My favorites...

I just stopped at that favorite nest of mine...and found dear old dad perched high on a nearby cell tower, watching over things. One chick perched in a tree with a stick clutched in her talons! As I mentioned earlier , this is part of her practicing...she flew a round carrying that stick and landed without dropping it! Well done! Did not find the other chick or Mom. She may have started her migration. I am sure the other chick is around somewhere! Yesterday I visited the chick who moved herself to another nest. She is still there, alone. I saw none of the other three chicks or either adult. However there was another male perched nearby with a fish, unrelated to either her natal nest or adopted nest. Hmmmm. I wonder if part of her departure might be related to the fact that I have not seen her father since early summer. I think something happened to him and the adult female there had to care for these chicks alone. There may not have been enough food at her natal nest. It's a complicated situation, with many factors that may have led to her move. Interesting tho, and I continue to learn so much about the subtle behaviors, reactions, survival tactics that influence every bird. Still spending a lot of time in the field, gathering data, observing, learning.