June 28, 2015

I have spent a lot of time in the field this weekend. I am sad to report that an adult female was found dead beneath her nest, both chicks gone. This is most likely the work of a Great Horned Owl. I also attended a few bandings of lovely, healthy four week old chicks. Very good to see. I am also still counting heads on the nests and was at one today where I was watching a big strong 3.5-4 week, old chick being fed. I was wondering why they only had one chick and then another popped up and I gasped audibly because it was so small compared to the other. We know that eggs can be laid about 3 days apart and if the middle egg did not hatch, these two could be almost six days apart in age. But the size difference seemed larger than that. I also know some cams have shown eggs laid even further apart than that, perhaps due to some kind of disruption on the nest. The little guy did get fed tho....so I will just keep watching to see what happens. This is the time of year when chicks can die, runts that don't get enough food, larger chicks getting blown out of the nest, or being predated. I have tried to count heads early so we can document the losses. I know some people just count chicks once and that is their final tally. But I try to count them early and then keep track as they approach fledging age and beyond, to see how these numbers change. I am always so darn curious about everything. The mortality rate is important too. Oddly enough, this year some nests that have historically been very successful, have failed....and some that have either failed in the past or have typically produced small broods, have three chicks on them! They like to keep us guessing! In some cases it is because there is one different adult on the nest, and the hormonal mix is different! I had an exciting morning online talking with a bunch of osprey researchers and serious enthusiasts from all over the world about various different situations and behaviors...so great to meet new people and talk shop, so to speak, about the passion we share for learning about these birds! Thanks Tiger, for hooking me up! Even tho I got a very late start on nest checking because of it! I have also run into some great people in the field who are so interested in these birds and what I am doing...love meeting them and talking about these birds, letting them look thru my scope. Now it is pouring rain...got home just in time.