Bird Cams Around the World

Thanks Skygirlblue for the update. Hopefully their bloodworks will show them all to be fit and healthy.

I am jsut removing this post. Bad day yesterday and I am sure more so for the people that watch from the ground.

Only love and support should be felt here.And though my tears are still flowing I awake to a new day and new beginnings

God Bless everyone here for their support and love for all who watch and support this site.

I could not read your update SGB

I see the fish. Now that really breaks my heart.

I think Mick's post of Ed Clark's comments was made with the best of intentions. Many of us do understand the harsh realities of the wild, but for those who don't, I think it was good to emphasize that so they can rest a little easier knowing that this painful decision was made to insure the eaglets success.

Thanks Mick.

Sorry, I was just taken back a bit by the comment.

But I am not going to loose sleep over it. I cannot watch dad come in and out. so I will stick with the falcons for now. and will watch for updates on the young.

I hope he can heal his heart soon . He is used to them taking the young and banding them and then returning them. so this must have him really confused.
We all know they will go on sooner than us, as it is their way of survival. They will mourn a short time and then get on with it. I shall follow suit .
with heavy heart , I am off.

Mick, we do work together, but I don't work at the Wildlife Center. The Wildlife Center is the largest wildlife teaching hospital in the world. They take in many animals, but most of the animals in the state go to regional groups. I am president of one of those groups that covers central Virginia. Everyone works out of their homes and with local vets. Our vets work closely with the amazing 4 vets at the Wildlife Center, led by Dr. Dave. I interface more with them than Ed. We transfer x-rays etc and bad cases go to them. We get the calls on eagles, but they all go to them. My group (including me) have transported 3 to them so far this year. Ed loves eagles....they are very good for business! We are also lucky because our area borders their coverage area, so we are the closest proximity group. Dr. Dave lives even closer to us, so we have a great shuttle arrangement. I also am working on several projects with CCB.

It sounds like the chat went well and he made everyone feel better about the situation. That's great.

I got it SGB. thank-you

despite the philly media not picking up on the story since the plane allegedly originated here the story does have wings and i stumbled upon this post off the kgw audobon hawk nest blog in portland oregon that i thought i might be able to share here. Wasnt sure where to post this but i hope this is proper

April 27, 2011: Orphaned Eagles
by Bob Sallinger
kgw.com

Posted on April 27, 2011 at 1:58 PM



Lots of questions regarding the Eaglecam in Northfolk, Virginia. The mother was killed after colliding with an airplane earlier in the week and the three young eaglets were removed from the nest this morning and transfered to a local wildlife rehabilitation center where they will be raised and eventually release back to the wild. The decision to intervene was made by the state and federal wildlife agencies after they determined that the father would be unlikely to be able to successfully provide for three young alone.

These kinds of situations are always difficult judgement calls. Agencies tend to be extra cautious with species that are either on or were recently removed from the endanged species list such as bald eagles and peregrine falcons.

Three eaglets is a heavy load for a single parent to carry but it is not inconceivable that some or all would have made it though. They were big enough that they no longer required brooding to keep warm, but they also would have required a steady stream of food provided by the remaining parent. The male would have had to work very hard to pull off the nest alone. The argument in favor of leaving them in place is that if the male was able to provide for them, they would have had a chance to learn their hunting and other life skills from him. Many of an eagle's survival skills are learned by watching and immitating their parents. No matter how good of a job we do in capivity, it never comes anywhere near matching what the parents can provice.

So in the end it is a trade-off: By removing the eagles, you eliminate the chance that they starve in the nest, but you reduce the chance that they will survive their first year alone in the wild after release because they have not had the critical parental training they need. Alternatively leaving them in place puts them at risk of starvation in the short run but gives them a better chance at surviving in the long run if they do make it through the nesting process. In this case the wildlife agencies made the decision that the short-term risk outweighed the potential benefits of leaving them in place. Seems like a reasonable course of action to me...

Reminds me of a local story...several years ago we had to remove peregrine falcon eggs from the Interstate Bridge after the male adult was hit by a car. We don't usually "rescue" eggs, but peregrines were at the time still an endangered species. The eggs were actually exposed to a cold driving rain and temperatures in the 40's for more than 5 hours. The only way to get to the top of the bridge at the time was to ride the lift span up and down because the access stairs were under construction. In order to lift the span, the bridge tenders had to stop traffic....at rush hour no less. I remember standing at the top of the bridge with the wind and rain howling in my face hugging a box containing the eggs inside my jacket while we waited to get lowered back down thinking that there was no hope that the eggs would hatch. None the less when we returned to Audubon we stuck them in an incubator and a few weeks later we had three healthy peregrine chicks!

I went to the nest this afternoon and what a difference a day can make
in our lives!! I just stood there with a couple of others staring at the nest
thinking, I cannot believe what has happened. All this beauty and grace, gone!
Yes, the tears rolled! The human element can learn a lot from eagles as well as other
wildlife as how to treat each other! This pair of eagles were the BEST and boy they are BEAUTIFUL!
This lesson is, treasure every moment because it
can and will disappear before your very eyes in a flash.
This set of flowers was at the base of the nest tree this afternoon. I am sure there will be more
as the exclusion zone is gone. There is a Native Indian celebration of Mom's life at
NBG Sunday morning at 10:00.



I walked around NBG looking for Dad but did not see him, so I found my way back to nest.
At 4:08 he flew overhead, buzzed the nest and kept going. I felt blessed to see him again.




Thank you all so much! Your compassion is beyond reproach!
Jim

Thanks Jim. A big hug for you, as I know you and all the other regular visitors of the nest site must be devastated and emotional about the events of the past two days.
Beautiful pictures of Dad. I feel so sorry for him. Please keep an eye on him and keep us informed.

Another tragedy... but this seems to be the fate of wildlife. I'm glad the eaglets are in good hands. Hopefully, we'll get updates on their progress.

I put a short announcement on my YT site, with a link to the news article and video of the intake exam.



edited to add: always practical, Dad picked up the fish before he left.

Here is a video provided by NBG of the eaglets examination upon arriving at the facility.

According to Ed Clark, they are already setting up a website for the eaglets which should be ready by tomorrow morning. I went to their site and looked at the pics of our babies. I wasnt sure I would in case it would be upsetting. I can only tell you to DO IT if you havent yet. I had tears, yes. But it was tears of joy seeing "our babies" safe, and seeing the enclosures. The whole general attitude of the center's awareness to people's emotions, and invested interest in the eaglets, was beautiful. How fast they got those pictures up for us to see, and now a website. These people do care. My heart goes out to everyone here, especially those still upset with the decision. My heart broke when I saw Dad on the nest. But I can only tell you to actually see the eaglets being tended to, and see where they are, and see that these people are being very sensitive to all the viewers feelings, is so fantastic. ((hugs)) to all, I encourage you to go to their site and clik on the link to NBG 2011 eaglets update, Wednesday, April 27. You can clik on pics to enlarge, and clik to continue slides. It wont take away all the pain, but it will ease the sting.

Edit: Great video Mick, thx for posting

Bev, I checked my paste in text edit. I copied it right from chat and it is not in bold. I wish I would have caught it and changed it.
(It was the one statement he made that caused me to be "taken a back" as well.) He did say that he had been getting "demanding emails" that were upsetting (my word) to him.

Work on the enclosure and an exam photo.