BALD EAGLES NESTING ON MY PROPERTY

[Suzie]

The eagles here have maintained their behavior patterns over the last week. It is fairly quiet; I don't tend to hear much eagle calling when I am outside. At night fall, I see one eagle visit the nest and then roost alone for the night.

To get more eagle watching excitement, I have been keeping up with the Decorah, Iowa eagle cam, and they had their first hatch.

To get a round up or Decorah nest developments visit: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Raptor-Resource-Project/103786266324668

I just watched the video you attached...several times...wonderful images...Mother Nature is enthralling....

I cannot find the words to express my fascination with your incredible thread......thanks so much! Subscription is such a great attribute to BYC....I am here for the duration!

 

[NickyKnack]

I just watched the video you attached...several times...wonderful images...Mother Nature is enthralling....

I cannot find the words to express my fascination with your incredible thread......thanks so much! Subscription is such a great attribute to BYC....I am here for the duration!

X2 absolutely amazing!

 

[HarleyHyena]

That's amazing! I can't wait to see more pictures

 

[scratch'n'peck]

On most days there is just some eagle chattering between mates. However, one day I was out at the barn and there were more extended peal calls from the nest. That was going on for about 10 minutes off and on. Finally the mate came flying from afar, and I could hear both the chatter call for the mate overlapping another eagle's peal call. An eagle took off from the nest with eagle mate chasing after it. I assume the male of the pair was chasing off the third eagle to make it clear she is no longer welcome at the nest. He stayed on her tail for a few minutes as she circled around maybe spanning a half mile or so. He finally chased her off and perched at a distance to keep an eye out.

Here is a link where you can listen to the different kinds of Bald Eagle calls: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/bald_eagle/sounds

There haven't been any great photo ops lately, but here is a picture of preening the last time one of them perched really nearby.

 

[Suzie]

Do you think by any chance that the "third" eagle was an offspring from the adult pair that are now looking to hatch their new young?

 

[scratch'n'peck]

Do you think by any chance that the "third" eagle was an offspring from the adult pair that are now looking to hatch their new young?

That thought had crossed my mind. That was one reason why I kept wondering in the dim light of sunset, if she was a juvenile who had not developed her white head feathering of a sexually mature eagle of five plus years. Then I finally saw her in broad daylight with her bright white head. I don't think my neighbors have seen this pair around here for more than five years, and eagles tend to stay put in a territory of a couple square miles once they start mating. But that doesn't necessarily rule out that she is their offspring.

 

[Outpost JWB]

I love the video and all the pics. Eagles are so majestic. Thanks again for sharing.

 

[scratch'n'peck]

The eggs have probably hatched by now, but unfortunately it is hard to confirm since I can't see into the nest and I can't hear any eaglets from a distance. Vocalizations from the nest have become a bit more frequent. I happened to have my ipad with me on the way back from the barn and there was activity when passing the nest walking up my driveway.

This is a short video of eagle landing on the nest.

Then just after I passed I heard the eagles calling out the alarm because a hawk ( I think) was flying too close to the nest. The sun was shining on the screen so the audio is better than the video.

 

[Suzie]

Is it likely that a hawk can kill the eaglets..if the predator was a hawk....? I would have thought that an eagle would deter a hawk...however, I have no idea..I am just thinking of the size of a fully grown eagle in comparison to a hawk..also, if the parents leave the young alone in the nest...it is a great risk that an opportunist predator bird is likely to attack...sincerely hope that is not the case..I would so love to see the young eaglets leaving the nest to fly away to freedom and have a wonderful future...maybe to return to you and give you many years of future breeding...

 

[scratch'n'peck]

I think when the eaglets are just a few weeks old at least one parent is typically on or very near the nest. The offending bird looked like it could have been a raptor and was less than half the size of an eagle. It only swooped once, so it just may have been harassing them a bit. The eaglets grow pretty fast, so fortunately they are not thought to be at high risk for predator attack.