Tag Archives: wildlife

2nd Year Intruders…Wednesday in Bird World

8 May 2024

Good Morning,

One of my sweet helpers.

Remember that I mentioned those two year old returnees are coming! In the regions where banding is not done, you can never get as excited as those platforms that know their chicks have survived. Another one of Dylan and Seren’s fledglings has returned this year. Blue 555 from 2024 landed on Telyn who is incubating eggs at Dyfi a few miles away from his natal nest at Clywedog Reservoir.

Here is the sequence. Telyn hears/sees another osprey approaching. Blue 555 lands. Blue 555 is sent off by our excited mom-to-be. Idris arrives to save the day – all within about half a minute or less.

Telyn looks up.

Here comes 555.

Here comes Idris. No one is going to mess with his Telyn!

Did you see this? Murphy is a foster again!

At Captiva, Jack is keeping the fish coming and it was a good day for the little one. ‘H’ reports: ” CO8 did okay today, and basically I would have the same summary as yesterday. S/he takes a beating from CO7 at times, but it’s too soon to worry.  CO8 may not get as much to eat as CO7, but he did have a good crop a few times today.  Jack even fed CO8 for 8 minutes at meal #4. ” And then…”Jack delivered a large partial fish at 1907, that provided a long feeding for both of the siblings.  They ate side by side without any aggression, and both of them ended up stuffed.”

At Loch Arkaig, Louis has been busy and it was a late fish delivery for Dorcha.

Gosh, Louis is such an attentive mate. Some hardly bring the males any fish. I wonder what those new males will be like when chicks arrive?

Tuffy has grown into an exceptional osplet. Oh, how worried we were.

It appears that one or both of the osplets at Frenchman’s Creek have ‘branched’ to the camera pole OR the camera cannot get sight of one area of the nest. The shadows change and you can see the wings flapping.

The streaming cam at Redding is back up and running. Everyone is OK.

Mason is way up high in the natal tree at Superbeaks. Dixie looks out to the world beyond from the rails. These two will be flying soon. They are very active!

‘H’ reports on Lake Murray: “C3- ‘Little’ at Lake Murray is doing OK.  There is some aggression toward C3 by both older siblings, but there was only one meal on 5/7 where Little was shut out from the feeding.  Kenny is supplying lots of fish.”

‘A’ sent in a long report on several nests that she is tracking:

“I can hear Iris on an open tab – she is very chatty with her new man. He seems very proud of their eggs (they must be his and not Louis’ or he would doubtless have got rid of them by now). And – omigod, he’s brought in a tree now!!!! Sorry. I just turned over to Iris’ tab and what do I see? The most massive branch that resembles a small tree without leaves has been brought to the nest. I told you that yesterday he was bringing in some large, awkwardly shaped branches, but this one takes the cake. I wonder if he intends to plant a small forest around the outside of that nest. Or perhaps he too is worried about the dangers of an osplet being blown off that platform by that extra strong wind. But seriously, have a look at that tree! Talk about a laugh for the morning.”

Now, let us think about a time for us to begin to watch for these eggs to hatch of Iris and New Guy: 11 June? Pip watch? 

Cal appears to have dispersed. Today he is 140 days (exactly 20 weeks) old and it will be the seventh day since he was seen at or near the nest, though of course Connie and Clive are maintaining their territory. So the general consensus is that he has left to find his own mate and territory. Godspeed little one. You will always own a tiny piece of my heart. And remember, you fly for two, as you will also carry Lusa with you in your travels. How sad it is when we say goodbye to them, knowing their chances at reaching their first birthday are relatively low. All we can hope is that Cal learned well on the nest, with that bossy older sister, and has had the very best parental preparation for adulthood. He has great genes and we can only hope he gets the chance to pass them on. 

In Tennessee, Angel was last seen briefly (for just two minutes) early on the morning of 3 May, while Tom was there very briefly the following morning. There have been heavy thunderstorms in the area over the past couple of days, and they usually fail to appear on very wet days, but I think we have to admit now that the window is closing fast and that there will be no eggs for Angel and Tom this season. Now, we wish them a safe year until we see them next. Angel is such a rare beautiful creature, and I know her survival is far from assured. To add to the natural hazards they all face, she of course is unable to camouflage herself and even has to worry about unscrupulous individuals who have offered large sums of money to anyone prepared to divulge her whereabouts so she can be captured or killed as a trophy. I find it appalling that Connor has been offered tens of thousands of dollars for that information, though sadly it does not surprise any of us. 

At Taiaroa Head, our gorgeous boy was 7.9 kgs yesterday (7 May) at 105 days of age (the average for males of that age at this colony is 7.8 kg) – the same weight as the week before (when he had been fed by both mum and dad just before the weighing). Over the past week, he has had frequent feedings, with both parents visiting more than once, some feeds quite small and others larger. There had not been a feeding for a couple of days before this latest weighing, though, which accounts for his weight remaining the same as the week before. Mum came in yesterday afternoon and fed him around 4.15pm, and both our on-camera chicks have been fed this morning (8 May), with mum LGL feeding TF chick at 7.17am and dad BOK coming in to feed TFT chick shortly before 10am.  He is doing well, as are both his parents. Every time they leave on a foraging trip, we worry about when and whether they will return. Of course OGK never did. He has now, finally, been officially declared deceased at this point, as he would have returned to breed this season had he been capable of doing so. Sad news, but this year’s beautiful Royal Cam chick cannot but bring a smile to your face. His gorgeous plumage is pristine, revealing that he has lived his first 105 days of life without an incident of fear that has caused him to ‘spill’. So those snowy-white feathers are, in a sense, the sign of an stress-free childhood (or a very brave little chick or both). Whenever you need a smile, just turn to the albatross chicks on Taiaroa Head, where the rangers are constant and devoted guardians and we get to love our chicks for seven months or more. New Zealand truly is one of the most beautiful places on the planet. “

Those Cal Falcon chicks of Annie and Archie can put a smile on your day, too.

Annie and Grinnell’s grandchildren are ahead in development (they are obviously older). Look at their tail feathers and they are walking around the scrape. Larry (Annie and Grinnell’s daughter) and his mate are doing fantastic. What a treat to have a camera at their Alcatraz scrape!

Speaking of falcons, a wonderful soul posted an image of the screen at the CBD in Melbourne on FB and the falcons are there on the ledge! Maybe there will be chicks this year. I knew you would be excited.

Oh, I am getting excited that they might turn that Melbourne Live Stream on early. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they left it on all year?

The chat for the Cornell RTH is on the livestream and is open in the mornings. Check the time. Arthur had just brought in a nice little chippy for N1 and N2 when I tuned in.

Gosh those kids are cute. It won’t be long til they are pecking away at those chippies.

Watching for Rutland. The two eggs deemed unviable by Maya could have been the first ones that were laid so, it could be a few more days. Good news at LOTL. The new male has removed all the eggs from the egg bowl and maybe Blue NCO will start thinking he could be a ‘catch’. I am hoping so!

Thank you so much for being with me today. I am feeling better in the mornings and pretty horrible in the evenings still. The sun is out and it will be a good day for a walk, regardless. I am wondering if we have more little goslings hatching? Please take care. See you soon!

Thank you as always to those great people that send me news of the nests they are monitoring – I am calling them the Fabulous Four: ‘A, Geemeff, H, and SP’ along with all the others, the cams, the postings, the videos that helped me to write my post this morning including the Fab 4 and Dyfi Osprey Project, PBS, Window to Wildlife, Geemeff, Moorings Park, Frenchman’s Creek, FORE, Superbeaks, Lake Murray, Montana Osprey Project, NZ DOC, Cal Falcons, Parks Conservancy, Maya Rowe, and Cornell RTH.

Tuesday in Bird World

7 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

UPDATE: FALCON CHICKS IN OMAHA ARE DECEASED NOT OSPLETS! THEY HAVEN’T HATCHED YET.

Gosh. I wish I could tell you that we have blue skies here on the Prairies, but no, it is heavily overcast and windy and I suspect some more rain is coming. The rain we had last week while I was so very sick made the grass green and the heat has really popped the leaves.

On Monday Mr or is it Mrs? I think Mr Crow was in and out all day long getting pieces of cheesy dogs. I didn’t clock his comings and goings but it was consistent throughout the day to see him on the railing of the fence flying down to get a piece of food. There have to be babies in the nest for him to be coming and going so often. So, imagine, in a month, there could be baby crows pecking at the ceiling of the conservatory for more food! We become foster parents to them and the little Blue Jays that will hatch about the same time. Oh, I can’t wait.

There was no one at the duck pond when I walked around. To my great surprise, it appears the first two goslings have hatched.

There were Wood Ducks, Common Goldeneyes, Mallards, and Canada Geese. Phone photos from a distance are not great. Below is the female Common Goldeneye. She is knockout gorgeous with her ruffled light-espresso head tinged with a bit of auburn or henna, that piercing yellow eye, and a body of shades of brown-black, white, and grey—like practising hues and shades from design class only using brown touched with black instead of pure black. They are diving ducks that feed of pond plants, tubers, leeches, frogs, and small fish.

I was surprised at the lack of ducks. I wonder if there just isn’t enough plant food or them. There were only two male Wood Ducks. This was just sitting quietly by one of the incubating geese.

I left the park and headed to the nature centre. My body needed to walk out in the fresh air! There were bus loads of students doing things far away from the trails. The American Goldfinches have arrived along with the Harris Sparrows. I did not see any goslings but a few geese incubating. What struck me at both sites was the lack of geese incubating eggs. I hope they are just hiding.

The daffodils are just beginning to open and if you look closely you can see the canopy turning green.

It just felt so very good to be outside – walking. I am feeling a bit better every day, little by little. It isn’t COVID and keeps reminding me that this is probably a really bad case of food poisoning that is lingering. Thank you over and over for your good wishes.

At home, Hugo Yugo has been playing ‘cheese hockey’. This cat loves cheese. She also likes one big piece to bat all over the floor like a small soft toy. Oh, goodness, she has fun.

‘H’ is over the moon excited. It was a very sad year for Louise and her mate, Jasper, in 2023. Then we had to endure the intruders harming Banff, the only surviving chick, knocking her off the platform, etc. We think Banff survived all of that and it is good to have Louise. Oh, let this nest be peaceful in 2024. Louise deserves it.

The other excitement comes from the Osprey nest at Captiva where Jack got to get involved in a dual feeding with Edie. Way to go, Jack.

‘H’ comments:

Things can get pretty rambunctious between the siblings at meal times.  CO7 is older, bigger, and more dominant, but CO8 starts a few of the skirmishes as well.  CO7 will beak CO8 occasionally during a feeding, and cause him to be submissive, but there are also times when the chicks eat peacefully side by side. The fish have been plentiful and large, and at most meals, CO8 will receive at least one private feeding.  At this point in time, the dominance by CO7 is not so severe that it prevents CO8 from getting plenty to eat. 

Thanks, ‘H’.

There are always those nests that just make you happy. Annie’s has always been that way. Even through the loss of the mates – each one a darling – those chicks just make us smile even when they are covered in pin feathers.

One of the chicks is already wanting to climb out of the scrape. Gracious me.

Little hawklets with pinfeathers are also adorable. Like Annie, Big Red would never let one of her babies go to sleep hungry. At the Cornell, they not only get a fur lined egg cup but they can sleep on their own squirrel dreaming about having it for breakfast the next morning.

We have a name for the new female at Dunrovin.

The new gal at Charlo Montana has two eggs and her name is Lola.

Dorcha isn’t new and we do love you with your deep dark plumage, but there is a very soft spot in our hearts for Aila. Many of you started watching streaming cams during the pandemic. I imagine most of you found the nest of Louis and Aila at Loch Arkaig. 400,000 people did. We fell in love with that trio. At least one of them Doddie was spotted in 2023 up in the Shetland Islands as a returnee. I hope Little Captain and Vera are out there, too. You were much loved, Aila.

Iris gets a whole fish dinner while New Guy incubates the second egg.

Nesting material has been arriving at Sandpoint where there are already three beautiful Osprey eggs. Now imagine. Look to the left to that little pond. Think fish. Wouldn’t you like to stock it with about 400 fish (yes, we would have to feed them) for the ospreys? Keke and Leo would like that. Fish at the ready.

Ah, thank you ‘MP’. I am so glad to hear that the male at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is bringing fish even if they are sunfish!

All three at Little Miami are looking good but, just look at how big the baby is!

Kansas City Eaglets are fine.

Working through the fish at Frenchman’s Creek. If you had told me a fortnight ago that these two osplets would be healthy, being fed on a bed of rotting fish, I might not have believed you.

Maya sleeping. Best do it now. Those eggs could hatch any time.

Rolling the eggs at Dyfi with Idris and Telyn.

Look at that nice railing on the Glaslyn nest. Imagine there are people who fix this every year! I would love to have the rail fairies help out Superbeaks and Moorings Park.

Beautiful Poole Harbour.

Like everyone else, incubation continues at Llyn Brenig.

Hope has arrived home at the Snow Lane osprey platform in Newfoundland. She might have to fight for the nest.

Pigeons are more than falcon food. But, they deserve not to be poisoned. In both World Wars they helped. Here is a new story that ‘EJ’ found and sent to us -. Enjoy.

Remarkable-story-of-how-a-pigeon-saved-a-crew-of-World-War-II-bombers-GoodDownload

‘PB’ reports that all peregrine falcon chicks at the OPPD nest are deceased. She reports that they were not fed after hatching and it appeared the parents had no interest in feeding them. Could this be HPAI?

I loved it when ‘R’ recognised that I was a little ‘heated up’ when I wrote about the murder of Laddie. People get by with murdering birds because the legal system will not do a thing. Why does the judicial system not take things like stealing birds eggs – that wiped out entire populations -seriously? This is outrageous.

Serial-egg-thief-Daniel-Lingham-avoids-custodial-sentence-–-Raptor-Persecution-UKDownload

Shooting One to Save another? Thanks, ‘SP’.

They-Shoot-Owls-in-California-Dont-They-The-New-York-TimesDownload

Heart broken for Blue NCO who listens and waits for her Laddie.

Thank you for being with me today. Please take care of yourselves. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, reminders, streaming cams and images that helped me to write my post today: ‘PB, EJ, Geemeff, H, MP’, Heidi McGrue, Window to Wildlife, SK Hideaways, Cornell RTH Cam, Celia Osprey, Charlo Montana, Geemeff, Montana Osprey Project, Steelscape Ospreys, Little Miami Conservancy, Kansas City Bald Eagles, Frenchman’s Creek, LRWT, Dyfi Osprey Project, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Poole Harbour Osprey Project, Llyn Brenig, Gerard Hickey, GOOD, Raptor Persecution UK, The New York Times, and Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL).

*Disclaimer. Every effort is made to give credit to those that contributed to the post. If I have made an error or omission, please let me know so it can be corrected. Thank you.*

Iris will do it ‘her way’…Monday in Bird World

6 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

Thank you to everyone for your continued good wishes. I am very, very slowly feeling a wee bit better. A good friend dropped off two different types of Covid tests, just in case. Both were negative. So, not Covid. Whatever this is – well, I continue to say I do not wish it on anyone! Keep sending those positive vibes!!!!!!!!!

There is a rhythm to the events in the garden. The Juncos return first, then the White-throated Sparrow, and by then it is time for Mr and Mrs Crow to begin to bug me to fill up their food bowls. I have seen them during the winter but, for some reason, they return at the beginning of breeding season to remind me of their presence. I put out whatever I can gather from the fridge and from neighbours along with their usual cheesy dogs and hard boiled eggs along with cat kibble. This year events are earlier by about 14-16 days, but they are, nonetheless, happening in the same way. After spending the winter ignoring me, the first Crow has returned yesterday. In June, the little crows will come to get peanuts and to learn to dip them in the water. It is something that I look forward to with great delight.

The Crow first checked for peanuts and then went to chip away at one of the solid seed cylinders with large nuts and mealworms. It had previously been on the roof of the conservatory demanding treats! They watched as I filled the bowl with cheesy dogs, some cooked food from a neighbour including carrots….their favourite. (During the winter I have a secret feeding station for them).

The Baltimore Orioles will be here shortly. No matter what happens, the wildlife carry on, perhaps a little earlier, but what fun it will be to look forward to those little Crows splashing about, the baby Sparrows all puffed up sitting quietly waiting for the adults to tell them they can move, and the arrival of the Hummingbirds.

Calico talked to the Crow while it was coming and going during the day. Others slept.

We are now entering the period when the two year old returnees are causing havoc at the established nests – some of them their natal nests. We get a brief look at how this is impacting Kielder Forest, but it is happening everywhere.

Mainly-intruder-news-Kielder-OspreysDownload

There is no new news on the killing of LM12 Laddie near Loch of the Lowes. Scottish Wildlife Trust posted the following information on this amazing osprey.

Our hearts continue to break over this ‘murder’. Blue NCO continues to fish call and incubate the eggs although she is having to leave to try and feed herself.

There is always concern when there are three osplets and Lake Murray is no exception. ‘H’ is keeping a close watch.

The little one is trying. Just look at the size difference. Oh, I hope this sweet baby makes it. Fingers crossed.

The 1610 feeding – ‘H’ reports that all ate and there was no bonking. Yippee.

Wish that little one had some of the fish that landed at the Venice Golf Club. Mum might have even brought in two big fish. Wow.

Despite the mess, the two at Frenchman’s Creek are fine.

Both are eating at Captiva but there is still some unrest and bonking by the oldest.

Amongst the Ospreys there have been several nests that have had eggs out of sync. Today, ‘H’ notes that ” The Fenwick Island nest of Johnny and June: June laid eggs on 4/25 and 4/28, and both eggs were predated by a pair of crows on 4/28.  June’s third egg would have been due on 5/1.” ‘H’ notes that that egg did not arrive. We both wonder if this third egg that was laid on the 5th of May belongs to a first clutch or a new one. At Achieva, the egg dates were ‘off’ as well (normally every 72 hours). They were “1/28, 1/31, and 2/8”. (The last one could have been very, very late on the 7th but was not seen until the morning of the 8th).

We are wondering if these could be four egg clutches with the third egg laid somewhere else accidentally. It happens.

Tuffy still likes to be fed. Just look. Sally and Harry have the prettiest babies.

N1 and N2 could not be cuter. Look at the size of the crop on that little one.

Everyone loves Iris and each of us is worried, on the one hand, that raising a clutch of chicks might shorten her life or excited at the potential of the world’s oldest osprey getting to raise her first chick since 2018. I am just like all of you. I have been thrilled when Iris and Louis’s eggs have been taken by the Ravens and Iris has had a gentle summer fishing. Now that she has an attentive mate – and gosh, golly, Louis isn’t doing much about it – bringing her fish, I am getting rather excited and torn. I guess we wait and see what happens. Whatever it is, isn’t it nice seeing our Queen being treated well? Getting fish delivered to her for a change!

Here he is at 1640 bringing her another fish. I love this ‘Snake eyed guy’.

Iris flies off and takes it to the owl pole to eat.

There is something magical going on. Maybe it would always be Iris’s last year and maybe this is an extraordinary year for her. I watch with wonder.

Second egg expected. It was raining and I did not see anything. Iris not on the nest.

The New Guy is incubating the egg while Iris is off eating breakfast. Iris tells us ‘I will do it my way’.

The GH owlet at Wolf Bay is doing fine. Look at those legs!

Lady Hawk’s last coverage of E23, the darling of the SW Florida nest of M15 and his new mate, F23. Why oh why doesn’t someone band these hatches?

They are getting a little itchy at Cal Falcon scrape with all those pin feathers coming in.

If you need contentment:

‘PB’ reports that the second egg at Charlo Montana was laid on Sunday. It looks like her name is Lola.

‘H’ sent news that we have another egg at Cape May Meadows for Hera and Zeus. “5/6, The South Cape May Meadows osprey nest of Hera and Zeus:  Hera laid egg #2 at 06:29.”

Louis continues to take good care of Dorcha at Loch Arkaig. The killing of Laddie at Loch of the Lowes had made everyone nervous. So good to see the others at their nests as we wait for the first hatch at Rutland.

Adorable baby eaglet that fell out of the nest has a foster!

The eaglets at the Bald Canyon nest have names and both are happy that they are in the nest together! Another great rescue.

Muhlady and Pepe continue to provide prey on the nest for Dixie (fledged) and Mason (still at home). There are continual prey wars when there is a delivery. Both look to be doing very well.

Full crops for the two eaglets of Dad and Gigi at the ND-LEEF nest.

Those two will soon be as big as Jersey and Leaper at Duke Farms who are anxiously awaiting their first flight.

For the two eaglets of Liberty and Guardian at the Redding nest, the votes are now being submitted for the final round in naming. Make sure you vote! The deadline is 7 May – that is Tuesday!

Go to: https://forms.gle/BeWHaTi2s66CYdKo7

‘A’ sends us the latest from the Sydney Olympic Forest: “

May 5: Both eagles were at home last night and woke early, well before 6am, with duets and mating. They both left by 6:19am, and over the next hour or so, more duets could be heard. Mid-morning at 10:15am, neither could be seen at the river but were spotted at Goat Island. Mid-afternoon, both eagles were still there, and at 16:45pm, one was noted flying off to the west. Both turned up at the nest around 17:16pm – one may have brought a stick – then mating nearby. A duet, and mating again at 5:42pm, with Lady bowing her head to indicate she was ready and willing to mate. Both then settled by the nest for the night. There was rain on and off today.

May 6: There was lots of rain overnight, with both eagles close by. They were awake early, with mating, then both flew off and one returned with a stick. Then both were off again before 6:30am. At 9am, both were seen at the very muddy river , landing on River Roost. Shortly after, there was a duet at 9:15am, and then both were seen flying together, heading north and further. The rain had stopped by then, but it was very windy. There have been issues with the cameras today, with livestream not available for most of the day. One eagle was seen flying over the forest at around 3pm. Just after 4pm, it seemed that two eagles were at Goat Island. Neither was reported at the river at 4:30pm. Then we were able to see the adjacent camera live and saw Lady come home late. She seemed to have just eaten, wiping her bill. She then settled.

This is interesting, especially with Lady initiating mating. But is it really early for Lady and Dad or is it their normal pattern of behaviour? They presumably regularly engage year-round in various forms of bonding behaviours, including mating, to maintain the strength of their pair bond. Yes? So maybe it’s not at all early for them to engage in the early phases of nest-building. “This is interesting, especially with Lady initiating mating. But is it early for Lady and Dad or is it their normal pattern of behaviour? They presumably regularly engage year-round in various forms of bonding behaviours, including mating, to maintain the strength of their pair bond. Yes? So maybe it’s not at all early for them to be engaging in the early phases of nest-building. “

LGK comes in for a feeding for TF chick! Always good to put a smile on your face. TF is so fluffy – like a soft cloud floating around the hill.

There is a lot going on at the nests. I hope to be able to provide some news each day until such time as I am back 100%. We are waiting for hatch watch at Rutland! Take care. We hope to see you soon.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, H, PB’, Kielder Ospreys, Jeff Kear and SWT, Lake Murray Ospreys, VGCCO, Frenchman’s Creek, Window to Wildlife, Fenwick Island, Moorings Park, Cornell RTH, Montana Osprey Project, Wolf Bay, Lady Hawk, Cal Falcons, Charlo Montana, SK Hideaways, SCMM, Jann Nichols, Gracie Shepherd, Superheats, Geemeff, ND-LEEF, Duke Farms, FORE, Sea Eagle Cam.

Who murdered Laddie?…Sunday in Bird World

5 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

I am using the word murder because this is an isolated area, restricted during breeding season, and someone would have deliberately taken out a firearm of some sort to kill this precious bird. This is not an accident.

There is heartbreaking news coming out of Scotland. I am putting it in order as I receive it but it sounds as if someone has killed our dear Laddie and that his disappearance was not due to old age/natural causes. This is extremely disturbing if that is the case.

I want you to imagine a beautiful loch restricted for fishing and human activities from the time the Ospreys arrive to the end of the breeding season. I want you to imagine quiet. We hear of other raptors being killed near grouse moors, but when was the last time you heard of a fish eating raptor being killed in the UK? True, there have been some very ‘sick’ stories coming out of regions of the US where ospreys were targeted. The last incident I heard was the deliberate cutting down of the Llyn Brenig platform in Wales. One egg was on the nest. It disturbed the entire breeding season. At Loch of the Lowes, we have Laddie. He was the resident male beginning in 2012. He is unringed so we do not know his history. He probably did not get a mate and a nest until he was four. Let’s use four as a reasonable beginning point. That means that Laddie is approximately sixteen or seventeen years old when he was killed. In that time, he flew to his wintering grounds. Let’s hypothesise that he went to West Africa. That is a distance of 2951 miles from Perthshire to Senegal. If Laddie hatched in 2007, he made his first trip to Africa then and flew 2951 miles. He remained there until he was a two-year old returning to the area around his natal nest which would be Scotland. So another 2951 miles in the spring of 2009 (making it a total of 5902 miles per year for 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and another 2951 on his return in the spring of 2024. That is a total flight distance just or a probably migration of 94,432 miles in total without incident. It is staggering and that is why I have listed the years individually.

Laddie left his nest and Blue NCO after delivering a fish at lunchtime on the 28th of April. He did not return.

He travelled more than most people and probably much more than the individual who lifted a gun and shot him out of the sky. It is unbelievable. He lived through the truly trying juvenile years when we lose almost 2 out o every 3 ospreys, he made at least 17 round trip migrations to be blown out of the sky doing what he did this time every year – delivering fish to his mate on the nest incubating their eggs, Blue NCO (the latest of his mates).

Laddie did not kill grouse. He did not swoop down and take chickens out of a coop. He fished quietly on a Scottish loch. It terrifies me for all the others who have eggs in the nest because someone out there thinks their lives do not matter. This is no different than someone sitting on a chimney pot and shooting Hugo Yugo or one of the other girls through the conservatory’s windows. They do it because they have the power to kill. It is time for the people to stand up for those who cannot defend themselves. Let Laddie be a symbol of the love and respect that we have for our raptors. Show these people that they are wrong. We do care. Force the Scottish Government to persecute this individual and make it meaningful, not a laughing stock.

“Police Scotland Tayside have posted on Facebook:

“We are appealing for information after the remains of an osprey were found near Dunkeld, Perth and Kinross, on Friday, 3 May, 2024.

The protected species is believed to have been nesting at Loch of the Lowes, close to where it was found.

Enquiries are at an early stage to establish the full circumstances.

Inspector James Longden said: “It is illegal to kill any protected species and we are working closely alongside partner agencies to confirm what has happened here and whether there is any criminality involved.

“Information from the local community could prove vital and it is important we speak to anyone who saw anything suspicious in the area, or who may know something which could assist our investigation.

“Any information can be passed to Police Scotland on 101 quoting incident number 3266 of Friday, 3 May, 2024. You can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”

Scots-cops-appeal-for-information-after-bird-of-prey-found-dead-close-to-nest-Daily-RecordDownload

This news will send ripples of concern throughout the UK Osprey platforms. The platform at Llyn Brenig was cut down a couple of years ago and we know that Hen Harriers, eagles, and even Red Kites have been killed around the grouse moors intentionally. Why would anyone want to kill an osprey?

The remaining issue is Blue NCO and the eggs. This is a human caused tragedy. The police would not be investigating if Laddie had died from natural causes or a battle for territory. Since this is the case, do we not have an obligation to provide fish for Blue NCO and the eggs, if they hatch, until such time as Mum is able to care for them entirely by herself? The terrain and the location might make this difficult if not impossible but they do ring the chicks. Of course, the best situation would be that the eggs would be abandoned and Blue NCO would move on with no chicks to worry about starving.

And now news arrives of a Peregrine Falcon being shot. This is becoming more than troubling.

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This morning it was discovered that Maya and Blue 33 are only incubating two eggs. Here is the news from Rutland. We know they can count now we know that they can also spot viable and non-viable eggs. Brilliant birds.

Tuffy and Ruffie compare wingers. Hilarious. As funny as this video is there is something rather disturbing too and that is the state of the nest at Moorings Park. The rails appear to be sliding off and well, I don’t even want to think about either of these beautiful osplets prematurely sliding off or being blown off the sides. Is it too much to appeal to Moorings Park to do major reconstruction during the off-season like they do at some nests in the UK? Where the rails are secured? Nesting material enhanced?

The Captiva osplets are in the reptile stage! Thanks, ‘H’ for that FB video clip.

The oldest osplet at Florida-Gainesville and Mum are faring alright.

Samson’s new mate, Blue 500, has been named Augusta after she laid their first egg on 3 May 2024 at the Border Osprey nest. Samson’s former mate, Juno, did not return from migration.

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Annie is trying to keep her babies cool.

Through rain and snow….Annie and Archie deliver.

Monty and Hartley are doing the same.

Dorcha and Louis are being silly.

‘H’ reports that at Severna Park, Olivia and Oscar have their third egg.

‘H’ also checks in on Lake Murray and the triplets appear to be doing fine.

The two osplets at Frenchman’s Creek seem to be working their way through the fish that Dad brought.

A hatch at Surrey. I am posting this because of the unusual nature in the way that the shell cracked during hatch. The little one made it out safely!

Gorgeous Big Red and N1 and N2.

The female has been fish calling at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. The male appeared later on Saturday but I have not seen any fish deliveries. Intruders? Anyone watching this nest closely?

Three beauties at the Venice Golf and Country Club Osprey Platform.

Lessons in plucking for those two big Decorah North eaglets.

Fraser Point eaglets doing fantastic.

The trio at the West End are real ‘treasures’.

Rescued chick back home at Bald Canyon and both have full crops.

The oldest and the youngest at Little Miami:

Checking on the Finnish nests:

Janakkala: Incubation

Paltamo: No eggs yet

Muonio: Unsure.

Ylläslompolo: No eggs

Beautiful female on her German nest.

For those looking forward to the Glacier Gardens Eagle Cam, there could be issues this year.

For those wondering about Richmond and Rosie, it is unclear whether there are two or three eggs. They sure didn’t make it easy for us this year!

The third egg at the Green Ledge Light Preservation Society on Long Island was laid on 2 May.

During the time that I conducted research in Mumbai for my PhD and later when I was writing all of that up, I met many Zoroastrians. They are often called Parsees (Parsi) and they immigrated to India from Iran after being persecuted by Muslims. They have unique traditions and, one in particular, the non-burial of their dead. They leave the bodies of their deceased for vultures to clean. The bodies do not contaminate the air, the soil, or the water. Today, this community is facing a particular challenge and it concerns a lack of vultures.

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Let Jackie and Shadow be our inspiration.

Thank you so much for being with me today. Please take care – there is a flu bug or something going around and it isn’t nice! See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, H, J, PB’, Scottish Wildlife Foundation (LOTL), Police Scotland Tayside, LOTL Visitor’s Centre, Val Gail, Daily Record, Geemeff, Raptor Persecution UK, Rutland Osprey Project, Heidi McGrue, Moorings Park Ospreys, Window to Wildlife, Border Ospreys, SK Hideaways, Cal Falcons, Severna Park, Lake Murray Ospreys, Frenchman’s Creek Ospreys, Hancock Wildlife Foundation, Cornell RTH Cam, Miami Landscape Arboretum, VGCCO, Raptor Resource Project/Explore, IWS/Explore, Gracie Shepherd, Little Miami Conservancy, Finnish Osprey Foundation, Green Ledge Light Preservation Society, and The Guardian.

*Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to credit the correct individuals for their contributions. If an error has been made, please let me know! I wish to fix it.*

Saturday in Bird World

4 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

I thought I would return to normal on Friday, but it did not turn out that way. Despite feeling dizzy and still rather weak, I forced myself to go for a half-hour walk in the park just after some rain so I would not be around anyone. Everything is so green, and the rain that we have had for the past three days has been so welcome. I owe many of you responses, and I will get there – this is just taking a lot longer to overcome than I ever imagined. It is entirely possible that there will not be another blog to go out until Monday – in the hope that another day of absolute quiet and Geemeff’s peppermint tea and saltines will save me.

Hugo Yugo is trying hard to be good.

‘H’ is giving us a smile for the day.

At 10:47 on Friday, the New Guy at the Hellcat Canyon nest of Iris kicked the first egg out of the nest. Don’t let anyone tell you male ospreys can’t count!

Annie and Archie’s chicks are getting their pin feathers! Can you believe it?

A remarks, “Watching the 11am feeding from Cal Falcons (3 May), mum works incredibly hard, circling the chicks to take up feeding from a different angle to reach different beaks. Around 11:17:30, the piece she is feeding them runs out, and even after checking her talons, she has nothing further to give. As she checks the group of chicks in front of her, one grabs at her beak, indicating it is still hungry. (The youngest was at the back, though it leapt valiantly over its siblings to get bites and seemed to be doing relatively well, especially after one of its older siblings face-planted in a food coma and removed one of the obstacles to mum’s beak. 

But Annie circles the chicks and around the front of the scrape, 180 degrees around the group to the other side, she finds a decent chunk of food, which she proceeds to feed to the chicks who had previously been at the back of the group. She concentrates primarily on the two younger chicks. As is usual with Annie’s feedings, everyone has a crop by the end of the meal. This piece of prey started off as the body of a largish pigeon, I think, minus the head and legs. These four have demolished it. Poor little Archie must be absolutely exhausted. He is hunting up a storm for this lot, and I can only hope he keeps it up. There’s still such a long way to go if these two are to raise these four and then teach them to hunt. I can only imagine that learning to hunt as a peregrine is a very difficult and exacting task. Mistakes could be fatal. Indeed, I often wonder how parents teach fledglings to dive at speed at a prey bird and hit it at the right speed and angle to kill it without injuring themselves. They don’t eat carrion like eagles, so cannot scavenge or steal food to survive, leaving them with only their parents to rely on until they can perfect a particularly difficult hunting style.”

Annie and Grinnell’s grandchildren get tucked under their daughter, Larry.

‘B’ sent us an article about the new streaming cam for Larry! Thanks, ‘B’.

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The chicks are hungry at San Jose City Hall’s scrape of Monty and Hartley.

Oren and Ruth have three hatches at their Syracuse University RTH nest and they are so cute.

Arthur has the Cornell nest he shares with Big Red full of prey, too. I could see chipmunks, voles, squirrels, and birds. The two chicks are getting their pin feathers and it does seem those other two eggs are Dudleys.

Diane and Jack have the second egg of the second clutch on Friday at Achieva.

For French Osprey fans, the first osprey of the 2024 season hatched on Friday!

Louis really likes bringing huge sticks to the Loch Arkaig nest 2.

Bradley still loves his Puffers. Thank you, Bradley, for bringing them to the nest to eat!

At Loch of the Lowes, Blue NCO left to eat. Another osprey landed on the perch. It is unclear if it is Laddie or a stranger.

Gorgeous Tuffy.

Stella and her one surviving chick are hanging in there at the University of Florida-Gainesville. R reports that Poor little Middle is reported to have died around 0200 the other day. Stella looks down at her healthy baby in some disbelief. Her whole season has gone up in flames so to speak.

All three eaglets at Little Miami Conservancy are doing fantastic. The older two are really getting their juvenile plumage while you can see the baby has all of its thermal down (in the back).

Thanks, ‘A’ for stepping in and bringing us some good news form Sydney’s Olympic Forest: “Lady and Dad are not just doing a lot of nest building at Olympic Park in Sydney – they are also mating regularly, and have been doing so for at least a week. Here are the ranger’s reports for the past four days (and who might the ‘third eagle’ be?): May1: Both spent the night by the nest, and Lady came in early when disturbed by a possum passing up the tree. Dad joined her then with an early duet and mating. Both left around 6:30am and returned with sticks. Just after 9am, duets were heard again. They both brought in a few sticks during the morning. Then Dad sat by the nest alone for about an hour, before leaving at 11:20am. Both were then away for the day – somewhere – until Dad returned at 3:26pm with a stick. A very windy afternoon at the nest. Dad brought another stick shortly after and we could hear calls – but could not see the eagles. At 5:10pm, no eagles  were seen at the river. At dark, neither eagle had returned home. Dad brought seven sticks today and Lady brought four.

May2: Neither eagle was at the nest last night. A Powerful Owl was head calling in the distance a few times. Eagles were reported at Burns Bay from yesterday afternoon. They were seen soaring and circling over Linley Point in the afternoon and honking early there this morning. At 8:10am an eagle was seen in the Goat Island area flying west up the harbour. Just before 11am, two eagles were reported at Goat Island. And at 14:06pm, we saw a picture of three eagles soaring overhead there. A little later, at 16:10pm, one eagle was seen heading west, but an hour later, none was seen on the river. Then at last light, both Lady and Dad appeared on the nest – moved a stick or two, sat side by side on the branch and then settled for the night.

May 3: Eagles were home last night by the nest. Lady was disturbed early by a possum. Then we heard an early morning duet. Both were then off. Dad returned with sticks over the next hour or two, Lady with just a few. Duets were heard off nest around 7am. Then more sticks and leafy branches coming in and both chewing in the nest bowl. Mating again at 9:29am. At 9:45am, both were off, and were noted down on the river an hour later – one on River Roost, the other on Mangrove Island. At 11:08am, both flew off to the east, then at 11:23am, two eagles were at Goat Island. Rain was steady again in the afternoon. At 15:34pm, one of the eagles caught a good-sized fish. At dark, they could not be seen at Goat Island – so where are they?

May 4: The eagles were away last night, possibly at Goat Island, where they were seen at 11:20am – with a duet heard as well. Then, just before 4pm, Dad showed up at the nest, while Lady was seen at River Roost at 4:25pm. She headed off to the nest soon after and joined Dad. He started bringing in sticks then, and there was a mating at 16:49pm. He brought six sticks in before dark and she brought two. They both then settled for the night close by.

Now this really is early. Surely they are not planning to lay eggs in the dead of winter. The winter solstice is not until 21/22 June for heaven’s sake – which is still over six weeks away – so surely not. Surely they are just enjoying a little quiet grown-up time, yes? They’re not considering producing eggs for a good while yet I presume. 

Great, though, to know that they’re together and doing well. Obviously, they spend the whole year together, roosting and hunting and generally behaving as a couple. That’s so sweet. I often wonder whether the storks and ospreys who migrate ever really get to know each other at all, let alone the albatrosses, whose total lifetime of interactions might add up to less than a day when you think about it. Which I hadn’t until now. “

We need a proactive approach to power lines if our ospreys and other raptors are to be saved. Thanks, Geemeff!

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Thank you so much for being with us this morning and for all your well wishes! It is appreciated.

Thank you to the following or their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘A, B, Geemeff, H, PB, R, SK’, Montana Osprey Project, Cal Falcons, USParks Service Alcatraz, SK Hideaways, The Mercury News, SU Hawk Cam, Cornell RTH, Heidi McGrue, Sylvain Larzilliere, Geemeff, PLO, Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL), Moorings Park Ospreys, UFlorida-Gainesville, Little Miami Conservancy, Sea Eagle Cam, and The Wildlife Society.

Achieva has another egg…Wednesday in Bird World

1 May 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

I am sitting at a table overlooking Devonian Lake at the nature centre. There is a Mallard splashing and having a wonderful bath while two Canada Geese look on. A Franklin’s Gull is giving a ‘kek’ or alarm call while Eastern Phoebes and Red-winged Blackbirds are singing. The sky has a few clouds at the horizon and the sun is shining bright. There is a bit of a nippy wind. Even so, it is marvellous to be outside. It is the last day of April and now, tomorrow when I hit publish, it will be May Day. Time goes by way too quickly.

Then there were these beauties. Hooded Mergansers. Male on top. Female and male in second image. Notice the beautiful crested white head that is outlined in black. There is a white chest with two additional black lines and the most gorgeous brick-rust sides. Now look at the eyes. Yellow!

The male is the same brick rust colour all over. She has the wildest hair do- like someone who put their finger in an electric socket or went to one of the science museums and was at the Van de Graaff generators.

They are diving waterfowl feeding on small fish, snails, amphibians, and dragonfly larvae. They will nest in a tree stump near water or use nesting boxes. It would be rare for them to lay their 10-12 white eggs on the ground. Incubation lasts for 29-33 days.

I am being reminded that this is ‘baby season’. That is when wildlife rehabilitation centres are full of youngsters – eaglets, osplets, possums, squirrels, turtles, bunnies; you name it. Every centre has a list of items and ours just reminded everyone of its upcoming ‘baby shower’. So I thought that I would ask you if you have any of the following that you are no longer using (needs to be in good condition and clean or purchased new and donated) that could be used by your local rehab centre: over-the-door mirrors (used as an enrichment tool for waterfowl), mealworms, kiddie pools, pet crates of various sizes to help volunteers transport patients, birdseed, bleach, laundry detergent (not scented), paper towels, stock tanks, power washers, natural peanut butter and pecans. Then, of course, there are those things that I always natter about – clean used towels and sheets. A lot or a little – everything is appreciated!

Everyone was caught off guard when Diane laid her first egg of what could be termed a second clutch on Tuesday around 11:35. For those unaware, she had three eggs in an earlier clutch. One hatched and when the chick was a day old something happened. Chick and eggs disappeared. That is all we know.

Diane seemed as surprised as us! Guess we need an egg cup in that nest. Gosh, does anyone know if Tampa Bay Raptor Center finished with their upgrades to this nest?

Equally shocking is the fact that Iris’s new guy is still around. Louis has not been able to oust him. He brings Iris fish — I know we are all holding our breath to see how this will turn out. This guy has no idea that he has bonded with the Matriarch of all Ospreys. Is it possible Iris will raise chicks again?

Jackie consumes the third and final egg ending the 2024 breeding season with Shadow alongside.

Cal Falcons confirms that it is the first time in the history of their nest that a dual feeding has taken place. Way to go Archie.

Too big to fit under Annie?

In Australia, Diamond has had to fight off Cockatoos.

There is no indication that either of the two remaining eggs on Big Red’s nest have a pip. You can’t hear it, but that was a sigh of relief. Historically it will be the first time that an egg did not hatch on this nest. N1 and N2 are big and healthy and Arthur has filled the nest with enough food for six! The squirrel population is diminishing this year on the Cornell campus rapidly. For those that do not know, when Big Red was interviewing for a new mate, it was Arthur who didn’t even have his red tail yet that won her heart by catching so many squirrels. Big Red loves to eat a squirrel. It sealed the deal. He has been lining the nest on years that squirrels rebound on the university campus after he has decimated them their population the year prior.

It has to be a first – this many fish in an osprey nest waiting to be eaten (or not). Gosh, it has to be slimy to walk on that OR is it so hot that they are turning into dried fish? Any thoughts?

Harry kept the fish coming on the nest at Moorings Park. A whooper arrived at 1455! Tuffy was right there and ready. There had been another fish just two hours earlier! Even with intruders, Harry is a great fisher and this nest is doing well. Some tell me that they have difficulty telling Tuffy from Ruffie now. Isn’t that remarkable?

‘R’s report on Florida-Gainesville for Tuesday: “Stella brought 3 fish.  #1 dominated the first 2 feedings.  #2 had a nice big crop on feeding #3.”

There has been no sign of Talon now for several days and we must conclude that Stella is a single Mum.

This image is from Monday. There will be a lot said about the UFlorida-Gainesville camera and, sadly, none of it will be good. There is no rewind and you can view the prior days events but not the current one. Can you hear me growling

More intruders for Dorcha to have to deal with! And at Loch Garten, the Corvids are wanting Asha to get up off her eggs so they can eat them. These poor gals get no peace.

Gary LVO still works on the Loch Arkaig 1 nest in hopes of a family this season.

Then he brings Aida a fish! Sealing the deal.

Two eggs at Sandpoint on Tuesday.

‘H’ reports that Little at Lake Murray ate well on Tuesday. Yes!

Many are worried about LM12 Laddie at Loch of the Lowes. This is the latest.

All five goslings made the leap successfully off the Roger’s Place Osprey Platform.

Last egg for the Niagara Bee Ospreys.

This is today’s short report. There is a lot of incubation going on. Eaglets are growing and some are thinking about fledging. Osprey eggs are still being laid. Thanks for being with us! Take care.

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘Geemeff, H, MP, PB, R, SP’, Achieva Credit Union, Montana Osprey Project, SK Hideaways, Cal Falcons, Cilla Kinross, Cornell RTH Cam, Frenchman’s Creek, Moorings Park Ospreys, University of Florida-Gainesville, Geemeff, Sandpoint Osprey Cam, Lake Murray ospreys, Jeff Kear, Owl Research ProjectExplore, and Niagara Bee.

Tuesday in Bird World

30 April 2024

Good Morning!

I have an early appointment tomorrow, so I apologise for this post going out late on Monday evening.

I so hope that your week started well. It was cold in Winnipeg. 5 C. We live on a weather roller coaster. One day, we put up the winter coats, and then we had to go and drag them back out again along with the toques. The leaves continue to break open on the lilacs; a few Dark-eyed Juncos are still here, along with the White-throated Sparrows and European Starlings. The normal garden birds are here all year, but this spring is different. There are so many Black-capped Chickadees that we have a chorus! It is incredibly beautiful. I will try to make a recording one day for all of you.

Gosh, it is a mixed bag. Eaglets are still growing, with many getting ready to branch and fledge. Falcons, along with the hawklets, are jumping and munching around the world. Osprey eggs are still being laid, and Europe will hatch some in the UK next week. I continue to be busy entering data – egg and hatches in our data forms, changes of partners. It seems a little more hectic than last year and yet, there are not nearly as many eggs in comparison. We are waiting for all of those in the NE to come on board! ‘H’ and I will not be able to catch our breath or have a cup of tea. Severna Park has one and the others are going to quickly follow suit.

If you are monitoring a nest that is not on a streaming cam, I would love to hear from you. In Manitoba, I watch three nests—one is at the University of Manitoba, and the couple has now returned for another year on top of a light stand. The other two are at different sites on Lake Winnipeg. No would would ever know about them and perhaps not about the nest you watch, so please, write to me. There is a comments section and you can always e-mail (maryannsteggles@icloud.com). My interest is in Osprey behaviour and, in particular, siblicide. If you see something, also let me know. I appreciate all the news I receive and try to answer within 24 hours. Sometimes it takes me longer to respond to the comments section, but I do read them daily. Thank you so much.

I will also try to get some good images of ‘The Girls’ this week. They are all fine, including Hugo Yugo, who is chasing Calico through the house. I’m not sure the attention is appreciated! I always wonder about Hugo Yugo. Today, I had a small Brioche roll, and she attacked it – so she loves cheese and bread. Did they give her grilled cheese sandwiches at her foster home? Or is it just her crazy character? She is so different from any cat I have ever owned. Some of you have told me about your lovely ginger cats, and it seems they are a force on their own.

At the nests –

At Superbeaks, ‘H’ caught Mason branching! Congratulations. What an exciting milestone.

My ‘inbox’ lit up like fireworks were going off – I kept hearing pings while I was at my appointment, and then there it was. The culprit was Connie, the resident female bald eagle at the Captiva nest, taking the opportunity to steal part of a fish off the Captiva Osprey nest of Jack and Edie. The problem: two little osplets were in that nest. Lady Luck was sure on hand as those two little ones were not pulled out of the nest along with the moss. My heart sank.

Many of you will have noticed that ospreys do not often leave fish on the nest. I often see comments in the chat asking why they don’t. Well, this is the reason for that. The male will remove the fish, and then he will return it if there is fish left after he eats. Some males have stashes. Leaving the fish on the nest invites predators or the nest cleaning Crows, Ravens, and Gulls to stop by for lunch. Food draws attention to a place we don’t want others to be. Today, Jack and Edie were lucky. Connie won’t forget. She lives right by them – she will swing by that nest to see if there is a fish. Why catch one when Jack and Edie will leave you a nice big piece? Oh…this could have been so tragic.

Heidi has it on video:

What would Connie do if she saw the fish at Frenchman’s Creek? The two kiddos are eating, sometimes being fed, and growing. It is hard to believe, but these two will probably fledge, and we should be ever so glad. The Dad has been feeding, and they are self-feeding, and the nest is still full. The Crows and Gulls and any other carrion eaters in the area will have a feast when these two leave the nest.

In the UK, Blue 372 laid her third egg at the Llyn Brenig nest on Monday the 29th of April.

The Fans of Redding Eagles (FORE) is looking for names for Liberty and Guardian’s two eaglets. Here is the information. The deadline is Wednesday.

At Leighton Moss, Yellow-legged Gulls have taken over the Osprey Platform.

At Moorings Park, dear not-so-little-anymore Tuffy is doing just fine. What a lovely little osplet he is. You just have to watch his behaviour and facial expressions and you will have a smile from ear to ear. He is growing, doing well, and unless some bloody tragedy happens, he should fledge. Meanwhile, Sally and Harry are busy with intruders just like most of the other nests. That is so sad because the exchanges sometimes become violent and one or the other, or both, could get injured or die.

Blue 33 taking an opportunity to cuddle with Maya. He loves doing that! In about six days, he is going to be busy fishing for a new set of osplets. First to lay their eggs, first to hatch. Can’t wait. Mark your calendars for pip watch 5-6 May at Rutland Water.

It was a soggy day for Blue NCO at Loch of the Lowes. Someone at the loch saw Laddie sitting near the nest yesterday, I believe it was. There have been worries that something had happened because of a lack of fish deliveries—and even I get nervous watching this nest. Siblicide is entirely possible. It has happened for the past two years.

I am starting to wonder if the other two eggs on the nest of Big Red and Arthur will hatch. If they don’t, it is fine. Big Red had a leg injury that appears to have healed. Feeding four and caring for them might delight her and make her glow like the sun on a bright day, but caring for two is much easier. It might be nice to have a more relaxed year. N1 and N2 are rather feisty!

The camera operators really want to see those eggs clearly and it is hard. N1 loves to go after N2’s neck and twist it about. But, remember, this is really play fighting like Hugo Yugo does with her sisters. It is not the harm that we see on nests with either siblicide or Cainism.

Dear Archie must have had a chat with Annie and convinced her that he is perfectly capable of helping to feed the chicks. Tandem feeding. Monday 29 April. This should put a smile on your face.

It is frightening how fast these chicks of Annie and Archie are growing.

At Syracuse, there are two chicks and the other egg is pipping. Update: That chick has hatched!

‘J’ sent me a super reminder that the PA-DNR falcons have hatched! Here is the link to their cam with an image of the scrape with Mamma and eyases below.

https://www.dep.state.pa.us/dep/falcon/falcon-cam-popup_v2.html

The news coming out of the UFlorida-Gainesville osprey platform of Stella and Talon is not good. The first chick died from siblicide. Talon is rarely seen – a Dad that was known for bringing a good amount of fish to the nest. Only one fish on Monday and the weather is to be quite hot according to ‘R’ who is monitoring the nest. So we have to think of dehydration. We could lose another chick, so sad.

‘R’ gives us an update: “1700 – Stella brings in big fish.  #2 learning how to hide behind her and getting some good bits, even a small crop.  #1 is brutal, but speed seems to be working. Talon is gone!” Sadly, another one to add to the Memorial Pages. Another Mum has to be everything to her chicks – security, hunter, and feeder. Thankfully they are well feathered and will be able to thermoregulate when she is out fishing.

The lives of males are often filled with danger that is not visible on camera.

All three are well at the Venice Golf and Country Club Osprey nest. Growing and growing. Sometimes it is hard to tell the third hatch now from the second.

The female at the Wells Fargo Osprey Cam in Des Moines, Iowa has laid a fourth egg on the 29th of April. Last year the couple fledged two chicks.

Two eggs visible at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest on Monday. These would be the first egg that got soaked and then buried as the third egg is not due to hatch yet.

Two cute little White-tail Eaglets in the Tucholskie Forest in Poland.

There is at least one egg at Pitkin County! The egg bowl is so deep.

A brief glimpse of some eggs at Clark PUD.

Male brings a really nice fish and relieves the female at the Kalakotkas 2 nest in Estonia.

‘H’ reports: “The Osoyoos osprey nest of Soo and Olsen: Soo laid their first egg of the season on 4/29, at 12:55:56. This was approximately three weeks earlier than last season.”

ZE brought a fish to the Goitzche-Wildnis nest in Germany and the female was really telling him not to eat it all! Cute.

The eaglet at Fraser Point has a name – ‘Reign’.

An Osprey nest in a tree in the US. How many of you can say you have seen this? (There are many, many in the UK and Europe using beautiful big trees).

The GH owlet at Wolf Bay in Alabama looks better. Heavy rain came late on Monday. The drops were so big that on the streaming cam they looked like snow. I have not seen a feeding, but those generally happen at dusk and dawn. If you have, please let me know.

Thank you so very much for being with us today. It is always a pleasure to hear from you and we look forward to having you with us again soon. Remember to look up!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my blog today: ‘A, B, Geemeff, H, J, MM, PB, R’, Superbeaks, Heidi McGrue, Frenchman’s Creek, Llyn BGrenig, Julie LaLima, RSPB Leighton Moss, Moorings Park Ospreys, LRWT, Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL), Cornell RTH, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, SU RTH-Cam, PA-DNR, University of Florida-Gainesville, VGCCO, Iowa DNR, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Bieliki Online Bory Tucholskie, Pitkin County Open Space and Trails, Clark PUD, Eagle Club of Estonia, Osoyoos Ospreys, Goitzche-Wildnis, Gracie Shepherd and IWS/Explore.com, Connecticut Osprey Group, and Wolf Bay Ospreys.

*Disclaimer. Every effort is made to identify the individuals, groups, and institutions that supplied information for my post today. Please let me know if I missed anyone!*

Monday in Bird World

29 April 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

I am finishing this posting late Sunday evening as I must leave the house early Monday morning. So, whatever happens between midnight CDT and Monday morning will be covered on Tuesday. It is also going to be cooler tomorrow. 2 C. We were 24 C last week. I do not know about the birds and animals in the garden, but it has been quite the past few months with the weather fluctuating daily.

Hugo Yugo and Missey want to wish everyone a great start to their week. These two are inseparable, just like Calico and Baby Hope. It is not just Missey that washes Hugo Yugo – that little ginger gives Missey a good going over. It is so precious.

Beautiful chortling from Jackie and Shadow to start your day.

I spent Sunday with my daughter and her three children to celebrate the granddaughter’s birthday. You will recall that this young woman is quite an inspiration to me and others. She has the most empathy and is a social worker helping those who struggle to live independently due to long-term abuse and addiction. She is also Vegan and has been for seven years. Her commitment to the welfare of animals and people warms my heart.

There are some sad and horrifying things happening in Bird World and I would like to dispense with them right away and get on to some of the more positive events that happened in our nests on Sunday.

I have great concerns for the second hatch at the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest. ‘R’ did a great job monitoring the nest and confirmed my fears. He writes, “At 0647 a fish was brought in.  It looks like Stella as only one Osprey came into the nest. At 1247 Stella again brought in a fish.  She is gone most of the time so I suspect she is doing the fishing. After this feeding both osplets had decent crops. At 1247 Stella fed part of a fish that was laying in the nest (catfish). At 1447 Talon brings in a fish.  This is the only time he is in the nest for 12H.  This is also the last feeding for the 12H period. Stella spends most of her time off the nest and occasionally brings in nesting material.

The birds must be getting very hungry as #1 (my numbering for the biggest and aggressive osplet) occasionally attacks #2 even when there is no feeding going on.  #2 is getting very little food. Very strange and hard to follow with such a poor arrangement of the camera.”

The image below is well after ‘R’s’ reporting. Sibling 1 has been eating all the fish and has a huge crop and is attacking the middle sibling. The third hatch died of a very vicious siblicide.

Tragedy was brewing Sunday afternoon when both Claire and USS7 got caught in fishing line on the US Steel Bald Eagle nest. In an incredible effort, Claire got that line off herself and her chick. She then gathered it up and flew off the nest! Well done – an experienced Mum working to save her little one.

‘H’ reports that the two eggs laid at the Fenwicke Island Osprey nest in Delaware have been eaten by Crows. Both adults were off the nest!

The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum ospreys are being rained on. The first egg which had been left in the pouring rain is now well hidden under nesting material. The second egg was laid on Sunday and it has been walked on and rained on…It could well be a blessing if it does not hatch.

Good news coming from Decorah North. NC18 no longer has fishing line hanging from its beak. It appears it has been cleared as per Raptor Resource Project.

‘B’ writes: “I couldn’t believe it!  Archie snuck in there at 8:38:45 while Annie was away and began feeding the chicks.  He must have had that TINY bit of prey stashed somewhere, just waiting for his opportunity.  It only lasted a minute, because Annie returned at 8:39:45 and snatched it from him, also having a couple of words with him. Way to go, Archie!”

Cal Falcons caught this magical moment.

Sometimes it is hard to tell how much fish Tuffy gets, but he is being fed well and his feathers are continuing to grow and the nest appears peaceful.

Keo and Keke surprised everyone with their first egg laid late on the 27th or the wee hours of the 28th (?) at the Sandpoint Nest.

On Sunday that egg at Sandpoint had some drizzle on it.

‘PB’ found a nest in Canada in the Niagara on the Lake area. It is the Niagara Bee Group Ospreys and they already have two eggs!

Some rain got on the two eggs Sunday afternoon. It is not clear if they will be viable or not.

This is the link to their streaming cam:

Ollie and his mate have returned to the Greens Ledge Light Preservation Society on Long Island. There is a new camera and the nest has been secured from a storm last year that wiped it out. Ollie returned on the 30th of March and his mate arrived a few days later. They now have one egg according to the wonderful moderator of their FB messaging who answered me promptly.

More and more fish deliveries at Frenchman’s Creek. Reflecting on this nest and the Mum who is obviously ill/injured makes me wonder how these two surviving osplets will behave as adults with their own chicks. For example, at the Hopeless Nest in Newfoundland, the female does not feed the chicks. Both died last year and I believe in all the time only one chick has survived and that was in 2019 (please feel free to correct me). Will these two not feed their chicks? if they are female? Or will their instincts or memories drive them to be good parents?

Dad continues to bring fish – thankfully he eats the head so the chicks can eat the fish easier. He is also still spending time feeding his two big babies. I think they are going to be alright. People should not worry about the fish piling up unless it compromises the nest structure. The carrion eaters will arrive and have it cleaned up in no time!

The weather is improving in Finland and the ospreys are busy mating, fixing nests, or laying eggs. There are two eggs at Satakunnan.

There is a new female this year at Juurusvesi. She is Yellow M76822 and was ringed in 2020 at a nest precisely 100 km away at Viitasaaki.

Did not see an osprey on the nest at Paltamon where there is still snow on the ground, but there was a Peregrine Falcon!

Both have returned to Janakkala – obviously eating well. No egg yet.

The male in Germany is feeding the female who is incubating their eggs a fish meal. How cute.

Louis must have been dealing with intruders. She finally got a fish and it was after 1500 – that is decidedly not the Louis we know.

There is a new couple with three eggs on the Estonian Osprey nest in Tartu County. (It is not believed that this is either the former male Ivo or his mate). This is wonderful news for a country where the osprey population is low. In 2018, 210 pairs.

No one will ever go hungry if Arthur is around. The nest of Big Red and N1 and N2 is now lined with squirrel. Do not despair of you see these two beaking away at one another. It will stop. Their eyes cannot focus properly – just like the falcons. Give them 4 or 5 days. Their heads are not steady and any beak is a potential meal! They will get rough – in this instance, it is play fighting unlike what is happening at University of Florida-Gainesville.

Buky and Bette still have two eggs at their nest in Mlady Buky.

Geemeff brings us up to date on the comings and goings of nest 1 at Loch Arkaig. “An unringed female came to Nest One and got two fish from Garry LV0! She spent a lot of time there, fingers crossed she returns tomorrow. Affric 152 hasn’t been seen since the 24th, and the unidentified pair at Bunarkaig are definitely now incubating eggs so it does look like that is her on that nest. So with luck she’ll stay away and Garry will have the time and space to woo this female and they form a bond. There is still time – just – for eggs this year but just seeing him with a mate would make me very happy.”

Geemeff has it all on video.

And then a second fish. This looks promising. There has not been a family of osplets on this nest since Louis moved to nest 2 with Dorcha after Aila did not return.

Swampy had a meal and slept like an adult perched with a parent on the natal tree.

‘H’ reports that Severna Park finally has its first egg – a fortnight later than last year. 17:26:55.

Deb Stecyk did a really nice tribute to Bella. Poor eagle…what a terrible year she had with her new mate, Scout.

When the young woman posted her linocut of Flaco on FB, I could not resist. It arrived and went off to the framers. I forgot to request non-reflective glass. Said with a loud sigh, as it was difficult to get a half-decent image without reflections for her to use on her Instagram page. I thought it came out rather well – the print with the matting and framing. It’s hard to tell the colours, but the largest matt is a deep grey-blue-black, with the little interior section the colour of a deep rust brick.

Thank you for being with us today. Please take care. We will look forward to seeing you again on Tuesday!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, screen captures, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, B, Geemeff, H, MP, PB, R’, SK Hideaways, Baiba, Fenwicke Island, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Raptor Resource Project/Explore, Cal Falcons, Moorings Park ospreys, Sandpoint Ospreys, Niagara Bee Group, Greens Ledge Light Preservation Society, Frenchman’s Creek, Finnish Osprey Foundation, Fischadlercam, Geemeff, Eagle Club of Estonia, Cornell RTH, Mlady Buky Stork Cam, Eagle Country, Severna Park, Deb Stecyk, and DirtGirl Designs.

*Disclaimer: I make every effort to identify and thank those who have provided information. If I have made an error or omission, please let me know so I can rectify it. Thank you.*

More Osprey eggs…Sunday in Bird World

28 April 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

When I set off to check on the Stellar’s Sea Eagle at our local zoo, it was windy, and the temperature in Winnipeg was 5 degrees C. The clouds parted, and the dreary day hinted at in the early hours soon gave way to bright blue skies and sun. It was glorious. I am so grateful to be able to get out and about exploring. It is never taken for granted. Each day is a unique treasure filled with discoveries.

At the far end of the zoo in the Asian area is one very handsome Stellar’s Sea Eagle. I love standing and watching him. Today they were cleaning out a part of his huge enclosure and he was just perched paying no mind. I wonder how long this beautiful creature has lived in a cage?

You might recall that a Stellar’s Sea Eagle landed on the eastern coast of Canada in November 2021. The huge eagle eventually travelled to Maine before returning to Canada. How it got from its regular home in Russia is unknown.

Birders-scramble-for-rare-sighting-of-Stellers-sea-eagle-in-small-N.S.-community-CBC-NewsDownload

Red-tail Hawk

The male Reeve’s Pheasant has the longest feather of any bird globally at 2.4 metres. The layers and layers of curved feathers are quite amazing. I was mesmerised by the limited colour pattern and how using only black, white, and a golden orange-yellow nature created such spectacular plumage to attract a female!

A lone Grey Wolf captured a lot of attention.

I spotted a pair of Eastern Phoebes in the trees. They are classified as ‘flycatchers’ and are one of the first birds to arrive in Manitoba in the spring, normally in March. They depart in September after making their mud nests and raising their young. They incubate four to eight pure white eggs for 16 days. They normally have two broods every breeding season. They are gorgeous little birds with a grey-green-slightly brown head (like a light olive khaki colour) and back with creamy white underparts tinged with a slight yellow-green-grey. Their bill is black and distinctive.

Hugo Yugo is having a bit of a rest before getting into more mischief. She loves to carry objects in her mouth, including the tub stopper, any earrings that get left out, keys, bags of cookies, necklaces, pens and pencils, cables for computers and cameras, and earbuds. Nothing appears to be safe these days. She also likes to hide them.

Gosh, I adore this little ginger. She is such a character – there is never a dull moment and I cannot imagine, for a single second, my life without her.

You will remember agonising over whether Tuffy at Moorings Park would live or die. Today, almost fully feathered (if not completely), Tuffy is a prime example of why you never give up hope for these little ones. I think that it is also a good example of why you do not turn away. We will never appreciate the struggles that the raptors have if we do not hang in there with them through the good, the bad, and the sheer ugly.

Look at Tuffy’s eyes light up when he sees a fish dinner. What a darling.

‘H’ captured that feeding on video for us. Please have a look. You can watch this on YouTube by clicking the YT link at the bottom left.

Many do not make it. In 2023, out of 339 eggs ‘H’ and I monitored, fourteen died from siblicide. In comparison, eighteen starved to death due to circumstances not related to siblicide and 36 did not hatch.

Asha and Brodie have their third egg at Loch Garten. Proud Mum shows off those eggs!

Aran and Elen have their third egg at 0807 on the 28th – this morning – at Glaslyn. Aran was on the perch giving support.

Mrs O at Tweed Valley laid her third egg on the 27th.

Johnny and June have their second egg at Fenwick Island in Delaware at 0810 on the 28th.

The Ravens took the eggs of Milda and Hugo ending another sad year for this gorgeous Latvian female White-tail eagle. She is now free to find food and not sit incubating and starving – and allowing her health to deteriorate.

There is an egg in the nest of the Lesser Spotted Eagles, Anna and Andres. I have included the link Sassa Bird provided.

This is one of the most interesting articles about the Lesser Spotted Eagle and should alert any potential viewers to the fact that under normal conditions, if there is a second hatch, it is killed by the first even if there is plenty of food present. (I have posted it previously). It is the definition difference between siblicide – the killing of siblings when there is only food for perhaps one – and enough food but the first hatch, the dominant bird, kills the second for no apparent reason.

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E23 is still home and still learning about those annoying small birds.

Edie feeding the two osplets at Captiva. It will be easier when they are not bobbling!

The male brought in a fresh fish at the Frenchman’s Creek osprey platform. He called the female several times while one of the osplets played tug-o-war with the fish. When the female did not come, he began to feed the chick/s. This is good news! These chicks will, despite everything, probably fledge. Thank goodness.

There are three eggs at the Radford University osprey nest in Bradford, Virginia. Thanks, ‘PB’ for mentioning this nest!

This is the link to their streaming cam:

Still snowing at some of the osprey nests in Finland.

Lots of shift changes at the nest of Big Red and Arthur – with two wiggling chicks underneath!

Meal before bedtime. Arthur has the pantry nicely stocked.

There is quite a wiggly nest full at Cal Falcons and everyone is hungry!

Gosh, we have fallen in love with Archie.

‘A’ writes, “

dinner at Cal Falcons was a lengthy affair, beginning at around 17:58 and still continuing more than 25 minutes later, with mum e-chupping to encourage the chicks to open their beaks just one more time. The two youngest chicks were at the front of the pack for this feeding, and were fed first, which was great, as the youngest is often stuck at the back and can miss out altogether at some feedings. Annie is very diligent about feeding all four, though, most of the time. At this feeding, she brought in a very large piece of prepared prey (she was gone about five minutes, unusually, and of course Archie came in to keep an eye on the eyases while she was gone – he is ADORABLE). 

By 18:23, the younger ones at the front appear to have got a second wind and are again accepting bites of food. Annie is amazing. She has been feeding for 25 minutes, and remember this lot is under a week old. I cannot imagine how much work poor mum is going to be doing feeding these four over the next four weeks or so, until they begin to learn to self-feed. And so far, dad has been fantastic in terms of ensuring a pantry full of delicious well-prepared meat for the family. But of course that load is going to increase dramatically week by week, as these four grow rapidly. So both parents are really going to have their work cut out for them. I do wish them both well in this huge endeavour. Annie is not used to raising four, and we have no idea of Archie’s parental experience, if any. It will be a big task for them both. Annie is still feeding at 18:25. By 18:27, there are finally no more takers and Annie eats a bit herself before taking the carcass (not much edible remains) back to the pantry. We can hearing Archie vocalising in the background – he sounds displeased though I have no idea why (and whether that vocal is indeed one of displeasure, but it is certainly very much like the one Annie uses when she is ‘warning’ that she is not happy with or about something or someone). But surely, after that thorough a feeding, all four eyases will sleep with happy tummies tonight. “

Two little hungry osplets at Captiva.

Nesting material is finally coming in to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest. It even looked like Dad was telling Mum to incubate the egg that she kept wanting to cover up – it was the egg left out in the rain and uncovered on Friday.

‘AE’ shares news of Monty and Hartley. “From 6:05pm last night and until 6:38am today Monty was the one doing the overnight incubation duty. Hartley had visited the nest ledge. Monty never got up from the eggs so Hartley took herself over to the sunshade where she spent the entire night!”

Betsy and Frederick have three eggs. There was a wee break in the incubation to fix up some rails. Good idea!

Screen captures of Iris and Louis from Saturday. There was concern over an injury to Louis’s chest. You can see what could b e the injury on the chest close to the left wing. I realise that everyone in the world would like Iris to have a dedicated mate, but I don’t want Louis to be injured and possibly die due to an infection if that is a deep gouge with a piece of wood in it as some believe. Starr is at the baseball park, and if she doesn’t have eggs, she will soon. We know what will happen if Iris lays eggs, and that is fine – she will be free from the duties of raising chicks, which I clearly believe has lengthened her life. She eats well and cares for herself year-round. Most research indicates that female raptors lose at least 30% of their body weight, raising babies.

Swoop and the new female at Dunrovin are working on the nest. Look at that long strip of nesting material! An intruder was about and Swoop was in the nest quickly in protective mode.

There is some concern over the GH owlet at Wolf Bay. It has been slightly lethargic most of the day.

‘AE’ got a great screen capture of JBS20’s feet! She said, “Gotta love those feet! I never appreciated orange bird feet so much until I started watching bird cams. He’s waiting for breakfast to be delivered.”

Prey delivered, JBS20 eventually arrives to eat leftovers.

Swampy appears to be doing just fine since he fell from the nest to the branch and fledged and returned. Everyone keep sending him good wishes.

Have you been watching the FOLFAN eagles? Here is the latest.

All three eaglets at Little Miami Conservancy are doing fantastic. Look at the nice crop on the third hatch.

The two eaglets at the ND-LEEF nest both went to bed with full crops. I did not notice any aggression at the last feeding of the day. They both look like they are doing well.

I have written ‘R’ who is observing the UFlorida-Gainesville Osprey nest of Talon and Stella. It looked to me that the two osplets had only one feeding on Saturday and that it was hot. Mum shaded them, but was on and off the nest. Is the Dad missing? One osplet, the third hatch, has already died of siblicide. At one time, Talon was bringing in plenty of fish. Something is amiss. Will another so-let’s life be in jeopardy? or both?

Bradley still loves eating his Puffer Fish on the natal nest!

The thawing of the permafrost is going to have a significant impact on birds and their migration. Many that travel to the UK for the winter from Scandinavia, Greenland, and Siberia, may stop migrating. What else is happening with the permafrost thaw?

Climate-change-is-impacting-bird-migration-patterns.-Heres-what-we-know-CBC-NewsDownload
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Another deliberate killing of a raptor – this time a Red Kite.

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Incubation continues at Great Bay Ospreys.

Your smile for the day comes from the Venice Golf and Country Club Osprey platform where the nest is full. Aren’t those three gorgeous in their juvenile plumage? The oldest is almost as big as the female.

Thank you so much for being with me today. Please take care. We want you back with us soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, observations, videos, articles, images, posts, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, AE, Geemeff, H, MP, PB’, CBC News, Moorings Park Ospreys, Heidi McGrue, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Tweed Valley Osprey Project, RSPB Loch Garten, LDF, Sassa Bird, Research Gate (B-U Meyburg), Frenchman’s Creek, Radford University Osprey Cam, Finnish Osprey Foundation, Cornell RTH Cam, Cal Falcons, SK Hideaways, Window to Wildlife, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, San Jose City Hall Falcon Cam, OBX Osprey Cam, Montana Osprey Project, Dunrovin Ranch, Wolf Bay, JB Sands Wetlands, Eagle Country, American Eagle Foundation, Little Miami Conservancy, ND-LEEF, UFlorida-Gainesville, Port Lincoln Ospreys, American Bird Conservancy, BirdGuides, Raptor Persecution UK, and VGCCO.

Hatch at Cornell, Osprey eggs…Saturday in Bird World

27 April 2024

Good Morning,

The rain I wished for arrived Friday morning, along with a chill to the bone feeling. It was much needed, and the smell of the wet earth was intoxicating, especially after all the dust. The grass around the City is turning green, and the leaves on the lilac bushes in the garden are starting to emerge. I cannot wait to see the garden completely ‘green’ again. This morning, the first White-throated Sparrows arrived in the garden. They returned, again, in even larger numbers – 35 or 40 – in the pouring rain around 1930. They are easy to see with their three white stripes on the crown, but I realised that soon the leaves would be out, and I will be scrambling to tell who is where.

The White-throated Sparrow might look like a House Sparrow except for that amazing head and throat. The first time I saw one, I thought it was a plastic head stuck on a house sparrow. Silly me. There are three white stripes alternating with black to make up its crown. On each side, at the top of the black beak, is a yellow dot – someone got into their paint pot! The proper term is lores. Below the beak is a white triangle like a bib, hence the name – ‘White-throated’. [The White Crowned Sparrow lacks the white bib!]

All about Birds says, “White-throated Sparrows eat mainly the seeds of grasses and weeds, including ragweed and buckwheat, as well as fruits of sumac, grape, cranberry, mountain ash, rose, blueberry, blackberry, and dogwood. In summer they eat large numbers of insects that they catch on the forest floor or, occasionally on quick flights out from low vegetation. These include dragonflies, wasps, stinkbugs, beetles, flies, and caterpillars, as well as spiders, millipedes, centipedes, and snails. Parents feed their nestlings almost exclusively animal matter. During winter, White-throated Sparrows readily visit bird feeders for millet and black oil sunflower seeds. In spring they eat the tender buds, blossoms, and young seeds of oak, apple, maple, beech, and elm.” They were certainly busy kicking and foraging in the grass beneath the feeders in my garden. I noticed that they not only consumed the Black-oil seed but the Millet and the Corn.

The white eyebrows are normally sider than the single stripe running down the middle of the crown. You can see the yellow lores clearly in the image below.

“Female White-throated Sparrows put their nests on or just above the ground, typically in level areas in clearings with dense ground vegetation. The nest is usually built under shrubs, grasses, or ferns, sometimes even beneath dead vegetation from the previous year. Birds sometimes put their nests off the ground, particularly if they lost a previous nest to a predator. These nests may be in roots of an upturned tree, brush piles, in shrubs or ferns, or as high as 10 feet up in a coniferous tree.”

‘The Girls’ are just like our little raptors. After every meal they go into a food coma! Hugo Yugo is no exception.

I am afraid to say but it appears that Hugo Yugo is starting to grow – long. Her face still looks like a kitten. I am hoping that my eyes are just fooling me. She still fits in the shoe box.

Meanwhile, Missey still likes it when the plants are watered and will curl up in them like she did as a kitten with Lewis.

It isn’t an end table…it is a two-tier hard sofa for cats. I wish the individual had not felt the need to refinish the tops – the wicker is marvellous and it would certainly be more fitting for it to be in its original condition, however grotty.

The Fig Tree needs a nice new pot.

Richmond and Rosie are going to be grandparents! I get goosebumps when I hear of survivals like this. I am sure many of you watched ZD with me four years ago!

There is a second egg hatching at the nest of Big Red and Arthur Friday afternoon. There will be another beak to fill Saturday. Arthur is already bringing in the squirrels. I hope it is a huge population of them and chippies this spring – he will have six mouths to feed in total.

N1 is a darling. Our friend ‘A’ thinks so, too: “N1 is SUCH a strong little hawklet. It is eating like a small fluffy piglet. Mum is feeding it often and it is eating like a pro, even picking up dropped mouthfuls for itself! This is one precocious little chick. But of course that is hawklets isn’t it? Their nest time is so short compared to eaglets and osplets. They grow so fast and fledge so soon, we have to appreciate every day we have them in the nest. A bit like falcons, really, which returns me to the happy little band at Cal Falcons. A darling, hard-working little dad and a devoted, very experienced mum. This may be the first time all four of Annie’s eggs have hatched (although we have no idea what would have happened last season had that third egg not almost certainly been laid away from the nest on the day Grinnell died) but I have a lot of confidence in this pair to successfully raise all four to fledge, as long as they are not bothered by intruders.”

Too cute!

Big Red positively glows when her eggs begin to hatch and there are chicks to care for. She even looks younger and younger.

UPDATE: From ‘A’: “

The second hawklet is nearly dry when Big Red gives us our first good daylight look at the expanded family from about 06:28:20 when she gets up for a stretch. There is a stick that falls across the nest as she moves and the new hatchling has to struggle out from under it (mum moves it). The second little one appears strong and healthy. I’m sure there will be a meal soon, but at this stage, this is the first really good look we have had at the second hawlet. 

Two eggs hatched and two eggs to come. I wonder whether the gaps between hatches will be similar or whether there will be different time differences. There looks as though there MAY be a pip in the third egg (left hand side at the front as we are looking at the pic), right down at the bottom on the left hand end but of course I may be wrong and it may not even be at the correct end of the egg. So I wouldn’t be relying on my ability to spot pips on hawk eggs or (especially) on osprey eggs. Just too many blotches for me to see anything definitive. “

Cutie pie falcons in Osaka being fed – look how big they are! The pin gathers are coming in and they have lost that sweet baby down but gosh, they are still adorable.

H’ reports that Angel and Tom visited their nest Saturday morning. Yippeeee.

The first egg at McEuan Park in Idaho was laid on the 26th. Thanks, ‘H’.

*Caution. Not recommended. Potential neglect from female/starvation despite male delivering fish*. The first egg of the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest was laid on the 25th. This is a very problematic nest. Little to none nesting materials. Experienced Dad. Female appears to have many issues. She has failed to cover egg and it has rained heavily on the egg. ‘MP’ reports that the Dad tried to cover it with the few cornstalks available. The female later returns to incubate. Quite honestly, the kind thing would be for this egg to be unviable.

In comparison, Annie is a superb Mum. ‘A’ writes, “Annie was so careful this morning to make sure that little number 4 chick was fed after its older siblings had eaten their fill. She had to go around to the back of the pile to reach the little one, which is way too small to reach over the others and not yet strong enough to push its way to the front. So Annie is making sure that she gets the food to the little one herself. She is very deliberate about it. It has to wait its turn, but Annie keeps feeding and feeding until all the little mouths are closed, and then she e-chups some encouragement to try just a couple more bites and the little beaks open one more time. And when they have all eaten their fill, only then does Annie finish the feeding and remove the leftovers. .(Or on this occasion, she simply ate the leftovers herself, having fed the entire prey item to the chicks.) 

She is a very very good mother, and Archie is doing a sterling job. He would love to do more, and is always there if he feels the chicks might get chilly waiting for mum’s return, but knows his place and is quick to depart when mum arrives back. I think brooding the four is going to be quite a challenge for him within a day or two. “

Annie wants to be in charge of the feedings!

Squirming falcons.

Audacity laid a fourth egg that was crushed. It makes me so very sad to think how much she wants a family – or for that matter all the others like Jackie and Shadow, Chase and Cholyn, and of course, dear Gabby and Beau. When I get down in the dumps about it all, I just go over to Cal Falcons or Big Red’s…you cannot help but smile and have all the gloom washed away.

Falcons are hatching everywhere including in the Netherlands near the city of Duurstede.

Raptor Resource Project staff keeping a close eye on the eaglet at Decorah North.

Later images at Decorah North.

The first osprey in all of Italy hatched on Friday.

Fish arrived at 1326 at Moorings Park and what you can’t see is Tuffy on the other side being fed first.

Look at Tuffy working those wings. Our darling little one has grown up – and is surviving.

Idris incubates the eggs while Telyn enjoys a nice fish supper at the Dyfi Osprey platform in Wales.

Contentment at Glaslyn with Elen and Aran.

I wish that Affric and either Prince or Gary would find the same kind of contentment at Loch Arkaig nest 1. How could osplets be raised with all the kerfuffle going on?

Louis found out about the other male courting Iris and might well have sent him packing. Iris is alone in the rain. Louis has an injury on his chest.

Swampy is beautiful and appears to be doing well! Prey being provided at the nest.

Two osplets at Frenchman’s Creek are self-feeding, getting fed by Mum once in awhile, and you know what? They just might fledge – they might make it!

The eaglets at Little Miami Conservancy are walking on the nest and growing like crazy. Look at that formidable female! I would not want to get her upset.

West End trio doing quite well.

Eaglets at Duke nearing branching and fledge.

The two eaglets on Farmer Derek’s property, Wichita and Cheyenne, are both doing fantastic.

Notice the difference in plumage. Port Tobacco eaglet is getting its feathers but is only beginning compared to the Duke Farms eaglets, Jersey and Leaper.

Fort St Vrain eaglets, FSV49 and 50, are so tiny. They are losing their natal down and finishing up getting their thermal. One has even been pecking at prey.

While it might look boring, the ospreys and eagles have to stay vigilant during the incubation period least their eggs get pecked by Crows (Tom and Audrey’s most recent egg at Kent Island) or they get attacked by intruders. The pair at Boulder are always on the look out for trouble.

Denton Homes eaglet trio now have their thermal down.

Andor and Cruz’s pair are doing well – and are simply lovely.

Jackie and Shadow give me the warm fuzzies – it is like ‘everything is going to be OK’ when I see them together.

The new male at Anna and Louis’s nest, E1, at Lake Kincaid seems to have a fetish for turtles. Tonya Irvin worries that they could become endangered at the lake!

Hoping that the first hatch at Captiva is kind to the second and letting it eat enough.

There are three eggs at Cowlitz PUD.

Nothing is happening, yet, at Oregon Law’s osprey nest.

Liberty and Guardian’s eaglets at Redding are well looked after.

An unexpected snow in Finland has hit areas where the ospreys are nesting.

Others were not affected. The female at Janakallan, Yellow XKT, was on the nest today. Has her partner, Red CCL, lost his Darvic ring?

I have been following the plight of Milda and her two eggs since Hugo went missing. On Friday, Milda left the nest at 1759 and had not returned by 0700 Saturday morning. She cannot do this alone and new males have proven to her to be unreliable. Better unhatched eggs than starving chicks – precisely how I feel about other nests, too.

Researchers in Australia have found that noise from urban pollution (traffic) stunts the growth of baby birds.

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An Osprey rescue in Belgium that could have a very happy ending.

If you missed it, here is April’s Ventana Wildlife Condor Chat.

Our birds and wildlife need habitat, clean water, and food. Humans need to examine the land we use and begin to see a different vision than houses – larger and larger ones – taking over land. In my City, they should be building up, not out.

Did you read Watershed Down? The local community has lost their battle for the iconic and inspiring landscape for that story to housing.

Locals-lose-battle-to-stop-360-homes-being-built-on-picturesque-Watership-Down-farmland-Daily-MaDownload

Thank you so much for being with me today. I am always so happy to hear form you! Take care. We hope to have you with us again soon.

Thank you, as always, to those who sent me notes, provided posts, images, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, H, MP’, SF Bay Ospreys, Cornell RTH Cam, Osaka Peregrine Falcons, McEuan Park, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Cal Falcons, Wijk bij Duurstede, Raptor Research Project, Parco Natural Regional di Porto Conte, Moorings Park Ospreys, Dyfi Osprey Project, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Geemeff, Montana Osprey Project, Eagle Country, Frenchman’s Creek, Little Miami Conservancy, IWS/Explore, Duke Farms, Kansas City Bald Eagles, Port Tobacco Eagle Cam, Fort St Vrain Eagles, Boulder County, Denton Homes, SK Hideaways, Tonya Irvin, Window to Wildlife, Cowlitz PUD, Osprey Law, FORE, Finnish Osprey Foundation, The Guardian, Gregarious Joris Toonen, Ventana Wildlife, and the Daily Mail.

*Disclaimer: I have made effort to thank everyone who has contributed to today’s post. If there has been an error or an omission, my apologies. Please let me know so that I can correct my omission.*