Tag Archives: Northern Harrier

Late Friday in Bird World

21 October 2022

The day turned out to be a lovely 14 degrees C. I am not feeling 100% but I do not have Covid. I am thankful but, I did call off the small celebration for my BFF’s birthday just in case. I know that some of you have symptoms of long Covid and my heart goes out to you every single day. My problem seems to be a response to the flu vaccine. Nothing serious and it will go away. Please do not worry. The chair I am sitting on is perfect and there is nothing more healing that watching the birds flit from one feeder to another and the squirrels run along the top of the fence. As a friend -who is healing from surgery reminded me this morning – watching the birds outside in the feeders is joyful and healing.

Awhile ago I posted some recent research that found that hospital rooms that had windows looking out to trees had patients who were happier, required less pain medication, and went home sooner!!!!! So look outside and smile!!!!

Making News:

The news on SE30 is coming in slowly. This is the latest from our friends down in Sydney.

Last year was tragic for Nancy and Harry at the MN-DNR Bald Eagle nest. First, the dashing young Harry went missing leaving Nancy to have to not only provide security, at a time when intruders were about, but, also provide food for the two eaglets on the nest, E1 and E2. The weather was miserable. Nancy was unable to provide food for both and E1 threw E2 off the nest. E2 was euthanized. E1 went on to fledge. Nancy was, however, left alone with a beautiful nest but no mate. Well, that seems to be over.

I was thrilled to read that Bonnie Johnson consulted with Pat Burke for the name of the new male. Pat Burke has an encyclopedic memory of the Sydney Sea Eagles as well as many of the Bald Eagle nests. As a wealth of knowledge, she has graciously answered any and all eagle questions that I threw at her. She is a treasure.

Honestly I cannot think of anything scarier climbing up an Osprey nest. Can you?

The Mispillion Harbour Osprey nest on the coast of Delaware is one of the busiest nests off season. ‘H’ has made videos of the Bald Eagles coming and going, occasionally taking sticks. Today, the nest was visited by what appears to be a immature Norther Harrier. As a reminder, don’t think your favourite nest is idle, check it often!

It is often the fringe that gives the Harrier’s ID away. Their face actually looks like an owl at times and the fringe gives them the same ability to hear that an Owl has. Gorgeous birds.

It is time how to turn our attention to the Australian nests to see how they are doing for breakfast.

Dad arrived on the very wet ledge of the 367 Collins Street scrape with a pigeon at 065144. Mum flew in immediately after he landed to feed the Melbourne Four. So, despite the rain, prey is being brought up in good time – either freshly caught or from the pantry. It doesn’t matter as long as the erases get fed, right?!

Mum perched near the Melbourne Four during the night. The erases are too large to brood now and they will remain dry in the rain that Melbourne is experiencing at this end of the ledge.

I suspect something similar is happening at the scrape box of Diamond and Xavier. Dad will fly in with the breakfast and Mum will come and feed Indigo and Rubus. What do you think?

You can see some blue sky and some clouds. It appears as if it will also be a rainy day in Orange. Xavier should be bringing in prey shortly. We all worry about them when the bad weather and heavy rains come. Take care Xavier.

Every time I think of Port Lincoln, I hold my breath before I start looking at the streaming cam. Big has been in such an attack mode lately that – well, since the loss of Little, it can make one overly anxious for Middle. There is, however, no reason to believe that Middle will not fledge. If Middle is a male he might to decide to get off that nest much faster than the lads last year so that he can get away from Big!

A fish arrived early. That could be a good omen but, not always. It does get the nest off to a good start. The times was 063456. It was a nice big fish. Of course, Big had to eat first. Middle was very nervous but by 065018, Middle was trying to figure out a way to get some breakfast. In the end, he decided to just move up next to Big and eat. Middle has become very good at snatch and grab and as long as Big doesn’t tear into him – and she does sometimes when she thinks Middle is getting more food than her – Middle should’ve be able to have a reasonable feed. There is fish left.

Middle is going to be fine. Big has moved away and Mum is finding all the scrap pieces of fish she can for Middle. Now…Mum needs food! Middle has a nice crop. Smiling.

If Big could just turn her attention more to nesting, Middle might be able to enjoy a carefree life til fledge. Remember the chicks will get names and will be banded on 12-14 November.

Everyone has had food but Orange. I am certain that Xavier will come into the scrape, possibly drenched, with prey before long. Indigo is really exploring the boundaries of the scrape and looking out to the world. Rubus has now moved to exploring the corner and sleeping there – Little Brother copying Big Sister!

Thank you for being with me today. Wish for fish and prey. Take care of yourselves. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their posts and streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Port Lincoln Ospreys, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Charles Stuart Falcon Cam and Cilla Kinross, ‘H’ and Mispillion Harbour Osprey Cam, Friends of the Non-Game MN-DNR Bald Eagle Nest, Cornell Bird Lab, Nature Heaven Group, and Sea Eagle Cam.

Early Saturday in Bird World

05 March 2022

Weather wise it is a horrible morning at the Big Bear Valley nest of Shadow and Jacket. Snow or ice pellets are flying through the air. Yes, literally, the wind is terrible. On top of all of that, a sub-adult Bald Eagle has been trying to land on the nest tree and Shadow has had to move it out of the territory.

Some believe that the intruder might be Simba, Jackie and Shadow’s 2019 fledge. The problem with all intruders is that the responsible parent for the nest can get injured. I wish they would stay away!

That is Shadow escorting the sub-adult out of the territory at 08:44.

The wee babe had its first feeding at 07:45. You cannot tell – it is a ‘still’ image- but the wind is really whipping the adult around trying to get to the prey for the baby’s first feeding of the day.

This little one will be fed quickly and then back under the adult so as not to get a chill.

This is Shadow giving the baby its first feeding for the morning.

Jackie will feed the baby at 09:57.

I have simply not been able to take my eyes off this little one. It is incredibly strong. Just look at it sit up straight. It knows precisely which way to go to line up for a feeding. It is not 48 hours old yet. A beautiful healthy eaglet. For Jackie and Shadow this is a miracle baby. I have to admit that I have not thought much about the other egg instead focusing on the needs of this one and how well it is doing.

Little ones have been fed and are wiggling around the nest and out of the egg cup at Dale Hollow Lake, home to River and Obey.

At first, when I only saw the one, my heart sank.

There they are. Everyone is moving to get into the shade provided by River.

Little cuties. The third hatch appears to be doing well despite its small size in relation to the twins.

There is an issue with the nest and three eggs of Jack and Harriet at the Achieva Credit Union’s Osprey nest in St Petersburg, Florida. There is no certainty as to what has occurred – did squirrels get the eggs? did they fall down a hole in the nest made by squirrels so that they cannot be incubated and are now unviable? did a predator take the eggs? Whether or not Jack and Diane will try for a second clutch is unknown at this time.

So far, there have been two feedings at the Captiva Osprey Nest. The first came after 08:00 but before the 08:34 listed by the chat. The second was at 10:08:07. All are doing well but, like Shadow and Jackie, Andy and Lena are having to deal with several intruders in their air space this morning.

There is Little Bob up front eyeing that fish just like our precious Ervie. Everyone seems to have a bit of a crop left from the earlier feeding. Let us hope that Andy is able to do some good fishing this afternoon so that these babies can have full tummies and crops for bedtime.

Ferris Akel’s tour turned up a Northern Harrier right away. As we were watching it, you could hear the Canada Geese overhead migrating to the north. They are coming home!

Northern Harriers are often the easiest of the hawks to spot because they fly low over the ground. Like owls, Harriers can also hunt by sound because of their large parabolic facial disk. You can see that easily in the image below. They eat small mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and insects.

What a beautiful hawk. They are large hawks standing from 43-58 cm high with a wingspan of 97-122 cm.

We see them on the Canadian Prairies hunting low.

The Canada Geese are in formation which means they are migrating. I always love hearing them in the sky. It is a good sign that spring has returned to the Canadian Prairies.

Ferris also saw five Hooded Mergansers and now has spotted a group of Red-wing Blackbirds. Oh, I loved seeing those at our wetlands centre last year. They are not common in the urban area where I live.

The snow is melting in the Finger Lakes area of New York and making areas of water for the waterfowl as well as revealing any grains left from the harvest.

There are ducks, swans, and geese landing to rest and feed.

The sounds of the waterfowl vocalizing is beautiful.

There were hundreds of Snow Geese flying in to feed and rest.

What a beautiful sight. Thousands of these birds settle on the farmer’s fields here on the Canadian Prairies as they begin to arrive for spring. They breed in the far north, in the tundra, of my province on Hudson’s Bay. They will feed on waste grain and new sprouts coming up. In the image below they are taking advantage of the grains and vegetation that have been covered by snow. They are large waterfowl, 60-80 cm in length with a wingspan of 1.3-1.5 m.

Their arrival in northern New York, near the Canadian border with Ontario, gives me hope that spring is, indeed, coming.

Thank you for joining me this morning. It is a beautiful cloudy but albeit warmer day here and I hope to get in a good walk today. Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Friends of Big Bear Valley, Dale Hollow Lake Bald Eagles, Achieva Credit Union, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, and, of course, Ferris Akel Tours.

A Visit to Oak Hammock Marsh

My Hibiscus and the Vermillionaires for the hummingbirds continue to think it is summer. And why wouldn’t they with blue skies, sun, and 24 degrees C. The only things that seem to be on track for autumn are the trees and Virginia Creepers that are changing colour daily.

Today was a bit of an outing. Located about 20 km north of Winnipeg, the Oak Hammock Marsh is home to an Interpretative Centre, third floor viewing area, a marsh boardwalk and several trails through the marshes. Oak Hammock Marsh is a joint project between the Province of Manitoba and Ducks Unlimited Canada. The marsh covers a 3600 hectare restored wetland area in the Interlake (between Lake Winnipeg and Lake Manitoba) area of our province. The marsh supports 300 species of birds as well as a myriad of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and insects. My interest is, of course, in the birds.

There are daily tours of the grounds, special education programmes for schools, early bird breakfast and migration fests, and a Goose Flight dinner which is completely sold out.

It was a wonderful day – short sleeve weather with plenty of birds and lots of places to stop and catch your breath along the trails.

Tip: If you were going to visit Oak Hammock Marsh and you just want to walk the trails and not go inside the building, you do not pay the entrance fee.

One of the things that I like about Oak Hammock is that at each trail there is information on the wildlife that you ‘might’ see there. Of course, there are no promises that the Yellow-headed or Red Winged Blackbirds will be there when you are but, in general, these are areas where certain birds congregate if at the marsh.

These are a great help to me – I am a raptor person who is just beginning to learn about waterfowl and shorebirds! I would have loved having Ferris Akel with me telling me which was the Greater Yellow Legs and which was the Spotted Sandpiper. There are a stack of books open surrounding me right now and the images are disappointing. That said, let’s give it a try and see if some of these bird identifications work – and if you spot an error, tell me! Do not be shy about it.

The images are not great. This beautiful raptor soared for so long in the warm thermals coming off the prairie landscape. She was obviously hunting. She would come down and bank and then go so high she was like a speck of dirt. You wanted to rub the lens of your camera to see if she was real. This is an adult female Northern Harrier. Notice how slim the body is with the long tapered wings and tail.

In the image below she is gliding – holding her wing tips higher than the body. Northern Harriers is one of the easiest members of the hawk family to identify because they glide so close to the ground. They have excellent vision but are known to also hunt by sound

She has soared above the marsh and glided down for a closer look for her prey. In the image below she was banking but also pulling up. You can see that distinct white upper covert.

It was simply mesmerizing watching her hunt and then go back to soaring in the thermals of a beautiful fall day.

Did you know that Northern Harriers were once called Marsh Hawks? In Europe they are often called Hen Hawks. This marsh is a perfect place for our Northern Harrier female to have her nest. She will build it on the ground usually in long grasses or cattails. These hawks line their nest with cattails – and all over the marsh were cattails and other soft prairie grass.

It was quite difficult to actually hear any of the other bird voices (or calls). The Canada Geese were flying overhead, landing on the ponds, and in the fields surround the marsh.

This adult male Yellow Headed Blackbird paid no attention to me. He was foraging for insects, seeds, beetles, on the ground. They apparently also eat dragonflies and there were a lot of those on my walk today. Here he is with his distinctive yellow head and chest with white patches on his black wings. He has a black bill.

There is an understanding that if Yellow-headed Blackbirds are in the same area as Red-winged Blackbirds then the Yellow-heads will be dominant. I do not know if that is the case at Oak Hammock Marsh because the numbers of Red-winged Blackbirds seem to really outnumber the Yellows.

It’s a male Red-winged Blackbird, below. I think it is a juvenile male because the red patch above the yellow is faint. They are covered by thousands of the most beautiful ebony feathers. Their black eye and beak disappear in all the dark plumage.

The Red-winged Blackbirds also have their nests on the ground which they line with dried cattail leaves, reeds, and grasses. The marsh is a perfect place for them to nest, too, with all those cattails!

This Greater Yellowlegs was quite busy foraging in the mud. Because of its streaked neck, this should be a juvenile. The Greater Yellowlegs is larger than the Lesser and has a longer bill with longer legs and noticeable knees. These birds also nest on the ground near water making Oak Hammock Marsh a perfect nesting area.

It looked so small walking along the soft mud of the marsh.

Two female Blue-winged Teals. We have Blue-winged teals throughout our province but they prefer, like so many of these birds, the marshes. Sadly, many marshes have been drained for farming over the past 60 years and then turned into housing estates leaving the Teals to have to adapt to living in ditches and dugout ponds. Their dark beaks are quite wide and flat. The females are a mottled brown.

Aren’t they gorgeous?

A pair of American coots diving and dabbling like ducks in the waters of the marsh today. American Coots can forage for food on land as well. Some people call them ‘Mud Hens.’ They eat insects, worms, tadpoles and fish as well as land and water plants. Their white bill with the black plumage helps to identify them.

As I was leaving, more and more Canada Geese were arriving in their typical ‘V’ formation. The fields were filling up and so were the ponds. It was 15:00. Must go back out closer to dusk! There is something energizing about seeing all of those geese flying in – and the only sound being heard was not the noise of the city but the honk of the goose. Just lovely.

Thank you so much for joining me today. I know that most of my readers live in places around the world far away from Manitoba. Please do check out your local nature centres. There are wonderful surprises awaiting you. Take care everyone. See you soon.