An unknown adult male eagle dropped by to check out N2B on March 17. Mom stopped in and kicked him – quite literally! – out of the nest. I thought this whole video was fascinating, but check out the male’s interaction with Mom. As she flies in, he tries to placate her by tipping forward or bowing, and by looking at her from the side instead of challenging her with a direct gaze. However, she isn’t having any of it and quickly removes him!
We wondered how Mom and DM2 might handle interlopers. In rich territory, bald eagles will nest as close as a kilometer apart. Decorah is a rich territory and N3 is slightly over a kilometer away from N2B. But Mom and DM2 do not appear inclined to share the hatchery with another set of eagles. We’re very curious to see whether or not this changes, and how N2B’s seeming popularity might influence next year’s nesting behavior.
To see more of yesterday’s visitor, watch these videos:
The Raptor Resource Project