Tag Archives: Florida Ospreys

Thursday in Bird World

12 May 2022

What a great day it has been- OK. I haven’t gotten to checking all the nests. There are way too many and I did get caught wondering what in the world is going on at the Hellgate Canyon Osprey nest of Iris. Then I had to check and see how the three chicks at the Manton Bay nest are doing. Was the one slapped by the fish still OK? The promised rain has not materialized as yet but the sunny sky is gradually turning grey again. It was a beautiful day to be outside. The grass is green and the leaves are beginning to pop out of the bud state. I can, of course, take the laptop outside but, you see, the garden birds start telling me that I am interrupting and in their space. You can hear them vocalizing a half block away. So trying to keep the neighbour’s friendly, I went for a walk and had a very sad chat with someone I have know for years from the Ukraine. She is passionate and optimistic. A lovely woman.

In the image below, Iris greets a male visitor.

They are actually a cute couple.

Iris is the oldest osprey in the world. Her nest is at Hellgate Canyon by the Clark Fork River in Missoula, Montana. Iris had a wonderful mate named Stanley. Then Stanley died. Then Louis showed up. Now Iris is a cracker. She can out fish any of the male birds, she is beautiful, and she has an attitude. How she accepted Louis is beyond me. They had one chick survive and then Louis bonded with Star and they have their nest at the baseball park. Louis mates with Iris every year, she lays the eggs, and they get eaten by the Crows because she gets hungry. Louis has shocked everyone this year by bringing some fish to Iris. Did we have hope he would change his ways? Seriously, it takes a Blue 33 (11) or a Monty to handle two nests with two females and at least four or six chicks. Sorry, Louis, but I just don’t think you are up to it. Still, Louis has never let Iris have another mate because it is a ‘territory’ thing. So Iris does what Iris does, the eggs get eaten and she is free to have a leisurely summer. It is the same this year. But,…something seems to be happening. There is a male around. Iris let him land on the nest. Iris asked him to bring her fish. Strikingly Louis did not come and try to chase the male visitor away. In fact, I wonder if Louis would win that fight if it happened. The Montana Osprey Project video taped it. I had some stills but the video is better! BTW. The male’s name is not ‘Elvis’. If he were to stay around, Dr Erick Greene would give him a name.

Everything is just fantastic at the Manton Bay nest of Blue 33 and Maya. Blue has brought in two huge fish since the perch yesterday that was thrashing about. One of those monster fish today was another perch. The three nestlings have eaten well. Maya feeds them, on average, every 2 hours from the first light of the day til sometimes after dark. They are growing strong and there is no evidence now after about 36 or so hours that the wee one thumped by the fish has any lasting issues. At least not visible to the eye. All three are right up there, eyes open and beaks wide when it is dinner time.

Adorable. Everyone eats. All get full to the brim and they will sleep well. Enjoy the nestling cuteness. They change and grow so fast. I love their little wings and the soft down, the stripe through their eyes and down their back. Cute pies.

Every evening Blue 33 comes to check on the pantry to see what is needed for the morning and to say goodnight to Maya. Sometimes during the incubation period, he will sleep on the nest with her but not normally once the chicks hatch.

Every day I do check on Big Red and Arthur and it is astonishing how well those four little Red-tail Hawks are doing. They are now regularly all over the nest. Soon they will be jumping and flapping all over that metal grid ledge. They have done so well.

There is great raptor DNA running through the nests! Just look at the trio that Akecheta and Thunder parented. All I am going to do is say ‘Wow’.

Star (left) and Sentry (right) have dried off from all the rain that was pounding the Redding Bald Eagle nest of Liberty and Guardian yesterday. Gosh, we blinked. Do you remember waiting for them to hatch? and now look!

Sticking with California for a minute or ten, the trio of Osplets on the Venice Golf and Country Club platform have all done well despite early worries about the third hatch.

The Captiva Osprey nest had a 66% success rate this year. That is really good. Middle Little is still letting Andy deliver fish on the platform on the grounds of Lori Covert’s property. Middle Little is such a handsome bird.

So what about Little MiniO? Lori has been out kayaking and at the same time, keeping an eye on the birds. She has spotted the family together many times, the youngsters with parents Andy and Lena flying around the property and over to the island. The Windows for Wildlife chat has posted a link to an image that Lori took. Lori believes this is Little MiniO on her favourite tree. Stunning bird!

I don’t know if anyone reading this is interested in having their own Osprey and Bald eagle nests but Lori’s property at Captiva was for sale. It might have sold, I don’t know. But how grand. Sit and have dinner and watch the Ospreys!

Middle has a bit of a crop. I did not rewind to the beginning of the feeding but the positioning was good at 16:20, one chick on one side and one on the other, with Mum feeding Big a couple of bites to Middle’s one. I will take it! Middle is looking good. It is 26 degrees C, winds have dropped to 13 kph, and the barometric pressure is falling.

Nap time!

Mum has been spending more time on the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge as of late. It is wonderful to see her. It is hard to imagine but her and Dad will begin working on getting the nest back in order after their triplets Bazza, Falky, and Ervie had all those dust ups on it last season!

A nest known for siblicide fledged three. Was it just because they were all male? Let’s wait and see what this year brings. Mum needs to enjoy that fish. Soon she will be busy feeding a nest of little ones. For those of you following Ervie he is still hanging around Port Lincoln. Calypso appears to be with a male and we hope that she has her own nest this year. Mum and Dad can be grandparents!

I sometimes mention fundraising that groups are doing. The Port Lincoln Osprey Project takes care of the costs of the streaming cam, the barge, etc that many enjoy. They also raise awareness about the needs of the Ospreys in South Australia and lobby to get the hydro poles change, etc. They are now wanting to build more platforms for the growing population of Eastern Ospreys in South Australia. If you feel so inclined, you can join as a member or make a donation or do both or neither! [Please note: I post the information to support the groups. I do not make a penny on any memberships or donations.]

Here is the information that was posted on the Port Lincoln Osprey FB page today:

I want to close with something pretty special. It is a mid-air prey transfer between Alden and Annie. Quite amazing! These two are a great couple.

Thank you so much for joining me today. The one chick is still alive at Dahlgren Osprey Platform, all three are crackers at Manton Bay, the three at Venice are doing great, Middle had a crop – it couldn’t get much better than that. Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Port Lincoln Osprey, Lori Covert, UFlorida-Gainesville Ospreys, Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife, VGCCO, Friends of Redding Eagles, Explore.org, Cornell Bird Lab RTH, Cal Falcons, LRWT Manton Bay, and Montana Osprey Project.

The Manton Bay Miracle!

11 May 2022

I am speechless in the best possible way.

Fingers crossed. Rutland made a short video of the feeding. Magnificent.

I am not sure that Maya is believing what she is seeing. I wonder if Blue 33 knows?

Gosh. Middle was getting some nice bites of fish at 13:28 at the UFlorida-Gainesville nest. Just grand. Big was getting more but fish is good. Any fish is good.

Earlier, there had been a fish. Around 11:28. The second fish, I believe, for the day. Big had spread her wings. They are big. She is a big girl! When Middle moved to even appear as if he was approaching the fish, she stood up, took a couple of steps towards him and he went into submission. Not good.

But then…Middle watches and listens making his way to the other side of Mum where he got some bites of that fish! And that is a good thing. Middle will survive as long as there is enough fish.

It took six minutes from the time of the intimidation but middle is eating. Lovely.

It is 28 degrees C but the humidity has dropped to 33% in Gainesville and the Barometric Pressure is dropping which should be good for fishing but the winds are at 16 kph. Let’s hope Dad is out taking advantage of any good fishing conditions in the heat.

Rosie and Richmond are having a beautiful day. Boats are going under the bridge and we will be on pip watch tomorrow.

It is a good day. It just can’t get better than what happened at Manton Bay. Let us continue to hope that wee one gets stronger and stronger. It was still exposed to the cold and wet for some six hours. Incredible.

Thank you for joining me. That is it for today. Middle has eaten and we continue to hope for the two wee ones at Manton. Take care.

Maya is exhausted.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: LRWT, SF Ospreys, and UFlorida-Gainesville Ospreys.

Intruders, Confusion, Chaos, and fish at the UFlorida-Gainesvlle Osprey Nest!

3 May 2022

The trouble with intruders into established nesting territories is that they can cause a lot of grief and, as we have seen, they can cause part of a bonded nesting couple to die. We saw this with Grinnell at UCalifornia-Berkeley Falcons. We saw it at the Bald Eagle nest of Bella and Smitty when Bella was injured and feared dead when a female intruder attacked her. Bella returned. A week ago Harry disappeared at the Minnesota DNR Bald Eagle Nest. There have been intruders since last year on and off the Achieva Osprey nest. The list goes on and on. The success of restoring the Eagles, the Ospreys, and the hawks and falcons after DDT (DDE) destroyed their populations (along with egg collecting, feathers for hats, shootings, habitat destruction) has resulted in a growing population where there are challenges for the best territories and mates. At the same time, what you have witnessed here and at other nests is troublesome.

Intruders without nests and mates are now wrecking havoc at the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest. It is possible that this has been the issue for most of the nesting season when the male has not been able to bring adequate prey to the nest because of territorial surveillance and the removal of intruders. One chick lost and not enough food for three coming to the nest – Mum and two chicks.

The Mum left the nest at 15:25 on 2 May not returning until today. That same female intruder landed on the nest with the chicks this morning who, in their hunger, kept crying for her to feed them. She didn’t and she nipped at the Middle chick who was trying to get near to get a few bites. The chicks were confused. Dad flew in with a fish at 10:31, left, returned with a partial fish at 10:47, and was in a general state of anxiousness. Still the chicks cried for food.

In the image below Mum is on the nest. She returned with a full crop at 12:42. See the birds below the nest? That is Dad chasing away the female intruder.

Mum was attacked and now Dad is chasing off the intruder – this is a very good explanation for what has been happening on this nest. It is interesting to me, at least, that the causes of siblicide do not mention ‘intruders’.

I want to thank ‘A’ and ‘R’ who watched this nest while I was away.

‘A’ makes note of the intruder attacking the female at 12:57. ‘A’ also observed a fish, not a large one, being delivered at 14:43 where both of the chicks were fed.

From ‘R’s observations there appear to be issues with the intruder during this feeding. ‘R’ notes that “at 1501:10 you see two shadows very close together and Mum appears very nervous and stops feeding chicks and starts pulling the fish around the nest.   At 1508:35 she becomes agitated and appears ready to fly off the nest but settles down and starts feeding the chicks again.” Clearly the intruder is making the nesting birds nervous causing them to react and not focus on the chicks. ‘R’ notes that following a couple of aggressive behaviours, Middle manages to get the remainder of the fish. Well done, Middle! Most of the time it is to Big’s advantage.  Clearly another bird flying around as you can see the shadow pass the nest on multiple occasions.

Once Dad has dispensed with the female intruder, he returned with a large headless fish at 16:28. This is excellent and this is the way to get a nest back on track. Let us hope that the intruder has decided to go elsewhere.

There was a bit of a tussle between the two chicks once the fish had landed. I noted that each stood up to the other. Middle is hungry enough he might go on the attack.

I was surprised when Middle stood up big and bold that the two birds are not that much different in size. Clearly Big has the advantage of being energized by more food and is stronger.

Big exerts its dominance but this does not stop Middle from exerting its presence to get fed.

‘R’ noted that Mum moved the fish to the opposite side of the nest whiich was more advantageous to Middle. Once Mum got settled things began to get sorted with the feeding. In the end I would say that both chicks ate well.

It is 16:56 and both of the chicks are being fed in almost equal portions and there is still fish remaining. We can all sleep sound knowing that Middle had a really good feed late today!

Mum is still feeding at 17:01. How grand.

Each was offered a piece of fish tail at the end. Both osplets have crops. Nice.

I cannot think of a nicer way to end this blog. Despite all of the commotion and potential danger to this nest, in the end, Dad came through with a big enough fish for both of them to eat well. Sometimes we have to take the nests a day or an hour at a time. Today was a good day for Middle – and for Big.

Thank you so much, ‘A’ and ‘R’. You have each helped to fill in the gaps while I was away and to add substance to the angst that this intruder has caused. Much appreciated.

Thank you so much for joining me. Take care everyone.

Thank you to the UFlorida-Gainesvlle Osprey streaming cam where I took my screen captures.

Sunday News in Bird World

1 May 2022

Isn’t she gorgeous? Anyone who has followed this nest will know that this is Iris, the grand dame of Ospreys in the US.

Everyone loves Iris. Many are baffled about her relationship with Louis since her long time mate, Stanley, died. Each of us has an opinion about that relationship with Louis and many long for Iris to have another mate and raise chicks. I have always felt that she earned the right to a summer and a winter holiday.

Dr Erick Greene is one of the lead researchers at the Montana Osprey Project in Missoula, Montana. He has studied the Clarke-Fork River, the heat that is killing the trout, and the decline in the Osprey population. He knows everything there is to know about Iris and more.

Today he posted this message about Iris to help us understand what is driving the situation with her and Louis. Please read it carefully. Dr Greene points out that Louis is not the culprit – humans changing the environment are the issue. Something to think about not only in regard to Iris but also to other Osprey nests in the Pacific NW that suffered from heat last year.

Thank you Dr Greene for taking the time to inform us!

I love this image of Iris taken shortly after she returned from her migration in 2022.

In other Bird World news, Nancy brought in a very large fish to the MN-DNR nest at 11:22 and her and E1 had a good feed! This is a relief.

We continue to hope that Harry is off healing and will return to the nest. How sad for Nancy if her wonderful young mate of two years has been severely injured or killed. Nancy seems to be getting a time to rest. Maybe the intruders are gone. I hope that both her and E1 survive. I know she can handle this if there are no interruptions.

The four Ls at the nest of Big Red and Arthur are exceptional. L4’s eyes are not yet focused and it wound up beaking one of the older siblings who caused it to beak another. It is funny to watch. They do not hurt one another and everything will settle down once the little one, a week younger, gets its eyes clear and can hold its head straight. Meanwhile, Arthur continues to fill the pantry.

It is really hot on the light stand at the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest. The two remaining chicks on the nest are doing great. No problems!

The Decorah North eaglets continue to do well amidst worries in the region of Avian Flu. They are looking really good! This is great news.

All of the eaglets at the West End nest of Thunder and Akecheta on the Channel Islands have been named. 23 D is a male and is named Sky. 24 D is a male and is Ahote meaning ‘restless one’. 25 D is the female and she is Kana’kini. Lovely.

I found this great article that shows you what Dr Sharpe has to undergo to get out to the eagles in Catalina and do the work for them that he does – such as two rescues and banding in a period of ten days recently.

https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20160602-a-man-who-saves-eagles-by-helicopter

I really hope you enjoy that article about Dr Sharpe. Want top see someone going well beyond for the eagles, Dr Sharpe is your person!

Thank you for joining me today. Take care all. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams or their FB pages where I took my screen captures: Explore.org and the Institute for Wildlife Studies, UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey Cam, Cornell Bird Lab RTH, MN-DNR, the Montana Ospreys FB, and the Montana Osprey Project.

Late Friday in Bird World

29 April 2022

In all the flurry of the goslings jumping at Decorah yesterday and the fourth egg hatching for Big Red and Arthur, there was one thing that I missed. Please send your positive wishes to Nancy and the two eaglets on the MN-DNR nest. Sadly, Harry has been missing since Tuesday evening, the 26th.

The two eaglets are old enough for Nancy to go out hunting. No doubt she will take care of them and her. Harry was such a fantastic mate. This is very, very sad news.

Everything is going great at the nest of Big Red and Arthur. Big Red is such a fantastic mother. She has them all lined up to eat and she knows to get L1 fed full so it goes to sleep and the three others can eat. They are all doing well and Arthur has the larder packed with prey.

They are adorable. Big Red brought the greenery in this morning. The needles and the bark have oils and vapors that discourage the growth of fungal spores. They also retard bacteria growth and repel insects. Big Red and Arthur tend to get their greenery from Hemlock, White Pine, and Cypress while hawks in other areas, such as the West, select Juniper and Douglas Fir.

The blood on the back of the wee one is from prey. It is not injured!

Precious. They hatched on the 21, 24, 25, and 28 of April.

Here is news from Winnipeg. Isn’t she gorgeous? This is Ella and Dennis Swayze – an excellent wildlife photographer – caught this image of her and posted it giving us an update on Ella’s scrape. We have four eggs! I will be posting the link to the streaming cam as soon as it is live.

Out of habit and concern, I continue to check the West End nest of Thunder and Akecheta and the Two Harbours nest of Chase and Cholyn to make sure all of the eaglets are present.

There is Chase with TH1 today. That bush blew in and will probably leave when gusts arrive. The baby is fine from its fall. Hungry and growing and losing the few dandelions that were on its head.

All three eaglets are at home with Thunder this afternoon. Hopefully they will all stay on top of that cliff nest until it is time to fledge.

I am not 100% certain but I believe it was Middle that got the fish. He saw the adult coming and immediately was ready to mantle the delivery! Good work. Big looked on from where she was perched on the nest rim.

The eaglet was quick – hungry! Notice the crop on the eaglet perched on the rim of the nest. You can see that crop better – and how big it is – in the second image below.

That was a great mantling job!!!!!!!

Middle is really going to enjoy that fish.

Why do I think it is Middle? Middle never stops chirping when it is eating. Everything looks fine at Dale Hollow.

There is still a bit more of a white terminal band on Middle – not really a band as in hawks and falcons – but enough of a white ruffle to still identify.

There are three eaglets at the Notre Dame St Patrick’s County Park nest in South Bend, Indiana. ND15 is the oldest. ND16 is one day younger than ND15. ND17 is 5 days younger than ND15. So there is a span of five days between the oldest and the youngest. So far they have had a squirrel and a turtle today.

Little Bob is sound asleep with a really nice crop!

Here is a link to their streaming cam:

Still having eaglet withdrawal, there is also the Decorah North nest of Mr North and Mrs DNF. The eaglets are approximately one month old and cute as buttons! Are buttons cute? Who started that saying?

Here is the link to the Decorah North camera:

It is really hot on the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest today. The two osplets had crops early on but I cannot rewind the camera to find the time of the feeding. It appears that they would very much like more fish brought in!

You can see the filled crop squish out at the side as the osplet presses against the twig.

Trying to stay cool.

They sure can make one nervous hanging over the edge of that nest like that!

Today, there are two nestlings at the Osprey nest of Jack and Harriet in King William, Virginia. Congratulations!

Something to put a smile on your face for a Friday. The smallest at Pittsburgh-Hays has discovered ‘the Quarterback Sneak’. Look at it grab those bites between Mum’s legs!

Lori Covert has been watching Andy and Lena and Middle (LittleO) and Little (MiniO). Andy brought a fish to the nest for Middle (Little O). Little or MiniO was seen right on Andy’s tail by Lori when he was diving. He made the dive about 10 ft or 2.5 metres from her kayak!!!!!!! What luck. He subsequently got a fish for Little or MiniO. Both kids fed. Everyone is OK at Captiva. Fantastic.

This is how Lori described it: “And MiniO was literally right on his tail feathers for the whole dive! Afterward they circled around for a couple of minutes then MiniO went back to the perch and Andy delivered the fish to LittleO.”

An article from The Smithsonian Magazine on H5N1 Avian Flu:

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/bald-eagles-are-dying-from-bird-flu-180979940/?fbclid=IwAR2rJmkWXD93lGmsKascaoISBIyGKP5dz0LU6DkCGbxjtKwefvQPqtAbIBY

Thank you so much for joining me this evening. Take care everyone. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams, FB pages or Twitter feeds where I took my screen captures: MN-DNR, Cornell RTH, MB Birding, Explore.org, DHEC, ND-LEEF, UF-G Ospreys, Dahlgren Ospreys, Pix Cams, and Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife.

Monday Morning in Bird World

27 April 2022

Good Morning Everyone. I hope that all of you are well and that the sun is shining bright where you are.

Middle or LittleO at the Captiva Osprey nest roosted on the rim of the nest box. He spotted Andy and started fish crying. You could have heard him all the way to Fort Myers! At 07:30:05 Andy delivered his middle child and oldest surviving of the 2022 season a really nice catfish for his efforts!

Here comes Andy! Good one, Dad. Middle (LittleO) is really hungry.

Andy gets his talon nipped again.

Catfish are really bony and a challenge to eat. I wonder if Lena will come and help?

No. Middle (LittleO) had to work on that bony fish all by himself. He flew off of the nest at 09:02.

The clean up gang came up to the nest to see what was left of that nice fish.

To my knowledge, there has been no sighting of Little (or MiniO) since she fledged.

There was an early morning fish delivery at the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest. Civility continues. The time was 08:13.

Both siblings have nice crops and there will be fish left for Mum.

Chase has two big fish on the Two Harbours nest for Cholyn and TH1 this morning. After all the activity with the eaglet falling out of the nest and being rescued yesterday, it is hoped that nothing eventful happens until banding day!

Big Red is not giving much away but that 4th egg still has a lively pip happening. Cornell says that part of the shell is crashing so that is a good sign.

These three have been having a banquet of critters.

Arthur – isn’t he a darling? – got a chance not only to deliver prey to the pantry but also to brood his chicks! Fantastic.

The goslings are hatching at the old Bald Eagle nest in Decorah, Iowa. Mother Goose is really protecting them. So cute! It looks like four so far. Two more to go. There will be six in total if all hatch.

Here is a video of the hatching:

Here is the link to the camera for Mother Goose! Don’t be fooled by the Bald Eagle – this is Decorah’s old unused nest leased to Mother and Father Goose. When will the goslings jump? When they are all hatched, are dry, and have developed their protective fuzz. Probably tomorrow morning.

DN15 and DN16 are having a lovely morning with their Mum, Mrs DNF (Decorah North Female) looking over them. Because of the recent Avian Flu deaths in the Midwest, I will continue to check in to make sure everything is alright on this nest. They are looking good this morning.

All three of Thunder and Akecheta’s eaglets are up on the nest this morning! It looks grey and dreary there.

Rosa and Martin’s Only Eaglet at the Dulles-Greenaway Nest has certainly grown. It is waiting and hoping that someone is going to bring breakfast!

I am very concerned about the MN-DNR and have written to find out the status of the two eaglets. I hope that they are both just very very sound sleepers and this is not another two eaglets taken by H5N1.

At 06:03 both were tucked up under Nancy.

At 08:09 a parent was on the nest checking on them.

One ate at 08:00.

I will report later if anything is confirmed at this nest. This would be such a loss.

I hate to leave on a what could be a sad note. The number of cases of Avian Flu in the Midwest are growing. If you would like to see the spread of this deadly virus, here is a link to the USDA data:

https://www.aphis.usda.gov/aphis/ourfocus/animalhealth/animal-disease-information/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-2022/2022-hpai-wild-birds

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

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: MN-DNR, Cornell Bird Lab RTH, Explore.Org, Institute of Wildlife Studies, Dulles-Greenaway Bald Eagles, UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey Nest, and Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife.

The Sunday Miracle at U-Florida Ospreys for Little Bit

24 April 2022

Earlier this morning I thought that the third hatch at Gainesville had died of starvation. It had only 5 bites of food in the last 86 hours. Two fish had come on the nest and in both instances it was kept from eating by the oldest sibling. By the time the third fish arrived around 14:00, the two older siblings ate. Big was full and still tried to stop Little Bit from eating at 14:25:13 and then something happened—————- Big and Middle went into a food coma on the right side of Mum.

Mum fed Little Bit starting at 14:27!!!!!! Little Bit ate until 14:37 – an entire ten minutes. It filled its crop and then seemed to drop it and eat some more. It was difficult at first – the flakes of fish stuck to its mouth but the more nourishment it got the more energetic Little Bit was.

That is the longest time that I have ever seen a third hatch go without food and survive. Tiny Tot was 72 hours at the Achieva Osprey nest last year.

This is wonderful news IF the fish keep coming. It could be a bit of a turning point. All of your positive wishes for this nest are certainly working!

All of the cheeping is Little Bit calling for food. The video clip covers the first couple of minutes of the feeding. If you look at the time stamp, Little Bit will be fed for much longer. The feeding stops around 14:38.

Keep sending all of your wishes so that instead of prolonging Little Bit’s agony (I serious thought LB was going to die) he will get enough food to grow big enough so Big and Middle will not injure or stop him from eating. It is a long slog. We were up and down with Tiny Tot Tumbles for 3 weeks like this. More fish need to come closer together.

Little Bit is tucked up under Mum’s head. You can just see its head sticking out. If it can stay away from those other two. Hopefully they will just go to sleep!

Tears.

So nice to be able to send out some promising news for this nest. Little Bit needs to eat again but we know that there is time between feedings where it will be OK. Fingers crossed!

Thank you for joining me. I am elated. It is snowing heavily where I live. The birds do so much better in snow than in rain. This is also a good thing. Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey cam where I took my video clip and screen capture.

Late Saturday and early Sunday in Bird World

23-24 April 2022

Everyone who watches streaming bird cams gets anxious at one time or another. The lives of our feathered friends are so fragile. There are so many factors that can trigger a significant change in their lives. Today I watched as Dad at the Denton Homes nest stood in bewilderment as his third chick was dying on the nest. He had just delivered a fish. I remember that same look of helplessness on the faces of the two White-tail eaglets in Estonia last year when their two chicks died of Avian Flu (confirmed by the Vet College there after retrieval of the bodies and the nest contents). They tried feeding them and they would not eat. I understand that the two adults left that nest and have not returned to it. Did they also die of Avian flu? or does their behaviour align itself with other raptors who have lost their chicks due to rodenticide, monofilament, etc. and choose not to use the nest again?

One of my readers, ‘B’ sent me an article from The New York Times on Avian Flu. Thank you! I am very grateful to ‘B’ for sending this to me. I have been so preoccupied that I have not had a chance to read the news as closely as I should.

This is a very good article on the Avian Flu. Please read it carefully. Dr Schuler, like the Cornell Bird Lab when I wrote them, is not suggesting people take down their bird feeders. She says, “So it doesn’t seem like that (bird feeders and songbirds) is a major source of potential transmissions”. Please read carefully.

Grieving is well documented in Corvids. In his book, The Emotional Lives of Animals, Marc Bekoff cites the case of a Magpie, a member of the Corvid group, being killed and lying on the side of the road. He addressed a mourning ritual whereby four Magpies stood over the deceased and gave it a gentle peck while two flew to get grass. Once they had covered the body the four stood vigil for a period of time and then flew away. The covering ritual has been observed by so many of us when an eaglet dies. We saw this with Connie and Joe at Captiva, at the White-tail eagle nest in Estonia, and in a variety of other nests.

The parents at the Denton Homes nest appear to be in a state of shock and mourning. Saturday morning when the three chicks died, the Dad was bewildered. Later, Mum came and incubated the trio before their bodies were moved to the rim of the nest. Tonight, one of the adults is standing vigil over their bodies. It is both moving and sad.

The wee chicks look like they are sleeping.

The Mum has come to the nest. It is a wet dreary day to keep her babies warm. She must feel confused and helpless. Yesterday there were three vibrant nestlings and they were dad when Dad brought in prey.

Late in the day the parent stood vigil over the nestlings and the nest.

Avian Flu is killing many wild birds throughout the United States and Canada. Nestlings are particularly vulnerable since they are tiny and the flu kills them quickly (the only blessing). It is hoped that the parents do not suffer and survive it.

Another, ‘W’ sent me an article on the impact of the wind turbines on birds. It comes from the Audubon Magazine. Thank you ‘WW’.

https://www.audubon.org/magazine/spring-2022/off-east-coast-massive-network-wind-turbines

I have checked on the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest. That miracle fish did arrive at 18:32:45. Little Bit did what he could do to try and get even one bite. The fish was finished at 19:11:16. It has now been more than 72 hours since Little Bit had more than 5 bites of food. He was brutally attacked by Big and I do mean brutally.

In the image below the fish has just come to the nest. Big has already attacked Little Bit for walking up and trying to get a bite. Big frantically waves his wings going back and forth from Little Bit to Middle. Middle is trying to stay away and is scurrying around the nest to get some fish from the other side.

Big is pulling the skin and has plucked a part of Little Bit. He is shaking it frantically back and forth, up and down.

The abuse has been extreme with some plucking, pulling and twisting of the loose skin on the wee one’s body. I do not need to say anymore. This is the last fish on this nest today. Little Bit is already starving. By morning the two older will be famished. I am desperately sad and feeling helpless about what is happening on this nest. It began so beautifully. I am at the point where I wish for Little Bit’s suffering to end. That would be kind.

Little Bit was alive when a fish came on the nest around 10:15 Sunday morning. He tried to get some fish. It is now raining. I believe he died at 11:39. This poor little one. All Little Bit wanted was some fish, not a lot – just a little. He had walked up to the mother fish crying when the other two finished eating but no fish. He walked as far as he could and laid his little head down. No more pain, no more suffering. Brave Little Bit.

UPDATE: LITTLE BIT MOVED ITS HEAD BUT IT IS WEAK.

It is best never to cheer or wish for three birds on nests. It is inevitably difficult and many perish starving to death while at the same time enduring beaking just because they are there.

Moving to a happier nest. It is late Saturday at the nest of Big Red and Arthur, L2 is just about here!

You can see that the shell is now just on half of L2. Big Red is doing her rolling trick to try and ease the shell off without harming her baby.

How cute! Two little fluffy ‘snowbirds’ in the morning. L3 is pecking away!

Big Red likes to do everything. This is the 5th season for her and Arthur and she has not taken a real break during hatching!!!!! Arthur has been busy filling up the pantry adding chippies and squirrels.

Little sleepy head. So cute.

At the Captiva nest, Little or MiniO has still not returned. Jack has brought in a big fish and Middle or Little is enjoying it. There is much discussion on the chat because Andy has not brought in another fish and Lena has not eaten. When the chicks fledge the male is responsible – for millions of years of imprinting and doing – for the chicks to be fed. He is providing for the fledged chick on the nest. Lena has finished her job of raising and feeding the chicks. She will begin to go fishing for herself. There is no word about Little or MiniO. We do not know if Andy is providing fish to her elsewhere.

It has been a morning – full of sadness and, at the same time, blessed relief for Little Bit. Sadness about the H5N1 racing through some of the waterfowl and raptors and happiness at the successful hatch of L2 and the pip of L3. I will be checking on the rest of the nests late today. Surely there will be lots of good news! I understand that Spirit is now the size of a Canada Goose! Keep that imagine in your mind as you watch a short pick me up video. My friend ‘R’ sent me a short clip of Canada Geese, waterfalls and spring to cheer me up this morning. As I look out on the snow, I am so grateful. Thank you ‘R’. I want to share it with you! [Note: It is the waterfalls, not the movie and not the ad.]. Time to feed the garden animals!

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/nature-south-carolina-falls/

Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Denton Homes Bald Eagles, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wldlife, and UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey.

Tuesday in Bird World

19 April 2022

This is a view of the storm that hit the other day. Today it is partly sunny but, there is another storm on its way. Winter continues for many of us!

Big Red and Arthur have snow. It seems every year Big Red will get encrusted in snow and ice and we sit and worry. She is used to the cold snowy wet weather living on the Cornell campus all her life (or nearby at Brooktondale where she hatched). Pip watch is the end of the week!

The Kakapo Recovery posted an announcement about their t-shirt fundraiser. That is incredibly wonderful – $27,000 is a wonderful amount for selling t-shirts. Well done. Waiting for ours to arrive!

This group and everyone associated with it does an amazing job trying to keep this critically endangered non-flying parrot alive. From changing transmitters, doing wellness checks, or ensuring birds that need care get off the islands to the Dunedin Vet – it is all fantastic.

And one another announcement that I am posting from FB. A Place Called Hope is one of those wildlife rehabbers like CROW that really goes all out for its patients. This Osprey needs fresh whole fish. Do you live in the area? Can you help? Do you know someone who does and could help? Give them a call!

Yesterday I was asked if I get terrified looking at the three West End eaglets now that one fell off and landed on a ledge below. (Thanks to Dr Sharpe, the baby is back on the nest.) The answer is ‘yes’. Utterly terrified.

I pondered that question for quite awhile before and after answering. We recognize that there are risks every day for our feathered friends. An eaglet could fall off the nest, a parent could be accidentally killed and not return with food for the female and chicks, a predator could come and predate the nestlings, fishing line can arrive at a nest and cut through the little legs and wings. We know these things like we have memorized a list of everything that could happen to the birds. But, until it happens, the absolute fragile life that they live does not register completely. That is what it was like for me with Grinnell. Grinnell was always going to return on the ledge and bring food to Annie. Grinnell was always going to protect The Campanile. Grinnell was always going to make a huge mess plucking a pigeon for the eyases. Grinnell would always be there. Until he didn’t come home. The eaglets were safe on the rock until one of them fell off. Absolutely ‘B’ terrified and helpless.

Here is a very different image of that Osprey nest at the University of Florida at Gainesville.

Gorgeous wide open spot for a nest just the way Ospreys love it.

The osplets are really hot today. Mum is trying to shade them just like yesterday. Huge change beginning for Little Bit’s plumage. The back of his head is now oily black!

Look carefully. He is sleeping to the left of Mum. Look at the back of his head. Then look at the older sibling just left of Mum’s shoulder. They are all actively moving into the reptilian stage.

Feedings have been difficult to observe with Mum keeping her back to us.

Not a Raptor. Ferris Akel loves Roseate Spoonbills. Audubon has a lovely article about the oldest Roseate Spoonbill in the world and she is still raising chicks!

https://www.audubon.org/news/oldest-known-roseate-spoonbill-identified-thanks-lucky-photograph?ms=digital-eng-social-facebook-x-20220400-nas_eng&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=20220400_nas_eng&fbclid=IwAR0m183W0GUsxBKYLbd4NlftbnJ24Qw5Ueo3sG_qAylZbqggecrw92hohZA

The two eaglets at the Dale Hollow nest are waiting for breakfast and lunch! It is often hard to tell them apart these days. Beautiful juvenile feathering.

Aran and Mrs G have been on their nest in the Glaslyn Valley protecting a piece of fish against a bunch of crows.

The rain has stopped at the Dyfi Nest of Idris and Telyn. Everything is fine on their nest.

Blue NC0 and Laddie have a wonderful day at Loch of the Lowes. This is just the most beautiful place for an Osprey nest. So serene. No motor boats, no people. Three eggs.

Louis and Dorcha seem to have settled on the old nest with camera 1 at Loch Arkaig.

As far as I know, Dylan and Seren Blue 5F have not experienced any other visits from the Goshawk at Llyn Clywedog.

And I have two new Peregrine Falcon nests for you. One is in Buckinghamshire in the UK and the other is part of the streaming cams of the Chesapeake Bay Conservancy. Thank you to ‘L’ and her daughter for news of the nest in New England!

The camera on the Buckinghamshire Nest is really good – nice and clear, good definition and a great view. Waiting for eggs.

Here is the link to the Buckinghamshire streaming falcon cam:

The second nest belongs to Boh and Barb and they also have four eggs this year. It seems to be a year for four eggs! Those eggs were laid on March 15, 18, 20 and 23rd of March. We are on pip watch.

Here is the link to the Chesapeake Conservancy falcon cam:

Peregrine Falcon

And last but never least, we are on fledge watch for Little (known as Mini on the Captiva Chat). She is 59 days old today. Should be flying soon.

On the right is Middle (Little) and on the left is Little (Mini). You can clearly see the difference in their size. If you watch the streaming cam check out the difference in their legs. Little (Mini) has long legs to help him fish! Middle (Little) has short stocky legs and she is bigger overall.

Both ‘babies’ (hardly babies anymore) had fish this morning at 09:45. There is Middle (or Little on chat) eating its own fish on the left. Middle fledged at 08:13:12 on April the 16th. The long thin legs are like those of Idris at the Dyfi nest and most believe that Middle (Little) is a male. Little (or Mini) is being fed by Lena. She is a nice big female it seems.

Middle (Little) could fly any moment it seems. Here is a link to the Captiva camera:

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

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: UFlorida-Gainesville Ospreys, Cornell Bird Lab RTH, Dyfi, Loch of the Lowes and the Scottish Wildlife Trust, Brywd Gwyllt Glaslyn, Captiva Ospreys and Window for Wildlife, Buckinghamshire Council Falcon Cam, Chesapeake Conservancy, DHEC, CarnyxWild, A Place Called Hope, Kakapo Recovery, and Explore.org.

Little Bit Starts the Fight!

17 April 2022

Sometimes the third hatch likes to start the fights. The Little Bit at the University of Florida at Gainsville Osprey nest did that very thing today. Then it ducked and covered while the two big sibs went at it. Nothing terrible but, yes…I think I might call you Cracker Jack little one.

Enjoy!

Thank you to the U-Florida Gainsville for their streaming cam where I took this video clip and capture.