Berry College S'Cap Of The Day, Norfolk Airport Rant, Bald Eagle Camellia

Here's the Berry College babies today, before the weather got bad. Some kind of prey item to the left:

I have said for years that it is not safe to fly in or out of the Norfolk Airport due to their unwillingness to address their problems with wildlife on their property. The number of birds at the airport is increasing and the number of bird strikes is on the rise. Check out this article and watch the video. Steven Sterling, the airport's Operations Director, is interviewed for the article. Talk about deer in the headlights. This guy is tap-dancing about the issue, and not doing a very good job of it. The article points out that the airport has not implemented corrective measure as recommended by biologists and the FAA. Instead, they have spent $40,000 to harass the Bald Eagles (whose territory is the neighboring Botanical Garden) and tear down their nests. Sterling says they are doing what is reasonable. He states that complying with the necessary action on airport property is the airport's long term goal. What isn't stated is that what they really want is to put in a new runway. (This part is not from the news story, this is my opinion on the matter: I believe that wetlands rules have prevented them from making the changes necessary to put in another runway. But now they can sell these changes under the guise of mitigating a hazard to aviation by removing habitat that is friendly to wildlife. And what a surprise! That would give them room for their new runway. In the mean time, they do nothing about the hazard presented by wildlife on their property. I think this has been their plan all along. Let the problem at the airport fester until they can sell the idea that gets them their runway. They are holding the flying public's safety hostage to get their new runway. They have been trying for a decade to get this runway, and now they see their chance.) The airport is completely negligent. And Mayor Fraim must want another runway because he is complicit in the negligence. (See my previous posts.) I have said from the start of this mess that the airport needs to take action to keep wildlife off of airport property instead of chasing the Bald Eagles out of the Botanical Garden. From the article: 

Bird counts at the airport noted only a handful of bald eagles in the area, but more than a thousand heavy and dangerous birds like the Canada goose and the Double-crested cormorant.

I continue my recommendation to not use that airport! It's just not safe. The last bit of the news article says that Bald Eagles are becoming more abundant in the area. Ummm, when a wrote a letter years ago to the airport, Mayor Fraim, and Norfolk's City Council, I told them that's what would happen when you remove a territorial pair of Bald Eagles that chase other Bald Eagles away... What a bunch of idiots.

Good news! The reports of the demise of Camellia's transmitter are greatly exaggerated! He did report in. The hope is that when the clouds clear, his transmitter will get enough of a charge to start regularly sending his location again. Talons crossed!

Waiting Continues at Berry College Bald Eagle Nest, The 9th Bald Eagle Nest Removed at Norfolk Botanical Garden, Decorah Bald Eagles Defend Nest, A Year of Blogging

Waiting and waiting for a hatch at the Berry College Bald Eagle nest. Tomorrow is day 35 for the second egg that was laid. I am surprised we haven't seen a hatch yet at this nest. There can be a delay in the hatching of the first egg if Mom delayed incubating the egg, to close the gap in hatch time. There is less sibling rivalry if the hatches occur closer together instead of one getting a 3 day head start (eggs are generally laid 3 days apart). I hold my breath and strain to see the eggs every time she stands up. And so do over 7,000 other people -- the number of people watching the cam at any one time these days. It's after 11:00PM and there's still almost 4,600 people watching a Bald Eagle sleep! Anyway, I could've sworn I saw a pip hole the other day. But I haven't seen anything like it again since then, so it must not have been. She's still gimpy on her left leg - something else to worry about. Here's our sleeping beauty:

There's more disheartening news for the Norfolk Bald Eagles. Eagle On Alliance reports that a 9th nest has been removed from the Norfolk Botanical Garden. Norfolk's Mayor Fraim is proving to be the most pig-headed, stubborn fool for continuing an effort that is obviously not working. There is now more eagle activity around NBG now that the Norfolk pair doesn't have a nest to defend. And there was a Bald Eagle struck and killed at the airport last month -- proving that his plan is not working. The Bald Eagle that was killed was not one of the Norfolk pair. By concentrating their wildlife mitigation efforts against one Bald Eagle pair at the neighboring property, they are leaving the flying public at the mercy of all the other wildlife that is free to come and go at the airport. Feel free to let Mayor Frain know what you think by sending him an email at mayor@norfolk.gov. And now Mayor Fraim, I'm talking to you: You made a bad call. If your ego is too big, you don't even have to admit you made a mistake. Just institute a mitigation plan on airport property and leave the eagles alone. Here's why you should:

• It is cruel to keep removing the nests built by the Norfolk pair.
• Irreparable harm is being done to the trees at the Norfolk Botanical Garden.
• Revenue is down at the Norfolk Botanical Garden because people are allowing their membership to lapse and people have stopped going there over this issue.
• You are making yourself look worse the longer this continues. 
• Most importantly, you are endangering the flying public by not taking appropriate steps on airport property to mitigate the threat of wildlife at the airport.

The Decorah Bald Eagles just faced a threat. This is what a Dad Bald Eagle is supposed to do when Mom calls for help. (The Berry College Dad could learn a thing or two from the Decorah Dad...) Check out this video of the Decorah Bald Eagle Nest. (So nice that they have sound!) I don't know if he's trying to protect her at 3:05 or if he's just trying to make himself look bigger to whatever is posing a threat. I like to think that he was trying to protect her... It's nice to see them side-by-side facing a threat together.

It was a year ago today that I wrote my first blog post. Thanks to all who have found my blog and have supported this endeavor! This post will be number 232. There have been over 11,300 page views. Woot!

Waiting Continues at the Berry College Bald Eagle Nest (Possible Pip Hole), Bald Eagles Dad Norfolk and DT Picture on Forum, Southwest Florida Bald Eagle Parents Kiss, Bald Eagles Camellia, NX, and KE Checked In, S'Caps of The Northeast and Southwest Florida Bald Eagle Nests

Yesterday morning (2/17) found Mom Berry sleeping with her head tucked in. She was probably tired from restless babies in their eggs.

She roused herself eventually and at one point had a pretty good breeze ruffling her feathers:

She remained very restless throughout the day, doing frequent egg rolls:

Today, I brought up the cam just in time to see this beautiful scene:

This is day 35 for the first egg that was laid. That's the number of days it's expected for an egg to hatch. It might go a little longer, if the Mom delayed incubating. Bald Eagles will delay incubating full time until all of the eggs are laid. That way, the development of the first egg is delayed, resulting in less space between the babies hatching out. Sibling rivalry can be especially bad if the first hatch is allowed a big head start, which would happen if it hatched 3 days before the second baby. (Keep in mind that the eggs are usually laid 3 days apart.) So, even though we've been seeing behavior that indicates the babies are moving or chirping inside the egg, today is really the soonest I'd expect to see one hatch. I won't keep you in suspense, there was no hatch today. But there might be a pip hole. Here's the rest of my pics from today. First is a pic of pretty light on Mom:

Dad came in to give Mom a break. Dad is on the left and Mom is leaving the nest bowl. Shortly after taking this pic, she left by the back door. Dad is standing on a new pine branch he brought in

Then Dad tries to move the new branch, even though he's standing on it!

He did eventually move the branch, then he came over to check out the eggs.

Here's the interesting picture. I wish I could have gotten this better. But between this not being a PTZ camera and the egg roll happening so fast, this is what I got. When he rolled the eggs, this one spot stayed in the same spot on the egg. Could have been debris or a pip hole. Here's the picture with a circle on the spot, right next to his talon (part of his talon is inside the circle - I'm drawing your attention to the spot right in the center of the circle):

Here's the same picture without a circle on the spot. Is that a pip hole? Only time will tell! (It can take a day or so to go from pip hole to hatch.)

A couple more pictures from today. This one, I think it's Dad on the eggs and Mom comes in with a fish tail.

Then Dad gets up and eats it. Strange, I would have thought that he'd bring her some fish... Maybe she's better at foraging...

Today, I did see Mom favoring her left leg. I'm not sure if she did something to aggravate her injury... There seems to be a lot of Bald Eagles with a lot of leg injuries.

A couple of quick things:

Here's a picture of Bald Eagle Dad Norfolk and Bald Eagle DT that Mike took on 2/4. (The forum needs an upgrade, so there are lines of text at the top of the page. But it's ok to keep going to the forum. It hasn't been hacked and it doesn't have a virus.) This picture was taken after the most recent Bald Eagle strike/death at the Norfolk International Airport. That airport is so dangerous. It should be shut down!

Here's a picture of the Southwest Florida Bald Eagle parents sharing a Valentine's Day kiss that one of their photographers at the nest captured.

Bald Eagle Camellia checked in on 2/14. He is staying local! Bald Eagle NX has checked in on 2/14 and 2/17. She has finally returned to where she was released! Bald Eagle KE also checked in. She found a nice fishing spot!

Here's the s'cap of the Northeast Florida Bald Eagle babies, getting pretty big. Growing is hard work and they need to do a lot of eating and sleeping:

And here's a s'cap of the Southwest Florida's little E4, not so little any more. He's almost as big as his dad! Figure the nest is about 6 feet across... He's not quite half, maybe 2.5 feet from tip to tail. Adults are about 3 feet...

Gotta go. I have a nest to watch! (So excited!)

Bald Eagles Dad Norfolk and DT (Dirty Tail) Are Safe, Bald Eagle Camellia Checked In

I don't usually do two posts in one day, but I've got such good news out of Norfolk! Dad Norfolk and his mate DT have been seen together since a Bald Eagle was killed recently at the Norfolk International Airport. Although I am saddened that an eagle was killed once again due to the city and airport's negligence, I am happy that it was not Dad Norfolk or DT. I wonder if Norfolk's Mayor Fraim and his accomplices on the City Council are going to continue the (obviously) ineffective practice of harassing Dad Norfolk and DT while they are on Norfolk Botanical Garden property or if they are going to pry their heads out of their butts and do something that works. Maybe this eagle's death wasn't for nothing. Maybe it will bring about necessary change in the way they are trying to mitigate the risk presented by wildlife. At the very least, I hope they get the maximum fine for the illegal take of a Bald Eagle! Please, please, please, if you live in the city of Norfolk, vote them out of office (everyone except Tommy Smigiel.) Mayor Fraim and the inept members of his City Council need to go!

Bald Eagle Camellia has checked in. I'd think that we should be able to soon see a pattern that indicates where he will build a nest...

Eagle On Alliance's Press Release Regarding the Death of a Bald Eagle at The Norfolk International Airport, Berry College Bald Eagle Nest, Pam Monahan's New Post About Bald Eagle HK

Eagle On Alliance has released a statement regarding Tuesday's death of a Bald Eagle that was struck by a plane landing at the Norfolk International Airport. The airport should be fined for the illegal taking of a Bald Eagle. Let's see if that happens... There are still no details about the Bald Eagle that was struck.

For the first time since the eggs were laid at the Berry College Bald Eagle nest, I checked in and found no one sitting on the eggs. I like this picture because the nest bowl is so clearly defined. Bald Eagles have a sense about how long they can leave the eggs exposed without harming the developing embryos.

Shortly after taking the s'cap above, I went out to pool league. I returned to find that all appears to be ok.

Pam Monahan has a new post on her blog with her pictures and observations about Bald Eagle HK.

Another Bald Eagle Was Struck And Killed At The Norfolk International Airport, Snowy Day At The Berry College Bald Eagle Nest

The Virginian Pilot is reporting that a Bald Eagle was struck and killed at the Norfolk Airport today. Other news sources are reporting the same -- all reports lack details. Air Wisconsin strikes again. What is wrong with those pilots that they can't see a huge bird on the runway and not land on top of it? Praying it wasn't Dad Norfolk or DT. Thank goodness the City of Norfolk was busy keeping them out of the Norfolk Botanical Garden. The flying public and the Bald Eagles are so much safer... I wonder now if the Norfolk City Council and Mayor Fraim will see the folly of their plan to drive the Bald Eagles out of the garden as a means to prevent Bald Eagle strikes at the airport? Bunch of idiots... (except Tommy Smigiel.) I never wanted to be able to say, "I told you so."

Today was an interesting day at the Berry College Bald Eagle Nest. Their feathers provide so much insulation that the snow doesn't melt. It just piles up until she moves. And she stays warm and dry.

 
Eventually, she eased up off of the eggs.

Scratched that itch:

Did an egg roll:

Showed off her eggs to the camera:

Then she turned to face the opposite direction, here she is just laying back down. She's got her beak buried in the nesting material and is shimmying back and forth, settling back down with her brood patch on the eggs.

She is settled here, but looks uncomfortable with her butt in the air on top of the snow. She never did shed a big chunk of snow from the middle of her back. But the thin layer of snow is new accumulation since she laid back down.

It wasn't long before she turned back around.

I'm not sure why, but she stood up and shook off all of the snow.

Then she settled back down. Every eagle I've ever seen settle down to incubate eggs digs their beak into the nest to act as an anchor while shimmying back and forth.

She came up with her beak covered in snow.

This all took place over the course of an hour...

Berry College Bale Eagle Nest, Osprey Sighting, Norfolk International Airport Is Added As A Defendent In EAO's Lawsuit

Here's my s'cap from today from the Berry College Bald Eagle nest. She looks like she is laying pretty loose, must be a warm night. If it was cold out, she'd have her wings in close. If she were to lay a third egg, it will happen tomorrow. Fingers crossed!

I saw an Osprey yesterday. A little early in the year for Osprey to be here. But, that's what it was...

Eagle On Alliance has added the Norfolk International Airport as a defendant in their lawsuit. Good! If the airport had done any kind of job of mitigating the threat of wildlife at the airport, Mom Norfolk would not have been struck and killed by a plane. The airport is negligent and Norfolk's City Council and Mayor Fraim are letting them get away with it by trying to mitigate the threat with nest removal and harassment of the eagles at the Norfolk Botanical Garden. This entire situation is just sickening. I will never spend another dime in Norfolk.

I'm heading to Chincoteague tomorrow to see if I can spot a Snowy Owl. Wish me luck!

Removal Of Bald Eagle Nest At The Norfolk Botanical Garden -- More Details

The Pilot Online has an article about the recent removal of the Bald Eagle nest at the Norfolk Botanical Garden (NBG). This was the eighth nest removal. There is a poll with the article (on the left below the related links) asking if Norfolk should continue with the nest removal. Last night, it was at 90% for no. Today, it's up to 93% for no. (That's with 6% for yes and 1% not sure.) I don't think that the Norfolk officials are going to listen though. It seems that there are fragile egos at play. There is no reason other than pride for the Mayor and the City Council to continue with this stupidity. Hey, Norfolk officials, I'm talking to you: Set aside your pride, listen to the experts, and control the problem by intensifying efforts at the airport.

The article talks about how much membership and revenue are down at NBG. I let my membership lapse but never provided a reason why. I'm sure it's more than 8% of people that left NBG because of the treatment of the Bald Eagles.

I will not spend any money in Norfolk as long as this mistreatment of Dad Norfolk and DT continues. I refuse to pay any sales taxes to Norfolk. I use the airport in Newport News instead of Norfolk. (And that's for safety reasons as well, since I don't consider the Norfolk airport to be safe since they don't mitigate the risk of all wildlife at the airport. Just this Band-Aid to make it appear like they are doing something.) If you haven't watched my video showing all of the birds that are on Lake Whitehurst (the body of water that separates the airport from NBG), please check it out. I originally shot this video just because it's nature. But it really shows the extent of the problem.

Please support the Bald Eagles and push for safety at the airport for all concerned. I recommend that you not spend any money in Norfolk and if you are a city resident, vote out the guilty parties. (Keep in mind that Tommy Smigiel is on the City Council and is in favor of leaving the eagles alone and fixing the problem at the airport. So, don't vote him out!)

Lawsuit to Stop The Removal of the Bald Eagle Nest at Norfolk Botanical Garden, Locations for Bald Eagles Camellia and NX, Video of Bald Eagle Banding in Michigan

Here's a comprehensive article about the lawsuit to stop the remove of the Bald Eagle nest at the Norfolk Botanical Garden.

There are new locations for Camellia and NX. Camellia is back at Brown Cove. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up nesting there. NX is still hanging around in the same general area as her last check-in.

I found this video of a recent Eaglet banding in Michigan. This is an interesting look at what happens during the process, from removal from the nest, through measuring and banding, to the return of the eaglet to the nest.

Eagle On Alliance Sues The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Help Find an Escaped Bald Eagle, Bald Eagle Excursion, Outside My Window Blog, Find Momo, Osprey on Feathered Photography, Location for NX

The Eagle On Alliance petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to stop allowing the destruction of the Bald Eagle nests at the Norfolk Botanical Garden. They had asked to be notified by 7/1 whether it intends to continue allowing these nests to be destroyed. It is reported today that EOA has brought suit against the agency to halt the removal of these nests. I wish them luck. It is idiotic to think that you will ever get the Bald Eagles out of the Garden. And it's idiotic to even try when there are measures that can be taken at the airport to reduce the threat of all wildlife to aviation in the area. The airport has plans to expand. Which will bring in more revenue to the city. And the Bald Eagles at the Garden complicate those plans. Does anyone else smell a rotten deal?

Baton Rouge zoo officials need help finding an escaped Bald Eagle. The eagle has limited flight capabilities. Call 225-775-3877 if you have any information.

The Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania is hosting a Bald Eagle Excursion in Hays tomorrow, 7/4.

I found a neat blog. Outside My Window is mainly a bird blog. I found very informative entries about bird anatomy and behavior.

It took me about 5 minutes to find Momo today!

Check out this Osprey on Ron Dudley's Feathered Photography Blog.

There is a new location for NX for 7/2. Of course, she hasn't gone far...

A case is made for the Norfolk Eagles, Camellia's location

A case has been made for other solutions regarding the Bald Eagles at NBG. The City of Norfolk was hasty in their decision to remove the nests and try to harrass the eagles into leaving. I have always said that if ORF was practicing wildlife mitigation at the airport, that Mom Norfolk would still be alive today. Instead, they choose to only put up the appearance that they are doing something proactive. Please see this post from today. Someone has done some excellent research! I have written letters to the city, the airport, and other interested parties, covering some of these same facts. But this article goes beyond what I found and deserves to be read by everyone who cares about the fate of the Norfolk Eagles. Bravo to the researchers and writers of this article!

And Camellia checked in around 2:00AM last night. He's not too far from home!


Camellia's location March 5th at 2:00AM