March 27, 2007
Miscellaneous Eagle News
This web log post is a miscellaneous collection of eagle news that includes some news about our chicks, and also news about other eagles as well.
First, we hope to go live with the 2007 Eaglet-Naming Contest soon. We're finishing up some programming details, but we'll announce it on the cam page as soon as it starts, and we'll provide further details then. Several folks have asked about gender names. We won't ever know for sure what the chicks' gender is because we don't plan to climb the tree to sex them, but when they're fully grown we'll be able to compare their sizes via the cam and maybe judge their gender then. But for the contest, unisex names are best, but we will take gender-based names if you'd like to submit those as well.
The chicks are growing like weeds and we're starting to see some signs of their maturity. As we mentioned on the cam page, the eaglets' feet and beaks will reach adult size before their bodies do. That's why we see funny photos of the eaglets with big, gangly yellow feet.
And today we got one of our first clear shots of tiny blood feathers coming in on one chick. Blood feathers are comprised of shafts that protect the new feathers and provide blood to them until they are fully developed. Breaking one of these would be painful and dangerous, as they will bleed. Here you can see an example of blood feathers on a young osprey chick. The blue coloring on the feather shaft is the blood.
Also, we have seen a couple photos where it looked like the eaglets might be attempting to feed themselves. The chicks are still too young to do any major tearing of meat, but it's a sign of maturity that they are starting to realize that life can be immensely more enjoyable if you learn to feed yourself. :-)
Other Eagle News
The sad news from the NCTC Eagle Cam is that none of the eggs were salvageable after the big snowstorm that we mentioned in the last web log entry. So at this point, our friends in West Virginia are hoping that the parents might try for a second clutch. This would be rather rare, but at the NCTC they're reporting that the couple has been seen mating after their loss, so we'll keep our fingers crossed that maybe the parents will surprise everyone and produce another clutch.
I also wanted to remind folks that the Channel Islands in California are seeing good eagle action at their nests and on their cams. The fact that any eagles are reproducing at all in the Channel Islands is inspiring because between the 1940s and 1970s, hundreds of tons of DDT waste products were dumped into the ocean south of Los Angeles -- this is the same pesticide that almost brought about the extinction of eagles and ospreys due to egg-shell thinning brought on by DDT in the food chain. DDT continues to contaminate the food and affect eagle reproduction on the Channel Islands, but biologists and environmentalists there are working very hard to get the eagles to the point where they can safely raise young. You can read more about this on the Channel Islands' National Park Service website.
Also we hear that the Maine Eagle Cam season is moving along nicely. One of our cam watchers recently shared a video clip with me showing the female laying her second egg -- an act that eagle fans don't often get to see, so be sure to watch.
And finally, I wanted to share some incredible eagle photos from our good friend Woody Dawson. Woody is a very experienced local eagle photographer who recently made a trip to Homer, Alaska to visit with the "Eagle Lady." Jean Keene is the "Eagle Lady" and you can read more about her here, but she feeds 200-300 wild eagles in Alaska during the winter, and many photographers visit her to have the chance to get some amazing shots, like the ones below.
In the first photo, we see a close-up of the Homer eagles, and in the second photo we see an animated GIF showing the eagles with a little added motion. Click on the thumbnails to open larger versions. And much thanks to Woody for sharing these incredible shots:
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Blackwater Refuge Gallery
Speaking of photos, I just updated the Blackwater Refuge Gallery on our website, so be sure to pay a visit since there are some wonderful new photos, including one shot of our rather famous and rare white pelicans. And much thanks to the photographers who contributed the photos to our gallery.
Ospreys
Finally, a word about our ospreys: The osprey pair seems to be doing very well. The nest has quickly taken on a nice round shape, and the parents seem very attentive to their home. I'll be starting the Osprey Cam Web Log soon since it looks like we're in for another promising season with our enjoyable ospreys.
If you're new to watching ospreys -- or fish hawks, as they are often called -- I can promise you that they are incredibly fun to watch and have their own unique personalities and habits. It's also interesting to watch them as they raise their young during the warmer months, and it can be rather dramatic to see them dealing with thunderstorms and heat waves and such. So we hope you'll stay tuned to the Osprey Cam, where last year our osprey parents produced four chicks that fledged -- a Blackwater record! We don't really expect to get four again (that would be amazing) but you never know. :-)
We'll try to update both cam galleries by the end of the week.
Until next time,
Lisa - webmaster
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