Leafs and lines

A little buzzard

Screenshots from the Cornell Red-tailed Hawk nest, where the first chick of this year's clutch has just hatched! Second to last picture shows blood on prey in the background, otherwise it's all baby.

There's M1, looking very just woken up with nest material sticking to down feathers.

Hi, mom.

Bands and pips

The three Peregrine chicks at CalFalcons were banded yesterday. As I've understood, the oldest chick (red band, on the left in the screenshot) is female, while middle child (yellow band, and in the middle) is male, and the youngest (blue band, right) another female. Naming contest for the little ones is currently underway.

They're still very fluffy, but all are visibly growing pin feathers under the clouds of down.

At the Cornell Red-tailed Hawk nest the first egg is hatching right now! The egg pipped yesterday, and the latest peek as of now was early this morning, showing a tiny beak working hard to peck a hole in the shell.

Dad incubating, mom arranging nest material and about to start her shift on the eggs.

Blocks and sunset

Drops and sunset

Raptorlet checks

A few more recent screenshots of the three Peregrine chicks at CalFalcons. The chicks are about three weeks old, the youngest turns three weeks tomorrow.

Huddled together while mom is off the nest. She can leave them without brooding for long periods now, though still keeps an eye on them. They're too big to fit under her already (check out the unhatched egg for comparison on how much they've grown!), so during nights she sits next to them in the nest. Looks like youngest chick on the left and oldest on the right, with middle child behind them, here.

Napping in a pile in the afternoon.

A feeding, with a wing stretch showing off new pin feathers.

Little fluffballs.

In other nesting news, the Red-tailed Hawk pair at CornellHawks are incubating three eggs right now. I've watched them for a couple of years, too, and baby buzzards are some of the cutest raptor chicks I know. The eggs were laid March 30th - April 5th, and Redtails usually incubate 28-35 days, though at this nest usually closer to 40 days, so hatches should start happening in the next week.


At SWFL Bald Eagle nest, the older one of the two fledglings, E21, was last seen on camera April 29th. The eaglets are old enough now that they could leave their natal territory whenever they feel ready to start their independent life as juvenile eagles, and E21 has likely done so. Good luck to both siblings, and to their hardworking dad who did a great job raising them even when he had to do so alone. Stay safe out there.

Two more Osprey eggs

All the occupied Osprey nests at Sääksilive now have eggs in them. Looking forward to osplets in about a month!

Eine at nest#1 soon after laying her first egg. Didn't get a lot of peeks at the egg itself on account of weather. Shielding it from sleet rain takes priority.

Tiuku at nest#3 with her egg.