When were our adorable fluffy hatchlings replaced by big grey dinosaurs? In their third week of life, D32 and D33 are changing rapidly. Their footpads are expanding and turning yellow, their talons have turned taupe (thanks, Robin and Sherri!), their pinfeathers are just starting to come in, and they’ve gone from fluffy white to woolly grey. When weather permits, they’ve also started to shuffle around and explore the nest, play with nest materials, and wreak havoc on our hearts as we try to mouse and brush them back to the middle of the nest! Breathe…no worry zone. Breathe! It’s all good in the cottonwood!
Before we get to the videos: Ye olde webmaster (aka Amy) fixed the prey log reports today so we could see what people were entering. If you click ‘Prey Log’ above the Decorah Eagle, Decorah Eagle North, or Fort Saint Vrain feeds, you can see what the eagles are eating in general, specific prey information when we have it, and who is feeding who! You’ll also see a link in case you want to help us log prey. Thanks so much to everyone who has used it!
And now for your Decorah Eagles Nestflix!
Decorah Eagles
4/25/19: A quick look at pinfeather sheaths on D32 wing – https://youtu.be/xFo40uBUkYU. Check 1:19 for the sheaths. D32’s flight feathers are barely starting to poke out of the long keratin sheaths that protect them as they grow! This video also includes nice looks at footpads, Mom’s wet feathers, Mom shaking the rain off her Mombrella, Mom vocalizing, and Mom hop flapping up to the Skywalk!
4/25/19: Big feed for the fatty Ds – https://youtu.be/55Mj2iA9F3Y. I call this ‘breakfish in bed’!
4/24/19: DM2 in sparrow defense mode – https://youtu.be/bp_BcdopJmY. A song sparrow showed up to steal nest materials earlier this morning, but this looks like a house sparrow to me! It leaves quickly when DM2 shows up (he almost lands on D33!). DM2 appears to be looking over the side of the nest (basement neighbors include sparrows) before he walks over and plops down in the nest bowl! Look for a poop shoot by D33 at about 3:00!
4/24/19: Ultra closeups – https://youtu.be/uh1AYyl-VOg. The video opens with a barely seen adult on the Skywalk. We pan down into the nest, where a song sparrow is filching materials for its own nest! The camera moves in for an ultra close-up of the eaglets. We see every detail of their faces, including the Skywalk reflected in their eyes and their rapidly disappearing egg tooth. We also get a nice look at the dandelion puffs of their natal down!
4/23/19: D32 & D33 Wingersizing, A Feeding & Dozing Off – https://youtu.be/KoZPZiKYers. From LifeMedia: “late morning views of Mom and D32 & D33 having a great day with sunshine and warm temperatures. The eaglets work on some wingersizing and standing tall. Mom feeds the eaglets some fish and later they dozed off to sleep for a nap.” The video opens with a nice wide view of the nest. Look for D33 wingercizing at 3:14 and 3:29 and D32 wingercizing at 3:46 before the camera operator zooms in at about 3:55. Look for panting, a feeding from Mom, and yellow eaglet clown clompers with taupe talons at 9:33 and again towards the end of the video.
4/22/19: Wet eaglets and Mombrella – https://youtu.be/Firh1dbmEcE. Very cute close-ups as D32 and D33 snuggle under Mombrella to get out of the rain! Although their woolly thermal down keeps them warm, it doesn’t entirely protect them from wet! Take a look at 1:16 to see the tip of emerging pinfeathers on D32, who is 18 days old today!
The Raptor Resource Project