Bird Cams Around the World

A little wet from a morning rain today.

The kids this afternoon. I was finally able to get a pic of these two side by side to compare their sizes without one or the other being closer to the cam. D33 is on the left and still has some bits of down on top of the head. D32 on the right is smaller, despite being the older eaglet...possibly a male.

D33 on the left...the younger, larger eaglet. A female? D33 is also more vocal.


D33 on the left was trying to give its older sibling some beak kisses, but D32 on the right was not having it.

D33 grabbed a fish from Mom today, stood on top of it, and nipped at Mom whenever she tried to take it back. Yet, D33 could not figure out how to unzip it...lol. Mom eventually got the fish back and did a feed with D32 getting most of it. We will probably see mantling here real soon. Here are some pics from today.

D33 still sporting some down on top of her head.


D32. That head shape looks so male to me. I really think this is a boy.


D33 stealing a fish from Mom, but couldn't unzip it and Mom ended up doing the feed.

Beautiful morning in Decorah today. Dad brought in the 1st fish breakfast, followed by two more "breakfish" deliveries by Mom. Cute close-ups of the kids today.

Mom brings in another fish for breakfast.


The kids. D33 on the left.


Sibling love...they look like they posed for this Kodak moment. D33 on the left.

D32 branched today!

There's been an explosion of black flies here and the kids are miserable, which prompted D32 to branch today in an effort to get some relief. He climbed up the limb and got pretty close to Dad, who was perched nearby. After Mom arrived in the nest and Dad flew off, D32 clambered back down and did a nice hop-flap back into the nest. The eaglet was so vocal as he made his way down the branch...so much to tell Mom about his adventure.

D32 out of the nest and onto a tree limb. Dad is perched at the end of that branch.


D32 after getting onto the limb and looking very unhappy with the pesky black flies.


He climbed higher up the limb toward Dad.


Mom arrives in the nest and the whole family is together.


Dad leaves and D32 came back down the tree limb, chittering all the way. Here he's prepping for lift-off.


Lift-off with a nice landing into the nest.

Premature fledge for D32. The black flies are really bad here and the kids are just miserable and restless. There is just no escape, no matter what they do. D32 went up into the tree and down into the nest several times today, but at one point, he just kept going higher and higher into the tree and eventually took off and fluttered down. It was a deliberate take-off, but too soon. Hope the eaglet is OK. D33 then branched afterward and is sleeping in the nest tonight. The black flies are horrible. The eagles are covered in them. D33 kept trying to get underneath a parent for protection.

I have not seen D33, who is perched in the nest tree, eat anything today. Dad brought a fish up to her, but then flew off with it. Dad then brought another fish into the nest, but D33 did not come down for it. Dad left the fish in the nest and flew off. Mom arrived and ate some of the fish. I hope the bug bites are not weakening this eaglet.

As for D32, I suspect the parents know where he is, since a fish was delivered by Dad somewhere away from the nest tree and Mom was seen this morning perched over the location where the eaglet would have gone down yesterday.

D33 lost balance and fell out of the nest tree trying to negotiate some branches higher up in the tree. She looked like she was trying to make her way back down to the nest. There is fish in the nest. Both eaglets are now out of the nest tree.

D32 fledged at 61 days of age and D33 at 59 days of age.

With all the insects attracted to the prey at the nest, the eaglets may do better on the ground, as we saw when the Great Spirit Bluff falcon chicks took a leap of faith 2 yrs ago to escape the black flies. Both falcon chicks did well and eventually grew big enough to fly back up the bluff to the nest box.

To post pics of D33's fall when I get home from work.

From Explore.com
Seeking D32

Yesterday took an unexpected turn when eaglet D32 branched and then left the tree entirely. It's unknown whether the fledge was intentional, so Raptor Resource Project took immediate action to locate D32 on the ground.

The search continues today. We thank viewers for their concern and patience, and for observing federal regulations regarding bald eagles and eagle nests. RRP will do what they can to locate the eaglet and confirm that it is safe. For continued updates, follow our chat board or Raptor Resource Project's Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/RaptorResourceProject/

Thanks Gigi. They found D33, who has been taken to a rehab center for a full evaluation. The eaglet appears fine, but a bit underweight. Not surprising. I did not see that eaglet feed all day yesterday. They are still searching for D32.

See latest update from the Raptor Resource Project on Explore

Woo hoo....D32 was found by some local residents last night in a creek downstream from the nest. He was in poor shape - hypothermic, dehydrated, anemic, underweight, and with lots of black fly bites. He is under the care of a veterinarian that handles raptors and was able to eat today after fluid/electrolytes overnight. Hoping for the best for all these babies that were rescued, including the eaglet at Decorah North. Wow...what a season in Iowa. God bless all those people involved. They are truly angels.

Indeed! However, I wonder about all the unmonitored nests out there. I suspect there will be many losses this spring that we just don't know about...for all birds. The raptors will have a tough time. Those songbirds that have 2nd and 3rd broods a season will fare better once the weather gets hotter and the black flies dissipate.

D32 is now at SOARS, where D33 is. I hope they can put these two siblings together while they rehab.

Update from RRP

"Much of the anxiety taking place in Decorah has subsided as both D32 and D33 are now under the expert veterinary and rehab care of SOAR (Saving Our Avian Resources).

As many of you know, D32 had left the branch and it was undetermined whether this was an accidental fledge. Searching had gone on for days. D32 was located on June 7th in Trout Run Creek close to the hatchery by some local residents. The DNR Hatchery personnel were notified and were able to retrieve D32 from the creek. They immediately contacted The Raptor Resource Project whose on staff veterinarian specializing in raptor care was able to initiate care. D32 was given fluids and electrolytes over night and gained enough strength to eat a bit the next morning.

D32 has now joined D33 at SOAR and will be receiving expert care moving forward. It has truly been a week filled with stress and worry but we can now all rest a bit more easily knowing the eaglets are in good hands.

As for Mom and DM2 they have returned to the nest and must feel fortunate to have each other. We have added a video of this courageous couple to the website for a glimpse into the beauty and reality that nature can bring.

We hope you may all find peace knowing that the Decorah eagles are safe.

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