The Harrison Bay chicks got turtle for breakfast:
Nobody is home...
I like weekends because I can check the White Rock nest in the morning. The light is so pretty.
Saturday, April 4, 2015
Berry College Eagles Day 50&52, Harrison Bay Eagles Day 6&8 Turtle Breakfast, White Rock Eagles
Just a quick post today. It's a sunny day at the Berry College nest and the babies are in pancake mode:
The Harrison Bay chicks got turtle for breakfast:
I like weekends because I can check the White Rock nest in the morning. The light is so pretty.
The Harrison Bay chicks got turtle for breakfast:
I like weekends because I can check the White Rock nest in the morning. The light is so pretty.
Friday, April 3, 2015
Berry College Eagles Day 49&51 Getting Big, Harrison Bay Eagles Day 5&7 Escaping The Nest Bowl, and Africam Black Eagle Tour of Area
The Berry College eaglets are doing a lot of wingercizing now. Cam 1 has been down since the rain yesterday. So, I've only got some overhead s'caps from today. They are getting big and are still doing a lot of sleeping. Growing so fast uses a lot of energy.
On chick gives the other a wing blanket during a stretch.
You can see in the s'cap above and the one below that the sheaths for the tail feathers are disappearing.
"Wheee!"
It seems like eaglets get huge overnight.
The eaglet has its wings spread to cool off. It is probably panting, which also helps them to cool off.
The eaglets at the Harrison Bay nest are starting to climb out of the nest bowl. Check out this video (6:42). The ending cracked me up! I got another short video of the chicks in a close-up (2:38).
Here's some s'caps from today. The babies were passed out:
They were offered food, but were completely oblivious...
I just like this one...
One of the chicks decided to stay topside for a bit after escaping from the nest bowl. Mom was keeping an eye on the baby until it rolled back in. It's time to build up the crib rails!
This is a still from the close-up video in the link above.
The Africam Black Eagle camera was on a loop this morning, showing the area around the nest. I'd been curious about what was around and figured other people might be too. Here's a link to the tour (4:30).
They perch on the little ledges on the cliff face overnight. This is from last night. It just doesn't look comfortable to me, but I bet they are safe from predators:
I grabbed a few s'caps this morning, which is before their sunset. Someone in the chat room mentioned the angel on her back. Somebody else said they just missed it as I was taking this s'cap. So, I can see and angel, but I guess at some point it looks better than this. Neat. I have something to watch for now!
The next two are from the tour. It looks like there is a viewing area down below. If anyone has been to the observation area and has a picture of the view from the ground that I can post, let me know!
A lot of green sprigs are being brought to the nest. We should be seeing the eggs soon.
On chick gives the other a wing blanket during a stretch.
You can see in the s'cap above and the one below that the sheaths for the tail feathers are disappearing.
"Wheee!"
It seems like eaglets get huge overnight.
The eaglet has its wings spread to cool off. It is probably panting, which also helps them to cool off.
The eaglets at the Harrison Bay nest are starting to climb out of the nest bowl. Check out this video (6:42). The ending cracked me up! I got another short video of the chicks in a close-up (2:38).
Here's some s'caps from today. The babies were passed out:
They were offered food, but were completely oblivious...
I just like this one...
One of the chicks decided to stay topside for a bit after escaping from the nest bowl. Mom was keeping an eye on the baby until it rolled back in. It's time to build up the crib rails!
This is a still from the close-up video in the link above.
The Africam Black Eagle camera was on a loop this morning, showing the area around the nest. I'd been curious about what was around and figured other people might be too. Here's a link to the tour (4:30).
They perch on the little ledges on the cliff face overnight. This is from last night. It just doesn't look comfortable to me, but I bet they are safe from predators:
I grabbed a few s'caps this morning, which is before their sunset. Someone in the chat room mentioned the angel on her back. Somebody else said they just missed it as I was taking this s'cap. So, I can see and angel, but I guess at some point it looks better than this. Neat. I have something to watch for now!
The next two are from the tour. It looks like there is a viewing area down below. If anyone has been to the observation area and has a picture of the view from the ground that I can post, let me know!
A lot of green sprigs are being brought to the nest. We should be seeing the eggs soon.
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Berry College Eagles Day 48&50 Big Fish and Rain, Harrison Bay Eagles Day 4&6 Full Pantry, White Rock Eagles Still Incubating, Loch Of The Lowes Osprey Adult At Nest, Africam Black Eagle Nestorations
There was another huge fish brought to the nest today. Well, it would have been huge if it still had its head... Dad is panting with the effort of carrying the fish to the nest.
Mom arrived shortly after Dad and landed on the front branch.
One of the eaglets was allowed to make some feeble attempts at self-feeding. They haven't learned yet to stand on the food to get leverage while tearing off pieces. It's coming...
Dad is still panting.
Dad left and Mom hopped down into the nest to feed the eaglets.
Around 5:00PM it started to rain. You can see the rain beading on Mom's back:
One of the babies tried to hide under Mom while the other stayed topside, flapping and shaking its tail feathers. You can see that some of the tail feathers have lost their sheaths. When the pin feathers appear, the sheath is the white part you can see in the picture below -- each feather emerges from a sheath. Then when the sheath is no longer needed, it dries up and falls off, helped along by preening. I believe this is the older eaglet since I noticed the other has more tail feather sheaths still.
The other eaglet eventually came out to play in the rain.
But then it started raining harder and they decided they didn't like it after all...
I see a little face peeking out.
Mom had been staying low in the nest, because it got windy. (They can get blown out of a nest.) But then she raised up to try to provide more protection to her babies. Such a good mom...
The Harrison Bay nest seems to be doing great. The pantry looks full during this break. Mom is stretching everything to her right, her wing, leg and tail. The pantry is the area behind her.
Babies!
What a nice, clear picture on this cam. Sleepy-head!
Later, Mom was trying to sleep. But you could see the babies in front of her and it looked like a wrestling match. I don't know how she slept with that going on...
She's actually only cat-napping, keeping aware of her surroundings. Zoomer gave us a close-up of the pantry. You can see the fish behind Mom. That whole area is crawling with bugs. Yuck!
The White Rock eagles are still incubating their two eggs. Two more weeks and this nest will be on hatch watch!
The Scottish Wildlife Trust's Loch of the Lowes Osprey nest has someone at home tonight. As you may remember from my previous post about the Lady of the Loch, the resident female amazed everyone last year when she returned to the nest on 3/31. This year, a different female has been at the nest and making herself at home. We'll see if Lady returns (at the ripe old age of 30) and reclaims her mate and territory, or if Laddie will have a new mate.
The Africam Black Eagles don't look too comfortable to me. But, I guess this is how they sleep when not spending the night in the nest.
A bit later and the IR cam is turned off and color returns. One of the adults has moved to the nest. I always assume it's the female, but it could be the male. Zoomer has framed the cam so the waterfall can be seen on the right.
And we got some close-ups as she tests the fit of the nest bowl...
...and arranges the nesting material. She rearranged that bit of green in front of her several times. I think it ended up in the same spot!
Pretty scene. I love the color of the cliff face. Even the white-wash is pretty...
This does not look comfortable. But she's been like this for 5 minutes and is where I will leave her...
Mom arrived shortly after Dad and landed on the front branch.
One of the eaglets was allowed to make some feeble attempts at self-feeding. They haven't learned yet to stand on the food to get leverage while tearing off pieces. It's coming...
Dad is still panting.
Dad left and Mom hopped down into the nest to feed the eaglets.
Around 5:00PM it started to rain. You can see the rain beading on Mom's back:
One of the babies tried to hide under Mom while the other stayed topside, flapping and shaking its tail feathers. You can see that some of the tail feathers have lost their sheaths. When the pin feathers appear, the sheath is the white part you can see in the picture below -- each feather emerges from a sheath. Then when the sheath is no longer needed, it dries up and falls off, helped along by preening. I believe this is the older eaglet since I noticed the other has more tail feather sheaths still.
The other eaglet eventually came out to play in the rain.
But then it started raining harder and they decided they didn't like it after all...
I see a little face peeking out.
Mom had been staying low in the nest, because it got windy. (They can get blown out of a nest.) But then she raised up to try to provide more protection to her babies. Such a good mom...
The Harrison Bay nest seems to be doing great. The pantry looks full during this break. Mom is stretching everything to her right, her wing, leg and tail. The pantry is the area behind her.
Babies!
What a nice, clear picture on this cam. Sleepy-head!
She's actually only cat-napping, keeping aware of her surroundings. Zoomer gave us a close-up of the pantry. You can see the fish behind Mom. That whole area is crawling with bugs. Yuck!
The White Rock eagles are still incubating their two eggs. Two more weeks and this nest will be on hatch watch!
The Scottish Wildlife Trust's Loch of the Lowes Osprey nest has someone at home tonight. As you may remember from my previous post about the Lady of the Loch, the resident female amazed everyone last year when she returned to the nest on 3/31. This year, a different female has been at the nest and making herself at home. We'll see if Lady returns (at the ripe old age of 30) and reclaims her mate and territory, or if Laddie will have a new mate.
The Africam Black Eagles don't look too comfortable to me. But, I guess this is how they sleep when not spending the night in the nest.
A bit later and the IR cam is turned off and color returns. One of the adults has moved to the nest. I always assume it's the female, but it could be the male. Zoomer has framed the cam so the waterfall can be seen on the right.
And we got some close-ups as she tests the fit of the nest bowl...
...and arranges the nesting material. She rearranged that bit of green in front of her several times. I think it ended up in the same spot!
Pretty scene. I love the color of the cliff face. Even the white-wash is pretty...
This does not look comfortable. But she's been like this for 5 minutes and is where I will leave her...
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Berry College Eagles Day 47&49 Big Wing Span, Harrison Bay Eagles Day 3&5 Nest Sounds, Africam Black Eagle Nest Season Has Started
The Berry College Eagles are in their growth spurt! Look at this wing span -- I'm thinking it's as wide as the nest, about 5 feet!
I caught a family moment at the Harrison Bay nest. Dad dropped by for a meal. And Mom joined him in the dining area. And the babies didn't get any! Not to worry, they are getting plenty to eat. I captured a video, and it's all about sound (11:20): Dad landing near the nest, then in the nest, Dad eating, Mom eating, and there's even an audible poop shoot. There's also some beaking between the two siblings, with smaller HB8 sometimes being the aggressor. Here's some stills from the video:
Their heads look almost the same size in the above s'cap. But look at the difference in the size of their bodies. That's what a 2 day head start gets a hatchling:
All eyes are on Mom!
I had a calendar reminder pop up to check the Africam Black Eagle nest. And look at what I found the first time I brought it up this nesting season:
I lurked in the chat room for a few minutes and learned that this is Mom and that they put in a new camera this year. The picture does look nice and clear. They have always had sound. There is a nearby waterfall that can be heard. We should have two eggs by mid-April to early May. Typically for these eagles, if both eggs hatch, the older chick will commit siblicide. It can be hard to watch, so be aware of that if you choose to watch this nest. Laying two eggs is how this species ensures that they have at least one chick to raise. And siblicide is how this species ensures that they only have one chick to which they can dedicate all of their resources. It's in their nature. Very rarely do Black Eagles fledge two chicks from a nest... It's easier on viewers if only one egg hatches. So, that's what you hope for if you watch this nest. You can watch them here. I'm not sure if they are only streaming during certain times like they did in past years or if they will go 24/7 with the new cam. I just went to the site to see if I could figure out what the time difference is and when they stream. I didn't figure it out, but it is sunrise there now (and midnight on the east coast)... Here's the male perched on the cliff. I assume they panned over to him. Looking at the white-wash, I'd guess the nest or a perch is up to the right.
I caught a family moment at the Harrison Bay nest. Dad dropped by for a meal. And Mom joined him in the dining area. And the babies didn't get any! Not to worry, they are getting plenty to eat. I captured a video, and it's all about sound (11:20): Dad landing near the nest, then in the nest, Dad eating, Mom eating, and there's even an audible poop shoot. There's also some beaking between the two siblings, with smaller HB8 sometimes being the aggressor. Here's some stills from the video:
Their heads look almost the same size in the above s'cap. But look at the difference in the size of their bodies. That's what a 2 day head start gets a hatchling:
All eyes are on Mom!
I had a calendar reminder pop up to check the Africam Black Eagle nest. And look at what I found the first time I brought it up this nesting season:
I lurked in the chat room for a few minutes and learned that this is Mom and that they put in a new camera this year. The picture does look nice and clear. They have always had sound. There is a nearby waterfall that can be heard. We should have two eggs by mid-April to early May. Typically for these eagles, if both eggs hatch, the older chick will commit siblicide. It can be hard to watch, so be aware of that if you choose to watch this nest. Laying two eggs is how this species ensures that they have at least one chick to raise. And siblicide is how this species ensures that they only have one chick to which they can dedicate all of their resources. It's in their nature. Very rarely do Black Eagles fledge two chicks from a nest... It's easier on viewers if only one egg hatches. So, that's what you hope for if you watch this nest. You can watch them here. I'm not sure if they are only streaming during certain times like they did in past years or if they will go 24/7 with the new cam. I just went to the site to see if I could figure out what the time difference is and when they stream. I didn't figure it out, but it is sunrise there now (and midnight on the east coast)... Here's the male perched on the cliff. I assume they panned over to him. Looking at the white-wash, I'd guess the nest or a perch is up to the right.
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