Raptor Resource Project: Bald Eagle and Bird of Prey Cams

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Monthly Archives: December 2019

3,2,1: Memory Lane Countdown!

December 31, 2019 RaptorResource

3,2,1! It’s not midnight yet, but we’re wishing you all a very happy and peaceful New Year! Here’s to a wonderful year for all the birds we watch! Let’s keep working in 2020 to make the world a better place for them – and for all of us, too! Thanks to all of you for watching, caring, learning, and sharing! Our final countdown is all about eaglet rescues and releases. Bob put it very well when he said: “The highlight

End of the Year NestFlix Roundup!

December 31, 2019 RaptorResource

It’s the end of the year Nestflix round-up! Mom and DM2 and DNF and Mr. North are busy working on their nests, chasing away intruders (including squirrels), and bathing in the stream. I enjoyed all of these videos, but especially ‘chilling’ – we get some extremely cool views, ‘close call for two squirrels’ (I’m not entirely sure they got away), bathing buddies, and the north nest highlights. I hope you enjoyed these videos as much as we did! Decorah Eagles

Whatta Year! A Tale of Two Nests

December 31, 2019 RaptorResource

by Sherri Elliott I learn so much observing each season, but the one thing that was the most exciting was also a pivotal plot point in RRP research by applying the ‘fingerprint’ of iris scans to photograph eye flecks to definitely determine who was who, when they arrived, and the level of socializations displayed during their stay. We saw three different helpers, guardians or potential suitors at DE before Mom accepted DM2 as her mate and pair-bonded. And at DNN,

2019 Memory Lane Countdown, #4 (a tie): D32 goes head over heels!

December 30, 2019 RaptorResource

Some moments are touching and some are just funny! Faith reminded us of D32’s head-over-heels grab at a fish on April 7th! This early stab at eagle table manners (grab, gape, gorge!) ended well as Mom settled over D32 and straightened everything out with a Decorah Shimmy. Here’s a link to the original D32 somersault video: https://youtu.be/VE4uq7L1wuc

2019 Memory Lane Countdown, #4: DM2 Feeds For The First Time

December 30, 2019 RaptorResource

Remember wondering – and maybe worrying – whether DM2 would ever join Mom in feeding D32? We all cheered when DM2 finally took the plunge! Despite his presumed lack of experience, he carved off and fed a tiny morsel of fish to his very hungry little eaglet: perfect for D32’s age and ability! Of course we blogged about it: https://www.raptorresource.org/2019/04/06/your-questions-answered-when-will-dm2-start-feeding/ We also blogged about eagle beaks and tongues! DM2’s first foray into feeding is more impressive than it looks, since

2019 Memory Lane Countdown, #5: All The Birds Of The Flyway!

December 29, 2019 RaptorResource

Did you watch with delight as Bald Eagles flew in and American White Pelicans flew out? Put your Audubon Field Guide by your computer? Make your whole family watch the Flyway cam on the living room TV? Did your heart soar with Sandhill Cranes? Did you laugh at the antics of ducks? We did all of those. I can’t pick a single moment at the Flyway, but it never failed to inspire me. We can make a difference for good!

2019 Memory Lane Countdown, #6: Falcon Carson Came Back!

December 27, 2019 RaptorResource

It was a tough year at Great Spirit Bluff. A great horned owl killed falcon Kira on June 9 and a blackfly swarm drove falcon Carson from the nest on June 11. Our camera operators quickly found his spunky screeing self in the brush below the nest. We verified he was alright and settled down to watch as Mom Michelle and Dad Newman dropped a veritable buffet of bird parts on his head and chased away the potential predators that

Thursday Night Nestflix: Decorah, Decorah North, and The Flyway

December 26, 2019 RaptorResource

The days are growing longer and we’re looking forward to the new year! Tonight’s Nestflix include Mom and DM2 enjoying a little venison sous vide, a woodpecker visit, a lovely look at Mr. North and DNF, and extremely cool looks at eagles and coyotes on the Mississippi Flyway. Enjoy our brief mid-winter thaw and thank you so much for watching and caring! Decorah Eagles 12/24/19: DM2 and Mom taking turns eating in the stream – https://youtu.be/M-MYvd6_l_M. The stream washed in

2019 Memory Lane Countdown, #7: Can DN9 Really Eat That?

December 26, 2019 RaptorResource

Bald eagles have remarkably flexible digestive systems. They can store food in their snack-pack storage crops, grind and sort it in their mortar-and-pestle gizzards, and expel non-digestible solids like fur and scales. We’ve documented the Norths feeding on white-tailed deer, placenta, turtles, squirrels, wild turkeys, and a variety of fish…just to name a few of the things we’ve seen them bring to the nest! Still, DN9 was in a league of her own this year when it came to dinner

2019 Memory Lane Countdown, #8: The North Nest Family

December 24, 2019 RaptorResource

After watching two eaglets in the Decorah nest, it was sometimes hard to turn to the North Nest and watch lone eaglet DN9, who had no siblings to play with. DN9 will never know about the thousands of ‘aunties’ and ‘uncles’ who watched her grow up and cherished her interactions with Mom DNF and Dad Mr. North. She seemed to enjoy spending time with them and we all got another look into the social side of an eagle’s life. Food