Jordan Lake. First Nest. Bald eagles are aggressive from the moment they are hatched. Upper bird is the smallest of the triplets and lower bird is the biggest. Eagles start to practice aggression in the air very soon after fledging. The smallest triplet has been flying for less than 4 days! It started this encounter…
Jordan Lake. First Nest. The triplets are together ~ 1000 ft from the nest. They are waiting in the flight path of the parent who might be bringing a fish to the nest. Once the fledglings see the parent heading for the nest it is a race between the siblings as to whom gets to the nest first and gets the fish. Sometimes, as we saw in the Bard video, collisions occur at the point of parent, fledgling and fish getting to the nest. Kate learned many years ago how to avoid these ambushes. Bard, this being his first batch of fledglings, is learning the hard way.
Jordan Lake. First Nest. It is DANGEROUS being a bald eagle parent! Dad Bard tries to deliver a fish to the nest and one of his fledglings gets very aggressive! The two eagles fight over the fish…
Jordan Lake. First Nest. ALL THREE CHICKS HAVE FLEDGED! The smallest one this morning. In first 2 photos that is the controlled crash landing of the smallest chick as he got back to the nest after fledging; left wing hanging over nest brim. He was just fine – 3rd photo shows him pouting. He later took off again.
4th photo is 1st chick fledged. 5th photo, courtesy of Captain Doug, is biggest of triplets, fledged yesterday. Whew! Yay!!!!!
Jordan Lake. First Nest. First FLEDGLING of the triplets! Oh my!!! Watch the new flier tasting the winds.
Jordan Lake. A field ID mark on a fledgling osprey is all of the white points at the end of its feathers. They are quite distinct. I have also noticed some of this on fledgling bald eagles, and fledgling hawks. Not near as definitive but it is there. I keep asking the experts do they know why. So look at the neck and head ruff on the eagle and osprey and on the wings and see what you think.
doc ellen's journey 