, self-feeding, and now flying with a fish in talon. All good prep for migration.

As you probably know, the mothers leave before the fledglings and dad. They normally take off for Africa (or Spain or Portugal) two weeks before everyone else. Seren has been photographed in The Gambia. Dad will stay behind and feed the fledglings. When they take off and are all on their way it is only then that the male will leave. Everyone knows what a treacherous undertaking migration is. This year only 80% of the Ospreys expected to return did so in the UK (according to Tiger Mozone’s data). That is low. Normally it is 90%. We will begin to look for their return the third week in March. Normally Blue 33 and Maya are one of the first couples to get back to their nests. I can’t wait. There is something adorable about these little fuzzy bobble heads turning into reptiles and then getting their juvenile plumage that warms your soul.

My last report comes from Dr Ericke Green at the Montana Osprey Project. Him and his team have now visited 200 Osprey nests along the Clark Fork River. They note that the water in places is less than half the normal amount. The heat has persisted for more than a month, the water is hot, and the fish are dying. This is bad news for the Ospreys. Green noted that the chicks that they ringed were in good shape, regardless. He said that when they were on the Flathead Indian Reserve north of Missoula they found some nice healthy chicks living in nests lined with Bison hair! The nest is close to the Bison Wildlife Refuge. Wouldn’t that be soft and cosy?

Do any of you know what has happened in the Barlinecka Forest’s Osprey Nest in Poland? I have written to the Polish Committee for the Protection of Eagles that ran the camera. It has gone off line. There were two chicks on the nest – chick 1 hatched on 25 May and chick 4 hatched 31 May. Eggs 2 and 3 did not hatch. That is a massive difference in age! If you know anything about the status of these birds please let me know. I haven’t had a response yet from Poland. I will share it if I hear.

I want to thank all of you for joining me today. It is always a pleasure to have you with me. It was helpful to hear Dr Green say that this year’s osprey chicks in Montana have done well despite the drought that is encompassing so much of that area and ours in Canada. Take care everyone. Tomorrow loads of images of Big Red and the Ks.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I get my screen shots: CarnyX Wild and the Llyn Clywedog Osprey Nest, Cumbrian Wildlife Trust and the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest, the Collins Marsh Osprey Nest, Fortis Albert Exshaw Osprey Nest, and the Fortis Alberta Red Deer Osprey Nest. I also want to thank the Montana Ospreys at Hellgate FB Page where I grabbed the image of the Osprey chicks in the nest lined with Bison hair. They hold the copyright.