Raising Aussie Osprey #6

We've come from here:

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/935058/#top

Aussie is not a baby any longer. She's flying confidently and with considerable skill. She is still much smaller than her mother but the size difference isn't so marked with her Dad. I haven't seen her being fed by Mum for a week or so and even then it was more in deference to her youth rather than to fill any physical need. She no longer hunkers down when aircraft fly over or when yachts pass by and barely gives them a passing glance. She still returns to the nest after the heat of the day has passed. She watches what Mum is doing like a hawk and frequently imitates her behaviours.

I took this shot of Aussie and Mum late this afternoon. As you can see, it's heavily cropped and shows Mum's blind eye, which is giving cause for concern for a small but dedicated band of local observers. Mum's body was in shadow, but her head was in the sunlight as the shadow came and went across the nest.



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Oh, now it's working.

Both Aussie and mother were calling the fishmonger this afternoon. He always delivers the fish to the nest. He could be heard in a tree nearby, but because the female was on the nest, I think he decided that with discretion being the better part of valour, he'd steer clear of it because of her attitude towards him.

This is Aussie, making demanding calls from the right hand branch.

One of the guys who's been watching for the last couple of years says the female's aggressive behaviour is quite out of character and he hasn't observed the type of reaction to her mates presence prior to this year. I hope he will relate some of his experiences with these birds and show some of the photos he's taken.

They might be heading to divorce court. Just kidding (smiles).

Amazing how large the baby has gotten since that Nov 7th pic. They grow like weeds and before you know it they are taking care of you. "Once a parent, twice a child"

Take care Margarett

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Thanks for your new thread Margaret, great new photos! It is interesting about the mothers attitude towards the fathers! Maybe she's got something like the human 7 year itch or some sort of hormone imbalance. Whatever it is I hope she gets over it...!

Great pics Margaret! Thanks for the new thread.

I wonder if the eye problem is bothering her so much and she's taking it out on Dad.

I'd not be at all surprised if her eye is what's causing the behaviour change - half the time, she can't see Aussie, and is nervous as a result. Quite likely before she was partially sighted in that eye, but is now completely blind there.

I'd also suspect that she won't make it through to next year - once the nesting season is over and she has to catch all her own fish again, hard times will come. You need two eyes to judge distance accurately, so her catch rate will drop off a lot.

Resin

Lol Margaret, loved the last shots on your previous thread, and the finale was a cracker!

Resin, no no, we are all in a fairytale wonderland here, no talk of such things! :(

I have a stray pussy who became blind in one eye soon after he started visiting me, it had occasionally swelled and gone red, even caked and cracked but settled down again, he was far too wary for a start for me to do anything but now he is a big softie. The eye looks fine now, although there is a white film over it I can see a healthy eye underneath.

That's such a heart breaker pic to start with Margaret, thanks!

Great pictures. I love watching our Osprey here on our lake. It's such a shame that mother nature has made this little one partially blind.

Margaret, that was an hilarious ending to your last thread. I had a good chuckle over it. Your a great entertainer. Nice head shot of Mum and Aussie. Aussie has indeed made a lot of progress, almost ready to leave home now, and take care of herself. Lovely threads.

I was thinking the same thing pelle and resin, that mum's eye is causing her pain both physical and psychological. I don't see her checking into a clinic in the near future though. Too bad a veterinarian can't examine her.

Awesome first pic Margaret of the two of 'em. Beautiful.

What's going on w/ Aussie Margaret?

BTW, do you have a wildlife rehabilitation center any where near there?

Might be a good thing to look into for Mum after Lil' Aussie leaves.

Pelle, once again you can knock me down with a feather. I was just thinking it has been a couple of days since I gave an update and lo' and behold, there was the post from you. Freaky (again).

I didn't get to the nest site today as I had to take a pet bird to the avian vet. I've been the previous two days though. Aussie is behaving in a very confident and assured way. She's going for brief unescorted flights and takes off and lands like she's been doing it for years. She watches Mum intently whenever Mum is doing something a little differently. The day before yesterday Mum was picking up and moving a large twig within the nest. Aussie followed her every move and could then be seen fiddling with a smaller twig.

Dad continues to bring fish to the nest and even if the female isn't right there, she can see that he is there and starts scolding him vociferously and as usual, he leaves promptly.

I was speaking to a chap on the phone this afternoon who rehabilitates raptors . He has given me a couple of other contacts, one here in Perth and one in Canberra (other side of the country and the nation's capital) who should be able to provide details on the female and the circumstances of her banding. He was very surprised when I described the condition of her left eye and regrettably, he agreed with Resin's prognosis for survival after the current breeding period has finished. He was saying that oceanic birds, which includes Ospreys, are the most difficult birds to have in captivity for rehabilitation purposes, and that West Australian Ospreys that need to be rehabilitated are cared for in a remote area several hundred kilometres from Perth.

I found a feather on the embankment a couple of days ago and I'm 98% sure it is an Ospreys feather. I took some shots of it this morning and will post one when I can.

I've tried to include a photo from a couple of days ago but it's not happening.

That is so sad about mum's prognosis. This may have already been asked but when Aussie is ready find a mate will she stay in the same area that she is raised in?

Likely in the same general area, but probably not at exactly the same place.

Resin

Here's a photo I took of the feather I found.

Have we already found out the general number of Osprey in Oz?

Not yet, Pelle, but I'm hoping to speak to the guy in Canberra shortly.

No wonder she's cranky with an eye like this.

Oh the poor dear!!

Hello all. Have enjoyed catching up and seeing Juniors progress. Sad about the mum, but maybe she will beat the odds.

Elaine

I hope so, Elaine. Poor Momma.

Don't get over heated, Margaret. What were the temps last week? 100+ F?

Yes, Margaret.. Be sure to drink lots of water and stay in the shade.

Thanks for the update Margaret and sad about Mum. She did a terrific job on raising Aussie, with her limitation. It will be nice to go back to these threads, and read about that little family again. Hope you can find out information about Mum.

How good of you all to be concerned about the Mum Osprey. I spoke to a really delightful man at the Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme in Canberra this morning. Without the last two numbers on the band, he can only narrow things down so far, but not far enough for her to be positively identified. The number 28 (as in the first three numbers, ie 280) represent the band size. The 062 gives a rough time frame, which without the last two numbers is pretty broad, any time between 1984 and 1995. There were a number of Ospreys banded with the 062 prefix and the only thing he was able to tell me without the critical last two numbers are the ones which have been reported dead.

I've just got off the phone to a woman in Perth whose husband is the one who does the banding. She confirmed the above, but will search their database and see if they can narrow it down further, but she said they'd be really keen to get the last two numbers. That will be difficult unless she get into that position where I was able to photograph her on New Years Day.

I didn't get to the site again today because of the pet bird having surgery (successfully). Hopefully I'll be able to get there tomorrow afternoon.

Our temperatures have hovered just below the 100F mark although parts of Perth that are inland from the coast have been hotter. Gascoyne Junction, a town several hundred km north east of here got 46.6C which converts to "very very hot" F. http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDW60801/IDW60801.94410.shtml

Yes, but it's a dry heat. ;)

Still dangerous. Keep your hat on Margaret!

At 46 degrees, death from hyperthermia (overheating) is common. When temperatures reached 40 to 46° in Europe in the August 2003 heatwave, it killed 35,000 people. Not something to trifle with!

Resin

I am glad that your pet bird did well with surgery, Marg. You may have already stated this, but what kind of bird and what kind of surgery did it have?

Kim

Hope you pet bird has a quick recovery...

Well, since Margaret is asleep right now, Kim I can tell you that it was a canary with a cyst. She thought it was an egg binding at first.

Thanks for info Mrs. I am so glad that it was not an egg issue!

Kim

Resin, I can't remember the exact year but the hottest day Perth recorded was back in the mid 1990's, when it got to 46.2C. Very few plants escaped unscathed, being badly sunburnt, but I don't recall losing any. Someone rang one of the local radio stations yesterday and said that it was 51C in Wiluna (Outback). The hottest day I can remember was at a place called Onslow back in the 1970's and the thermometer was off the scale, which only went as high as 52C. Now THAT was hot!!! Yet, in the heat of the day a group of indigenous workers were working in full sun doing work on a park, digging "n' things, seemingly immune to the heat. I thought I was going to die. Australia is geared for extreme heat so when it does hit, the impact isn't anywhere near as severe as when that heatwave hit Europe. My GD was in Paris at the time and she said it felt far, far hotter than the same heat in Oz. I guess if we had ice and snow it would take a lot of people out, myself included, as we're just not used to it.

Yes, it is a canary and a very expensive one at that. Hopefully I'll be able to go and pick her up this morning and get to the nest this afternoon. I haven't been the last two days because of Mrs Canary.

There was no sign or sound of Mum Osprey during the three hours I spent at the site this afternoon. Aussie was on a low branch in an ideal position for taking photos, except half her body was in shade and half in brilliant sunlight, thus the cropped shot. She had obviously just had a bath as her feathers were wet and she preened with enthusiasm except when she dozed off.

Dad was in his favourite tree with a fish which he eventually brought to the nest. Aussie squawked loudly and repeatedly from her perch, but when she realized that Dad wasn't going to bring the fish to her, she flew up to join him. He was on the nest for close on three minutes and if Mum had been around there's no way she would have tolerated him there for so long.

I'll go there in the morning, not to take photos, but to see if there's any sign of the female.

Look at this gorgeous young bird. She was completely unconcerned about the racket of several waterboarders having fun on the river directly below her.

She is gorgeous!! Hope Mums okay.

Lots of cropped shots today. Little commentary. I am concerned about the female's whereabouts.

So do I Pelle. I guess in light of what Resin and the other chap who rehabilitates raptors has said about her chances, we need to hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.

Aussie was looking directly at me for close on ten seconds. I got a burst of shots like this.

stunning pics Maragret!

That is such disstressing news about mum....

I'm guessing (hopefully) that Dad will finish raising Aussie.
Having experienced it myself, the lack of depth perception can put you into some dangerous situations. Even landing on her favorite branch must be hard.

Wonderful shots, Margaret! I am hopeful that Mom just needed a day away.

Kim

These are just wonderful Margaret...and I am hoping the best for Mum.