Good Evening, Fellow PeckishNesters!!
Things heard in the SS today were a little strange. “ Peace is starving and won’t live to fledge” “I hear there’s no more food at this nest” “Harmony’s stealing all of Peace’s food” “The parents have quit feeding Peace”. Where do people hear these things? It seems like the internet has turned into the worlds worst game of Telephone. If you have been following along the last week or so you will have noticed that the food deliveries have been dwindling. This is not because of any food shortage in the nest area. It is a standard progression in eaglet development where the parents cut down on the food supply to make their offspring more aggressive when food is available to them. This nest is fortunate to have ample supplies of food available nearby. We have seen the eaglets stuffed to the gills since hatching and it is hard to see them now being denied food. But, it is a natural progression in the growth cycle of eaglets. They must develop this instinct in order to survive on their own after fledge. If they do not develop it they will starve waiting for someone to feed them. So, please do not be alarmed when the food deliveries are not as they were before. The eaglets can go 24-36 hours without eating after having a full crop. Adults can go days without eating after a full crop so this is good training for our kids.
So, what happened on the nest today you ask?? The cam was down as the sun came up and we did not see any thing until about midmorning. When the cam came up both Peace and Harmony had full crops so breakfish must have been good. Late morning they started practicing tearing things apart on the nest. This gives them the skills to de-fur and de-feather prey after they fledge. In between this practice they also managed some wingersizing, napping and a little guard duty. Early afternoon Dad brought in a fishtail and dropped it on the nest. Peace grabbed it and tried to nosh on it a bit. Harmony stole it from her and took control. Peace went for the stealback twice but Harmony retained possession and finally polished it off with one big gulp. Around teatime Peace decided to try some wingerhopping after lightening the load. She ended hopping all over Harmony. H got up and returned the favor with a few choice wingwhaps of her own. Early evening Mom teased the kids by landing on the nest with grass clumps and no food. As darkness fell eaglets and chatters were waiting for THE food delivery but alas none came. Mom and Dad are really taking this hunger thing to the max.
On to the pics and vids of the day.
The kids are learnin’ skillz!
MNBound Eagles Playing for Real
Harmony wins the fish dump contest.
MNBound Eagles Fish Left for Eaglets to Self-Feed
Peace hops on Harmony (probably payback for stealing the fish) and wingwhaps ensue.
MNBound Eagles Peace Hops On Harmony
And a selection of pics from the day.
Aren't you glad it's Saturday and the boss ain't around??
I want to fly like an eagle.......A duet in the key of SQUEEEEE
You guys have any Fritos??
Scuse me, pardon me! Comin' thru!!
What are you two up to over there??
I'll get this if it takes all day!
Hope you had a good first half of the weekend and do not worry about the food situation at this nest. The kids will fledge and become magnificent adult eagles.
See you tomorrow nestside.
TalonStrike
If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to post them below or in the chat room. Also, we'll be updating our official MN Bound LIVE Eagles Facebook Page regularly so you can follow along, like, or share with your friends. We have several site moderators this year to help give optimal information to all that want to learn more about these magnificent birds.