Tag Archives: Peregrine falcons in Manitoba

Thursday in Bird World

14 July 2022

Ah, the rain continues to fall and it is cold and damp. It sure looks like it is a beautiful day on the New Jersey shore where the Banegat Light Osplets of Daisy and Duke are now 6 weeks and 3 days old. Duke has brought in fish and then removed them must to the angst of the kids.

For those who missed it, Little Bit ND17’s blood work came back with a negative to the West Nile Virus. He is flying but is not yet steady on his take off and landing. More work will be done by the Humane Indiana Wildlife on this and getting his wings stronger for release back at the park where he hatched. It is then hoped that he will rejoin his family and be taught to hunt his own prey. I am very grateful that Humane Indiana Wildlife were able to pick up and take Little Bit into care and get him this far into returning to the wild. I wish they had a way to train him to catch his own prey and a prey rich area to release him. That said, not all facilities can undertake that level of rehabilitation. We all wish ND17 a super successful life. He certainly deserves it.

Little Bit’s tail feathers have grown with all that good food and care.

Eyes have been on the Janakkdan Osprey nest in Finland since the female was observed having a difficult time swallowing and feeding her chicks. I have been alerted by ‘S’ in Finland that there is some concern that the female may have contracted Trichomonosis. This is a parasite that can come from contaminated water or transfer from bird to bird. Feeding chicks could spread the disease so it is good that the chicks are self-feeding more now!

Here is an article explaining this disease. You will note that this disease can impact all species of birds. It is highly contagious and could impact all manner of birds in the area sharing the same water source.

https://www.animalwised.com/trichomoniasis-in-birds-3605.html

Today, Mum has observed her chicks trying to self-feed. One chick is better than the other who wants to be fed. We hope that her health will improve and that these little ones, who are nearing independence, will continue to master their feeding skills and do not catch the disease — if that is what is plaguing this female.

One chick is eating well while the other is calling at Mum to feed it. There are two fish on the nest that I can see.

The chicks have been ringed at nest #5 in Finland!

Here is the video showing this momentous occasion in the chick’s lives. Thank you so much for sending me this link, ‘S’. It is much appreciated.

I am always interested in the human intervention that helps our feathered friends. Several have sent me the most delightful stories and I am going through them so that I can show them to you. They are delightful. Since we have been looking at the Finnish nests I would like to share with you today a story from Finland sent to me by ‘S’. The story is my words based on what ‘S’ told me. If it is inaccurate – blame me!

In 2020, there was a lot happening at Finnish Osprey nest #3. The female described as both funny, timid, and hassling) Helmi thought that her time off caring for her chicks was finished and she left for migration (or was injured/killed) and did not return to the nest. The big female chicks on nest #3 managed to self-feed quite nicely and entered into a fierce competition of who was now the boss of the nest! Then all of a sudden fish deliveries waned because of poor weather. People on the chat got hysterical as they believed the chicks would starve to death. The cameras were turned off. And….as is sometimes the case, humans came to the rescue with a delivery of fish on the nest for the chicks. And all was well. It is like a fairy tale for Ospreys –fish falling from the sky into the nest!

There are several new videos out from some of our favourite nests. The first one features Mr President and Takoda and a fish!

In this one, we get to see great views of Cal Falcons Lindsay:

Intervention was called for with Manitoba’s own peregrine falcons…a second chance at a full life is granted! Our Manitoba Peregrine Falcons are gorgeous…don’t you think?

Also in Manitoba, one Mum taking all the ducklings to swim!

In the Glaslyn Valley, fledge watch has begun for Blue 497 who is 49 days old today. In the UK the Ospreys fledge from 40 to 53 days old. Males normally fledge earlier because they are smaller and have less growth and plumage development to undertaken before flying than females. At the nest of Aran and Mrs G, the average time for males to fledge is 52.5 days and females at 54 days. Blue 498 is only one day younger so who will go first?

Beautiful family portrait with Aran on the perch. Proud parents of three lovely osplets.

At the Dyfi Nest of Idris and Telyn, the oldest of the three females, Pedran, is 50 days old today. She is officially in fledge watch but, these are all females. The earliest male to fledge at Glaslyn was Tywi in 2020 at 48.7 days and the oldest was Leri, a female in 2011, at 57.3 days. Let’s keep an eye on this nest in 2-3 days for a fledge because the average fledge age between all is 52.8 days.

We are waiting for the second osplet at the Mispillion Harbour nest to fledge. Gorgeous image of Mum with her remaining ‘nestling’. By the way, ‘H’ alerted me to the fact that Mum has now found her favourite yellow metal object and returned it to the nest!!!!!!! The yellow matt is hiding under nesting materials. Is yellow the state colour of Delaware?

Looks like Mum on the perch. It will not be long til both siblings are flying around the nest and the harbour. Looks like some duct tape cam on to the nest….if I say that anyone hosting a streaming cam or knowing of a nest should get permission after breeding season to clean it will I sound like a broken record?

The Woodland Trust is wanting name suggestions for Louis and Dorcha’s two chicks for the 2022 season. If you would like to join in, here is the announcement. Suggestions end Monday and you must vote on The Woodland Trust’s FB page.

And last a quick look in at the Boathouse Ospreys on Hog Island. Dory and Skiff are doing an amazing job – simply amazing with three and Dory a first time Mum.

Dory is feeding the two little ones…Slipjack and Sloop.

Look at that crop on Schooner! Lovely.

Thank you so much for joining me today. There are lots of birds that need your good wishes. We wait to hear what they can determine is causing Victor’s illness and we hope that the two osplets in Finland stay well. Take care all. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and/or FB pages where I took my screen captures: Audubon and Explore.org, The Woodland Trust, Dyfi Osprey Project, Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn, Banegat Light Ospreys, Humane Indiana Wildlife, Finnish Osprey Foundation, NADC-AEF, Cal Falcons, Manitoba Birding, Bird and Wildlife Photography, Mispillion Harbour Ospreys and the DDNR.

Sadly, no word about Malin

I want to thank everyone that took the time to write to me and tell me how much Malin meant to them. My inbox was overflowing with letters expressing love and concern for Malin. Everyone wanted to know if there had been any word. Mom and Dad have both been on the nest with fish and today Marsha (mum) was there around 13:00. She did not have any fish that visit. During her morning visit she called out for Malin. So far there has been no sighting of Malin.

After going through the FB postings of the Nature Center, we were able to determine that Malin was the middle hatch. The youngest just disappeared from the nest and the eldest died in the middle of June leaving Malin, the chick that hatched on 18 June, alive. Malin was then the middle hatch of 18 June. Malin then was 63 days old at fledge. The average age for ospreys to fledge in Wisconsin appears to be 55 days. That would make Malin’s timing within range. Most ospreys spend at least 2 weeks flying and letting their parents feed them. Many stay much longer. Two examples that I give are Tiny Tot and Tiny Little because they were both hatches that suffered from lack of food. Tiny Tot stayed on the nest for a total of four months or 120 days. That is more than twice as long as Malin. Tiny Little remains on the nest in Cumbria. She will probably fledge before Tiny Tot’s 120 days – but she could be on the nest for 90 days.

There is disagreement over whether Malin simply flew or whether or not Malin was frightened off the nest by an intruder. Experts on both sides see that exit differently. It is unfortunate. The result is the same – Malin has not returned to the nest. The reactions to looking for Malin are different depending on which you believe. If Malin just flew because he wanted to then no one would go and really look for him. If one believed that Malin was frightened off the nest, they might worry that he was injured and look harder. Something that has to be kept in mind is that Osprey feed their fledglings on the nest – it is preferable. They do sometimes feed on a branch but I haven’t found an Osprey expert that has ever seen an Osprey parent feed their fledgling on the ground. In fact, if a fish falls off a nest they will not go and retrieve it. Have you ever seen an Osprey eat or feed its chick on the ground?

The research continues to stress that the more food and the longer fledglings stay on the nest the higher the success rate. That is the reality. This nest is really empty. Malin defied the odds – he survived and thrived. We hope that the name we gave him carries him on into his life and that he is somewhere safe eating a fish.

Collins is looking down like he might be seeing Malin.

One of the last times the entire family was together on the nest. It was a real privilege to watch little Malin survive and then – thrive. Let us all continue to send this family positive energy.

19 August 2021. Malin, Marsha, and Collins.

It is about 7am in Latvia and Estonia as I write this. The Black Storklings are waking up and like all birds are a little more energetic than they are at mid-day.

The two images below are from Grafs and Grafiene’s nest near Sigulda, Latvia. At least one of the storklets has fledged. Perhaps today they will all fledge and find the feeder area with the beautiful Grafiene decoy.

It is now just after 9am in Latvia and there is only one storkling on Graf’s nest near Sigulda. This means two have fledged just like my source had indicated. The second fledge is the oldest at 7:43 am. He is 70 days old today. The youngest fledged at day 66 after hatch.

This was not the smooth flight of the youngest. The oldest hit the branch on the other side of the tree. There is concern about the condition of that wing. I will update you as soon as there is any information. Send your strong and positive wishes. I hope it looks worse than it was. How terrifying for this young bird to have that happen.

Even so, I hope that both of the storklings are at the feeder filling themselves with fish – just like we hope Malin is doing the same.

There is now only the middle hatch. Perhaps it will go today. They are 68 days old.

When I checked on Jan and Janika’s storklings in Estonia’s Jogeva County, no more fish have been delivered to the nest. It looks to me like every scrap of the old fish has been eaten – I thought that yesterday. Perhaps one really packed down in the nest is there, the one the storkling on the left is pecking at. All of the birds need food.

Hopefully all of them will fledge and find the feeder set up for them, too.

They are so beautiful with the sunlight filtering through the trees. The storks are 67 and 68 days old today. The average for fledging is 68-72 days. I wonder if Urmas will deliver some more fish?????

Do you watch the peregrine falcons, Xavier and Diamond? If you do, then you will know that part of the pair bonding ritual is Xavier presenting a prey item to Diamond. Diamond is not that particular but, she does not like Starlings. She cannot stand them. She has turned Xavier away when he had a Starling for her. They must taste terrible!

Well, today, Xavier hit the jackpot. Diamond was completely excited about her lunch – although some of you might not be. Xavier had a Superb Parrot for his beautiful Diamond. Make sure your sound is turned up.

Superb Parrots are also known as Green Leek Parrots or the Barraband’s Parakeet. These little beauties are native to southeast Australia living in the dry woodlands of New South Wales and Victoria. They were once considered vulnerable in terms of conservation and have been listed as Least Concern since 2012. Loss of habitation due to timber logging might well see this bird back as being vulnerable.

They are medium sized, growing up to a little over 15 cm or 16 inches in length. The bird in the image below is a juvenile. How do I know that? It has brown eyes while the adults have yellow-orange eyes. The adult male has a bright yellow face and throat while the female looks like the plumage that the juvenile has below. They eat fruits, berries, insects, as well as grains and nuts.

Awww. What a sweet face.

“Supreme Parrot” by Mark Vuaran is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0

WBSE 27 and 28 continue to charm the socks off of everyone. That beautiful fluffy white down is in transition. They look a little like old terry cloth towels sleeping in their nest this morning in Sydney.

Look closely along the edge of the wing of WBSE 28 on the left. You will see the little pin feathers coming.

The pantaloons are growing too.

Just look at that sweet baby, WBSE 28, looking up at its parent. How adorable.

They are so young and yet, both of them know to pancake when there is an intruder near the nest. They hear their parents alarming and down they go. Look at the concern shown in the eye of WBSE 27 on the left. You can also see the black pin feathers coming in on both in this image better than the other one. But look – their cute little tails are growing!

You cam almost see them growing right before your very eyes.

Tiny Little still makes my heart skip a beat. Oh, what a wonderful bird you have turned out to be. You were so very tiny with that big older siblings but just look at you waiting for your breakfast to arrive.

Oh, you have that ferocious look like Mrs G. I have said that a couple of times but you do, Tiny Little. I hope you live as long as Mrs G and have lots of successful hatches. You really are quite amazing, Tiny Little.

Tomorrow is Saturday but there is no Ferris Akel tour this week. I was hoping to catch up with what is happening with Big Red and her family. It was raining yesterday but the Hornings were able to spot all four of them so we know that K1 and K3 are still with us – how grand, the 21st of August.

I am researching ‘Climate Driven Evolutionary Change’. If you know of bird arrivals or departures that are earlier than normal or later than what has been the norm, please let me know. It is much appreciated.

It is so nice to have you here with me. The rain is still falling – and that is a good thing. Please continue to send your positive wishes to Malin and all the bird families. Take care of yourselves. See you soon.

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

Peregrine Season has officially begun in Manitoba (and mini-updates)

It is the middle of March and it smells like spring outside – the air is fresh and crisp and the sky is blue. In fact, it has been so nice that everyone is beginning to shed their heavy winter boots and coats just like a snake does its skin! Still, there is reason not to get overly excited. You see there is snow falling on a Great Horned Owl in a Bald Eagle nest in Kansas -at this very moment – in March. How crazy is that? We have been tricked before only to have a blizzard on 1 May.

“Crocus in Snow” by oschene is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Many people wait til the crocus push their beautiful buds up through the snow to even think about spring but, we don’t have any snow. So I am going to put my faith in the birds. The Canada geese and Bald Eagles are returning, there are amorous swans strutting about on some of the remaining ice on the river, and the number of photographs of song birds on the Manitoba Birding FB site is growing daily.

“Canada-Geese-3” by Chris Sorge is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

As it happens, I love raptors — you might have noticed. And that is what is keeping me awake late on St Patrick’s Day. The first two Peregrine Falcons have returned to Manitoba from their winter vacation!

Dennis Swayze caught Ella on the ledge of the scrape box at the Radisson Hotel in Winnipeg today. Welcome home, Ella. Ella is six years old. She hatched in Brandon in 2015 and is the daughter of Brooklyn and Hurricane.

Below is the picture from this morning’s streaming cam of Ella sitting on the ledge of the scrape box.

Ella. 17 March 2021. Radisson Hotel, Winnipeg. @PFRP Streaming Cam

And, speaking of Hurricane (Ella’s mother), her current mate was spotted on the McKenzie Seeds Building this morning. His name is Wingo-Starr and the spotter got real curious as to why there were no pigeons on the building when they are always there – unless there is working being done on the roof or unauthorized visitors. The spotter was patient and got a full look at the leg band. Wingo-Starr was hatched in Moorhead and this is his third year in Brandon. Migrating is treacherous and there is a really bad storm system moving through the US right now. Let’s hope any migrating birds are hunkered down and safe.

Wingo-Starr. 17 March 2021. McKenzie Seed Building, Brandon, Manitoba. @PFRP Streaming Cam

The Peregrine Falcon Recovery Project began in Winnipeg in 1981. at that time four captive-bred falcons were obtained from the Canadian Wildlife Service’s breeding facility in Wainright, Alberta. It was not, however, until 1989 when everyone got really excited. The mated pair using the scrape box on top of the then Delta Hotel (now the Radisson) fledged four eyases. Four! These were the first documented fledglings in Manitoba in fifty years. Can you imagine the excitement and the tears?! Between 1981 and 2012 more than 200 peregrine eyases fledged from four different locations in Manitoba – Winnipeg, Brandon, Portage la Prairie, and Gimli. (I have not found an official count covering the last eight years but it is easy to imagine that the number would be more than 250). The birds are banded, thankfully. The Peregrine Recovery Project traces the birds and they know that those born in Manitoba now have territory of their own in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba as well as in the United States in Topeka, Kansas, Red Wing Minnesota, Grand Forks and Fargo North Dakota and Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. They have thrived!

“Peregrine Falcon” by Sai Adikarla is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Peregrine falcons are known as the stealth bombers of the sky. They are a specific ‘aerial’ predator. That means that they hunt their prey and capture them when in flight. They are the fastest raptor in the world being clocked at more than 390 kilometres per hour or 242 mph. They are about the size of a crow with very distinctive marking. You will never mistake one of these beautiful falcons for a Red Tailed Hawk. They have gorgeous steel blue-grey back plumage. They have a barred belly – very distinctive stripes with a black head. The adults have distinctive bright yellow around their eyes, talons, and beaks. Adults weight between 1-1.5 kg or 2.2 to 3.3 lbs. They have reverse sex dimorphism meaning that the female is larger than the male.

Females lay their eggs in a scrape box or on the side of a cliff or cave. There is no nest material like you might think of with a Bald Eagle or even songbirds. There is gravel or sand. The courting ritual consists of a circular dance in the scrape box between the male and female. The male does a kind of dance while scraping his feet on the box. Falcons are also known for fantastic aerial displays, as well as some acrobatics on ledges. There will be 2-4 eggs laid at intervals of forty-eight hours. Many sites say that it is 32 days from first egg to first hatch but several researchers are reporting 39 days from first egg to first hatch. Falcons tend to do hard incubation only after the second or third egg has been born. A good example of this was the 2020 season of the Collins Street Peregrines in downtown Melbourne, Australia. Because the delayed hard incubation, all three eyases were born within six hours. There was no sibling rivalry and the triplets fledged successfully. It was simply beautiful to watch.

And a quick update for 18 March 2021. Bad storms are in the United States and all of the nests could be impacted. The snow has stopped on the GHOW in Kansas but Clyde has brought Bonnie food for her and the owlets. It is raining at Duke Farms and unless the female has food hidden, that pantry is bare. I am beginning to think something has happened with the male there. Has anyone seen him? So far Legacy in Jacksonville has a great day but Jacksonville is set to get hit by the storms around 5pm today – that bad weather will hit Fort Myers (E17 and 18, Harriet and M15) and St Petersburg (Achieva Ospreys) earlier. Plus all of the nests – keep them all in your thoughts today.

Thank you for checking in. As always I am grateful to those providing the streaming cams and in Manitoba it is Shaw Cable linked up with the Peregrine Recovery Project. Stay safe everyone.

Streaming cams in Canada?

Like all of you I have been watching birds in the Southern Hemisphere. Yesterday, the Sulphur Crested Cockatoos were exploring the White Bellied Sea Eagle nest down in the Sydney Olympic Park.

The sea eagles are still enjoying being in the ‘off season’ but spring is arriving in the North and there are lots of happenings ——-everywhere. Too many to try and keep up with! This morning a reader from Brazil who turned me on to Latvian White-Tailed Eagles asked if anything was happening in Canada. I felt a little embarrassed. So here is the condensed version to help you locate several of the streaming cams in Canada. There are many more!

One of the best wildlife sites is Hancock Wildlife Foundation in British Columbia. They support five streaming cams and there are already eggs on the nests. The link to their streaming cam sites is:

https://hancockwildlife.org/project/live-cams/

Dave Hancock is known for his passionate devotion to the Bald Eagles.

Their site also has a link to several satellite trackers so that you can follow the migration patterns of the banded eagles. Here it is:

BETA – Bald Eagle Tracking Alliance

And if you are looking for books on Indigenous culture including the Haida, various species of birds, fishing, Indigenous healing, or arts and culture you might want to check out Hancock Publishing. They have a large selection of books that you might not find at your local shop or the one line stores. I was certainly surprised when I first located that link and found a book on the behaviour of the Golden Eagle that I had searched for elsewhere.

https://www.hancockhouse.com/

And if you don’t know about Dr Christian Sasse, you need to Google his name. He is a passionate photographer who chases eagles around Vancouver. The images he captures are quite incredible. Here is one of his short videos:

You can also join us in Manitoba for the Peregrine Recovery Project. The clock is ticking away. We are, at this very moment, expecting the falcons to arrive here in twenty-two days! I will be keeping you informed here and will be anxiously awaiting fledge when I along with many others join in keeping tabs on these young falcons. The link to that page and the various cameras is here:

http://www.species-at-risk.mb.ca/pefa/

The feeder cam at the foot of the Rocky Mountains in Alberta attracts songbirds just like the Cornell Bird Cam at Sapsucker. They also have a live chat feature. Have a peek:

Besides the falcons in Manitoba we also have the polar bear cams up in Churchill, Manitoba but…just to show you the massive number of streaming cams run by one organization, here is a link below that will direct you to any kind of bird or mammal you want to watch:

https://explore.org/livecams

I apologize for this being short. Today I have to put my artist hat on. Happy International Women’s Day and take care.