Happy Flyway Fri-yay, everyone! We’ve got videos from the Flyway, Decorah, and Decorah North for your afternoon delight!
Mississippi Flyway
November 3, 2023: Young eagle has a meal – https://youtu.be/Eg9vyLsr1HE?si=7ow39OyPVFs0kShi. Eagles jostle and eagles shove, but an intrepid young subadult appears to keep its meal despite some stiff competition from ten other eagles of all ages!
November 3, 2023: A lot of eagles were competing for one small fish, but the subadult kept it!
November 2, 2023: Sandhill Cranes and a young Bald Eagle – https://youtu.be/fmQyLuWK5Cc?si=PXMJIGnsGhAuMPho. Go to 34 seconds for an incredible crane fly-in and see how many birds you can count, hear, and identify. The Flyway is a busy place!
November 3, 2023: The Tundra Swans have arrived! Tune into the Flyway to see and hear them!
November 1, 2023: BE preening and close-ups – https://youtu.be/SQxvmw8UJdU?si=9R7lE3IPb47MvyoF. Just what the title says: seven minutes of a lovely young adult bald eagle preening.
November 2, 2023: A beautiful young adult eagle on the Flyway.
We blogged about plumage a few days ago. This is a great example of an adult eagle retaining some subadult feathers. The eagle might be 4.5-years old, 5.5 years old, or even 6.5 years old, according to the North American In-Hand Guide to Diurnal Raptors. My best guess is 5.5 years old, but we would need to have it in hand and look for molt progression to know for sure.
November 2, 2023: Sandhill Cranes on the Flyway
Wilson’s Snipe: https://youtu.be/XZB6NJ9EirQ?si=z9zani7tb38Vk1Oi. The Wilson’s Snipe is a medium-sized, pudgy shorebird with short, stocky legs, a round head, and a short tail. It uses its long, straight bill to probe for larvae, adult insects, seeds, and other plant foods buried deeply in mud and soil. Its chonky body, small head, outsized beak, and comical foraging walk look appealingly silly, but foraging is serious work! More about the Wilson’s Snipe here: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wilsons_Snipe/id.
It’s late for snipe migration since peak migratory activity occurs from late September through mid-October. These four birds left their breeding grounds just ahead of the ice and snow and stopped on the Flyway to refuel for the next leg of their trip. Who cares about tired, hungry ducks, swans, and shorebirds? We do! In the La Crosse District from October 15 through mid-November, boaters are asked to avoid entering the Lake Onalaska Voluntary Waterfowl Avoidance Area on Navigation Pool 7 near Onalaska, WI to help birds like the Wilson’s Snipe. More here: https://www.fws.gov/story/2022-10/avoidance-areas-river.
Has anyone invited you on a snipe hunt? Snipe are real, but you won’t find them in the deep woods. More on that tall tale here: https://www.blackfire.com/blog/what-snipe-hunting-find-out-here
Decorah North
November 3, 2023: Mr. North and DNF
November 3, 2023: Possum lunch at Decorah North – https://youtu.be/I9NWui7x4hA?si=4EI-gfqovQhTJpt1. Mr. North has lunch while crows call raucously and one flies down to strike him at 6:53! He ignores them – angry crows are a daily part of life for raptors – and continues to eat.
North neighbors: A European Staring in winter plumage. These small birds are controversial, but I like them regardless.
October 31, 2023: Who ordered this weather? https://youtu.be/04LenxG-Xog?si=HlZsOkfq4PXYfL3o. Bald eagles are partial migrators, which means that not every individual migrates. Mr. North and DNF are true snowbirds – well prepared for cold, snow, and ice – but Mr. North doesn’t look very excited about this year’s Halloween snowstorm!
October 31, 2023: Mr. North on a snowy Halloween day!
See how he goes from sleek to round? He might be erecting his feathers to increase the warm air trapped in the fluffy down layers beneath his sleek brown overcoat. His permanent down jacket and fine feather control help him stay warm even in the coldest weather.
Decorah Eagles
October 31, 2023: Spooky, snowy day at the bluff – https://youtu.be/t7aBMyy_whE?si=Sgavvw_Q6y7Gld94. This was the second-snowiest Halloween in my neck of the woods and the snowiest in Decorah. HM and HD perch near the bluff as snow blows all around them.
The Raptor Resource Project