Happy Sunday, everyone! We’ve got a small but lovely selection of videos from Decorah, including beautiful chilly close-ups, a wonderful fly-in, and a frozen fish stick for lunch! We hope you enjoy them as much as we did.
Decorah Eagles
January 8, 2023: HM responds to the neighborhood crow watch with a warning of his own.
January 8, 2023: HM continued to sound the eagle alarm, adding his voice to the crow chorus. We don't don't know what was flying through neighborhood, but a wave of sound proceeded it. Bird calls can travel at speeds exceeding 100 miles per hour, giving birds advance warning to take cover or sound their own warning!
January 8, 2022: Another look at HM and HD. I love the hoarfrost on the trees.January 8, 2023: Beautiful chilly close-ups, HM and HD – https://youtu.be/UF1_Xx39JTQ. Just what the title says – beautiful if chilly close-ups of HM (left) and HD (right). Listen at 13:48 and you’ll hear the neighborhood crow watch sounding the alarm. The eagles begin paying attention – it’s always a good idea to know what the neighborhood crow watch is sounding off about! – and HD begins vocalizing at 14:08. HM joins in and the two sound a warning duet.
It’s not easy to be a bird of prey, since the world is full of species that sound an alarm whenever they detect a potential threat. If you hear angry crows, do what the eagles do and look up! Crows sound the alarm on all sorts of things, including other crows. But if you are lucky, you might get to see a hawk, owl, or bald eagle. We’ll write more about alarm calls this week!
January 8, 2022: Eagle-tect HM tests the nest bowl. Things weren’t quite right, so he moved grasses, husks, and sticks until the soon-to-be nursery met his exacting standards!
January 8, 2023: Perching, HD tests nest fit again – https://youtu.be/pH36lA1Hxrw. The video opens with HM and HD perching side by side. At 2:08, we see HD fly into the nest! Slow down the video to watch it, because we get a great look at an eagle flying in, swinging its body around, and putting on the brakes! He settles into the nestbowl, scrapes, and starts testing the nest fit. As usual, things aren’t quite right, so HD moves grasses, husks, and sticks until the soon-to-be nursery meets his exacting standards!
Listen at 6:38 and you’ll hear an odd noise in the background – perhaps something landing. HD becomes very alert and flies out of the nest, seemingly in hot pursuit, at 7:00.
January 6, 2022: HD eats a frozen fish stick!
January 6, 2023: Frozen fish at Decorah – https://youtu.be/5jqpVPZ3yZM. HD eats a frozen fish stick! The frozen fish is no match for HD’s strong, sharp beak, although tearing chunks off is a bit of a challenge! Close-ups begin at 1:58. HD drops the well-trimmed leftovers at 15:06. The fish’s protein and fat-rich remains will make a nice winter meal for mice, crows, raccoons, or anything else that can chew, tear, or hammer them apart!
Odds and Ends
The Birds of Prey that Stand Guard over California’s Vineyards – https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/birds-of-prey-at-vineyards. A much better solution than rodenticides. Raptors are the solution! https://www.raptorsarethesolution.org/.
The Raptor Resource Project