Samson has come to the nest to check on the progress of the hatch and to see if Gabby wants anything. Samson is more than anxious for NE26 to hatch – just like the rest of us.
26 is using his egg tooth to chisel away at that shell. At 08:20 this was just a tiny hole.
You can see that egg tooth chipping away.
Samson is back again, just checking on progress.
Samson decides to redo the rim of the nest and add and move sticks while he is waiting.
Waiting is hard!
Gabby has rolled the eggs. Look carefully you can see some cracks underneath the branch on the egg.
Samson is as anxious as the rest of us. He keeps jumping down on the nest to see how 26 is doing.
What a great portrait of our NEFlorida couple.
Look at the progress! Wow. This little one is getting that egg open quickly. I am really impressed with the progress. It won’t be long til 26 can give a karate kick and be free!
Progress!
Thank goodness for Ferris Akel. I was getting a little bit like Samson wondering how things were going with the hatch and the notice popped up that Ferris was on his tour. So between Ferris and the garden birds it is helping to pass the time while we wait for N26 to hatch! There is heat shimmer on the images and some were at a great distance.
It has been a great day to see raptors on Ferris’s Tour especially in the Montezuma area. There was an American Kestrel, a Rough-legged Hawk, and a Red-tail Hawk mixed in with Starlings and Horned Larks.
This is one gorgeous hawk!
There were a pair of them hunting. The light one above and a darker plumaged one.
This is such a beautiful dark Red-tail Hawk. Look at that amazing patterning on the scapula, the ‘V’ formed on the back when the wings are folded.
Horned Larks do not really have horns. They normally show two little feathered tufts on their heads. Horned Larks are the only true species of lark in North America. There is one other lark, the Sky Lark, that was introduced to Vancouver Island.
The Horned Lark is larger than a sparrow. The pattern is striking. Notice the yellow under the beak and then the dark brown/black line across separating the head from the breast.
All of a sudden there was open water and there were Mallards, Black Ducks, and a female Red-breasted Merganser plus an array of Canada Geese.
Ferris took us to see some amazing water falls on the way to Ithaca. They are Taughannock Falls at Ulysses, New York. Incredibly beautiful. They are 8 miles away from Ithaca and if you are ever in the region, this would be a great place to visit.
Having promised myself to take images of a wasp nest hanging over the street in the tree canopy, it seemed like a good time between the falls and Ithaca to do that.
This nest is so fragile looking. It was in tact, like a tight round ball, until our snow storm the other day.
I will go out during different lighting conditions to document the change in the nest as winter progresses.
This little Black-capped Chickadee kept itself busy getting seeds and moving around the many European Starlings.
It seems like they would use more energy retrieving the seed and cracking it than the energy contained inside. But what do I know? I am just a silly human.
One brave sparrow sat with a sea of European Starlings today.
This fellow decided it was easier to knock the seed cylinder down and eat on the ground! The Chickadee thanked him.
Ferris is trying to find Big Red and Arthur. NE26 continues to work itself out of that shell. All of the other birds are doing well even with the cold temperatures in areas such as Louisiana.
Dad delivered a fish for Ervie. It was a bit of an appetizer. Ervie has been away from the nest. Maybe he is out fishing!
Ervie knew that day was coming before we could see him. Ervie flew into the nest and started prey crying.
Ervie is great to flap his wings and call for food at the same time. He can also stand on its tippy-toes.
There is Dad. Mum watches from the perch.
It is a flurry of wings and feet. Thanks, Dad!
Everything seems to be fine in Bird World. So far Ferris has found lots of Crows but not Big Red and Arthur. What in the world is going on? The Crows are flying, in the trees, just moving about.
They are also on the roof of Barton Hall at Cornell University. Is the beginning of hundreds of Crows gathering together? Researchers believe that they gather at dusk to share food sources and to find breeding partners in the spring.
Thank you so much for joining me today. Take care. Just think tomorrow there will be a new eaglet in the world. Yes!
Thanks to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen captures: Ferris Akel Tour, Port Lincoln Osprey Project, NEFlorida and the AEF.