Computer back online!
We are back and running. Please check tonight to see if the new infrared light is working correctly.
Wing, BRI
Wing, BRI
posted by Bald Eaglecam at 3:16 PM
Monday, January 29, 2007
About Me
- Name: Bald Eaglecam
- Location: Gorham, Maine, United States
Patrick Keenan - BioDiversity Research Institute, Education and Outreach Coordinator. Patrick's focus is to bring the science of wildlife and BRI's mission to people in Maine and around the world. His background as a research biologist and educator, help him to relate the many trials that wildlife face. Wing Goodale - BioDiversity Research Institute, Research Biologist, Eagle Webcam Program Director, Coastal Birds Program Director. He carries outs diverse fieldwork from conducting bird surveys to testing seabird eggs for mercury to capturing and collecting blood from bald eagles. When not in the field, Goodale prepares scientific papers, conducts GIS analysis, manages Biodiversity’s Web site, and oversees BRI’s live eagle Web camera. Chris DeSorbo - BioDiversity Research Institute, Research Biologist, Raptor Program Director. DeSorbo works on a wide variety of bird-focused research projects, emphasizing intensive research on bald eagles in numerous states. When not in the field, DeSorbo prepares scientific papers and works to expand the scope of the raptor program at BRI.
Previous Posts
- Computer Down: Cam offline
- Still More Questions July 24, 2006
- July 21, 2006: More questions
- July 14 notes: questions & answers
- July 7 notes: TWO eaglets - no rescues needed!
- July 4 Fledging!!!So apropos...our both eaglets fl...
- June 30 notes: the trials & tribulations of fledg...
- June 26 notes "Fledging any day now..."Our young e...
- June 7 Notes - banding eaglesFrom our eagle surve...
- Bald Eagle Researchers in Maine
245 Comments:
You Rock Wing!! I'll make sure I check the new infrared lighting out tonight.
Jan 29, 2007 4:45PM (EDT)
Thank you so much Wing!
Yipee! You cut that big limb as well. We worried if one of the eagles would bump their little noggins on it and Mom kept trying her best to pull of 2 small branches, so we realized that Mom didn't want it there. Great thinking Wing! More space!
I just now hear some eagle calls at 4:40pm!
Deepest respect and gratitue to Wing and his staff!
You're the best Wing! And this wonderful nest and how you have it setup with the camera angle.
In AWE - as always - Kudzu
It is working! The infrared that is... Of course the new computer also. Thank you so much. Another season to start soon.
Here is a link to my capture. :-)
Aline Paquet
From Québec City.
Jan. 29th 2007 @ 5:14 EST
I tried it about 6:15PM and it seems to be working fine!
It looks like you took a branch down in the middle of the nest...I was wondering why.
Thanks for all your hard work!
Sherri
6:30ish VA time, and the night camera view is working! Thanks for all you've done today. During the day, I had some trouble when it said "buffering". It seemed to not move, but around 4pm I had good luck. THANKS SO MUCH!
Night Cam is a wonderful addition. Now I'll get NO rest! Can't wait for the spring festivities and hope that our parents can be successful again.
The night camera works!!!!
January 30th
I just looked through the archived images indexed on the main BRI eagle cam page, and came to the conclusion it was easy to see why you cut off that limb.
THere was very little head room for the adults when feeding the young, even when they were very small.
And there are several shots which show how little "wing room" there was when an adult flew in with prey, or when the fledglings were starting to flap their wings while still in the nest.
Jan 30th
p.s. about cutting the limb....
also, I realize that as they keep adding to the nest, it grows taller or higher and the head room and wing space grows less and less.
Jan 30th
NOTE: There are also some new comments from yesterday afternoon attached to the last biologist's journal entry.
Jan 30, 2007 9:16 AM
>>p.s. about cutting the limb....
also, I realize that as they keep adding to the nest, it grows taller or higher and the head room and wing space grows less and less. <<
Jane, very good observation and thought about the size of the nest changing as they add to it. Surely a good reason to have removed the branch. I wish they would show up so they could test it out! ;o)
Sherri
01/30/07... was off yesterday, but what a great job you did, Wing. I thought of you as I was out walking some of the Kenebec River around our house looking for my eagle thats around. I am very grateful as you well know. Thanks again, WING and all at BRI. Bev
Thank you Wing and BioDiversity staff, I echo what everyone else has said. And getting everything going yesterday in the freezing temperatures - defintely above and beyond the call. But we appreciate it. However, I think my cats are going to complain when I'm back watching the eagle cam at night. :)
Maura
Burke, VA
I'm back again, I'm very embarrased, I just went to the site again and hit maximize and it enlarged it. I had tried that before and it didn't work but did this time. I'm glad that it was mentioned about elargeing it because I wouldn't have tried again otherwise.
Loon Lover on Sibley Pond
Thank You! Thank You! Looking forward to another Eagle watching season! We have a GREAT picture down here. Still want to check out the night vision tonight!
Anderson's
Lanham, MD
1:30 PM
Celebrating that an eagle visited around 2:55 p.m.! :-)
Here is the video clip of the visit and the clip continues after the eagle leaves because you can then hear the eagles for a little bit.
http://media.putfile.com/MaineEagles013007
Thank You Again Wing and BRI!!
I checked in just now (approx 2:30pm) and one eagle was in the next. Working around the nest. It didn't stay very long, approx 5 minutes. Beautiful!!
Jan 31, 2007 3:16PM (EST)
Hopefully this is not going to post twice. I clicked on Preview and then it was gone! ;o)
To anyone at BRI who may have the information:
I am sorry to post here because it isn't about the nest eaglesbut it is about the satellite eagle. Last week there were 3 updates but now it has been a week and there hasn't been another. Do you have a current location?
Does the Lewiston nest still exist and if so, has another female settled in there? or better yet, do you know whether the satellite eagle is from that nest as originally presumed in the article about her?
Thanks for any information.
Sherri
Both eagles at the nest at 4:45 today (1/31) -- doing a little housekeeping. Much easier to see them without the branch.
Maura
Burke, VA
Weds. Jan 31st
Yesterday I noticed an eagle on the nest with black markings on her head. At first I was afraid she had got into oil or paint. But she acted perfectly comfortable and Okay.
Thought I'd mention it in case anyone else sees her.
It could be a four year old with an almost white head... but the markings are sure funny! Square of black in the middle of her "brow".
She flew right in to the nest, but did seem a little nervous and left i n a hurry. Sorry I didn't record the time of day.
Two eagles on the nest around 4 or 4:30 pm this afternoon. Their movements were almost synchronized. Maybe some "billing"?
Together for several minutes.
Feb 1st, 2007
5:30 AM
There's an eagle on the nest!! :-)
I can see her/him in infra red.
Earlier I couldn't get either of the cameras to come up, so I don't know whether she's been there all night. I assume she didn't fly in there after dark, but I suppose she could have dropped down from another perch. It's a very moonlit night and clear sky, no wind.
If she sat there all night do you suppose its that "pre-incubating" behavior? Psuedo incubation?
One of the biologists wrote about it last year, in one of the first journals. Maybe I can find it and quote it here for you.
Or is she just sitting there because it's comfortable?
While talking about blog technalities:
Instead of clicking on "publish your comment" I clicked "preview" and a little screen was displayed with my post on it, asking me whether I wanted to submit it as it was, or modify it. That was very nice. I liked being able to modify! :-)
Feb. 1st
5:45 AM
That eagle isn't sleeping. She's sitting on the nest, looking out to sea, and her head moves from side to side from time to time as though she's watching the world! :-)
I have to say, it's my favorite view when I'm on Swans Island, in a cottage on the cove, looking out the view window on a moonlight night!
I wonder whether the eagle is thinking romantic thoughts about mating! Maybe her hormones are tuning up.
(Sorry, I know it isn't correct or scientific to attritute human emotions to the eagles. I don't mean any harm! I'm not a biologist and don't pretend to be. I'm just enjoying eagles the way I like to enjoy them. When I describe their behaviour, as an "observer" I am careful to be accurate and not attribute human motives or behavior to them. Right now I'm having fun!)
February 1st
6:13 AM
I have been observing both eagles on the nest. So much for my theory that eagles don't fly in the dark! I missed the male's arrival, but he definately FLEW off. And now, so did she!!
Of course, it IS a moonlit night! Visibilty is pretty good! My whole house was lit up with moonlight when i went for my first cup of coffee. And time wise, it's close to dawn now. It is actually more light out than it looks with the camera (looking out the window... I'm also in Maine)
I can't get into the biologist's journal right now to look for that piece on psuedo incubation, but will do it later.
I think they are preparing for mating. I think he wanted to mate just now, but she wasn't ready. Or something. Hopefully Nancy's video which she is making will show all of you the whole scenario.
Wing, you put the infra red camera up just in time!!
Feb 1st
6:30 AM
I have copies of the biologist's journal. Can't get to it "live" right now but you should be able to get to it later by clicking from the link on the eagle am main page. The old journals are archived, and listed (on my Mac browser) over on the right hand side below biographies of the biologists, I think.
What they said about incubation posture was in March, so I guess it is too early now for pseudo incubation bo be happening.. Although they DO speak as though they have been noticing "pre-incubation" before March 6th....
Quote from BRI last year's biologist's journal:
March 6 notes: incubation begins!
skip some words
"After home improvements were finished, the female began laying prone in the nest for short periods of time. Late last week the duration of incubation behavior increased, and we knew that egg-laying was not far away. She remained prone for 30% of the time during a 4-hour period on February 27, but periodic absences indicate that eggs had not yet arrived."
end of quote
(I don't mean to imply that we are close to egg laying. Just wanted to include enough of the quote to give you the context)
We're getting there, though!
By the way, please put the date and time on your observations from now on, the way Bucky Owen (biologist) asked us to do, last year. The time at the end of the posts is way off. Probably Greenwich mean time?
Feb. 1st
6:50 AM
Don't think my last post made it. No response from the system. So here's a brief version.
Quote from Biologist's Journal, last year.
March 6 notes: incubation begins! (bold/heading)
"... After home improvements were finished, the female began laying prone in the nest for short periods of time. Late last week the duration of incubation behavior increased, and we knew that egg-laying was not far away. She remained prone for 30% of the time during a 4-hour period on February 27, but periodic absences indicate that eggs had not yet arrived."
They speak as though they had been noticing "pre-incubation" before March 6th.... but maybe February 1st is too early.
Feb 1st
Forgive how blurry this is, but here are the pair on the nest this morning, with the infra red camera,
at six ten AM
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k307/janeeedw/twoonnest6-10AMFEb1st.jpg
Crossing my fingers that this works for you as I haven't tried posting from photo bucket to this blog before!
So on Thursday 2/1/07 at 8:00am I log on to check and there he/she is cleaning house...
There aren't words to describe how excited I am. Thanks to everyone who helped to get the camera up and running and our marvelous heroes at Bri!!! Gratitude abounds...
Feb 1, 07 10:22AM (EDT)
The pair evidently spent the night in the nest tree. I first noticed them about 5:40AM.
Mom in the nest bowl and then I could see dad on the branch over the water.
He joined her in the bowl and shortly after, left.
Without the infrared we’d not have noticed and probably figured mom came in alone just about daybreak! Wonderful!
02/01/07... Hi, everyone.. Just wanted you to know that our eagles were at our nest this morning for over and hour and for about 2 minutes tonight around 4:10. This morning they both brought their morning kill to eat, she first and then he brought his asnd she switched places with him, taking the fresh meal and letting him have her scrapes!! Cute. She left awhile later and so did he, but he kept coming back and coming back . They did fix the nest alittle and he tried to move the pine needle branches to the right. It was wonderful to see them for so long. Then this afternoon she showed up and it had snowed a thin layer was on the nest. I don't think she like it cause she stayed about 2 mins and left. Have a great night..Bev
Here is a short clip of their visit late this afternoon (Feb 1).
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb1
Jane, when you say this:
"Don't think my last post made it. No response from the system. So here's a brief version. " etc etc
Were you in the 'preview' option?
If so, that is what happened to me.....no response from the system so I figured it didn't go through. Based on seeing my message only once, I guess it did (go only once)! LOL
Isn't it great to see this pair back at the serious nest fixing in preparation for the 'big event'. For those of you that aren't aware, there is a nest in Massachusetts (live cam also) and that pair started mating a couple days ago! not that far from Maine! maybe the warm weather has triggered that function too! LOL
Sherri
Great view. The infrared is terrific. Thanks for all your hard work. Can't wait for another season to start.
Feb 02-07 6:30AM (EDT)
Here is a clip of the eagles about 5:35am yesterday. Mom may or may not have spent the night but I beleive she did as it certainly looked too dark to be flying in, unless she roosted in the nest tree or nearby.
I believe there could have been copulation. I'd like to hear what others think was happening when dad flew into the nest.
http://preview.tinyurl.com/2xqxe6
copy and paste into your browser.
2-2-07 7am (EDT)
Here was a juvenile (maybe 4 yrs old) on Jan 31 at 8:54am. Not a long visit but very interesting.
http://preview.tinyurl.com/25tujr
copy and paste the above link into your browser - enjoy.
An eagle landed Feb 2 at 6:09 a.m. and stayed for around 11 minutes.
The infrared light is great! Thank You Wing and BRI!! Here is a video clip of the visit:
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb2609am
Just an FYI so we can be on the watch here...
The Barton Cove eagles have been observed mating a couple days ago. For those who aren't familiar, they are in Massachusetts. Last year, that pair laid their first egg the same day as ours here!
Maybe their biological clock changed a bit with the warmer weather! ;o)
Sherri
Sorry, forgot to date my message above...
Feb 2,2007 7:35 AM
Sherri
CORRECTION to my link:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/2gcq3l
Copy and paste above link, into a new browser
Feb 02, 07 11:55AM
Very sorry for leaving the "l" off the end.
Feb 2,2007 12:17 PM
Kudzuarms wrote:
"I believe there could have been copulation. I'd like to hear what others think was happening when dad flew into the nest.
http://preview.tinyurl.com/2xqxe6"
Kudzu,
After watching several times, I don't think so. I think he came down and landed on the outer edge of the nest and just started fiddling around with sticks etc. - I did notice beak touching or 'billing' though! ;o)
Sherri
Feb. 2nd
12:40
Sherri:
I think it was in the usual mode when it didn't respond, and then I got it TO respond when I put it in preview! Not sure.
Maybe that's the way to go nowadays!
Feb 02, 07 - 2:55pm (EDT)
Sherri,
I posted before tweaked my monitor for a better/different view and watched it a few times and I certainly agree with you.
When the male was behind the female I could clearly see his tail never moved from left to the right.
We're getting close thought!
Greetings all!
These recordings you have done at night are amazing. What you are observing is the first records I am aware of of eagles attending to a new site at night.
Truly amazing. Keep up all your great observations! Deleted a couple of posts by mistake, please repost if you don't see what you wrote.
Have a great weekend and keep letting me know what you are seeing. I depend upon your observations.
Wing, BRI
This was both of them on January 30th the first day we saw them together after the camera was down.
He makes a beautiful landing in the beginning of the clip.
http://media.putfile.com/me0130
Willpatt has two great videos from yesterday. The first one starts at 5:30 a.m. with her in the nest and shows him landing.
http://media.putfile.com/Maine-Feb-1-0530-EST
http://media.putfile.com/Maine-Thur-Feb-1-07
Feb 2, 2007
6 PM
Wing, it's great that you think our observations are useful and even could be firsts! :-)
With that in mind, I have a word of caution. We do see them active, even flying, in the pre dawn hours!! And in the late afternoon, early evening.
But before we say it's "night", we have to figure out how what the infra red camera shows us compares to the amount of light that is actually "out there". And how can we record those differences in our observations?
I'm one of the early risers and here's what I have observed so far:
Around five thirty it still looks like "night" on the live stream but when I look out my window here in Winslow ... it is much lighter. By six thirty for all intents and purposes it was daylight here but the eagle cam I think still showed a grey world. Brighter than earlier, but still grey.
Our videos may look as though it's "night" but I think really it's more of a pre-dawn condition in the morning when they get stirring around. Hard to tell quite yet because it was such a full moon the last few days.
I don't understand how cameras work well enough to be able to speak about this technically, but I'm hoping someone else on the blog might.
Making a note of this, and understanding it, could to be important if we're going to be setting "firsts" here. Once the time has passed by, noone will know there was a difference. Looking at the official time of sunrise doesn't help, because sunrise was supposed to be at six fifty six this morning, but it was day time at six thirty. As we all know, it gets light before sun rise.
It looked like the female landed and then the male landed right after her around 5 p.m. Feb 2. This is their entire six minute visit.
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb2pm
Or you can open it directly in WMP with this link.
http://judykb.org/mefeb2.asf
He visited three times on Feb 2 within 20 minutes starting around 8:20 a.m.
Here are the first 2 times combined, he lands from a slightly different direction than usual and at the end of the clip when he leaves the nest you have a nice view of him flying below the nest.
http://judykb.org/mefeb2ab.asf
Here is the third time around 8:40 a.m.
http://judykb.org/mefeb2830.asf
or putfile: http://media.putfile.com/mefeb2830
An animation of him with a beakful of nest material. :-)
http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n88/klbak/mefeb2m.gif
Or the tiny url link:
http://tinyurl.com/2asdl6
Feb. 3rd
4 AM
Noone on the nest right now, but that's no surprise! Wait til you see what it looks like with snow falling in the dark! :-) I wish I had a video camera, but someone else will catch this, I'm sure.
About whether the warm weather will affect the eagles mating date and incubation, etc.
It's true we had a very warm Fall and a very late Winter, but the last couple weeks (last full week of Jan, start of Feb) have either been colder than the norm or about normal, and we are due for really windy arctic weather again next week.
I hope they DON'T lay an egg for a while!! :-)
EARLY AM NEST OBSERVATIONS
Feb. 3, 2007
3:30 AM... dark outside my window and dark on eagle cam -- Windy... empty nest.
4:56 AM I hear the first chattering... one doing the "cheep cheep cheep" quietly, one very quiet almost as if he was clacking his beak or murmering from the throat -- this must be the "murmering" my neighbours at alternate nest C have talked about.
I think that tonight/this morning they have been/are in the nest tree or in a tree very close by all night.
It's almost as though they are saying good morning to one another now.
I think pre-dawn light changes begin about five AM nowadays, and the eagles may wake up and begin to anticipate going for food as the light changes!
An unscientific hypothesis but we shouldn't discard any ideas, right now, if we are observing this for the first time.
We can test this hypothesis and all the others later in the Spring as the light comes earlier... do they continue to go out at first light for food?
5:15 one called out briefly as I was checking the light
6:00 AM one called out briefly when I checked the live stream
6:13 more quiet calling out, one quite cheep cheep cheep cheep, the other almost "cooing"...
6:17 quantum leap outdoors. MUCH more light
And almost immediately a lot more calling on the eagle's part when I checked the eagle cam
6:27 AM one flew or dropped down into the nest. I think it was Mom. I didn't see her come as I was writing the light observations post for the blog!!
The other one is calling out quietly. Now she has left the nest. Both are calling out.
I'm going to end these eagle observations as I know others are making photos and videos by now. I will continue the light observations a while longer.
(accompanying light observations to be posted next)
Feb. 3rd 2007
WING: if you could give us better instructions or think this is useless, please speak up!! Also tell us if you think it is worth while, how often we should do it, and whether we need to do it at both dawn and dusk.
Another interesting piece of information would be how good are eagle's eyes for night vision? Do you know?
MORNING LIGHT OBSERVATIONS:
Sat, Feb, 3rd, 2007
Winslow, Maine
Jane's observations
4:56 A.M. Outside the window: it is still dark, I cannot see the trees across the river although I can see a line between the tree tops and the sky
5:15 stood outside on front steps; I can see very well outside, can see trees across the river, see the pine tree next to the house perfectly clearly. The view outside is already a little "lighter" than the view on the eagle cam.
6:00 AM it is snowing, heavy snow. I can see the trees across the river clearly and every branch on the little trees on this side of the river. It is darker on the eagle cam.
6:17 quantum leap outdoors. MUCH more light. And almost immediately a lot more calling on the eagle's part when I checked the eagle cam
6:30 The eagle cam just made one of it's instant "switches" that I notice in the morning. It got a lighter degree of greyness to it, but it is still more light outdoors. One eagle flew in or dropped down to the nest for a couple minutes, I still hear chattering very near by.
6:37 It is plenty light enough, even as shown on the eagle cam, for them to go out looking for breakfast. Outside my window it is much lighter, though.
The Maine Geographic Calendar says sunrise is at 6:56 AM this morning.
6:56 Observation= it is still "grey" on the eagle cam: grey sky, snow on nest. Light enough to see perfectly (except out over the water in the distance) No sign of any pink sunrise at all.
Out my window= Much more light than on the eagle cam although there are thick blue grey clouds hanging low over the sky. There's a pinkish area of glowing light sky over toward Waterville to my South West... that area is expanding rapidly in the sky. Perfect day light out there now.
The eagle cam switched over to the daytime camera at: 7:08 AM exactly. Blue skies in the background, or blue water! Here, too, it's absolutely gorgeous outside with lots of snow on the trees and the limbs are hanging down... BEAUTIFUL. Pink skies, pink clouds!
***************************************
I'm not going to do this daily,or post it again. It's Just a "bench mark" today.
If anyone who lives on Mount Desert can compare what they see outside with what they see on the camera early in the AM or at dusk/twilight, please do!
Interesting observations regarding night vs. pre dawn.
Referencing Will's clip above that he got at 5:30 AM.... I was actually watching at the same time that he was recording and it was absolutely pitch dark here. I couldn't see the end of my deck out my slider door (I am in New England as well). As the time progressed in the video clip, my outside reference here was about the same.....maybe a tad bit lighter there due to 'sunrise' being about 10 min ahead of me.
Sherri
Feb 03, 07 8:20am (EDT)
Here's a visit to the snowy nest about 6:26am. She only stayed a short while to check the nest bowl out.
Copy and past into your browser:
http://preview.tinyurl.com/2j26e5
Wing, these views of the nest are wonderful. It's certain biologists will know much more about eagles, due to your decision to install the infrared.
Jane, I agree about the pre-dawn and how it appears darker than it actually is. It's good to know you think outside of the box! Thank you for keeping us on our toes. :-)
Feb 3,2007 8:31AM EST
Thanks for the great video clips, Judy. You and Will always do such a nice job with them!
Feb. 3rd
8:30 AM
One more thought about the light:
Could this be what's happening?
At various times during the dawn, the infra red camera makes quantum leaps (apterture changes?) and things suddenly become much lighter shades of grey.
But the camera can't get the more GRADUAL change that happens in "real life"? Could that be it?
And the quantum leaps come only AFTER the light outdoors has increased quite a bit, gotten ahead of the camera, so to speak.
Does this make sense?
Feb 3rd
At the risk of boring everybody to TEARS on this light issue:
I just realized that when we make videos we put the time the video started, but we are making composite videos, and don't note at the beginning of a new sequence what time it was that it happened. So it may APPEAR that the eagles are flying around at five AM (the start time of the video) when actually it is six thirty during that sequence.
If Wing is really interested in our observations from the infra red camera, we will need to note on our videos the time that each new sequence began.
This movie combines several clips from Feb 3. The first clip has the eagle talk around 4:56 a.m. that Jane mentioned. There is more eagle talk around 6:18 a.m. and then the eagle lands around 6:27 a.m. Right before the eagle lands in the upper right hand corner you see what briefly looks like another eagle.
Here are the links for viewing in Youtube or copy and paste the second link in your browser and it will then open the movie in Windows Media Player.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiFgW-bTSZE
http://judykb.org/mefeb3snowc.wmv
Saturday, Feb. 3rd. 12:20 PM (EDT)
No sooner did I log on when an adult landed on the nest and checked things out. It stayed only a few minutes, and I could clearly hear the shriek call of another eagle over head.
I haven't been online in over a week, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the new camera up and running. The view was like a post-card with snow on the trees and nest, and the water was running in the background. It looks like the perfect place for a Bald Eagle to make a living.
I live on a pond near Cape Cod, and about a month ago was thrilled to see an adult Bald Eagle land on a tall pine tree right off my deck! It appeared to be checking out a group of ducks floating around the pond under his perch. I tried to slowly open the deck door so I could take some pictures but it spooked him and he took off to the other side of the pond. I called Mass. audobon to report the sighting and they recorded it.
I've been lucky to see all kinds of raptors on the pond. Two weeks ago a Peregrine Falcon landed on a tree right out front and stayed there for close to 45 minutes. He/she was just chilling out and I got tons of closeup pictures. It left after it's mate landed next to him and they flew off together.
We have Red Tail hawks, and they are always landing close by to check things out. I get a kick out of observing them up close too.
However, nothing was as exciting as the close up experience with the eagle. It only lasted a minute or two, but the memory will live on forever.
Congrats to all who donated and to those who keep the web site running. I'm looking forward to get to watch them at night.
If there are two or more babies this spring, are there any plans to tag or mark them for identification? Maybe a corporate sponsor will make a donation to name them.
Rich on the Cape.
Both eagles are on the nest right now! They were doing some housekeeping a few minutes ago, but both are now sitting with their backs to us and are watching the water, or possibly the noisy truck below.
It's 1:15 EST on February 3.
This is my second visit to the web cam this year, and I am so happy to find the eagles are back ... you guys rock!!!
Gillian in Ottawa, Canada
Feb 03, 07 - 1:35pm (EST)
Eagles were trying to rebuild the nest. Mom waited in the nest as Dad went to the hardware store for more lumber, came back to build the wall up and using his handy dandy saw (beak) to break the awkward pieces up.
Then in come the noisiest lobster boats on record. This one needs a muffler. The eagles stopped working and finally one by one they left.
The couple will be back. It must have reminded them of lunch time. :-)
Feb 3rd 2007
4:03 PM
Thanks Judy for creating an example of a comoposite video with notes of the date and time on the different sections.
I think it helps, for research purposes. And it's important, if we are seeing and documenting things noone has seen before.
Is it something you can easily do?
I wonder whether BRI could arrange to have the time show in the corner of the picture on the eagle cam display, like some of the other eagle cams do.
By the way, Wing, it is WONDERFUL to have the blog updated so often! :-)
Feb 4, 2007 9:13 AM (EST)
Jane, I have an interesting note on the time/light question.
As I had posted, the morning times here are about the same as the cam. HOWEVER, yesterday at 4:45 PM, the cam was very dark and it was still like dusk here (Connecticut). My sunset is about 1/2 hr difference whereas my sunrise is about 10-15 min.
Kudzu, I think what you heard the other day (i.e. lobster boat) might actually have been a snow plow. LOL
Rich, sounds like the pond you live on is absolutely wonderful! Hope the eagle returns!
Judy, great videos! thanks!
Sherri
Here's a video of an almost three minute visit at 7:35 a.m. on Feb 4th.
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb4735
Feb 04, 07 - 12:45PM (EST)
I looked at NYC Op-Ed that Wing mentioned would be in the newspaper for Jan 28, as well as today's paper but couldn't locate any current article that included Dr. David Evers.
Have any folks here located it?
Thank you.
Feb 04, 07 12:55PM (EST)
Today I happened across a video that has the time running in the corner along with the date. I believe it's a feature the lady has on her video software, or an add-in.
This makes me reflect back on Jane's mention of something similar on the live streaming, or if it could be added in. No need to rely on our notes, it would be evident on the clock and always show the time zone the eagle nest is in.
Now that we're needing exact evidence of what happens and when, for biology sake, this becomes more significant.
Feb 04, 07 5:20PM (EST)
Thanks Sherri - I've never heard a snow plow in Maine, just OH, MD and VT.
I was looking at the amount of snow on the nest and the sun shining at 1:25pm yesterday and thought - "Hmm, something beneath the eagles, have caught their attention".
Thanks so much for clearing this noise up for me Sherri! Next time I'll know and recognize it.
Here's a short version of the loud raucous the birds endured from about 1:04pm-1:29pm:
http://tinyurl.com/2ge3jq
A visit from 4:11 to 4:15 p.m.on Feb 4th.
http://judykb.org/mefeb4411pm.asf
Feb 5th
6:12 AM
I can't believe my good fortune. The still image on the BRI eagle cam main page got "stuck" when it tired to change over from one aperture (or whatever) to another, in one of what I call it's "quantum leaps".
I quickly grabbed a picture of it. It's blurry but it shows the difference between one second and the next, with the infra red camera. Of course in real life, it's a much more gradual process than this.
In another ten or twelve minutes, the eagle cam was even more light, and more like "real life". I guess the camera can only make "jumps" not do it gradually.
Wing, I don't mean to be super critical here, just trying to help us all learn how the system "works" and what we're seeing on it.
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k307/janeeedw/Feb5thatsixtwelve.jpg
Feb. 5th
OOPS. I think I posted the wrong format to get to my half black/half grey image.
Try pasting this, if I pasted one that was underlined before. Sorry. It worked when I tested it in my e-mail and on my notepad, but not when I pasted it in the browser! :-)
http://i91.photobucket.com/albums/k307/janeeedw/Feb5thatsixtwelve.jpg
02/05/07... I like the view Wing, thanks for brining it closer. I am enjoying all the ovbservations as well.. I do my daytime observations and early evening and that all I can do. I refer to them very personally as well and we who watch last year know all the ends and outs of their personalities. I think they way they "bill" each other and you can tell he care for her by their attitute toward each other. I saw that again the a.m. at nine when she flew in first and he came right behind her. She tired the nest and Jane I noticed there was a white spot on the back of him. Maybe they got into something. IAnyway they laid there eggs last year on March 6th so a little early for the copulation yet. It fun to read what everyone finds for information and I love watching our birds!!! Thanks for the info...... Bev Kudzarms nice to hear from you. Keep in touch.
Greetings all!
Looks like there will be an eaglecam story in the Portland Press Herald this coming Sunday. The NY Times OP Ed is still in the works.
I just deleted a couple of post without meaning too. If you don't see your post please resend it.
Wing, BRI
Feb 04, 07 4:30pm (EST)
Here is a short video of a very small and valuable software we need whenever we video the eagles.
I happened upon a video made by Paula that had a clock on it. I emailed her and asked which software she was using to put this clock on her videos. She was very supportive and kind and replied with two clock links, and I chose this one:
http://www.screenvirtuoso.com/index.html
I made a video to show you how great it will look and even paused the filming so you would see the results. I stopped the video at 02:04:15 and you’ll notice the next filming is 02:04:46. Here’s my video:
http://tinyurl.com/2mcylm
All praise goes to Paula, and exclaim her to be the poster gal for February.
Thank you Paula!!!
Feb 04, 07 4:45PM (EST)
Wrong link for the clock, that's my video software, as is what Paula uses, I believe.
Here is the link to the clock:
http://www.dualitysoft.com/dsclock/index.html
Feb 5, 2007 6:20 PM
"Bald Eaglecam said...
Greetings all!
Looks like there will be an eaglecam story in the Portland Press Herald this coming Sunday."
Hey Wing.....
GREAT news! and you wondered whether the media would still have interest? When the reporter got back to me, she said that they couldn't do stories as efforts to help organizations raise money. I told her I could understand that and suggested that they could do a story then on all the wonderful work you all do there! She said she would pass it on to her editor. Guess it worked! ;o) Terrific!
Sherri
Kudsuarms posted this back on Feb 1 or 2, asking if the eagles copulated. No, they did not. When they do, you will definitely know it! Here is a couple of videos showing eagles copulating. One is from the NCTC eagles in Shepherstown, the other is the Santa Cruz eagles. Copy and paste into your browser.
Santa Cruz:
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=s0ZoVu_770Y
NCTC:
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=jzAcOXX_cmA
Kudsuarms posting:
Here is a clip of the eagles about 5:35am yesterday. Mom may or may not have spent the night but I beleive she did as it certainly looked too dark to be flying in, unless she roosted in the nest tree or nearby.
I believe there could have been copulation. I'd like to hear what others think was happening when dad flew into the nest.
http://preview.tinyurl.com/2xqxe6
I saw one adult at the nest at 9:50 am today. Thanks for all your work -- I am anxious for the upcoming season. The new camera and night vision are very exciting.
A combined clip with part of their visit that started around 8:55 a.m. and lasted about 18 minutes on February 5th.
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb5855
Feb 6 2007
5:49 AM
Lots of chatter at six oh two AM as I write this. It is starting to look a lot more "light" there.
Will (from "Judy's forum") has been helping me to learn about this time/light issue. He says there is something called "official twilight", and it applies both to morning and afternoon. It occurs at 31 minutes before sunrise, and 31 minutes before sunset, and is the name for that time when there is enough natural light outdoors to read a newspaper without artificial light.
He thinks the eagle cam is operating on that.
Going by the Maine Geographic calendar (and subtracting because it's based on Portland) sunrise at Bar Harbor would be at 6:21 AM today. That would make "official twilight" in the morning at 6:AM on the nose. And sure enough, the infra red camera has made it's morning "quantum leap" while I type this at 6:02! :-)
I'm going to check this afternoon when sunset in Bar Harbor should be at 4:35 and "official twilight" at 4:01. I want to see if the view in the camera then is about the same as this morning.
Sherri: there's 22 minutes difference between Portland and Bar Harbor, with both sunrise and sunset happening earlier in Bar Harbor. Will figured out for me that there's only six minutes difference between Winslow and Bar Harbor. So there shouldn't be much difference between what I see and what the eagles see, even though there seems to be a good deal of difference between what I see and what the camera records.
Man, this is complicated for an old lady!! But I love learning new stuff. Wing, you have certainly expanded my brain and saved me from senile dementia for a week or more! :-)
Feb 6th
6:23 AM
Excuse me, that's called "civil twilight", not "official twilight". :-)
Feb. 5th
I'm going to quote Will directly, which he said was okay. I think I got mixed up because in the afternoon "civil twilight" looks to be 31 minutes AFTER sunset, and I think I said before. Wish I could actually SEE what I said before but I didn't make a copy. :-( Live and Learn. I might learn before I die!
*********** quoting WIll and his source ******
"Civil Twilight is 31 min ahead of sunrise and they call that, when you can read a newspaper. The nest seems to correspond pretty close to Civil Twilight."
Sun and Moon Data for One Day
The following information is provided for Bar Harbor, Hancock County, Maine (longitude W68.2, latitude N44.4):
Monday
5 February 2007 Eastern Standard Time
SUN
Begin civil twilight 6:16 a.m.
Sunrise 6:47 a.m.
Sun transit 11:47 a.m.
Sunset 4:47 p.m.
End civil twilight 5:18 p.m.
Tues Feb 6th
I wrote out a big long post to Bev about the white spot, Tesoro eagles, Barton Cove eagles and their white spots. Went to preview it, tried to make a change, and it disappeared. I don't recommend using preivew this morning. Sigh. :-(
The short version is: could it have been a chunk of melting snow that fell on him from the branches above?
Was the snow from the recent storm still melting at the time you saw it?
We'll look for the white spot, in the future.
Lots of chatter... lots and lots of it... 6:45 AM Noone on the nest, though. Stopped in a couple minutes.
Feb 06-2007 11:30AM (EDT)
I did a short video after I adjusted the clock to a different color and font, also decreased it's size.
http://tinyurl.com/2tbd5c
I may have to buy this little piece of software. It's certainly going to help documentation of the eagles.
Feb 6th
11:30 AM
Rich, my original post thanking you for telling us about your eagle visit, and all the other raptors around your place, got accidentally deleted. Sorry to be late in mentioning it. Sounds like you're in a place that other raptors like. Maybe the eagle was looking for a home site! :-) There would have to be plenty of fish nearby, though. To raise young, they need the food supply to be plentiful in summer, and near the nest site.
Do you get any ospreys? Are there a lot of eagles in general, on the Cape?
Paula: How did you manage to post that avator? Do you have time to tell us the link to get to the directions for doing that?
Kudzu: I love the clock in your video. Thanks for making the effort and following through on that idea.
2/6/07 - Burke, VA
Both eagles on the nest at 3:35. Mom in bowl and Dad beside her. He left shortly after I tuned in.
Maura
Tuesday Feb. 6th
3:45 PM
Bev:
To fill you in a llittle more on the message that I "lost", about the white spot.
We have noticed a white spot on one of the Florida eagles we are watching, and wondered whether it was feathers moulting? But the spot is on her side. Do they have white feathers or white "down" underneath the black ones on their sides and backs? The spot seems to be staying visible on this one for a long time.
I have also wondered if the male accidently pulled some feathers on the female when mating, as this pair had mated and was incubating at the time.
Feb. 6th, 2007 (Tues)
3:34 PM
SOME short bits of "psuedo-incubation"
3:34 looked in, they were both in the nest, the female was lying down in he nest bowl, and the male seemed to be arranging little branches around her.She either "pecked" him or did a little "billing" -- it didn't look too friendly, though!
3:35 ... He took off. She continues to peck at the sticks and twigs in front of her as though she has to get everything JUST right. I think she's definately in "psuedo incubation posture. She was already in the nest bowl when i first looked in, so I can't time the length of it but maybe someone is getting it for a video.
In only a minute or two he came back in... I'm guessing with material but I wasn't quick enough to see. He disturbed her and sort of nudged or even "pushed" her to get out of the nest bowl ... now it looks as though HE's smoothing it down, snuggled in the bowl briefly. IT looked like a little squabble and now there's a stand off. The film "jumped" a couple times... not smooth action. They both stood on the edge of the nest.
3:39 he took off ... she's sort of standing in the nest bowl moving sticks around again. 3:45 he comes back with more nesting material and they both get to work arranging it in the nest for a few seconds. Now they're standing one on the nest, one on "the branch in the foreground". It's windy, and their feathers are blowing. Quite a scene of domestinc contentment. Satisfied with their world! :-)
(I hear chickadees there, the first time I have heard them at the nest!)
Now one eagle is gone, one is still perched on the branch. She's staring right at the camera. Someone else sees her and is adjusting the camera in closer!! Oops. In the next still shot she has jumped off the branch and is down pecking at the nest again! AHA... She's in incubation posture again.
I've gotta sign off now but I'm sure someone else is timing this.
This is the entire visit on Feb 6th around 6:40 a.m. and includes almost a minute of eagle talk after the eagle left the nest.
http://judykb.org/mefeb6640.asf
All these videos are from February 6. What a pleasure it was to see the eagles visiting for so long today!
This is a 4 minute video of a 11.5 minute visit around 2 p.m.
http://judykb.org/mefeb62all.asf
The eagles visited from around 3:30 p.m. to 4:55 p.m. I made two videos of that visit the first one is 18 minutes long and the second one is 5 minutes long and has a cute sequence of the eagle bringing in a really large branch and moving it around the nest.
18 minute video
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb6p1
5 minute video
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb62
Feb. 7th, 2007
5:52 AM E.S.T.
So far I'm finding that eagles don't have especially good night vision. If anyone else has information on that, please share. This site hasn't been updated in a long while and I need to do some more research. However, the eagle's eyes haven't changed! :-)
http://members.aol.com/egladvocat/ornith.html
" An eagle's retina contains rods for faint light perception and cones for color perception just like a human's. However, the eagle retina has many more cones than rods. When there is ample light an eagle can distinguish well hidden prey from it surroundings. In low light conditions, the ability to differentiate color diminishes and the eagle sees objects in varying shades of gray. The reduced number of rods limits the eagle's night vision and explains why the eagle normally hunts after first light or during the day."
Possibly "first light" as mentioned here is equivalent to "civil twilight" in the morning.
Feb. 7, 2007
6:11 AM
Yesterday I took screen shots at morning and evening civil twilight. What we see IS much darker at evening civil twilight. I think in "real life" it should be just as light as morning civil twilight.
So the eagles may appear to be quite active "after dark" at the end of the day, when in fact it isn't really that dark at the nest. The morning display is closer to reality, but behind it a bit, I think.
You can test this out for yourself by finding when Civil Twilight is in Mt. Desert. Check the camera view at those times, and -- unless Wing adjusts it in the meantime -- you'll see that evening Civil Twilight shows up as much darker than morning Civil Twilight.
To get the times of civil twilight at any location, check this site which Will gave me.
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/RS_OneDay.html
Sun and Moon Data for One Day
The following information is provided for Mount Desert, Hancock County, Maine (longitude W68.3, latitude N44.3):
Wednesday
7 February 2007 Eastern Standard Time
SUN
Begin civil twilight 6:14 a.m.
Sunrise 6:45 a.m.
Sun transit 11:47 a.m.
Sunset 4:51 p.m.
End civil twilight 5:21 p.m.
Are we here to talk about clocks or eagles?
02/07/07.. Good Morning everyone!! Its -7 degrees below here in Augusta, Me. this a.m. Nippy!! I had to tell you all that I watched our family for an hour or so yesterday afternoon about 3:21 until 4:53. They came and went a few times and then spent an enormous amount of time, her I believe sitting in the nest bowl roosting! Also just hangout in general at the nest. In the nest bowl fixin, puttering around to our left with the sticks and then perched on the front branch, this was him and then plop down she went in the nest bowl and there she stayed for at least a half hour, it was exciting to see. Have a great day and know that I am watching all day. Bev
Feb. 6th
11:48 AM
Right ... we're here to talk about eagles. But last year Bucky Owen, the senior biologist, asked us to always put down the date and time of our observations. So we're trying to figure out how best to do that on the videos and screen captures.
All the ranting about "civil twilight" is to help us keep from jumping to erroneous conclusions about what the eagles do and don't do "in the dark" because maybe it ISN'T dark where the eagles are, depending on the camera settings.
I don't write much but it sure is nice to talk and read about everything related to the eagles such as their nest, the location, the visability and even the sunrise's and sunset's...Thank you everyone for making me more knowledgeble about our eagles. It makes it more interesting to watch them when you know about them and their surroundings.
It seems to me that if BRI activated the date/time stamp feature on the cam, it would solve the problem. I would presume that, as modern as the cam is, it would have the feature.
Personally, I would rather see it built into the cam video itself rather than an add on which all seem to be in colors and quite a bit larger than most of the cam built-ins. In my opinion, they detract terribly from actually watching the eagles and nature.
Thank you to Kudzu and others for the research on these things.....mine is just an observers opinion. Most people that are making the videos make note of the time when posting them and if it were something extremely important that the biologist absolutely had to know, I doubt he would need it down to the exact minute.
And yes, Anonymous, we ARE here to talk about eagles.......however, once in a while related issues do come up; that's life.
WING.....do you have a date/time feature on the cam????? and if you do, is there a reason why you don't want it or have it turned on?
Sherri
Feb 7, 2007 5:16 PM
Jane wrote:
"We have noticed a white spot on one of the Florida eagles we are watching, and wondered whether it was feathers moulting? But the spot is on her side. Do they have white feathers or white "down" underneath the black ones on their sides and backs? The spot seems to be staying visible on this one for a long time.
I have also wondered if the male accidently pulled some feathers on the female when mating, as this pair had mated and was incubating at the time."
I did a very long study on this particular eagle and the white feather. It might be good to note that the white feather spot didn't just appear there recently. It has been there since November when we first started watching that nest.
Looks like Mom is doing more frequent setting in the nest....won't be long now! ;o)
Sherri
Weds Feb. 7th
5:18 PM
Wing, the screen looked a lot more like real life tonight! And it seemed to change very gradually, too.
Thanks, if you're making adjustments!
Jane,
The easiest way to get an avatar is as follows.
First, you have to sign up for a google account on blogger. That will give you your posting name that you pick in blue here on the blog. Also, it is good for any blogger blog. Once you do that, you have an account that you can modify with your login name, password, posting name and personal information (if you desire). In this section, there is a place to post a url for a picture.
Get the picture you want as your avatar...it can't be too big or it won't show on here. Upload that picture to photobucket (seems to me to be the easiest). Copy the url from the photobucket picture into the place on blogger (w/ your personal info) that says "post your picture url here". Log out and back in, and your picture should be there. If you need any more specific help, you can email me at pccompton@yahoo.com.
Also, I have been taking videos of the eagles. I have some of them posted on my blog at
eagletmomsters.blogspot.com
or just click on my name, scroll down to the bottom and click on my blog. I may have others posted at youtube that are not on my blog.
Also, I have videos of the Santa Cruz eagles and the Eagles at NCTC.
This nest has to be one of the prettiest on the internet!
Wow, real busy at the nest this morning! One eagle straightening out the nest and one standing guard..6:30am 2/8/07
Here are three clips of an eagle visiting the nest on February 7th. Each clip is the entire visit.
1. http://judykb.org/mefeb7aa.asf Around 1:12 p.m. to 1:21 p.m.
2. http://judykb.org/mefeb7b.asf Around 1:22 p.m. to 1:27 p.m.
3. http://judykb.org/mefeb7c.asf Around 5:05 p.m. to 5:10 p.m.
Good morning all.
In regards to the question about a time date stamp. I do not believe that the program can put one in, but even if it could, I would be reluctant to insert into the image a time log because it would distract from the activity on the nest, especially when there are chicks.
Once again it looks like I deleted a couple of post without meaning to. Please repost if you don't see your comment.
A quick note regarding the location of the nest. To protect the eagles we are not revealing where the nest is and I request that viewers do not try to find out where it is. So please let’s focus on what we can learn from the birds.
Thank you,
Wing, BRI
Thank you Wing, I was thinking the same thing when I was reading all the location info. It is great for us to know because we love these birds, but just curious people looking may cause problems for "OUR" eagles.
I do like the new night viewing, and glad so many of you get to "SEE" them, I'm always too late or too early...
Thanks to all of you,
Glenda
Va
Feb 8, 2007 11:12 AM
Wing wrote:
"In regards to the question about a time date stamp. I do not believe that the program can put one in, but even if it could, I would be reluctant to insert into the image a time log because it would distract from the activity on the nest, especially when there are chicks."
Wing,
Thank you for the reply to my question. I happen to agree with you 100% but presented the question because there were many options being spoken about. However, I presumed that the cam would have one that might be less noticeable. On the other hand I figured if you wanted it on there, it would have already been done so thought I'd ask if there were a reason you hadn't.
Looking forward to the Portland Press Herald on Sunday. Here is the URL to the main page so you can check it yourself instead of having to wait for someone to post the exact article:
http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/home.html
Sherri
By some very lucky chance, I happened to look in on the nest at 12:15 p.m. Central time today and in flew one of the eagles with a stick. It stayed only three minutes, then flew off. I could hear some greeting-type calls in the vicinity after that, as if the other bird were there too, but it didn't appear. It's the first I've seen any of them in a very long time.
2/8/07, Burke, VA
One eagle on the nest about 3pm fixing up the nest. When I checked about about 3:30 she/he was gone. Sorry I still can't tell the difference.
Maura
Thanks Judy!! For the links to see clips of the Eagles visiting the nest again. They have been busy. It's so GREAT to see them again!!
Guess one of my comments was deleted! (by Wing) All I had said was that I offer a big THANKS to all who post video clip sites. It makes it nice to see some of the things you miss when you can't be on-line. I really enjoy them all! Especially when I can't catch the "real-time" eagles.
Highlights from their 33 minute visit between 6:10 a.m. and 6:43 a.m. February 8th.
Part I - 7.33 minutes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FsFIXU9Axk
or tinyurl
http://tinyurl.com/2suf3q
Part II - 8.5 minutes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dP9C0oYKtpY
or tinyurl
http://tinyurl.com/39vlrd
Sorry I had to redo Part II of the Feb 8th video. Here is the new link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEhfVsE9vNA
or tinyurl:
http://tinyurl.com/yu9jnm
2/9 6:30 am
Turned on cam site at about 5:30. Didn't think anything was happening, but as it got lighter I realized that one of the eagles had been hunkered down in the nest bowl all that time! LNKC
Is this the same eagle couple that we viewed last year? I am assuming so, but don't think anyone has said for sure.
Thanks - looking forward to a great season.
We enjoyed watching an eagle this morning eating at the nest. Couldn't tell what it was, but eagle was there for some time. Great to watch again! Also, the night lighting is wonderful.
Phoenix,AZ 6am
02/09/07..to answer the person's blog about this being the same pair as last year.. yes it is. They were at the nest 4 times yesterday..0900, around 1:05p and at 3:56 and then again at 5:08p EST. He was the one that showed up throughtout the day and then she came with him at 5:08 est. They have been eating breakfast there in the morning as she came at 7:40 EST and then she left around 7: 56 Est anhd then he came and moved sticks looked around maybe he eat some of hers couldn't tell for sure and was gone by 8:00 a EST. I have been seeing them off and on all fall and winter. I am so in love with them that I keep the screen small but up on my computer so I can watch at different time. It is so cold down there. You could see white caps on the water at different times yesterday.... Bev
I feel very strongly that it is the same pair, but I don't know if anybody can say for sure since they aren't banded. Some of the people that continued to watch the nest after the eaglets fledged have been discussing the eagles on an online forum that I created at the end of August. We have been posting observations, screenshots, and videos of the Maine Nest as well as other eagle nests. So if you miss seeing them on the live cam, you can drop by and see the screenshots and videos we post. Also somebody usually posts immediately when an eagle lands and you can get an email then notifying you about the post and then hopefully catch a view of the eagle while it is still there!
Here is the main page of the forum:
http://www.hostingphpbb.com/forum/index.php?mforum=tdbc
Or tinyurl:
http://tinyurl.com/2kte8v
There seemed to be an intruder that we assumed to be female around the end of November and beginning of December. We were very much worried about Mom being displaced, injured, or killed. Lately I haven't noticed any signs of an intruder. :-)
BRI, thank you for updating the satellite eagle location.
My goodness, where in the world is that eagle going?! .....it is all the way back down into the Wells area now! I would have thought it would have stayed home once it got there or at least gone down to the Merrymeeting Bay area.
Maybe it is going to join the Eagle Fest in Newburyport, MA on the 17th! ;o)
Sherri
You can't imagine my surpise today to find a huge picture of a bald eagle over a lengthy editorial about removing them from the endangered species list. This is from the Waterville Sentinel, and Waterville is across the Kennebec River from Winslow.
http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/view/columns/3599092.html
Burke, VA
Eagle on the nest about noon, just sitting and watching, gone when I checked back at 12:45p. She was on the nest in the bowl when I checked in at 3:35p.
Maura
Friday Feb 9th
3:44 PM
She was in the nest bowl practicing incubating from at least 3:08 until now. I don't know when she started. She was there when I first looked in.
Feb 9, 2007 4:23 PM
Jane wrote:
"She was in the nest bowl practicing incubating from at least 3:08 until now. I don't know when she started. She was there when I first looked in."
She came in at 2:41 and stayed for about an hour.
Jane, thanks for the reference to the Sentinel article. Hopefully it will help increase awareness to more people.
Sherri
Feb 09, 07 16:45 (EST)
Reading Stalmaster's "The Bald Eagle" gives some insight to if the eagles fly at night. Pg 75 says "the eagles and adults sleep throughout the night" - also, this same page mentions the uropyigial gland. This is why all that rain and snow seem to roll off them, similiar to water on a duck's back.
(from Wikipedia) "The uropygial gland, or, more informally, the preen gland is a gland found in the large majority of birds that secretes an oil (preen oil) that birds use for preening.
The gland is found near the base of the tail and is shaped into two symmetric parts. The oil of each part of the gland is secreted through the surface of the skin through a pimple. A bird will typically transfer this oil to its feathers by rubbing its head against the oil and then around the rest of the body.
Not all birds have a uropygial gland."
These are 2 facts I certainly wasn't aware of.
Feb 10th
6:11 AM EST
I woke up early this morning, so I looked at the nest. Noone was on it. Beautiful close up shot, though. We'll certainly be able to monitor them well at night, with that kind of a view! After that long spell of psuedo-incubation yesterday afternoon, I wondered whether she might stay in the nest tonight. But she didn't! :-)
I monitored the still cam while doing some paper work at my desk, near by. After five thirty AM I looked at the live stream now and then.
5:54 I heard chatter... one sounded near the nest, one further away.
One came in to the next at 6:08 after a real bout of loud chatter. She seems to be eating, or moving stuff around in the nest bowl. I think it's the female. She's snuggling down into the nest bowl in incubation posture, so I guess she wasn't eating, but adjusting things to her satisfaction!
It's a lovely clear close up picture with the light grey water sparkling in the background. This camera is doing great... and so is it's operator! :-)
No doubt others are watching now, so I'll end my observations.
Video clip highlights from February 9th.
Part I
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb91
13:35 minutes
Part II
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb92
5:44 minutes
Feb 10 2007 10:45AM (EDT)
Thanks Jane for the article in the morningsentinel - part of the link didn't get connected so I made a tinyurl for it:
http://tinyurl.com/36fzak
It was startling to read that Maine had only 29 mating pair and now has one of the largest populations in the lower 48 states. It’s doubtful this could ever have happened without the determination of biologists and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
I have to agree with Dave Hall's stance on the word “disturb.” There is hope however; getting the word out through public radio and media is the best effort. Keeping this information about protecting the nests, working with the landowners will serve the eagles best.
Feb. 10, 2007 2:24 p.m.
I tried out the infrared lighting one night. I couldn't see much, but I could see the outline of the tree and nest. I have one complaint though. The still picture on the National Wildlife Federation website is not carrying the current picture from the webcam. It is an old picture with the limb that crossed the nest still there. It doesn't ever change. I checked the webcam this morning and there was an eagle there that appeared to be eating. It should have showed on the still picture, but like I said, the still picture on the website is an old picture and is not coming from the current webcam. Could you see if that still picture could be updated like it is supposed to be? I check the website every day to see if there is an eagle in the nest, sometimes twice a day or more. Thanks. Mary in Tennessee
Feb 10, 07 5:40pm (EDT)
I made a collage of 3 videos with the eagle reacting to the stump.
Jan31, Feb1 and last is Feb 9.
He was not going to be put off by his initial fear, and gradually accepted it as part of the nest.
http://tinyurl.com/2bv39g
Feb 10 - 07 22:35 (EDT)
Jane! Aren't you the talented one!
Paula - thank you for so much - the clock and instructions for adding our avatars. I even attempted to add mine - I've no idea if my avatar will ever show up. If not, I have your email address Paula so I can ask for detailed help. You've been very kind and helpful.
I've been trying to add some videos to my collection most of the day and read some very interesting information from Dr. Stalmaster's book. I'll mention some items tomorrow as it's far past "nest" time now.
Sunday February 11th
3:48 AM
She did not stay overnight; noone in the nest. We have an ultra close-up view!!
Heard little short quiet calls around 5:15 or 5:30 and now, at 6:28 A.M. Still noone on the nest (I do not watch constantly, just check the still cam display and turn on the live stream once in a while after five AM)
Others are up and posting now on "judy's forum" so that's the end of the early morning shift today. :-)
Good morning.
Be sure to check out the article in the Maine Sunday Telegram in the Outdoor section about the eaglecam.
The birds have been spending a lot of time on the nest and are making the signs that they may lay eggs in the next couple of weeks.
Please keep posting all your observations.
Wing, BRI
Sunday Feb 11th
10:30 AM
Wing, were you reading the "hard copy"?
Judy and I have been looking for that article in the Maine Sunday Telegram all morning, and so far it is not in the online version.
Everyone, don't despair. My local paper is from the same publisher, and often I am looking online for a feature story I have seen in the hard copy -- to share with relatives out of state -- but can't find it.
The next day I can usually find it. As soon as somebody finds the url, please post it here! :-)
Wing, we are anxious to see it!!
Thanks,
Jane
Feb 11, 2007 1:55PM (EDT)
While looking at some online videos of the BRI babies (archives) I thought how there were 3, and ended with the two. Now I wonder about 2007 and was curious enough to pick up the book again. I thought I'd share the following, since Wing mentions they may lay eggs in the next couple of weeks.
Very interesting section in Stalmaster's "The Bald Eagle" about fratricide. All the BRI biologists know this, and it may have been previously told to us in the Biologists’ Journals. For anyone who missed it or didn’t know it, this is on page 71 of Stalmaster's book:
“Fratricide is also more common when the first to hatch is a male and second is a female. The male is larger and grows more rapidly. Through evolutionary time, male-then-female broods may have resulted in fewer surviving eagles because of these killings. Although this hypothesis is still speculative, bald eagles seem to have adapted, in a way, to minimize fratricide by producing clutches in which female nestlings hatch first. In female-then-male broods, fratricide is less common."
When I looked at Big and Little I always thought of them as female - male, in that order. Of course we'll never know, but that too is fine. :-)
feb. 11: Saw a single adult Eagle land on the nest at 5:16PM and leave at 5:18PM.
Glenda from VA
Can someone give me some helpful suggestions to connecting to these sites that are posted...I can't get any of them...I did get a Judy's Maine Eagles, but it is only through about OCt/Nov.
Thanks so much, I do so want to see them for real!!
Glenda
Feb 11, 2007 17:50PM (EST)
Maybe it's simply my computer isn't working properly, even though I've defragged, cleaned the cache etc., however; I cannot get to the still cam. If I desire to see if there's activity on the nest I have to activate the live cam.
Is this merely a glitch, or is BRI doing some tweaking today?
This was not an all day event, most of the day the still cam worked perfectly.
I am sure this question has been asked and answered before, but where do the eagles go at night? Do they have another nest away from the water where they stay until the eggs are produced?
ABOUT THE STILL CAM.
On Sunday Feb. 11th, I had problems with the still cam showing a blank screen off and on all day.
At sunset, on the still cam I got just the top third of the image -- no nest bowl -- so I finally turned on the live stream and watched it off and on.
Feb 12, 2007 5:53AM (EST)
Wing - thank you for fixing the still cam! That was fast.
February 12th. Adult Eagle on nest, settled down and looking around towards water. 6:05a.m.
Feb 12, 2007
2:51 AM EST Noone there, No sounds
3:47 same thing
4:52 same thing
5:30 AM (I wasn't looking in at that time, went to the kitchen for a cup of coffee, came back around 6:00)
6:04 AM chatter, and one landed on the nest. Didn't see if he/she had food but she's reaching down into the nest bowl. It has started to be twilight there. AHA... now she is snuggling down into the nest bowl. Didn't stay there, though. Picking around at things getting them just right.
In the nest now but not the lowest most snuggled down position. Looks as if she's looking for his/her mate. Out of the nest, again picking around idly at stuff.
Judy and Aline are observing now on Judy's forum. End of the early morning shift!
Feb. 13th
At last the Maine Sunday Telegram Story is online.
http://outdoors.mainetoday.com/news/070211fleming.html
If it doesn't work when you paste a url in, Judy told me sometimes you have to go beyond the last letter you see, before you stop and copy it. Somehow some left off information is after what appears to be the end, she says. Maybe she can explain it better than I. I'm TOTALLY un techinical.
Good morning!
The Internet connection on site is being a bit glitchy the last 24 hours. That is why the still image isn't always coming up. Hopefully it will work its self out.
Wing.BRI
Feb 12, 2007 10:25 AM
Wing wrote:
Good morning.
"Be sure to check out the article in the Maine Sunday Telegram in the Outdoor section about the eaglecam.
The birds have been spending a lot of time on the nest and are making the signs that they may lay eggs in the next couple of weeks.
Please keep posting all your observations.
Wing, BRI "
Deirdre did a really nice article!
Thanks for mentioning our monitoring contributions and glad we can help.
With all due respect to Stalmaster, he didn't have the technology that we have today and it seems as though we could be going into uncharted territory! ;o)
Sherri
Burke, VA - 2/12/07
Both eagles were on the nest this morning about 8:30am (don't know how long they had been there). They were just sitting looking out. What a beautiful and clear picture it was. They were gone when I checked back about 9am.
Maura
Here is an article from the Maine Sunday Telegram on the enthusiasm of our Maine Cam: http://outdoors.mainetoday.com/news/070211fleming.html
Thanks for the Maine Sunday Telegram article. Wing Goodale is obviously very enthusiastic about the cam and the new night vision(IR or Infra Red) and so am I.
He also likes that people post the times of important happenings at the nest. He is "reluctant", however to modify the computer program so that an inconspicous time stamp would appear, like the Tesoro nest because it would distract viewers from the nature of the picture.
Perhaps I am being selfish but for me, making movies, unless I spent a lot of extra time, head scratching and pencil work, when I do a series of scenes over a long period and then join them together, the time of events gets lost in the shuffle. I certainly like the Tesoro time stamp because no matter how much several hrs get chopped up, the time stamp runs along intact!
I have searched the web high and low for a program that will insert a time stamp, after the fact but even though many have tried, none have succeded. So, if it is possible, I would like to see Mr Goodale, put the time stamp in.
Will
Clips from Saturday Feb 10th
eagletmomsters.blogspot.com
or
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=a6to5DQkmPo
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=3NNASDRHtEQ
http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=PwECL-0jSC8
Feb 12, 2007 5:47PM (EST)
With the food and continuous nest building, of late, it appears the pair are certainly in tune with nature and deciding on another clutch of chicks.
Today was certainly dedication on their part: adverse weather (wind) and dad not bringing in much nesting material for the nest bowl – even though we cannot see into the bowl I would think some more fluff would be a prerequisite - ooops, that’s human talk for ‘soft mattress’ and eagles have their own specific needs. :-)
Thank you BRI!
She laid in the nest bowl from 3:26 p.m. to 4:34 p.m. Feb 12th.
This clip is a visit at 2:39 p.m. where the eagle is looking around and then hears the other eagle call and leaves and you hear them for a while afterwards.
http://judykb.org/mefeb12239.asf
Here is a combined six minute clip of some afternoon highlights.
The first part is around 3 p.m. and it is very windy. Then around 4:43 she starts calling out and leaves. In the distance it sounds like ducks?
The last part has a very interesting approach and he lands with some type of prey at 5:23 p.m. and he leaves at 5:40 p.m.
http://judykb.org/mefeb12windypm.asf
Feb 13
WHERE DO THE EAGLES GO AT NIGHT? DO THEY STAY AT ANOTHER NEST?
I'll take a stab at answering that question, and/but I hope others will comment, add on, or correct me as needed!
I THINK the eagle cam eagles are roosting in the upper branches of the nest tree or in a nearby tree for the night, because when I am observing them during the wee small hours, I can hear them calling in the dark, from what sounds like nearby. They seem to wake up before dawn and call out, almost anticipating the coming of daylight. It makes me think of the songbirds you hear at the first sign of daybreak, when you're out camping! Except the singing is hardly melodious!! :-)
One night I observed one of them on the nest from around three A.M. until dawn -- but so far, just once.
Eagles generally "roost" at night, on a small branch or limb. They don't stay "on" the nest at night unless they are incubating eggs or raising young. Then one eagle stays on the nest and one perches or roosts nearby. I don't know why they call it perching in the day time and roosting when it's overnight, but they do.
Once the eaglets are independent, the family members may or may not come back to the area near the nest tree overnight. Sometimes they roost in favorite trees near the river. I think outside the nesting season an eagle can roost for the night wherever an eagle FEELS like roosting! :-)
Some eagle pairs DO have second and even third nests, but those are used as "alternatives" or "back ups" in case something goes wrong. If one nest has fallen down due to an ice storm, for example, or a predator has taken it over, they can use one of the others. They won't have to take the time to build it "from scratch", just touch it up and it's ready to go! :-) In Maine the nesting season is short so saving this time can make all the difference.
As far as I know they don't go there to roost overnight. The alternative nests may be too far from the first nest for them to keep an eye on things. During the nesting season, eagles like to see exactly who and what is coming around near their nest, warn them off or escort them away, if a warning doesn't suffice.
I think the eagle cam eagles are keeping a close eye on their nest right now because they are almost ready to use it and they want no other eagles (or predators) to even THINK about moving in! :-)
That's my best guess. Anyone else? What do Stalmaster and the other experts say?
Jane
Feb 13
6:15 AM e.s.t
From before 4 AM until 5:45 AM I saw no eagle at the nest. Then I left the computer to get coffee for about 15 min so I could have missed something between then and now.
I only bopped in briefly to the live stream, and I didn't happen to hear any "calls", either.
Feb 13, 2007 10:10AM (EST)
Jane - I agree with your posting on where the eagles sleep overnight. Well written piece. Thank you.
I went back and viewed several early morning videos and heard the eagles close to the nest back in the days after last year's eaglets left the nest. August 2006 right on through, this pair never left their home turf, but if they did, they probably didn’t travel far.
It would make sense for this established pair to stay together, rather than be part of the communal roosting and eating.
Greetings all!
As you may have noticed the still image comes and goes. I beleive that there are some slow downs on the Internet connection on site, which hopefully will be worked out in a day or two. The camera and the computer are working fine.
Wing, BRI
Feb 13, 2007 14:28 (EST)
For the better part of today I've been enjoying an informative and entertaining site that BRI researchers are connected with; well they are mentioned!
This site has videos, explains about mammals, birds and even gives a little quiz everyone should take.
And what else? It discusses Infrared and cameras too! Simply amazing.
http://www.sunkhaze.org/flash/
Thanks, Janeee, for the wonderful explanation about where the eagles go at night. I teach 5th graders, and that's the level of question I hear. I do have a resident bird expert in my class, but I couldn't ask him when I first realized I had a question. By the way, I think I'll pass on the video of copulating eagles that has been offered. Does it come in a brown paper wrapper?
Feb. 14th
A Northeaster is forecast for Maine, today, including Hancock County. But it hasn't started yet. Sounds quite windy at the nest.
2:23 AM Empty nest, no calls.
5:29 AM No calls at all... still empty nest.
5:53 AM Happened to be tuned in when there was a lot of calling. Quite persistent, and a bit agitated I thought, although it's hard to tell!
5:58 AM. One of them came in and landed on the nest. He or she seems to be looking all around... sitting on the ocean side of the nest by the stump. The sky is pitch black and she's still looking all around.
6:03 she left the nest but I can hear her squeaking, whistling quietly near by. Now it's a duet. One closer than the other (6:09)
I didn't expect this on the day of a storm! But they are calling away! It must be time for me to log off, but I hate to leave! :-)
6:20 Still a lot of calling. The sky is turning a light grey color behinc the nest. Noone on the nest.
Now others are watching on Judy's forum, so that's the end of the early morning shift. I'm glad they aren't incubating during this storm!
3:47 est, Wed. Wow...just got in from my part-time retirement job (I thought the "R" word meant no more "W" word, but was wrong about that) AND you should hear the wind howling at the nest site! Even looks like it has tilted the camera to a new angle. I'd hate to be an eagle in Maine at this very moment. But, I am so glad that there are eagles in Maine for all of us to ENJOY!!
From Va.,..we have wind, but the nest site sounds like it REALLY has WIND!!! Hope the eagles are hanging on tight in a nice thick pine.
Glenda
Feb 14, 2007 20:50 (EST)
It's doubtful the eagles are in any trouble since they've evidently weathered this kind of storm before.
Mammals and birds seem to understand weather far better than the weather forcasters we have on radio or TV.
When checking the live view today, and seeing only "above" the nest and plenty of the water; it didn't take more than 15 seconds to figure it was a good time to read a book and be ready to see this happy pair over the weekend, when they come in to replace some twigs and branches that blew away.
Feb 15, 2007
Day after a Northeaster
3:09 AM
The still cam image looks fine. Somehow, though, I bet the live stream would show a different picture. But I can't get the live stream to come up. The power could very well be off up there in Hancock County, so let's assume that's the problem, and the nest is fine.
Having lived through storms with the local eagles (I live in an eagle essential habitat in Central Maine) I feel sure the eagles are fine. After a storm, even after a blizzard, a hurricane, or an ice storm, they always reappear and seem unconcerned. As long as they aren't incubating, they evidently go to a sheltered place where they can stay out of the wind. Somewhere I have a quote from one of the eagle experts about that, I'll see if I can find it and post it.
The thing to worry about is the nest tree and the camera tree. Pine trees are very flexible, the limbs and branches can bend a lot, and can hold a lot of weight. But the combination of a lot of weight from ice and sleet, along with such high winds, sometimes causes branches or limbs to break. The nest itself is constructed right beside the trunk. It is very unlikely that the nest will come down. Now you can see why the eagles are so meticulous about weaving those sticks into it.... the sticks aren't blowing away!! Amazing, isn't it?
As long as a branch above the nest doesn't break and fall on the nest, I think everything will be fine. Of course, there are no guarantees, but I'm not at all worried. Just very glad this storm came before the eagles had laid eggs. The eagles here will sit on the nest to keep eggs warm even in the middle of a very severe storm, so I'm sure if they had eggs they would have TRIED to stay here.
We don't get winds like that here, though. I see now that the location they have right near the ocean has it's disadvantages even though it's a great spot for foraging.
Feb 15th
4:46 AM
(The live stream is still down, and I don't think the still cam is refreshing)
This is a summary by Will, from the book The Bald Eagle, by Mark V. Stalmaster -- one of the recognized texts on eagle behaviour. Unfortunately the book is now out of print.
"I read in Stalmaster that in really cold weather, they only fly around about 1% of the time. They are very efficient at developing ways to conserve heat energy. When it's windy and stormy, they perch in conifers and seek areas in hollows on the leeward (down wind) side of the slopes."
Here's a one minute video Will made of the nest, in the storm, at 1:45 this morning. Evidently the live stream was working then, but the wind was ferocious!
This http is for an intermediate page from which you can get to the video. The original http was too long to paste into this blog. It took me a long time to figure out that it isn't tin yurl, it's tiny url!! :-) But I'm sure you're swifter about these things than me! Because of the eagle cam I have had to become software literate at the age of 72.
http://tinyurl.com/23ql2z
(I have WIll's permission to quote him, and to post his video links here)
This video has two visits from this morning around 9:07 a.m. and at 10:15 a.m., Feb 15th. In the first visit it looks like he eating some of the snow?
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb15am
Feb 15th
11:30 AM
At least one eagle has been observed back at the nest. I'm sure people will post their observations and maybe some links to videos, but in case they don't, I just want to share that one of them is back. He or she tried nestling into the nest --- oh, now I know where the word "nestling" came from!
Anyway, he or she tried but didn't stay there nestled in the snow for long.
One has carried sticks in, etc... and been busy at the nest off and on all morning. I am going by other people's observations so not putting the time here.
Adult Eagle in the nest at 1:12p.m. EDT...2/15/07, arranging and rearranging twigs/sticks. Watched for the two minutes.
2/15/07 1:00 pm
Both adults eagles at the nest, they took turns laying down in nest. I guess testing it.
They cont. fixing the nest. So good dto see them together again.
Looking forward to another family of eagles.
DL
Thursday February 15th
3:24 PM
One of the eagles is on the nest eating. I didn't see him or her arrive not sure what the prey is. The live stream seems to stop "cold" for a few seconds, and then proceed again.
3:29 the mate comes in and starts eating, too. Both are eating. The female was the first one in, I can tell them apart now. She isn't manteling as she sometimes does, and is letting the male eat.
He stopped for a moment and seemed to make that "nestling" motion, to see if he could snuggle down in the nest. Now he's moving nesting material around, hay or moss .... soft loose stuff... so at we least we know the entire nest bowl isn't frozen solid!
Now the wind is starting up again, and the nest and contents are swaying. Past time for me to go to the still cam, bad as I hate to.
Feb 15, 2007 17:50 (EST)
I just looked at the picture of the nest Judy might help monitor in Florida. Judy said her digital camera hardly zooms in so you would have to look hard to see the nest!. However, it can’t be missed, at least, not by the eye, but it does appear to have been missed by many a hurricane, or else the parents quickly rebuilt it.
Do they mention how long this nest has been in use?
The nest also appears to be well established and as large as our Maine BRI nest!
Lucky you and congratulations! Maybe you should just "rent" a camera that has a good zoom lens; at least for a short period of time.
Friday Feb 16
If you're interested in observations of something maybe not seen before, be sure to look at Judy's videos from yesterday morning, posted on the 15th, with the time 8:01 at the bottom.
In this video you'll see the eagle trying to clear the ice and snow out of the nest. Maybe this is something biologists haven't observed before.
These videos can be just as important as any written observations we make here, and can be used by researcheers as an "index" into the archival tapes just as effectively. Judy has put the date and time at the beginning of each segment of her video, which is just as accurate as our notes here.
Don't miss that one! :-)
Feb. 15th
For people who live in parts of Maine that can see the TV program "Bill Green's Maine" -- Saturday night there is a segment scheduled about "tracking an eagle on the internet".
I'm not sure but I think it's about what I call the "wandering eagle" that BRI is tracking, not about the eagle cam eagles. Maybe Wing can tell us more.
This is the site for the TV show. I wrote to ask whether they would be posting a video of the program on site after it is aired, but got no reply so far. Some of their programs DO have videos on the site. We'll just have to check after it's been aired.
http://www.wcsh6.com/life/columnist/billgreen/default.aspx
Copied from the site:
Bill Green's Maine February 17, 2007
Replay: February 25, 2007
This week on Bill Green's Maine. We're chasing the dogs at eagle lake. We'll laugh it up with Maine's Funniest Mom, Karen Morgan. We'll track an eagle on the internet .and We're going lobstering in "Wintah".
This is the site for the "wandering eagle".
http://www.briloon.org/research/satellite/index.htm
The eagle carried in a duck-like bird around 3:08 p.m. Feb 15th. This is the largest prey I have ever seen them bring to the nest!
Here is a screenshot.
http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n88/klbak/MaineEagles/mefeb15bb.jpg
Or the tinyurl:
http://tinyurl.com/35329z
Here is the animation of the landing.
http://i110.photobucket.com/albums/n88/klbak/MaineEagles/mefeb15a.gif
Or the tinyurl:
http://tinyurl.com/2n2yby
Feb 16, Friday
Friday February 16
4:15 AM .... noone one nest
5:30 AM: wind is blowing. noone on nest, no calls while I listened. Usually I have heard calls around now, for the first time.
5:56 AM Camera has lightened up to light grey waters. Still heard no calling, and the wind is still blowing.
6:05 AM Got the first calling. It seems to be two of them. One more distant. But not one hundred percent sure. Either they aren't right up real close, of the wind is carrying their calls away.
6:30 AM ... The end of the dawn shift!! :-)
Maybe you'd rather I didn't post at all when nothing happens?
But still, when nothing happens it tells you something, doesn't it? Or does it?
Here is a two minute video clip of him landing with the duck, which she gets of course, and he gets to nest build while she eats.
http://media.putfile.com/me0215d
2/16/2007 11:50 Eastern
Observed one of the adults aranging nest materials then settled down low in the nest. A review of last year's blog shows the adults were making adjustments to the nest mid-Feb so I've begun to look for activity.
BTW, the night time IR illuminator looks great. I can hardly wait to see how the eagle show up.
Barry in DC
Sat Feb. 17
4:30 AM Noone on nest, no calls. Checked off and on. At 5:40 went to check, and my server was down. Shut down, went to the kitchen for a cup of coffee, came back and re-started.
6:01 Back up again, immediately heard a call.... almost sounded like a robin! Not at all "strident" or "shrieky". Very nearby.
Eagle in nest immediately after calling. Think I can hear the mate in the distance. She's looking in the nest bowl, maybe for leftover scraps. Finding none, she's now sitting on edge of nest, looking out to sea, now gone. 6:03.
Someone is watching now on Judy's forum, so that's the end of the twilight zone shift today! :-)
Feb 17
My grandaughter and I are excited to be able to observe the eagles again this year. Thanks to the person who discovered the "putfile" link, we can see more eagle activity. A plus for young viewers.
A viewer in WV
Feb. 17th
3:18 EST
Nest renovation.
3:22
Flew off the nest.
Saturday Feb. 17th
About Bill Green's Maine (tv show)
It was a repeat. And it was mostly about last year's eagle-cam debut, showing the pair before the eggs had even hatched. (It looked funny to see that limb above the nest!) Perhaps the most interesting thing was seeing where BRI monitors everything ... quite a wall of equipment.
They didn't say a thing about the circumstances of rescuing the "wandering eagle". I think they had done a show about her earlier, at the time she was rescued.
At the time of this show she was following railroad tracks all the way down to Mass. They figured she did that because she often found "carrion" along the tracks. They were worried about HER getting struck by a train herself!! When they filmed the video, she was just turning to come back to Maine and seemed to have abandoned that pattern. However, railroad tracks cross a large marsh at that place in Scarborough where she was this month -- a year later.
That habit is an interesting example of how eagles can adapt to living with humans. Lewiston/Auburn, where they found her, is a large railroad center, so maybe she learned the habit there, as an eaglet. There's also a major river there, the Androscoggin River. However for many years, until recently, the Androscoggin probably had very few fish in it. The river was "dead", it stank, and the fumes could be smelled (that rotten egg smell) all along it, due to the paper mills on the river. (I lived there in the fifties, and again for 20 years in the seventies)
This behaviour is an example of what happens to eagles who are so strongly loyal to their territories, who probably still had the instinct to nest along the river, and may have turned to looking for carrion along railroad tracks because there were not enough fish in the river. This bird was not doing it only when there was ice on the river, and she did it even when she was near "salt water".
"WHY would an eagle follow the railroad tracks all the way to Massachusetts?" I hope the biologists following that eagle will ask that question. Hunting along railroad tracks is an adaptation to conditions created a century ago (four or five eagle generations) It could be "learned behaviour" acquired out of necessity by eagles who lived along a "dead river". It tells us something about how men affect eagles, and how eagles may be affected for more than one generation by changes to their habitat -- and their adaptations to those changes.
It doesn't necessarily tell us anything much about the "normal" migration patterns of an eagle who hasn't picked up this habit.
Feb 18th around 6:45 a.m. She lands and mantles and then he immediately lands with prey (bird).
Usually he lands first it has seemed to me and then she is right behind him. She proceeds to have a nice breakfast and he leaves.
Here is the video clip of it.
http://media.putfile.com/mefeb18
Watched Bill Green's Maine last night, and there was a story on there about the eagles, along with an interview with Wing (I believe) about the project. Very cool! It was from last year (could tell because of the branch still being there), but the story about what they are doing was great.
Feb 18, Sunday
early AM report
Due to circumstances beyond my control ("technical difficulties!") I lost my unsaved observations of this morning.
However, I watched from about four thirty AM off and on, and no eagle was on the nest at four thirty.
I first heard calling around five thirty, I think. And on Judy's blog (page 220) they report that an eagle came to the nest 5:55 AM and stayed for about ten minutes.
http://tinyurl.com/3xh4b5
Feb. 18th
8:09
2 eagles on the nest.
The larger (female?) spent entire time consuming. This oberserver did not see the prey)
Smaller (male) spent time with nest renovations again and pecked at some at the food.
Male flew off momentarily and returned to adjust the nest and eat.
Lots of activity at this time.
Logged off as the 2 eagles were still on the nest.
More housekeeping going on this morning in the snow. Lots of big branches being tugged and pulled around the nest to just the right spot :)
Sunday Feb 18
11:00 AM
She is incubating. Don't know for how long as I just looked in.
**That was the still cam. On live stream it is snowing and they are BOTH in the nest. It looks like they are both eating. One left at 11:06.
He may come right back, but I have to get off the live stream, and the still cam seems to be stuck. It still shows one eagle in the nest incubating.
On Judy's blog they reported them eating a bird, perhaps a duck, this morning, which is good in snow and cold weather, as it provides more fat than a fish.
Monday, Feb. 19
"President's Day" in U.S.
At 3:21 AM noone was on the nest. It sounded very windy, and light snow was blowing past the lens. From about four fifty five AM until five fifty I was away from the computer.
5:56 AM eagle chatter, one lands, calling out to the other one, reaching down into nest bowl , picking at stuff, maybe looking for leftovers?
Then seems to be settling in the bowl for a minute. Appears to be Dad (inverted V in his white feathers, under his "chin")
Eye shines in light but there wouldn't be light from the direction of the camera would there? It should be over the water behind him. He is looking all around. Preparing to leave .... on side of nest ... gone at 6:00 am but chatter nearby ... I can hear chatter responding, further away....
NOTE: Once again they show up about half an hour before sunrise, at the start of "civil twilight". I think there IS some significance to that time of day, or/and the degree of light that exists then. It seems to trigger them into activity. And judging by how it looks outside my window, it is REALLY more light than it looks on your screen at that time. I should have LESS light than them as Hancock County gets the sunrise earlier than I do in Winslow, and my house is down behind a hill which hides the sun until almost nine AM.
Feb 19, 2007 17:20 (EST)
A long weekend with birthday g-grandson, a party, the circus and a trip to the nature preserve. Today, I'm able to watch the live cam but it must be down.
While I was visiting away from home, the cams were up and I could see the activities on the still and live cam; however, now it appears to be down. Has it been down long, repairs, or did I just miss weather reports in Maine? Hopefully, all is well. The still cam shows a very sunny day and it's 5:30PM.
Our family watched the raptor segment on the PBS last night and it reminded me of "Tilly," the golden eagle fitted with a cam on her back. Maybe it was she, I'm not certain, but the views from the back of an eagle are spectacular!
2/19/07 1pm dst
1 adult eagle in the nest, eating somthing. I do not know what.
Good to see eagles back at the nesting site
DL
Tuesday Feb 20th
4:52 AM Noone on the nest.
5:33 It's about time they usually start calling out, but I haven't heard or seen anything yet. It seems strangely quiet at the nest.
5:42 At last, the calling began, a duet, both calling at once!! :-) Time for all good eagles to wake up!
It's not at all light outside my window, or on the cam display.
Feb 20 8:40 AM
One eagle on the nest just chillin" for about 5 minutes
1215 Pacific Time... 2 adults in the nest doing some spring cleaning... moving sticks around and calling out
The eagles were still calling after dark and one returned to the nest. This bird seemed restless, was adjusting the "bedding", settled for a while and then flew to a branch and eventually left.
2-21-07 01:25AM (EST)
Here’s a video of Mom coming into the nest to do some checking out. Possibly some prey was still in the nest and you see her eating.
She appears not to be as surefooted as she is during daylight hours; but maybe that’s just me.
Notice her eerie shadow appearing on the branches. I guess this an effect from the infrared camera. Does anyone know? Regardless, she doesn’t seem to be aware of any shadows in the least.
http://tinyurl.com/2fdl8d
Weds. Feb 21st
Was not up earlier and was not watching earlier. (young grandson here; my hours have changed!)
On Judy's forum they report that one was on the nest at 5:35 and left at 5:44.
5:56 AM I heard calling ... one calls, the other replies. I swear they are almost "singing" like a song bird. Trilling, almost, and almost chirping.
It's the same "screech" but done so much more lightly.
Looked over to Judy's forum, and everyone there thought so, too. I hope one of them has recorded it so you can hear it. Here's the place where they are discussing it. Some on the previous page, too.
http://tinyurl.com/3cz4zh
This Maine nest is truly one of the best in terms of sound and vision and added to that, it is certainly the most beautiful in terms of scenery.
I just wondered, and this is a BIG, BIG appeal - is it at all possible for the daytime vision to kick in much earlier, especially now that it is getting light sooner? Some of the most magically beautiful scenes happen as day breaks - the light coming through the tree and on the water. I really hope this will be possible and it will please a lot of loyal followers and interested people.
Thanks, Laura
Glenda VA. 3:38 p.m. Feb. 21
Just clicked on live cam and got to see one of the eagles!! How exciting!!!
Had checked out Will's videos and wonder if someone knows where the 'Norfolk' is he has video of.??...I just wondered if it was VA. There seemed to be at least one egg in the nest.
Thursday
February 22nd
4:29 AM Noone on the nest, and no vocalizing while I was on the live stream
First eagle talk I heard was at 5:37 AM. And the screen had turned a lighter shade of gray by then.
The view has changed -- even more of a close up. The only sign of a limb is the one in center screen.
There's a little piece of something black floating in the foreground ... just a piece of wood, I think. And it looks like maybe there's ice in the background, a large piece of ice.... but it looks grey, not white. Must be the infra red effect?
Will is watching now, on Judy's forum, and he heard them first at 5:37 also. Ending my observations as he will catch anything that happens.
By the way, in case noone posted it here and since we've been so long without an update here -- there was a lot of discussion yesterday on Judy's blog about what we think were ice floes on the water. In case you saw them in your view and wondered about them.
http://tinyurl.com/27h9s9
Just happened to check out the cam and one Eagle on the nest - just checking everything out. It's wonderful to see him/her again!
2/22/07 5:17 pm.. well i'm glad to see that there is a pair of eagles readying the nest tonight.. hopefully they'll have as much success as last years' pair.. looking forward to seeing a new year on the eagle cam
Friday Feb. 23d
4:42 AM Noone on the nest. Seems very windy. No sounds while I was tuned in.
5:14 Looks the same. and sounds the same.
5:48 AM, the screen is light grey already. Pretty closely matches what I see outside.
On Judy's forum someone spotted an eagle on the nest at 5:31, and left at 5:46. So I missed that.
Civil twilight would have been around ten to six today.
This week I often noticed activity between five thirty and quarter to six AM, and also heard calling about then, or a little before then.
Dawn shift is over.
Both Eagles in the nest at 5:59a.m.
Female settled down in the nest with the Male watching.
At 6:01a.m. Female left the nest..Male settled down in the nest.
Thanks Jane for info on how to tell which is which, by the inverted "V" of the white neck feathers.
EDT
Saturday Feb. 24th
4:35 AM nothing, noone on the nest
5:26 AM same
5:52 heard the first chatter, and the scene on-camera is lighter, but totally out of focus.
Very quiet calling, and then some "chirping" like a robin!
One in the nest.... 5:55 AM.
Second one flew in camera went blurry and stopped for a moment.
Dad is moving a stick all around. At first I thought he was eating. But I guess they aren't eating, he must have brought in a stick, not food -- that's why she isn't manteling!
Is quite windy there now. The wind is ruffling their feathers and you can hear it on the mike.
Mom pushes Dad out of the nest bowl and inspects it. She nestles into it, looks at the camera for a moment. Dad flies off.
Nestled in at 6:03.
6:07 she's gone. Followed by a lot of quiet calling
Will's observing on Judy's forum so I'm going to quit now. One of these dawns I hope to see her sitting on the nest and staying there!! :-)
Feb. 24, Sat
When you think of the hours they spend fixing the nest, and all the months of effort that goes in to caring for the eggs, and then the eaglets, even if it IS unscientific, I have to believe that they ENJOY having the young and raising them. With all their years of having young, they "must" remember that this leads to having eaglets to feed and care for.
What does science say? Are they driven just by their hormones and instincts to build the nest and defend it with no knowledge of what comes next?
I can't wait til the biologists come back and answer questions!! :-)
I just saw an eagle leave the nest at 7:15 AM.
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