I did not intend to post a blog today. The warm weather has energied all of us. We did a 4.3 km walk and then came home and dismantled the conservatory, scrubbed the floors, and rearranged the furniture. I wish Toby could do heavy lifting. He gets bored when Hugo Yugo wants to sleep and not play and now Toby is into tearing leaves off the tropical plants! What a mess they make.
We have our first egg at Duke Farms.
It is the time of year when some institutions offer honorary adoptions to support the essential work they do for our raptors. One of those is Ventana Wildlife, which manages the California Condors at Big Sur and Pinnacles. You could adopt – Redwood Queen, mother of Iniko (1031), who survived the Dolan Fire. Redwood Queen was the mate of Kingpin, who died, but she is now the lead condor in the flock.
Eagles at Decorah North.
Milda, the White-tail Eagle, was on her nest in Durbe County, Latvia on Monday.
I do love the eaglets – they are the cutest little things but my heart throbs at the sight of a tiny osprey or eyas.
I really ‘need’ Jackie and Shadow and Jak and Audacity to have at least one healthy eaglet this year. It would make 2026 so much better. Both couples are working on their nests.
Jean-marie Dupart counts ospreys in Western African along the coast of Senegal. We are so grateful for his diligence, dedication, and the sightings of banded birds. Thank you for your report. Gosh KA9 sounds like a familiar osplet…let me see if I can find out where it is from.
Of course, KA9 is a male that hatched at Llyn Brenig in 2022. Ringed 4 July 2022. Parents are LJ2 and LM6.
Screenshot
We did lots of walking and cleaned up the conservatory, moving furniture, etc. Then we made SK Hideaways’ scone recipe #2. Delicious.
Oh, I wish I were a little younger. I would open a facility for people with dementia where they had free access to gardens, animals, baking -. Most talk about the time for some things, but it doesn’t seem to happen in the free way that it should. Keeping minds and bodies busy is paramount.
I will share one of these with each of you virtually!
Thank you so much for being with us for this very brief blog. I cannot promise that there will be another til the end of the week or next Monday. In the meantime, please do take care of yourself.
Thank you to everyone who posted information on FB. We appreciate your generous sharing of information and videos. Thank you to the owners of the streaming cams that allow us to watch our beloved raptor families.
We hope you are well! It has been a cracker of a day, and it all started in the garden at the feeder…
A morning video of the garden and yes! Two Blue Jays. I am so relieved. Junior and Mrs J are alive!
Birds and Squirrels at the table feeder – and look two Blue Jays!
Today we have a news story about Cornell University and its attempts to protect Big Red’s nest during a construction project! Lovely. Now if we could get them to make sure every window on that campus had bird strike preventative measures.
Suzanne Arnold Horning, the admin for the Cornell Hawk Cam Chatters FB group is posting daily images of events from the nest. Today it was a flap fest. Oh, goodness, these end of the year summaries and montages are really quite wonderful while we wait for all the action to start. Let’s see – third week in March for eggs for Big Red and Arthur? What do you think?
Suzanne picked the top five viewing moments. Aren’t they cute?
Speaking of protecting birds from window strike, I am ‘horrified’ that my city, under its mayor, Scott Gillingham, has altogether scrapped a programme to protect birds that came into effect only a year ago. Unbelievable. We will just have to try and fight this decision.
‘J’ in Berlin sent me a great announcement. It has to do with a young man that I mentioned several times in past years – Oliver Hellowell who lives in the UK. I love his wildlife and landscape photographs.
Oliver Hellowell loves raptors and he has photographed many. He is quite the talent. Keep your eyes open for his work.
It might have been ‘only’- 10 °C, but it was cold on the Canadian Prairies. The snow keeps on giving, and today was the photo shoot in the park. Instead of spending half an hour, we stopped at fifteen minutes. It was that wet, cold to the bone. Of course, Toby loved it! We didn’t get a chance to take off our Dyfi toques – so the whole shoot is now dedicated to a great osprey pair, Idris and Telyn. If the pictures turn out, I will post some. I, who do not like to have my photo taken, promise.
We now having a warning for -40 C (with wind chill) coming for Saturday. The frigid cold is to begin tonight!
Heidi gave me the best holiday present. She made a montage of the indoor and outdoor animals set to holiday music for us – and she included dear Lewis. I broke down when I saw him. Oh, how I loved that boy. Since so many of you have been readers for years, you might enjoy seeing HY when she was little and dear Lewis along with everyone else. Thanks, Heidi – that is what it is all about. Giving of your time and love. I so enjoyed this montage. https://youtu.be/yKOeSsFwJcE
You forget how little they once were!
Hope with her first Christmas tree.
No plant was ever safe with Lewis or Missey! He was my darling.
Heidi’s video really hits the holiday spirit even if many, who knew Lewis and saw it, have wept. Please enjoy! There is even a baby HY in there.
Bella and Scout at the NCTC nest are working hard. Last year their three beautifully feathered eaglets perished when their nest collapsed. We wish them a great season this year.
While we wait for eggs at NCTC, we do not have to wait long for little eaglets at SW Florida. My calculations indicate that we should see an eaglet around Tuesday of next week. M15 and F23 are excellent parents. This is exciting.
Gabby and Beau will have to wait a little longer. Egg dates: 23 and 26 November. End of December eaglets!
Superbeaks (Central Florida) has two hatchlings. The third egg was laid four days after the second (Froto). We wait to see if it is viable. Mira and Froto are doing well.
We have eaglets at the Duke Farms nest! No eggs. Just nest prep.
Ron and Rose continue incubating at the WRDC nest. Egg dates: 12 and 15 November. I will be looking for a pip around the 18th of December or that first egg. That would be 35 days.
Clive and Connie at Captiva on Sanibel Island are also resting and waiting while incubating. Egg dates: 16 and 19 November. I do love that camera that Window to Wildlife have installed.
There are no eggs at Eagle Country. The river cam caught the eagles bathing.
Girri is 36 days old today. Female falcons, on average, fledge at 40-44 days, slightly longer than males, because they need to fill out that larger body mass and cover it with more feathers. Girri is quickly losing her baby to all that flapping! Could you take a look at that crop? Diamond and Gimbir keep their only baby full to the brim! I recommend watching because Girri is going to fledge soon, and whether she returns to the scrape afterwards is anyone’s guess.
That’s a wrap for today. Thank you so much for your comments and your letters. We are glad that you are enjoying this daily mix of pets and birds!
Thank you so much for being with us today. Take care of yourself. We will be back tomorrow!
Thank you to Heidi for that amazing holiday present. I am so very grateful – and for the spirit of love, care, and the time it took. These really are the best presents of all! To ‘J’ for sending me the news about Oliver Hellowell and to the owners of the streaming cams and authors of the FB posts, you have my thanks.
Latvian Golden Eagle: Both chicks of Spilve alive.
The cooler weather, 3 C, continues on the Canadian prairies. It is so wet and so cold. I feel for any little birds in the nest. It reminds me of when the osprey nests (or eagles) get damp and cold.
Missey and Calico are even friendly when it is chilly. I have the tiny space heater plugged in and both found the precise spot where the heat dispersed the best and shared! My goodness what is the world coming to – Calico and Missey sharing?
Little Toby is doing better. He is not scratching his ear nearly as often and he does not yelp when I put the medication in. He does love his little pill dipped in peanut butter and thinks if we head for the fridge it is ‘cheese time’. I don’t fall for it every time. He isn’t going to train me this young!!!!!!
We left Toby home and made a quick trip to the greenhouse. This is the long weekend of May commonly known as Queen Victoria’s Birthday weekend. Gardeners call it ‘Greenhouse Weekend’. It is the time when normally we would not fear a frost and all plants could go into the ground. They had been holding a jasmine plant for me and the woman had a new climber, Butterfly Blue. You make tea out of the blue flowers and it is supposed to help with cognition and stress. It is, “Butterfly pea (clitoria ternatea) is a flowering plant also known as Asian pigeonwings, blue butterfly pea or blue ternate flower. It is a type of pea, but its flowers are more famous than its fruit. The purple blooms have been used for centuries as a natural food dye.” A tea shops says, “These flowers have the power to delight, changing colour from blue to purple to pink, depending on what they’re mixed with. They have been used to add colour to celebratory drinks in various locales around the world since forever.
Butterfly Pea Flower is perfect for making exotic tea-infused cocktails, unicorn lattes or just for a little fun in your cup.
Blue butterfly pea is also rich in antioxidants. It can slow down the skin aging process, prevent premature aging, and improve overall skin tone and texture.”
I will be excited to try it.
It is the weekend and we have some hatches starting in the UK.
Dyfi Osprey Project: The first hatch for Idris and Telyn! Idris has a good look. We can count on lots of Mullet for the family. Idris is an incredible provider.
Poole Harbour: Soon!
Storm took down their nest but one eagle was saved! How wonderful.
Loch of the Lowes: The new male has been filmed fishing at the loch. He is going to be a good provider for the new female and their family. https://youtu.be/g8XmC9Afok4?
Boulder County: Those pesky little birds would like to get Mum off those eggs. They think they might make a tasty dinner.
Wolf Bay: By 1636, there had been six feedings for the osprey trio.
Rutland Manton Bay: Maya has been feeding all four of the chicks. Send good wishes. Their hatch dates are spread and the last two are tiny. If any couple can pull this off, Maya and Blue 33 can.
Finnish Nests: Incubation continues on all nests.
LVM Klinšu ērglis (Latvian Golden Eagle nest of Spilve and Grislis): The eldest eaglet survives. There has been lots of food. The small one was being fed, but the older one continually bonks it and it is not popping its head up to eat. Sadly, as we know, there is the imperative of the oldest to kill the second hatch. The oldest golden eagle hatchling may start acting aggressively to its younger sibling(s) as soon as it or they hatch. Within the first two days, this often escalates into “bill-stabbing” wherein the younger sibling is jabbed around their neck or the middle of their body until a gaping, fatal wound is created.
Silve is feeding the second hatch. In instances where there is lots of food and good parenting, there is an opportunity for the second eaglet to survive.
Geemeff Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Saturday 17th May 2025
The day started with an early visit from an inquisitive Buzzard who checked out the nest even to lifting bits of bark to look underneath, and returned a second time to preen and shed a few little feathers. Later in the day an unseen intruder near Nest Two caused Dorcha to flee the nest and not return for five minutes, while on Nest One Garry LV0 made some alarm calls and shortly afterwards both he and Aurora fled the nest and didn’t return for three hours. However when they did return, Garry brought a fish for Aurora, and less than three hours later, delivered a second, which takes his tally to fifty six. Louis made Dorcha wait for a meal today and delivered only a single fish but that fish was a whopper and made for a substantial meal. His tally now stands at ninety four. Today’s weather continued the pattern of clear sky overnight and sunshine during the day, and that should continue tonight, with sunshine and a high of 22°C tomorrow. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.17.16 (03.17.06); Nest Two 23.45.07 (03.39.18)
Heidi sent this video discussion to me and I would like to share it with you. Perhaps you have seen it, I haven’t. It is a discussion of the owl attack on Dory, the female osprey, at the Audubon Boathouse.I don’t know if you’ve seen this: A video collaboration from Explore.org and Audubon Seabird Institute
Heidi says, “I thought this video was well done. Dory was an excellent mom and mate and we loved her. Dory was a predator, but she was not at the top of the food chain. Dory became prey. Warning: briefly graphic.”
Also a nest note from Heidi that is truly a miracle: “ 5/17 – Havre de Grace osprey nest: The babies hatched on 5/12 and 5/13. A very inexperienced Mom did not feed them for nearly two days… she did not know how. At first she just ate and made no attempt to feed them, despite their apparent readiness to receive fish bits. Later she would lean toward them from about 2 feet away to offer them bites… like ‘come and get it’. I thought for sure those babies were going to die. But her instincts kicked it, Mom learned, and now she’s doing very well… and so are the kids! I was relieved that Mom suddenly seemed to get the hang of it. There is not a lot of time at that stage for a long-duration learning curve.”
‘EJ’ sent me a note about a rehabilitation officer that might interest all of you. They write, “I wanted to bring your attention to the Southwest Wildlife Foundation of Utah, run by a man named Martin Tyner, who has cared for raptors, mainly Golden Eagles, his entire life. He has lots of YouTube videos which you will love, especially the release of rehabbed raptors.” Oh, it is always a delight when our raptors have been healed and can go back and live in the wild. Check out his channel!
I could not leave without checking on Big Red, Arthur, and O1 and O2. The chicks are getting some pin feathers. There are clown feet. Life is looking good and the sun is shining in Ithaca!
I want to thank everyone who has sent a list – short or long – to help me with the Memorial Wall. Please keep them coming! I know that I am missing eaglets that have died. Any information is appreciated.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. We hope to have you with us again soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘AR, EJ, Geemeff, Heidi, PR’, Dyfi Osprey Project, Birds of Poole Harbour, TA Montague and Bald Eagles 101, LOTL, Sylvia and Duke Farms, Boulder County, Wolf Bay, LRWT, Saaksilvie, LDF Golden Eagle Nest, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, SciTechDaily, Explore.org, the dodo.com, Cornell Red-tail Hawk Cam, Havre de Grace
It was a bit nippy on Sunday, but spring is definitely here. It was time to shake off the winter and get back to walking 4 or 5 times a week. Our first trip was around St Vital Park and then over to the duck pond. There were approximately 85 Canada Geese there along with 5 male Wood Ducks and 2 females, and a couple pair of Mallards along with 3 Ring-billed Gulls. There is still some ice on the pond. It was nice to see families with proper seed feeding them as we wait for the grass to turn green and grow.
You have no idea how happy I am that the walkways are free of ice. This winter has been long because of this. I so enjoyed all the walking that we have done in previous years. Oh, this is wonderful!
Moving on to our feathered friends…
Eggs are starting to land in those osprey nests! Eaglets are growing or fledging or halfway there.
Birds of Poole Harbour: CJ7 laid the season’s first egg for her and mate, Blue 022, on Sunday.
Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home: There are now three eggs in this osprey nest.
Glaslyn: Ospreys can count and they ‘know’. Aran arrived on Saturday and Elen laid her first egg on Sunday the 13th. It would have been KC1’s, Teifi’s. Aran tried to evict it and then when that did not work, he buried it. Aran might have trouble holding on to the nest he shared with Mrs G and then Elen when Mrs G did not return from migration. We wait to see how this works out.
So why did Aran (and other males at different nests at different times) try to eject and then bury the egg?
Male ospreys eject eggs from their nest if they suspect they didn’t fertilise the eggs. We quickly learn that ospreys can count! This behaviour is a strategy to ensure their offspring survive, as they may eject eggs from the nest that they don’t believe to be their own. Ospreys are generally monogamous and mate for life, but if a male suspects infidelity, he may eject eggs to remove potential competitors.
Ensuring their own genetic line: Male ospreys are motivated to ensure their offspring survive. They may eject eggs if they believe they are not their own, as they are essentially removing potential competitors.
Guardianship of the nest: Ospreys fiercely protect their nests and mates. If another male is suspected of mating with the female, the male may eject eggs to ensure his own paternity.
Courtship and Mating: Male ospreys engage in frequent courtship displays and mating behaviours, which can increase the likelihood of fertilisation by their partner. If they witness a female with another male, they may attempt to eject the eggs to ensure their genetic line is the only one present.
Territoriality:Male ospreys are territorial and will defend their nest and mate from other males. This can extend to ejecting eggs if they suspect other males have been involved in mating with the female.
In summary, the ejection of eggs is a behaviour driven by the male osprey’s instinct to protect his mate and ensure his genetic line continues. It’s a natural defence mechanism against potential rivals and a strategy to maintain the success of his breeding effort.
Oh, what a worry KNF-E3 O3 was to everyone. Steve looked. Cody helped. And on Sunday that fledgling flew up to the nest like a pro wanting fish. Mum and Dad did not disappoint. Isn’t this wonderful? We will count every one of these moments as gold.
Little Miami Conservancy: These two are doing well but cannot yet thermoregulate their temperature.
Foulshaw Moss: White YW and Blue 35 have their second egg on Sunday. at 1308.
Fort St. Vrain: Less drama today at the nest. Both eaglets fine.
Fat little bottom. Cute.
NCTC: The trio of Scott and Bella are doing extraordinarily well. Little angels.
Port Tobacco: All is well.
Johnson City ETSU: I blinked and that little fluffy chick now has juvenile feathers!
Bluff City ETSU: And just look at these two!
Duke Farms: Then there is this trio. All doing well.
US Steel: Only Bob is doing well. Getting his pin feathers.
Sauces: Betty Lou. Look at those feathers coming in!
Fraser Point: Two adorable babies being well cared for by Andor and Cruz.
Big Bear Valley: Is it possible they will be too full to fly? We would love to keep them on the nest.
Geemeff’s Daily Summary for Loch Arkaig. Just look at the number of fish that Louis has brought in. Now he started out, as Geemeff reminded me, like this last year. But bad weather and an illness and/or injury turned the tide on the nest and the two osplets were translocated. One survived. One did not.
Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Sunday 13th April 2025
Another calm day without intruders, Affric 152 or Prince dropping in. And sadly, no unattached female visitors for Garry LV0 despite his bringing a fish and making Nest One very cosy with sticks and bedding. Garry’s fish tally rises by a whopping 50% up to a total of three since he arrived on 9th April, fingers crossed that this will be the season he finds a mate. Louis on the other hand is providing so well for Dorcha that she initially refused the second of his two fish deliveries today, and his tally now stands at twentynine since they returned on 2nd April. At the time of filing this report (23.45) Nest Two is empty – will Dorcha return and spend the night as she did last night, will she lay the first egg tomorrow? We must wait and see. The weather forecast is light rain and light winds overnight and into tomorrow, not the best weather for eggs but Dorcha will cope.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.31.19 (05.28.03); Nest Two 21.29.45 (05.32.34)
“Over the last 5 days, things appeared to have settled into a fairly relaxed routine for LM24 (The Dark Intruder) and his new mate the Unringed Female. The pair have been spending more time on and around the nest, often appearing at first light, indicating they are likely to be roosting nearby. Mating has been regular, though the male is still sometimes getting himself back to front, but he has also busied himself with bringing material into the nest, skydancing and bringing in fish to his mate – everything you would expect a breeding male to do.
Throughout the week there had been little in the way of intruders, with only a fleeting incursion on the 9th April, which the Unringed Female easily defended against. Not content with LM24’s offerings, she brought in a huge trout yesterday, which unusually she caught on the Loch where it is usually more common to see pike and perch.
This morning it was only LM24 who appeared on the nest at dawn, and it remained quiet for much of the day, with no sign of the Unringed Female. Ospreys can be a little bit like buses, with not much happening and then everything happening all at once! True to form it all kicked off mid-afternoon with the arrival of yet another new intruding bird (another unringed female) who was very ‘hangry’!
This female wasted no time in demanding food from LM24, who although initially reluctant, passed his half eaten pike to her, before trying to attempt to mate. The female, with very striking markings (a large triangle on the back of her head, dark chest and a white gap between her eyes) was not keen to reciprocate, but quickly began rearranging the furniture. This female behaved in a way that was very confident and suggested that she may be a little older and more experienced than both LM24 and his Unringed Female partner.
The ‘hangry’ female (who devoured her fish) very vocally began demanding more food from the male, who was keeping a close and perhaps rather confused eye on the things from the top of the camera. After several more failed mating attempts, he finally managed to encourage the female to lift her tail and mate successfully, before……enter stage left; LM24’s mate, the Unringed Female landed on the nest, flapping her wings and mantling, clearly unhappy with proceedings!! She was closely followed by LM24, who briefly touched down before being chased off by the ‘hangry’ intruder!
All three osprey then took to the skies in a spectacular display of flying, diving and shouting, before the Unringed Female returned to the nest. Her respite was short lived however, with the other female returning to launch another furious attack! Once again the birds took off in a flurry of talons and wings, before order finally seemed to be restored 5 minutes later with both LM24 and his mate the Unringed Female settling back onto the nest together.
Things appear to have settled down and order for now seems to have been restored, but for how long?
Follow the webcam for all the action, or come and visit the centre, open 10:30am – 5pm each day”
Hellgate Canyon: Gorgeous Iris. Still waiting for Finnegan. He was there on the 14th last year. Fingers crossed he arrives today!!!!!!! Oh, tears will flow around the world. Please let this miracle happen again…
Salem Electric: Lots of work to do on this nest. I sure wish that humans in the US would follow some of the UK’s practices where the nest is refurbished each year while the ospreys are on migration!
Clark PUD: Both ospreys are on the nest. Lovely.
Port of Ridgefield: Both home.
Seaside: Bruce has been supplying Naha with some really nice fish since their return. Sunday was no exception with a Redtail Surf Perch and two trout.
Niagara Bee Ospreys: No eggs but a Canada Goose is visiting the nest.
Farmer Derek’s Owl Nest: Bonnie and Clive have one owlet this year, Starr. She is a beauty.
Russell Lake, Nova Scotia: Oscar arrived so early. It seems that he was so happy to have Ethel return that he has been out looking for any kind of gift to brighten her day! OK, Oscar. You can stop now. Those eggs and chicks don’t want to get mixed up with human litter!
Coeur de’Alene, Idaho: No ospreys in sight. Canada Goose nesting on the north platform.
In 2024, with four osplets on the nest and everyone hoping for them, the male disappeared during a heat dome. Mum tried but it is difficult to raise four even if both parents are fishing. Three of the chicks died of siblicide/starvation. One fledged.
Update from Fort St Vrain:
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, videos, and articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post: ‘Geemeff’, Birds of Poole Harbour, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home, RAKPhotographic, Kistachie National Forest, Little Miami Conservancy, Cumbria Wildlife Trust, Fort St Vrain, NCTC, Port Tobacco, Johnson City ETSU, Bluff City ETSU, Pix Cams, Duke Farms, IWS/Explore, FOBBV, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, The Scottish Wildlife Trust, Montana Osprey Project/Cornell Bird Lab, Salem Electric, Clark PUD, Port of Ridgefield, Seaside Ospreys, Niagara Bee Ospreys, Farmer Derek, Ospreys of Nova Scotia, City of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, The Scottish Wildlife Trust and the Loch of the Lowes Visitor’s Centre, Fort St Vrain/Excel Energy
Best news of the morning! Geemeff writes” 09.51 Intruder Blue 25 is on the nest when resident male Blue 33 lands, looking agitated. Suddenly a third Osprey appears and lands at 09.52.26 – it’s Maya! There is much display of wings from all three but not much sound, then Blue 25 takes herself off as the rightful female has returned. Welcome home Maya!”
‘The Girls’ informed me that they have been ignored. So I tried to take some photos of them relaxing in the sitting room this morning.
Who could resist those eyes? They are like celadon or beautiful green glass. Baby Hope is the sweetest, most quiet, peaceful young lady.
Her mother is equally beautiful, but not ‘so sweet’. Calico wants to be the ‘boss’. At the same time, she wants to be held and cuddled ever so tightly. Calico has gorgeous eyes, too but there is something about the placement and/or the shape of Baby Hope’s that just shock you into stillness.
Missey prefers spending her time sunning herself on the wickers. She is so wooly!!!!!!
The angle makes her look a little ‘plump’. Hugo Yugo isn’t but she is a real character always getting into trouble and it is possible to hear her crying a block away. Her teeth are bothering her. It is such a shame.
At the nest of Jackie and Shadow in Big Bear, Jackie removed the deceased eaglet from the nest and flew away with it. Sometimes the dead chicks become part of the nest, sometimes they are taken a distance from the nest, and sometimes they are eaten. This is all normal behaviour. Research on ospreys has shown that they often take the little chicks a distance of about 100 metres.
The other two chicks have eaten well. The nest is full of prey items and one even has enough energy to start bonking the other. It feels good! I was quite worried that they would get a chill.
Jak and Audacity are overjoyed to have a baby. The number of dual feedings is substantial. They are such proud parents!
The little one at Moorings Park is doing very well, indeed.
So far there is not an egg at the nest of Liberty and Guardian. Information provided says, “Liberty has not laid her 1st egg yet & she is now past her latest egg laying date ever including a 2nd Clutch in 2017 where she laid an egg on 3/10 & 3/13. This is uncharted waters for Liberty who has laid eggs every season for the last 19 years with her 3 different mates. It is also uncharted waters for all of us who love & follow them. We don’t always know why things like this happen but we do know that we need to continue to TRUST THE EAGLES! Everything happens for a reason even though we may not always know what that reason is. So let’s sit back & enjoy watching Liberty & Guardian as their beautiful bond continues to deepen day by day.”
Is there hope? Liberty continues to stay on the nest in the rain Sunday evening.
The American Eagle Foundation captured the antics of the visiting juvenile to Gabby, Beau, and Bodie’s nest: https://youtu.be/vn9M7Es8HFU?s
Is there a tragedy brewing for the two fully feathered juveniles on Kisatchie Forest’s E3 nest? An adult arrives at 19:19:40 empty taloned and is attacked by the starving eaglet.
The eaglets have been searching for anything on the nest to eat and resting. There is a lake you can see that is stocked each year with fish. What in the world is going on at this nest. Is this a repeat of what happened at Boundary Bay in BC?
The adult fed the oldest one a bite of something, nothing really, and the little one went into submission. Adult went to branch. Are the adults ill? Are there intruders? Where on earth is the fish from that lake?
Even first time parents – here I am thinking of Louis and Anna at the E1 nest – filled their pantry with fish. 20 one day! There is something incredibly wrong. It is a shame to sit and see these beautiful babies starve to death.
What a challenging year it has been, starting with the deaths of E24 and E25 of HPAI at SW Florida. As one reader said today, there is so much more of the season to go and so far it has been devastating. Another said that, to add insult to injury, pigeons are now roosting on The Campanile as we mourn the possible loss of Annie and Archie.
A research project is focusing on Annie and her impact on our lives. They are requesting anecdotal stories. Please do consider contributing. I could not imagine a world without Annie and Grinnell and now to have lost so many other mates and possibly Annie now is beyond thinking.
“What have Berkeley’s falcons meant to you? Gretchen Kell from UC Berkeley’s news office is looking for personal anecdotes with specific examples of how Annie and company have impacted your life/health/awareness, during the pandemic or any time Email her at gkell@berkeley.edu.
The trio appear to be all over the nest at Duke Farms and they seem to be doing alright.
A Harris Hawk threatens the people of a UK village!
Harris’s Hawks face challenges like habitat loss from urbanization and oil/gas development, electrocution on power lines, poisoning, and vehicle collisions, which are common threats to birds of prey.
Here’s a more detailed look at the challenges:
Habitat Loss:
Urbanization and oil/gas development reduce habitat quality and prey availability.
Loss of natural perches and nesting sites can lead to hawks perching on power poles, increasing the risk of electrocution.
Harris’s hawks are known to live in sparse woodland, semi-desert, and marshes, so habitat destruction in these areas poses a significant threat.
Human-Related Threats:
Electrocution: Perching on power poles, which are often unshielded, can lead to electrocution and death.
Poisoning: Poisoning from pesticides or other toxins can affect Harris’s hawks.
Vehicle Collisions: Collisions with vehicles can cause injury or death.
Killing by Humans: While not as common, some hawks are killed by humans.
Natural Challenges:
Drought: Droughts can reduce prey availability and impact nesting success.
Fire Weather: Droughts and fire weather can lead to habitat loss and increased risks for hawks and their nests.
Spring Heat Waves: Spring heat waves can endanger young birds in the nest.
Captive Breeding Challenges:
Isolation: Harris’s hawks are social animals, and isolation can lead to behavioral problems like thigh-plucking, aggression, and mis-imprinting.
Overdependence on Falconer: Overdependence on the falconer, often promoted by food association, can create problems with captive-bred hawks.
Other birds are facing challenges – indeed, all of them. Birds Canada gives an interesting webinar on what our forest birds are finding difficult in our world today. Notice that I said, ‘our world’. Birds around the world are facing the same challenges. https://youtu.be/_vX4K3HO7IM?
At the time of this writing, the fledglings, Dasher and Dancer, had not returned to the nest at Captiva.
Snow in Michigan. Traverse Eagles trying to keep their eggs warm and dry.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please send all your good wishes to all of the nests. It is an unusual year and they need all the help we can send them. Take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, pictures, streaming cams, videos, and articles that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, H, J, MP, SP’, SK Hideaways, FOBBV, IWS/Explore, Moorings Park Ospreys, FORE, Gary’s Eagle Videos, American Eagle Foundation, Kisatchie National Forest E3 Bald Eagle Nest, Cal Falcons, Duke Farms, The Guardian, Open Verse, Birds Canada, Traverse City Bald Eagles
It rained. The skies opened up late Tuesday night. I stood outside and listened to the drops falling; the wet earth’s smell was amazing. It is supposed to rain periodically on and off until Thursday, when things will change to a mix of rain and snow. We are finally getting the moisture that the prairies need, and it is wonderful. The grass will turn green immediately! The geese will have something to eat besides the dead blades they have been living on for weeks. The Robins will be busy pulling the worms out of the soil tomorrow. I wonder if the Starlings will join them? Or the Brown Thrashers? It will be interesting to see how ‘The Girls’ react when I open the windows a bit so they can get a sniff.
Today’s news is mixed. ‘H’ and I are celebrating the triumphs of Tuffy at Moorings Park and new Osprey eggs while another Osprey nest is struggling to survive, and our dear Meadow has died. I do not want to get desensitised to the struggles and the deaths, and I do not want you to either. Last year, significant declines in osprey fledges were observed, especially in the NE USA. This year, we see low numbers of eaglets fledging on the streaming cams. This impact will not be noticed for a couple of years, but it could be substantial in terms of the declining population numbers of these raptors. At the same time, we must celebrate those that survive. Remember those that we have lost or the ones struggling. Find the joy because it is there. On the day that Meadow died, Swampy branched. S/he looks very healthy. Others laid eggs, and Tuffy continued to eat without much interference.
What can I say? Devastating news coming out of Audubon. Meadow was euthanised. The stated reason was fractures to the wing as in the announcement below and poor condition. On the 8th of April, Audubon put out a post stating that they had not found any breaks or fractures. Everyone is quite sad about this and felt encouraged that Meadow would recover. I wonder if he damaged his wings while flapping about in care?
‘H’ did the first-morning feeding and turned the rest of the day over to me to monitor. I hope to do half as good a job as she does! Tuffy had an extraordinary day on Monday. This nest has turned around because of the regular deliveries of large fish and the willingness of Sally to feed her chicks continually throughout the day.
Tuffy had a very good Monday morning. The smallest chick at Moorings Park dominated the first feeding. At 10:20 a large whole fish was delivered by Harry. Tuffy still had a crop from the earlier feeding. Sally begins eating the head of the fish while Ruffy moves into position. Tuffy stays away. Tuffy is intimidated by both Ruffy’s presence and position but is not beaked. Ruffy dominates the entire first part of the feeding. Tuffy tries to get into a position to be fed but cannot. Sally is obviously hungry and fighting with the head of the fish. At 1045 Tuffy does an excellent PS. The little one begins to move. Tuffy gets bite 2 at 1046. Sally tries to give bites to Tuffy but Ruffy moves to get in the way. Tuffy cannot position itself. At 1048 there is still fish and Tuffy begins its private feeding while Ruffy is in food coma under Sally’s tail in the shade. Our little Tuffy managed to get 227 bites of fish at this second feeding. Well, done, Tuffy, for waiting your time. It was a large fish – plenty for all three!
The third fish of the day was a headless large fish delivered at 1252. Harry stayed on the nest for a few minutes. Today Ruffie is 25 days old and Tuffy is 22 days old. They are exiting the Reptilian phase and that could easily account for the more peaceful nest. At 1253 Ruffie had an excellent PS. Tuffy stays back from the feeding at the beginning. He has a large crop. Ruffie goes to eat. Indeed, Tuffy does not appear interested! At 1259 Tuffy begins to move. Ruffie notices and moves her head but does not beak. Tuffy moves closer to Mum at the back of the tail. Tuffy is positioning himself. At 1301, Tuffie has a second excellent PS for the morning. Ruffie moves away and Tuffie is in position to have its first bite at 1303. There is a nice portion of tail remaining. By 1305 Tuffy had 32 bites of fish. Mum is feeding fast. By 1310 Tuffy has had 78 big bites of fish and has turned away. Ruffie moves up to eat again. Eats its fill and Sally gets to enjoy that nice fish tail. Both of the osplets have eaten very well by 1320 on Monday with no physical aggression from Ruffie to Tuffy. Oh, Tuffie gets more. At 1328, he got 14 more bites so a total of 92 good bites of fish for the third feeding of the day. Well done, Tuffy! Those excellent ‘ps’ demonstrate this chick is not dehydrated and is doing well. This nest is changing for the better.
The fourth fish was a slightly headless sheepshead – gosh, which are tough fish for these mums to feed. That fish arrived at 1520. Both Ruffie and Tuffy have big crops. Ruffie is not interested. Tuffy gets right up to the table to eat. Sally cannot feed the fish quickly, and Tuffy is often impatient and picks up pieces of dropped fish from the moss to eat while he waits. Tuffy was fed until 1539, when he had eaten approximately 1/3 of the fish and was quite full, moving away so that Ruffie could have some fish. No aggression was shown during the feeding. Sally was still getting the meat off that fish at 1640! Tuffy never returned to the table.
The fifth fish arrives in 1811 and is a large half-fish. Tuffy is right up there. Ruffy moves to the table, but Tuffy keeps eating. Then, at 1814, Ruffy takes exception hovering over Tuffy to force him into submission. Rufy gets fed, but Tuffy is back up at the table eating from 1829 to 1839. At 1842, Tuffy did an enormous PS right over the edge of the nest! The fish is done around 1843. I did not count bites. It was obvious that all was well despite the single incidence of domination. The two have eaten very well today.
The sixth fish arrived at 1939. It was a partial large Sheepshead. Both osplets were up at the beak. Ruffy ate until Tuffy began at 1946. Tuffy was fed until 1953 when Sally quit feeding. There is lots of fish on the nest. Both osplets had full crops at bedtime.
Sally decided to have a late night snack without the kids!
Tuffy’s ‘ps’. This excellent poop shot going well over the edge of the nest is a testament to Tuffy’s good eating and health over the past day. ‘H’ and I are going to stop counting bites as long as things remain stable on the nest. Tuffy is going to survive this. Both osplets are getting their feathers and I will probably say it several times – they are growing out of the Reptilian Phase and we would expect the aggression to be ceasing as long as Harry continues to provide this level of fish and their regularity.
*Caution*. I continue to worry about the Mum at Frenchman’s Creek. There are still fish piled on the nest. She fed one chick and stopped. The big one is trying to self-feed. This Mum is not lazy, she is ill. I believe it is possible that she has Trichomonosis. It causes severe damage to the tissues of the mouth, throat, crop and esophagus and affected birds may drool saliva, regurgitate food, have difficulty in swallowing food and water, demonstrate laboured breathing and/or have a swollen neck or throat. Several ospreys have died because of this including the Mum at Janakkala Osprey nest in Finland. The Dad piled fish on the nest and the two osplets tried to self-feed. One survived if my memory serves me correctly. The fourth eyas at the CBD in Melbourne died from this disease.
The older osplet is attacking the smaller one. Sheer frustration. Nest full of fish and chicks starving. Mum ill. Very sad.
Older osplets desperately trying to feed themselves in a nest full of fish. Little one has been beaked – leaning over top of nest. Has not eaten for a couple of days and will likely die shortly unless a miracle happens.
Mum is feeding the two older chicks this morning. The third chick is close to dying and by the time you read this will probably have passed.
The ospreys are into hard incubation at Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home with three eggs in the nest.
Only 5 goslings survived the leap of faith at the Decorah Goose Nest on Monday morning between 0802-0804. Believe it or not, another goose rushed to the nest and began laying eggs at 1030! It is quite a year. The Goose eggs are expected to hatch on Nest 2 in about a week.
Here is the live cam from Nest 1.
More Osprey eggs laid in the UK On Monday.
CJ7 and Blue 022 laid their first egg at Poole Harbour at 1540 on Monday. Congratulations!
Harry and Flora laid their first egg at Alyth at 1101.
Idris and Telyn have their second egg of the season at Dyfi at 0801 precisely 72 hours after their first egg was laid.
Audacity and Jak had another egg laid today at Sauces Canyon. The time was 14:55. You can see the flattened thin-shelled egg below in the image. So sad for them.
A little branching but both feet were off the nest bowl for Swampy at Eagle country at 1524 on Monday.
Both eaglets at Duke Farms are little boys. I don’t think this is a big surprise. Their aggression was only limited to a bit of time when prey was scarce.
Wichita and Cheyenne are doing fine at the Kansas City Bald Eagle nest.
It was difficult to tell how much prey the third hatch at Little Miami Conservancy received today. This nest could warrant a *caution* in watching for now.
Johnson City eaglets are big and doing great.
It looks hot on that Osprey platform at the University of Florida at Gainesville. Stella and Talon still have three osplets! What a nice sight to see as I have missed checking on them for a couple of days. The difference between the first and third hatch had me worried, but so far, so good.
Big Red and Arthur’s eggs were laid from the 17-26 of March. The average period for Red-tail Hawks to hatch is normally between 28-35 days, according to most of the guides. Last year, Big Red’s first egg hatched on the 37th day. I have tried to avoid the nervous energy of an expectant auntie….but we are entering the time when we can all get excited.
First Bald Eagle Hatch at White Rock in British Columbia, Canada announced today by Hancock Wildlife that oversees the nest.
The fourth and I believe final egg at the Peregrine Falcon nest in Japan has hatched. Just look at the size difference. It will be a joy to watch that little one catch up.
A glimpse of a day with Hartley and Monty in San Jose.
Smile. Bradley returns with another Puffer! Oh, he reminds me of Ervie.
And another reason to smile. Murphy who incubated a rock and got an eaglet to raise last year will get another chance this year. How wonderful. It is a win-win!
Concerns for White-tailed eagle Milda this year as her mate Hugo has not been seen for four days. She has protected the nest of eggs from intruders but needs desperately to eat. This so reminds me of the year Ramis was killed. Milda, go eat!
For all the lovers of our gal Iris at Hellgate Canyon, a young male visited her nest yesterday and tried mating with our gal. Keep your eye on that nest!
That’s it for today. I spent my day watching Tuffy which was a sheer delight after the news of Meadow. Please take care. Thank you for being with us.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘H, PB’, Audubon Centre for Birds of Prey, Moorings Park Ospreys, Frenchman’s Creek Ospreys, Raptor Resource Project/Explore Decorah Goose Cam, Poole Harbour Osprey Project, SSEN Alyth Osprey Cam, Dyfi Osprey Project, IWS/Explore, Eagle Country, Duke Farms, Farmer Derek Kansas City Bald Eagle nest, Johnson City-ETSU, UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey Cam, Cornell Red-tail Hawk Cam, Hancock Wildlife Foundation, the Japanese Peregrine Falcon Cam in Osaka, SK Hideaways, Port Lincoln Ospreys, World Bird Sanctuary, Raine and LDF, and BirdGuides.
It was a sad day in the garden on Saturday morning.
Everyone always talks about a Spark Bird. There can be several of these significant birds throughout our lives. As a child in Oklahoma, it was the Blue Jays and Cardinals that my dad fed out of his hand. As a teenager, it was the Red-tail Hawks. Then, decades later, there was the most magical moment. It changed my life. It was a winter morning in the garden when my eyes connected with those of a female Sharp-shinned Hawk within half a metre of me. Since that day, hawks have been visiting the garden in search of a “Sparrow Blue Plate Special”. Now, to have an Immature Cooper’s hawk die in my garden is simply heartbreaking. The carcass is going for testing for HPAI, as there were no obvious signs of trauma. However, I suspect the hawk flew into the garage belonging to the house next door or somehow broke its neck, colliding with the thicker branches trying to catch a songbird.
The happy ending to this, if there could be one, is that the hawk’s body is going to our local museum as part of their specimen collection. If you find a bird whose carcass is in good condition, check with your local natural history museum or wildlife centre to see if they would be interested in having it as part of their specimen collection.
It was 14 degrees C Saturday afternoon at the nature centre. The Canada Geese had moved from the main lake to the smaller ponds and fields to forage. There were hundreds of Dark-eyed Juncos, several dozen Chickadees, Woodpeckers, and House Sparrows enjoying the warmth as a huge hawk flew overhead.
Meadow is at the Audubon Centre for Birds of Prey and is getting the first-class care this rehabilitation centre is known for!
Meadow being weighed.
An ambassador celebration at Audubon!
Two little eaglets being fed at the ND-LEEF nest. Looks like the new Mum has been named Gigi.
There has been some concern for the One eaglet in the nest at Tremplealeau, Wisconsin. The male disappeared and the female is alone.
UPDATE: Dad has returned to the Trempealeau Nest and two fish have come in already – Saturday! Yeah.
The situation at Moorings Park improves for Tuffie bite by bite.
Tuffie had some of the leftover fish early and it appeared that he might have had some other bites. It was when I returned from my walk at the nature centre, that Tuffie had a nice feeding. After Ruffy ate, Tuffie was fed and then both of them ate together.
‘H’ gives us a more detailed day’s report for our little one at Moorings Park. “Tuffy ate at least 54 bites at the first meal of the day; 1109 headless fish, Tuffy was attacked by Ruffie, Tuffy moved away to the rail and never went back to eat. Harry removed the leftover fish;1156 Harry returns with what appeared to be the leftover fish. Tuffy is beaked several times and was not able to eat;1455 Harry in with whole tilapia, Tuffy is beaked and intimidated several times while Ruffie is fed. At 1526 Ruffie moves away, and Tuffy is finally able to eat. At 1533 Ruffie returned to the table, Tuffy was intimidated and turned away. Ruffie ate until 1538, then Tuffy moved up and the two ate side by side until 1540, when Tuffy was beaked again. Ruffie finished the fish. Tuffy ate at least 66 bites at this meal.”
With my bad math, that would seem to be at least 120 bites of fish for Tuffie today – more than the two previous days counts.
Oh, the size difference between these two! So glad that third egg didn’t hatch.
Last instalment from ‘H’ – what a good day for Tuffie all things considered. “1710 large headless fish – Tuffy got 3 quick bites, was intimidated and turned away, later got 3 more bites and was beaked. Ruffie ate until 1722 then moved away. Tuffy had a short private feeding until 1726, then was beaked by Ruffie. Ruffie ate some more, then Tuffy got a few more bites starting at 1730. Ruffie quit the feeding again at 1736. Tuffy voluntarily moved away from Mom from 1738 t o 1740. Tuffy ate a few more bites at 1740, and then Tuffy went and laid down at 1742. Total bites for Tuffy at this meal = at least 77 bites.Total bites to Tuffy for the day so far = 197”.
The crop is almost as big as Tuffie!!!!!!! Get the tissue box.
The little bottom sticking out from under Sally belongs to Tuffie who, all in all, had a reasonable day. Each day is getting better in terms of food intake for Tuffie.
Over the past seven years, turning points come on nests like this one. Whether or not it is the change from the Reptilian Phase into the period when juvenile plumage is coming, or if the weather shifts and the fishing gets better, or if the female ‘decides’ that the little one is going to live and begins to feed it, we should be watching and waiting to see what it is on this nest.
Many of you will have shed tears of joy for little Tuffie today. He is hanging in there and all that good energy from the Tuffie Fan Club must be helping!
The second egg was laid at the Patchogue Osprey platform on Long Island Saturday morning around 0858.
In the UK, Storm Kathleen is hitting areas hard. Dorcha was just blown off the perch at Loch Arkaig.
The storm is not blowing so hard at Loch of the Lowes, yet.
The winds were howling at Alyth, where Harry and Flora have their nest.
Storm Kathleen is kicking up waves at Rutland as Maya and Blue try to protect their eggs.
Idris holding on to a huge fish while the gale blows at Dyfi.
Telyn is soaked.
What a great screen capture of Idris and Telyn.
Extremely gusty at Glaslyn.
Same gusts at Llyn Brenig where there was a fish delivery. You might recall Blue 372. She was over at Glaslyn with Aran and flitting from nest to nest. She is trying to find a mate…well, this is her! And this is what is happening in the image below: “LJ2 has been joined on the nest by Blue 372 this afternoon.Blue 372 is a 3 year old Scottish female translocated to Poole Harbour in 2021, she has been seen on a number of Welsh nests over the past week or so and is now braving the winds up at Llyn Brenig. LM6 our regular female has not yet returned from migration.”
She is determined. Will this be her nest?
‘H’ reports that the Mum at Carthage laid the season’s first egg. Saturday the 6th of April at 10:17:10.
Confirmed pip at US Steel’s nest of Claire and Irwin – and now it is a hatch. looks like another crushed egg hatch. Little one alive and squiggling this time!
Darling Big Red never seems to age except for her feet and legs. She and Arthur continue their dedicated teamwork to hatch those four little hawklets.
Iris might have wished she had waited a few days to return to Montana.
Do not get upset if you check on the little owlet at Wolf Bay. They are both fine. There is a prey item currently on the nest, Saturday evening, that is white.
JBS20 is getting those wings strong. Adult in to fed but JBS20 is good at self-feeding!
Was it a quail lunch at the Redding Eagle nest? or a Guinea Fowl? Both eaglets are doing very well.
E23 gets a fish delivery from Mum. It must have been delicious. The fledgling ate all of it.
A family portrait at the West End nest of Akecheta and Thunder.
Little heads pop up for dinner at the Fraser Point nest of Cruz and Andor.
All is well at Denton Homes.
Happy eaglets at Decorah North.
Diana Persinger recorded a video for FB of a very messy meal for these two at Decorah North.
Everything is good at Little Miami.
Little fluff balls at the ND-LEEF nest.
Worried about Angel? She was on the nest with Tom on Friday.
There are no worries about Leaper and Jersey. They had crops most of Saturday and were about to burst late in the day and Dad had a fish in his talons and Mum had one, too!
The fortune of a nest can shift from good to bad to good. Let us hope this is what is happening at Moorings Park.
Hatch watch has begun for the Fort St Vrain Eagles in Colorado.
There is some thought that the ‘original’ Dad at Pittsburgh-Hayes has returned to the nest after being gone for a very long time. (I would have to check my Memorial Page). Is it possible he was in care, rehabilitated, and released and came home?
This was posted by WingsOfWhimsy with the photos below. They sure look alike.
“WingsOfWhimsy 20 hours agoA little bit of interesting news to share. I will say right up front that I have VERY little personal knowledge to go on here, so I will direct you to either the live cam: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l95k-… or the Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/36054… for additional info. There is a theory that the original “Dad” from the Pittsburgh Hays nest has returned. Dad has been away for quite some time, and HM2 has bonded with Mom, although their egg failed to hatch this season. (I believe mom was first seen with HM2 in September.) Recently a visitor has been on the scene, and I have to admit… even I see the similarities! Could it be that Dad has returned? This is certainly exciting, but also a bit concerning. If this is Dad, both he & HM2 likely consider Mom and the nest to be theirs. These comparison photos were shared by a FB Group user: Lynda Philips, comparing Dad and the recent visitor. This is all I know right now, but I will update as best as I can. The folks in the group or on chat are surely more familiar than I am, though. Please consider checking in with them for more details!”
Yesterday I included a video by DaniConnorWild to show you the penguins in Antarctica. Today, here is a sobering article on the unprecedented heat rise on that continent and the fears that it has for the penguins and for humans. The author says with the rise to 38.5 C, “These events have raised fears that the Antarctic, once thought to be too cold to experience the early impacts of global warming, is now succumbing dramatically and rapidly to the swelling levels of greenhouse gases that humans continue to pump into the atmosphere.”
Thank you so much to the following who sent me comments, news, their pictures, screen captures, videos, articles, and those who operate the streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘Geemeff, H, J’, Audubon Centre for Birds of Prey, Stephen Basly, Tremplealeau, Moorings Park, PSEG, The Guardian, Geemeff, The Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL), Alyth SS, LRWT, Dyfi Osprey Project, Marissa Winkle, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Llyn Brenig, DTC, PIX Cams, Cornell RTH Cam, Montana Osprey Project, Wolf Bay, JB Sands Wetlands, FORE, IWS/Explore, Denton Homes, Raptor Resource Project, Diana Persinger, Little Miami Conservancy, Window to Wildlife, Duke Farms, and Sassa Bird.
Thursday was simply a gorgeous day. By the time I had treated all over King’s Park and through the entire space of IKEA – well, I had accomplished more than my goal of 5km. Whew! The snow is melting quickly and soon, we will be getting stuck in the muck. But, for today, it was marvellous. The puppies were off to the dog park and everyone had a smile on their face and a big hello. Tomorrow, I hope to find some Short-eared Owls and some Snowy Owls in an adventure north of the City.
It is not Calico, it is Baby Hope. She looks more and more like Mamma every week.
Calico wanted to give Baby Hope a good wash, but unlike Hugo Yugo, Hope wasn’t having any of it!
Missey sat close and watched Calico trying to be a good Mamma.
Hugo Yugo is always a bit of a blur…
When the first thing you read in the morning is the shooting of a Peregrine Falcon, it is hard to put on a happy face.
At Big Bear, Shadow was attacked by an unidentified eagle at 1443 on Wednesday! The worry beads were out, and tears were falling – Shadow has now returned safely to the nest at 1135 Thursday.
Then, the unexpected happened. Jackie laid her first egg of the 2024 season. Tears of joy are flowing around the world for this most beloved couple who fight against the impact of the DDT spraying from decades ago on their breeding success.
Here’s the video!
At Sauces, there are fish gifts form Jak to Audacity. Love this couple whose name should be Tenacious and Persistent.
Gabby and Beau protecting the nest and incubating an egg that is going to need a super miracle if it is to hatch for these two.
Beau had a lesson in incubation today! It looks like he might have gotten it! Thanks, Gabby!!!!!! He is a keeper. Maybe not eaglets this year, but next.
E23 is really noticing what is beyond the nest. And what a change – like the eaglet doubled in size!
There is a surprise and some joy in the Kisatchie National Forest today after the loss of Anna and Andria, their eggs, nests, and mates. The time stamp of 2014 must be an error.
All is going well for Duke Farms. There is a second egg – that should be it!
Here’s the video.
Royal Cam chick enjoys breakfast with Mum.
A tour of the landscape around the Pittsburgh Hays nest occurred on Thursday. You can see the river where the eagles go fishing…gorgeous.
Gracious. Your giggle of the day comes from V2 and DG. Practice. There are no eggs at the Dulles-Greenway nest of Rosa and V2 but practice for incubation is underway and guess what V2 is using? A hambone! Maybe we needed one of these for Beau.
Successful mating at Moorings Park on Thursday with the first egg expected any time.
Cal and Lusa are getting their cute little tail feathers!
No eggs yet for Liberty and Guardian at Redding in California.
Both the new female and Dad were on the ND-LEEF nest today after the snow melted. New female (top) and Dad (below).
‘A’ sends the reports for the past days at the Parramatta River. It appears that SE31 has now dispersed from the nest area.
“Here are the WBSE reports for the past three days (24, 25 and 26 January):
January 24: Early in the morning, one eagle was at River Roost. It appeared to be Dad. On the incoming tide, there was lots of floating rubbish, man-made and natural – leaves, branches, plants. Stormwater carries lots of debris. Only Dad was seen by the river during the day. A drone was seen over the wetlands, delivering routine mosquito-management spraying. Later in the afternoon, again only one eagle was seen. SE31 seems to be out of sight or has moved away from this area. She was last seen flying towards Homebush Bay. The photo below is from the other day, a good catch though our youngster was not there to claim it. Thanks to Jan and all our other eagle watchers and photographers.
RangerJudy1d
January 25: An eagle-free day, it seems, as none was seen by the river all day. Watchers checked nearby bays and the ospreys were sighted.
RangerJudy29m
January 26: A very quiet day today, with no sea eagle sightings recorded. A picture from the past for a memory. We wonder where they all are.
Meanwhile, it was another fish frenzy day with five coming in to the nest for Brad and Gil who are still at home!
So it seems our girl has moved on – apparently, with peregrines, the females disperse much greater distances from the natal area than do the male juveniles. I’m unsure if the same applies with sea eagles. SE29 headed north, up along the coast, a particularly lovely part of the country.”
What a wonderful day! Thank you so much for being with me. Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, photographs, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog this morning: ’A’, Raptor Persecution UK, FOBBV, SK Hideaways, Gracie Shepherd, NEFL-AEF, Lisa Yen, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Cody Wayne, Duke Farms, Ondabebe, Bill Kitchen, NZ DOC, Pix Cams, Dulles Greenway Eagle Cam, Mooring Park, Window to Wildlife, FORE, ND-LEEF, Eagle Cam, PLO, and Bart M.
It continues to warm up a bit on the Canadian Prairies. Right now – it is 1617 Wednesday afternoon – it is -17 C. But hang on. In one week it is forecast to be +4 C. Yes, you don’t your eyes checked, PLUS 4. Wow. That is going to be a great day to spend out at the nature centre. Soggy but wonderful. The animals will be delighted.
‘The Boyfriend’ survived the cold nicely and was staring at the garden door, waiting for his delivery of wet food this afternoon. If I do not respond, he now knocks. He is so bold and is so curious about the house but runs the minute I open the door or come near.
Missey was watching from her perch on the cat tree.
Calico is a regular alarm clock. 0837 on the dot for several days now. Then she just wants cuddles, not food. The others are still asleep! It is our special time together before the day begins.
Baby Hope at a weird angle. She still has her very bushy tail. That ‘look’ is almost hypnotic.
For some ‘trouble’ is their middle name, but for Hugo Yugo it is their FIRST name! I have tried to post videos of the play fights between Hugo Yugo and all the other three girls, but this system does not seem to want to accept them so, imagine, if you will, the little kitten pulling off the blankets and jumping on Hope this evening in a wild frenzy.
Hope gets away and Hugo Yugo looks up and is ready to pounce on the sofa.
Baby Hope resting by the twinkle tree. They will all get a second, third, and fourth wind…chasing, running, pulling ornaments off the tree. The blankets will be everywhere along with the toys! My goodness, the energy and the fun these little ones have.
And then there was this…Hugo Yugo! Hugo Yugo kneading Missey hoping to make milk. Goodness. And Missey just took it all in stride.
It is just wonderful to see the garden animals and know that they did not succumb to the cold. Both Blue Jays are here getting peanuts along with Mr Crow.
The Black Capped Chickadees were eating the Black Oil Seed as well as the suet cylinders today.
Dyson ran too fast but I did get to photograph one of the kits at the feeder.
Oh, what a morning Wednesday was – Clive and Connie brought in five fish in three hours to the relief of everyone that had worried about their darling eaglets. What a power couple! So very happy that lots of fish got on that nest. Hopefully they can pile them up like Louis did at the E1 nest for a few years as there is a forecast of another bad weather system heading their way. Both C10 and C11 went to bed with big crops!
Jack is at the Captiva Osprey nest, but Ruby has been missing since her last visit on the 11th of January. That was only six days ago but Jack continues to call for her. I hope she is just having a spa time. Keep your fingers crossed.
There is no pip at the time of this writing for the second egg for Ron and Rita at the WRDC. It is 39 days old today and is, of course, clearly in the hatch window. No need to get too worried but if it were to go to 41, well…and I would feel sorry for that little eaglet because R6 will be ‘much bigger’. R6 might get to join the ‘only eaglet’ club of E23!
What a difference from this fuzzy little chick to C10 and C11, who have almost lost their Mohawks completely.
Snug and warm under Mamma Rose.
As far as I know, there is no pip at Berry College.
Looking at the eggs, is that nesting material? or the beginning of a pip?
Beau has new injuries to his feet. He has been busy all day trying to keep intruders away from Gabby, their egg, and the nest. One intruder landed on the nest tree and Gabby got rid of him. The time was 1552.
Unidentified intruder on branch while Gabby is calling out from the nest – it jumped in the nest and Gabby was calling and calling. It was a frightening moment for sure.
Beau is back on guard at the nest but has injured feet.
Didn’t see any eagles at the ND-LEEF nest in South Bend, Indiana – just their prints from earlier in the snow.
There is some fresh nesting material at Duke Farms, but no egg yet.
At Decorah North, DNF was in the trees while a beautiful red squirrel visited the nest tree and Canada Geese frolicked in the open water of the creek.
All is well at SW Florida. E23 continues to thrive and F23 has proven herself to be a great first time Mum.
E23 is never going to go hungry. M15 flew in with ‘something’ – did he get it at the Publix dumpster? (the butcher puts out food for M15). A dual feeding takes place around 1744 – E23 already had a big crop.
M15 reminds me of many of the male ospreys in the UK who love to feed their chicks and are great providers.
Here is the video of that dual feeding.
Jackie and Shadow were both at Big Bear today – gosh that nest has a gorgeous view.
At Port Lincoln, it seems that Giliath has found a place for fish – free fish? Smart little fledgling. Brad will be happy to eat all the fish brought to the nest. LOL.
So far, three fish deliveries. The 0637 was grabbed by Gil while the 0720 and the 0854 went to Brad. Dad came in with deliveries 1 and 3 and Mum brought in a partial fish in slot 2.
Everyone seems to enjoy spending time on the old barge.
It’s the first Royal Albatross hatch of the year (not the Royal Cam chick). Congratulations, first-time parents GBL and BYW!
There are so many wildlife cameras. This one is the BBC Winterwatch one. How many birds can you ID?
Big Red and Arthur will begin work on their nest with regular visits starting in February. There is major construction going on within a close proximity – we will have to wait and see how this impacts the breeding season.
Do you adore fuzzy little raptor or bird babies? Check out the winners of the Audubon photo awards!
Thank you so much for being with me today. Please take care. I look forward to having you with us again!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ’A, H, J’, Window to Wildlife, WRDC, Berry College Eagle Cam, NEFL-AEF, ND-LEEF Duke Farms, Raptor Resource Project, SW Florida Eagle Cam, SK Hideaways, FOBBV, PLO, BBC, Cornell RTH Cam, Audubon, Sharon Dunne, and BirdGuides.
It is warming up on the Prairies for a couple of days. We hit a summery -16 C on Monday!!!!! There was some snow falling. It looks like snow was falling down in Texas too…there is some seen on the John Bunker Bald Eagle nest near Dallas.
It was raining in Fort Myers and little E23 wanted under Mamma. The thermal down is not all in. There are pin feathers coming.
SK Hideaways catches F23 as the great Mumbrella for us.
F23 is still protecting her precious chick, E23, into the night.
R6 has been fed at the WRDC nest – I am not hearing any news about a pip in that second egg. Remember they were laid four days apart.
Oh, I wish Rose would be more cooperative when she is feeding R6! This little one is a real sweetheart.
It is pitching down rain at the Captiva Eagle nest of Connie and Clive. C10 and C11 are tucked under Connie as best she can!
The very heavy rain stopped at Captiva around 1715.
‘A’ writes: ”Connie flew off the nest about 06:53 this morning and immediately headed off for food. When she returned, it was with the head of a fish – she too must have been ravenously hungry. The little ones both got something to eat, CE10 more than CE11 of course (he largely had to pick up dropped scraps), and the eaglets are now hunkered down under mumbrella as the rain pours down. It’s as bad as it was yesterday and poor stoic Connie has been in this position for all but two of the past 12 hours or so. She is amazing. The garage door technique is her only option at this stage, with the eaglets growing so large, and today, CE11 has managed the prime position right under mum, happily, as he got the raw end of the deal quite a bit yesterday afternoon. “ Where is Clive?
No rain for Muhlady yet at Superbeaks where she is partially incubating the first egg of the second clutch for her and Pepe.
It is dry, so far, for Gabby and V3.
Beau is protecting Gabby and the nest.
It is wet for Abby and Blazer at Eagle Country.
The snow appears to have stopped in Iowa and one of the eagles, looks like DNF, at Decorah North is plucking their dinner on the snowy nest.
Chandler was in and out quick checking the snowy Port Tobacco nest.
There was some quick work on the rails at Duke Farms by both Mum and the new Dad. Mum has been laying in the nest for some time Monday afternoon late and evening. Might there be an egg coming?
There was no noticeable pip on either egg at Berry College Monday night. Egg 1 is 39 days old today.
The first fish of the day came at 0732. Both Brad and Gil were on the nest and could see the arrival. It was tense. Gil got it. These are incredibly handsome lads.
Brad gets a nice late afternoon fish!
The most recent posting for SE31 at the Sydney Olympic Park and the Parramatta River. So grateful for the images that the BOGs are sending.
“January 16: all 3 Eagles were reported at the river early at 7:30, with a duet and SE31 calling too. I have noted that she was seen with prey yesterday, probably a fish, though no catch details. At 8:30, juvenile was at Juvie Roost and one adult nearby at River Roost when an osprey flew past, calling. The adult flew to SE31, as the osprey, possibly the young one, continued upriver. The river is still very muddy, with floating rubbish. Then at 10:10am, SE31 was spotted on the island with prey, possibly a bird. She was eating, then distracted by the parents’ duet, and when changing branches, she appeared to drop it, though was seen pecking at scraps on the initial branch. She probably did not catch this herself, though delivery was not seen. She was heard whining again later, and at 11:05am, all members of the family were still around on their riverside roosts. Later, at 1:30pm, SE31 was on the island, but her parents were not seen until mid afternoon, at around 3:30pm, when they were both seen near Goat Island.”
‘M’ sent a note about an intruder at the Achieva Osprey Nest of Jack and Diane. A female. Jack didn’t mind. Was it, ‘M’ asks – one of their chicks visiting? I have old images of the heads of the fledglings. You will remember that the pattern on the head of the osprey is the ONLY part of their plumage that does not change. I wonder if it is Tiny Tot Tumbles? She has returned on a couple of occasions. ’M’ says, “…09:25:08 when an intruder came into and landed in nest with Jack. He allowed her to land in nest with no push back and I’m wondering if she might be a chick from previous years. She is certainly a beauty and I think Jack is really impressed by her.”
For all you Red-tail Hawk lovers, World Bird Sanctuary (Home of Murphy the BE that incubated the rock and raised a fledgling) has sent some news of two of their RTH releases that have trackers!
“Both of our former rehab patients that had radio transmitters put on them are doing well. Lynyrd, the juvenile Red-tailed Hawk, is covering quite a bit of ground as he moves around the city. He spent the first few nights near the release site before heading east, further into the city. Since then he has moved southward and is now moving back west while still remaining in St. Louis City. As a juvenile bird, Lynyrd doesn’t yet have an established territory. He will mostly likely not breed until his 3rd year (2025) and it will be interesting to see if he finds a territory before then or remains more nomadic. Check in tomorrow to see how the adult is doing! Forest Park Living Lab is a collaboration between the Saint Louis Zoo, Saint Louis University, the National Great Rivers Research and Education Center, Washington University in St. Louis, World Bird Sanctuary, and Forest Park Forever.”
It is always good to see birds safely released and living in the wild after receiving rehabilitation.
Humans brought mice to the islands of the Southern Ocean. It took more than a million dollars to make Marion Island mouse-free. Can you imagine mice eating adult albatross and petrels? Well, that is what they did!
I tried to take a good photograph of the article about the Million Dollar Mouse that appeared in the Winter 2023 BTO News. It isn’t great.
The drawings are great and there is additional reading on the bottom right which is pretty clear.
More details about the father and son team that stole wild Peregrine Falcons and their eggs in Scotland and sold them on to the Middle East are coming to light.
It is winter everywhere. What is cold to me might not be the same temperature as it is in Iowa or Texas, but when the temperatures drop – we all get cold. Birds and animals. I grew up in Oklahoma, and they have posted a recipe to help the birds out in the winter. This could be a fun project! It is a great recipe and is much more cost-efficient than purchasing ready-made. This could be a great project to create interest in children – yours, at school and in youth groups. Bring in the science of how birds stay warm. What kind of food do they need – get them involved in making the suet!
Because it is cold, the suet does not melt. It can be cut with cookie cutters or pressed into other forms such as paper cups that can be removed. A hole can be made, and they can be hung from branches.
Use only unsalted peanut butter, please. No bacon grease, etc.
Thanks so very much for being with me today. Stay warm. Stay safe wherever you are. We hope to have you back with us again soon.
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Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to compose my blog today: ’A, H, J, MP’, John bunker Tower Cam, SW Florida Eagle Cam, SK Hideaways, WRDC Eagle Nest, Window to Wildlife, Superbeaks, NEFL-AEF, Eagle Country , Raptor Resource Project, Port Tobacco Eagle Cam, Duke Farms, Berry College, PLO, Eagle Cam, Achieva Credit Union, World Bird Sanctuary, NZ DOC, BTO Winter News, Raptor Persecution UK, and the Oklahoma Ornithological Society.
