Amazing plumage changes

This chicks are tranmogrifying extremely quickly – it seems as if they are changing while one watches.

Food today has been pigeon, starlings and a large white bird, possibly a sulphur-crested cockatoo;  can’t be sure as I cannot see the legs.   More might still be coming, but it seems most of the feeding has been in the cool mornings.  The days are heating up now and much of the birdlife is quiet during the day.

This indicates that the pigeon was a particularly desirable prey:

20161104-pigeon-bfast-nest-food-grab-1

 

20161104-pigeon-bfast-nest-food-grab

Even when all the prey was eaten, one chick kept wanting more!

tasty pigeon highly sought after by hungry chicks
tasty pigeon highly sought after by hungry chicks

20161104-the-remains-of-the-meal

We are expecting a lovely weekend, weather wise, with rain on Tuesday or Wednesday and I’m hoping to start swimming…..  I have another landcare commitment on Sunday, but will probably look in on Saturday to see if there have been any developments.

 

28 thoughts

  1. I love this scruffy phase where you can almost SEE their feathers growing, and the way they lumber around looks so cartoonish and clumsy until they flap those gorgeous wings. They’re so cute with their little bandit masks and their piercing eyes, and they must be growing at an amazing rate – Diamond seems dwarfed by them when they approach en masse for a feed…

  2. Xavier is nuts, its almost like he is trying to herd the chicks OUT of ‘his’ box.
    He needs to give up coffee!

    Yes Cilla their feathers are changing fast

  3. Cilla, that reminds me of a Nature special on TV on parrots. If they eat anything toxic, they all fly to a place and eat the clay – which de-toxes them. Very interesting

  4. They’re so naughty! Tug of war, attacking Mum’s tail…. they’re hilarious (and much more mischievous than last year’s well-behaved brood, from memory!)

  5. Just curious, Arjen. Are you taking my videos and turning them into youtubes so they are more easily accessible? I think that’s what Scott normally does, but I’ve never tried to do that.

  6. 17:41 Feeding 4, youtu.be/1SViiEvtwPE
    18:25 Xavier and feeding leftovers, youtu.be/uK6YvIpv-mo

    My previous post with answer to Cilla got stuck in the spam filter, and will appear later. 😀

  7. 10 am Di hauled in GIANT prey as big as she is!
    I was astonished! What a load! What a meal!
    She is such a good mom.

    Lunatic Xavier appears outside, kinda hovers and leaves – quite often.
    He sometimes enters, hops about and exits.
    April got a funny pic of the chicks looking at each other afterward,
    wondering what THAT was all about. lol.
    Its comforting Bev posted her falcon male is the same way.

  8. 10.23 – as Diamond bobs up and down feeding a greedy guts in front of her, another is attacking her tail. What a hoot!

  9. Our software is down again since Sat. morning. I’ll see if I can catch up using Arjen’s website (thanks for this, Arjen) until Scott can fix it.

  10. HUGE PREY!
    November 6, 2016 Shepnotes
    Mum appeared with YUGE prey! WOW!
    2 of the chicks grabbed the prey and tugged Mum for it! LOL!

    One (probly Vim) is getting so dark so fast.
    In the sunshine their brown appears reddish.
    Oz falcons may be a wee bit different than USA.
    Vim very brown – another also brown, Rubi not so much

  11. 7.30 am sun coming in -NO chick on cam! 😮
    Oh . .there they are – on nest cam 😀

    bev’s notes are too good NOT to pass on 🙂 – – –
    I know some of you think Xavier is a nut case, but this site has never witnessed this type of scneario, on cam , at least.

    We , in Edmonton , were a bit concerned when our Chase came on the scene. And like some of you, we thought, what a crazy falcon. and when observing from the ground , I shook my head more than a few times – And then we worried at what type of a partner he would be. He was a cracker jack flyer , as i have mentioned before. Xavier and Chase are like two peas in a pod. And the good news is , chase has become the best at providing and training, but he is still zany some days.

    It will be interesting to see what happens when these young ones fledge. Will he train or want to play. Hoping he trains.
    this is why I think he is 2 years old. Our Chase had no bands but our biologist figured he was 2 years old when he came in .

    We must remember, that all falcons are different, and the dynamics of all pairs are different.
    fingers crossed.
    my main concern is the no perch for the young.

    They are looking good though. I forgot they do not band here. A pity. it would be nice to track them.
    – bev

    * I have notes and pics on my page too

  12. oh dear, I feel so sorry for the one in the middle, who doesn’t have a dead bird of his own…. he looks so forlorn in between would-be ‘raids’ on his siblings’ meals.

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