Bird Cams Around the World

I posted a post...it was there and now it's gone

2nd try...good thing I have a good memory...

I was drawn to this forum last night from another (have never been on it before or watched the cam)...read the last few pages and then read the whole entire thing this morning and honestly, I don't really know what to say, except that this has been a very odd falcon season at many nest sites. Nature works in mysterious ways and is beyond our control and very unpredictable. We know what we want to happen and always wish/hope for the best, but unfortunately, the outcome is not always pleasant. I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason, good or bad, but that still doesn't stop our emotions from getting the better of us either way.

I have more I want to say and a few questions, but I will wait for now.

Yes it was indeed very devastating to see Polly steal a chick yesterday... From what I saw she flew to the second nest with it - possibly to eat it - then Roger chased her away - she flew away with the baby then came back with nothing. She was on the tower after and the parents were not even angry with her...!!! Here's the video from the theft ...

Today Polly was back twice, Spirit and Roger managed to protect the chicks this time, thank god! I am fearful for what's coming......

I'm really surprised that Polly hasn't been chased out of the area after this!

Nancy - do you know what time you took that pic ? I'm trying to find the video but no luck so far...
thanks!

I have so much on my mind and a whole page of thoughts (so far) that I've typed regarding all of this, and I don't even know where to begin, but I will post it a bit at a time.

I will start by saying that I disagree that birds (falcons) don’t have ‘feelings’ and that they do what they do purely based on instinct/hormones. I know this is mostly what they do (including humans), but I feel that many animals do have feelings to some extent, especially birds and those who mate for life. I have been watching birds now for about 4 years and you can clearly see how they develop their own personalities and do express some kind of feelings at times.

What I find most astonishing is how submissive Spirit and Roger (especially) have been/are toward Polly and why they have most times given in to her ‘tantrums’ rather than chasing her off, especially during critical times. And you will note that all 3 got along rather well up until it was time for Spirit to lay that first egg. Once that happened (and Polly even tried to hinder that), Polly was bound and determined to take over/keep HER spot in the nest box…and I think she expressed a lot of jealousy, hence part of the reason for her taking the chick...my opinion.

Just watched a feed..



Then she (?) lost her balance and smushed one of the kids...scared the you know what outta me..




After the "fall"...the smushed little one was a little slow to get up, poor dear...hope its ok...and did see it get fed after the misstep...the "smushed one" is still "down" in this pic



I'm posting these 2 pics in case you're wondering what you are seeing on the cam...no, that's not a chick, lying face down under her...she pulled the prey underneath her rather than take it out...so now, she's tucked 2 chicks, one egg, and one piece of leftovers underneath...at least for now..

I NEED to post the last of my thoughts...I'm sorry if they're a bit long (and/or boring) but I need to get them out...thank you for understanding.

I didn’t think falcons fully matured until around 2 years of age, but there have been comments of Polly and Roger ‘sneaking’ around together so to speak…so whether or not it’s her intention to claim the territory is unclear at this point. I’m not sure of the range of a falcon’s territory, but an eagle’s is approx. 2 miles or so and they will chase/escort anything and everything, even sub-adult eagles out of the area, especially during breeding season, so again I’m completely baffled as to why Spirit and Roger have not chased Polly away.

IF it is Polly’s intention to drive her mother out of the area and claim this territory, is it even remotely possible for her and her father to begin business as a pair??? I sincerely hope not, as this is too grizzly to even contemplate! Questions of this nature have been asked many times on the eagle site at Norfolk Botanical Gardens, and the experts there say that it is highly unlikely that siblings would ever mate with siblings or their parents, mostly because of the territoriality established by a given pair in an area (and the mating for life).

I also feel that the egg that hasn’t hatched is the first one that was laid and when all the chaos started between Polly and her parents, as the temps were still quite coldish then and the egg should have been covered at least part of the time, but most of the time it wasn’t.

I'm so sorry Wizzz--I meant 2:48!

PW, just to clarify: the "sneaking around" comment that you saw was just someone speculating when Wizzz mentioned that Polly & Roger went hunting together. Wizzz hasn't seen that kind of behavior & she's the one who sees them frequently. Now she has said that Polly & Roger go hunting together, but Spirit & Polly also go hunting together.

I used to love watching Polly, but after her recent behavior, I would like to see her gone, whether she goes on her own or her parents chase her away. If she stays around, I am very fearful for the future of these little ones. They won't be small enough for the parents to cover (hide) for much longer, & then what?

How stressful this whole thing is. I can't watch the video either. I watch falcons over other birds of prey because until fledging, everything usually goes smoothly and it is enjoyable to watch. I don't watch for educational value, although I certainly have learned a lot this year, things I didn't want to know. Still, I am attached to certain nests now and plan to stick with it. I want to know what happens here just can't watch the live cam, although I do look at the stills, always fearful I will see Polly taking a chick. I hope for the best.

I believe that a pair in Sweden was brother and sister, weren't they? Of course they didn't produce chicks, but chicks were given to them to foster as I recall.

I did watch the video 'ljames', twice and Spirit (love that name) became a bit agitated when Polly happened on the scene and then after the chick was taken, she did a triple take out the nest box as if saying 'what did I do', and then looked down intently at the chicks under her. Like everyone else, I am worried/fearful as to what 'might' happen next, but nature is what it is and we have no control over it...all we can do is accept it and try to deal with it, even though the outcome is not what we hope for.

I wish you and all the women on here a very happy Mother's Day