There are lots of things that have not gone to plan. Put an expensive tracker on an Osprey named Ervie and you have high hopes that he is going to break world speed records and wind up in Sydney! So where is Ervie today?
He’s hanging out with Dad. I wonder if Dad enjoys the company? Yesterday, Dad brought three fish in for his lad – at 15:44, 16:30, and 18:06. Maybe it isn’t such a bad strategy! Will Ervie ever leave home? I hope not. It is sure fun to watch the changing dynamics on this Osprey barge.
Cody and Steve of the US Forestry Service for Kistachie National Forest thought that the on line counter to name the eaglet was working fine – until it wasn’t! The counting stopped today at noon, not on the 9th of February. As it happens I was watching when all of this was discovered. The % of votes for each of the three names has stayed consistent since the start of voting. With that in mind and 447 people voting in a single day, the eaglet is named Kincaid. Personally I am thrilled. It fits with the names of the parents and the older sibling, Kistachie, who fledged last year.
Annie feeding Kincaid the fresh fish that Louis brought in earlier.
A really quick luck at what this storm system is doing.
Big Red and Arthur’s nest in Ithaca is receiving snow, as expected. If this is all the snow they get it will be amazing.
In Northwest Georgia, Missy is being the Mumbrella over B15. They are getting a torrential amount of rain there.
Poor Missy.
It is wet at Duke Farms in Hillsborough, NJ.
I expected to see snow at both the US Steel Eagles and Pittsburgh-Hayes but it has been chucking down the rain there so far.
They are on egg watch at Pittsburgh-Hayes.
This is a little later and the rain drops are still coming down. I wonder if they are going to begin to get a little icy?
It has been a nice day for R1 and R2 and their parents, Rita and Ron, at the WRDC nest in Miami. Both eaglets ate well. R2 is already passed out in a food coma.
As the sun is setting in Fort Myers, E19 and E20 are having a mice meal before bedtime. They have had a nice day, too. Both the WRDC and the SWFlorida eaglets are really getting those dark juvenile feathers. R1 continues to have the most dandelions of all!
There are food comas at NEFlorida and no rain or snow! These two are absolutely precious. Good weather for Samson and Gabby!
It was a really nice day if you were up in Big Bear today with Jackie and Shadow.
The wind is picking up slightly at The Landings, Savannah Great Horned Owl nest. No precipitation that I can see and they should not be expecting any. The storm appears to be tracking North of them.
There are lots of nests. My friends in Oklahoma tell me that the snow has come down and that there are huge storms in Missouri. The birds in Ohio and the areas where the ice is accumulating are in our thoughts. Thank you so much for joining me for a quick check in on a few of the nests. Congratulations to everyone at the Kisatchie National Forest on the naming of their eaglet – Kincaid! Just love it.
Thanks to the following for their streaming cams or FB pages or both where I took my screen captures: KNF Bald Eagles,, KNF Forest Rangers FB, Cornell Bird Lab RTH, Cornell Bird Lab Savannah GHOW, Duke Farms, Berry College, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Pix Camera, Explore.org, Friends of Big Bear, SWFlorida Eagle and D Pritchett, NE Florida and the AEF, and the WRDC.
All of the eaglets are doing well. It is a great Tuesday. It is seriously a great Tuesday with the hatch of 27 and the sighting of JJ7 in Senegal.
NE27 is only a little over 13 hours old and it is right up there with big sib having some fish. 27 looks almost as big as 26. Hopefully they will both hold their own and be nice to one another. Samson is not letting the pantry even think about getting low on stock! Gosh, I adore this Bald Eagle couple – Samson and Gabby.
These two are going to keep Gabby and Samson on their toes! That is 27 with its beak wide open calling for food despite the fact that it could live on the yolk of the egg for some hours, up to 24.
Pa Berry brought in a rabbit for the Tuesday nest feast at Berry College. B15 seemed to really enjoy it! It was caught on video and is impossible for me to replicate the joy in Missy at the rabbit’s arrival. Notice how B15 pancakes it as Pa lands.
Bless-Her-Heart Anna did the Mumbrella for more than 7 hours straight last night and early this morning so her baby would stay warm and dry in the torrential downpours in the Kisatchie Forest.
Anna and the nest were soaking.
When the rains stopped and things began to dry out, Anna started digging up the nest to aerate it. Her little eaglet isn’t so little anymore and was sitting up straight with its big clown feet today enjoying some fish. According to the rangers, the eagles have not eaten the turtle yet.
To be named shortly eaglet was doing a lot of preening with those itchy feathers coming in. This is the cutest little one. Anna certainly makes sure it is never hungry. The eagles have been bringing in pine to help with the insect problems and all that fish. The eaglet is 13 days old today.
Ervie woke up to thick fog this morning. By the time it had cleared, Ervie had flown off in search of fish.
Got a good look in the nest of Jackie and Shadow at Big Bear. No second egg yet but soon. What we can see is that the eagles have found some soft material to line that egg cup. It is not just sticks and twigs. Thanks cam operator!
Something very interesting is happening at the WRDC nest of Rita and Ron. R2 has discovered self-feeding and s/he is not giving up trying to eat that fish. I think this is absolutely brilliant. R2 is the one that often doesn’t get fed until R1 is stuffed. This is a solution. Feed yourself. This is definitely the sign of a survivor.
A little earlier both eaglets had nice crops which you can see in the image below. Just hold on and take a deep breath. They love getting to the edge and looking over.
At the SWFlorida Bald Eagle nest of Harriet and M15, both parents were feeding and both E19 and E20 had huge crops.
Indeed, it appears that someone has put a beach ball in their crops! What you are looking at is that wonderful thermal down that will remain under the feathers to help the eagles regulate their temperature. If you look carefully you can see the feathers coming in on the wing tips of the one closest to the bottom of the screen.
For the fans of Honour and Liberty at Redding, nestorations are underway!
And if the Redding Bald Eagle nest is not on your list, here is the link:
And last but never least, we are coming up to egg watch for Jack and Diane at the Achieva Credit Union Osprey nest in St Petersburg, Florida. They fledged three chicks last year….one of a handful of nests world wide on streaming cam to do so. It is a dreary rainy day and at least one adult, looks like Jack, has come and gone.
Look at that gorgeous bark!
Here is the link to the streaming cam.
Life is good. Everyone is happy. All have eaten. What more could we want?
Thank you for joining me today. Take care everyone. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Achieva Credit Union, Port Lincoln Osprey, KNF Bald Eagle Cam, NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF, SWFlorida Bald Eagles and D Pritchett, Friends of Big Bear, WRDC, and Redding California Eagles.
For now NE26 is an ‘only child’. NE27 is steadily working its way through the hard shell that has enclosed it for the past 35 days.
Will 26 be a brute of a big sibling or a sweetheart…we wait.
NE26 is really cute and fluffy. I did notice that the tiny pick at the end of the egg tooth seems to be gone. That beak will grow, just like our finger and toe nails. Any remaining bits of the egg tooth will be gone by the time the eaglet is losing its furry light grey down and switching it for its darker charcoal coloured thermal down.
As the sun sets on Samson and Gabby’s big stick nest, NE26 is having a late meal while NE27 continues breaking that shell. Hopefully by tomorrow morning we will have a new fluffy baby in this nest.
Someone asked me about the large stick nest of Jackie and Shadow at Big Bear Lake. Do the eagles have anything to line the nest that is soft besides sticks? That is a great question.
Today, Shadow was incubating the egg. Anyone that has watched this nest knows that the eagles bring in huge twigs. Just compare Jackie and Shadow’s nest with Gabby and Samson’s above. The eagles have to use what is available to them. Gabby and Samson along with Harriet and M15, Ron and Rita, Connie and Clive, and Lena and Andy favour lining their nests with Spanish Moss. That is what is available to them. Looking out over the landscape of northern California there is, of course, nothing like Spanish Moss. Conifer needles are wonderful when they are fresh but anyone who has gotten pricked by one of their dry needles instantly knows why they do not line the nest with them. According to Peterson, the type of nest that Bald Eagles create are platform nests made of sticks and twigs. In terms of the nest placement, it will be at the top of the tree where the branches are stronger and larger as opposed to being on lower branches. The eagles will re-use their nest adding to it every year. Some nests weight are estimated to weight up to a metric tonne or 2200.04 lbs. The vantage point allows the eagles to have a full view of their territory and any incoming predators. Peterson says that they line the nest with feathers and greenery.
As many of you know, Jackie and Shadow have had challenges. I hope their eggs are strong and they fledge a very healthy chick or chicks. I have not seen any announcement (yet) of a second egg but stay tuned for news tomorrow!
All of the other birds are doing fine. E19 and E20 ate a bird and 2 fish. The KNF eaglet has had its multiple feedings of fish. The eaglet at Berry College seems to be fine after scares that its wing was injured after being stepped on yesterday. R1 and R2 have eaten. The parents have slowed down the feedings and some watchers were worried. You will notice that once the eaglets have their thermal down and are getting feathers, the number of feedings decreases but there is more food at a feeding. The eagle parents know what they are doing! I would only be worried if there was a shortage of prey. Speaking of prey. I think Samson at NEFlorida has heard all of the praise for Louis in Louisiana who is known to have 10 fish on the nest at one time. Today, it looks like Samson has 5, at least. Gabby is quite pleased!
An ex-library book came in the post two days ago. It is Mark Avery’s A Message from Martha. The extinction of the Passenger Pigeon and its relevance today. This book tells of Martha, a Passenger Pigeon, who died on 1 September 1914 in the Cincinnati Zoo between noon and 13:00. Martha was the last Passenger Pigeon in existence. At one time there were millions of Passenger Pigeons. They lived in a distinct geographical area of the United States and ate a specific food, mast from the Beech and Oak trees.
Avery worked for the RSPB for over 25 years. He is a scientist, a naturalist, and a writer who is concerned about the impact of modern day farming, the landscape, and the extinction of our birds. Avery is a very descriptive writer who helps you visualize hundreds of thousands of birds flying through the sky making it dark or how their process of eating mast is like a contemporary combine-harvester. The most birds I have seen at one time are the evening gatherings of the Canada Geese during migration. It helps to have seen that but to go from millions of birds to only one living one is frightening. We all know that if we do not do something, there will be more Marthas. Avery traces everything that is known about these plentiful birds and what it was that led to their demise. The book is not doom and gloom. We cannot bring back the Passenger Pigeon but we have to be on alert creating new partnerships with nature so that everything can survive in harmony. Avery provokes us to think about what it would be like without birds and what we can do to make sure that what happened to Martha does not happen to others. I highly recommend it! It is available as a Kindle book but also, if you like to hold a book and turn the pages, used through several outlets.
Ervie was on the nest this morning. The camera had been off line and it is impossible to know if he had a fish earlier. Ervie will spend even less time on the barge. Port Lincoln has posted his latest tracking and Ervie is getting his mojo back. Whatever happened on that trip to Sleaford and Tulka is dissipating and Ervie is returning to his old wandering, curious self.
Here is Ian Falkenberg’s (the bander) report on Ervie:
There is other good news coming out of the Australia streaming cams – Daisy the Duck has not laid a clutch of eggs on the WBSE nest. It is 25 January in Australia. Daisy visited on 1 January. Let’s all hold our breath that she is safe somewhere incubating a cup full of eggs!
Trudi Kron posted a video of the Hilton Head Island eaglets of Mitch and Harriet’s. They are both eating well. Watch to see that one of them is thinking about taking some bites out of the fish on its own! I really appreciate this video because you cannot rewind on the camera. Both eaglets were full to bursting!
Thank you so much for joining me for our evening nest check. Take care of yourself! See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen capture: NE Florida Bald Eagle and the AEF, Sea Eagles@Birdlife AustraliaDiscovery Centre Sydney Olympic Park, Port Lincoln Osprey Project and FB Page, and Friends of Big Bear Eagle Cam.
NE26 is here! There are so many hatch times posted that it is unclear when NE26 was officially out of that shell. Does it matter? The AEF is showing 07:28:38 but the eaglet is fully dry and fluffy so I think Gabby was hiding that hatchling, keeping it warm. It is noon and it is still only 7 degrees C or 44.6 F. Chilly for Florida!
By 11:30, NE26 was holding its head up and looking straight at you! Notice that the inside of the shell was, in part, a beautiful blue.
What a cutie pie! Hello.
I wonder if you will be strong and sassy like your big sibling, Legacy????
Samson just brought in a nice fish to the nest – and its got its head on! He is so excited about the little furry one and wants to make sure that Gabby and it are well fed.
Gabby checks to see if the baby wants to eat. That pantry is so far from the nest cup. Remember Legacy last year crawling up the bowl to get over to it? Sure made NE24 strong.
You are so precious with that big egg tooth!
Tired.
Gabby was hungry! And the little one needs to figure out which way to face the pantry! Not the grass! Gabby keeps checking to see if N26 wants to eat some fresh fish.
Proud Mama Gabby!
The growing eaglet in the Kisatchie National Forest Bald Eagle nest has already had 5 feedings between 06:47 and 11:45. I thought Anna might be slowing down but no…the feedings are just getting longer!
What a little cutie looking up at one of the parents on the branch above the nest. If you are looking for the turtle, it is still there amongst all manner of large fish and a beautiful Eagle feather.
A nice family portrait!
B15 at Berry College is doing well.
B15 peeking out between Mum and Dad.
At the WRDC nest of Ron and Rita in Miami-Dade, R2 has figured out to let R1 get full and then get up to eat. Once R1 is full, it doesn’t care what R2 is doing. So around noon, R2 started eating and it is getting really full. Whew!
For all who are teachers, the Raptor Resource Project can help you, from K through high school, from art to science. Why not teach about raptors?
It is a great Sunday. Everyone is doing well. There are big snowflakes starting to fall on the Canadian Prairies. They are swirling and are quite beautiful. But, please, no more snow! We are 50 days away from the arrival of the first Ospreys in the UK for breeding season! Do you have a favourite nest? I can’t decide but I am awfully keen to see some little osplets in the nest of CJ7. Hopefully she will return to Poole Harbour along with her hopeful partner, Blue 22. For those of you that might have missed it – Jackie and Shadow have their first egg as of yesterday and YRK has flown in to relieve OGK on the Royal Cam nest in New Zealand. It looks like it will be Mum on the nest this year when the hatchling is returned. The egg is in the incubator hatching right now! E19 and E20 are doing great at SWFlorida and Ervie has been sleeping on the perch at Port Lincoln all night – so all is well with the world.
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: NEFlorida and the AEF, KNF, Berry College, and the WRDC.
Jackie laid her first egg of the season at Big Bear, California. No fan fare. Ate some prey. Just in the nest, laid the egg. Wow.
Jackie you made that look easy!!!!!!!
Mark your calendars. Pip watch will begin 27 February.
Last year the couple laid two clutches. Neither were successful. These are two real sweet hearts who have a loyal fan base. Let’s send them all of the positive energy we can for fledges this year!
At 15:19:56, Jackie was eating a prey delivery from Shadow.
It looked like an easy labour.
The egg appears from underneath all the feathers at 15:44. It could, however been laid a little earlier.
Talk about fans. There are 2365 people watching Jackie right now. We all hope that this will be a great year for this wonderful California Bald Eagle couple. Congratulations Shadow and Jackie!
Thank you for stopping by. So excited. There are hatches going on at Royal Cam Albatross and NEFlorida and now an egg for this couple. This is a great Saturday! Take care everyone.
Thank you to the Friends of Big Bear for the streaming cam where I took my screen captures.
Late Tuesday afternoon I was watching the Kisatchie National Forest Bald Eagle nest of Anna and Louis. It was such a calming and funny experience. Ten fish were on the nest. Ten. Not tinny weeny fish but substantial fish or portions of. When Louis is brooding the baby, he will get up and start to eat some of the fish. Two things happen. First, the eaglet seems to recognize that Dad is not such a great feeder and ignores him eating.
Then, secondly, Anna sees or hears Louis in the pantry and immediately comes to the nest with a request for him to leave the food.
At this point, she begins eating the fish – and the little one gets itself over to where she is so s/he can have some of that fish, too. How smart. Six days old and already recognizes the best feeder of the parents.
This little one is so strong. It held itself up high and steady for long periods of time. Incredible.
Anna helps to strengthen the chick’s neck by making it stretch to get the food.
It was hilarious and just what I needed at the end of the day. This little eaglet will go on to have more feedings before it gets dark. Anna wants the baby to sleep well so it can grow – and be quiet. This baby is quite loud when it is hungry – which is rare.
One of the individuals on the KNF chat stated that the KNF nest was their top nest to watch and that they had stopped viewing another nest because of the violence of the older eaglet to the younger. I know at least two Bald Eagle nests that the person could have been referring to – and even I had wondered if I wouldn’t take a break from both of them for at least a week to let things settle.
It is very difficult watching streaming cams. Very difficult. The birds bring us much joy and enrich our lives. They teach us so much. We want them to play fair and survive. We grieve when one dies and we yell at the screen when the eaglets hurt one another especially when there is food to spare. So along with the joy comes a lot of anxiety and grieving.
One of the nests has to be SWFlorida’s. I held my breath and checked on E19 and E20 as the sun was beginning to set in Fort Myers. Both of them had crops. Yes, E19s is bigger but the fact that E20 will go to sleep full means a lot. In order to have a crop of any kind, E20 had to do the old snatch and grab. And then Mum ran out of food.
This morning, Wednesday, I also checked in on the SWFlorida nest. A nice sized sturgeon had been delivered. Big enough to feed both eaglets well but, E19 was determined that it was going to eat most of it. It was only after 19 was full that 20 was able to begin doing the snatch and grab, again.
E19 continues to be miserable.
In the past I have praised Harriet and M15 – especially M15 – for stepping in to help so that both eaglets get fed to the brim. That doesn’t seem to be happening yet. I am disappointed.
One of the ‘oddest’ issues is that by the time E20 gets its turn, the amount of prey on the nest has significantly diminished or, in one instance, was all gone but a tail.
I did not check the WRDC nest. I will but, not until the end of the week. I want to give the sibling rivalry some time to settle. There are plenty of nests and lots of activity to keep me out of trouble.
As it happens Berry College was one nest that I was shy about watching or recommending. Today, Berry College posted the cutest video of B15 on FB and its reaction to a big stick on the nest. They sped up the frame rate so everything is happening fast – like slapstick comedy. I hope you enjoy this. It does show you that B15 is a real character and secondly, that it is a good thing that other egg didn’t hatch!
This morning it was 8 degrees F or -13 C. Very cold at Berry College. B15 was quivering its wings while Pa Berry fed it a breakfast of squirrel and hidden fish!
Pa Berry does a good job feeding his baby.
B15 is doing very well. Less than a week ago it fit into the size of that egg!
The Bald Eagle couple at Big Bear, Jackie and Shadow, have a loyal fan base. Last year they lost both of their clutches. Everyone is hoping that this year this popular couple will be successful. They have certainly been doing nest renovations making way for eggs!
Jackie and Shadow have a beautiful view of Big Bear Lake. Sadly, as I often mention, the area still contains the residual effects of the DDT that was sprayed on Big Bear Lake to rid it of mosquitoes more than 50 years ago. This could be, in part, the cause of the thin egg shells.
It is egg watch for Jackie and Shadow.
As I mentioned earlier, Louis and Anna have the sweetest little eaglet. Louis is a fantastic provider. There are reports of cold icy weather heading towards Louisiana. I hope that it veers away from this nest!
Samson and Gabby also have a gorgeous place for a nest.
What a beautiful egg cup.
Samson rolls the eggs giving Gabby a chance for some food and a break.
Gabby is on deck this morning (Wednesday) and tomorrow, Thursday the 20th is the beginning of pip watch for Samson and Gabby at the American Eagle Foundation! Yes. I am so excited along with all of their loyal fans.
Ervie only got a couple of small fish yesterday. He was on and off the nest so that chatters are now giving him the nickname of ‘Boomerang’. He spent the night on the perch after being spooked by a boat that got too close to the barge at 21:08:23. This is at least the third incident this breeding season. Just the other day two youngsters on paddle boards appeared right by the barge. It really does unsettle the birds.
I am delighted that Daisy the Duck is still not laying eggs on the WBSE nest. Each day that she isn’t there is a day to celebrate albeit we do miss seeing her.
I know that each of us wish that this was ‘our’ Daisy after her eggs hatched on that big nest. Talk about adorable. These ducklings follow their Mum perfectly til they get to the stream!
I hope that put a smile on your face. And, Daisy, I hope that in about a month this might be you! We all do.
It is -25 C on the Canadian Prairies and we had more snow last night. Everything is beautiful and white and typically, on very cold days, the sky is blue and the sun is bright. The Blue Jay family has been absent now for over a month. I hope they decided to leave town for warmer climates. Ah, but where to go? It was colder in Georgia yesterday than it was in Winnipeg! Dyson was out doing what he does best —-eating! I caught him on the large suet cylinder yesterday afternoon. What Dyson doesn’t know is that I removed the cage from around the big suet so that he could eat all he wanted. Don’t tell him or he will think I am an old ‘softie’. Notice how thick Dyson’s fur has gotten since the fall.
The European Starlings were everywhere. The numbers typically range between 27 or 28 up to 56 to 58 at a time. They do tend to intimidate the smaller birds from coming to the feeders until they are full. This has meant watching and keeping food topped up until around 16:00 when everyone leaves.
In the middle of the all the chaos caused by the Starlings is the Chickadee who visits several times a day. Slipping in and out when there are not so many other birds around.
Little Red is around but he has only let me photograph his tail at one of the feeders – cheeky little thing. The other two Grey Squirrels come and go as well along with Sharpie who sweeps through a couple of times a day checking to see if he can grab a snack. They seem to be braving the bitter winter weather and the snow with more grace than I seem to have. It certainly feels like spring is a long way away.
Dyson knows precisely where I fill the feeders. When he finishes there will be nothing left but the shells from the Black-Oil Seeds.
Thank you so much for joining me today. From me and all the garden friends, take care, see you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: KNF Bald Eagle Cam, Sea Eagles@Birdlife Australia Discovery Centre Sydney Olympic Park, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Berry College Bald Eagle Cam, SW Florida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, NEFlorida Eagle Cam and the AEF, and Friends of Big Bear.
Ron and Rita welcomed R3 early this morning. It appears that R3 hatched around 07:58. Notice also how Rita puts her beak at the tip of R1’s beak when it is wanting to peck R2. Very interesting.
Here is a very short video of R3 hatching.
R3 is officially fully hatched at 10:32:01.
Rita is now showing us anything as R1 and R2 look outside the nest cup.
That nest cup is very small. Fingers crossed for this little one to catch up and the older siblings to be kind. There is lots of food and experienced parents.
Congratulations Rita! (and Ron)
I have yet to see Daisy the Duck return to the WBSE nest in the Sydney Olympic Forest since her and her mate came to check it again on New Year’s Day. The Ring-tailed Possum still has its own nest amidst the twigs that have been added to this enormous structure over the years. It was running up and down around the tree last night.
It is hard to see it but if you look at the left side of the ‘V’ branch, it is running down to the bottom of the V and on the nest image, it is running up the other side.
The Port Lincoln Osprey Lads must have a pact. Each one of them gets to spend an entire day on the nest! First it was Bazza, then Falky came the other day, and now it is Ervie’s turn again! Ervie flew in with a piece of fish yesterday and it is believed that he must have caught it himself. However, later, he also received a fish from Dad, the last fish of the day. They have also been diving off the barge – Falky is very good at this and it is wonderful to see them figure out how to fish. We most often do not get this opportunity.
There is Ervie protecting his fish on the nest from any siblings that think they will fly in and grab it.
Falky and Bazza are leaving Ervie alone to enjoy his dinner.
And perhaps by prior arrangement or reservation, Ervie gets to sleep on the nest alone. So when we see that one of them is staying by themselves all day on the nest, we will not worry about them. It looks like they are taking reservations for occupancy! What characters these three boys are.
There are so many things that humans use for one thing that wind up harming anyone that comes near them. Today, let’s look at ‘sticky paper’. Strands of sticky paper used to be common where I live to catch mosquitoes and flies. In France they are still used to catch birds! What horror and today there are used to catch mice and rats. Any bird or animal that gets near this gooey paper will be harmed. This was posted by CROW. The last sentence is not there but they suggest calling your local wildlife rehabber. Do not try to do anything yourself.
The wee ones at Hilton Head are still small and fuzzy but E19 and E20 are growing fast. Today, they are out of the nest cup and sleeping with their head on the sides of the nest. This is a major change for these two. Their pin feathers are also coming in and we can see their little tails starting to grow as their wings get bigger and bigger.
Another possum was just brought on deck for dinner along with the remains of yesterday’s two fish.
Eating and growing make for one very tired E19.
An earlier feeding of fish.
All is well at Harriet and M15’s. The beaking has really slowed down. Let’s hope it stays that way!
We are on egg watch at Big Bear for Jackie and Shadow.
Here is the link to the camera of this favourite Bald Eagle couple. We wish them the best of luck as they struggle to have nestlings up in northern California. It is perhaps the lingering DDT in the area that continually causes the shells of their eggs to be thin or the eggs to be unviable. But, let’s start 2022 off with all your warm wishes. I hope this is their year – they are so dedicated to one another.
Pip watch for those followers of Connie and Clive at the Captiva Bald Eagle Nest this weekend. Hoping that this year is better for Mum Connie and her new partner, Clive. Connie lost both of her chicks to rodenticide secondary poisoning last year. They were Hope and Peace. It was tragic. And, of course, rodenticide, like sticky paper, needs to be banned. Raptors and Cats are the answer to getting rid of rodents.
Here is the link to the Captiva Bald Eagle Cam:
I am trying to find streaming cams for raptors in Japan. In my quest to find a raptor cam in Japan for one of your fellow readers, I have found squirrel cams, monkey cams, cams for traffic and temples, cooking, etc. But I have yet to find a mention of a raptor cam. I will continue my quest but if any of you know of one, please let me know so we can all enjoy. Thank you so much!
The squirrels are adorable!
And the most incredible monkeys and deer but no raptors! This is Awaji Island.
Thank you so much for joining me. It is so reassuring to know that there are so many people, from all of the world, that love the raptors – and all the birds and animals. Take care everyone. See you soon.
Thank you to the following where I took my screen captures: Hilton Head Bald Eagle Cam, SW Florida Bald Eagle Cam and D Pritchett, Friends of Big Bear, Captiva Eagle Cam, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Sea Eagles@Birdlife Australia Discovery Centre Sydney Olympic Park, CROW FB page, Awaji Island Monkey Center, and Yatsugatake Today.
As I write this, I know that there are tears flowing in homes around the world and with the NZ DOC rangers. OGK has been incubating his egg (replaced 2 days ago with a dummy for safety) for 15 days straight. Today the rangers gave him 600 ml of liquids to ward off dehydration as he waited for his mate, YRK to return from foraging so the pair could change shifts.
15 days is a long time. YRK was not the only mate to be out foraging for a longer period. There are several others now that have been away for 13 days. The rangers believe it is because there is a marine heatwave around parts of New Zealand and Australia at the moment. These are extreme weather events that used to occur periodically and now happen 4 to 5 times more often. In this instance, it is extreme heat, not cold. This might have meant that the fish were not located where the birds predicted they would be and they had to go further to forage.
YRK flew in at 14:43 New Zealand time to the sheer delight of OGK. The morning calm gave way to strong winds with lots of Albies flying in at mid-afternoon. Maybe some of the others who have been at sea for so long are among them.
Who says that birds do not smile or have emotions? Just look at OGK’s smile. If you know of anyone that feels that way, you should show them this beautiful pair of Royal Albatross getting reacquainted with one another after 15 days!
Here she comes and he is smiling.
Who says all landings have to be perfect!
Oh, that must feel good to OGK. It is called Allopreening. Preening is when a bird cleans their feathers and allopreening is when they do it to another. It looks like a nice head massage to me!
OGK does some allopreening.
It is much better in a video clip! OGK knows that YRK is arriving before we see her. He immediately begins to do sky calls. What a devoted couple!
This morning Bazza woke up and ate the fish tail that was left over from the previous evening’s fish. Later, Falky arrives at the nest and waits like Bazza normally does for a delivery. Falky got lucky! He mantled that fish for a long time fearing that one of his brothers would fly in and take it away.
In the image below Falky is doing a perfect mantle. He has his wings apread out and down along with his tail so that others cannot see if he has a fish or not. It also helps him protect his food.
There is at least one sibling about and I think it is Bazza. Falky has a time trying to walk with that fish on his talons.
Falky eventually moves the fish over on the ropes where he finishes it off. Meanwhile Bazza is on the nest hoping for a delivery. He might have to wait all day. The parents are delivering fewer and fewer fish to the lads believing it is time that they are out fishing for themselves.
Ervie has not been seen on camera. That does not mean that he is not on the barge somewhere; he has not been on the nest begging for food which tells me that Ervie has been doing some fishing and is out finding his own meals. Hopefully he will return to the nest one more time so we can see that handsome bird. If not, surely the locals will follow his tracker and submit some images of Ervie out living the life of a young Osprey.
At the three Bald Eagle nests I have been monitoring, the eaglets are all well fed and they are doing great. Some of you will have noticed that E19 has been much less aggressive to E20. Normally, the beaking/bonking stops during the second week. The eaglets can support their heads and their focus is better. By this time, they have also learned that food is available and stable – everyone gets fed.
Harriet and M15 thought they would get a chance to have a meal with some of those tasty leftovers on the nest but, guess what? E19 and 20 woke up! Those two seem to be sleeping or eating, eating or sleeping.
Look at how big those wings are getting. Those two can scramble up that nest bowl if they want! E19 did take a tumble backwards today allowing E20 to really chow down but, there are no worries here. Everyone is fed and happy, even Mum and Dad.
M15 is really good at feeding the babies.
Both the eaglets at Hilton Head and Miami-Dade are also doing well.
Eggs were being rolled up at The Hamlet today. Gabby was busy aerating the nest bowl and rolling them around.
That nest looks nice and soft.
She is listening.
Oh, the next two weeks cannot pass quick enough! So excited for the hatch on NEFlorida’s Bald Eagle nest. I have quite the soft spot for Samson and his mate.
Jackie visits the nest that holds much hope for her and her mate, Shadow, up at Big Bear, California this morning. It is a beautiful crisp winter’s day in northern California.
All is well in Bird World. It is such a relief to see YRK back on the nest and OGK flying out to sea. The rangers will return the egg and remove the dummy later today, probably. It is always good to have wonderful news. They had hydrated OGK this morning so he is also good if it takes him awhile to find fish with the unusually hot weather.
Thank you for joining me today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Cornell Bird Lab and NZ DOC, Friends of Big Bear, NEFlorida Bald Eagle Cam and the AEF, and SWFlorida Bald Eagle Cam and the D Pritchett Family.
It is bright and sunny on the Canadian Prairies —— and it is cold, -32 degrees C or -25.6 F. When you walk on the snow it crunches beneath your boots.
The garden birds and animals get double feedings when it is like this. Those little legs. How do they manage? The Sparrows are so puffed up they are the size of softballs.
E19 and E20 are still getting us to ‘coo’. Harriet and M15 are adorable parents, both wanting to be in the nest with the new babies! The images begin last evening and continue through this morning.
Feedings are going well.
These two are seriously too cute.
Just look at that little crop, those tiny wings and that happy face.
Welcome E19 and E20. Be good to one another.
Just a few minutes ago! Adorable.
Many of you will know that the Great Horned Owl (GHOW) has been getting particularly aggressive towards Harriet and M15’s nest. The GHOW knocked M15 off the branch again last night. Harriet was really fed up and flew off the babies to escort that owl out of their territory.
A GHOW couple fought for and were successful in taking the nest from a young Bald Eagle couple in Kansas at Farmer Derek’s last year and right now there is a GHOW couple making plans on the Savannah Osprey nest! Did I say that there are too few big old trees for nests?
None of the lads at the Port Lincoln Osprey barge are any worse for wear after the dust ups between Falky and Ervie yesterday. The sun setting changes the look of the barge while creating diamonds on the water.
I am so used to Bazza being on the nest but it is Ervie eating a fish!
Ervie is still on the nest when the family settles down to sleep. I never imagined that the boys would still be with us at the end of the year. This is wonderful. I am so excited for all five members of this family. They did it this year – they fledged three healthy boys.
There are eagles on nests and nests waiting for eagles!
Gabby is thermoregulating at the Bald Eagle nest near Jacksonville. Looking for hatch the middle of January!
Anna is incubating a single egg down in Louisiana at the Kisatchie Bald Eagle nest. It is hot and humid there today. Some sprinkles for later.
What a beautiful view of the area around the Bald Eagle nest at Duke Farms in New Jersey.
Jackie and Shadow have snow in Big Bear, California.
All is well as we creep closer to the end of the year. That is a good thing! I hope that you are busy watching the little ones at SW Florida today. They grow so quickly! Here is the link to the camera if you don’t have it:
Today will be a quiet day for me. They say the booster can knock your socks off – I think it has. So today is a day of hot Christmas tea, good books, and a warm duvet.
Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. See you soon.
Thanks to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: SWFlorida Bald Eagles and the D Pritchett Family, Friends of Big Bear, Duke Farms, KNF Bald Eagle Cam, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, and NEFlorida Bald Eagle Cam and the AEF.
It is a gorgeous Christmas morning over Big Bear Lake in San Bernadino County, California. This is the home of Bald Eagle couple, Jackie and Shadow. What a beautiful view as the sun rises to wake up the forest and the animals that live around the lake.
A little later the camera operator gives us a treat by panning around the area where Jackie and Shadow live.
Jackie and Shadow have been delivering some nice (some large) twigs to the nest. This wonderful couple live in the hope of hatching eaglets and we send them positive energy as we hope with them.
Harriet and M15 might be wishing for a little bit of the cooler northern Californian weather in Fort Myers. The couple began ‘listening’ to their eggs last evening. It is pip watch!
About four days before hatching, the eaglets will grow their egg tooth. Imagine it as a sharp spike facing outward towards the shell on the tip of the beak. The little ones will chip away at the shell. They will take their first breath and continue picking away until they have broken through and hatched. This whole process can take up to four days.
Last year Harriet and M15, fledged E17 and E18 – the twins that won all of our hearts from their first bobblehead days, to going into care for conjunctivitis, to their return. Beautiful fledglings. Best friends.
I am so glad that Samson and Gabby did not lay their eggs at the same time as Harriet and M15. This way we will get to enjoy having two nests of bobble heads independent of one another! Last year, Gabby and Samson had one hatch, Legacy. S/he turned out to be a beautiful and formidable juvenile.
Gabby is on incubation duties.
Anna and Louis are also incubating two eggs and have a wait similar to that of Samson and Gabby. Their nest is in the Kisatchie National Forest in Louisiana. This is the couple’s second breeding attempt. Last year they fledged Kisatchie, the first eaglet hatched and fledged on this nest in central Louisiana since 2013. Wow. Cody and Steve have installed sound at the nest this year.
It was fun watching Anna and Louis last year figure out what to do as new parents. Louis is a fabulous provider. When he is not loading the nest down with fish, he is aiming to give Anna the softest Spanish Moss he can find for the egg cup! Just look at it.
Clive and Connie are incubating two eggs over at Captiva. They have had some terrible weather there lately and this image is from yesterday. The camera appears to be down this morning.
Clive is a new mate for Connie. Last year, Connie and Joe hatched two eaglets, Peace and Hope, who died on the nest from rodenticide poisoning.
One of the ospreys over wintering at Urdaibai in the Basque Country of Spain waking up to Christmas morning.
While many of the Ospreys are opting to stay on the Iberian Peninsula instead of making the long journey down to The Gambia or Senegal, there are still celebrations as the December count along the Senegal coast was 1100 birds this year. Jean-Marie Dupart did an amazing job going out and counting all of the beautiful fish eagles. Thank you!
German Osprey along the coast of Senegal.
Closer to home, Jack and Diane have been working on their nest. Some really nice strips of bark have been brought in. Last year, the pair fledged three for the first time: Sibling 1, Sibling 2, and the miracle bird who survived against all the odds and became dominant, Tiny Tot Tumbles.
Cilla Kinross is celebrating the third camera at Charles Sturt Falcon Project. There is a ledge and box camera and now one that shows the falcons flying around the outside of the water tower. Congratulations, Cilla.
Here is the link if you wish to check out the new tower cam:
Big Red and Arthur have been spotted out hunting so all is well with the Red-tail Hawks on the Cornell Campus. Hope to have images I can post for you shortly.
The countdown is on for all the hawk and osprey fans…three months til Big Red is incubating eggs and three months til the first arrivals of the Western Ospreys back in the UK. Oh, and the beautiful storks of Latvia and Estonia. May they all stay safe until then.
Wishing all of the birds who bring us such joy, extra prey items, good weather, and safe flying.
Thank you for joining me today. No matter what holiday you celebrate, I hope that you have a peaceful, joyful day, with something a little special. For those birds not with us today, we thank them for the happiness they gave to us – and as one of my readers ‘B’ so eloquently said, ‘and all they taught us.’ So true. Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screenshots: Friends of Big Bear, NEFlorida Eagle Cam and the AEF, SWFlorida Eagle Cam and D Pritchett Family, KNF Eagle Cam, Captiva Eagle Cam,Urdaibai Biosphere Osprey Cam, Charles Sturt University Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, and the Achieva Osprey Cam.
Note: Port Lincoln Osprey Cam is down or we would all get a look at those lads!
