Tag Archives: Ospreys

What’s happening in Bird World?

I don’t know a person watching a nest on a streaming cam that doesn’t get anxious if food is not brought to the nestlings and fledglings on a regular basis. Most of us start doing a bit of nail biting. Today, for example, Malin had 4 feedings. It isn’t as good as five but it is better than nothing! And last Sunday Malin had nothing. We are all hopeful for tomorrow. The weather is cooling off – Malin we are wishing for six fish tomorrow!

Malin 13 August 2021
Malin 13 August 2021 after a feeding

Jake Koebernik of the Wisconsin DNR did a great job answering a lot of questions that some of us have had about Malin’s nest. One was ‘why are the fish that are delivered are so small?’ and the other was ‘why do fish deliveries drop at the weekend?’ This is his answer, “As for the nest at the Collins Marsh NC, the streams and marshes around that territory probably only offer smaller species such as bullhead, bluegills, small bass and northern pike. There aren’t large lakes or real productive rivers in that part of the state, so they are going after what is abundant and available.” Jake’s answers cleared up a lot of the mysteries. —— And tomorrow, when Malin wakes up, Malin will have its official name! Fingers and toes crossed for it to be Malin!!!!!!!

My friend ‘S’ sent a screen shot of a delivery that Telyn made to the Dyfi nest this afternoon. We both agreed that Malin’s eyes would pop out if he saw a fish this big land on the nest at Collins Marsh. That fish is bigger than Blue 491! Wow.

And if you did not hear, Idris had been missing since Wednesday and he was on the nest today, albeit with a completely sunken crop. He brought a nice fish to one of the chicks. Hoping he gets his own fill of fish. Where in the world could he have been? It is worrisome.

Telyn delivered a whopper for 491, Ystwyth who is 82 days old on 14 August

Oh, if only places that have ponds could stock them for the birds. The Pritchett Family in Fort Myers has a stocked pond for Bald Eagles Harriet and M15 and their kids and the water also allows them to cool off and clean their feathers.

We are told by the IPCC that we can expect the droughts and extreme heat to be with us. Since these changes to our climate are known to be directly caused by human activity, maybe it is time to figure out ways to help the wildlife. Providing water and food is a start.

These two little sea eaglets are just adorable and a little spunky, too. They are growing like the sunflowers in my garden that the birds planted.

Both had nice crops after this feeding.

Judy Harrington, the researcher observing the WBSE Nest in the Sydney Olympic Park forest, just released her report on what these two have been eating during the last fortnight (14 days). In fact, it is the first two weeks of their life. Harrington also records the amount of time spent feeding by both the male and the female has been recorded. Lady took on 109 feedings for a total of 21 hours and 20 minutes. Dad did 8 feedings for a total of 42 minutes. Dad has been providing most of the food – he brought in 25 items and Lady brought in 5. These consisted of the following in total: 16 Bream, 4 catfish, 2 fish, 1 Mullet, 2 Whiting, 1 Yellowtail, 1 Ibis chick, 1 nestling, 1 pigeon, and 1 bird. They have now morphed into sea eagles, the second largest bird in Australia.

Sadly, it appears that Lady was hit during the night by Boo, the BooBook Owl that lives nearby in the forest. Despite its very small size the BooBook Owl has caused injuries to the large sea eagles in the past.

It is thought that Boo, as the little owl is so fondly called, has a nest near to the Sea Eagles. To my knowledge, the WBSE have never bothered their nest but, – hey. Every parent is afraid of a larger predator and wants them to leave the area.

“Boobook owl” by jeans_Photos is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Legacy on the Fortis Red Deer Nest has fledged. She has been on and off the nest a few times today. One was to get some fish! Here she is with Mum. After all the nestling deaths during the heat wave, this is just one of the happiest moments from that nest. Look how big Legacy is next to mom. Congratulations.

It is almost impossible to see what is happening on the Fortis Alberta Exshaw nest up at Canmore. Both chicks appear to be on the nest and calling for food. It is unclear to me if one or both have fledged.

The love story of the two Canada Geese has gone viral. It warms our hearts to see these two devoted birds – Amelia finding and waiting for Arnold during his surgery and recovery and now their reuniting. My friend, ‘R’ found two more stories on them and I want to share with you what she sent to me. You could read about these two all day – and you will always walk away with a smile.


https://boston.cbslocal.com/2021/07/15/goose-surgery-visit-mate-new-england-wildlife-center-cape-cod-branch/Female reporter admits to being teary eyed! 

https://whdh.com/news/goose-who-underwent-emergency-surgery-released-back-into-the-wild-to-be-with-his-devoted-mate-on-cape-cod/Shirts for sale: “Honk If you Love Arnold!”

The story of Arnold and Amelia has taught us all something. If you find an injured Canada Goose and are taking it into care, please take the time to find its mate! The outcome might be much more positive. If you live in an area where there are Canada Geese – let your local wildlife rehabber know about the story of Arnold and Amelia. They will understand why it is important to keep bonded mates together (and their goslings if necessary).

And news about Kona. It is nearing 100 F or 38 C on the nest in Montana. The foster mother, Scout, has been shading Kona. Everything is going well with this foster. How grand.

@ Montana Osprey Porject

Leaving you with a gorgeous image of Loch of the Lowes. It just looks so still and peaceful in the early morning hours of 14 August.

And a last peaceful image of Diamond on the ledge of her scrape box on the water tower at Charles Sturt University in Orange, Australia. We will be looking for eggs before the end of the month. Izzi was last in the scrape box of Xavier and Diamond 6 August. He was photographed on 10 August and someone thought they heard him this morning.

Thanks for joining me today. I am off to try and find some hawks tomorrow so this is coming out early. I will bring you some late Saturday news in the evening. Take care. Stay safe! If you hear of interesting bird stories – and in particular, raptors – let me know.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Collins Marsh Nature Centre, Sea Eagle Cam, Birdlife Australia and the Sydney Discovery Centre, Dyfi Osprey Project, Scottish Wildlife Trust and Friends of Loch of the Lowes, Falcon Cam Project at C Sturt University, Fortis Alberta Exshaw and Fortis Alberta Red Deer. Thank you to ‘R’ for sending me the links on the coverage of Arnold and Amelia and to ‘S’ for the information on Telyn and her whopper of a fish delivery. It is much appreciated! Thank you to the Montana Osprey Project FB page for the image of Scout and Kona.

Tiny Little lands 3 fish for the day!

At one time there was fear that Tiny Little Bob, the itsy bitsy third hatch on the Foulshaw Moss Osprey nest would perish.

The top image is from 12 June. You can see how large 462 and 464 are at the time. There is our Tiny Little Bob sitting up looking over them.

This image is from 30 June. Tiny Little Bob has grow but is still shy and waits to eat. At this time, the banders cannot tell if 463 is a male or a female because of the lack of food and growth.

Today is 13 August. It might be hard for some to believe but Tiny Little now controls the nest. She is a big bird – the dominant bird – on the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest. Tiny Little has take three fish today. The first one at 6:08 am, the first fish to land on the nest today. Then she gets the fish at 16:16. And then, she snags the fish and is eating at 19:48. This is quite a change in status for a bird that people thought would die because the others were so large and cruel.

Long time readers know of my interest in the third hatch (or a tiny second that battled with a large first when there was no third). This year alone we have seen Tiny Tot (Tumbles) rise from the near dead several times on the Achieva Osprey Nest to grow into an aggressive survivor. Other researchers have sent me stories about other third hatches who came back strong. If you know of any, please do not write to me.

This is the best news of the day. Thanks for joining me for this very short newsletter. The voting closes at Collins Marsh today for the name of their Osprey. A very kind Wisconsin DNR Biologist has sent me their 2020 report on Bald Eagles and Ospreys. I will report on that tomorrow. And there is one other piece of good news. Idris had been missing on the Dyfi Nest since Wednesday the 11th at 13:16. This morning he showed up with a big fish for one of his fledglings. He had an extremely empty crop. Wonder what happened? This is great news as Telyn would have to delay her migration if he did not show up. A few Osprey adults have gone missing for a couple of days. Are they getting caught in something line line or netting?

Take care everyone!

Thanks to the Cumbrian Wildlife Trust and the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest and the Dyfi Osprey Project for their streaming cam where I took my screen shots.

The Hornbill

There are over 50 different varieties of Hornbill. The one that I want to focus on today is the Rhinoceros Hornbill. It is the State Bird of Malaysia. I became acquainted with these amazing birds during a trip to the Sarawak in East Malaysia many years ago.

The arrow points to Sarawak. The Rhinoceros Hornbill is present also in Sabah as well as Borneo, in yellow.

You could not move through the area around the harbour of Kuching without seeing ‘something’ decorated with the motif of a hornbill – from table cloths, batik wall hangings, phone cases, and old and not-so-old wood carvings. To actually see these highly endangered birds you needed a guide to take you to the jungle areas where local tribes still live in their long houses. There the hornbill was also used as a design for the totems on the poles supporting their roof as well as on many of the art of tattoos.

“Iban? Long House near Kuching” by rosskevin756 is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

The weavers of the area specialize in ikat. Ikat is a type of resist dying. The threads are resist dyed before they are woven. The pattern in the textile below is called the ‘Feather of the Hornbill’.

Old carving of Hornbill, Ironwood. Sarawak Museum, Kuching.

The Rhinoceros Hornbill is depicted in numerous designs in wood carving. The wooden figure above is a Kenyalang. Historically, these carvings were associated with many of the tribes in Sarawak, Sabah, and Borneo. For the Iban, the figure is an essential part of a celebration called the Gawai Kenyalang. Its role was as a messenger. It called upon the spirit world to give courage to the warriors who went out headhunting. The carvings are still made today and they are still important for the various tribal communities. Head hunting ended in the 20th century and most of the carvings are considered cultural icons.

The Rhinoceros Hornbill is a large bird, 80 to 90 cm (31–35 in) long. The males are larger than the females. The birds are covered with black feathers except for the white tail that has a single black band. Their legs are white. The Hornbill is most notable for its colourful bill which is huge. In fact, that orange and red bill is what gave the bird its name. The Hornbill uses this lightweight beak to gather its food, build its nests, seal the nest, and feed the chicks. The structure on top of the bill is called a casque. It is hollow and its function is to amplify the call of the birds. The eyes of the male are red with black rims while those of the female are white with a red rim like the one below.

“Rhinoceros Hornbill” by shankar s. is licensed under CC BY 2.0

In comparison, this is an image of the male so that you can see the difference in their eye colour. It is the easiest way to recognize each of the genders.

“Rhinoceros Hornbill” by Steve Wilson – over 10 million views Thanks !! is licensed under CC BY 2.0

The Hornbills are very unique in their nesting habits. They are cavity nesters but with a twist. When the female is ready to lay her 1-3 eggs, she will locate a cavity in a tree trunk (or sometimes a rock formation) to make her nest. Once made she helps her bonded-for-life mate seal her into the cavity with mud. The only opening is a small oval hole where the male feeds the female during her confinement that lasts 50 days. He also feeds the nestlings. This arrangement is very practical. It helps protect the nest from any type of predator including lizards and snakes. Ninety days after the chicks hatch, the female will break open the mud covering to the nest.

The Rhinoceros Hornbill is listed as vulnerable. One of the biggest threats to its existence is the loss of the rainforest where it lives and builds its nest. It is also hunted for food as well as for items that are believed to give men virility including the feathers and the skull. The large trees that occupied the forested areas of Borneo are being cut down at an alarming rate. When I was there the wood was being shipped to China on those huge boats. It was overwhelming to see the forest being obliterated.

“Rhinoceros Hornbill (Buceros rhinoceros)” by Mark Louis Benedict is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

In other news, Tiny Little Bob or Blue 463 nabbed the first fish of the morning on the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest in Cumbria. Tiny Little was busy eating it while sibling 462 waited on the nest. Tiny Little is off to a great start to the day! Go Tiny Little!

Karl II arrived at 8:10 to feed the three fledglings on the Black Stork nest in Estonia. The fledglings were incredible.

The glare of the sun on the camera creates a strong glow so you can’t see clearly what is going on. Karl arrives on the right and feeds the hungry storklings quickly. The nest is in the Karula National Park in Estonia.

One of the Storklings on the Siguldas Black Stork nest in Latvia has decided to get up close and personal with the camera and its supports while it waits for Grafs or Grafiene to bring them their breakfast.

The good news at the Peregrine Falcon Nest in the scrape box on the grounds of Charles Sturt University in Orange, Australia is that Izzi – cute little Izzi – has not been in the scrape box for six days. He has been heard but he has not gone in after several altercations with Xavier. Diamond, Izzi’s mother, is expected to lay her eggs by the end of August. Here is Diamond looking out over her territory.

Also in Australia, the two little sea eaglets, 27 and 28, are just cute. They are really growing. Dad brought in a life fish and was going to feed them today. Lady flew in and stepped on the fish before it could flop all over the chicks. Then she took over the feeding. Both ate well but 27 had an enormous crop.

It continues to be as good a day as it can be in Bird World. The juvenile Ospreys are eating and eating preparing to being their migration. For some of the UK nests the average number of days is around 90 hatch days old for fledging. We will be keeping our eyes open to see who is leaving.

Thank you so much for joining me. Have a wonderful Friday everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: WBSE Sea Eagle Cam, Birdlife Australia and the Discovery Centre, Cumbrian Wildlife Trust and the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest, Falconcam Osprey Project, C Sturt University and Cilla Kinross, the Eagle Club of Estonia, and the Latvian Fund for Nature.

Uplifting stories in Bird World

A lady in Manitoba is trying to figure out if anyone has ever seen what is happening at her house. Keely calls it a ‘strange domestic situation’. The nest has 3 robin chicks. The couple taking are of them are a Robin and a Sparrow. Both of the birds sit on the nest, feed the chicks, clean up the nestlings pop sacs, as well as standing guard. The couple often sit next to one another on the telephone line. Keely finds it fascinating. Have you ever seen such an adoption?

The little sparrow’s head almost fits into the mouth of the Robin nestling when he comes to feed it.

The proud couple!

In Montana, there has been a second life given to an Osprey chick. Ospreys are known to be very good foster parents. The researchers at the Montana Osprey Project have been busy. They are trying something very complicated called cross-fostering.

Yesterday they found a second chick that was found tangled in baling twine at the Steinbrenner’s House. It was an only chick. If they removed it to care the parents might leave for their migration. At the same time, the original chick that was taken to care for baling twine entanglement was ready to go back to its nest. That chick’s name was Kona. But its older sibling had fledged and the parents weren’t at the nest much.

So Kona was put in the nest at the Steinbrenner’s house. The plan is to keep the parent’s busy taking care of Kona until their chick is out of rehab in a week or so. Then they will have two chicks to look after.

So how did it work? Kona was placed in the Steinbrenner nest and she begin flapping and wingersizing. At the same time, the person with the Montana Osprey Project put two trout in the nest with her.

Kona with her two gift trout in the Steinbrenner House nest. @ Montana Osprey FB Page

The female landed on the nest and there was no aggression spotted. The female took one of the trout and flew to eat it. Kona began eating the other trout. Meanwhile, the male arrived with a fish which, when seeing everyone eating, he took off to eat himself. The female went back to the nest and both her and Kona are eating on the fish. Another great intervention to help the birds. Smile. It is fantastic! The latest news is that all is well.

Those stories just make you feel really good!

Other Nest News. If you are needing to see some Bald Eagles, Harriet and M15 are back hanging out at the SWFlorida Bald Eagle Nest on the Pritchett Property in Fort Myers. Samson was seen on the NE Florida Bald Eagle nest and that streaming cam is up and running after its annual maintenance. The Collins Marsh Osprey is looking good.


The Achieva Osprey nest has had an adult visitor today. Rumours have it that it could be Jack, the female, just checking on his territory. Blue 463 otherwise known as Tiny Little Tot on the Foulshaw Moss Nest has become the dominant bird on the nest – wow. A mighty third hatch. She was there today waiting for a fish delivery and looking good.

Zenit continues to grow and stay close to the nest for prey deliveries. This Golden Eagle juvenile has really grown! The Asociata Wild Bucovina that sponsors this nest have received enough donations to have two cameras operating next season. Congratulations to them.

It has been a really uplifting day in Bird World. Thank you so much for joining me. Take care.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Asociata Wild Bucovina, Cumbria Wildlife Trust and Foulshaw Moss Osprey Cam, and the Collins Marsh Osprey Nest Cam. Thanks also to Keely on the Manitoba Birding & Photography FB Group for allowing us to share her story and to the Montana Osprey Project FB Page.

Oriental Storks survive fire

The number of wildfires burning during the summer of 2021 has boosted concern for the birds and wildlife being impacted. For the past three days there has been constant reporting in Europe on the state of migrating storks passing over Greece. They are dying or, if not dead, being taken into care for smoke inhalation. It is tragic. In Canada and the Pacific Northwest, nestlings died during the heat wave at the end of May that triggered a number of fires. Some Coopers hawks in that region began jumping out of their nests when temperatures reached almost 50 degrees C.

When an area begins to burn, most of the birds will fly away from the fire to a nearby safe spot. Not all birds can fly – nestlings will be killed. Smoke inhalation may cause long term damage to the lungs of the birds and, as we have seen in 2020 in the SW United States and now in Greece, fires impact birds that are migrating. The fires and smoke can kill them. Indeed, there have been so many fires in recent years that it is difficult not to remember specific birds that have been impacted. Anyone watching Iniko as the forest around his Redwood nest burned during the Dolan Fire will understand the problem as well as those who saw the koalas caught in the fires in Australia. Birds and animals get displaced during fires and while the forests will grow and again provide shelter and food, it is the immediate impact – loss of nests and nestlings, the heat, death or smoke damaging lungs that is so horrific. No one appears to know the long term impact of smoke inhalation on birds.

On the 13th of May 2019 a male Far Eastern Stork saved his five storklings in Siberia. It made news around the world. Humans started the fire. The lesson the video teachs us is that artificial bird nests should be made out of materials that will survive wildfires. I wonder how high they should be to afford the benefit that the nest below does to Father Stork and his five babies.

Each of you has seen the storks in Europe who love to be around humans. They roost and make their nest on the homes of humans and sometimes, even are cared for by humans. The Far Eastern or Oriental Stork, Ciconia boyciana) does not like to be around humans. It will make its nest as far away from us as it can. Sometimes on the outskirts of forest areas, near lakes and marshes so it can feed its young.

The Oriental Stork is larger than the European White stork. Normally weighing 2.8 to 5.9 kg (or 6.2 to 13 lbs). It has a wingspan of 2.2 metres (7.3 ft). You can immediately tell the difference between a European White Stork and an Oriental stork by the red skin around the eye of the Oriental Stork, the whitish iris and its black bill.

“Oriental Stork” by ltshears is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

The Far Eastern or Oriental stork is is extremely rare. It used to live in Russia, areas of China, and in Japan and Korea. Today, it is found only in the eastern areas of Russia where 95% breeds in the Amur-Heilong river area. It winters on Yangtze River in China. The other small percentage of birds breed in the Northeast of China. There is good reason for the stork not to trust humans. It was poached, it was shot, and it was killed by herbicide use.

“東方白鸛 (Ciconia boyciana#Oriental Stork)” by Lin Sun-Fong is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Here is a time lapse image of our hero’s nest from wee storklings to fledge. It is very short. Have a look at those babies fly off! They are gorgeous.

This morning was a great one. It looks like the little Osprey on the Collins Marsh nest in Wisconsin had a nice crop! Malin woke up and found an old fish tail and ate it – oh, this chick reminds me so much of Tiny Tot at the Achieva Nest. Then Dad flew in with either a small fish or ? . It appeared Malin ate it all and then Mom flew in and fed Malin some more fish. An hour of so later, Dad flew in with another fish for Malin to self-feed. Gosh. Malin with a crop! It is rare like the Far Eastern or Oriental Stork. So happy!

And then Dad flew in with another fish. Fantastic. What a great beginning of the day. It is not even noon yet on the nest. Dad looks like he has a good crop, too.

My friend ‘S’ from Hawaii gave me a gift last night. She didn’t realize how special it was. She sent me the link to a documentary on YouTube. It is the story of a young man who decades later returns in his 60s to document the Philippine Eagles. The scenery in the forests of the Philippines is gorgeous as are the other animals that live there. So instead of a Netflix moment next time, why not check this out? The Cornell Bird Lab helped with the production. Here is the link to the trailer:

To watch the full movie, go to “Birds of Prey Philippine Eagle full movie” on YouTube. They will not allow me to embed the link to the full length movie on this blog.

There is another 25 minute documentary on the Philippine Eagle here:

Check out those amazing birds!

All of the birds seem to be doing what they always do! Tiny Little is on the Foulshaw Moss Nest wanting prey. She is now the most dominant bird on that nest. Another great third hatch. So far our worries are only with the Storks leaving for their migration who are passing over Greece. Voting continues at the Collins Marsh nest for the chick that a group of us have been calling Malin meaning ‘little warrior’. There is still time to vote. Head over to the Neustadter Nature Centre FB page and the second posting. You will see the names. Add your choice of a name in the comments. Don’t like, write the name in. So far, Malin is leading the pack of votes but, not by much. The sea eagles are fine and Dad’s injuries are looking good.

Thank you for joining me this morning. Take care. See you soon.

Thank you to the Collins Marsh Osprey Cam where I took my screen shots and to ‘S’ who sent me the link to Birds of Prey.

Featured image is the Philippine Eagle. Here is the credit to the person who took this beautiful image: “Philippine Eagle” by billydl is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Feedings and fires…Storks fall from the sky over Athens

Today is a gorgeous day on the Canadian prairies. The rains helped to contain or put out many of the wild fires in our province and this morning, for a second day, we woke up to blue skies and white clouds! All of the plants are a vibrant green and the birds continue to sing. There was not enough to fill the dry creeks but the downpours we did get are a reminder of how much all life depends on water. The nestlings and fledglings would add ‘food’ to that list!

There is a constant worry that some of the late hatches are seeing dwindling food deliveries and that the parents might leave for their migration with young still on the nest. My friend, ‘S’ is concerned, as are many others, for the nestlings on two Black Stork nests – one in Latvia and the other in Estonia. Some others worry about the little osprey on the Collins Marsh Nature Centre nest that we have been calling ‘Malin’. (The official contest is underway for the official name).

Malin self-feeds from small Bullhead. 11 August 2021

Malin was receiving 5 feedings on occasion. Those were good days. The chick has not been fed well by the standards of other nests. This past Sunday, 8 August, Malin had no food. Yesterday, 10 August, he had two feedings. Today, there have already been 2 – one at 9:35 and the other around 11:42. Always these are small whole fish or pieces of fish. I have not seen a whopper on this nest.

Malin is hungry and several of us are trying to ascertain if the fish are ‘fished out’ or if the Dad has another nest – it really is unclear. A report by the Wisconsin DNR on the number of Bald Eagle and Osprey nests in the state indicate a drop of Ospreys in area 3, where the Collins Marsh nest is located, by -25.2%. While every other area saw an increase in Ospreys, Collins Marsh was only one of two that showed a decline. Does all of this reflect a growth in Bald Eagle Nests in the area? If you would like to read the report from 2019 (I have not found one for 2020), I am attaching a copy. A big shout out to ‘S’ who found this and sent it to me. Thank you.

wisconsin-2019eagleospreysurveysDownload

The feedings for the nestlings of Grafs and Grafiene at the Sigulda Nest show a similar up and down pattern to that at Collins Marsh. However, there has not been a day without food to my knowledge at Sigulda.

‘S’ reports that on 9 August, the storklings had four feedings – which is considered low – but yesterday, they had only two. Today, there have been 2 deliveries by the female, Grafiene, and one by the male, Grafs. Grafiene is also like the female at the Collins Marsh nest, Marsha, who leaves for periods up to 24 hours at a time. The behaviour of these two females is very curious.

It is hoped that there is time for both the Black Storklings and the Osprey to fledge. ‘S’ advises that the minimum is ten days for the storklings. The Ospreys tend to migrate at the end of August or beginning of September in Wisconsin.

Malin is not ready to fledge. It is very worrisome for many reasons. I look at the development and growth of the Osprey fledglings in the UK and then compare this with Malin. Those in the UK have fully developed feathering and have really perfected their flying skills. They are self-feed with ease. Most have been fledged for a month. Will Malin have a month to further develop his body and skills? Will the storklings? The nest that is on the branch of the pine tree in the forest near Sigulda is so very narrow and has collapsed in the past. Will the hopping and flapping cause the little ones to fall?

The storklings are so excited when a parent arrives with fish that it does make you wonder if the could make the branch nest collapse. Grafiene covered the nest with little fish around 17:20. There was lots of food for each of the nestlings.

The storklings were eating and eating and had large crops. I wonder if a parent will bring another delivery before night?

I am including the link to the Black Stork Nest in Sigulda County, Latvia. If you wish to find the chat room or forum (with lots of information) please check the information under the streaming cam.

In Alaska, Kindness is not short of food. She has gone some days with few deliveries and other days, Dad not only leaves her food for self-feeding but today, he fed his baby girl. Dad just can’t help himself. He has an enormous soft spot for Kindness. The image below of Dad feeding Kindness is right after he had delivered prey 20 minutes earlier! Oh, Kindness, how lucky you are.

Did you know that Bald Eagles have a polarizing lens that helps them see fish in muddy waters? (Just like those who fish often wear Polarizing sunglasses.) That said Bald Eagles normally only feed in the top 15 cm or 6 inches. Their bare legs are designed to only go into the water 15 cm or 6 inches. Like the Ospreys and Sea Eagles, if they had feathered legs, they would get water logged.

You can watch Kindness here. The moderator on the camera chat is reminding everyone today that Kindness is 76 days old today. She is already flapping and jumping. The average act for fledge on this nest – not the whole of Alaska – is 89 days. (The whole of Alaska is 80 days). If she behaves like the other eaglets on this nest, you should be able to watch her until mid-September. Here is the link to that camera:

The White-Bellied Sea Eagle, Lady is feeding 27 and 28. Those little ones continue to look like white fluff balls but if you look carefully, their necks and wings are getting longer and there is a hint of ‘dark plumage’ underneath that natal down. The WBSE nest had a fright a few days ago. Dad showed up on the nest with a laceration on his leg and a cut near his throat that was bleeding. That seems to have subsided and Dad is busy catching fish for the family. (I am wondering about the small amount of salt water in the Parramatta River and its healing effects on Dad’s foot.)

27 and 28 do bonk but not much anymore. Some of the time it is instigated by the ‘little one’! They really are a good match for one another and unlike past years, viewers are remarking that they are really enjoying seeing the nest this year.

The egg tooth is disappearing as their beaks grow longer.

If you wish to watch then, here is the link to the cam:

There is some troubling news coming out in Bird World. ‘S’ informs me that the storks crossing over Greece where the wildfires are raging are being injured in large numbers as they migrate to Africa on the eastern routing. Various news agencies are reporting that people in Athens have been picking up dead storks off their lawns. This is more than sad. Here is a short news report by Reuters. I hope you can open it.

https://www.livetube.tv/news/video-greek-wildfires-are-causing-sky-high-danger-for-storks

Here is a news article on the plight of these poor birds.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/8/9/disoriented-by-wildfires-migrating-storks-die-crossing-greece

A second is the number of raptors going into care. In the United States, there is an all out assault on plant life. Various levels of government are asking for and receiving permission to undertake ‘aquatic treatments’ using either Tribune or Harpoon. These are chemical herbicides and they poison birds!!!! At the moment, A Place Called Hope, has raptors in its care because of these treatments.

In Jacksonville, crews have been up doing maintenance on the NE Florida Bald Eagle cam. The presence of humans on ‘his’ nest brought Samson out from the trees and onto the nest yesterday. Wow. What a wonderful treat. Samson remains in the area and does not migrate while Gabby leaves early to travel north to cooler weather. Ironically – and sadly – this year it has been as hot in Ithaca, New York as it has been in Florida.

All three of the fledglings at the Foulshaw Moss Osprey nest were present yesterday. Poor White YW. Tiny Little Bob almost ripped his leg off trying to get at a fish delivery. Tiny Little! To steady himself, White YW had to put his talon on Tiny Little’s head. Gracious. It ended OK – no bird was injured.

For some reason all of the fledglings have been coming to the nest for fish. One will get the fish from dad, one will stalk that sibling, then they will get it and then White YW will arrive with another fish and confuse the entire situation. It is really quite hilarious. The fledglings are as big (or bigger) than Dad! You can watch them here:

https://www.cumbriawildlifetrust.org.uk/wildlife/cams/osprey-cam

Oh, wow. Tiny Little just snagged a fish from sibling 462. Fantastic.

Tiny Little is a ‘scrapper’ just like Tiny Tot. They both learned ‘street smarts’ to survive. Well done, Tiny Little! It was not that long ago that Tiny Little was shy. Her aggression will help keep her alive in the future.

News Flash. The female companion of Bucacek on the Mlade Buky White Stork nest in Czechoslovakia has been named Marketa.

Everyone reading my newsletter loves birds and animals or you wouldn’t be here. I was sent a delightful story – a view of rewilding through the eyes of a deer. Since we have so many deer in our city that have been displaced for ever more condominiums and roads, it really struck home to me. Perhaps you would enjoy reading it, too. Here is the link to ‘Rewilding is a Two Way Street. A letter from your neighborhood deer’.

https://www.hcn.org/articles/essay-wildlife-rewilding-is-a-two-way-street/print_view

Whew. That was a long newsletter. Sorry. Thank you so much for joining me. Send warm wishes to all the birds – for food and for the storks to survive as they travel from northern Europe to Africa. Take care everyone.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Collins Marsh Nature Reserve, Glacier Gardens Park in Juneau, Latvian Fund for Nature, WBSE Sea Eagle Nest, Birdlife Australia, and the Discovery Centre, Cumbrian Wildlife Trust and the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest.

3 Cheers for Tiny Little Bob!

White YW delivered the tea time fish – a nice large one – to the Foulshaw Moss Osprey nest in Cumbria. Blue 462 nabbed it first and then guess who pinches it off big sibling! Tiny Little!

Big Sibling 464 on the left and 462 on the right – all waiting for Tiny Little to make a wrong move with that nice fish. Go away both of you!!!!!

Then 462 got it back!

The first round both 462 and 463 struggled with the mouth and eye area. Wonder who is going to get that fish when it is nicely opened.

Ah, White YW cannot stand to hear one of his fledglings call for food. He promptly went out and got another one. Blue 464 got that one. It was such a nice fish that 464 was eating on it an hour later. Tiny Little flew off the nest probably chasing Dad. No one should be worried thought. Tiny Little had a nice crop prior to snagging that fish off 462. None of these chicks are hungry!

Blue 464 is enjoying his nice big fish – alone! No one is around sniffing for some pieces.

Good Night Foulshaw Moss Ospreys!

In Wisconsin, Malin is busy self-feeding on a piece of a fish that Dad delivered. What captivates me today are the wing feathers. They are looking so good. There is a condensation mark but if you look to the right that one dangling feather from earlier in the month is now ‘crossing over’ the way that it should. The other wing feather scallops are lined up perfectly. Oh, Malin, you are growing up!

The nests are so big and every streaming cam distorts the images (or so it seems). It is difficult to try and determine how big Malin actually is.

There is no time code on the Collins Marsh camera. I believe that there was another delivery by Collins to Malin – this time another piece of a fish. That is really helpful for Malin to work on its self-feeding and not get caught up with the bony mouths and eyes. Eventually Malin will need to do that. Right now one of the wonderful things is Malin’s anticipation of the food drop and his excitement and mantling on its arrival.

In the imager below, Malin sees Collins flying into the nest. Look at his eyes. He has also dropped his wings in anticipation of mantling that fish.

Malin pivots. Wings stretched down and out for mantling with beak forward to grab the fish from Collins’s talons.

Get out of the way Collins! Malin has secured the food.

Ah. Over. I notice also that Collins’s crop is nicely full. He has eaten the head and perhaps part of the fish before the delivery.

These two food drops for Malin to self-feed come after the aggressive manner that Malin approached the fish yesterday with Marsha. We are moving on to the next phase: no more feedings by mom? Let’s watch and see.

Is this the tail of a little Bullhead?

It is a beautiful day on the Canadian Prairies. For the first time in ever so long we can see blue sky, not sky filled with smoke. It is 21 degrees C. That is 69.8 F. Just lovely for a trip to the one of our local parks.

It was a delight to walk up to the duck pond and discover that our Parks Department has put up signs to educate people on why they should not feed the ducks bread. Last year the local birding group had a big campaign to get this practice stopped. Today, the signs are up. They are large and prominently placed at strategic entrances and exits. No one was feeding the ducks, they were just enjoying them! Well done Parks Department!!!!!!

Thanks to the recent rains many of the geese were out on the fields where people play soccer or cricket eating green grass.

A male juvenile Mallard enjoying the water fountain at the rocks.

There was real discussion on the identification of the duck above and the one below. The discussion ended when the little duck below showed us her feeding behaviour. She is a dabbler so she is a female Mallard – not a female Blue Winged-teal.

Mallards come to Manitoba to breed. They arrive in the spring and leave in the fall. Here the little female is mottled brown with a whitish tail, and orange feet.

When feeding, she tips up and dabbles in the shallow waters of the duck pond for pondweeds and aquatic invertebrates. They also feed on larval amphibians and fish eggs.

The female Wood Duck and her ducklings. You can tell the Wood Duck by its white tear-eyed eye patch. Her breast is a mottled brown and white.

Wood Ducks are migratory birds in Manitoba. They arrive in the spring, normally April, and will head south in October. They are cavity nesters. They will lay their eggs in a tree cavity or specially built enclosed wood boxes. The ducklings are ready to bounce from the nest when they are 24 hours old. Precocial animals and birds hatch/born with all their feathers, skin, etc. and are able to see, hear, and move about.

The little Wood Duck and her ducklings mingled with the Canada Geese. Only once did I see a goose get aggressive towards one of the little ones.

Malin’s initial feather issues have caused me to spend more time looking at the back and wings of birds than I ever would have thought possible. Each individual feather is simply beautiful – taken together they are like a wonderful musical symphony – each performing their own task to help this Canada goose swim, walk, and fly.

The tail and wing feathers of a non-breeding male Mallard.

As we were leaving, a Juvenile Bald Eagle was soaring above us.

Then the Northern Goshawk beats its large wings. The Northern Goshawk lives in Manitoba all year round except for the southern part where they can be seen only in the summer or in the winter if food supplies in the North fall.

It was a good day! The skies are turning grey and the wind is picking up a little and maybe, just maybe, we will have some more rain. Wishing and hoping.

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

Thanks to the following for their streaming cams where I grab my screen shots: the Cumbrian Wildlife Trust and the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest and the Collins Marsh Osprey Nest.

Oh, Malin!

The Collins Marsh Osprey chick is due to get an official name. Suggested names have been turned in and voting should begin tomorrow for the name. Please go to the Neustadter Nature Center FB page and cast your vote. Here is the link to that FB page. Be patient if the names are not up on Tuesday. However, check back often because the voting will be open for only a short time.

https://www.facebook.com/Neustadter-Nature-Center-at-Collins-Marsh-140052786074932

Since ‘S’ came up with the name Malin meaning “little warrior”, everyone from the Achieva Osprey chat group has called this little one ‘Malin.’ It is difficult to let a name go once it imprints itself in one’s mind. My children could not say ‘Granny’ when they were talking about my grandmother, they said ‘Candy.’ And so, in her 80s, that is what she was called for the rest of her life – not only by my children but, by everyone. And so, it might well be the same for Malin.

Malin’s parents are Collins and Marsha – named after Collins Marsh. Malin hatched on approximately 16 June making him 55 days old today.* That means Malin is one day shy of his 8-week hatch birthday.

Sometimes fish deliveries are good and some times they are abysmal. Malin had no food from early evening Saturday until Monday morning. There were two deliveries Monday morning. It was the third delivery that roused my interest. I have taped several short segments of that feeding. It is better if you watch the one-minute clips than my trying to describe them. Pay close attention to Malin’s behaviour. The fish arrived around 6:43 pm (there is no time on the streaming cam).

Act 1: Fish Delivery

Act 2. Malin is ravenous.

Act 3. Malin wants every morsel of fish!

Act 4: Malin and Mom finish off the fish.

After Malin finishes eating, s/he is so energized. She begins flapping her wings. Watch out Mom!

According to Alan Poole, the female Osprey loses between 10-15% of their body weight during the nestling period. Only when a piece of food is too large or when the chick/s stop food calling will she take bites for herself. He says, “It seems likely that the female parents are hungry much of the time they are raising young, especially as the young get older and take more food.” Certainly that is what we are seeing on the Collins Marsh nest today.

In terms of growth, Osprey chicks triple their body weight during their first 8 days after hatching. They will double this, on average, in the next four days. From 15 to 30 days after hatch, the Osprey nestlings “gain an average of forty grams or .09 lbs, about 2-3% of their body weight, every day,” says Poole. At the end of the 30 days, Osprey chicks will be 70-80% of their adult weight. On average, the Osprey nestling will take its first flight between 50 and 60 days. There are two exceptions to that timing: if the bird hatched on a non-migratory nest or if the chick had less food.

Malin is definitely in a migratory nest but, Malin is behind in development because of a lack of food. Precisely how far behind is unclear. Still, growth is clearly evident. Today there were four distinct dark bands on the tail with a 5th peeking through. The feathers are coming in nicely but they are not fully formed. Roy Dennis says that the full set of juvenile feathers should have grown in at 6 weeks. Malin, at 8 weeks, is still working on his.

Malin is clearly not ready to take his first flight. He is beginning to exercise his wings. Fledglings normally remain on the nest for at least a month after their first flight. This time helps them hone their flying skills. During this period, the male parent provides the fish. Fledglings do not normally catch their first fish until they begin migration – that said there are always exceptions to the rule. Migration for the Wisconsin Ospreys normally begins around the end of August or the beginning of September. Let us all wish that Malin is fed and afforded the time to perfect his flying before he has to leave the nest for his journey south.

There is really positive news coming out of Hawaii that I want to share with you. The Kauai Island Utility Cooperative is installing glow-in-the-dark diverters on electricity lines to try and stop seabirds that fly at night from crashing into the lines. By the end of 2021, the utility company expects to have installed 773 power line spans to help protect the Hawaiian Petrel, Newell’s Shearwater, and the Band-rumped Storm Petrel. Already Hawaii has banned the release of helium balloons.

“Hawaiian petrel chick in its burrow. Photo credit: Andre Raine/Kaua’i Endangered Seabird Recovery Project” by USFWS Pacific is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0
“Band-rumped Storm-Petrel” by JulioM. is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

It has been a good day. Thunder woke me up early on Monday and we had some nice downpours. Then the heavy rain changed to showers. Now the thunder and the pouring rain have started again. Every blade of grass has turned emerald green, the bushes and trees have all perked up, and the birds sang as loud as they could at dusk. It is simply wonderful!

Thank you so much for joining me. Everyone take care. See you soon.

Thanks go out to the Collins Marsh Nature Centre for their Osprey streaming cam where I took my video clips. A big thank you to ‘S’ who alerted me to the actions of the utility company on Kauai to divert night flying sea birds away from their power lines.

Streaming cams need emergency contact information!

Live-Streaming Wildlife cams need to post emergency contact information. That is the minimum that should be on their site and it should appear clearly at the top so when an incident occurs, help can be summoned quickly. Saving minutes can be crucial to saving the bird or animal.

This past July the need for quick action happened when the second Osprey to be re-nested on the Patuxent Osprey Cam 2 fell off the nest into the water. Immediately people on the chat, who heard the splash, set about trying to get in touch with someone to help. The problem was the “time” of the event. The office for Patuxent River Park had just closed for the weekend. Individuals from as far away as Hawaii began calling the various wildlife agencies in Maryland to get help for the chick. Luckily someone knew to contact Katherine Dami who rushed out and with her significant other were able to get the chick back in the nest. The chick was saved and Katherine said they were lucky that the tide had not come in! The Park has since posted an e-mail contact which Katherine told me is monitored by staff.

Since this incident, several others have come to my attention. One of the most touching is of a White-tailed Eaglet at its nest in the Kurzeme Region of Latvia. ‘R’ who was so kind to send me the detailed information said that this rescue, despite being three years ago, remains clear in her mind.

Here is a video of the eaglet falling out of the nest at 6:37 am 22 June 2018. The eaglet’s name was Knips and its parents are Cilla, the female, and Osis, the male. The sibling in the nest with Knips is Bossa.

As you watch, I want you to imagine that this could be any other nest. Would you want an emergency number at the very top so you can see it to call immediately?

Bossa comes near to Knips. Perhaps Bossa is wanting a bone or a piece of prey. Knips slips over the edge of the nest. This is witnessed on a live streaming cam. You see this. What do you do? What can you do if there is no urgent contact information? no active chat? a chat but no moderator?

It is very fortunate that the chat for the nests cared for by the Latvian Fund for Nature are monitored. This is very important. Many chat rooms are not monitored and there is no emergency information for the nest if something happens. The local vet, Janis Kuze, was contacted immediately. Lucky for Knips, he contacted and drove Ugis Bergmanis, Senior Latvian Environmental Expert and a renowned European eagle expert, to the nest site. Within two hours, Knips was in care at Bergmanis’s rehabilitation centre which is located near to this nest site. Just as heart warming was the response to the call for fish to feed Knips – more than 20 kilos arrived immediately. How generous.

My contact, ‘R’, says: “It helps that there are in fact two forums (the Estonian Looduskalender and the Latvian Dabasdati) associated to the Baltic nests
and there are active chats and via the forum every member can contact someone who knows how to contact a responsible. And the helpful people are numerous and dedicated.”

Here is the image of Knips being released. What a joyful day for everyone this must have been. It certainly brings little tears to my eyes.

Knips and ‘Silo Chick’ are not the only birds ever to fall out of a nest. Each of you reading this might have a story or two, maybe more. It is horrifying watching something unfold like this. One gets quite anxious if they want to help and do not know how.

As you can also see from above, the active chats at both Putaxent and the White Tail Eagle Cam in Latvia are the front line of what I will call “immediate nest knowledge.” Chatters love the birds. They care for them as if they were their own family. It is essential for the health of the birds and animals on these live streaming cams that an easy-to-locate emergency number be provided if there is no moderator or responsible party on the chat 24/7. That number can be the local wildlife rehabilitation officer if they have a 24 hour emergency line – but that number needs to be the individual who will be responsible for getting help for the birds or animals.

There are other aspects of wildlife streaming cams that make the experience of watching more pleasurable. Information about the birds and their history help people care – and some, like me, love data. I want to know the history of the couple, the dates the eggs were laid, and the hatch dates. I would like a link to a full biography of the birds and a full history. Active FB groups help with individuals contacting one another if something happens on the nest. A reader noticed something not right in a nest and realized that an individual on the FB group lived nearby. They were contacted and able to assist the event to a happy ending. Every connection counts! The community of animal and bird watchers and lovers is about sharing information and observations, discovering new birds or animals – knowledge and educational sharing – as well as helping the animals and birds that need our help. As ‘S’ said to me, “letting our voices be known to change the world of birds and other animals for the better.”

So if you know a steaming cam or a FB group get involved. Help them make their streaming cam site “user friendly” in case of an emergency while, at the same time, adding current and historical information for educational purposes. Thanks!

In other news, the Collins Marsh chick that we have been calling ‘Malin’ will be getting an official name. To add a name suggestion please go to the Neustadter Nature Centre at Collins Marsh FB page (you don’t have to be a member of their group) and add your suggestion in the comments. Scroll down a little to get to the topic. You do not have to support ‘Malin’ but if you do – it means ‘little warrior’ and he certainly is going to have to be one.

Malin went without food all day Sunday. This morning a small fish was delivered and he practically sucked it up he was so hungry. I hope that Collins and Marsha will get out fishing and bring some more on to the nest for Malin. Thanks, ‘S’ for digging deep to find the names of these parents!

Do any of my readers live in this area of Wisconsin? I notice that there is a trend of little food during the weekend. Is there a reason for this? Are the rivers and lakes full of people and boats?

This was the first feeding today for Malin.

A second fish came in just a few minutes ago – around 3:05pm nest time. Malin could hardly contain herself.

This is great behaviour – the mantling. Since Malin is the only chick on the nest she has to learn to protect her fish!

On another topic, please look at how well these feathers are developing on this little one. There is an angel watching over this wee osprey.

Mom is getting the message – Malin is hungry!

According to ‘S’, Malin sucked that fish up in 8 minutes!

Our “Not so Tiny Little” on the Foulshaw Moss Osprey nest was waiting for White YW to deliver one of his whopper’s this afternoon.

Tiny Tot on the Achieva Nest became one of the most elegant Ospreys that I had ever seen. Tiny Little is becoming more gorgeous as each day passes. My heart still skips a beat when I think of these two – they thrived! Against the odds. It is a good lesson for all of us to never give up.

Thank you so much for joining on a day when it poured rain and is now lightly raining on the Canadian prairies. It is so wonderful – I don’t care if every joint in my body aches. Take care all, see you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Collins Marsh Osprey Cam, Cumbrian Wildlife Trust and the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest, and the Latvian Fund for Nature. I want to thank ‘R’ for the information about the rescue of Knips, for the links to the videos, and the images – what a wonderful rescue of that little white tail eaglet by the community. I also want to thank ‘S’ for her fabulous sleuthing.

Pair Bonding

The term ‘Pair bonding’ was first used in the 1940s. In terms of birds, it refers to a long-lasting relationship that results in breeding, care of one another, the nestlings and fledglings.

Pair bonding is “reinforced by ritual behaviour.” That is a very simple definition. A good example of on going pair bonding, is the ‘Morning Duet’ of Lady and Dad on the White Bellied Sea Eagle nest in Sydney, Australia. In fact, the rituals associated with pair bonding often occur at various intervals as a means of reinforcing the relationship not just before breeding.

This is Lady and Dad doing their duet together.

Pair bonding rituals also take place as many ‘bird couples’ prepare to begin their long migration. Working on nests is also happening, preening one another is on the rise. It reminds me of certain war movies where the couples seal their relationship as the male heads off to the field of battle – that sealing often consisting of an engagement ring or a promise to wait for the other. It is precisely the same with our birds. In this instance, both will migrate and each will hope that the other returns to the nest in the spring to renew their bond.

Aran has undertaken any number of sky dances with fish deliveries for Mrs G this week at their nest in the Glaslyn Valley.

Blue 022 and CJ7 continue to work on a nest in the midst of sky diving, fish deliveries, and mating. Sadly, they have chosen one of the Poole Harbour nests that doesn’t have a camera! Still, it is wonderful that they have remained together since spring and that brings promise to everyone that osprey chicks will hatch in Poole Harbour once again.

This evening, my friend, ‘R’ sent me the links to the two short videos below. It seems that Bukacek, the single father White Stork, in Mlade Buky and his new love, are sealing ‘the deal’. You can see some of the community coming out to watch – what a happy ending to such a tragic season for Bukacek.

Xavier and Diamond, the resident bonded pair of Peregrine Falcons whose scrape box is on top of the water tower of Charles Sturt University, are not migrating. Indeed, they are just beginning their breeding season. They continue to pair bond in the scrape. Here is a short video clip I made today so you can see this ritual:

According to the Falcon Cam Project of Dr Cilla Kinross, the average date for the first egg is 27 August. Here is the historical information for Diamond:

  • 2015 with Bula. 31 August, 2 September, 6 September
  • 2016 with Bula. 31 August, 2 September, 6 September
  • 2017 with Xavier. 26 August, 28 August, 31 August
  • 2018 with Xavier. 20 August, 22 August, 24 August
  • 2019 with Xavier. 28 August, 31 August, 2 September
  • 2020 with Xavier. 27 August, 29 August, 1 September

It is going to be so exciting when the little white balls of fur hatch. Can’t wait!

Other Nest News:

Some of us watching Malin on the Collins Marsh Osprey Cam are simply left shaking our heads. The female has been absent from the nest the last three Saturday nights in a row. There is no perch to the nest (they seriously need one). In addition, fish delivery just goes ‘off’ at the weekend. Malin slept alone through a thunder storm with lighting and rain last night and did not receive a single fish today – Sunday. Oh, I can hear you thinking that Ospreys do not need to eat every day and you are absolutely right. In fact, Tiny Tot on the Achieva Nest had 12 full 24-hour days that she did not get food. Often the parents teach the chicks that food does not always come every day. Still, the weekend pattern with this pair of adults mystifies me. Both came to the nest for short spurts without fish today. Malin was food calling (finally) late in the day. She is such a sweet little Osprey – and everyone is delighted that her droopy wing and feathers seem to be filling in and correcting themselves. So, once again, let’s put the optimist’s hat on and hope that there will be 5 fish deliveries tomorrow for Malin! Come on Mom and Dad prove me wrong and bring 6 big ones.

Malin’s beautiful feathers quickly dried out.

At one point, Malin was so excited when Mom arrived that she began to flap her wings and so some little hops. It is reassuring to see those feathers improve every day. We are all hoping for some big fish for your tomorrow, Malin!

A few of us have been calling the Collins Marsh chick, Malin which means ‘mighty little warrior’. That is because it had neither a number or a name. The Neustadter Nature Center at Collins Marsh is having an official naming contest. My friend ‘S’ just told me about this. I am so sorry it is such short notice but please go to their FB site and enter a name in the comments. Put in your favourite name – it doesn’t have to be Malin! I want the Nature Centre to see that there are many people, from around the world, interested in these Ospreys! But be fast. The names must be in by closing time tomorrow, Monday, 10 August. Here is the link where you can go and simply add a name in the thread:

https://www.facebook.com/Neustadter-Nature-Center-at-Collins-Marsh-140052786074932

After Monday, the names will be short listed. Please go back to this FB site and vote for your favourite. Thank you!

There are now three eggs in the Port Lincoln Osprey Nest. They were laid on 3, 6, and 9 August. That means that there is already six days between the first and the last. This nest always makes me nervous because of its history of siblicide. But, I am going to strike an optimistic note this year and take a wait and see attitude.

The White Rock Fire that was threatening Dr Christian Sasse’s property where he live streams his programmes on Ospreys and Bald Eagles is no longer out of control. Rain and the gallant efforts of the firefighter’s seem to have stifled this wildfire. This is great news for all the people and the wildlife. Let us hope that rain pours down on all the wildfires.

Thank you for joining me. It is so nice to have you here. Please go on line and put in a name for the little chick. Take care. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots and video clips: Port Lincoln Osprey Project, Collins Marsh Nature Centre, Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn, Sea Eagles, Birdlife Australia and the Discovery Centre, Falcon Cam Project at Charles Sturt University and Dr C Kinross.