Below, you’ll see (from left to right) David, Ricky, and Harriet, yesterday. They and Ozzie, the male parent, are doing very well.

 I haven’t seen the family’s third born, June, for a week. She’s by far the smallest and most timid. Let’s hope that she has been hunkering at the bottom of their deep nest when I’ve been monitoring the family. Here you see Harriet again with the two first born, but with David on the right:

David is the largest and boldest nestling, which is normal for a first born. He’s already flapping his big wings in the breezes, a practice that seems instinctual. He also is the first to rise and eat the fish that Ozzie brings to the nest:

In fact, David is a very self-centered bird; he often complains to his parents aggressively about the indignities of having to stay home all of the time:

Harriet still seems to spend most of her time on the nest, but takes regular breaks to bathe, gather sticks and moss for the nest, and (it seems) just to “stretch her wings.” After her bath, she returns to the nest sopping wet and spreads her feathers to dry:

I’ll keep my eyes out for June. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on July 5 and 7, 2022.)

Comment