Carol Senechal On AM790 WNIS Discussing the Bald Eagle Strike at the Norfolk International Airport, Screen Captures of Berry College, Northeast Florida and Southwest Florida Bald Eagle Nests, Bald Eagle NX Checks In

Carol Senechal, founder of Eagle On Alliance (EOA), was on AM790 WNIS this morning to discuss the Bald Eagle strike at the Norfolk International Airport. According to Carol, it was an adult that was killed. The airport refused to have a wildlife expert come in and try to identify if it was Dad Norfolk or DT (Dirty Tail). I'm sure they are trying to avoid the repercussions if their negligence caused the death of either Dad Norfolk or DT. I will say again that regardless of which Bald Eagle was killed, one of ours or a stranger, the airport needs to be heavily fined for the illegal take of a Bald Eagle. From what I understand, the Bald Eagle that was killed was a female, based upon measurements. Praying it was not DT... There is a thread on the Norfolk Eagles Forum about this incident for those of us that don't Facebook (me included). I so appreciate everyone that posts on the Forum. It really helps to keep me in the loop.

I got a good look at the eggs today at the Berry College Bald Eagle nest.

The Northeast Florida Bald Eagle nest looks a lot like the Southwest Florida nest. Rainy day for both. Here's the Northeast nest this evening:

And the Southwest nest:

Bald Eagle NX has checked in. I wish these maps indicated distance or that they would say in the verbiage how far she has gone since her last check-in. No idea how far she has traveled here...

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.

Ruffled Tail Feathers at the Berry College Bald Eagle Nest, Southwest Florida Bald Eagle Nest, Bald Eagles KE and Camellia Have Checked In

I put this post together a couple of nights ago and forgot to post it. It was a windy night at the Berry College Bald Eagle nest. Mom Berry had her butt facing into the wind. Here is a s'cap with no wind:

And here's a gust of wind:

Things have been going better at the Southwest Florida nest. Food has been plentiful and the eaglets have settled into a rhythm with less fighting. The smaller eaglet has been getting plenty of food. There is still a size difference, but it looks less pronounced:

Bald Eagle KE has checked in. Check out her latest travels.

Bald Eagle Camellia checked in the other day.

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...

Bald Eagle Camellia Checked In, Berry College Eagle Nest S'cap, Snowy Owls

Bald Eagle Camellia finally checked in. It just took some sunlight to recharge his solar-powered transmitter. Camellia's transmitter has been working for 1357 days. Bald Eagle Azalea's transmitter worked for 1397 days -- a couple of months shy of four years. It seems like Camellia's has a lot more outages than Azalea's did. If I remember right, she checked in like clockwork, until she didn't. Maybe she shed the transmitter and harness -- she was seen beaking at it. Maybe Camellia's will continue to work long enough that we can see patterns that indicate he has built a nest. I wish we had gotten that with Azalea... I hope that someone reports that they have spotted her!

This is an interesting pose for Mom Berry. Her head is almost tucked in. It makes me think that she started out tightly tucked in and then relaxed, like she's really getting some good sleep. I'm betting that Dad Berry is nearby.

My friend Diane sent me a link to a local story about the Snowy Owl Irruption. They are all over the place and I can't seem to find one! Here's a quote by Ned Brinkley from the story, regarding the need for people to keep far enough away from wildlife that the animal isn't disturbed: "It does come down to common sense, which is not equally distributed in the human population." Haha, he's got that right! Anyway, Snowy Owls seem to be all over the place. Mocking me...

Critical Article About The U.S. Department Of Agriculture's Wildlife Service, Pam Monahan's Posts About Bald Eagle HK, Jerky Treats Available Amid Safety Concerns, Massive Waves Hit Hawaii, Good Gut Germs, Berry College S'cap

There was a recent article in The Washington Post about the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Service. These are the people that are carrying out the nest removal and the harassment of the Norfolk Botanical Garden (NBG) Bald Eagles. This report doesn't touch on what's happening at NBG. But it looks at the agency as a whole and is very critical of the work that they do, their lack of transparency, their inhumane treatment of animals, and the mistakes that they've made. This makes me even more apprehensive about what's happening over in Norfolk...

Pam Monahan had a nice sunset visit with Bald Eagle HK. And she has another post that is very interesting. There is another female trying to get HK's attention. She is a 4th year though, so I hope HK stays with the older female. Remember Dad Norfolk messing with all those 4th year females and not a single egg out of the bunch? Stick with the older one HK!

Jerky Treats for pets are back in stores even though government experts can't explain the link between the treats and hundreds of animal deaths and thousands of illnesses. I think a good rule of thumb is to not trust any animal food or treats that come out of China. I use Quaker Rice Cakes for treats for my dogs. I get either the plain ones or the apple cinnamon flavor. They love them and I know they are safe since they are for human consumption.

Massive waves hit Hawaii. I'm talking 40 to 50 foot waves! Crazy!

Scientists are homing in on identifying good gut germs for weight loss and good health. Sign me up!

Here's my Berry College screen capture (s'cap) of the day. Dad arrived at the nest and Mom stood up and started fluffing the nest bowl. She must not have needed a break because she settled back down and Dad hopped onto a branch to keep watch. I finally got a look into the nest bowl today. Two eggs. That should be it. Too much time has elapsed for another egg. Here's the s'cap. You can't see Mom's head since it's buried in the nest bowl behind Dad. You can just see the two eggs.

Berry College Bald Eagle Nest, Pet Poisoning With Marijuana, Japanese Kill Dolphins, Polar Bear Twins, Mystery Martian Rock

I caught Mom Berry with her head tucked in this morning. This is not an unusual pose over-night. But I was surprised to see her this zonked out during the day. Dad Berry must have been nearby keeping watch for her to be this relaxed. The web site for this cam is reporting that an egg was laid on 1/14 and the second on 1/16. (I didn't see a second egg until 1/17...) There's no mention of a third egg, although I haven't seen into the nest bowl for a few days.

Marijuana poisoning is on the rise among pets. Marijuana is much more accessible with the recent laws passed allowing its use either medically or recreationally. The danger isn't just with the actual marijuana. Pets can be injured or killed if they eat your edibles or drink your bong water. So if you partake, please be careful.

Japanese fishermen killed at least 30 dolphins. This is an annual hunt. They claim that they aren't doing anything wrong -- that it's part of their culture to eat dolphin meat. But they hide behind tarps to do their dirty work. People don't normally hide to do something unless they feel they are doing something wrong. How could an advanced society do something so barbaric?

Here's a super cute video of polar bear twins opening their eyes for the first time. I love how they interact!

The Mars Rover found a mysterious rock. The interesting part is that the rover took a picture a couple of weeks earlier, and the rock wasn't there. So, where did it come from?

Berry College Bald Eagle Nest, Bald Eagle NX Checked In, Northeast Florida Babies Are Awake This Evening

It's blustery and cold here -- windy and snowing. It looks like it's not as bad at the Berry College Bald Eagle nest. The nest is rocking in the wind, but not too much.

Bald Eagle NX has checked in. She has been putting on the miles, doing some exploring.

The Northeast Florida Bald Eagle babies are wide awake. In the bottom right corner, you can see the 'white wash' on one of the tree's branches from the babies trying to shoot poop out of the nest.

Both Parents On The Nest At Berry College Bald Eagle Nest, Northeast Florida Bald Eagle Nest Looks Good, Southwest Florida Nest Has Big Size Disparity Between Hatchlings

It's been a while since I've seen both Mom and Dad in the nest at the same time at Berry College. Dad landed in the nest carrying a big stick.

Mom got up to take a break, giving a good view of the eggs, while Dad rearranged the stick. I was out this evening, so I don't know if she laid another egg today...

The babies at the Northeast Florida Bald Eagle nest look like they are doing pretty good. They are of similar size. They make the perfect Yin and Yang here:

Not so at the Southwest Florida Bald Eagle nest. The little one is fighting to get some food and has had some good meals. Which leaves some room for hope. But it looks like the size difference is increasing. The older chick is at least twice as big as the youngest. I'm not sure if the youngest will survive. At this point, it will depend upon how it is treated by its much larger sibling. It will have a chance if it can catch up on size a bit. They posted an update regarding this nest. And turned off the chat...

I went to Chincoteague today, looking for Snowy Owls. It was a bust!

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!

Berry College Bald Eagle Nest S'cap, Bald Eagle KE Played A Trick On Us, Pam Monahan's Latest Post About Bald Eagle HK

Here's my s'cap for Berry College for today. I really like this nest. The picture quality is good no matter the time of day and the resident eagles spent a lot of time at the nest, even prior to egg-laying. I'm looking forward to the babies hatching out, in about a month.

I posted recently that Bald Eagle KE's transmitter was reported as having stopped working. The very next day, she sent her position. She sent another position since then too. She tricked us all!

Pam Monahan spent some time with Bald Eagle HK the other day. In the pictures after he eats, you can see how big his crop is. If you watch eagles, you will see them throw their head back and work their mouth. It looks like they are calling. But what is happening is they are moving food from their crop to their stomach.

Two Eggs at Berry College Bald Eagle Nest, New S'Caps of the Southwest and Northeast Florida Nests

Two eggs at the Berry College nest! I'm so excited. I first looked in on the nest and momma had her head tucked in while incubating:

I wanted to see if she had laid a second egg. It was going to be today if she was going to do it. She finally got up and ta-da! Two eggs! I'm so egg-cited!

She did an egg roll. I explained the egg roll yesterday. You can see the eggs are sitting differently now.

Here's a s'cap of the Southwest Florida nest. They are reporting that the little one got a good meal today. You can see one of the babies passed out around the 10:00 position. The temps are pretty moderate in Florida tonight.

And here's a s'cap of the Northeast Florida nest. Just babies passed out. No worries. After a couple of weeks, the babies are able to thermoregulate and if temps are moderate, the Eagle parents will often spend the night on a branch keeping watch.

Sibling Rivalry at the Southwest Florida Bald Eagle Nest, Berry College Bald Eagle Nest S'caps

The SW Florida Eagle Nest hatchlings are engaging in sibling rivalry. The folks at that nest have made a statement about this behavior. If you choose to watch a nature cam, please remember that nature can be harsh. Most times, they work it out. Sometimes, if there is a lack of food, the smaller eaglet dies. In this case, it is better for one to fledge strong than to have two weaklings fail to survive in the first year. It's survival of the fittest. In the case of this nest, food is plentiful. At this point, I think they will both survive.

Here's my daily s'caps of the Berry College nest. I just missed seeing the egg in this first picture. Mom has hooked her beak down into the grasses and is wiggling back and forth, settling in on the egg.

A half an hour later, she is up again. Here, she is fluffing the grass in the nest bowl, keeping it nice and soft and not packed down. She is also doing an egg roll. The egg has to be rolled periodically -- this keeps the temperature consistent throughout the egg and keeps the embryo from adhering to the egg wall.

Then she looks around before settling back down on the egg.

Bald Eagle KE's Transmitter No Longer Sending Position, Speculation About The Roles of Male and Female Bald Eagles Coming Into Maturity, Bald Eagle NX's Location, Berry College Daily Screen Capture

Bald Eagle KE made a New Year's resolution -- to stop transmitting her location. Her last transmission was on 12/31 after 566 days of reporting her position. Read Reese's blog post here. You will also find a map of all of her travels and the pictures that Reese took of her on the day her transmitter was fitted. I find it interesting that during all the time that her position was being reported, she never returned to her natal area (Saw Pen Point). It is long held that Bald Eagles upon maturity will return to their natal area to nest and raise their young. I've noticed that males are more likely to find (claim?) a territory based upon observations of Bald Eagle HK at Honey Bee and transmitter reports of Bald Eagle Camellia at Brown Cove. We know that HK began building a nest long before maturity. We don't know if Camellia has started to build a nest, but he does spend a lot of time at Brown Cove, so I suspect that he will settle down in that area. The female fledglings that we have followed for years (Azalea and NX) have shown no inclination to spend a lot of time in one area during their juvenile and sub-adult years. They just wander from place to place. I speculate that it might be the male's job to claim a territory and build a nest and then attract a female. That's just my speculation based upon a small sampling... And I believe KE's travels reinforce this belief. Safe travels, KE!

Speaking of Bald Eagle NX, she has finally checked in. She is still just wandering around, in an aimless sort of way.

A quick look at Berry College Eagle Cam shows Mom with her head tucked in, catching some Z's, incubating her egg. Since I really like this nest, I'm going to try to post a screen capture (s'cap) every day...

Berry College Eagle Nest Has An Egg, Duane Noblick's New Pictures Of Snowy Owls, Jim Yanello's Pictures of Bald Eagle Camellia, Pam Monahan's New Post About Bald Eagle HK

One of my favorite eagle cam nests, Berry College, has their first egg! I got these screen captures on Sunday:

They were all over the place, doing nesting preps. I wasn't surprised to find that they've got their first egg today. This evening finds Mom on the nest incubating the egg:

And with some patience I was able to get a screen capture of the egg. I'm not surprised to find Dad perched on a branch for the night. I'm very excited and look forward to watching this nest.

Duane went out to Chincoteague looking for Snowy Owls -- and found four of them! Check out his beautiful pictures here!

In my post on Sunday I commented that Jim Yanello had gotten a picture of Bald Eagle Camellia. Reese's post now has the pictures. Reese commented that Camellia's longer wing feathers are older and the shorter feathers are newer. Here's the explanation: The longer feathers help to give fledglings lift when they are first learning to fly. This is also when they weigh the most (baby-fat) and need the most lift. They then molt in shorter feathers in subsequent years. The shorter feathers give them greater maneuverability in their adult years.

Pam Monahan has a new post of her observations from yesterday of Bald Eagle HK, posted today. She has some (graphic) pictures of HK eating a squirrel and a nice series of him feaking afterward. (Bald Eagles can't use napkins. So when their beaks are messy after eating, they will wipe it off on a branch -- called feaking. This is a fast, kind of swishing motion. This also helps to keep their beaks sharp.)

S'caps From The Northeast Florida and Southwest Florida Eagle Nests, Pam Monahan and Bald Eagle HK, New Location For Bald Eagle Camellia, Pictures of Bald Eagle KS

I kept forgetting to look in on the Florida nests in the daytime. I finally thought about it today and got the following screen captures (s'caps).

Northeast Florida nest (hatched 12/20 and 12/23)

 Southwest Florida (hatched 12/23 and 12/25)

Eating



Already venturing out of the nest bowl

Pam Monahan has a fantastic post for her observations on 1/9 of Bald Eagle HK. She has a great picture of his nest viewed from a distance so you can see how big it is in the tree. It's really getting big! Then, she refers to her post for her observations on 1/10 as a photographer's dream. She got some beautiful pictures of HK in flight and at his nest. I'm guessing Pam was at the nest again today since the weather was so beautiful here... Maybe we'll see a new post tomorrow!

There is a new location map for Bald Eagle Camellia. Jim Yanello commented that he got a picture, so hopefully, we will see that soon.

Reese has a new blog post about an extraordinary find! One of our best eagle spotters, Beverly Nettleton, found Bald Eagle KS at Honey Bee Golf Course. Check Reese's blog post for the details and pictures. You can click on the first picture and see the letters KS as plain as day. And yes, that is Bald Eagle HK in one of the pictures. So amazing! Two Bald Eagles without transmitters from two different nests hanging out together and Beverly got the picture!

The Center for Conservation Biology Has Published Their 2013 Report

The 2013 report from The Center for Conservation Biology is available online. They do such important work -- I encourage everyone to read this report. It can be downloaded from here. Included in the report are:

• Legacy Projects
• Seabird Monitoring
• Bald Eagle Monitoring
• Black Rail Conservation
• Osprey Monitoring
• Wader Monitoring
• Migratory Shorebirds
• American Oystercatcher
• Emerging Issues
• Shorebird Hunting
• Menhaden Overharvest
• Marshbird Predation
• Education and Outreach

Bald Eagle NX's Location, Center For Conservation Biology: Bald Eagles With Transmitters, Irruption of Snowy Owls, Freezing Temperatures and Birds, Shorebird Hunting, Great Blue Heron Come-back

Bald Eagle NX checked in on January 5th. She has done a little bit of exploring since her last check-in.

The Center for Conservation Biology newsletter is hot off the press. Here's a few interesting items:

• Bald Eagles with transmitters continue to provide valuable information to aid conservation efforts. More than 1,000,000 GPS locations have been provided, indicating which areas are the most important to Bald Eagles. These areas include travel corridors and communal roosts.
• The current irruption of Snowy Owls is explained in this story. Dr. Bryan Watts flew a survey with Dr. Mitchell Byrd to look for the owls and reports his findings.
• Dr. Watts is quoted in this USA Today article about the impact of this week's freezing temperatures on birds.
• Two Whimbrels (Machi and Goshen) that CCB had tracked via transmitters survived an encounter with Hurricane Irene during their fall migration only to be killed by hunters when they reached their winter home on Guadeloupe. This tragic event has been a catalyst for change via increased awareness of shorebird hunting and new regulations governing the hunting of shorebirds.
• Dr Watts is quoted in this Richmond Times-Dispatch article about the come-back of the Great Blue Heron.

More tomorrow...

Bald Eagle Camellia's Locations, Pam Monahan's Visits With Bald Eagle HK, Florida Eagle Cams, Berry College Eagle Cam, Ice Tsunami, Earthquake Lights, Wildlife Copter, Shark Rescue, Happy People

Looks like Bald Eagle Camellia's solar battery has gotten a good charge!Reese posted a location map for Camellia yesterday. Then, in a blink, he posted another map today.

Pam Monahan has three new posts for Bald Eagle HK. He looks so much like his dad (Bald Eagle Dad Norfolk)! In her January 5th post, he's in his nest, which is really getting big! (I'm wondering if he's going to try to use the nest that he built or if he's going to try to take over the Osprey nest. In either case, I think he views the Osprey nest as belonging to him. I'm predicting fireworks when the Osprey return.) Pam also got pictures of HK in other places around the golf course. Then in her January 6th post, she got some great pictures of HK in his nest. And then she braved the cold today to go find him again. She got a bunch of pictures of HK flying away today... Thanks Pam! Stay warm HK!

I checked in on the Florida Eagle Cams just now. As I expected, Moms and babies are tucked in for the night:

Southwest Florida Cam (the IR light at this nest is kinda harsh to our eyes - but the Eagles can't see the light at all):

Northeast Florida Cam (yes, that's a baby at 4:00, partially tucked up under Mom. Domestic bliss...):

Same scene at the Berry College nest, just no eggs or babies yet. I love that these eagles spend so much time at the nest. I can usually find someone home!

Here's a couple of natural phenomenon that I've never heard of. The first is 'ice tsunami' -- check out this video. This video hasn't been sped up. Mother nature was not joking around! And then there's 'earthquake lights' which are flashes of light that happen near rifts. They occur during or even days before an earthquake.

Time to get on my soap box. This guy built a remote controlled flying copter that he then used to photograph and capture video of animals in the wild. In this video, it looks like the wildlife has changed its behavior as a result of this copter. It starts with a giraffe walking. Then it's standing still. In another instance, there is an ostrich walking along a path. Then the camera angle changes and the ostrich is standing still a few steps off of the path. To me, these animals have changed their behavior while being filmed. There are lots of scenes of various herds running. Are they running because of the copter? There is a hyena that is dragging its meal away from the camera -- at one point stopping and turning its face to the camera while sniffing at it. The footage is beautiful and there's some lofty music playing along. But I feel that obtaining this footage was at the expense of the animals in it. Please, if you want to view wildlife, don't disturb it. If an animal even looks at you, then you have ventured too close.

So, you've got a shark that's choking on a moose. Sounds like the start of a bad joke. But, it really happened. The shark was rescued by some good Samaritans. It was too late for the moose...

Here are 8 unexpected habits of happy people. It turns out that being outdoors can be good for you and help you be happy. Duh!