The camera has been offline at the Port Lincoln Osprey nest. It was difficult not knowing what was going on with Ervie!
When the cam came on, I could hear Ervie fish calling. Oh, he is loud! In a few minutes Ervie was mantling the nest.
Here comes Dad with a headless fish. It is a perfect sharing. Dad catches the fish, eats the head, and gives the rest to his son on the nest.
Ervie was hungry!
He is mantling that fish really well.
Ervie has that fish firmly under his talons. It is not going anywhere – head or not!
Dad pauses for a moment on the edge of the nest. Thanks Dad!
Ervie really enjoyed his breakfast.
Ervie was cleaning his beak at 10:57. Ironically, he had left a little fish. It is on the nest just below his tail. Looks like half of the actual fish tail with some meat on it.
Ervie flew off the nest and the clean up crew were grateful for the morsels of fish. There is a pigeon at the middle of the nest on the right side. It blends in with the wood.
Ervie was definitely hungry. With all of the outages it is hard to know when he last had a fish dinner.
After he finished eating and cleaning his beak, Ervie looked off in the distance.
Then Ervie began to fish cry again! He almost started mantling.
Ervie raised his wings and flew off the nest at 11:09, Monday the 14th of February. Did he land on the shed near Dad? Did he go somewhere else?
Port Lincoln Posted the tracker for Ervie and a beautiful photo. It was taken by Keith Daniels. Ervie was on his front fence in the Lincoln Cove Marina.
Isn’t he gorgeous sitting there looking in? What would you give to have an Osprey sit on your front fence? and what if it was Ervie!!!!!!!! How grand.
Before I close, I went to check on Little Bit at the NEFlorida Bald Eagle Nest. It had a really nice crop before bed! Yippeeeeeeee.
So all is right with the world.
Thank you so much for joining me. It was just wonderful to see these two fed. It is very reassuring that everything is just fine. Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to Port Lincoln Osprey Cam and Port Lincoln Osprey FB and Keith Daniels for the photo of Ervie on his fence and the NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF Bald Eagle Cam where I took my screen captures.
I have spent the morning sorting books and clearing out paper and all that gets accumulated before you realize it. In the midst of all of that I found a really nice letter from the Director of the 1000 Islands Environmental Centre in Kaukauna, Wisconsin. I think that each of you will be interested in the contents of this letter – indeed, I know you will.
“Bald eagles typically have a clutch of 1-3 eggs laid in late February or early March and hatch approximately 34-36 days later…Observations on the nest of the 1000 Islands Conservancy Zone confirmed a successful hatching with video and photo evidence of eaglets. Over the weekend, additional video of the nest was able to show that the adult pair have successfully hatched four eaglets.”
This is an extremely rare occasion. Nowak continues, “Successfully hatching four chicks in one nest is a very rare occurrence for bald eagles and it is an event to celebrate and safeguard. There have been very few documented cases of nests with four eaglets, and despite the success the eagles have had to this point, the adults face a significant challenge to provide enough food to sustain the young eaglets until they are independent this summer.”
There are the four nestlings being fed by Mum. Can you imagine how busy those parents were providing food?!
Here is a video of one of those feedings:
And guess what? The four eaglets fledged!!!!!!!! So if anyone ever asks you if you know of a Bald Eagle nest fledging four, you can now say ‘yes’ with confidence. This is one of those really feel good stories.
Today, I have spent more time cleaning than checking on the birds. Ferris Akel has his tour going on behind me and he has made me really miss the ducks in our City. I am just counting the weeks until April when they return.
In other Bird World news, we are still eggspecting Liberty to lay her second egg today. Lots of people watching and waiting. I continue to check.
UPDATE: Liberty laid that second egg today, as expected, at 14:42. I have to say I even felt for her as she was in labour! Congratulations Liberty and Guardian.
Andy is giving Lena a bit of a break at the Captiva Osprey nest. We are now on pip watch for this couple. It remains unclear to me if the owner still intends to shut off the camera after a hatch. The Ospreys have had bad luck in the past with the Crows taking the chicks. My understanding is that the camera is to be shut down until such time the chicks would be too big for the Crows. We wait to see.
And sadly, the camera at Port Lincoln is off line again. This is the last available image of Ervie and Dad on the barge. I always keep these. You never know if this will be our last sighting of Ervie for some time.
UPDATE: The Port Lincoln Osprey Barge camera is now up and streaming again. Ervie is watching the water! That is a good sign. Oh, wouldn’t we love to see him catch a fish off that barge! And not a Puffer or a Toadfish, please, Ervie.
It is a beautiful blue sky with sun here creating deep shadows on the snow. It is -19. Today’s garden adventure is brought to you by Little Red. A week ago I put a suet bell on a hanger for Little Woodpecker. Someone has been working very hard because they got the heavy suet off the holder, took it across the snow and got it on top of the small wood shed in the back. At that point the suet got stuck on a branch. (I lay them on top of one another on the top so the birds can get inside and hide if Sharpie comes!). That someone is Little Red! What a surprise. He deserves every bite of that suet. What a character! And a hard worker.
There is the object of desire. That little squirrel really managed to get it quite far.
Little Red got big bites of the suet. He would then run up to Sharpie’s post and eat it in the sun and then run back and get some more.
Isn’t this squirrel adorable?
Oh, the joy and the giggles these garden animals bring!
Thank you so much for joining me today. Little Red says to remember to leave some food for the squirrels, too! Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams or FB page where I took my screen captures: Redding Bald Eagles, Explore.org, Captiva Osprey Cam, and 1000 Islands Conservation Zone FB page.
Good night from Thunder and Aceta at the West End Bald Eagle Cam on Catalina Island. Looks hot.
It is fantastic that the camera at the Port Lincoln Osprey barge is up and running again. We can see the comings and goings of Dad and – of course, our dear Ervie. Saturday morning (Australian time) both were in the shed.
Ervie and Dad both flew off together a 09:13:07. At the time, I did not know what has caused them to be frightened.
Then there it was – a motorboat!
Ervie returned to the barge – four hours alter – at 13:47.
Ervie flew off the nest again. He returned at 14:03:34. It looks like he has been in the water. I wonder if he was caught anything? He has certainly tried. I did not see a fish delivery but am told that Dad did, indeed, bring in a fish for his boy. Fantastic.
How lucky we are to still be able to watch the trials and tribulations of our Ervie! He was gone for nearly four hours during the time the boat scared him and Dad off the barge. Then the returned, left again, and is back. I do hope they post the information from his tracker for that 4 hour period. Wonder where he went?
Are you a fan of Eagle Country? If so, you will be delighted to know that Abby and Blazer had their first hatch today. Congratulations!
While Eagle Country has a hatch, Pittsburgh-Hays has their first egg of the season. It arrived at 18:22:43. Gosh, things are really starting to happen quickly.
At the Redding California Bald Eagle nest of Liberty and Guardian, we will be on egg watch for Saturday the 12th! Liberty laid her first egg on 9 February at 15:19:43.
It looks like the first tour to see the nest of Anna, Louis, and Kincaid at the Kisatchie National Forest was a success. The Rangers are really trying to raise awareness about the Bald Eagles and next year they plan to have another camera with the couple in another area of the forest.
Kincaid hatched on 12 January. This eaglet is growing fast. Lots of gorgeous thermal down and juvenile feathering appearing. Kincaid has tried to brood and the poor ‘big thing’ can’t get under Mum any longer. Awww.
We are on egg watch at the Redding Bald Eagle nest of Liberty and Guardian.
It is hatch watch at the Captiva Osprey Nest of Andy and Lena on Santibel Island. No pips yet.
R1 and R2 are really getting their juvenile feathers. These two are beauties at the WRDC nest. When they sit up light R1 is doing, some people see a big frog – others see a Buddha. R2 is busy looking over the edge of the nest. So far this human made nest has worked really well for this family. Well done Ron Magill of the Miami Zoo.
The eaglet at the Osceola Bald Eagle nest is self-feeding and doing a great job of it!
What a majestic bird.
Yesterday, I posted information on what happens during week 3 for the little eaglets. B15, the chick on Pa Berry and Missy’s nest at Berry College in Mt Berry, Georgia, is right there. B15 has really grown. Look at the crop, the big feet, and the mohawk. Perfect development for its age.
The fans of Ma Berry did not take to Missy at first but she has proven herself to be an enthusiastic and responsible Mum this year to B15.
[Just a note. Ma Berry has been seen having baths in Alabama. She seems to be well – and easily identified by her deformed foot.]
Adorable B15. Love the hair do!!!!!!!
Gustave Axelson wrote an engaging article about his family trip from New York to Algonquin Park near Toronto to see the Canada Jay whose population is declining. When they returned home, his teenage son- who had no interest in birds prior to the trip – was posting bird images on his Instagram feed. Apparently, according to Axelson, birdwatching is now considered ‘cool’. I can’t think of a better way to help the birds than to engage your children and friends with them. It is how to raise their awareness but also, when they care and have empathy with these amazing creatures, it helps to secure the future for them. Everyone can help!
The title of the article is “The Magic of Birds” and it is in the NYTimes. I hope that you can open it. It is a really uplighting read.
Let’s all do our part. Introduce someone to the love of birds that you have this spring. Then ask them to pass it along to another person. Soon…there are huge numbers of people loving and protected our feathered friends!
Thank you for joining me today. Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Berry College Bald Eagles, KNF Bald Eagles, Redding Bald Eagles, Captiva Osprey Cam, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, WRDC Bald Eagles, Osceola Bald Eagles, and Eagle Country.
Please not: This is a static post. Updates on eggs laid, nestlings hatching, will come in subsequent blogs. I will not update this particular page. Thanks!
The Lost Words is a book by Robert MacFarlane, Fellow at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. Its focus is on the words that the editors of the Oxford Children’s Dictionary removed. Its 128 pages, 27.9 x 37.6 cm in size, are gorgeously illustrated with the watercolours of Jackie Morris, writer and illustrator, who lives in Pembrokeshire, Wales. The missing words that concerned MacFarlane are the following: acorn, Adder, Bluebell, Bramble, Conker, dandelion, fern, heather, heron, Ivy, Kingfisher, Lark, Magpie, Newt, Otter, Raven, Starling, Weasel, Willow, and Wren. At a time when our focus as adults should be to strive to install the wonder of the natural world and our responsibility to it in the children, why, then, would anyone choose to remove words that are directly connected with our environment.
I mentioned this book awhile ago. I have returned to it many times always admiring the illustrations, such as the images of the Ravens on the forest floor amongst the fallen conkers. Conkers are the fruit of the Horse Chestnut Tree, Aesculus hippocastanum. Horse Chestnut trees can grow quite large. Ironically, the conkers are poisonous to horses and I believe, all other animals. The type of poison is called esculin.
That illustration conjured up a beautiful memory of the time my family spent in England. Up on the gorse was a Conker Tree. We had never seen conkers – it was something wonderful and new. The children played a game with them. First you had to drill a hole and run a cord through the conker and secure it with a nice big knot at the bottom. The children would then ‘conk’ their conkers trying to see whose would break first! It was free entertainment and kept them busy for hours.
The rolling hills with their public paths were marvellous places for the children and the adults to take walks and breathe in the air. We were fortunate to have a ‘gorse’ within 50 or 60 feet from where we lived. It was full of butterflies and birds and the most delicious blackberries. It was a time when children played outside with their mates. No one set in front of the telly or spent hours looking at screens. Bikes were ridden and trees were climbed. In the three years we lived in Lincolnshire, it snowed once. There was about 4 cm on the ground – just enough. Still, everything stopped. Children stayed home from school and anything and everything that could be used as a sled was used to slide down the hills of the gorse. I wonder what all those children would think about the snow in my garden today?
The nice thing about snow is that it can cause people to slow down. To enjoy a cup of hot tea and a book. To stop running around worrying about things that are not always that important, to pause long enough to take in the moments.
It seems like it is rather quiet in Bird World but, is it really? Eaglets are growing bigger by the day all the while their plumage is changing. Thankfully, none are ready to fledge. E19 and E20 spend time flapping their wings as does the Osceola eaglet. Other eagles are incubating eggs. It is not time for Osprey season unless they are in Florida. Diane is incubating 3 eggs at Achieva in St Petersburg while Lena, laying hers a month early at Captiva, will be on hatch watch this weekend. Annie and Grinnell are only dreaming of eyases. Today Grinnell had to tell a 2 year old juvenile female to get off the ledge of The Campanile. Cal Falcons posted a video of that encounter.
Ervie continues to fish call off the barge at Port Lincoln. We can hear him but we cannot see him.
Kincaid is 29 days old today. He is starting to walk. It is so cute to see those first ‘baby steps’. Louis brought in what looks like an egret (or a part of an egret). When it looked like Louis might want to eat some of it, Anna promptly arrived at the nest. To Anna, prey brought to the nest belongs to her and Kincaid, not Louis who brought it! Anna is pretty strict in that regard. Not all female Bald Eagles behave that way. Anna proceeded to try and remove one long leg while Kincaid, with an already large crop, waited patiently.
Kincaid is mimicking what Anna is doing as he grabs the other leg and pulls on it. So cute. Kincaid also keeps himself busy moving around nesting material. These little eaglets learn from watching the adults.
Kincaid is already making attempts at self-feeding.
Kincaid is, of course, not the only one trying out eating by itself. I posted an image of R2 at the WRDC nest a week ago eating a fish. The eaglets of Harriet and M15 are also attempting eating on their own. E20 has become a bit of a pro. It seems like all of the eaglets grew up faster than they have ever done previously. Does it seem that way to you?
At the White-tailed Eagle nest of Milda and her new mate near Durbe, Latvia, the snow has melted. Milda will be laying her eggs about the same time as Big Red in Ithaca, New York – the third week of March – if all goes to plan.
There is more snow forecast for Big Red’s territory. The temperature in Ithaca is 1 C.
What I like about the image below is that you can see the nest cup area that Big Red and Arthur have been working on. In Milda’s nest sprigs of pine with their cones line the area of the egg cup. It is so fascinating watching the couples prepare for the upcoming breeding season. It is so intriguing. I would love to ‘speak hawk’ and sit by Big Red and Arthur when they discuss what needs to be done!
At least five eagles poisoned, one dead, four in serious condition in Manchester Maryland. Was this lead poisoning? or was this something else more sinister to impact all of the birds at the same time? There is an investigation underway.
There is good news coming out of Australia about WBSE 27. You might remember that twice, after fledging, 27 was taken into care. 27 was not taught by the parents to take care of itself. Once 27 fledged, it was taunted and chased by the Pied Currawong. Both times 27 was extremely dehydrated. The last time the Currawong had gathered and had pecked 27s head. When 27 was taken into care the last time, I hoped that rehabilitation would include flight training as well as training for getting prey. This takes longer than a two week stay in a clinic. Some wildlife rehabbers keep birds for 2 years to make certain they are capable of caring for themselves with confidence. It looks like 27 is getting that great training. The news is excellent!
Isn’t she lovely? And – yes – 27 is a she!
I wish that all of the sea eagles that fledge from the WBSE nest in the Sydney Olympic Park would not be harangued by the Pied Currawong. They chase them out of the forest. They never learn to fly or to catch prey. How many of them survive, if any, unless they wind up in care?
The camera is now working again at Port Lincoln. Ervie was on the nest and, at various times, in the shed with Dad. Sometimes he was in the shed alone. I cannot tell you if he had a fish but there was definitely a lot of fish calling.
Checking in on Jack and Diane at the Achieva Credit Union Osprey nest and Jack is busy delivering fish and helping incubate the eggs.
If you are into garden animals and song birds, with a few surprises, you might want to check out Wildlife Kate. She has several wildlife cams and is featured on Springwatch in the UK. Have a look. You might find something really interesting like Yew Pond, or the Kestrel Box, or the Woodland Pond.
This is Woodland Pond. The cameras are live with no rewind. Enjoy.
I haven’t posted anything about the eaglet at Berry College for a few days. Thermal down is coming in nicely. Pa Berry did a great job feeding the little one this morning. B15 is still walking around on its tarsus (not yet with its feet) and doing a lot of preening. B15 is doing great. Missy and Pa Berry are doing a great job raising this baby.
B15 is a sweet little eaglet. You can see how its plumage is beginning to change.
I will leave you with a gorgeous image of Jackie incubating her eggs at Big Bear Bald Eagle nest in California. Fingers crossed for a great season for her and Shadow!
Thank you so much for joining me today. Take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Friends of Big Bear, Achieva Credit Union, Wildlife Kate, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Berry College, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, KNF, Latvian Fund for Nature, and Sea Eagle Cam FB Page.
The Port Lincoln Osprey cam is working!!!!!!!! There sitting close together having one of their silent conversations were Ervie and Dad. I noticed something different about Ervie. He has a nice crop and he displays the appearance of an Osprey who has been in the water fishing. Oh, Ervie, it is so nice to see you! It is so very nice to see you.
Liberty has laid the first egg of the season. It happened just a short while ago on 9 February at 15:19. She had a 5 minute labour. Congratulations Liberty and Guardian!
Here is a video of that exciting event!
Quick news report from the other nests:
The new female at the NCTC Bald Eagle nest with Smitty has some flight feathers missing. The missing feather/s were noticed today when she flew in to get a fish from Smitty. It answered a puzzle. One of the searchers for Bella found the feathers but noticed from images that they did not come from Bella. Mystery solved!
Lady and Dad have visited their nest in the Sydney Olympic Forest for two straight days. Oh, ask me if I am glad that Daisy isn’t trying to incubate eggs in that nest! This year the Sea Eagles stayed away longer than normal. It could be because they were harassed so much by the Currawongs on their last visit.
It is not breeding season. We will not be looking for eggs until June – two of them traditionally known as the heir and the spare.
Lady and Dad are alerting. Lady in front and Dad in the rear. They are letting the forest know they are home from Goat Island!
Staying in the Southern Hemisphere, the Royal Cam chick nicknamed Quarry Track or QT til it gets its official name, is growing and growing and growing. Parents OGK and YRK have literally been coming and going almost every 24 hours. The little one is working its wings and getting strong.
Ranger Sharyn keeps an updated log of the weights of all the chicks including the Royal Cam ones. The NZ DOC does DNA testing to see if the chick is male or female but sometimes, around 80 days, this can be done by comparing the weight of males and females. Here is the chart for QT so far:
Mum, YRK, is on the nest today.
Adorable.
When the Osprey nests stress me out too much, this is where I come for comfort. NZ DOC takes excellent care of its wildlife. Never a worry if there is not enough food for chicks or parents –supplemental squid feedings are always on hand. Here is your link to this at Taiaroa Head, New Zealand (on the South Island near Dunedin).
Thank you for joining me. I know that we all love Ervie and are so happy to see that he is fine – and there are many Redding and WBSE fans here, too. Stay safe all of you. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Cornell Bird Lab and the NZ DOC and Sea Eagles @Birdlife Australia Discovery Centre Sydney Olympic Park.
There are a number of Bald Eagle nests on streaming cams in Florida: Captiva, NEFlorida, SWFlorida, the WRDC, and Osceola to name five. Three of the nests have eaglets who are getting their blood feathers and beginning to look like gorgeous dark espresso juveniles. One nest did not have viable eggs on its first clutch and NE Florida has eaglets who are, on average 14 days old.
Gabby and Samson really had a weekend of bad weather. Rain and high winds rocked the nest but it did not rock this great eagle couple. Samson piled the fish on the nest so the entire family could eat regardless of the weather and Gabby did an amazing job of keeping NE26 and 27 dry and fed. This is an incredible team!
NE 26 is 15 days old and NE 27 is 13 days old today.
The eaglets at NEFlorida are in the process of losing their natal down and getting the thermal down. At that time they will be able to more regulate their own temperature.
At the WRDC nest of Ron and Rita, the eaglets are getting their blood feathers or juvenile feathers. I say the word ‘blood’ feather because the middle area of the feather – often called the quill – is full of blood. If it should break, the eagle could bleed to death. Just this morning Rita stepped on R2’s wing and there was concern.
R1 is 37 days old and R2 is 36 days old today.
That is R2 nearest the adult. Note the lovely thermal down and the dark feathers. They are growing in through the follicles where the natal down was (or so I am told). What is interesting to me in terms of eaglet behaviour is that R2 is beginning to walk. He is not fully steady but he will move from one side of the nest to the other on his feet.
There he made it. You can see that R1 has more juvenile feathers than R2. It is a good way to distinguish them.
Here is some information on the stages of development.
The eaglet at the Osceola Bald Eagle Nest is ahead of the eaglets at the WRDC in terms of its plumage development. There are three Bald Eagle nests with only one hatchling so far: Osceola, Kistachie National Forest, and Berry College. The single at Osceola is actively looking over the edge of the nest to the world beyond. An adult is providing security on a branch to the left.
It might look like E19 and E20 are alone on the nest but just like the eaglet at Osceola, they aren’t. Harriet or M15 or both will be up on the higher branches keep guard over their nest and their territory.
The plumage development on the SWFlorida Eaglets is between that of Osceola and WRDC it appears with Osceola being the most developed.
The Captiva Bald Eagle nest on Santibel Island of Connie and Clive did not have any hatchlings from the first clutch of eggs. It is unclear whether Connie and Clive will try for a second clutch. They each worked burying the egg yesterday and placing palm leaves over it. Surely a means of closure and new beginnings.
Other Bird World News:
Richmond continues to come to the Whirley Crane and spend time waiting for Rosie’s arrival. Today he stayed for over half an hour. Normally Rosie arrives right around Valentine’s Day. To get you in the mood for baby Ospreys, here is a compilation from last year and the triples: Sage, Poppy, and Lupin. It is nice to remember that Ervie was once this small! Oh, they grow and leave us way too fast.
Ervie is on the nest crying for Dad to deliver him a fish at the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge. The last fish delivery was yesterday at 15:07 so Ervie is very hungry this morning.
And breeding season has started at The Campanile Peregrine Falcon nest of Annie and Grinnell!!!!!!!!! Oh, how exciting!
I went to one of our local nature centres for my walk and to check on the little woodpecker that had a beak issue today. The temperature was only -7 C but the breeze off the lake made it feel much more colder.
The food in the feeders was almost gone. The Nuthatch was trying to get thee last of the suet.
There were a pair of Black-capped Chickadees feeding on Black Oil Seed.
The little woodpecker was not at the feeders when we departed the centre or returned.
It is hard to describe to anyone how much snow we have had. Here in the park it is almost at the top of the picnic tables.
We walked across the frozen lake and back. It was so quiet. The snow is dry and it crunched under our feet.
It was a lovely day despite the chill to be outside. I felt blessed.
If you are interested in what is happening on the high seas in terms of fishing, I will provide you with a link to the Sea Shepherd site. Paul Watson is a Canadian and he is intent on bringing to justice those who fish the seas illegally. Sea Shepherd also works with countries helping with illegal fishing in their waters. In September I had a friend taking photographs on the Faroe Islands when the largest pod of Dolphins was forced on shore. That report with images and why it was considered an illegal hunt is on the Sea Shepherd site under News. The fishing impacts the sea birds like the Albatross. If huge illegal trawlers continue to harvest 24/7 seven days a week, the fish stocks in the ocean will be depleted. That along with warming waters is a huge threat to the Albatross and Petrels.
Once you go on the site, to find the latest news you have to click on Media and then news.
Thank you so much for joining me today. There is so much happening with the Bald Eagles that my mind has to stop and focus on a few at a time. Take care everyone. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screencaptures: NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF, WRDC, Osceola Bald Eagles, SWFlorida and D Pritchett, Port Lincoln Osprey Project.
There were two nests that I wanted to check on before the end of Sunday. The first was the NEFlorida nest of Samson and Gabby and the second was our dear Ervie at the Port Lincoln Osprey barge.
The winds are still blowing at around 21 km/h and it is 9 degrees C – cold for Jacksonville, Florida – and the NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest of Samson and Gabby. For now, the rain has stopped although the weather forecast is calling for some more light rain before midnight.
Gabby has taken every opportunity to feed NE 26 and 27. Here are some images from three of those feedings. In each, both chicks had crops and were well fed. There is no cause to worry. Even with this storm, Gabby has all of this under control. While she is taking care of the babies, Samson has kept the pantry full and he is being diligent in his security duties. With all of the intruders at so many nests, Samson knows how important this is.
In the image below you can see that both have nice crops. Gabby does a real good job with these two. Any rivalry has been at the minimum even with the storms this nest has had. Great parents!
You can see the thermal down coming in below that soft natal down. There are very clear – it is all good.
Both will have nice crops after the feeding.
Oh, those are the sweetest little babies. I did worry about sibling rivalry between the two but it was so minimal. Gabby has good control and the chicks seem to be aware that both get fed and there is lots of food. Fingers crossed!
If you watch the Decorah North nest in Iowa, the first egg was laid last year on the 16th of February. Everyone is starting to watch and hope in Iowa!
Hope and Chandler at Port Tobacco Eagles have their first nest. It arrived at 16:11 today. Both parents were on the nest at the time.
This nest is in Port Tobacco, Maryland. The couple fledged two chicks in 2019 and two again in 2020. Two eggs laid last year on Feb 7 and 10th. No fledges. I will be checking closer at the history of this nest for you shortly.
Here is the link to the camera. There is no IR. There is a monitored chat during the day.
It has been a lonely day for our Ervie on the Port Lincoln Osprey barge. It is now mid-afternoon. This morning Ervie flew off the nest at 10:36:37.
Ervie is an excellent flyer. He will be away from the nest for 46 minutes. He returns at 11:22:05 soaking wet – I meant wet to the core. It was obvious to everyone watching that Ervie had been fishing. He had no crop but, never mind. He tried fishing again! The toadfish is still on the nest – a reminder of a successful attempt of a horrid fish that not even a pigeon wants to eat!
Here he is soaking wet.
Ervie has flown off the nest and returned a couple of times. Once I believe he flew down to the cave.
At 15:07:07 Dad delivers a fish to Ervie. Oh, thank you, Dad!
Ervie is so loud. They could probably hear him on the other side of the bay.
Ervie was absolutely raveous.
He has been moving backwards on the nest. I really hope he does not lose this fish before he finishes eating it.
This fish delivery brought much relief to streaming cam watchers! Dad is still there for Ervie. Ervie is so hungry he is not fish calling in the middle of the bites!!!!!! His silence and just flat out eating says a lot about Ervie’s level of hunger. Perhaps he will have some energy to maybe go and try fishing again today???
I couldn’t call it a night without checking on Ervie and the NEFlorida nest. Relief all the way around. If you are a Redding Eagle watcher, there appears to have been two incidents of intruders at that nest and a chase.
Intruders into well established nests seems to have been the them this year as breeding season progresses in various areas around the US. Hopefully this will stop at the Redding Nest because everyone is on egg watch and it is the time between now and the 12th of February that Liberty likes to lay her eggs.
That is it for Sunday the 6th of February. Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: NEFlorida Bald Eagle Nest and the AEF and Port Lincoln Osprey Project.
I have to admit that I have been feeling rather sad for Ervie. He was so excited – and proud -to bring his catch to the nest. Then for it to turn out to be a toadfish, something that he cannot eat (or did not eat – he did eat the puffer fish!), had to be a real disappointment.
That fish remains on the nest and every once in awhile Ervie takes a look at it. You can see the fish to the right of Ervie. It also sticks to Ervie’s feet when he jumps around the nest trying to get a delivery from dad. I wonder why he doesn’t just shove it into the side of the nest?
Yesterday Dad brought in two fish meals for Ervie. Those times were 12:55:43 and 17:56:51.
Here is Dad delivering the first lunch for his lad.
Ervie is really lucky that Dad continues to feed him! Ervie reminds me of Izzi, the cutest peregrine falcon, at the scrape in Orange. Izzi did eventually leave the area but not until it was nearly time for his mother, Diamond, to lay her eggs for 2021. Some thought Izzi would have to stay and help take care for his siblings! It has happened in the UK.
It appears as long as there is a chick crying in the nest, no matter how big and old, Dad will continue to provide some food.
Ervie is really mantling his precious fish. He gives Dad a bit of a nudge to get him off the nest!
Dad is amazing. Ervie is really going to enjoy that fish.
Ervie slept in the nest last evening. I wish the camera could give us a view of the nest and Dad’s shed area. Is Dad not there? Is that why Ervie is sleeping on the nest? I have more questions than I will ever get answers.
In other Bird World News: Thunder has now laid her third egg at the West End Bald Eagle on Catalina nest with Akecheta. Bald Eagles Connie and Clive, realizing that their egg was not fertile, each helped bury it in the nest at Captiva. Today they are bringing in new soft materials covering the egg and the nest area. Does this mean they are going to attempt a second season?
There is a storm raging at the NEFlorida nest of Gabby and Samson. Gabby and the nest are almost at the point of being so deluged that she might not be able to keep the chicks dry. The other issue is that the temperature at the nest is 9 degrees C (49 F) and there is a wind advisory. Gusts up to 40 mph will ravage the area until Monday afternoon. The rain should stop by early evening. My heart goes out to Gabby.
Pa Berry has the nest stocked and while it is a little breezy, all seems well at the nest with Missy and little B15 at Mt Berry, Georgia.
Kincaid is growing and doing well. Louis doesn’t have quite the pile of fish he had on the nest. Thinking about those 10 fish and Coots reminds me. There was a question the other day and I am certain we have all thought about this. How well can Bald Eagles smell? That nest of Anna and Louis’s in the Kisatchie National Forest had to just reek.
Eagles have high temporal resolution – keen eyesight – and they rely more on their vision than smell. Turkey Vultures and others who rely on Carrion as a food source do have a developed sense of smell that helps them find their food. Eagles have functional olfactory glands meaning that they can smell but the numbers of those glands is relatively small in comparison to mammals. I will post a link to an article on Olfaction in Raptors at the end of this blog if you want to access it.
Kincaid is sitting up nice and straight. He is not yet walking around the nest but he sure manages to move relatively quickly, regardless. Anna keeps him full to the brim, normally!
There is an interesting story coming out of Alexandria, West Virginia Audubon Society about an Osprey that caught a crow. Have a read:
It is -18 with a bright sky on the Canadian Prairies. I am hoping to go out and check on some birds this afternoon for awhile. February is always the month for ‘cabin fever’ and this year is no exception! I do have some images of our dear Dyson yesterday in the garden. He is sure enjoying that hard suet cylinder!
He managed to share it with the European Starlings yesterday. Sometimes I see him chasing them about the Lilac Bushes hoping that he will get them to move so he can have some seed.
For some reason Dyson likes to eat this hard seed cylinder or sit in the open square feeder and eat just Black Oil Seed. I cannot get him interested in anything else.
Dyson becomes a bit like an acrobat hanging on to that small branch of the tree and the wires of the suet holder.
He sure does bring me a lot of joy!
Little Red was out yesterday, too. When the temperatures dropped from -32 to -15, the squirrels became much more active. It was nice to see them all! Reassuring.
Thank you so much for joining me. I hope that you are all well. Stay safe! See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screencaptures: Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Berry College Bald Eagles, KNF Bald Eagles, and NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF.
Before I begin, I want to thank ‘A-M’ for alerting me that Ervie had caught a fish and brought it to the nest yesterday. I was not watching at the time and in my excitement to tell you, I forgot to thank her. My sincerest apologies. I always appreciate all of the news you send me, especially when I can only be in one place at a time! Thank you ‘A-M’.
Yes, Ervie caught a fish and brought it to the nest yesterday. It was magnificent and happened at 13:37:14. Ervie had to be so excited.
Ervie was so proud of his fish and rightly so. Indeed, he was so happy that he wasn’t paying full attention. And the fish was still alive. Yes…if you are thinking fluttering fish on nest, you have it. Ervie was a bit shocked when the fish started moving away and fell into a hole at the top right of the nest!
There is Ervie looking down that hole in amazement. It ate his fish!
Everyone had faith that Ervie, the chick who could dig out old fish tails from the nest, would be able to retrieve his fish ——- and he did!
Well done, Ervie. Today you gained some confidence and you learned a lesson – pin your fish down hard while you eat it!
The very curious thing is that Ervie, who was obviously hungry, did not gobble up his fish. He also walked around the nest like something distasteful was stuck to his foot. One of the knowledgable chatters suggested that it was a ‘toadfish’ and that maybe he didn’t like the taste of it.
So what is a toadfish? The Common Toadfish grows to approximately 15 cm or 6 inches in length. The fish is actually covered with some prickles which could account for why Ervie didn’t like it stuck to the pads on his feet. They are found along the coasts in shallow water and sometimes bury themselves in sand with only their eyes showing. The fish is toxic to humans who, if they consume the fish can die of respiratory failure. It carries the same neurotoxins in its tissue as the Blue-ringed Octopus or the Pufferfish. Those toxins are Tetrodotoxin.
I asked a biologist if this could harm the transfer of information from Ervie’s nerves to his muscles and they were unclear as to the impact. Perhaps the toxins do not harm the sea hawks like they do humans. Still, as my grandmother would say, it is a good thing Ervie did not like the taste of the fish and didn’t finish it just in case. Over time, Ervie will discover the fish that are good to eat and those that aren’t.
Dad watched his son closely. At 17:52, he brought Ervie a nice fish to eat. Thanks, Dad!
Dad has a nice crop. It looks like he made sure that the fish was dead by eating its head before delivering to our sweet boy.
Ervie has spent the night in Dad’s shed hanging on to Dad’s favourite blue rope sleeping.
Other Bird World News: The Ravens came to attack the nest of Jackie and Shadow. Shadow was not home. Jackie defended the nest of two eggs valiantly. This will not be thee last time they come. They know there are eggs in there and Jackie and Shadow are going to have to be vigilant! It is believed that E20 at the SWFlorida Bald Eagle nest of Harriet and M15 has officially started self-feeding. Jean-Marie Dupart has counted 220 Ospreys at the Langue de Barbarie Park in Senegal. This is a record! Ferris Akel will be hosting his birding tour of the area around Ithaca today starting around 1pm Eastern time. Go to YouTube and Search for Ferris Akel Tour Live. For those fans of E19 and E20, they are some of the feature wildlife that are in CROW’s 2022 calendar. The calendars are now 50% off. Here is the link to order: https://bit.ly/2022CROWCalendar There is no news on Bella at the NCTC nest. She has not returned to the nest since the last time she was seen injured on 1 February. The search party was not able to find her. The new female and Smitty have been exchanging fish on the nest. We are on egg watch for the Redding Eagles. Lots and lots happening. The poor weather seems to have moved out of the nest areas!
This is Pittsburgh-Hayes a few minutes ago. We are on egg watch there, too.
The sun is shining down and the snow is melting in Ithaca for Big Red and Arthur.
Not-so-little Kincaid has a big crop this morning at the Kisatchie National Forest Bald Eagle nest in Louisiana. The thermal down is coming in nicely and just look at those big feet! Oh, you are growing way too fast Kincaid.
It is a cloudy day on the Canadian Prairies. No snow warnings and it is now a balmy -15 C. Someone asked me how we stay warm. For the most part, the houses in Canada are well insulated with double or triple pane windows. Central Air is pretty standard. We pay very high heating bills (very high) in the winter even if our homes are insulated well and have great windows if the extreme cold weather lingers for several weeks. Smart persons really bundle up before going out in -35 degree weather. Coats, boots, ski pants all rated to -35 or -45 help tremendously along with gloves and toques (knit hats). I prefer the dry snow over the wet – that makes you cold to the bone!
Thank you so much for joining me today. Stay safe. I look forward to seeing you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Pix Cameras, Cornell Bird Labs, and the KNF Bald Eagle nest.
It is impossible for me to hide those birds that melt my heart. The third hatch of Mum and Dad at the Port Lincoln Osprey barge this year was one of those birds. Measured to be a male, given a sat-pak to track his adventures, and a real name – Ervie – he has amused us from the moment he hatched. Whether it was making certain that he got to the ‘sweet spot’ so Mum could feed him, standing up to Bazza, or having those dust ups with his older brothers, Ervie has been nothing short of a joy to watch.
For the past few days, Ervie has been down in the cave with Dad. One day Dad brought Ervie 3 fish meals but yesterday, he brought Ervie only one. Observers believe that Ervie had, at one time, been catching fish successfully off camera. While we so longed for Ervie to dive off the barge and come up with a fish like Falky, that has not happened. Ervie did bring in a puffer fish to the nest that he had obviously caught. There were loud cheers from Canada to Japan when that happened.
Today, Ervie was on the nest and Dad was sitting on the twigs in the cave. Ervie flew off the nest. When he flew in, he had caught a fish – a very nice fish – and Ervie was wet.
Tears of joy flowed and hands clapped. Our boy can fish!
You can see Dad down in his cave. Ervie has flown off the nest. I wanted to make certain that Dad did not hand the fish off to Ervie somewhere else. No, he is sitting tight. Did he have a chat with his boy?
Here comes Ervie with a nice fish in his talon. Dad looks up and sees his lad. He must have been thinking, ‘Well done’.
Ervie lands nicely and doesn’t lose the fish over the rim of the nest.
Fantastic, Ervie! You look so proud and confident.
You can tell that Ervie is wet – yes, Ervie, you did catch this fish all by yourself. Congratulations!
Ervie is really enjoying that fish. It must be all the more delicious because he caught it himself.
I wonder if we will see him fishing more and more and bringing his catch to the nest on the barge?
I am smiling! Wonder if Dad thinks Ervie should share with him?
Three other items in Bird World. A search party gathered to look for Bella, the female, at the NCTC. She had an altercation with another female several days ago. Bella returned briefly to the nest but she was bloodied and there was much concern over her left eye. Bella has not been seen since. There is no news on finding Bella, sadly. Perhaps they will continue looking tomorrow. The Dulles-Greenway Bald Eagle couple have their second egg. It was laid today. And, sadly, Scarlett, the female adult Osprey on The Landings nest has returned to find her nest taken over by GHOWs. I wonder if her and Rhett will find a place for their eggs so they can raise little ones this season? They had two of the most gorgeous fledglings last year!
Thank you so much for joining me. I know that so many of you love Ervie just like I do and his successful fishing trip just reassures us that he can take care of himself – when he wants to! What a darling. Take care everyone. See you soon.
Thank you to Port Lincoln Osprey Project for their streaming cam where I took my screen shots.
