Nesting Diaries
The male returned several weeks ago but the female has not yet returned. This pair has been nesting on the platform for several years so the female may have died. There are active nests on platforms nearby but the male Old One has yet to find a new mate--very sad as he sits in a dead tree nearby and calls all day.
Two of the three fledglings have left the nest permanently and the parents have mostly dismantled the nest to encourage the last one to leave. It stays either on the nest or in the nearby pine trees and peeps constantly. I have observed one parent trying to keep it from the nest but the fledgling just doesn't want to go. The parent did bring a fish to the nest two weeks ago but doesn't seem to be feeding it now.
Fledging will occur soon; the chicks are trying their wings and watching the parents closely.
There are three healthy and hungry chicks in the nest. I believe they hatched in the last 15 days or so but I was only able to see them clearly in the last few days.
The egg laying date is approximate since I wasn't there to observe. The platform is out in the river so I can't see how many eggs are in the nest.
I observed the parents mating on 3/25/16--they may have mated earlier as well. The female stays on or near the nest but the male spends little time there. Two years ago they successfully raised three chicks. Last year the two chicks hatched about two weeks apart and the younger one didn't survive.