Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

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MaryF
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:27 pm

HWF would like to welcome RRP's Decorah North Nest back for a new season! This is year 4 for the cam but is the third season for them here on our forum. :hi:

PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS NOT THE ORIGINAL DECORAH NEST WHICH HAS IT'S OWN THREAD ON THE FORUM

Link to the cam with chat -- https://www.raptorresource.org/birdcams ... orth-nest/

Another link by explore .. https://explore.org/livecams/bald-eagle ... north-nest

Link to the Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/groups/580935642071322


***Some photos used in the opening posts are from "2016 DNN Tribute" - Courtesy of and Property of Raptor Resource Project -
http://www.docsplace.org/decorah-eagles ... -live-cam/

DNN   M+D DN   2   2016.jpg
-- Mom and Dad North


Decorah North’ is a very large bald eagle’s nest in a secluded valley north of Decorah. The Decorah North eagles are nesting on private property north of Decorah. Their very large nest is located in a white oak tree in a scrap of forest bordering a valley and an excellent stream is located just across a field where cattle are pastured. We don’t yet know their nesting chronology, although it appears to be somewhat later than their ‘neighbors’ in Decorah. The eagles eat live and dead fish, squirrels, other birds, rabbit, muskrat, deer, possum and anything else they can catch or find.




A few facts about the nest ~~~

*The nest is 56 feet off the ground and is located in a sturdy white oak tree!

***It was nine feet long at its longest point

***It was seven feet wide at its widest point

***It had a total area of 49 square feet

***It was about 5.5 feet high

***The eagles began building it in 2013 so 2018 was their third year and last year using the nest that is shown in these pictures.

***Using the method listed here (http://goo.gl/WajKSb), The nest’s weight was roughly estimated to be roughly 1700 pounds (using 37 pounds per cubic foot for wood weight). Good thing it is located in a sturdy white oak tree!

***The nest we are watching now is a starter nest built by Kike Arnal and Amy Ries in September of 2018. The eagles adopted it in October of 2018 and show every sign of moving in! The nest was built on a frame of 4x4s and measures 7×6 feet after the former nest collapsed after the 2018 season!!. It is the 4th nest built on this territory since 2009.

DNN   nest area   2016.jpg
-- DNN nest area



A quick note from RRP: The nest is located on private property and can’t be seen from the road. We are asking everyone to respect the landowner’s privacy (and cattle) and refrain from visiting the nest in person. Thank you.
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:28 pm

Nest History


Link to last season's thread -- viewtopic.php?p=2407#p2407

Please be sure to check out the first several posts in last year's thread to read a little more about this nest's history---some good and some sad!


We know very little about the adults here, although they are both sexually mature bald eagles and older than five years of age.

DNN   lovebirds   2016.jpg
--The DNN Lovebirds! This Mom is no longer with us :(



We don't know too much about the nest that we watched last season as it was still fairly new. We do know that it was the third nest built on this territory in seven or eight years. We don’t know whether the same pair of eagles have been here all along for sure.

DNN   Nest and tree   6-16.jpg
--The nest tree and old nest (2018)

The first nest (DNN0) was built in a pine tree. The branches collapsed after the second nesting season and the eagles moved to a dead elm tree. They nested there for just one year before moving to their current location, in a white oak tree, in late 2013. 2018 marked their fifth season in the Decorah north Nest.

DNN   3 eggs   2017.jpg
--3 eggs in 2017 and a parent switch
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:28 pm

. We had a very sad and disturbing end to the 2018 season at this nest. Rather than try to write it out I will post what RRP wrote in their blog. :(

SNN   love   5-21-18.jpg
Little DN8 and DN 7 :love:


Eaglet deaths at Decorah North
May 26, 2018 RaptorResource

We are sorry to announce that both eaglets at the Decorah North nest died yesterday. To recap: Mrs. North laid one egg on February 25. That egg broke on March 16th, but she reclutched on April 12th, laying one egg on the 12th and another egg on the 15th. DN7 hatched on May 18th and DN8 hatched on April 20th.

Why did the eaglets die? As we learned last year at Great Spirit Bluff, blackflies carry a pathogen that overwhelms the immune systems of young birds. Today’s blackfly strike, combined with the extreme heat and humidity, was more than the eaglets could take. The North reclutch was inspirational, but we all worried that the late hatch might negatively affect the eaglets – and it did. As John pointed out, what happened at the North nest shows how important the hatch window is in the larger picture. Insect hatches that overlap the vulnerable developmental stages of eagles and falcons can have devastating effects.

DNN   me too 2   5-22-18.jpg
Beautiful, tiny D8 and D7

Even knowing that our eagles are truly wild, it is really hard and unfair to watch them seemingly succeed, only for their eaglets to perish. Sherri expressed what all of us are feeling when she wrote: “We were given a miracle gift and got to know two eaglets who showed us their fierce and feisty nature for seven and five days…that is what I will hold onto, and the determination and dedication of these parents.” Both parents did their very best to shelter their eaglets from the gnats and the weather. We will continue to love and cherish our eagles and falcons, collect information to help us understand the challenges they face, and act on their behalf. Goodbye, DN7 and DN8 – it was wonderful to know you.

DNN   I'm ready   5-21-18.jpg
DNN - adorable lost babies :(

A tribute video: https://youtu.be/hxyn-7Ojxq0.
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:29 pm

.As if losing the one egg in the first clutch and then the early deaths of DN7 and DN8 was not enough, on August 27th during a bad storm the nest fell out of the tree!!! :faint:


This is the report from RRP ---

We are very sorry to announce that the Decorah North Nest fell last night during a storm. We visited the nest today to assess the damage and look for Mr. and Mrs. North. Somewhat to our surprise, there were no freshly broken branches or limbs at the base of the tree or beneath the fallen nest. Given the high wind gusts and lashing rain that accompanied last night’s storm, we think that the wind blew the nest’s supporting branches off-kilter. The nest, which was heavily laden with water and slippery wet, plunged down between them. Once the nest started sliding, it was all over.

We’ve been asked if we’re going to build a starter nest for Mr. and Mrs. North. The DNN tree is a little tougher to work in than N2B, since the nest was cradled in branches at the side of the tree instead of built into a secure crotch. We are weighing our options and will be making another visit to assess the situation once our camera work on Lake Onalaska is done. We will advise of any options or plans once the tree is evaluated and our climbing experts and Board of Directors have a determination of how to proceed.

We did not find Mr. and Mrs. North, although the weather was stormy almost all day long and they may easily have been hunkered down under cover elsewhere in the valley. We are able to monitor the nest remotely via camera and will be watching and listening for them and checking on their status.

It’s been a tough year for Mr & Mrs North, but we are all very thankful that it is the off-season for them and that there were no eagles in the nest when it went down. You may have questions, so please know that we will do our best to answer them, but in some cases we might not be able to speculate or give a definite response until our site assessment is complete.

DNN   nest remains   2018.jpg
Here is what remains of the old nest on the ground under the tree
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:29 pm

.It was decided by RRP after checking out the tree that a platform and starter nest would be built in the nest tree to see if the eagle pair would come back and nest there again.

Pictured is photographer, researcher, and eagle-nest whisperer Kike Arnal. Kike is building the platform that will hold the North nest. This site is more challenging than N2B since it is built out on a Y-branch and not the snug crotch of a tree. We have a whole crew preparing sticks, helping to lift things into the nest, getting cameras ready (well, John is pretty much handling audio and video prep, which is a huge job), and helping to keep everyone fed and watered over a long, hot day. We hope Mr. and Mrs. North like their starter nest: it is a lot of work, but we think it is turning out well!

DNN   nest platform   2018.jpg
New beginnings---the platform

Again from RRP ---

The Decorah North Nest cameras are now broadcasting live 24/7 video again and we’ve spotted a squirrel and a couple of mice. We are anxious to see Mr and Mrs North back on cam and checking out the new digs we constructed for them. The new starter nest for The North’s is roughly 7ft x 6ft. While the ‘short side’ nearest the tree is shorter, the nest is built out more. It is quite large – about 42 square feet. We added a 4K cam and microphone, and kept the other cams in place for a total of 3 PTZ cameras and a fixed cam on the nest tree and the Pasture PTZ cam to provide clearer views of the eagles when they are perched along the creek. The 4K cam has a wiper blade for cleaning and seeing more clearly in the rain. We’ve used this kind of camera to catch incredible footage of peregrine falcons at our Great Spirit Bluff nest, and are anxious to see how it works here when needed. The eagles have never seen wiper blades in motion, so we will be exercising caution using it until they are well into the nesting season.
You may have noticed that the starter platform sits a little higher and is more level overall than the nest that collapsed, but it is in a much more sturdy and stable. We’re very curious to see how they amend and modify their new digs and Mrs North may not need to build up a big stairway to the Ladder Branch as she has in previous years. Although we don’t know that this was Mr. North, an adult eagle visited the nest for a fish dinner yesterday afternoon! https://youtu.be/nzW5jWoom4A
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DNN   new platfom nest   2019.jpg
The new starter nest
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:29 pm

I guess the above 2 happenings were just not enough for the DNN nest for one year! Now it seems as though we have lost our beloved Mrs North according to this report from RRP :brknhrt:

DNN   Mrs. North   2018.jpg
The beautiful Mrs. North


On DNN ~ We have finished combing through archival photos from 2016 to present and have confirmed that we have our same male eagle (Mr. North) going into the 2019 nesting season, but we have had a change in our female eagle (Mrs. North). We are not sure what happened to Mrs. North to prompt this change, but we know it happened in the summer of 2018. With the crazy up and down year that 2018 was at the Decorah North Nest, this seems like just one more sad realization in their story. :(

Mrs. North was clearly a unique eagle, loving partner, doting mother and excellent provider. As Bob Anderson had wished, our three years of observation allowed additional insight into the life of ‘country eagles’ compared to their city cousins at the Decorah fish hatchery nest. We know you will all have your own special memories of Mrs. North, and ours include her trademark twirl of the corn husk; braving through methomyl poisoning from tainted prey in the 2017 season; loss of her first egg in the 2018 season and her remarkable ability to produce a second clutch of two eggs while incubating them to hatch in over of foot of Spring snow. We’ll also remember her unique ability to use deadly talons to gently foot her eggs to roll them, as well as her penchant for cow placenta – aka cowghetti. Her absence leaves as much of a void as the loss of 5 of their 8 offspring, but we will always remember her legacy. Note that Mr North will continue to have the same name and the new female will be DNF for Decorah North Female. She will not be known as Mrs North (that name is now retired) and she will not be Mom North either. Thank you!


possible pictures of DNF ---


DNN   new female 2  1019.jpg
DNN   new female 3   2019.jpg

https://www.raptorresource.org/2019/01/ ... WVkDR4FNQg
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:30 pm

.NEST STATS FOR 2019 ~~

DNN   another 3   2016.jpg
The beautiful 2016 eaglets--only one lived to fledge


*Cam on -- October 6th (early for this nest)

*Eggs laid -- Egg #1 - Feb 21, 2019 at 3:23PM --- Egg #2 - Feb. 23, 2019 at 12:23PM (First hatched will be DN9)

*Eggs hatched -- Egg #1 (DN 9) - March 31, 2019 ~~~ Egg #2 (DN10) - April 1, 2019
~~Sad to report that tiny DN10 has passed away for some unknown reason. :(

*Eaglets named --

*Banded --

*Branching --

*Fledged --

* Last seen --

DNN   3 chicks   2017.jpg
Hewey, Louis and Dewey--the 2017 chicks, the youngest did not live to fledge
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Fri Oct 05, 2018 12:30 pm

reserved
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by Philjo56France » Sat Oct 06, 2018 10:08 am

Good Morning all, bonjour Decorah North !
Rainy day for the live at 12h06
2018-10-06_19h07_11.jpg
:rh: E9: 7 yo / E14 :rh:
One day in the wild is worth a lifetime in a cage. B.Shofstall
RIP 2017 to 2023-2024

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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by Kitcat11848 » Sat Oct 06, 2018 1:38 pm

Bonjour Philjo and greetings to all watchers. Is this the nest that fell or have I got it mixed up with another nest?
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by MaryF » Sat Oct 06, 2018 3:42 pm

.
Kitcat---this is indeed the nest that fell. RRP decided to give Mom and Dad DNN a start to a new nest if they choose to use it. That is why we see a nest in the tree. I believe they used some of the material from the fallen nest to make it familiar to them :thumlft:
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by Kitcat11848 » Sat Oct 06, 2018 5:49 pm

Thanks Mary. I thought it was this nest but it looks so good and just like other eagle made nests that I started second guessing myself. Sure hope Mr. and Mrs. DN. choose this beautiful nest, especially since the cams are on this one.
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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by Philjo56France » Sat Oct 06, 2018 10:40 pm

Good morning all, bonjour Bev, Marianne, MaryF
They need to put some rails around….
First night view on an empty nest for a new season
00h38
2018-10-07_07h38_43.jpg
:rh: E9: 7 yo / E14 :rh:
One day in the wild is worth a lifetime in a cage. B.Shofstall
RIP 2017 to 2023-2024

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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by Philjo56France » Sun Oct 07, 2018 2:06 am

04h04, rainy morning
2018-10-07_11h05_07.jpg
:rh: E9: 7 yo / E14 :rh:
One day in the wild is worth a lifetime in a cage. B.Shofstall
RIP 2017 to 2023-2024

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Re: Decorah North (Iowa) - 2018/19

Post by Philjo56France » Sun Oct 07, 2018 5:32 am

07h30
2018-10-07_14h31_22.jpg
:rh: E9: 7 yo / E14 :rh:
One day in the wild is worth a lifetime in a cage. B.Shofstall
RIP 2017 to 2023-2024

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