It is a great morning – feedings at Dale Hollow, Ervie at the barge, and the romance continues at The Campanile.
The morning started out with real positive energy in terms of an intervention to get the monofilament line off of DH 15 Little Middle and remove any other line off the Dale Hollow Nest. Approval has come down from the top permit officer so we wait to see if the local officer will assist. Jessica Halls and her team from the AEF are prepared to leave and help the eaglet. We do not know what the tree is like – that is the one very unknown in all of this. But however this turns out, it was a real ray of sunshine to connect with the people who love eagles and move into action when there is a problem.
If you missed the earlier posting with the letters from Ron MacGill who helped get me in touch with the USFWS head permit provider, they are here:
The adults at the Dale Hollow nest have not fed Little Middle since 2 April. Big continues to intimidate – more than twice this morning at 10:17:29 (just got up close and LM went into submission) and wings out at 12:04:20 and again at 12:05:44. There is plenty of fish on the nest – 2 have been delivered.
This morning, very hungry, Little Middle self-fed and in the second video stands on the fish and pulls and tugs developing good neck muscles. This eaglet is a survivor. I sure hope it gets the chance out in the wild.
Really proud of how well Little Middle is feeding itself. At one point the crop was full but, because he had not eaten for so long, he dropped that food rather quickly.
River has not fed Little Middle any of the fish this morning. Big is always threatening.
Big is full. At 12:23:53 Little Middle begins to move over to the piece of fish left to self feed.
As I write this, Little Middle is self-feeding. Hunger and the will to survive are driving this wonderful little eaglet. These are great skills for the wild.
An adult returned to the nest and Little Middle moved and then began to go around the rim to be fed.
Little Middle was being fed and then…Big noticed.
At 12:33, the adult is feeding Big. There is plenty of fish. Stay up there Little til Big leaves. That is all you have to do!
Big’s crop is big enough to pop.
In another golden moment, the adult got between the two eaglets and is turned and feeding Little Middle. If the adult will stay there, Little Middle will really be able to have a good feed. There is plenty of fish.
An adult brought in more fish at 12:48:54. There has been lots of fish on the nest. I wonder if the weekend leisure boat traffic, etc. in any way impacts the fishing for the eagles?
I cannot promise you that the rescue and intervention will happen. What I can say is that the removal of the fishing line is in the hands of the USFWS and the AEF. If it is possible, I believe we will have a good resolution. It clearly depends on many factors including the tree the nest is in. I have not been able to get a proper height for it other than very, very, very tall.
There is also good news coming out of The Campanile and the Cal Falcons. Annie’s ‘new man’ – please give him a great name Cal Falcons – brought her a large prey item which she accepted last night. Despite his lame foot, this fellow is a good hunter and provider. Annie how lucky!
The two changed incubation duties just a few minutes ago! Courting ritual in scrape. Seriously, can there be a better written romance?
And in the midst of everything, Ervie was at the Port Lincoln Barge begging Mum for a fish! I want to thank ‘A’ from Japan for alerting me to his presence. The Port Lincoln Osprey folks did a close up of Ervie’s foot so that they can see how that talon is growing. It is growing in slow.
You might be able to rewind to the times above and get to see Ervie! Here is the link, Ervie is still on the barge!
As I mentioned yesterday, Dale Hollow can be mentally exhausting. The intervention and removal of the line is in the hands of those who have the opportunity to help. I am going out for a long walk in the forest because waiting and watching is agonizing.
Take care everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures and video clips: Dale Hollow Eagle Cam, Cal Falcons, and Port Lincoln Ospreys.
One of my favourite White-tailed eagle females is Milda. I have mentioned her before in my blog. Her nest is in Durbe County in Estonia. It has been a rough year for Milda since her long-term mate was missing and presumed dead in late March of 2021. Milda heroically tried to incubate the eggs without food for 8 straight days to the point of starvation. Several males offered hope and then didn’t. As if with a miracle the two chicks hatched and we all celebrated only for them to perish because of one of the males taking the food off the nest and then not covering them. But, that was last year, and there was hope for this one but again, disappointment when the eggs laid were broken by an interloper.
The females on the nests need a good strong partner who is working with them cooperatively!
The White-tail Eagle is so rare in Eastern Europe. Latvia, Estonia, and Poland are doing what they can to encourage breeding sites.
The White tail eagles are Haliaeetus Albicilla. They are the largest raptors in Europe and are located from Greenland to Asia. The Eagle Directory describes the plumage like this, “White-Tailed Eagles are almost entirely brown. They have a yellow-gray head, neck, breast, and lesser wing coverts, and the belly, thighs, and rump are dark brown. The flight feathers are close to black and their wedge-shaped tail, as their name would indicate, is white. The tibia are feathered, though the tarsi are not, and the legs and feet are yellow. The eyes, beak, and cere are yellow.”
As you can seen from the images of the White-tailed Eagles below, the plumage can vary and of course, we have to take into account the lighting and settings on these streaming cams. These eagles grow to be from 74-92 cm long with a wingspan of 193-244 cm. The females are larger than the males as in most raptor species and weight between 3.7 and 6.9 kg. The males come in at 3.1 to 5.4 kilos. Their life expectancy can be up to 36 years. They eat mainly fish but also hunt mammals such as rabbits and birds. I have seen them also be opportunistic and bring some carrion to the nest. Indeed, it was a crane brought to the White-tailed eagle nest last year that killed two wee chicks because that crane brought with it the highly pathogenic Avian Flu, H5N1. While the birds are listed as not being under threat in some areas, they are very rare in Eastern Europe and the UK is trying to reintroduce them. While they may lay 1-3 eggs, it is most typically 2 eggs that will be incubated by both parents (as you see below) and hatch within 34-46 days. Fledging typically takes place between 77-90 days after which the fledglings are depending on the parents for 4-6 weeks while they learn to fly and hunt.
In older White-tailed eagles, the head and neck can be almost white.
The adults in the images are in a nest in the Woziwoda Forest District. It is a special project of the Eagle Conservation Committee, the Woziwoda Forest District and Polish Radio promotion both old forests and the White-tailed Eagles. The nest is highly protected. There can be no activity within a radius of 200 m. Setting up the camera were problematic and the workers who installed it had to do this cautiously when the eagles were away.
The nest you are looking at is on a 140 year old pine tree at a height of 25 metres. This nest has been occupied for four years. It is known that there was one fledge in 2021.
For transparency, I do not know any of the history of this nest so I do not know whether to give you caution or not. I am attempting to find out. The setting is simply beautiful and if some of you have been watching this nest in the past, please let me know. The chat is in Polish and I understand eggs are being incubated but it is not clear how many or when they were laid by the information provided.
Here is the link:
Just an update on 2 other nests: The adults at Dale Hollow have brought in a teaser 2 bite fish and a small sucker early in the morning. Big ate both of them. No other food has been provided to the eaglets up to 18:30 this evening. I sure wish they would bring a whopper on the nest tonight for both. That said, Little Middle ate well yesterday and is OK. Sadly, Little Middle continues to pull that monofilament line. Thank you to ‘CA’ from Belgium who sent me this 15 second video clip. I could not see him dragging the nesting material, my mistake.
Annie and the new male continue to bond in the scrape box. I have caught him incubating a few times today. I sure hope he is a good guy to our Annie! I don’t think any male will ever fill Grinnell’s shoes – he was a huge character in every aspect of a raptor’s life but any bird who will care for Annie, Grinnell’s eggs and now on of his own is gold in my books!
Karl II has spent his 4th night in the Ukraine not far from Kyiv. Anne7 posted this image of where he was hunting for food this afternoon. I am so grateful for the Looduskalender Forum and their English pages and to the tirelessness of Anne7 to inform all of us of Karl’s whereabouts. I wish him to replenish his energy and get to Estonia! Fast.
You may find yourselves spending too much time looking at the Dale Hollow nest hoping for a miracle. I had to begin to pull back today. It is mentally exhausting. We cannot make the adults bring in more food and legions of you have contacted enough people to get help. ‘L’ has had a promising conversation with Al Cerere who asked the important questions. If help can come, he is the guy to make it happen. We simply have to wait and hope. My heart breaks for both of these eaglets but, of course, most especially Little Middle.
Our weather is set to soar to a high of 8 degrees Celsius. We will all be outside in our summer clothes! Well, not quite but it will feel like that. It was a damp day, cold to the bones British type weather today. Birds are arriving and I really hope to get out to see some of them in the morning tomorrow. My post will likely arrive late in the afternoon.
Thank you so much for joining me this evening. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cam where I took my screen captures: Cal Falcons and Bieluki On line Bory Tucholskie.
It was cold, damp, and dreary counting Canada Geese this morning. I did not take my camera – it is bulky and heavy – but I will return and take some images for everyone early this week. There are Canada Geese everywhere there is a large puddle!!!!!!
There is lots going on in Bird World – too much to keep straight. I want to start with dear Annie at the UC-Berkley Campanile. When Grinnell was killed we thought all was lost. Turns out Annie has her own ‘saviour’. It is thought that Annie laid an egg on Thursday but not in the scrape box. Cal Falcons felt that she thought she could only take care of 2 by herself. On time, she laid egg 4 and that is the big news. By my reckoning, this egg belongs to the new man since it takes approximately 2.5 days for Annie to make an egg. Oh, I hope this turns out well. It would be wonderful to see the last two chicks of Grinnell be healthy and fledge.
He’s a little raggle-taggled compared to Grinnell. I wonder how old you are Annie’s new man??
He is certainly trying to show Annie he has good intentions and is a good hunter.
Last evening Annie accepted ‘dinner in the scrape’ from the new lad. She stashed it for later and returned to incubate but how sweet was that?! Everyone remains hopeful.
Many of you are falcon fans. I have discovered a new scrape on top of the stadium at Michigan State University. It is brand new as of January 2022 so nothing is known, as far as I know, about the falcon couple. Here is that link – and there are 3 eggs!
Here is the link!
Michigan is working to reintroduce falcons into the state and there is another scrape that is funded by the Lansing Board of Water and Light.
How long do Red-tail Hawks live in the wild? I believe that Pale Male will be 33 this year. Him and Octavia have not had any clutches for the past two years. It will be three this year. Robert Yolton writes a wonderful blog on the wildlife around New York City’s Central Park. He found Pale Male eating a brown rat yesterday and took some video. His feathers appear to be fading a bit but what a legend Pale Male is.
Have you seen the free movie about Pale Male and how the community, including Mary Tyler Moore, lobbied and picketed for him and his mate to keep their nest on one of the nicest pieces of real estate in NYC? If not, watch it or save it for when you need something uplighting. The voices of people can really make a difference to the lives of these fantastic raptors. We just need the right person to hear us!
Pa Berry and Missy at the Berry College Bald Eagle nest have been trying to coax 78-day-old B15 into the nest for some food. Missy has been watching her first fledgling closely making sure that he is learning to fly and land but not venturing far from the nest. Late this morning B15 returned to the nest and Dad flew in with a fish immediately for his boy.
Meanwhile Kincaid is branching higher and higher at the Kistachie National Forest nest near Alexandria, Louisiana. No one will ever know for sure if Kincaid is a male or a female; the eaglet will not be banded. But from the size comparison with Mum and Dad at this stage – right before fledge – most think Kincaid is a female. She is definitely a sweet eagle. Anna and Louis did a fine job this season. Hats off to everyone at KNF who worked so hard to get the two camera system in place, for taking the time to mod the chat and answer questions most of the day.
Closely watching the progress of Karl II, the patriarch of the Karula National Forest Black Stork nest in Estonia, as he flies over a war zone to get to his nest. Isn’t he gorgeous? This image was taken in 2017. He is still as handsome!
Who doesn’t know CROW? and who doesn’t wish we could wiggle our noses and get them to land at the Dale Hollow nest to check on that monofilament line? Made famous for their rescue of E17 and E18 of the SWFlorida Bald eagle nest when they had non-human caused conjunctivitis, CROW this morning cleaned out an Osprey nest full of human garbage. It is a threat to the wildlife – just like all those toys at Dahlgren are, sadly.
Oh, the Osprey chicks of Andy and Lena have been so neglected by me. They are just gorgeous and getting way too big too fast. So happy for Andy and Lena. After two horrible years, it looks like they will fledge two this year.
There was a statement on a FB group about the number of eggs in a Bald Eagle clutch. They said it was ‘rare’ for three and rare for three to survive. (They did not mention the rarity of siblicide twice at the same nest). I dug around and found a very interesting study on the change of clutch size in Bald Eagles in the Chesapeake Bay area of the US. It is really interesting ready. The author, writing in 2017, begins with the age of egg collection and continues to 2011 demonstrating that the size of the clutches has increased significantly since the beginning of the 20th century. It is not onerous reading. Very insightful.
Dave Hancock of Hancock Wildlife in British Columbia did a study and found that the average for that province’s Bald Eagles in terms of clutch size is 2.
There are a number of 3 chick clutches currently being watched by us as well as one with 4, the PA Farm Bald Eagle nest. Pittsburgh-Hayes consistently has three and Redding would once again had three this year had their one egg not gotten broken. One of the most visited Bald Eagle sites is the West End where there are three eaglets this year. I wonder if this varies by region? Will look to see if I can find any solid information for us.
Deb Steyck made a video yesterday of the four at PA Farm being fed.
Meanwhile, Mr President seems to be really loving being a Dad again after 4 years and Lotus is figuring out everything as a first time Mum rather quickly. This is one spoiled little nestling that will grow fast and strong if Mr President’s prey deliveries are any indication of what is to come.
In contrast, nothing arrived on the Dale Hollow Bald Eagles nest until a two-bite teaser appeared at 11:24:55. We all know who ate that! These eaglets hatched on the 28th of February. Jackie and Shadow’s only chick hatched on 3 March. The Big Bear eaglet had been fed 8 times by 16:00 yesterday. The Dale Hollow nest continues to baffle me.
The eaglets are hungry.
At 12:31:34 a small fish was brought to the nest. Almost before the parent landed, Big went and began beaking Little Middle. Big’s beak is large and it can still encase Little Middle with its body hurting him. Big is a big bird.
To survive, Middle Little gets that head down and stays put.
I do not believe there will be enough for Little Middle to have any fish. I hope to be wrong. I also hope that the parent would change the direction they are feeding so Little Middle could move. It appears from the image above that the fishing line could be around some of the right talons??? But that is anything but 100%.
It is 12:44 and Little Middle has made no attempt to move to get any fish.
The fish is all gone at 12:45:24. Little Middle is still maintaining submissive posture. While it had been hoped that the attacks would stop, they continue because of the erratic fish deliveries. Like children, eaglets on the nest need some stability or they go into survival mode. Remember, Big wants to survive so it protects what it sees as a low supply of food. Middle Little protects itself for another time by being submissive and putting its head down. No sense in fighting a sibling that is twice your size.
A nest that is much calmer is that of Big Red and Arthur, the Red tail Hawks at Cornell who continue to incubate their four eggs which will hatch later this month.
Big Red is 19 years old this year and is the most well known RTH in the world. She is an incredible mother.Cute Little Arthur has learned how to puff up his feathers to keep those four eggs warm and dry!
And the last check of the day, the two eagles that hatched on March 20 and 23 are doing remarkably well at the Redding Bald Eagle nest of Liberty and Guardian. They have sure grown out of the cute fluff ball stage now.
Liberty looks down at his two chicks while Guardian is aerating the nest.
It has been a busy day at the nests, many I did not get to check. Hopefully later. Thank you to everyone who has commented or sent me an e-mail. The inbox is full. I plan to have responded to everyone by tomorrow (Monday) at noon. Thank you so much for your patience and for your caring for Little Middle and all the birds. Your kind gestures bright light in a world that feels somewhat dark right now. Each of the nests seems to be doing exceptionally well. Dahlgren needs its garbage cleared, Richmond and Rosie have a good nest structure, West End babies fed well, and I have to check in with Chase and Cholyn to see if Thunder has a sibling. We continue to wait for the arrival of Ospreys Dylan, Aran, and Idris in the UK and for Iris in Montana.
Take care all. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams and FB pages where I took my screen captures: Eagle Club of Estonia, Dale Hollow Eagle Cam, Cal Falcons, MSU Fisheries and Wildlife Club, Lansing Board of Water and Light Peregrine Falcons, Berry College, KNF, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, CROW, Cornell Red Tail Hawks, and NADC-AEF.
So many of us love/d Grinnell. I do not know anyone who is not still shocked by his death.
How do you write about a Peregrine Falcon that brought so many so much love, joy, and laughter? Grinnell was a very sweet lad. I have found it difficult to write about him because for many years it was always ‘Grinnell and Annie’ ‘Annie and Grinnell’. In my mind, I was not able to separate the two. They were a constant which, over the past few years, has been very reassuring. And then they weren’t.
Grinnell was last seen at The Campanile at 10:37 on the 31st of March. He was later found dead in the downtown area of San Francisco. It is believed he was chasing a female intruder and went low and got hit by a car.
Grinnell hatched along with another male in a nest near Martinez, California. He was banded in 2013. This makes him 9 years old this year.
Annie and Grinnell were bonded mates for six years. Indeed, it was probably only Grinnell’s injuries on the 29th of October that caused them to be separated for the longest time in their relationship. They appeared at The Campanile in December 2016 making their first nest on a sandbag!!!!!!! Cal Falcons decided that it was better if they fixed them a proper nest in 2017 which evolved into the scrape box that you see on camera in 2018.
Annie and Grinnell raised two to fledge in 2017- Fiat and Lux. Fiat flew out of Mum and Dad’s territory to set up his own while, sadly, Luxe hit a window and died. In 2018, they fledged 3 – Berkelium, Lawrencium, and Californium. All successfully left. Lawrencium, the female has a nest on Alcatraz and has made Grinnell and Annie grandparents. In 2019, there were two fledges – Carson and Cade. In 2020, there were three – Poppy, Sequoia, and Redwood. Poppy was spotted recently in San Jose, California and Sequoia is known to be in Santa Clara, California. Unless a miracle happens, 2021 will be the couple’s final breeding season. It was hugely successful with three males fledging – Fauci, Kaknu, and Wek-Wek. In total, they fledged 13 juvenile peregrine falcons in 5 seasons. It is not clear how many grandchildren the couple have.
We ached for Annie and the two eggs in the scrape.
It has been a bit like a roller coaster with the plot thickening every day since Grinnell’s death. A male appeared, began courting Annie, and briefly incubating the eggs almost as soon as Cal Falcons announced the death of Grinnell. The news of this tragic drama has spread. It even made it to the Toronto news.
The new male likes to sit on the ledge above the nest box watching over Annie and the eggs. Has she accepted prey from him? I am not certain.
This afternoon, Annie initiated the bonding and the male immediately came to join her at 16:30.
He has a limp. Cal Falcons confirms that this should not impact his hunting. And, in fact, he tried to give Annie some nicely prepared prey last night but she was either full, according to Cal Falcons, or not ready to commit. Has anything changed today?
After the bonding ritual, the young male situates himself on the eggs to incubate them.
He is rather cute and I am quickly warming up to him.
These are gentle gestures of loving kindness — the world could use so much more kindness like this – right now.
There are so many news stories out about Annie and the new male. Here is one with comments by Lynn from Cal Falcons:
I will always treasure the years that I was privileged to watch Annie and Grinnell raise their chicks. No one will replace Grinnell in the hearts of thousands but, for now, I am grateful to this young male who has been hanging around for about a month, that he is stepping up and will help raise the last two chicks ever of Grinnell’s. That makes him a winner in my books.
Thank you for joining me tonight. If you are looking for a blog on Sunday, it will be coming late in the afternoon. I am counting Canada Geese tomorrow at several locations! Continue to send your warm wishes to all of the birds especially those migrating over war zones and those entangled with monofilament line. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to Cal Falcons for their streaming cam where I took my screen captures.
Good Morning everyone. It is a ‘grey’ day on the Canadian Prairies. It is -1 Cband should get up to +2 C. Yesterday it was positively summery at +5 C and at that temperature we begin to don our lighter coats and start to believe that spring will be coming. There is something going on in the garden with the birds and the surrounding area. Yesterday two large groups of Crows gathered along with the neighbourhood three. There were approximately 30 in total. They do this when the Great Horned Owl from the nearby golf course descends into their territory. The only garden friend that I can see scurrying about is Little Red. He has just come out of his penthouse and is heading for the seed cylinders. Is everyone else sleeping in?
The researchers at Cal Falcons say that it is very rare for a male to bond with a female who has eggs and help her. I have mentioned Xavier in Orange who has now been Diamond’s mate for eons. There is now wonderful footage of the new male in Annie’s life bringing her what looks to be a nice healthy pigeon. This is very promising and I start off with this event because it is simply so unexpected and joyful. I hope that it continues.
There continue to be two eggs. Annie is in the scrape this morning incubating them.
I have been to watch the goings on at Dale Hollow in an attempt to see how that monofilament line is behaving or not on Little Middle’s leg. I could not see the top of the feet well enough but there appears to still be line on the talons but not pulled tight.
At the first feeding of the morning, Big violently attacked Little Middle. That was at 08:31. I know that many of us had hoped that Big would eventually stop this behaviour as Little Middle grew or literally be unable physically to mount a full on attack. This appears to not have happened. Big is capable of completely covering Little Middle. (Please read because this turns out brilliant).
The arrival of the fish prompts Big to tell Little Middle that it is all his!
It is hard to believe that these eaglets are precisely the same age – 34 days old if you count hatch date, 28 February.
Needless to say Little Middle did not get any of that fish. Little Middle stays in submission at the end of nest.
And then something interesting happens once the adult has left. We have been seeing this for several days – self feeding. Despite the fishing line, Little Middle is understanding to hold down the prey item with a foot.
Big is full to the brim. Little Middle is eyeing the fish. He doesn’t need a parent to feed him- Little Middle is so clever. It is 09:04.
Little Middle is ahead of Big in terms of self feeding. Again, it is not clear precisely where the fishing line is in its entirety but Little Middle is eating and feeding itself.
River returns to the nest and feeds Little Middle the rest of the fish. This time Little Middle got to the side where it is safe from Big to eat!
At 09:37 you can see Little Middle’s crop and you can also see the fishing line on the right talons. It is not taut like it was yesterday.
At 11:09 River brings in a large headless fish to the nest. The fish deliveries are looking good today in terms of their size. That is a good thing.
I was waiting for Big to do something and then River moved up and fed Little Middle – who, from the image, has a nice crop already. Little Middle is eating well. This is good.
River or is it Obey turned the other direction and kept the two apart.
River did not feed a lot of fish. Big was full and so was Little Middle. But look, Little Middle is nibbling on the fish! This is such a sweet eaglet.
At 11:28 you can clearly see Little Middle’s crop – and it is wonderfully big!!!!!
At 11:30 Middle Little is across the nest showing off its crop alongside Big. This prompts me to say that Little Middle is mobile, moving around. Yesterday the fishing line was causing some issues. I continue to be hopeful that this issue will take care of itself. My last check is at 11:37 and Little Middle is once again eyeing the leftover fish in the nest.
This was posted on the Berry College Eagles FB this morning. As you will recall, the only eaglet B15 fledged the other day. Missy and Pa Berry have done everything to lure him back to the nest.
Maya and Blue 33 (11) did not waste anytime. Maya laid her first egg at Rutland Water’s Manton Bay Osprey nest yesterday!
Maya was covered in frost when she woke up this morning.
Speaking of laying eggs, Mother Goose at the old Decorah, Iowa Bald Eagle nest laid her 6th egg yesterday. Will we have 7 today? She fooled everyone!
In the UK, two of Monty’s boys have returned Z1 Tegid and Z2 Aeron whose nest is at Pont Cresor near Glaslyn. The note was in my message box from my friend ‘T’. We joked before if we were Ospreys which male would we want for a mate. ‘T’ always wants Monty. I am a Blue 33 (11) girl.
Aeron Z2 appeared on Mrs G and Aran’s nest. Despite having his own partner at the PC nest, both of Monty’s lads were interested in Mrs G and her nest last year.
There are three Osprey males on monitored nests that have not returned yet. They are Aran at Glaslyn, Dylan at Llyn Clywedog, and Idris at the Dyfi Nest.
It has been a tough week for all of us watching Little Middle and the fishing line. It would seem that everyone from Florida to Tennessee and beyond knows about the eaglet’s issue with the monofilament line. Today, I am going out into the forest. The Japanese have this wonderful word, Shinrinyoku. It is going out into nature, into the quiet of the woods and letting the outdoors soak into me through my pores. While it was originally meant to get individuals to increase their contact with nature, I have found walking in the woods a good way to get all of the negativity of the week out of my head. As important is another ‘S’ word – Shoganai. That word reminds me that often we have to accept things as they are especially a situation that is beyond our control. We can let go of that huge feeling of frustration and disappointment. We have done the best we can. The founder of The American Eagle Foundation is aware as is Scott Somershoe of the TN Audubon Society. Thank you for those links to these individuals or for contacting them yourself. This morning Little Middle ate well, fed itself, and was mobile. That is good.
Thank you for joining me this morning. Take care everyone. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Cal Falcons, Dale Hollow Eagles, LRWT, Explore.org, and Bywyd Gwyllt Glasyn.
I want to thank everyone who sent notes and who contacted folks in Tennessee around the Dale Hollow area. When I came home from my appointment, it was late but I realized that the issue is knowing who to call. Many of us live in various parts of the world. We know who helps there. But not in Tennessee. As I sat and pondered the dilemma, I remembered that Ron Magill of the Miami Zoo had recently rescued R2, the youngest fledgling of Rita and Ron at the Zoo, because of monofilament line. It is a long shot but, perhaps, he knows someone in Tennessee who believes in action not apathy! So I e-mailed him. Each of us can say that we have tried to help Little Middle in our way. Sometime we succeed and sometimes we don’t. I continue to hope for this little one who has been through so much and now this.
The good news is rather perplexing but, it is good news. Yesterday the male Peregrine Falcon, Grinnell, who had been with his bonded mate Annie for five successful seasons breeding on The Campanile – and they had two eggs laid for their sixth season – was killed. Annie was due to lay her third egg yesterday. She did not lay in in the scrape box at The Campanile. This raises an interesting question. If Annie did lay a third egg – dispose of it somewhere – was she aware that Grinnell had been killed? did she think she could only care for two chicks herself? The researchers at Cal Falcons believe this could be the case. Who knew what when??? As everyone watched Annie thinking there would be a third egg last evening and upset because we believed she did not know about Grinnell, Annie was kerchuffing to another falcon. I believed that it was possibly one of the female juveniles hanging about. But was it the male? This morning Annie and the male had two bonding sessions in the scrape box. I understand from the Cal Falcons FB page that Annie and the male were seen mating. This is certainly not normal and Annie’s behaviour has taken many by surprise. This afternoon the male incubated the two eggs for a short time. Is this the same male Annie was with when Grinnell was in the wildlife rehab clinic at the end of October? Who is he? Will he help Annie with the eggs? will he bring her prey? will he bring prey to the hatchings. I live in hope for Annie as well as Little Middle.
It is curious.
Annie and the male bonding in the scrape for the first time today.
Second bonding.
Male incubates eggs.
It is 17:30 in California and Annie is incubating the eggs.
There were several large fish on the Dale Hollow Nest when I left the house this afternoon. I was away for approximately 5 hours. The fish are either covered up or were eaten. Rewinding the camera did not help me. Little Middle still has the monofilament line around his legs and talons but he was eating, had a crop, and could move about. Continue to send your best wishes to this wee babe.
‘L’ sent me a note and said that another juvenile fledgling has a hook and line attached to it. This is E20 from the SWFlorida Nest of Harriet and M15. And, I mentioned Ron Magill, because he rescued R2, the youngest of Ron and Rita’s chicks the other day because of fishing line. SWFlorida will have CROW involved if there is a way to lure E19 to the nest. It is difficult once they fly. Here in a week, three known instances of fishing line and/or hooks. It is a growing and tragic problem for wildlife. People need to clean up after themselves, scour the shoreline when they are, get out in boats and get this stuff off the trees and their roots in the water. Please spread the word.
Sharon Dunne posted this image on the SWFL website. I know she will not mind if I share it with you.
There it is. If anyone can help, CROW can and E20s nest is in their region!
One of the most frustrating things that I have written about over the past few years is the need for emergency phone numbers should someone watching a streaming cam see something happening that needs attention. How we get the cams to do this is beyond me. We had some success last year but knowing who to contact is essential.
I have not been able to check on all the nests I had hoped to for this posting. I did look at Akecheta and Thunder because they give me a smile and all is well.
Akecheta trying to keep his babies cool.
Everything is fine at the Captiva Osprey nest of Andy and Lena.
There is BTW an osplet in the care of CROW from Captiva but it is from a different nest.
These two have really grown and thrived. Middle has the darkest plumage in the front. Little loves to look over the edge and the feathering is slightly lighter.
DC9 is the cutest, fluffiest little baby – the recent hatch of Mr President and Lotus at the National Arboretum Bald Eagle nest in DC. Just imagine a piece of fishing line here! I bet someone would be up there to make things right in a matter of hours.
Just look at those precious wings, that little fat bottom, and tail. So cuddly.
The two recently hatched babies at the nest at Decorah North, Iowa, are doing alright as well. It is so odd. Some eaglets hatch and appear to be wearing ‘goggles’.
It often takes two if you have triplets! Mum and Dad at Pittsburgh-Hayes may be used to fledging three but it is always a challenge.
Harry continues to fill the pantry with ever more prey for the two eaglets he shares with Nancy at the Minnesota DNR nest.
I hope these two are good to one another. There is lots of food!
The wee one at Dulles-Greenaway seems just fine. Martin and Rosa really make sure it is fed. What a beautiful place for a nest.
I wanted also to continue to check on Karl II’s progress to Estonia and can do so because of Anne7’s good reporting on Looduskalender Forum. I had so hoped that he would veer to the West. But he flew north and then returned to Moldova. But today the GPS coverage is erratic I am told and he is not in a good place. He is at Berdichev, Ukraine. There are issues with cell coverage and this is an area of attacks in this horrible war. I hope Karl II is safe. We need some good news – lots of it. Take care Karl II. We need you home!
This is the distance. Very close to major military activity and if flying north going through Belarus.
This is just a quick peek. I would love to wake up in the morning and find that someone had removed the monofilament from both DH15 and E20 who also has a hook. I want to hear that all is well with Annie and that the 4th eaglet on the PA Farm nest is eating well. No more monofilament. If we see three instances in a week on monitored nests wonder what it is like in the wild? It appears that leisure activities that humans undertake like fishing and hunting are life threatening to wildlife. So sad.
Please excuse my grammar and typos. It has been a long day and I didn’t get a chance to proof read this blog.
Thank you for joining me. Please take good care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Dale Hollow Bald Eagles, West End Bald Eagles and the Institute of Wildlife Studies, Sharon Dunne and her posting on the SWFlorida FB page, Dulles-Greenaway Eagles, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, MN DNR, Pittsburg Hayes and Pix Cams, Explore.org, Looduskalender Forum, Cal Falcons, and the NADC-AEF.
If you feel so inclined, live in Tennessee, please call and see if we can get help before it is too late. Nothing seems to have happened from my calls, sadly.
It has been a very difficult two days in Bird World. The first concerns rose with the fishing line on the Dale Hollow Bald Eagle nest two days ago – its wrapping around Little Middle’s feet – and then the most horrific news coming yesterday of Grinnell’s death. As so many of you commented in the first instance, ‘If they can get up there to fix the camera, then why can’t they get up to help the little eaglet?’ But no one can make sense of Grinnell’s death. I tried to write a tribute to this sweet little falcon and could not do it last night. I will but it is going to take a few days. He was such a sweet little falcon that I simply cannot believe he is not with us this morning.
My heart ached for Annie. She was in the scrape calling. She did not lay a third egg yesterday.
I really felt for Annie last night. Where was her mate? why was he not relieving her? why was Grinnell not bringing her something to eat? Where was Grinnell?
It is unusual for a falcon to be down amidst traffic. They hunt in the air – they are the world’s fastest aerial predators. So what was Grinnell doing in traffic? The premise that Grinnell was chasing an intruder that knocked him down into the traffic seems reasonable —– and so sad. Always protecting his and Annie’s territory and babies.
‘B’ sent me a good article about Grinnell that I want to share with you.
Some of you will know Xavier and Diamond whose scrape is on the grounds of Charles Sturt University in Orange, Australia. Xavier means Saviour. You might also know that but maybe some of you don’t. Xavier was given that name because when Diamond’s mate disappeared, presumed dead, Xavier came to the rescue almost immediately. He kept Diamond and the eyases fed. He did not interact with the chicks too much and of course, he did not harm them. He proved to be so trustworthy that Diamond bonded with him the following year and they had their own family. Perhaps Annie will have just such a saviour.
This was, literally, just posted by Cal Falcons. It can’t be an April Fool’s joke. Is it possible Annie will have help raising those chicks? Is this the male that Grinnell was chasing? was Annie talking to this male last night?
No one has gone up to help Little Middle at the Dale Hollow nest with the fishing line. It is still wrapped around his feet and in different configurations at various times. So much fish came on the nest this morning – at least three large fish, that it defies understanding that Big would continue to attack Little Middle but she did on several different occasions. Indeed, the kids had hardly anything to eat yesterday so I assumed Big would eat first and she did have a big crop. LM had nothing and then had an opportunity and Big attacked. Later Little Middle got up and ate until he had a nice crop. Then another fish arrived on the nest – a 4th.
Little Middle was so hungry that he began pecking on the fish in the centre of the nest. You might recall that Little Middle did this yesterday moving a fish from beside Big to eat away on it. DH15 is a survivor – if he gets the chance!
Little Middle managed to get a good feeding. And we can all say, ‘whew’.
I do not see Little Middle dragging the nesting material around this morning. I have caught a glimpse of the fishing line around its talons, loose. Perhaps this wee one who has endured so much will be able to get rid of it.
Little Middle was so hungry that he got himself back up to the fish after about 9 minutes of hanging by the rim of the nest. Big had already eaten and Middle Little had little food since Thursday morning if any food. He chewed on a fish by itself.
Big’s presence is just intimidating. She seems to get upset for no reason that Little Middle exists.
I had hoped that Middle Little would grow bigger and that Big would plateau but not only does it seem that Big’s plumage is changing dramatically, she also continues to grow. Her leg is almost the size of her parents! Middle Little still has to be careful.
River flew in with another fish 09:59:00. This should be number 4. Big was sleeping on the #3 fish and River was feeding #2. Plenty of fish today for both eaglets – no reason for any beaking or rivalry.
Little Middle has a crop and that is good.
There are so many nests that need to be checked on and I have an appointment today. A good report on all of them will come later with updates on Dale Hollow, Annie and the new mate, and Karl II if there is any new tracking data.
It feels a bit like we are all in a bird whirlwind. No one expected Annie to bond with another male this fast! Cal Falcons is really having to rewrite what they know about falcons! And we are learning, too. I just wonder if this is the male that was around when Grinnell was injured?
Thank you for joining me. Take care everyone. I will do a very quick update late tonight. See you soon!!!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures and video clips: Dale Hollow Bald Eagles and Cal Falcons. Thank you ‘B’ for the article on Grinnell.
The line was wrapped around the hallux and talon 3 and over talon 1 at 08:28:31.
But…look now. Tears!!!!
The line is still on the nest but – this is good to know. It appears that the line is off Little Middle’s feet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Did someone wish for a miracle? or did all of you?
Keep watching. If you see anything regarding line on their talons – including Big, please let me know. Thank you for all your positive wishes and help. I don’t know what happened and I don’t care. Two hours ago I thought Little Middle would surely lose its talon if it could not rid itself of that line. Whew! Little Middle appears to have dodged another bullet.
Take care all. It could turn out to be a good day…oh, BTW. Jasper at the NEFlorida nest of Gabby and Samson has branched this morning while I was watching Little.
Thank you to the Dale Hollow Eagle cam where I took my screen captures.
Wednesday was a day with super highs and lowest lows in the animal world. A group of hunters in the UK chased a Buck for 7 hours straight until it collapsed and died. Seriously horrific. River brought in a beautiful fish for the kids at the nest she shares with her mate, Obey, at Dale Hollow Lake. This is in northern Tennessee bordering Kentucky. It had a hook and fishing line. River broke the line and tossed the hook over the edge of the nest but some line remains and some – not sure how much – is on Middle Little’s foot. I hope it works itself off naturally without cutting into the talons and leg. Poor thing. Little Middle has been through so much. I could not – and still can’t – believe this happened. One of our readers has the e-mail of Al Cerere that started the American Eagle Foundation with its headquarters in Tennessee. Perhaps he can help Little Middle in some way. Thank you, ‘L’ for reaching out to him. Fires are raging the Pigeon Forge Tennessee home to Dollywood and the AEF Ambassador Eagles – and Al will also be busy with this. The wildfire is being monitored and there are plans for evacuation. In the positive column, White YW arrived today to join his mate, Blue 35, on the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest in Cumbria. Last year they almost arrived at the same time. So excited. These are Tiny Little’s parents!! It is a great nest but an aggravation as there is no rewind!
Akecheta feeding his triplets always puts a smile on my face! Just looking at them gives me hope.
All is well with the West End triplets this morning, Thursday the 31st.
The triplets at Pittsburgh-Hayes are also doing well. A dry morning has turned, however, into a miserable one and the three will need to stay dry and snug until it passes.
The storm that hit points to the west that is hitting Pittsburgh is starting to blow in Washington, DC where Mr President and Lotus have their only nestling to keep dry, warm, and fed.
There is lots of food but it is difficult to feed a new hatch in torrential rains!
There are storms moving through large swaths of US. The storm and heavy rain at Berry College where B15 has his nest with parents Pa Berry and Missy is just starting.
This morning at 09:17:55 Pa Berry and Missy’s eaglet B15 fledged!!!!!!! Here is B15 at 09:00.
I cropped the image so you can find B15 easier. It is the black silhouette at the top centre flying out of the frame.
Parent is on the nest trying to lure B15 back with a fish for breakfast – nice reward! Send positive wishes that B15 stays for the 4-5 weeks to learn its flying and continue to get prey from parents!
Gold stars go out to Rosie and Richmond. My goodness they have been working hard to get their Osprey nest on the Whirley Crane in the Richmond Shipping Yards fit for eggs. Well done!
Middle and Little (or Little and Mini) at the Captiva Osprey nest are ‘itchy’. Unless they are eating it is extremely difficult to get a good image of both of them standing together!
There is still no news on the cause of Big’s death. That was 15 March. Only 16 days ago. It could be another week or more.
A lesson learned that many wildlife rehabbers know is that if there is a nest where an eaglet needs to be removed so the others thrive, remove the oldest. Not the youngest. Both Middle and Little have done well, getting along perfectly well since the death of Big. I don’t want this to sound callous but it is the thing to remember. Often we think the one that needs food needs to be removed but it is actually the oldest who will do well in care while the young does best on the nest.
A sub-adult or juvenile White-bellied sea eagle has return to the nest in the Sydney Olympic Park. Is this 25, 26, or 27 or 28? They are attempting to identify the bird. This is done, ironically, through the talons I believe.
Sea Eaglet is quite hungry but lovely to see. I wonder if this is not WBSE 27 that went into care twice? Will confirm when anything is posted.
The Black Stork Karl II flew into the Ukraine and instead of heading north headed back south to where it was on the 29th. Did something scare it? Individuals are hopeful that Karl II will go a different route to the west. Fingers crossed.
There is a fish pool at Mindic where Karl II can get food.
I have no information on the situation with regard to Little Middle at the Dale Hollow Nest. Yesterday River brought in a fish that had a hook and line stuck in its side. River removed the hook breaking the line. She threw the hook over the nest. Monofilament line remained and it got on D15 Little Middle’s left foot. This morning at 08:28:09 there is a clear view of the issue. The line, at that time, had wrapped around the 4th toe the hallux needed to carry fish and the third and over the first toe. Last night it was only around the top of the foot. It is tighter. Little Middle ate well last night. I did not see it eat this morning. Here is an image of that line:
I posted the image and the issue on Bald Eagles 101 this morning and send a message to the USFWS at Cookeville, TN.
If you feel so inclined, here are some phone numbers of appropriate authorities to call in Tennessee. Remember that Carol Moore called The Raptor Centre who was to call the USFWS yesterday. I believe this was done. It is unclear if there is any way to access the nest. Some trees are just not safe for someone to climb. It is imperative to remember that this is a human caused issue and, as such, warrants an intervention if, indeed, it is at all possible to do so. What we do not know is if there is any way to access the tree. That said, here are some phone numbers in the area if you feel you would like to add your voice. The Mid-South Raptor Center at Celina TN. 901-685-8827. The Army Corp of Engineers that own the property is 931-243-3135. The Cookeville USFWS is 931-528-6481.
There is no guarantee that anyone will do anything. I was hopeful that this morning Little Middle would be relieved. It is possible that there is absolutely no access to the nest. As one of my falconer friends reminded me yesterday, ‘Nature kicks you right in the gut just when you think everything is going well’. And it couldn’t be truer. Little Middle was clever and eating and Big didn’t bother it yesterday like the days before. Both of them are 31 days old today, 32 if you count hatch. Being gutted is pretty much what it feels like this morning but I live with hope.
Speaking of hope, Cal Falcons has estimated that Annie will lay her 3rd egg tonight around 21:10!!!!!!!!! I can’t wait!!!!!!! Something positive to look forward to.
Thank you so much for joining me today. I wish beyond wishes that I had good news for you about Little Middle. Take care everyone. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: West End Eagles and the Institute for Wildlife Studies, Pix Cakm, NADC-AEF, Berry College, SF Ospreys and Golden Gate Audubon, Captiva Ospreys and Window on Wildlife, Sydney Sea Eagles at BirdLife Australia Discovery Centre, Anne7 at Looduskalender Forum, and Dale Hollow Eagles.
