January 31, 2018: Mom Decorah with rimal feather frosting
Need a break from Monday, or just want to get caught up with the eagles? We’ve got your Nestflix either way! After three days of intense cold, things warmed up and we started seeing a little more of them again! In Decorah, we have nestorations, great vocalizations, a frosty-headed DM, and Mom’s frosty ‘eyelashes’ (actually rimal feathers). At Decorah North, we get a very cool look at DNF with a squirrel, a great look at a Red-Bellied Woodpecker trying to finish off some nestovers, and an eagle heart. We hope you enjoy these videos as much as we did! Thanks to our hard-working camera operators and videomakers for finding and sharing special moments in the nests with all of us. You guys rock!
Decorah Eagles
2/3/19: February 3, 2019: https://youtu.be/7f9Gi7xPsck. What a difference a few days and 72 degrees makes! Fog is rising from the snowpack as DM2 flies into the nest (note that his head is a lot less frosty than it was two days ago). He looks around alertly before flying away at 1:16.
2/2/19: Nest visit, nestorations: https://youtu.be/ijZ0ZUTMqQs. Mom and DM2 fly into the nest. Mom has a talonful of husks. The two of them work on the nest for a little bit, moving materials and digging a little bit. Mom hops up on the Skywalk and eventually flies out while DM2 keeps working (check 2:25 for a bad hair moment). she comes back in with more material at 3:18. The camera switches at 4:02 for a different view of the nest, and again at 4:15 as nestorations continue. Check the nest at 7:07 as DM2 flies out, and compare it with the beginning of the video to see how much work was done!
2/2/19: DM2 & Mom visit the nest: https://youtu.be/o8fxNvjm9X4. An early morning visit to
N2B by Mom and DM2. Enjoy the whole video or skip to 9:59 for some very cool mutual vocalizations and what looks like nest defense (or at least an alarm) from Mom and DM2.
2/1/19: DM2 shows his frosty face: https://youtu.be/uXqO0oJ1Xl8. It looks like there’s a bit of frost on DM2’s head and tail feathers as he visits N2B and vocalizes. Listen for the neightborhood crow watch in the distance and for Mom to start vocalizing at about 20 seconds. Eagle and crow vocals continue throughout.
Decorah North Eagles
2/2/19: Red-Bellied Woodpecker raids Decorah North Eagle nest – https://youtu.be/gj6Ua9UF7ds. Focused close-ups start at 1:42 and are very cool! This is a male – see how his hood goes down and touches his beak? Females have a red nape, but they lack the crown. He devours fox squirrel nestovers, hungrily consuming scraps (and getting into a tug-o-war with the carcass starting at 2:19). His beak is excellently adapted for probing crevices and creating and enlarging holes, but tough flesh is harder for him to handle. He tries to solve the problem by using his beak as a chisel to break it into digestible pieces. When that doesn’t work, he drags a length of protein over the edge of the nest and starts pulling (5:28), which appears to be successful. He continues chiseling, pulling, and eating until flying away at the end of the video!
2/1/19: DNF arrived at the nest with fox squirrel – https://youtu.be/0P_OieYBIEg. Warning: this video might be upsetting to some. DNF wolfs (eagles?) down a Fox Squirrel at DNN. Notice her frosty ‘eyelashes’ or ice goggles? During extremely cold temperatures, warm air lost from the eyes and mouth will condense as ice on cold surfaces like her rimal feathers.
2/1/19: MrN&DNF Perch On Branch In Shape Of A Heart –https://youtu.be/ocKpcAgR-uE. Can you see the eagle heart?
The Raptor Resource Project