Alcoa Davenport's Bald Eagle Nest

A Hot and Humid Afternoon

Despite the heat our eagles seem to be doing just fine. I was down by the nest for a little while this afternoon and saw two of them in and around the nest. I also saw one of the parents bring in a fish and then take off. I am attachign a few new pictures from this afternoon.

Lounging on the Deck

I know all of you will like this story and photo.

One of our Security people (Matt) was doing a check today inside the building that is just below the nest. There is a deck on the back of the building just a few feet from the Mississippi River. As he walked by the door leading to the deck he was startled to see a large object out of the corner of his eye. When he backed up to check what he had seen, it turned out to be one of the young eagles perched on the railing of the deck. He was able to snap a couple of pictures through the window.

Now you all have one more place to think about Faith, Hope and Spirit hanging out when you don't see them in the nest.

Sound and Pictures

We are glad we were able to restore the sound this week. I was down at the nest this afternoon and saw all three in different places. One of them was soaring pretty high up riding the wind this afternoon. I watched one of them with a parent head north of the nest far enough I think they crossed highway 67 and were probably in the vicinity of Pleasant Valley High School and Scott Community College before they turned around and headed back toward the nest. I am attaching a couple of new shots from today of one of the "little guys" on a dead branch in a neaby tree and then "taking off" to head back over to the nest.

Flying Lessons

I stopped at the nest site this afternoon to find all three taking turns making laps over the property. At one point all three of ours were int he nest/tree and I saw two other new eaglets/eagles flying off to the west of the nest. I suspect we may have another nest not too far away from this nest. Below are a few shots of ours flying, one working on his approach into the nest and a set of three pelicans flying in formation near the nest.

I Now Pronounce You Fledged

I was able to check the nest site late Friday afternoon. I believe it is safe to say all three of the eaglets have fledged. I spotted one still in the nest tree (see picture below) but another one was in a tree about 75 to 100 yards west of the nest tree (see other picture). I was not able to spot the third, but I am confident he/she was nearby and keeping an eye on me. One of the parrents circled above at one point riding the wind. I also had an eggret or a heron and a pelican cruize right above me while I was there.

We are looking at options for the camera and perhaps a second camera for next year. We are also looking at a t-shirt to commemorate this year's group of "kids". Keep an eye on this site for more announcements.

To Fledge, Or Not to Fledge?

That is the question. I have not seen the eaglets outside of the nest tree yet. That does not mean it has not happened, just that I have not seen it. I did visit the nest today and saw one of the parents in the nest and the three eaglets on various branches of the nest tree. They were much further away from the nest than I saw when I visited last week. I am attaching a couple of pictures from today of eaglets on branches (they were each in their own spot) and of one of the parents coming back in for a landing in the nest.

Cooler Day - Still No Sound

Our forecast is great for the next couple of days with cooler temps and low humidity. I would expect the activity level of the eaglets to be high today and tomorrow.

As you know, we still have no sound. Our technician worked on this several times last week with no success. This is a software issue. We use a product called wirecast to get the signal from a computer to the internet and we have had a number of issues this year when that audio connection gets broken. Our technician is out this week, so we hope he can get it fixed next week.

A Hot Sunday

Both the heat and the humidity are supposed to be heading up today in advance of a cold front. Expect a brezzy day and perhaps a few storms this evening.

I wanted to share there is a new way for those of you in the Quad Cities to get a glimpse of the nest. That is from the new extension of the Riverfront Recreation Trail on the Iowa side of the river. The section in Riverdale passes just north of the nest site. It is probably a little closer than viewing from the illinois side of the river and the nest is a little easier to see even with the leaves out on the tree.

One other thing I wanted to comment on is the ongoing discussion many of you are having about various ways to keep in touch in the "off season". This site stays up, but I post many fewer new threads between August and November. You are welcome to continue posting observations here, but I will remind people again that this is not a moderated chat and I would suggest it is not a good place to share personal information. If some of you want to connect and share personal info you may want to consider a more secure way to accomplish that both now and in the "off season".

Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

In and Out of the Nest Today

It has been a very busy day in the nest today. From what I can tell they are starting to venture a little further away from the nest, but I do not believe they have left the tree yet. I am attaching a few photos from this afternoon's trip to the nest. One of the parents did a fly-by to check me out. The other photos show two eaglets around the nest and one on the far side of the tree hiding behind a bunch of leaves. The final shot is a wider view and I have circled the nest on the left and the one hiding in the leaves on the right side a little ways above the nest.

Maybe Some Sound Today

You may see the camera go off-line from time to time today as we try to re-connect the sound. We are not sure why we lose the sound like this, but it can be very stubborn getting it back. We may have to do a total shutdown and bring the system back up.

Meantime, it looks like another very active day in the nest already with eaglets on the branch and off to the side multiple times.

Still in the Branches

I know many of you watching every day get concerned when the eaglets are not in view. We do not have a way to see all the trees to know exactly when they do fledge. I can tell you that when I have visited the site the last few days they are either in the nest or on branches next to the nest. I am attaching a couple of new pictures taken this afternoon that show all three eaglets. The one on the right side of the picture is on the "Alcoa branch" next to the camera. The one on the far left is on a brach that is out of the video camera range.

Cool, Crisp Start to Sunday

Sunny, no wind, low 50's to start the day. I think the eaglets actually like a little wind because they don't have to work quite so hard to get a little bit airborn. Hopefully we will get our audio working again this week. I know many of you miss the eagle sounds and the sounds of the trains going by just a little north of the nest.

Don't forget to check out the new Alcoa ospreycam at www.alcoa.com/ospreycam.

 

A Few New Pictures

I made a trip over to the nest at noon today to grab a few new pictures from the ground. There is one shot directly below the nest that gives you a good idea of some of the nearby branches the eaglets are using to get ready for fledging.

Nice Day Today

It looks like we will have a beautiful day today for eaglet watching. Everyone seems to have dried out just fine following the one-inch of rain we got during the day yesterday.

Early this monring the camera locked up, but we now have the video streaming again. The audio always seems to take a while to get re-connected. Hopefully the audio will be back in the next hour or so.