'FORUM FRIENDS, WILDLIFE-FROM-WHEREVER' (Off-season, all cams off at Loch Garten)

Yes, KORKY, the eaglet looks very dark - I think it was in shadow, but anyway I'm not seeing little white eaglets this season :-/

Overnight and so far today the weather's been awful in NE Florida, here's all I could get of NE23's hatch an hour or two ago:

The feeding of NE22 has not gone much better today :(

On a very much cheerier note - see this Honourable Mention on Bird Guides this week!  Our own Crested Tit at LG !!!

Suddenly, the Ohio feeders and another YT stream have started coming down in mpg instead of mp4... which = HUGE HUGE files!  Had to delete them.

Unknown said:

Love the ears on the deer!

I think it's a shame they're called Mule Deer because of their ears - I've nothing whatsoever against mules but it makes these beautiful deer sound inferior somehow.

So true! I found the ears graceful and somewhat expressive. The negative connotations for "mule" I guess are connected to their alleged stubbornness and their outlier status being infertile as a result of their parents. Also rather unfair, I think, especially in this day and age of inclusiveness!

Though I just found this, disproving any stubbornness qualities:
"Mules are one of the most commonly used working animals in the world, highly prized for their hardiness and docile nature."

scylla said:

Our own Crested Tit at LG !!!

I've missed trying to see them on the webcam this winter scylla.  Fingers crossed all will be restored soon.

Unknown said:

rather unfair, I think, especially in this day and age of inclusiveness!

Trust our kind CC to think of that :-*

Well, KORKY, February won't last much longer (even tho a Leap Year) and the feeder cam was predicted (I won't say 'promised'  ) to be back this month :)

Amazing news from Southwest Florida. Harriet has laid another egg! This is egg 3. She laid 2 in her first clutch. One didn't hatch. The other did but sadly, E14 died about 3 weeks old after damage to a blood feather. I think this third egg was laid about 5 weeks after the loss of E14.

(c) www.dickpritchettrealestate.com/eagle-feed.html

I just found this update on the  CROW Facebook page, which would explain why the blood feather injury was so serious and led to E14's death;

E14 NECROPSY RESULTS: The liver tissue of E14 from the Southwest Florida Eagle Cam nest, a male eaglet, was found to contain markedly increased levels of brodifacoum, a type of anticoagulant rodenticide or rat poison.

​Anticoagulant rodenticides, or rat poisons, prevent the blood from clotting normally and cause an animal that has ingested a toxic amount to bleed to death. Rodents that ingest the poison often become disoriented or lethargic as they are dying and become easy prey for eagles, hawks, owls and other predators, passing the poison through the food chain. Sadly, it is not uncommon for apparently healthy raptors to test positive for low levels of rodenticides, which have not yet reached the point of causing toxicity and illness. The adults in the nest likely have chronic exposure to rodenticides from the same food sources, but are not currently suffering any ill effects due to their larger body size compared to the affected baby.

For more information on anticoagulant rodenticides, see

www.allaboutbirds.org/.../

E14 was a joy to watch, was so very sad to read the cause of his demise

Wonderful news about Harriet and M15's 3rd egg this season, thanks for posting Korky!

Thanks Korky. Interesting although so very sad.