Sunday, September 5, 2021

Eaglets getting spotty

The Sydney White-bellied Sea-eaglets are growing their dark juvenile plumage feather dot by feather dot, and are little by little leaving behind their baby floofiness. Both chicks have been eating well and getting along. Here's a bunch of cute screenshots of them from the past few days (includes views of prey, no sibling rivalry).

SE28 preening, older sibling SE27 resting. SE28 is a month old on this day!

Breakfast for both, SE28 eating at the moment.
The chicks often play with the nest material, moving it around or pecking at it. SE28 moving a big piece of bark, and SE27 moving a little twig, respectively.

SE27, SE28.
SE28 awake, SE27 asleep.
Napping and sleepy wing stretches.
SE27 has a wing over SE28. :)
SE28, ready to eat.
SE27, looking around amidst preening after meal.
And more sleeping. SE27 left, SE28 right.
A little beaking in the morning.
Just loafing and waiting for food.
SE28 preening, then SE27.
SE27, SE28, watching activity around the nest.
SE28 wingers.
SE27 eating.
And SE28 at the same meal.
Big mouthful!
Sprawled out for sleeping. SE27 (now five weeks old!) on the left or higher on screen until otherwise specified.
Leg.
Watching little sibling playing with a stick.
Watching big sibling doing wing exercises.
SE28, SE27.
SE27 digging around in the nest material after a feeding, perhaps looking for leftovers. SE28 mostly watches curiously.

SE27 finds something, looks like a bone? Didn't eat it, though.

Loafing arrangement negotiations.
(The bone(?) SE27 found is in the background, by the way, near the top of the screen in the middle.)

A bit of beaking from SE27.


SE28 sleeping with beak tucked in back feathers like a big eagle.

SE28 preening.
Breakfast for growing birdies.
Some more playful beak nipping.
SE28 has a leg over SE27. :D
And now SE27 has a wing over SE28 again. Eagles don't hug like humans do (preening each other and peaceful beak nips are more their thing when it comes to amicable intraspecific behavior), so that's not what these actually are, but they look cute all the same.

SE27 stretching, SE28 dodging that considerable amount of flight feather growth that SE27 already has.

SE27 sleeping with beak tucked.

Rain starts, and Lady comes to the nest to shield her babies. SE28 at the front is nipping at her wing.

SE27 preening one of Lady's chest feathers.
Dad arrives with food, and Lady claims it with a mantling.
Supper for each chick. SE27 grabbed a really big piece that had a bone in it, but got it all down.

SE27 and SE28 getting ready for bed this evening, after another day of sleeping, eating and growing.

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