Tag Archives: Florida wildlife

Inside a Harpy Eagle’s nest, Captiva Ospreys, pips and more…Wednesday in Bird World

28 December 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

Thank you so much for your good wishes for the holidays. I always do appreciate your notes and the beautiful images of your pets, garden animals, and arrivals in your gardens. It is so very kind of you to think of me. It means the world to me.

We have news from Captiva, V3 returning to Gabby’s nest, little eaglet heads popping up at Superbeaks, and more today including a call for help with moving and temporary accommodation for a person who cares for emotionally abused Cockatoos. Please do not buy a Cockatoo. Tell anyone who is considering it not to as well. They live a long life and well, they can be like badly-behaved toddlers. They require care, attention, training, and the ability of the owner to commit to a lifetime of vet bills (even trimming beaks is very costly), food, enrichment toys, and proper enclosures. Many who have owned parrots for a long time are calling for a ban on the sale of birds. I heartily agree. So many wind up caring for those disposed of by others simply because they did not understand the demands made on them by birds. I would also suggest that many of the ‘cute’ videos on YouTube have driven these sales. As ‘J’ says, it might be cute to hear a parrot swear 10 times but for an entire life time, ‘no’. Parrots that swear are also less likely to be adopted if their owner dies or can no longer keep them. Please pass this along. OK. That is my rant for the day!

It is a warm day here on the Prairies considering what it has been like. -5. That means that I am off for a walk at the nature centre for sure. I wonder if there will be any birds? Will let you know tomorrow! It will be so nice to be outside for an extended period of time in the fresh air. It is one of the most dire things of living where it is cold – being stuck inside. I plan to try the Merlin Sound ID to test it at the winter feeder. Will let you know how it works.

Geemeff sent the link to the final episode in the radio series for Flight of the Osprey this morning. Oh, thank you, Geemeff. Looking forward to the film!

BBC Earth takes us into the jungle, up a tree and into a Harpy Eagle’s nest!

Come back to this one – but try your luck at guessing some of the environment’s top stories from The Guardian (the emphasis is on the UK wildlife and environment but give it a go anyway!).

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/dec/27/take-a-wild-guess-the-environment-quiz-of-2022?CMP=share_btn_link

Things are really going to start to perk up in the US. There is a pip for Connie and Clive at the Captiva Bald Eagle nest! Congratulations. Their first egg was laid on 3 December. We will be watching for M15 and Harriet around the 3rd of January but, tonight there could be a pip at Kistachie National Forest at E3. With the humidity, that strong first hatch took 29 hours, 49 minutes and 07 seconds to hatch. Then, of course there is Missy and Pa Berry…and before we blink, the Florida Osprey season will start.

Thankfully Clive and Connie took a break from incubation so the camera could pick up that pip.

In addition, the Captiva Osprey Cam is now up and streaming. It is unclear who will claim the platform nest for this upcoming year. There is a new female FO and the male MO. There have been three ospreys flying around this platform. Lena is apparently fine. It is my understanding that with Andy not returning, she left the area. It is completely unclear what happened to Andy but he could have been lost during Hurricane Ian. We know Lena was seen after the hurricane so she survived but, of course, her platform nest did not. Might she return? I wonder. Andy will, sadly, be added to the Memorial Wall for the year.

Gorgeous Gabby on the morning of 27 December wondering what her fate will be for this year, possibly. The visitor that has been coming and going flew in with a squirrel today (the 27th). He is confirmed by the AEF to be V3.

V3 flew in with a squirrel to the nest. It looked like he intended to share it with Gabby.

Here is he. Gabby is obviously giving them a second look or three!!!!!! I hope this fellow measures up. He is rather handsome. At the end of the day, I don’t care who she chooses as long as they can try to match up to Samson.

The latest announcement from the AEF:

At the WRDC, Rose has brought in what looks like a gull for lunch. She is beautiful. Let us wish her and Ron a long life together and many successful fledges!

Despite the PS that hit the camera along with the pine branch obscuring our view, we can see the two eaglets at Superbeaks today! They appear to be thriving. What a wonderful sight!

These eaglets are semi-altricial. This means that when they hatch they have a very thin layer of down. They cannot regulate their own temperature. Their eyes are open or partly open but they cannot focus. That is why they are bobble heads. They are entirely dependent on their parents for food, for warmth, and for teaching them how to be eagles. The two eaglets at Superbeaks are getting their second coat of natal down which begins growing in about a week after hatching.

Alex and Andria seem to be doing very well. Alex is really keeping a lot of food and a variety of items on the nest – I cannot identify all the fish species but there are several different ones and the remains of that Coot.

That little eaglet seems to grow right before our eyes! Let us hope that it is a cracker of a big sibling to the one that should be trying to hatch tomorrow. There is lots of food and Andria and Alex are doing an incredible job.

The Bald Eagle nests at Kincaid Lake benefit from a stocked lake right out their doorstep. And the males continue to fish even if there is a pile of fish on the nest. It is wonderful to watch but, oh, can you imagine the smell after awhile??????

The eagles were at the nest at Decorah, Iowa today. One was even having their lunch on one of the main branches to the nest. What a beautiful winter setting on a farm. Like a postcard.

Oh, a correction. It was a Musk Lorikeet that Indigo had for lunch on Boxing Day! It remains unclear if Indigo caught the bird or if it was a prey transfer from the parents. He sure wasn’t going to share it and he found a way to eat the entire bird….nothing left for Mum to snatch.

I have been concerned about Big Red, Arthur, and L4 since the temperature plummeted in the Ithaca region during the big weather bomb. This morning @CornellHawks posted images of L4 hunting. Much relieved. Now for Arthur and Big Red! Maybe tomorrow.

This is a great little clip from Montana about the dangers of lead poisoning. Please pass it along to those you know who hunt or fish (if you feel you can). They need to know that the raptors can be killed by secondary poisoning and toxins and that there are alternatives to lead. Thank you.

Migration News for Karl II’s family. There has been no transmission from Bonus since he crossed the Eastern Desert in Egypt nor from Kaia since she arrived in Chad nor from Karl II since he flew southwest from the Nile. We believe Karl II and Kaia are well in their winter homes and hope that Bonus is, too. We will look forward to transmissions in the spring.

First up, little Udu from 2021 has sent a transmission!!!!!! He has left Italy and is now in Turkey!

Yes, Udu is always late and sometimes does things backwards but, he is alive and for this we are thankful. This is the pond near to where Udu is foraging.

Waba is also alive and well and remains in the Sudan foraging at the Nile River. I suspect he might well just spend the winter here. Why not?

Dan Scott – the Chloe Sanctuary -has put out a call for assistance. This year the 501k charity that looks after traumatised and sick cockatoos lost their home due to flooding and their benefactor to dementia. He is looking for help packing the flock of 11 up for their move as well as temporary accommodation until they can get settled in their new home in Nevada. He is not asking for funds but, if anyone knows anyone that could assist, he would be grateful (directed to persons in California, Arizona, or Nevada).

Chloe Sanctuary call for help:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZKfq8jLV3s

Thank you so very much for being with me today. Please take care. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their posts, announcements, videos, and streaming cams where I took my screen captures: The Guardian, BBC Earth, Window to Wildlife, NEFL-AEF, WRDC, Superbeaks, KNF-E#, Raptor Resource Centre and Explore.org, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, @CornellHawks, Looduskalender, ‘J’ and Dan Scott.

Harriet and M15s nest destroyed

29 September 2022

Thank you for your many notes and letters. I thought I should bring you an update on what is know so far and, in particular, about Captiva and SWFlorida nests.

As we wait to catch sight of our Eagles and Ospreys, the damage done to nests is slowly being revealed. There is no communication and the causeway bridge is virtually destroyed to Sanibel/Captiva. It is going to be some time before we know what has happened to the Osprey and Bald Eagle nests on Lori Covert’s property at Captiva.

Do we know about Harriet and M15?

What we do know is that the nest of Harriet and M15 at Fort Myers on the Pritchett Property is completely destroyed. The tree is still standing albeit there may be branches missing. What we know is that Eagles and Ospreys are extremely resourceful and hardworking when it comes to nests and no doubt Harriet and M15 will have a new nest ready for this breeding season! The cameras were also destroyed.

The nest of Ron and Rita in the Miami Zoo is fine.

The nest at the Achieva Credit Union of the Ospreys, home to Tiny Tot Tumbles, in St Petersburg survived intact – even the grass is still there!

I cannot find the streaming cam for Samson and Gabby near Jacksonville. It appears that there are currently power outages in the area as Tropical Storm Ian approaches. Samson and Gabby were last seen at their nest late Tuesday evening. Like Harriet and M15, they are strong eagles and would know where to hunker down.

This is the view of St Augustine which is just south of Jacksonville.

In other nest news, building also seems to have begun at the Notre Dame nest of our Little Bit ND17 in St Joseph’s Park in South Bend, Indiana. Dad has been caught on camera bringing in sticks! That is fantastic. We all worried that they would relocate elsewhere.

So many of you have asked about the birds – the Eagles and the Ospreys – that I hoped to find some positive information on sights. Not yet but we wait and hope.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or posts where I took my screen captures: to the person who sent me the image of M15 and Harriet’s tree thank you, Bald Eagles Nest Cam Live FB, WRDC, Cruise Radio, Notre-Dame Eagles and Achieva Credit Union.

Poor Lena hangs on as Hurricane Ian comes to Florida and other news in Bird World

27 September 2022

Good Afternoon,

A brief check on what is happening at a few of the Osprey and Eagle nests that are on the edge of Hurricane Ian as it moves towards Florida and a peek at the Australian nests as the 28th of September begins there. At the moment, it appears that Port Lincoln Osprey barge is offline. Maybe that cam will start working again before I finish. The Sea Eagles appears to be offline as well.

I know that our thoughts are always with the people and birds when these treacherous storms arrive. Osprey Lena is hanging on tight to her new nest at Captiva as I write this. On top of having to hunker down and ride out what could be a category 3 or 4 hurricane by tomorrow, Lena also has not seen her mate, Andy, back at the nest. I just feel for her right now. The wind is blowing at 25 mph and the rain is intensifying at both the Osprey and Eagle nests at Captiva.

Lena continues to hunker down in the same spot.

An hour later she is holding on in the same spot. You can see on the live streaming cam the gulls and pelicans flying low to the water’s surface. Rain and wind are picking up.

At around 1700, Romeo, the young male tried to land on Lena and Andy’s nest so Lena not only has to contend with a hurricane coming but also is alarming and trying to protect her nest. She is not impressed.

Lena is blown off the nest.

There she goes.

You can watch the Captiva nest and Lena here:

You can catch the Captiva Eagle nest of Connie here:

The Achieva Osprey nest is starting to sway in St Petersburg and the wind seems to be picking up a bit at the nest of Harriet and M15 in Fort Myers. The nest of Ron and Rita in the Miami Zoo would make you seasick if you were so inclined!

The little sea eaglets – who are not all that little anymore if you look at that wing spread – are acting more and more like adults. Someone took a video clip of them sleeping. Have a look at how grown up they are standing with their heads tucked.

The Mum at Melbourne was doing some ker-chuffing at 0606. She did not take a break for several minutes later -at 06:10:43 -and she was gone long enough to have a nice meal and stretch her legs. While she was away the new male came to the end of the ledge. He did not incubate the eggs. He stayed for a few minutes and then flew off before Mum returned.

There she goes.

Mum appears to be a lot more careful when approaching the eggs and her body appears to be fluffed quite a bit. Can she hear her babies? From the pip to hatch can take anywhere from 24-72 hours. Oh, I wish we could get a real close up on those eggs!

Fluffed out and looking around.

This year Xavier appears to be spending much more time in the scrape box with Diamond.

Port Lincoln still appears to be offline. Send all your best wishes to the people and our beautiful birds in the line of Hurricane Ian. Captiva is S of Tampa and Tampa is expecting strong winds to hit tomorrow afternoon.

Thank you so much for being with me on this quick check as to what is happening. Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Captiva Ospreys and Window to Wildlife, Captiva Bald Eagles and Window to Wildlife, WRDC, Sea Eagles@Birdlife Australia Discovery Centre Sydney Olympic Park, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam.

Early Saturday in Bird World

13-14 May 2022

First up. By the time you open this blog, it will be Saturday the 14th of May – Global Big Day. Join in. Check out the link in the notice by Cornell and follow the directions. Join in everyone around the world counting birds!

At 18:55:06 Friday the 13th, a fish landed on the Osprey nest at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Typically, Mum would feed Big almost exclusively but today, something else happened. Middle got himself positioned perfectly and he was fed, almost non-stop, for 13 minutes until the fish was entirely gone. The Mum feeds fast and this time, instead of Big getting all the fish, Middle did. He seemed desperately hungry. Relief.

Middle’s position is perfect. Big tries to get under Mum and for some reason cannot seem to move forward to get up to the beak. That was a good thing as Middle just snatched and grabbed all of those bites encouraging Mum to feed faster and faster.

I kept capturing images but, in the end, they all look the same. Big on the right side of Mum (if you face the image) and Middle on the left getting fed.

It was really nice to see Middle get a good feeding. Earlier in the day but, typically, Mum feeds Big about 15 bites to every one for little. This is a great way to end Friday!

Blue 33 (11) kept good tabs on Maya and the three Bobs at the Manton Bay nest. There was another flippy fish that came in today but no chick was injured. Thank goodness. Each time I saw Blue there I thought how supportive it was if something happened again. He even got to feed the kids a couple of times. Super Dad!

The fish came in on a regular basis and sometimes Maya fed the kids more frequently than every two hours. Look at them all lined up so sweet.

There is something so cute about the Bobs at this stage. They can get a little aggressive when they enter the Reptilian phase. I wonder if it is in part that they are growing so fast and are so itchy with the feathers coming in??

Maya feeds each one until it is so full it passes out in a food coma. Blue 33 looks on at his trio. I love this family.

Next week we will be looking for a hatch at the Loch of the Lowes nest of Laddie LM12 and Blue NC0. Last year the couple hatched three eggs with two chicks fledgling. Third Bob died within a couple of days. It was very tiny and weak and could not compete with a ‘Big’ sister.

Hatch watch will begin for Idris and Telyn at the Dyfi Nest in Wales on 23 May. That is 10 days away. Idris is incubating the eggs while Telyn enjoys her meal down on Monty’s perch.

It is just starting to get light at the Dyfi nest. The train is going by. Idris is on the nest again with Telyn on his perch having a break and a meal.

The surviving chick of Jack and Harriet’s at the Dahlgren Osprey platform on Machodoc Creek in King George, Virginia looks as if it will survive. The other two died this past week – probably multiple reasons such as lack of food and maybe cold and damp issues.

The triplets of Thunder and Akecheta are such striking eaglets. Here is a three minute short video of them – as we get closer and closer to fledge. Kana’kini, the only female of the three, has begun hovering. She will be 67 days old on the 14th.

One of the little eyases at the Cal Falcons scrape, is sleeping on the non-viable egg. It reminds me of those ‘medicine’ or exercise balls that people sometimes use for exercise or to sit on for their posture. Annie is such a sweet Mum brooding those fast growing chicks!

Every California Condor egg is precious. Many are not viable but when one begins to pip and hatch it is a time for hopeful joy. There is a Condor hatching right now. Here is a short clip of Cornell showing the pip. The egg tooth and beak are moving and the chick is alive! The nest is located in Tom’s Canyon which is part of the Hopper Mountain Wildlife Refuge. Enjoy.

It is past midnight and I am heading off to read and hopefully have ‘Sweet Osprey Dreams’. Thank you for joining me. Remember – join in and count the birds. Let’s find out where they are during spring migration! See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Cornell Bird Lab, UFlorida-Gainesville Ospreys, LRWT Manton Bay, Loch of the Lowes and Scottish Wildlife Trust, Dyfi Osprey Project, Dahlgren Ospreys, and Cal Falcons.

Ivory-billed Woodpeckers, Hampshire Falcons and more in Monday Bird World News

9 May 2022

Oh, it is pouring down rain and, as such, is a great day to drink hot tea and read. A friend sent me an article from the New York Times. [ Thank you ‘WW’ for that]. I do have a subscription but, as of late, I just haven’t had the time to forage through the paper or, for that matter, read it at all, sometimes. I like Margaret Renkl’s writing style. Her book Late Migrations looks down at me from the bookcase and like her, I have stacks of books all around, some read, some waiting. Today, she has written an opinion piece on the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. It is a good – it is a hopeful read. That is something we can all use on a cold wet dreary day.

So apparently I can gift the article to you to read. I don’t know about you but good news is uplifting and I will take all of it that I can find including the discovery of a bird living in quiet isolation that was believed to be extinct. I just hope that thousands of humans don’t converge on Louisiana with their long lenses and ruin it! Seriously, it is important not to give away the locations of some nests and these would be one of those instances to stay quiet!

Did you know about the Peregrine Falcon scrape in St Mary’s Church in Hampshire in the UK? I didn’t! This nest has been here for a number of years. Listen to the discussion at the end to find out how the nesting birds were discovered.

The chicks are just slightly older -but not much – than Big Red’s. They are getting their itchy blood feathers. The scrape looks successful. Why do I say that? Look at all the ps on the walls!!!!!!!!!!

This is a great 51 minute talk about Peregrine Falcons by Ornithologist Keith Betton who is also the Country Bird Recorder for Hampshire. It is interesting.

There was a bit of a prey tease the other day at the Cromer scrape. They made a short video of it. Cute.

It is dinner time at one of Poland’s Peregrine Falcon nests – and it wasn’t a tease. Also notice – it is a nest! Just like the other one in the Polish forest, Dolina Baryczy.

It is evening – 20:21 – at the LRWT Manton Bay nest of Blue 33 (11) and Maya. We are definitely on pip watch but, if there is one, our Mum is not revealing it. Maya has been extremely restless since late last evening. Is she hearing her chicks? I feel like a very restless expectant parent!

I am not familiar with the Osprey nests in Finland but, last year, a lovely young woman wrote to me to tell me that they have ten nests. That is fantastic. This is the link to one of those. Last year the couple laid three eggs. All three hatched. The youngest died at the age of 2 days for an unknown reason according to the streaming cam information. There was not a threat from the goshawks so I want to continue to check on this nest. The location is splendid. Just look at the water with all the fish for the babies and parents.

The female is Manta and the male is Manu.

The eldest eaglet at the Pittsburgh-Hayes nest is getting closer to branching. She was up on the top of the nest rim called ‘The Baby Gate’ today. The others are just too curious and they will be up there soon!!!!!!! Just don’t go crowding one another knocking someone off!!!!!!!!!

Anyone still worried about L4 at the Red-tail Hawk nest of Big Red and Arthur? I sure hope not. There is the tiny one right up front having lunch! If he isn’t on the edge, he will climb over the others to get up to Mum’s beak. Partially this is because he eats less food but needs to eat more frequently than the older siblings. But oh, what a little cutie pie.

Oh, those wings look like soft cashmere. Wee one is tucked in under them keeping warm. Every chick has a big crop!

The weather in Scotland around Loch Arkaig has not been good. The winds have been very very gusty with rain. One of those gusts almost completely blew dear Louis’s mate, Dorcha, off the Loch Arkaig nest around 16:00 today. Unbelievable. It always frightens me when this happens. Last year and the year before, Big Red was almost blown off once with a chick holding on to her.

Dorcha recovered but gosh, golly.

Nancy is on high alert at the MN-DNR nest after a juvenile eagle stayed on the perch tree and another flew overhead. Oh, I wish they would leave her alone. She cannot go and hunt for her and E1 with these interlopers about. It is pretty clear that the success of the reintroduction of the Bald Eagles (and Ospreys) in the US has caused a lack of good territories and nests causing much of the disruption and harm we have seen lately. I would also include the Peregrine Falcon population in the California area. What is the answer? More artificial nests? the stocking of ponds for fish for the birds?

Alden may be shy of the chicks but he is keeping the pantry full for Annie and the two wee babes. Don’t they just melt your heart?

Seriously sweet.

Some much bigger birds in the Dale Hollow Eagle nest were both enjoying a nice fish today for lunch. Both of them are perching up on the nest rim and each is doing very well. Looking forward to their successful fledge!

The UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest cam is back up and running. Excellent news.

I continue to hope that there will be a new wee babe on the Manton Bay nest by the time I wake up tomorrow. All of the nests I have checked are doing fine except for the continuing intrusion at the MN-DNR nest of Nancy and E1.

Thank you for joining me today. Take care everyone!

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: UFlorida-Gainesville, Ospreys, DHEC, Andover Peregrines, LRWT, Cal Falcons, MN-DNR, Woodland Trust, Cornell RTH, and Pix Cams.

Thursday in Bird World

10 March 2022

Dyson, Scraggles, Little Red, and Mr Downy were all out in the garden along with the pile of European Starlings and Sparrows plus a couple of Grackles who have returned early. It is cold, -22 but, no snow just bright, bright sunshine. The most interesting book came in the post yesterday. It is Winter World. The Ingenuity of Animal Survival by Bernd Heinrich. It is not just about birds but it is very interesting and full of science that I didn’t know. Originally published in 2003 in hardback. Lots and lots of sound scientific information on how my garden friends survive the winter including the squirrels, the birds and other animals and birds such as weasels and Kinglet’s. I have wondered what all of the Crows eat and there is even a chapter on that. What I have learned is that trees with edible berries are not only beautiful but so helpful to our wildlife friends – including insects – in keeping alive in the cold.

There is a lot to be thankful for and people who are out working to save the lives of the most endangered of our feathered friends. It was wonderful to see a posting about the hatches of the Kakapo. In all, they are doing remarkably well.

As the sun was setting, there were some remarkably loving and tender moments at the Big Bear nest of Jackie and Shadow.

Just look at the crop on that wee babe. Everyone is home sharing dinner together!

The little one was fed really early. The wind at Big Bear Valley is so strong that it almost blew Shadow off the nest! I wonder how good his fishing will be this morning?

Jackie is keeping the wee babe full. Just look at how big this chick is compared to that egg it was squished in last week.

Everyone is sharing a second breakfast together. Lovely.

It also appears that Jack and Diane are not letting the loss of three eggs dampen their day! They have been bringing strips of bark into that nest and on Wednesday were even mating on the nest. Talk about optimistic! We wish them all the luck in the world on what might be a second clutch.

The three eaglets at the Dale Hollow Lake Bald Eagle nest of River and Obey are doing fine this morning. It sure is nice to see the sun shining down on that nest for a change!

The twins are just so much bigger than Little Bit. You can really see that this morning. If it gets caught in the middle of them, it is hard to get out.

I will give River a great virtual big hug. Look at how she is leaning over to feed Little Bit.

Big Red has really been putting the final touches on her nest on the Fernow Light Stand on the Cornell University campus. Her and Arthur have been working diligently between the snowstorms to get it in tiptop shape. Looking good!

At the Captiva Osprey nest there was only one fish delivered yesterday. Big ate almost all of it. Andy has just delivered the first fish of the morning. It is 11:24 and it is small. Already everyone knows that Big will get it all – again. So what is going on? Apparently there have been huge flocks of pelicans flying into the area early in the morning. There is certainly a lot of competition for food. I hope that he will be able to get more fish on the nest today. From the experiences at Achieva Credit Union last year, the other two are still OK. Tiny Tot once went 72 hours without food – about the same size as Little Bob now. But let us all wish for some good fish for them today.

And then there were two! Congratulations Thunder and Akecheta at the West End Eagle nest on Catalina on your second hatch!

This little one probably hatched around 04:00. It will need more rest until it is ready to eat.

I love how Cheta is watching how Thunder feeds the babies. He is going to be really busy supplying fish now that there are two of them – and, of course, security at this nest is paramount.

Just a beautiful Bald Eagle family!

What a lovely way to end the morning – with Akecheta learning how to feed his now two little ones. There is one more egg to go! This family will be very busy if it hatches. If it does we will be looking for that on Saturday.

Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me today. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams or FB pages where I took my screen captures: The Kakapo Recovery, Friends of Big Bear Valley, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Dale Hollow Lake Eagles, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, Explore.org, and Achieva Credit Union.

Bird World News 16.2.22

It is -17 C on the Canadian Prairies, almost noon on 16 February. The temperatures will drop overnight so that it is -32 C tomorrow. No snow. Yeah! But the wind was blowing this morning and swirling around Mrs Woodpecker when she was eating the suet.

Yes that white strip is actually how the blowing snow looked to the camera. Isn’t she lovely? None of the other birds had arrived and she had this compressed seed cylinder all to herself. They seem to prefer it over the more traditional suet- at least at our breakfast bar!

It is the middle of the night in Port Lincoln Australia and Ervie and Dad are on the barge. Ervie on the nest and Dad up on the perch.

Yesterday afternoon I needed a break from the worrying over NE27 and so I went and checked on Xavier and Diamond. Diamond had a large crop and was in the scrape. Oh, she is gorgeous.

Did you know that the Latin word peregrinus means ‘foreign, wandering’? Apparently they noted that the bird was constantly on the move!

Sharpie came to visit the other day and I was reminded, looking at him, that he is just so much smaller in size that the Peregrine Falcons which are medium to large size hawks.

I love how the raptors can close one eye with their nictitating membrane, that third eyelid unique to them.

It was comforting to see Diamond in the scrape. Breeding will not take place til the late summer but if you are longing for Peregrine Falcons, it is time to turn your attention to Annie and Grinnell at the UC-Berkeley Campus. Egg laying should be taking place in a couple of weeks.

Both of the chicks have hatched at the Eagle Country nest of Abigail and Blazer. The oldest was given the name Thunder and the youngest is Fern. Fern gets some bites amidst a bit of bonking from Thunder.

There is a pip on at least one of Andy and Lena’s eggs at the Captiva Osprey Cam. I thought it was on two eggs, some think only one.

Here is the link to the cam:

I grew up in Oklahoma. Sadly, one of the oldest living eagles, Taurus, who was an ambassador for the Sequoyah State Park in my home state died. Taurus was 43 years old!

https://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/national/article258434148.html

At the 07:10 feeding on the NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest of Samson and Gabby, NE27 did the old snatch and grab. It got right under the parent and up so it could grab ignoring a couple of earlier pecks by 26.

NE27 needs to keep its head and neck away from NE26. It seems to know that. It is also figuring out how to circumvent NE26 and get up front quicker. Clever little eaglet.

Later NE27 stared down 26 with the older sibling not reacting. Well done, Little Bit.

That cheeping by Little Bit is because it is hungry. Some eaglets do it more than others.

We are in the third week. We should be seeing this competitive behaviour by 26 easing up in the next week. NE27 is going to be fine and much better suited to deal with the outside world where there will be huge competition with other raptors.

If you missed it, Liberty and Guardian now have three eggs as of yesterday! I missed that one for sure. Last year this couple fledged three juvenile eagles. The Redding California Bald Eagle nest is one to watch!

Here is the link to the Redding Cam:

The sun is shining bright and it is getting a little colder. I am off for my walk and to check on the chickadee at the park. There is a small bag of seeds for it in my pocket today.

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: Port Lincoln Osprey, Charles Sturt University Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, Captiva Osprey Cam, and NEFlorida Eagle Cam and the AEF.

Samson feeds Little Bit and more Bird World News on Tuesday

NE27 known affectionately as Little Bit by all his fans, got itself right up to Samson when he flew down to feed the kids.

Samson is already feeding NE26. Little Bit is frightened but is scooting its way up and over the twigs on the nest to get within reach of Samson’s beak but hopefully, not catch too much ire from big sibling who wants all of the food to themselves.

Someone asked why NE27 is always cheeping. It is food calling. It is hungry and it is letting Samson and Gabby know even though its beak is not right up against theirs.

Samson is gesturing to 27 to turn around.

There. Little Bit gets a good bite.

Despite its big crop and fish on the nest, NE26 does not want 27 to eat!

Samon bypasses NE26, moves his head way over, and gives Little Bit a bite.

Little Bit gets quite a few bites from Dad.

This feeding is ongoing as I wrote this blog. It is 15:50:54 and Samson is giving NE27 lots of attention and bites.

Samson will continue to feed Little Bit and 26 will try to stop it. By this time 26 is more than full.

Little Bit and Samson are working around 26.

Little Bit got some nice pieces of fish.

There is that precious little one with a nice crop thanks to Samson!

Both parents are on the nest as I finish writing this. Gabby is doing some aerating and Samson is looking around.

Samson is definitely alert to what is happening around the nest in his territory.

We can all sleep well tonight. Little Bit is full. Nest behaviour is very interesting. Samson responded to NE27s little cheeps for food and worked to help get it to eat. This is precisely what he did 48 hours ago. Do the males remember what it was like having a big sibling? I notice that M15 is quick to come in and help. Curious.

Port Lincoln moved the camera zoom in close and here are a few close ups of Ervie. Isn’t he handsome?!

Ervie. Happy Birthday. You are 5 months old today!!!!!!!!

These images were taken around 07:11-12, 16 February. Ervie is, of course, fish crying! He is also still a little wet from heavy rain a little earlier.

Just look at R1 and R2. Their juvenile feathers are really covering that dark thermal down underneath and they are standing so tall! And walking – not on the elbow but on their feet. Growing Up. I am showing you this because Little Bit will be fine. R2 still suffers but has learned much about snatch and grab, end runs, and feeding itself that are invaluable lessons for survival. Little Bit is learning them, too.

These characters are 10 weeks old.

B15, the eaglet on the Berry College nest of Pa Berry and Missy, is such a curious little one. Today it spent time watching Missy aerating the nest. You can often catch it moving nest materials about, too. This only eaglet is adorable.

Louis and Anna are on the nest with Kincaid. Those feathers are really coming in nicely. Sometimes you can hardly see Kincaid on the nest.

Andy and Lena are keeping alert. No indication of a pip on any of the eggs yet at the Captiva Osprey Cam.

Oh, let us hope these two are lucky this year!

In other news, Iceland has announced that it will end commerical whaling by 2024. That is very good news, indeed.

It has started to snow once again. I went out for a short walk and there is about 24 cm of snow on the sidewalks. I did not get very far! Tomorrow.

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

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Port Lincoln Osprey Project, NE Bald Eagles and the AEF, KNF Bald Eagles, Captiva Osprey Cam, Berry College, and the WRDC.

Late Wednesday in Bird World

Ever since our big storm with all the snow and -35 temperatures the number of birds visiting the garden feeders has decreased. The European Starlings that once graced the Lilac Bushes and all the neighbouring trees are down to a handful from a record number of 58. The regulars are here along with about 40 Sparrows. That is also a huge decline. I wonder what is going on?? It is -9 and the wind has ranged from 23 kph to now 16 kph. It was the first time that my fingers felt like they were freezing when I was on my walk. One bird and lots of squirrels running around, a few people walking dogs. The garden was so peaceful.

Diane at the Achieva Osprey Nest laid her third egg this morning, 9 February, at 07:36. She has been incubating the other two eggs since the second was laid. 37 days is the average for hatching to begin. So the middle of March there should be bobbleheads on this nest. My intention will be to stock up on all manner of ‘calming’ teas should sibling 1 turn out to the brute that it was last year.

The third hatch survived only by its sheer determination not to die many times over and finally, Diane recognizing this and she began to go and catch catfish and made sure it ate. Chatters dubbed #3 ‘Tumbles’ because it was tripping over its feet. I called it Tiny Tot and then merged the two names together. Turns out that Tiny Tot Tumbles became the most formidable chick on the nest, taking over control and staying to even help Jack defend the nest. She was an incredible bird.

The nest is located in a parking lot of an Achieva Credit Union in St Petersburg, Florida. There is a chat connected with the streaming cam but there has been no moderator. Here is the link to the Achieva Camera:

This morning Big Red and Arthur paid another visit to the Fernow Tower Light Stand. This has been Big Red’s nest choice for the past few years. The nest is on the grounds of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. The hawks live on their campus territory year round.

The couple will continue to refurbish this nest for at least another 5 weeks. The earliest Big Red has laid her eggs as on 13 March and she did that only once. She laid the first egg on 14 March once and the 16th twice. I tend to think of her as laying on average around the 23rd but, the birds are surprising everyone this year.

Arthur flew in with a stick at 09:56:36.

Getting the right placement of the twigs on the nest is important as Big Red is very particular.

Here comes Big Red to join Arthur with her own big stick.

Oh, there is our beautiful Big Red, the Queen of all Red-tail Hawks, in good form landing on her nest. She is 19 years old. Hatched in 2003 in Brooktondale, NY, just down the road from Ithaca. Banded on 10 October of that same year. Arthur is from a nest adjacent to Big Red’s territory. Arthur is 7 years old this year. Big Red and Arthur became a bonded couple after Big Red’s first mate, Ezra, was killed in 2017. This will be the 5th breeding season for Big Red and Arthur! Can’t wait.

Both are carefully looking at what needs to be done to whip this nest into shape for this season.

If you look carefully, Arthur has already had breakfast. The evidence is on his talons. Oh, I hope this is a good year for chipmunks for the Ls. Yes, they will be the Ls.

Arthur flies off to get more twigs and Big Red settles in to work on that nest cup.

And here is Arthur. Big Red has flown off and he is giving this nest cup a once over, too. Look at that magnificent tail. That is what makes the Red-tail Hawks ‘red tails’. The hawks do not get their red tails until they are a year old. Until then they have to settle with two colours of grey stripes. In fact, when Big Red picked Arthur out of other possible mates, he did not yet have his red tail! That tail is almost like a badge of honour. If you survive your first year, you get the mark of the red tail. In reality, only 1 out of 3 eyasses survive their first year. The challenges for the youngsters are enormous.

I am going to start marking the days on my calendar. There are two cameras and a dedicated team of moderators on the chat. You will learn everything you wanted to know about hawks and more. Once the chicks fledge there are birders on the ground (BOGs) that submit photos and videos so that we can keep up with them til they leave the territory.

Here is the link to one of the cameras:

Sadly, the streaming cam to the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge is still off line. Oh, I wonder how Ervie and Mum and Dad are doing.

The Netherlands is reporting the third White-tail Eagle killed by a wind turbine. This is 3 out of 15 specially banded birds. There is an easy fix for the birds – install bird alarm systems and/or paint one of the blades black so that the birds can ‘see’ the moving blade. It is well known that this really helps in diminishing the numbers of birds deaths. As we build more and more wind farms, measures must be taken to protect all of the birds, not just eagles. Painting one blade black is a cheap easy fix that can be done in the factory that has been known about for a number of years. So why isn’t this being done?

There was another ground search for Bella at the NCTC Bald Eagle Nest with no luck in finding her. Meanwhile, Smitty and the new female have been working on the nest and mating. I hope that Bella is somewhere recovering from her injuries.

Harriet and M15s eaglets continue to change into juveniles right before our eyes. They sure love to eat! And they have gorgeous juvenile plumage with only a few dandelions lurking about. The top image is E20. What a crop. Don’t need to worry about this one getting its share anymore.

Harriet and M15 keeping the babies full.

Things are going alright on the WRDC in Miami. Both R1 and R2 are progressing in their feather development. Both are getting much more steady on their feet and there is a nice big fish on the nest for dinner. R2 has survived. Worry time is past (for me anyway).

NE26 and 27 are doing great. They survived all the torrential downpours in Jacksonville two days ago. Gabby was such a trooper keeping those kids dry and fed. I was ever so impressed.

Still on egg watch at the Pittsburgh-Hays nest. The adults are busy watching a train pass on the upper tracks at the moment.

Here is a link to their streaming cam:

There is egg watch for Liberty and Guardian at the Redding, California nest. My goodness the wind is just blowing and howling there.

Here is the link to their streaming cam. Also watch out for those very informative videos by Gary.

This coming weekend it is hatch watch for Lena and Andy at the Captiva Osprey Nest on Santibel Island, Florida. I cannot find that streaming cam live anymore. The owner of the property said that he would cut the power once the eggs hatched so maybe it is just offline. I will check again later and report back if i find it operative tomorrow.

Everything is just fine at the Kistachie National Forest nest in Louisiana. The pantry has food and Kincaid is growing like crazy. This is the best set up to actually hear Eagles chitter with one another. Yesterday little Kincaid joined in. It was precious. Highly recommended. There is not a lot of action since the feedings are spread out but it is a great nest ‘to listen’ when the parents are about on and off the tree.

This is not even a dent into all the on line nests. B15 at Berry College is doing great as are the pair of eaglets at Hilton Head. Jackie and Shadow continue to incubate their eggs. So far so good. The same with Thunder and Cheta. While we wait for Big Red to get her clutch started, the wait is also on for the return of all the European birds from African to their spring and summer homes in Europe and the UK. In addition, Lady and Dad have been visiting their nest in the Sydney Olympic Park. Expect eggs around the beginning of June. Wow. Time melts.

Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me today. I am so happy to have you here with me and the birds.

Thanks to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Cornell Bird Lab RTH, Achieva Credit Union, SWFlorida Bald Eagles and D Pritchett, WRDC, KNF, Pix Cameras, and Redding Eagles.

Captiva Ospreys have their first egg and other Bird World News

Calling all Osprey fans. We have lift off. The new couple at the Captiva Osprey Nest have their first egg. Meet Lena and Andy 2. (The previous pair were also Andy and Lena).

Lena 2 laid her first egg at 10:04:08. From her actions, it appears that she could be a first time Mum from her reactions to the egg. She was very cautious which is a good thing and seemed a bit unsure about incubation at first.

Just imagine laying an egg for the first time!

The wind was really blowing. The weather station says it is 18 kph but, the gusts have to be much more than that. I have to remember that the breeze would feel good in southern Florida where the nighttime temperature is currently 24 C.

There is our proud Mum. Isn’t she lovely?

Oops. A big gust caught Lena when she was trying to incubate the egg and almost sent her flying off the nest.

Hang on, Lena!

Ahhh, nice and settled.

The nest is on the same property as the Captiva Bald Eagle nest. The land is owned by a Canadian, Lori Covert.

The first Andy and Lena laid eggs on this nest before. Sadly, the Corvids in the area come to the Osprey nests once the chicks hatch and eat them. As a result, Andy and Lena 1 did not fledge any chicks.

There is currently a discussion about having a poll to see if watchers want the cam left on if the eggs do hatch or have it turned off so that if the Crows come, we do not see what happens. The ultimate decision is, however, with the land owner.

This couple arrived early and laid their egg a month ahead of most. Hopefully that will help them with the Crows as well as any issues with the red tide that can occur in this area. Currently there is no red tide. If you would like to know the impact of the red tide, here is some very good information:

https://www.mysanibel.com/Departments/Natural-Resources/Protecting-Our-Water-Quality/Sanibel-H2O-Matters/Red-Tide-Information

Oh, let’s send this young couple positive wishes. You can watch Andy and Lena 2 here:

My intention was to report -again- on the Port Lincoln lads but it was so exciting to check on this nest first and find an egg had just been laid. Oh, I sure hope they do well.

It is quite clear from happenings on the Port Lincoln Barge why Ervie and Falky don’t have enduring brotherly love for Bazza. But, before I begin, this morning both Ervie and Falky had fish delivered which they ate on camera. Ervie got the first fish from Mum at 07:08 and Falky got a fishy shortly after from Dad at 07:23:25. When I went back to look at Bazza he had a nice crop so he has eaten off camera. I expect that one of the parents made a delivery to him but, it is possible Bazza was fishing and caught it himself.

In the image below, Bazza is on the bottom right perched on the yellow and black ropes. You can see he has a crop. It looks nice and full to me.

A few minutes earlier an incident between Bazza and Falky occurred. Please watch carefully as Bazza attacks Falky shoving him into the water. You will see Falky floating in the water below the ropes. Falky will make three attempts to get out of the water.

Falky kept his cool and did not panic. He managed the situation really well. That said, it is possible that Falky might have drown. I know that I have been watching the dust ups between the three brothers but there are instances when it can go very badly. It was such a relief to see Falky flying free of the water.

Ervie remained on the nest all day. Mum delivered a small fish to him at 15:29:44. Port Lincoln provided some really nice close ups of Ervie.

He’s a lovely juvenile.

There is a rare Stellar’s Sea Eagle that is making its way South. It was up around the Atlantic coast of Canada not that long ago and bird watchers, especially those working on Life Lists were ever so excited!

https://boston.cbslocal.com/2022/01/07/stellers-sea-eagle-maine-boothbay-harbor/?fbclid=IwAR2j9R5vZTrVaT46gMvLavzwKgUupiHysJMAoJDsUWnmYbKbVuRZrNSYsN0

I want to leave you with a smile on your face. Have you seen anything cuter today than Harriet and M15’s babies, E19 and E20? It is getting much more difficult to tell them apart! They are adorable with their clown feet and big wings. They both have crops and enjoyed the ‘mystery’ meal that Dad brought in.

We could have pips Sunday morning from Captiva and the KNF Nest. Stay posted. We are also monitoring Berry College. So much going on.

Right now there is snow falling on Missey at Barry College. My goodness she just survived a hail storm and incredible winds. Now snow.

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

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Window to Wildlife Osprey Cam, Berry College Bald Eagle Cam, SWFlorida Bald Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, and Port Lincoln Osprey Project.