Tag Archives: Ne26 and 27

Late Sunday Bird World News

There were two nests that I wanted to check on before the end of Sunday. The first was the NEFlorida nest of Samson and Gabby and the second was our dear Ervie at the Port Lincoln Osprey barge.

The winds are still blowing at around 21 km/h and it is 9 degrees C – cold for Jacksonville, Florida – and the NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest of Samson and Gabby. For now, the rain has stopped although the weather forecast is calling for some more light rain before midnight.

Gabby has taken every opportunity to feed NE 26 and 27. Here are some images from three of those feedings. In each, both chicks had crops and were well fed. There is no cause to worry. Even with this storm, Gabby has all of this under control. While she is taking care of the babies, Samson has kept the pantry full and he is being diligent in his security duties. With all of the intruders at so many nests, Samson knows how important this is.

In the image below you can see that both have nice crops. Gabby does a real good job with these two. Any rivalry has been at the minimum even with the storms this nest has had. Great parents!

You can see the thermal down coming in below that soft natal down. There are very clear – it is all good.

Both will have nice crops after the feeding.

Oh, those are the sweetest little babies. I did worry about sibling rivalry between the two but it was so minimal. Gabby has good control and the chicks seem to be aware that both get fed and there is lots of food. Fingers crossed!

If you watch the Decorah North nest in Iowa, the first egg was laid last year on the 16th of February. Everyone is starting to watch and hope in Iowa!

Hope and Chandler at Port Tobacco Eagles have their first nest. It arrived at 16:11 today. Both parents were on the nest at the time.

This nest is in Port Tobacco, Maryland. The couple fledged two chicks in 2019 and two again in 2020. Two eggs laid last year on Feb 7 and 10th. No fledges. I will be checking closer at the history of this nest for you shortly.

Here is the link to the camera. There is no IR. There is a monitored chat during the day.

It has been a lonely day for our Ervie on the Port Lincoln Osprey barge. It is now mid-afternoon. This morning Ervie flew off the nest at 10:36:37.

Ervie is an excellent flyer. He will be away from the nest for 46 minutes. He returns at 11:22:05 soaking wet – I meant wet to the core. It was obvious to everyone watching that Ervie had been fishing. He had no crop but, never mind. He tried fishing again! The toadfish is still on the nest – a reminder of a successful attempt of a horrid fish that not even a pigeon wants to eat!

Here he is soaking wet.

Ervie has flown off the nest and returned a couple of times. Once I believe he flew down to the cave.

At 15:07:07 Dad delivers a fish to Ervie. Oh, thank you, Dad!

Ervie is so loud. They could probably hear him on the other side of the bay.

Ervie was absolutely raveous.

He has been moving backwards on the nest. I really hope he does not lose this fish before he finishes eating it.

This fish delivery brought much relief to streaming cam watchers! Dad is still there for Ervie. Ervie is so hungry he is not fish calling in the middle of the bites!!!!!! His silence and just flat out eating says a lot about Ervie’s level of hunger. Perhaps he will have some energy to maybe go and try fishing again today???

I couldn’t call it a night without checking on Ervie and the NEFlorida nest. Relief all the way around. If you are a Redding Eagle watcher, there appears to have been two incidents of intruders at that nest and a chase.

Intruders into well established nests seems to have been the them this year as breeding season progresses in various areas around the US. Hopefully this will stop at the Redding Nest because everyone is on egg watch and it is the time between now and the 12th of February that Liberty likes to lay her eggs.

That is it for Sunday the 6th of February. Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: NEFlorida Bald Eagle Nest and the AEF and Port Lincoln Osprey Project.

Sunday in Bird World

The wind has not let up at the NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest of Gabby and Samson. Gabby has gotten up twice to make sure the little NE26 and 27 are fed. Thank goodness that Samson filled up the pantry because he would not be able to go and fish in these winds.

The babies are growing and need more food. You can see the white dot of the ear on NE26 standing up.

These two still do not have their thermal down and Gabby has to be very careful to keep them warm and dry.

I feel for all of the birds who have these intense storms. They, on the other hand, just get on with life as best they can!

There are now two eggs on the Achieva Osprey Credit Union in St Petersburg, Florida. Congratulations Jack and Diane. Jack has been bringing fish to the nest and taking his turn at incubation. That nest looks a little wet, too.

It is hard to believe it, sitting here in frigid Canada, but the first Red Kites have begun their northerly migration from Africa passing over Poole Harbour today! Gosh, golly. Red Kites are beautiful raptors. They are about 66 cm or one foot in length with a very distinctive forked tail, angular body, and reddy-brown body.

“Flying red kite” by Tambako the Jaguar is licensed under CC.

Just look at this gorgeous under carriage.

“Flying red kite” by Tambako the Jaguar is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0

I am getting excited for the streaming cam to come on line in the Taiwan cemetery that has a Black Kite nest. That should be about the middle of March.

It is a gorgeous day in Pittsburg. We continue to be on egg watch at this nest.

Liberty and Guardian have both been on the nest in Redding, California and there is egg watch there, too, just like at Pittsburgh-Hays.

Thunder has three eggs at the West End Bald Eagle nest. Her and Cheta keep taking turns incubating them. Oh, I so hope these two have a successful season but they are going to have to be diligent! Those Ravens are intelligent and they sit back and wait and watch. We know this from Daisy the Duck’s experience on the WBSE nest.

Connie and Clive, as mentioned in an earlier blog, have buried their last unviable egg. The first broke. Both have brought greenery into the nest and covered the place where the egg is buried. Will there be a second clutch? or is this greenery a way of bringing closure to a lost season for this new pair?

It is a gorgeous day over at the Duke Farm Bald Eagle nest in Hillsborough, NJ. Gosh, I bet everyone was glad that storm was gone!

There is a really beautiful Snowy Owl over on the Mississippi Flyway Streaming Cam today.

Lena is on the eggs over at the Captiva Osprey Nest on Santibel. There are fire trucks in the background and oh, she is loud! You can easily hear human voices over the nest microphone, too. That is really something folks should be aware of when they walk by these nests!!!!!! If they know they are by a nest.

The eggs were laid on 8, 11, and 14 January. Can you believe we could be on hatch watch? To my knowledge, the streaming cam on Andy and Lena will be turned off if the eggs hatch. It will be kept off until such time the owner believes that the Crows are no longer a threat. I will try to keep you posted.

It is early Monday morning in Australia and it looks like Ervie is the only one on the barge. Individuals continue to ask where Mum is. Traditionally, in migrating Ospreys, the Mum leaves the nest and the Dad feeds the chicks til they leave. At that point he begins his migration. Australian Ospreys do not migrate. That said Mum has done her job and is probably over on the Old Barge resting and getting her strength back. There is no need to worry! She probably got tired of Ervie’s very loud prey calling. Dad hangs out on the barge with Ervie some of the time. Dad definitely provides food for Ervie.

I want to leave you today on the happiest of notes. It is a courtship display by our two favourite North American Peregrine Falcons, Annie and Grinnell, on The Campanile today.

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 shots: Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Captiva Osprey Cam, Mississippi Flyway, Duke Farms, Explore.org, Captiva Bald Eagle Cam, Pix Cams, Redding Bald Eagles, Achieva Credit Union, and NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF.

Friday in Bird World

Where is Ervie? I cannot tell you. Yesterday he spent the day with Dad. Right around 17:25, Dad left the barge and flew out to fish.

Ervie moved up to the nest to receive the fish from Dad about a minute or so before he lands. Fabulous eyesight!

There’s Dad. The day before he brought Ervie 3 fish – yesterday, as far as I know, it was only one.

That was a nice fish and Ervie was still eating quite awhile later.

Ervie was still on the nest and had a nice crop as the sun was setting. The camera has tipped and at the time of my writing this blog, it was positioned so you could not see anything but part of the barge.

Ervie does not expend much energy sitting. That nice big fish would do him just fine – our home-body boy.

Just had to check. The Port Lincoln Nest is up and running and there were a few really good close ups of Ervie on the nest. He has flown off of it and I bet he is down in the cave with Dad.

The snow is really hitting the nests in PA and NY. Big Red and Arthur’s Red-tail hawk nest on the light stand of Cornell University has had a lot of snow. They were even in a snow fall warning area. That snow is due to taper off in the next hour. It is currently -7 C in Ithaca.

Yesterday I kept checking on Pittsburgh-Hays and US Steel Bald Eagle nests. They had lots of rain and now that has turned to snow.

It looks pretty peaceful at the US Steel Nest. One of the eagles is looking out over the territory.

We are still on egg watch for the Pittsburgh-Hays nest. No Eagles seem to be about.

In Hillsborough, New Jersey, the female at Duke Farms is incubating two eggs. It is rainy with some sleet.

In contrast, Missy and B15 are having a not so bad day!

The two eaglets at the Hilton Head Island Bald Eagle Cam are really changing. Those juvenile feathers are quickly coming in on top of that dark thermal down. Both had huge crops. It is not a great image. There is no re-wind on that camera and it is difficult to get good images. .

These two have changed so much since I last checked on them! They are also walking around – not completely steady but getting there. They are adorable. You can see that the one standing has many more dark feathers coming in than the smaller, younger eaglet being a duckling.

Speaking of growing, NE26 and NE27 are changing. Look closely and you will see that they are no longer round fluffy balls. Enjoy them while you can!!!!!!!

Gabby and Samson are both experts at feeding the babes. A bite for you and one for you. Things have been very civil on this nest and the pnatry is kept full. Devoted parents. And the weather is grand. It is 27 C in Jacksonville, so warm on the nest. Quite a contrast with Ithaca, NY!

I decided to check into a few of the nests without eggs. There was snow on the Denton Homes nest in Iowa.

There is still snow on the nest at Decorah Eagles also. Iowa has been hit with a lot of storms this year. Thankfully, it is not time to be thinking about eggs on these nests – not just yet. Soon enough.

The male Bald Eagle is on the Dulles Greenway Nest at the moment. They are anticipating the second egg will be laid there today. We are now over the 72 hour mark from the laying of the first egg. The weather looks good.

Here is the link to this Bald Eagle streaming cam in case it is not on your list.

The Bald Eagle community is saddened by the continuing deaths of the eagles by lead ammunition. Lead ammo is outlawed for waterfowl why not just outlawed? Those that keep track of Bald Eagle numbers anticipate a drop because of the large number of deaths. The hunters could take the entire carcass with them and dispose of it instead of leaving the innards with all the lead shot in the woods. Or they could by all of the various non-lead ammunition. What humans do not realize is that the lead actually gets absorbed through their skin by handling the bullets and the lead expended at sport shooting ranges gets absorbed into the ground – the spent ammo is, apparently, never cleaned up!

Raptors are also dying because there are people who actually shoot them. Someone just shot and killed a Bald Eagle in Iowa. Here is the notice on the Bald Eagles Live FB Page:

I want to leave you with something a little more light-hearted. Can you figure out where Grinnell is and what he is doing? That is Annie on the ledge.

It is a bright sunny cold -27 C day on the Canadian Prairies. I am happy to report that for some reason the Starlings were away from the garden for quite awhile. They have just returned but this gave the Sparrows and the Chickadees a chance to feed in peace. Oh, and yes. Dyson. Dyson was complaining that the large suet cylinder needed replacing. I must go and do that right away! I hope to get some good images of him and the other birds this weekend.

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

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Explore.org, Pix Cameras, NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Berry College, Hilton Head Island Bald Eagles, Dulles Greenway, Duke Farms, Cornell Bird Labs, and Bald Eagles Live Nest FB.

Late Thursday in Bird World

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.

The Eaglets at The Hamlet

One of my most favourite Bald Eagle nests is the NE Florida Bald Eagle nest of Samson and Gabby. As it happens I was concerned that I would write too much about this nest – so what do I do? I over compensatted by not mentioning them very much! I hope to make up for that!

The NEFlorida Bald Eagle nest is located in Jacksonville, Florida. This is the third breeding season for Samson and Gabby. In 2020, they fledged Romy and Jules, in 2021 it was Legacy, and we are now waiting for the names for NE26 and NE27. NE26 hatched at 04:06 Sunday 23 January and about 46 hours later at 02:24 the 25th of January, NE27 hatched. They are cute little fluff buttons. While it is far too early to start saying one is a male and the other is a female, NE 26 sure looks like a big sister to a little brother.

Here is a picture from the 8th feeding yesterday. Just look at those crops. NE26 is so much taller than 27 that it works out perfectly to have the shorter 27 in front. Both chicks are fed well, the pantry is stocked, and there is little to no rivalry. Two nice little eaglets.

Here are some images from today. The cam operator was nice enough to give us some closeups of the feather development of the two. NE26 is 10 days old today and NE27 is 8 days old.

They have sure grown fast. Not that long ago these were the two smallest fuzziest babies. Now that light grey down is very slowly giving away to the darker natal down. They still have their cute little tails but the wings and legs are much longer and they are beginning to get bottom heavy.

Too warm in Jacksonville to be under an adult!

Little one is doing some panting to keep cool.

Now look at the follicles on that leg that is taut.

See that little dimple behind the far end of the beak? That is the ear. It will get fully covered over by feathers eventually.

This feeding was only a couple of hours ago. Sweet little babies waiting their turn.

Both have had lots of food. The neck of 26 is getting longer and the size difference seems pronounced. That is why I said little boy and big sis. Of course, I am probably all washed up and we will never know anyway. Just want them both to be healthy and have a good fledge.

Gabby is a formidable mother. I would not want to mix it up with her! No way.

I also want to bring you news about two Ospreys. You might recall that I mentioned that the highly pathogenic H5N1 Avian Flu has struck UK birds. The Queen’s swans were culled as were others and then 500 birds at the Whitby Wildlife Rescue. It was feared that one of those was the only resident Osprey. The Centre stated today that the Osprey was one of the birds not euthanized. What a relief for so many. This has been a terrible time for this wildlife centre whose heart and soul were wrenched out. On top of the APHA killing the birds during a 24 hour period they have worked so hard to save, the people have had to endure hate mail and lies. What a tragedy.

A sighting. On the 4th of August 2021, Blue 437 fledged from Nest 5A at Kielder Forest. It was 75 days old. There were no sightings until today when it was spotted in top form fishing in Senegal. The Blue tag with numbers was crystal clear in the photo (sorry I am not allowed to share it). There was no question like there was with the JJ2 or JJ7 last week. Blue 437 is Mrs Gs’ (Glaslyn Nest with Aran) first great grand chick. After the toll that the trees in Kielder Forest took this winter, this is nothing short of a wonderful miracle! I can only imagine the joy that is spreading through the team. We all know that feeling too well when our beloved birds fledge and then we never know what happens to them. Blue 437 has great DNA. Looking forward to seeing him return in a year to try and find his own mate and nest. Blue 437 was part of 16 juveniles that fledged from the Kieldner nests in 2021.

On that most happy of notes, I will stop. Do check in on the NEFlorida nest of Gabby and Samson. What a great team they are!

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

Thanks so much to NEFlorida Eagle Cam and the AEF for their streaming cam where I took my screen captures.

Tuesday in Bird World

There is definitely snow and more snow and it is either still coming down or blowing like it is! Goodness.

Both Mr and Mrs Chickadee were flitting around on the vines under the eaves trying to find a place to get out of the wind. The Starlings are waiting for the Butter Bark feeder to be filled and dozens of House Sparrows are eating snow. It is a ghastly day for them. And for people. I think my appointment for a hair cut is once again cursed. Wish me luck though. I am going to try and make it!!!!!!!!

In all the flurry of the storm news, I missed the quick change over at the Royal Albatross Quarry Track Nest. No sooner had YRK returned to relief OGK and he was back – in a day! Oh, the foraging must have been really good. That is fantastic.

There is the Royal Cam dad, OGK, first thing in the morning looking so content.

Someone is sleeping on the nest on the deck of the Port Lincoln Osprey Barge. Is it Ervie? Sleeping in the nest seems ‘odd’ for the adults. What do you think? Is that a sat-pak on the back of that Osprey?

The winter storm warning for the US appears that it will be hitting Oklahoma around 21:00 tonight and moving eastward. I wonder what some of the nests will look like tomorrow?

The eaglet-without-a-name-but-soon-to-have-one is really getting its thermal down! Changing every day. There is another duck delivery and a bird with white feathers was slipped in some time when I wasn’t watching. Wind and some slight rain at the nest currently.

It is a bright sunny day at Big Red and Arthur’s nest. The snow and ice has not reached there yet.

It is still nice and sunny and clear in Hillsboro, New Jersey where our Mum at Duke Farms is incubating two eggs.

It still looks alright at Berry College. B15 is also getting its thermal down and it is such a cute little baby. Pa Berry and Missy must be proud.

R1 and R2 are doing great. You can see what full coverage of that thick thermal down looks like when you look at them and then look up at the little eaglet at Berry where the thermal down is just coming in.

R2 is the one at the front holding on to the fish that it will continue to nibble on. These two can be real comedians.

NE26 and 27 are doing grand as well, the youngest of the eaglets now. If you want soft, cute, and cuddly that is the place to watch – NEFlorida with Gabby and Samson!

This has been a quick check on some nests. So far all looks great. The system that is moving through the US is going to impact lots of birds and wildlife as it pushes its way through. Hopefully nests with chicks on them or eggs will be spared the worst of it.

Thank you for joining me today. Stay safe. Stay warm.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: KNF Bald Eagles, NEFlorida and the AEF, NZ DOC, Berry College Bald Eagles, WRDC, Cornell Bird Lab, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, and Duke Farms.

Late Monday in Bird World

The ‘Alberta Clipper’ is just starting to impact Winnipeg with some light snow flakes. We are in an extreme blizzard warning area until tomorrow morning when the winds and snow – getting up to 90 kph (or 55 mph) – dissipate. The garden birds were a little strange today. They ate and left. Normally they come and stay all day but a couple of waves of different groups came and went. I suspect they were going to try and find a place to hunker down for the duration. This storm system is also going to impact a huge part of the US including my childhood state of Oklahoma.

It is snowing on the Storks near Freiburg, too.

There is wind and blowing snow in Durbe, Latvia, the home of Milda, the White-tailed Eagle. The sound from the camera’s microphone makes you shiver – the wind is just howling through the forest.

The female Bald Eagle at Duke Farms is also under some snow and it looks like she might get more as this weather system moves through the eastern US.

There is good news in Bird World. Both of the USS Bald Eagles were seen at the nest today. The worry last night over whether or not there was an injury melted away. Nice.

The thermal down is coming in on the eaglet at the KNF in Central Louisiana. The light natal down is giving way to dandelions. Notice how much longer the beak is and how large the cere has become. The cere is the soft fleshy part above the black beak, seen below. The cere varies in shape, size, and colour amongst raptors. The beak will turn that beautiful yellow when this eaglet is approximately 4-5 years old and be pure yellow by the time it is 6 years old. At that time, it will also finish getting its adult plumage including that full beautiful white head.

The meals are more spread apart but the eaglet is eating longer and its crop is getting much fuller. Just look below. The crop is a pouch along the espophagus. It stores food before it gets to the stomach. It also processes prey items that cannot be processed in the stomach. The raptor will regurgitate a compressed pellet of those items that do not go to the stomach.

The Wildlife Biologist has just confirmed that this crop is at least 3-4 inches (10 cm) long! Wow.

Poor Baby. It took some maneuvering with the weight and flopping of that crop for it to get in a position to PS. Obviously the crop weighs more than the chick’s bottom does.

This baby has really grown in the last 4 or 5 days and is changing more and more with every blink it seems.

Despite being full to the brim and hardly able to move, Anna is making certain that the little one is topped up before bedtime.

NE26 and 27 are awash in Spanish Moss. The nest seems to be covered with it and fish. Lots of fish.

There are those sweet little fluffy dumplings in the nest bole.

Sleeping quietly under Mum.

At the WRDC Nest in Miami, R1 and R2 have popping crops, too. The pin or blood feathers can be seen coming in through the thermal down.

R1 is closest to you. R2 without the fluffy hair is in the back and also has a large crop. Both eaglets are doing well and there is plenty of food on the nest.

The 2022 Albatross Count on Midway Atoll is completed. Here is the information as it was posted by Friends of Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge today:

YRK flew in and switched places with OGK yesterday at the Royal Albatross Quarry Track Nest in New Zealand.

Lady Hawk caught that sweet reunion.

The camera is still offline in Port Lincoln. Would love to have had a good look at our Ervie.

Tuesday February 1 is Lunar New Year for many of our friends. For all of you celebrating the Spring Festival, we wish you a healthy, happy, prosperous Year of the Tiger.

Thank you for joining me today. So happy to have you with me. Stay safe, stay warm!

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Cornell Bird Lab and the NZ DOC, Friends of Midway Atoll Wildlife Refuge FB Page, KNF Bald Eagle Nest, NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF, WRDC Eagle Cam, Duke Farms, Latvian Fund for Nature, and the Stork’s Nest Livestream.

Encounters with a GHOW

As many of you know, there are problems for the Bald Eagles with the Great Horned Owls wanting to take over their nests. We saw Bonnie and Clyde be successful in stealing a young eagle couple’s nest in Newton, Kansas located on the grounds of Farmer Derek. Those two have visited the nest as recently as 2 days ago. Great Horned Owls have taken over the Savannah Osprey Nest and laid eggs so no more Ospreys there, sadly.

Those are two instances on streaming cam where the owls have been successful. It has to be more common in the wild. I imagine that you could also provide me with several more examples. We know that a GHOW has been systematically attacking M15 and Harriet on their nest in Fort Myers, Florida. Just a few minutes ago a GHOW flew and knocked the female adult eagle off the US Steel Eagle nest at the Mon Valley Works–Irvin Plant in West Mifflin, PA.

The camera operator for the USS Bald Eagle nests is panning around the area. It is not a search and they said that the panning does not imply a search is needed. They are simply looking to see where the GHOW might be. These are the time stamps for the events this evening according to the camera moderator: “18:52:20 GHO swipes USS female(?) off her roost, 18:55:42 USS male(?) reacts to nearby swipe, 18:58:07 USS male relocates, chatter from both follows through 19:01”. The eagles cannot be heard on the streaming cam. Previously you could hear them so they are probably roosting at a distance and are safe and sound.

This is a daylight view of the nest. It is a gorgeous area.

Here is a link to the USS Bald Eagle cam:

The situation in PA at the USS Bald Eagle nest is unclear. It is my understanding that neither eagle has been seen on the streaming cam this morning. Everyone is hoping that they will show up so that worries can be put aside.

I was reminded, by someone using a three letter code for the Great Horned owls, to provide you with a listing of the proper four letter Alpha codes for all birds. Great Horned Owls are GHOW. The listing provided by the Carolina Bird Club also discusses the origin of the codes. Have a look:

https://www.carolinabirdclub.org/bandcodes.html

Liberty (f) and Guardian (m) were on the nest doing renovations and checking out the nest cup at Redding today. This couple raised triplets last year: Honor, Glory, and Rebel. We should be looking for eggs to be laid mid-February. Wouldn’t Valentine’s Day be nice?

Here is a history of the nest from last year’s breeding season by Judy B on the Hancock Wildlife Forum:

“A new camera was installed at the Turtle Bay nest for the 2021 nesting season (big thanks to Terri/Eaglewoman and the Friends of the Redding Eagles!) – and happily the eagles chose to use that nest! They laid three eggs in mid-February, and the three eaglets hatched March 21, 22 and 24. They were named Honor, Glory and Rebel by a poll of viewers. All three fledged successfully, if a bit non-traditionally. It was very hot in late May/early June as the eaglets turned 10 weeks old, frequently going above 100F/38C. Oldest eaglet Honor (who had never branched) had a very intentional fledge on June 3rd (74 days old). The following day, youngest eaglet Rebel left the nest as well, possibly slipping while trying to branch (the angle of the cam made it hard to be sure); Rebel was 72 days old. Happily local observers found both of them on the ground with an adult perched above; they landed near the river, and were able to have a drink of water. Middle eaglet Glory apparently liked having the nest all to his/her self, staying there another two weeks before fledging on June 18 (88 days old). All three fledglings were seen together perched beside the river on June 22, and all were seen through July 5. Both adults and two fledglings were seen in the area July 18, and one fledgling was around a few days later (it might be Honor who left first, but not sure). A happy year in spite of the challenges of the very hot weather.”

Why did I bring up the Redding nest? Because on 7 November 2021 a GHOW comes to the Redding nest! The video below uses slo-motion, graphics, and a narrative to highlight the encounter between Liberty and Guardian and the GHOW. The video is very insightful into the behaviour of Bald Eagles in alert and attack mode – if they are experienced:

Here is the link to the Redding Eagles streaming cam:

As breeding season continues, we might see more GHOW invasions. While GHOWs look soft and cuddly and through children’s stories we learn they are ‘wise’ – often portrayed as teachers – they are formidable adversaries. Liberty and Guardian are older and more experienced than the young Bald Eagle couple in Newton, Kansas that gave up their nest easily to the owls. Better to be safe than injured or dead.

Harriet and M15 have been the constant targets of GHOW attacks. Just go to YouTube and search for GHOW attacks M15 and you will find pages of videos going back years to the more recent occurrences. Here is one good example just 8 days ago:

On different occasions, M15 has been hit and has fallen down into the nest with Harriet and either eggs or nestlings. If you are a regular watcher of this great eagle couple, you will have seen M15 with injuries on his head because of the stealth attacks during the night.

In other Bird World News:

The first egg was laid at the Venice Golf and Country Club Osprey Nest (VGCCO) yesterday at 08:45. I know that some of you really enjoy this watching this nest in California.

Here is the link to this nest:

Still waiting at Achieva:

Two Osprey cams in New York say it is way too early to be thinking about eggs! Are either of these on your list to watch? Oyster Bay and PSEG?

After the fright the other day, everything appears to be relaxed and back to normal at the KNF nest. I am hoping we get the list of three possible names for this adorable eaglet today!

The eaglets on the WRDC are nice and full. Their thermal down has come in nicely. R1 still has some dandelions on its head. Soon we will begin to see thee contour and flight feathers on R1 and R2.

There are still cute fuzzy nestlings at NE Florida! They are doing great, too.

And just look at the change in Harriet and M15’s ‘babies’! Wow. I love seeing the plumage develop from that light soft down still on NE26 and 27 to the juvenile plumage that is really coming on E19 and E20.

No checks on Ervie. PLO is offline. Warm thoughts going out to the USS Bald Eagles. I am sure this is not the first time they have had to deal with this owl or another. Still, there is always cause for concern. That was a particularly ‘hard hit’ yesterday. Waiting for the final 3 names so voting can take place for the name of the little eaglet at KNF.

Thank you for joining me today. Please take care of yourselves. Stay safe.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: USS Steel Bald Eagles and Pix Cams, Redding California Eagles, SWFlorida Bald Eagles and D Pritchett, Achieva Credit Union, VGGCO, Oyster Bay Ospreys, PSEG Ospreys, NEFlorida Bald Eagles and the AEF, KNF Bald Eagles, Savannah Great Horn Owl Cam, and the WRDC.

Sunday in Bird World

What a Saturday afternoon and night. It was such a huge relief to find Anna on the Bald Eagle nest in the Kistachie National Forest and that there had been either a misidentification or that Anna and Louis switched places at dawn. Whatever happened- Anna is alright. Both birds were stressed on Saturday. It is unclear what was the cause or was it a multitude of things together – humans, gun shots, other intruding birds or animals.

I just love the image below. Everyone is so happy and relaxed this morning.

If you are watching the KNF nest, listen for the ‘laughing’ frogs. They are actually called Southern Leopold frogs but because of the sound they make, they are nicknamed laughing frogs. I hope to goodness that is the only sound that the nest has to hear besides eagles today!

The eaglet is enjoying some of the duck that was delivered earlier.

Eaglet is in food coma. Hopefully by this time next week, this baby will have a name!

The Wildlife Biologist says this afternoon that Anna and Louis would not have made their nest in a place if they were bothered by humans being around. Yesterday was, however, different from any other time that I have watched this nest – last year and this.

I know that many of you are stork lovers. Did you know that there is a live streaming cam with storks at Dreisamtal, about 10 kilometres east of Freiburg, Germany? A pair of storks make their nest on the roof of the Church of St. Gallus. Normally the couple arrive in February but this year, they returned on New Year’s Eve 2021.

The couple come and go for foraging. They sleep on the nest at night. Here is the link to this camera to calm all of your longing-for-storks-to-return!

What gorgeous plumage these Storks have. Incredibly beautiful!

Ervie had a full crop and was being blessed by diamonds all around. Oh, our glorious boy! He has quite the crop in that image. While there are few fish deliveries captured on the streaming cam, it is now believed that Ervie is catching almost all of his fish himself.

Dad does still continue to deliver a fish on occasion when Ervie is crying on the nest. Ervie loves being an ‘only child’.

The other day a word showed up in respect to Ervie – extreme philopatry. Yes, it is possible that Ervie is tied as tight as he can, more than others, to this very nest and that he will not wander too far afield like Falky has done. Indeed, one day we might see Ervie as the adult male on the barge with his own family.

Look a Ervie’s crop! Our young man is doing well. It is a relief to imagine that Ervie is an excellent fisher now.

At the Achieva Osprey nest in St Petersburg, Florida, everyone is waiting for the first egg to be laid this breeding season.

Of course, we are also waiting for Big Red and Arthur to begin working on their nest. It is, actually, awhile still. Last year Big Red laid her eggs on 26 and 29 March and 1 April! So we have about 7 weeks and a few days til our beloved Red-tail Hawk is incubating.

About the time Big Red is laying eggs, Iris will be returning from her winter migration. It is a snowy cold day in Missoula. I hope Iris is enjoying the warmth of her winter home.

At this very same time – as Big Red lays her eggs and we are on watch for Iris to land on her nest, Milda will be laying eggs on the White-tailed eagle nest in Durbe.

When I looked at my calendar and saw those three events – Big Red, Iris, and Milda – there was a big exclamation mark. Of course, all of the Ospreys and Storks will be returning from their winter homes to breed in the UK and Europe! It is going to get really, really busy.

For now, I will turn my attention back to the Bald Eagles. I don’t think NE26 is being an angel but it appears that s/he is not a ruthless brute either to NE27 – that is all good. Samson continues to have the pantry full and the fuzz balls nothing short of adorable.

In the image below, NE 26, the tallest, was trying to peck at 27. 27 did a pretty good job of standing up to its big sib. Bravo!

NE27 still has quite a dominant egg tooth. Sweet little babe with the golden glow of the morning sun shining on it.

A banana leaf was brought on to the WRDC nest. R1 thinks it makes quite a comfortable bed! So cute. It kinda’ fits with having a Papadam Chair for a nest.

R1 and R2 with their charcoal thermal down are growing and growing. Both are eating well and Ron has just brought a nice big fish on to the nest. It will not be long til these two eaglets are walking with ease around the nest. Just look at how big R1 is – looks like Hulk.

The eaglet at Berry College is wanting to have an afternoon snack and is looking intently at what the adult is plucking on the nest. This little one is a real little sweetie. Look at that lovely soft down head. You can see the thermal down coming in on the body of the eaglet. In a couple of days that soft light grey down will be nothing but dandelions!

And, last for today, if you are a Thunder and Akecheta fan, Thunder laid her first egg at the Channel Islands Bald Eagle Nest at 16:54 on 29 January! This is Cheta’s third breeding season and he no longer minds incubating the eggs. Last year the Ravens (or Crows?) got the eggs so this year, hopefully, neither adult will leave them alone!

Here is the link to the Channel Islands streaming cam:

Whew. All is well at the nests. Thankfully. It is supposed to warm up and start snowing on the Canadian Prairies in a short time. It is a good day for a walk out in the fresh air!

Thank you so much for joining me. Take care everyone and just breathe a sigh of relief. Anna is fine.

Thanks to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: KNF Bald Eagle Nest, Berry College, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, NEFlorida and the AEF, WRDC, Explore.org, Latvian Fund for Nature, Montana Osprey Project, Cornell Bird Lab, Achieva Credit Union, and Storks Nest Live Stream.

Want to get up close and personal with some Bald Eagles?

I am just home from a wonderful day outside. Did not see a single bird! Yes, seriously. I did spot a lot of nests and it was just nice to be outside in the fresh air on a beautiful sunny day.

The image below is the nest of Anna and Louis in the Kisatchie National Forest in Louisiana.

What caught my eye was an invitation by the Wildlife Biologists Steve Shively and Cody Austell of the US Forestry Service at the Kistachie National Forest for people to come and get up close to the Bald Eagles, Anna and Louis. OK. Not that close. They have a great eagle viewing area set up with spotting scopes and they will be giving private tours.

If you live near Central Louisiana and are free at 10 am on either February 10, 17, or 19 at 10 am, give them a shout to sign up. The e-mail is visitKNFeagle@gmail.com

I am also super excited. Cody and Steve will be setting up another camera stream with the same super sound they have for Anna and Louis for the other Bald Eagle family in the forest. Last year there were three nests. Sadly, both adults in area 2, were found dead. They had been shot. At any rate, there will be two different streams watching both nests next season. Fantastic. I wonder if the male on the nest is as great a fisher as Louis? There were 10 new fish on the nest today. The duck and the Coot have been eaten and I am not sure where the turtle is.

Just a couple of quick comments about happenings in Bird World. The camera is now back on in Port Lincoln on the Osprey barge. Ervie had been there earlier so he is fine. A huge storm ripped through the area and did tonnes of damage. Just waiting to see how everything is with the hearts that beat and run Port Lincoln Osprey Project. There is not an egg yet on the Achieva Osprey Nest even though Diane has been on the nest for long periods.

The winds and rain seem to have subsided at the NEFlorida Bald Eagle Nest of Samson and Gabby. I have not been home long enough to see how NE26 and 27 are behaving but there are at least five fish in the pantry so food is not an issue!

They look like they are getting along. Fingers crossed!

OGK is busy being a great dad down in New Zealand at Taiaroa Head. This little Royal Cam chick is going to gain lots of grams! Sooooooo very sweet.

Lots of beautiful water birds were out on the Mississippi Flyway this morning.

If you like Roseate Spoonbills as much as I do, you need to check out this streaming cam in St Augustine Florida. Spoonbills forage in shallow water. This is an adult in the nest. The juveniles are a pale pink while the adults have that bring cherry red/pink on the wings. Their head is bare and is a yellow-green colour. Their name comes from the flattened beak that looks like a spoon!

B15 at Berry College seems to be doing just fine, too. The worry over an injury to the wing is gone. It is a really sweet little eaglet.

So if you are anywhere near to Central Louisiana and want a personal tour to see the Bald Eagles nesting in the Kisatchie National Forest, please do get in touch with Steve or Cody. I would love to go on one of their tours. They are so knowledgable and – need help identifying prey on a nest – they are great at answering those questions. I have learned all about turtles this year! Send all your positive and warm wishes to all the nests (and people) who are going to get really low temperatures in areas that do not normally have them!

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

Thank you to the KNF FB Page, Berry College, NE Florida and the AEF, Explore.org, Achieva Credit Union, Cornell Bird Lab and NZ DOC, and KNF Bald Eagle Cam for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures.