The dreary cool day continued on the Canadian Prairies. The garden has been very energetic all day. Notable were visits for 7 Black-capped Chickadees, some adult and juvenile Clay Sparrows, Junior and his three Jays, one Crow, all of the squirrels, and about 150 House Sparrows. Oh, yes, and about 25 Dark-eyed Juncos and 4 European Starlings.
Dark-eyed JuncoDyson and Co dumped the covered feeder. Two of Junior’s fledglings are in the middle of it eating their corn.
All the joy in my garden doesn’t compare to the sadness and despair bracketed by hope that people have for Little Bob at the Port Lincoln Osprey barge.
At 06:38:32, Big Bob decided it was time to give Little Bob a good thrashing – for nothing more than being there – and Big anticipating that an early fish was coming in.
Little Bob got nothing of that fish. He is so afraid that he did not even raise his head.
Mum flew off and came in with a big fish. Little Bob was too scared to move. He had Middle on one side and Big on the other. Middle is doing well and when I last looked both Middle and Big had huge crops.
Everyone is hoping that another fish or two will come in quick succession and Little will get to eat. He had some fish – not tons and not enough to make a big crop but, some, 24 hours ago. Little needs a really good feed today. He needs to be able to raise his head up and not be intimidated and hurt by Big.
Breakfast was confusing at 367 Collins Street. Mum flew in with a freshly caught pigeon which she began to pluck. She changed her mind after the Melbourne Four were excited for an early feed. – Oh, she gave one or two of them a few feathers. She flew off with the bird. Then she returned with it mostly plucked. Went to feed the eyases and then changed her mind again and flew off at 07:33. I would not be surprised if Dad shows up and feeds the Four.
No real breakfast yet. Back to sleep.
I wonder if these chicks are as confused as I am. What is going on, Mum?
There was a frenzied breakfast feeding at Orange. Diamond came in with a Starling at 07:11 and Rubus was ready to go. Diamond is working to get Rubus to stretch its neck and the little one did not disappoint. At the end of the feed, both Rubus and Indigo had nice crops. Well done.
Another prey item came in at 0724. Cilla Kinross said it was definitely not Starling. Diamond stayed with the chicks and Xavier either ate his breakfast or put it in the pantry for later. All is well at Orange. No worries here. Indigo’s feathers are developing very well. Rubus continues with his loud screams..and life is good in rural Australia.
The only nest to have had breakfast by the time I finish writing this is Orange. The four chicks at Melbourne would love to have had some of that fresh pigeon. They wait. Middle and Big (of course) ate well. Little needs food. ‘A’ observed a very tiny PS from Little last evening – a sure sign that he is becoming very dehydrated. Please wish for fish. Send all your positive energy Little’s way.
Thank you for being with me. That is a wrap for me in Manitoba. Take care all. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Port Lincoln Ospreys, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross.
I hope that you woke up to or will wake up to a beautiful sunny morning. Before I go any further, I missed a feeding at Port Lincoln yesterday – so there was an early feeding and a second right before noon. Apologies all around for any anxious moments that might have caused!
I have mentioned my walks and some of the birds that are out and about in our city. The death of my old computer has me now using two different machines – one for photos and another for writing to you. Sadly, in the process of learning I deleted the latest duck pictures – all the male Wood ducks that suddenly appeared at the local park. I hope to go back today or tomorrow to check and see if they are still residents of that pond or if they have fled with our temperatures dropping.
This little Red Squirrel lives in a forest of Oak trees. Talk about silence. It was so quiet. S/he would just look at me, find an acorn and run off, returning for another in a blink. There is a saying on the Canadian Prairies to watch and see how high the squirrels take the acorns and that will tell us how much snow we will have in the winter. The trees were so thick it was impossible to tell where he took his pantry supplies. Dyson’s children are burying their peanuts in the grass! Silly things.
The other evening a wind came up. The trees began a twirling dance. Crows from every direction flew over the house, and then, all of a sudden, 11 European Starlings appeared in a tree on the opposite side of the lane. They left as quickly as they arrived. Normally they would stay to eat in the garden but, no. They were taking advantage of the strong winds.
The Dark-eyed Juncos have arrived in great numbers all over our city. They only want to eat Millet off the deck carpet or the boards. No feeders for them it seems – at least not here.
Junior and his three fledglings are still here. Their nest is in a tree close to the large tree with the Starlings. When they hear me open the garden door, they appear on the wires coming into the house and wait patiently for their peanuts or a new cob of corn. They do not seem to mind the Juncos.
Mr Crow and his three fledglings from this summer are still here. The babies are now the size of their dad. What a mix there is on that old deck. Still, no one is really bothering anyone else except for the natural fear that small birds have of big ones. Everyone is too busy eating as much as they can.
Have you ever looked at the feathers of a Crow? The layering is stunning.
There are many places on the Internet to find out about Crows but, Audubon has put out 10 Fun Facts about them. I can confirm that they hold grudges. Four years ago, I yelled at Mr Crow after he had eaten all of the Grackles fluffy babies. It was 2 years until he would have anything to do with me again.
The Greater Yellow Legs are still at one of the local ponds looking for food.
The ‘Find of the Week’ was this family of Tundra Swans in the wetlands. You can just see one of the adults. The grey is an adolescent and to the left of the adult, hidden in the marsh, is another juvenile. There are, in fact, both adults and three juveniles in residence. I have been wondering if they are waiting for the youngsters to get stronger for their migration. While they spend their spring and summer in the Arctic and sub-Arctic, they will winter just south of us in North Dakota, Minnesota, or Wisconsin. So, they do not have far to go now.
Making the News:
I have an on again, off again relationship with The Guardian’s Country Diary. I should read it more often as, I too, have come to love the sound of the Corvids – not in the wilds of the country – but, in the middle of a city.
This is why we thank our wildlife rehabbers every day – their dedication to improving the lives of our beloved birds that fledge and find themselves injured out in the wild.
This was one lucky Caribbean Osprey. It didn’t die from being electrocuted but, its feathers were sure burnt to a crisp. Thankfully helpers rushed to get it to the wildlife rehab centre where it is recovering.
Australian Nest News:
The osplets at Port Lincoln did have, as noted above, more feedings than I recorded yesterday. They ate well. At the late feeding, you can see all of their huge crops. This is the feeding after 1500. Little Bob is between the big siblings but he is not having any trouble opening his beak and getting food from Mum. Oh, he is right at the sweet spot. This is when Little Bob reminds me so much of Ervie.
Everyone went to bed with a very full tummy at Port Lincoln!
The eyases at Melbourne are well fed. I will begin to sound like a broken record but, this new couple really has it together. Prey deliveries are announced. Mum can run and retrieve the pigeons then or she can go to the pantry later. What is absolutely evident is the patience both parents have when feeding the four youngsters. No one gets left out. All four appear to be thriving, even the little snow person.
At Orange, it is a slightly different story. The wee one has missed out on several feedings or has received one or two bites, sometimes eight. Notice has been taken that people are now counting the number of bites that it gets which, to me, implies that there is some concern. As many of you will have noticed, including me and ‘A’, Diamond sometimes considers feeding the wee one who is calling loudly for food, beak wide open, only to wind up eating the prey herself. ‘A’ notes that the wee one ate better at the 17:17 feeding with Xavier coming in and wanting to feed the chicks but, Diamond eventually horking down the prey that he has brought into the scrape. Xavier is an excellent hunter, and he is really good at feeding. You might recall when Diamond hurt her leg last year and Xavier took care of Yurruga.
SE30 sure looked like it might fledge yesterday. Thankfully, the youngest eaglet of Lady and Dad was wise to stay on the nest. The Currawongs and Magpies were everywhere. They would have surely chased 30 out of the forest.
In my mind, I am imagining a corridor created for SE30 by 29 and the parents so that it is protected on its first flight. Of course, I am being a bit silly but, it is very possible that the close bond that 29 and 30 have with one another might have 29 there helping 30 fly to the camera, back to the nest, and then to the spots that it has found. SE29 has been very impressive. No wing tears, nothing.
Aren’t they beautiful?
Thank you so much for being with me this morning. I hope that you have some time today to spend peering into your garden, going for a walk, or just sitting on a bench somewhere listening to nature. Take care of yourselves. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their posts and streaming cams which make up my screen captures: Sea Eagles@Birdlife Australia Discovery Centre Sydney Olympic Park, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, Port Lincoln Ospreys, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, and ECWC.
It has been an interesting morning in the garden. First, it is wet and cold – again. 8 degrees with a cloudy sky.
Because of the recent rain, all of the old seed and shells were cleared off the deck and put into the bin. Birds can get sick from eating wet mouldy seed. Wet seed encourages bacteria to grow and the diseases can be fatal. I would like to think that birds know better than to eat that wet, sometimes smelly, seed but they do not always, especially if they are ravenous. Over the years we have experimented with many different ways to keep the bird seed dry. Putting a roof or a dome over the feeder works best. Other people recommend mesh feeders so that there is air circulation. I have found that these work best in conjunction with some type of a roof or dome.
The garden birds do not like it when things are cleaned up. Today was no exception! Some of the bowls were left to be cleaned while others were filled. The House Sparrows arrived wanting baths – yes, they take baths when it is 8 degrees C! Others were dismayed to find their bowl empty. We warm the water for them in a heated bird bath during the winter but it is only enough for then to drink with wooden slats placed across so they will not bathe. Thank goodness they do not weigh enough to move those boards about! It is really important to remember as the cold days of fall and winter set in that birds need water to drink. If you put out seed in the winter, they also need water. Yes, they eat the snow but they often need more. See if you can figure out a way to provide it for them.
This is one of the sweetest little House Sparrows. It along with the one above wanting a bath were just darlings.
Grey Squirrel (Bushy) joined everyone on the blocks eating his favourite seeds with big nuts and fruit.
The Slate-Coloured Juncos are still here and they like that fruit and nut seed just as much as the Millet. Sadly, with the wet on the deck and their favourite red carpet, the Millet turns to mush and might make them ill. So it is fruit and nuts today! Hopefully the weather report is right and the sun will be out tomorrow and we will be back to non-seasonal temperatures for a few days so everything can dry.
The plumage of the Slate-Coloured Junco is quite extraordinary when you begin to look closely to the variations of rusty brown over the slate grey.
Mr and Mrs Blue Jay came for the corn cob but were joined later by another Jay. The reaction to that bird seemed to signal that it was an intruder.
Mr Blue Jay on the right, Mrs Blue Jay on the left looking at the corn cob.
Blue Jays are often overlooked. Many dislike them as much as they do House Sparrows. As for me, I adore them both but – because Mr and Mrs Blue Jay have been coming for several years and each summer they bring their surviving fledglings to show us, I am especially attached to them. They eat their corn and love it if they can get a peanut ahead of one of the squirrels.
I found a woman who loves Blue Jays, too. She made a great little video explaining their courtship behaviour. Have a look!
I love the drawing on the top left and the saying: Birds Make Me Happy. As all of us know, that is absolutely true. They bring such joy.
Thank you so much for joining me today. I hope all of you are well and happy. See you soon.
There is still time for you to put in your count for the October Big Bird e-Bird Count. You have until midnight as far as I know. In one hour we had 37 Dark-eyed Juncos, 3 Blue Jays, 3 Harris’s Sparrows, 1 American Robin, and a host of House Sparrows. There were also 3 grey squirrels and 1 red and then Little Woodpecker came when the new suet cylinder went up. I wonder if they sit and watch? or how good their noses are.
Everyone of them seems to know the minute the feeders are full and once the suet cylinder is finished when a new one is put in place. It is much cooler than it was a few days ago and the sky has been a light grey all day. I wonder how long the Dark-eyed Juncos will be with us?
There is, as far as I know, only one hatch at the Peregrine Falcon scrape box in Orange. The little one has been fed several times already. It gets full with 3 or 4 nice bites of prey.
And then it will pass out quickly in a food coma! It is quite frightening the first time you see this happen, especially with a newly hatched chick.
Yesterday I made a video clip of one of the feedings at the 367 Collins Street Peregrine Falcon Scrape.
The Collins Street Kids are really growing. The two larger ones now jump a bit to get up to Mum’s beak for the prey.
There was a beautiful golden glow on Mum at the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge this morning. Viewers got a treat. The cam operator showed the Calypso Star I taking clients out for shark cage diving. You might know it but it was that business that allowed the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge and streaming cam to come into existence. Thank you Calypso Star!
It is 8:23 just now and the kiddos are still waiting for breakfast. They will certainly not starve! Never. Last night when they went to sleep their crops were bursting.
Once of those funny crop shots when they lean back to preen. Look how big that is. Each of them was the same.
Here’s Little Bob! Look at that crop and then look at his feet!!!!!! I love Clown Feet Time.
I am learning just to keep quiet on bird chats. A couple of days ago, a dear woman, who has been quite ill and is recovering, was more than put down because she suggested that birds have emotions. There is a lot of research on this subject. For the next week or so, I will post some academic/scientific papers on this topic. Some will be shorter and some longer. The one today concerns two particular emotions: fear and frustration. It is titled, “Avian Emotions: Comparative Perspectives on Fear and Frustration.” It was published in Frontiers of Psychology in December 2018.
I grew up in Oklahoma (home of the Five Civilized Tribes before it became a state) where there are strong beliefs about animals and birds. They serve as messengers of the Spirits of the Indigenous people. Some offer warnings – others are there to help. Here is an interesting article birds as symbols.
We are looking for a hatch for Xavier and Diamond today. It might not happen. If it doesn’t, it is just fine. Those who watched their scrape last year certainly came to love their only hatch, Izzi. He was quite remarkable.
Thank you for stopping in today. Remember to turn in your bird count if you haven’t already. Take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots and video clips: the Port Lincoln Osprey Project, 367 Collins Street Falcons by Mirvac, and Charles Sturt University at Orange Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross.
If the weather is good, I really encourage you to go to your local nature centre to check out their programmes, look at the displays, sit and watch the birds, or walk on the trails.
As I walked through the Interpretative Centre, one of the staff was asking anyone if they wanted to watch a feeding. There were lots of pre-school children yelling ‘yes’ or ‘me, me’ and running ahead of their parents and grandparents. I thought they were going to feed the ducks. Silly me. It was salamanders. There are, however, many activities at the nature centres for all ages. In the fall, both of ours have birdseed sales with good discounts for members and much better seed. Then there are pumpkin carving adventures as well as astronomy evenings.
The grasses lining the ponds of Oak Hammock Marsh are quickly changing colour. Last week they were much more green and there was a lot more water. The staff are draining the water from the wetlands as it would happen naturally during a time of drought.
Closer to the Interpretative Centre is a series of board walks talking you out into the marsh.
Along the way there are pavilions. It is here that some of the walking tours stop to listen to information. They are also good places just to sit and catch your breath in the heat.
Whenever I look at these pavilions I am reminded of the gardens of the Chinese literati (learned individual, well educated, often writers and poets) who created gardens with ponds and pavilions like these for admiring nature, to find inspiration, or to sit and write or paint.
There were definitely not as many waterfowl at the marsh today as there was last week.
This is a good view of one of the pavilions and the adjacent ponds and marshlands.
It was really hot out on the trails around the marsh. Even the ducks were paddling so fast that they were often a blur.
These two Canada Geese were paddling quite slowly along the shore. They were not in a rush!
The dabbling ducks were looking for food.
Sometimes you had to look very closely to see them up against the reeds.
The reflection of the reeds with the blue sky was quite beautiful.
One of the things that I did today was purchase a book. It is The Crossley ID Guide to Waterfowl.
My interest has always been raptors. I can easily identify them although a Cooper will sometimes confuse me with a Sharp-shinned. I do not know my ducks and I am just now getting a handle on sparrows. We have two big rivers, two large lakes, Hudson’s Bay and a host of other smaller lakes and water features in a growing number of new housing estates. These are the birds in the parks near me or in my garden. It would help for me to recognize them. It would also help the e-Bird consultant for our area because then I would not be bugging him all the tim! Wish me luck.
These are Green-winged Teals preening themselves.
There is a look out point near the end of the trail. There you could see the ducks and geese arriving. It was 16:00.
Common on the Canadian Prairies are rose hips. The roses appear in the spring while the rose hips, the fruit of the rose, is in the fall. They generally grow after the petals have bloomed and have fallen off. They are rich in nutrients including vitamin C. People collect them and make tea or rose hip syrup or jelly. It is delicious.
The Dark-eyed Juncos have even appeared at Oak Hammock Marsh. You can hardly go anywhere without seeing several.
This is a Thirteen-lined Prairie Dog. They are diurnal and are most active during the day where they can be seen looking for food and going in and out of their tunnels.
There were a couple of these sparrows that were in my garden so I know this one’s ID. It is a juvenile Harris’s Sparrow. So cute. Eventually its entire crown will be black.
As we were leaving the Canada Geese were flying in to feed on the recently harvested farmer’s fields. Here they come in a beautiful ‘V’ formation.
While I did not see very many birds, it was simply a gorgeous day to be outside. The trails are so much nicer to walk on than the concrete of the city. There is such joy just closing your eyes in the sun and listening to the geese. It is the sound of fall. I am also very grateful to the individuals who have established this beautiful nature centre and have purchased the marsh and are being good stewards. There is absolutely no hunting permitted on any of the land – and the area is huge. Bravo! These ducks will not be fattened up, tagged, and then wind up in a count as to whether they were shot in state or out of state like some nature centres do. Rosalie Edge, the individual who purchased Hawk Mountain and lobbied against killing raptors, has certainly rubbed off on me!
All of the other nests were doing just fine when I checked on them. Meals had arrived at both 367 Collins Street and the Port Lincoln Barge. In fact, Dad brought in a really nice fish that still had its head. It was flapping and I am so glad that Mum out it out of its misery before it went flying over the edge or knocked one of the chicks off. Hatch watch will begin for the falcons at Charles Sturt University in a couple of days and the big fall e-Bird count is 9 October. More details to follow in a couple of days.
Take care all. I hope you had a wonderful day, too.
Looking out onto the garden in the morning is always a delight, even when it feels like rain or snow is coming. The sky is a white-grey. The trunks and branches of the trees are all manner of brown except for the Flame Willow which is the most striking orange-red. Our forecast is for three days of snow starting Monday. They are mostly wrong. Fingers crossed.
The Grackles are building their nest and the Starlings seem to have taken over the feeders while the Dark-eyed Junco are dancing around on the outdoor carpet finding any little seed they can. How many grains do they need to keep up their energetic activity?
For the past four years, the European Starlings and the Dark-eyed Juncos arrive in the garden in early April. This year they came in mid-March. The Starlings are known to chase the sparrows away from the feeders but, in my yard, they seem to prefer to forage around on the ground. It is the Grackle family that causes the most mischief but I adore them. They always arrive around the end of March and did the same this year. Two years ago they fledged a single chick. The extended family arrived to cheer it on. It was the most amazing moment. I am going to get an outdoor camera! There were seventeen of them gathered. The fledgling and its family all left together. Last year Mr Crow raided the nest and ate the new fluffy chicks right after the Great Horned Owl threatened its nest. It is always a big saga during the summer. Things quiet down again in October when the visitors return to their winter vacation spots.
Speaking of migration, there is a lot of news. I have borrowed the image below from the Loch Arkaig FB page. I do hope they don’t mind. The credit goes to Hugh William Martin. The posting says it all. The much loved and long awaited male osprey who doesn’t hesitate to tandem feed with his mate, Aila, stole my heart last year for that single reason. He is an amazing dad and mate. Louis will fish day and night for his family and he will help Aila keep the kids sorted. No fears for JJ7 the third, the tercel, the smaller male named after Captain Sir Thomas Moore. You will remember Sir Tom, the war hero who, at nearly 100, pledged to walk 100 lengths of his garden to raise money for the National Health Service (NHS). His goal was 1000 GBP but his venture captured the hearts of people around the world and he made over 13 million GBP for the health services in Britain. Incredible. I hope that Captain’s (JJ7) life is as long and illustrious.
But for now we celebrate the arrival of Louis. There are more than 300 people at this moment watching an empty nest; Lewis is off on his roost or fishing. Hopefully, Aila will return shortly and we will be able to watch them again outfit their nest and get to raising a healthy happy family!
In other migration news, the book, A World on the Wing. The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds by Scott Widensaul arrived this morning in the mail. I cannot wait to grab some time and read it. Glancing I notice a lot of material on satellite transmitters.
The other day someone watching one of the nests that I check said they did not believe in banding or transmitters – the osprey are not endangered. I would argue, as they did at Hawk Mountain in Pennsylvania in the 20th century, that you need to know when you are entering a decline to find out why. That is one reason that you want numbers. How do you really know if there are too many? Hawk Mountain is on the migratory bird route from the Eastern parts of Canada and the US and they literally count the birds. A research project coming out of the University of Montana at Missoula with Dr Erick Greene has to do with migration and the understanding of the perils the birds face. Dr Green is also interested in the mercury levels in the local osprey as well as foraging and how a colony of ospreys can help one another find more food versus a solitary osprey. Some of the Montana birds are wintering in southern Mexico. At Port Lincoln, Solly, the 2020 first hatched female, was fitted with a satellite transmitter and ringed. She has already changed what we know about osprey movements away from their nest in that area where Osprey are highly endangered. Lots to learn about the long and arduous trips that all the migratory birds make – not just Ospreys! The bird books are stacking up but I do hope to get to read them shortly!
There have been a few chuckles up at the Loch of the Lowes Osprey nest since Laddie (LM12) inadvertently gave a fish to an intruder sitting on the nest and not to his mate NC0 yesterday. To put it mildly, don’t get a female Osprey upset!!! Everyone wondered if NC0 would forgive Laddie – she kicked him off the nest. Everything looked as if it was going fine this morning. NC0 returned to the nest cup. Everything appeared to be rather serene. Is she preparing to lay an egg?
But, as this soap opera continues, no more had everything appeared to be settled than the intruder arrived and Laddie flew in to assist. Didn’t someone say that there are eight Osprey males in Scotland needing mates?! or is it also this prime piece of real estate?
A female osprey has returned from her migration and has, for the past couple of days, been hanging around the Llyn Brenig nest in north Wales. It is the home to male Blue HR7 and female Blue 24. Please note the wind turbines. Some chicks have been killed in them. Spotters are hoping to identify the bird by her tag. She is being very mysterious and teasing us and not revealing anything, not even one number!
This morning I decided not to get up and check on the Achieva Osprey nest in St Petersburg- at least, not first thing. Some days my whole body seems to go on a food strike in support of Tiny. But I seem to have helpers these days -wonderful ones -and I was told right away that Tiny was eating after 10am. So coffee in hand, I decided to go back and check. I am happy to report that although he ate last, Tiny did get 88 bites (call me obsessive) between 7:46:22 and 7::52:27. Diane offered him the tail at the end and he mantled it. Great work Tiny Tot!
Here he is with fish flakes around his mouth at 7:50 having a private feed:
And here is Tiny mantling the fish tail that Diane gave him:
Tiny had a crop, in the image above, at 8:01. He dropped that crop prior to 9:30. Note: Dropping food from the crop sends it to the stomach. It is like a holding and processing tank. At 9:40:39 a second fish was delivered to the nest. At 10:04:20 Tiny is fed. There is a lot of skin but Diane is also finding flakes of fish. Tiny had 97 bites. Diane offered him the tail. At 10:16, Tiny had a crop again. In the scheme of things anyone watching would realize that the amount of food to fill Tiny is insignificant in the face of what the two older siblings eat.
Someone asked if Tiny would catch up in size. That is an interesting question. I have not gone through all my notes but it appears that from 12 March to now, Tiny missed seven (7) complete days of food. And we know that he has not eaten nearly the amount of fish as the others on the other days. A real reveal would be to compare meals and length of feeding times since we cannot weigh the food. Still, skin or not, I was glad that Tiny was rewarded by 97 bites on that second feeding. It is nearing 4pm on the nest. Hopefully two more fish will come in before dark – two more fish that are large enough for all.
Diane trying to provide shade on a hot 26 degree C day in St Pete’s.
The three siblings on the Achieva Osprey nest. From left to write 1, Tiny Tot, and 2. Everyone hopes that any intruders that may be in the area will leave so that Diane can go fishing, too. We wait and hope. It is all anyone can do.
I want to leave you some close up images of Iris, the world’s oldest osprey. She returned from her long migration to Missoula, Montana yesterday. It wasn’t long til she was over in the river and had caught herself a whopper. Apparently, Louis has been around for a visit today. Louis became Iris’s mate when her faithful companion Stanley died. Louis has been around for 4 years with no breeding success. He has another family so food and nest security are all left to Iris who also has to lay the eggs, incubate, and eat. Last year a raven stole her egg. Prior to Louia, Iris has raised, it is believed, anywhere from 30-40 chicks to fledge. All are hoping for a devoted partner. Hopefully she will kick Louis from the nest for good!
And a quick peak at the two Great Horned Owlets in the Bald Eagle nest in Kansas. They are growing and growing and Farmer Derek’s snake population on his farm is declining! If you can’t get mice, snake is an excellent second choice! It is hard to believe but these two will be branching soon. They look like little people with those big eyes all wrapped up for winter. Adorable.
Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me and the birds in ‘As the Nest Turns’. I hope you have a great end of the week wherever you are.
Thanks to the following for their streaming cams where I grab my images: Farmer Derek, Montana Osprey Project and Cornell Bird Labs, Friends of Loch of the Lowes and the Scottish Wildlife Trust, Friends of Loch Arkaig, Scottish Wildlife Trust and People Play Lottery, Friends of Llyn Brenig, and the Achieva Credit Union. Also the Friends of Loch Arkaig FB Page.
A very wise person told me not to watch the calendar. The birds know when spring is coming and when the ground will warm and the icy waters of Manitoba will melt. My friend’s name was Hector Gray. The village of Graysville, Manitoba where I had my pottery was named after his family. The Grays – Hector, Wilma, and their son, George – were my best friends and always there when George Toews rang for me to come and pick up meddling lambs. George carried the orphans downstairs to the cellar for me and my kids fed them with bottles of milk from our cow until they could safely go in the barn. Spring lambs! The low flying honking geese abounded. They landed on the farmer’s fields looking for leftover grain from the harvest in the fall. ‘Back then’ the geese arrived after 1 April. Today, however, is 4 March and sightings and photographs of the first arrivals from their winter migration brought joy for many in the Manitoba Birding community yesterday.
In the southwestern corner of our province, Gary Bajus caught sight of these Canada geese on a farmer’s field and posted the images for all to enjoy on the Manitoba Birding & Wildlife Photography FB page. Thanks Gary!
3 March 2021 Southwestern Manitoba @ Gary Bajus3 March 2021. Southwestern Manitoba. @ Gary Bajus
And in Winnipeg, photographer, Andrew Standfield, took the images of this Bald Eagle in Charleswood and posted them on the Manitoba Birding and Wildlife Photography FB Page. I am posting these here because the local group is seeking information about the band. Can you help identify this majestic raptor?
3 March 2021. Charleswood, Winnipeg, MB. @Andrew Standfield3 March 2021. Charleswood, Winnipeg, MB. @Andrew Standfield3 March 2021. Charleswood, Winnipeg, MB. @Andrew Standfield
In Manitoba, the adult Bald Eagles tend to return to Lake Winnipeg congregating around Hecla Island. Soon the Ospreys will be arriving, too. A public utility, Manitoba Hydro, built nesting poles for the Ospreys after many had been electrocuted on the hydro poles in an area south of Gimli. This is a great ‘birding’ area of Manitoba.
Just twenty kilometres north of Winnipeg (at the bottom of the map), near Selkirk, is Oak Hammock Marsh. The Wetlands of this Nature Center are renowned for the diversity of the species that visitors can see. Besides the other wildlife, there are over 300 species of birds alone. And like all of us, the first arrival of a Canada Goose signals spring! And that goose arrived today, 4 March, at 1:05 pm.
First Canada Goose arrived at Oak Hammock Marsh, 4 March 1:05 pm. Image from Oak Hammock Marsh’s Streaming Cam.
The Manitoba Bison herd at Fort Whyte Alive on McCreary Road in Winnipeg is always there – rain, snow, sleet, and sunshine. The wetlands area of this beautiful nature area are also home to hundreds of species of birds and the lake is awaiting the arrival of the geese and ducks. What you want to bet one arrives today or tomorrow!
Bison herd at Fort White Alive
Oh, and spring means that the geese and ducks will be coming back to the park near to where I live. The Dark-Eyed Juncos will be back picking the threads out of my carpet while the Grackles will be hoping to have a successful clutch with no interference from the local Crow family. Of course, Sharpie will be keeping an eye on all of the garden activity.
Dark-eyed Junco
Take care everyone. Spring must be here! It will be +9 degrees Celsius in Winnipeg on 6 March 2021 – or that is what the weather news is promising.
The Polar Vortex has come down to the Canadian Prairies. Outside it is -33 with a wind chill that makes it far colder out there. Today, two BlueJays appeared at the feeder along with the chickadees and the sparrows. The sparrows were floofed up to keep warm, so much so that they were the size of those amazing navel oranges I got as a child in my Christmas stocking. Mother Nature seems to take care of the birds.
You might also be feeling some of this Arctic air where you live. So stay safe and warm!
The eagles at The Duke Farm in Hillsborough, New Jersey got hit by the same storm that dumped rain on the Northeast Florida eagles. More snow arrived progressively through the early hours of the morning and the day. And, just think, everything had melted for this Bald Eagle couple and the nest was drying out.
Despite all of the snow, those eggs must be toasty. My only concern is when there is the exchange of incubation duties and the snow falls down on them. The new parent’s temperature will certainly thaw that snow and, let us all hope that the pores of the eggs do mot get clogged.
For Bald Eagles, the time between the egg laying and hatch is 35 days. There are three eggs under our mom at Duke Farms. The first was laid on January 17, the second on the 20th, and the third on the 23rd. So, there are approximately 22 days left until we hold our breaths for the first egg to pip.
And speaking of pipping, Gabby and Samson got drenched with all of the rain in Northeast Florida. This was the same system that sent snow into New Jersey (or so I am told). The rain did not stop their first egg from pipping at 5:31 am yesterday. I will bring you updates as they are available.
2pm 7 February. Pip is now a crack.
The nest that Samson and Gabrielle use originally belonged to a long time mated couple, Romeo and Juliet. For ten years, they fledged every eaglet that hatched. That was nineteen eaglets in total. Then something tragic happened and this is why I always mention intruders. It might be all well and good to think that eagles lay their eggs, find food, raise their babies and life is simply golden but, it is not. By now you know many of the things that can happen. In 2018, several eagles tried to take over the nest of Romeo and Juliet. Juliet was injured in one of the battles trying to protect her eggs just days before they were due to hatch. Romeo was left, just like Daisy the Duck, to take care of everything by himself. That is, as you will imagine, an inordinate task as he has to feed himself and the eaglets, brood them so they are warm, as well as protect the territory and chase off intruders. The little eaglets are very vulnerable in this situation once they hatch. On Christmas Day, 2018, the first of the eggs hatched. Almost immediately a female eagle appeared when Romeo was away and snatched the eaglet taking it away. Romeo was so distraught that he left the nest like Juliet and never returned. Neither Romeo or Juliet have been seen since.
The intruding eagles did not take up residence on the nest. Eventually a male eagle appeared. My heart skipped a little beat when the was identified as one of the eaglets born on this very nest to Romeo and Juliet. It is always terrible to see such a pair of wonderful eagle parents be injured and driven off their nest. If there is a silver lining, it is the fact that one of Romeo and Juliet’s children will raise their grandchildren on the nest. The male’s name is Samson and he was born in 2013.
There were a lot of females that flitted in and out of the nest trying to get Samson’s attention but he was not interested until Gabrielle appeared. And, if it couldn’t get any better, Gabrielle was not the female eagle that attacked Samson’s mother, Juliet. This is Samson and Gabby’s second year together as a mated pair. Both of their eaglets in 2020 fledged! This year they also have two eggs – and as you know from above, one of those is pipping right now.
By early afternoon, the rain had stopped. Gabby was getting hungry. Samson first brought her a little fish which she ate right while incubating. It really was that small, like an appetizer! Gabby must have been disappointed. But not long after, Samson came in with the main course, a nice fresh possum!
Did I ever warn you that people who love raptors wind up trying to identify a lot of prey brought to the pantry?
Gabby was quite impressed and jumped off the eggs and tucked in.
She stopped long enough to check on the progress of the pipping before settling down.
Back to incubating those eggs!
We can’t see Samson in the image below but he is on a branch just out of the picture frame watching over Gabby while she gets some sleep and protecting the nest from intruders.
Isn’t it amazing how they can bend their neck and tuck it under their wings?
Gabby asleep.
Hatching is one of the first survival tests the little eaglet goes through. If the chick is not strong enough to break out of its shell using that special tool called the ‘egg tooth’, it will not be strong enough to survive in the wild. And speaking of hatching, E24 hatched and E25 has its egg cracked all around. Congratulations Samson and Gabby!
Oh, look at that little fluff ball cuddling with Gabby. It can melt your heart instantly!
E24 and Gabby.
E24 looks straight at us and is a sweetie. E25 is working hard to get out of that shell. Gabby and Samson are going to be busy tomorrow feeding these little ones. Oh, I hope that there is no bopping.
And for those of you not quite familiar with the egg tooth, see that white bit on E24’s beak – that is the egg tooth!
Samson is busy stocking the pantry with fresh fish! Best way to stop any bopping that might start, fill the kiddos so full of fish they pass out!
One of the real heartaches is watching these little ones grow up and then poof – they are gone and we never know what happens to them! It is only if there is something so unusual about them, like the torn wing of WBSE 21, that makes them instantly recognizable, that we know if they are alive or dead. It is very difficult to get permission to band the birds. And it is even more expensive to both band the birds and put satellite trackers on them. There is some headway being made in the use of trackers especially with the Albatross and the Ospreys. Many are using trackers on the Albatross to plot their interaction with the large international industrial fishing vessels. People are working diligently to try and get laws passed that would apply to all fishing vessels no matter what flag they fly under. For example, the laws would regulate the use of specialized hook covers (or other methods) so that the Albatross do not become bycatch. Those trackers are also allowing for the discover of illegal fishing vessels and they also allow an understanding of how far these amazing birds fly.
Eastern Osprey are severely endangered in Australia. This year three were born at Port Lincoln in a nest on a barge. Two lived to fledge: Solly, the oldest and female, and Dewey, the male. Both were banded with metal identification tags and coloured bands. Solly wears an orange band and Dew has a burgundy one. The research team at Port Lincoln were able to get permission for two satellite trackers. One was attached to Solly. (The other went to a male that had hatched in a different nest.). Solly took her very first flight off the barge on 24 November 2020. On 3 February 2021, Solly was 136 days old. She made history as the tracker showed that Solly travelled more than 200 kilometres (124 miles) from the barge at Port Lincoln. Even more surprising was the fact that she flew inland, not along the sea where she would catch fish! She stayed at Mount Wedge for two days, Tuesday and Wednesday before flying to Streaky Bay.
But wait! Don’t let that term ‘inland’ make you think that Solly would stay in a place for two days if it didn’t have fish. Solly loves her fish. And there are some very beautiful lakes up on the peaks. She’s a smart girl.
Solly with satellite tracker at the barge at Port Lincoln.
The map below shows the Eyre Peninsula. At the point and just to the right is Port Lincoln. This is the location of the barge where Solly hatched. Today, the tracker has her heading north up at Streaky Bay. The closest named town near Mount Wedge is (I believe) either Kyancutta or Lock.
To give you some perspective on where Port Lincoln and Streaky Bay are in relation to the rest of Australia, here is another map. If you locate Adelaide, Port Lincoln is not marked but it is across Spencer Bay to the left at the first blue anchor. Solly is heading north from Port Lincoln. I wonder if she will begin to head north west and wind up in Perth? Will keep you posted as Solly continues to make Osprey history.
In the image below, an individual riding their bike along the shore at Streaky Bay came across Solly! The individual was David Lewis and he only had his iphone with him. But, does that matter? While we can’t see Solly very clearly, it is always – and I do mean always – a relief to have the bird spotted.
Photo by David Lewis posted on Port Lincoln Osprey FB page, 8 February 2021.
Every time I look at this image from Australia, it reminds me that spring will be coming to North America in a few months. All of the birds will start migrating in. How grand! It will be nice to even see the Dark-eyed Juncos who, for some reason, like to tear the threads out of my outdoor carpet for their nest. Who cares?! It is going to a good cause.
Have a wonderful rest of your day everyone. Thank you for stopping in to catch up with the birds! See you tomorrow.
