Observation date: 13 February 2014
Female sitting in the “waterfall” hole, the tiercel above Photo by Bob Isenberg
As it nears nesting time, we are not always sure of what we see or what it is we want to see. On the 13th of February, I observed the female sitting in the “waterfall” hole on my arrival at the rock at 9AM. She remained there until 2PM, just her head showing over the lip of the opening. At times her eyes would close for a few minutes. The day before on her arrival at 11:30 AM, she landed on the “diving board” and within a few seconds retired to the rear of this former eyrie not to be seen for the next two hours. This type of behavior is consistent with egg laying, but previous years of observation say we are still a couple of weeks early.
In my previous posting “Soon to be busy…”, I mentioned that she stops hunting and he brings food to her. I have not seen any food exchanges as of yet.
What I am looking for is the tell-tale soiled vent that she will have after egg laying begins. This you cannot mistake, but I have yet to catch her in a sitting or perching position where this can be seen or photographed.
Under the tail, the vent feathers are dry, so no egg laying yet Photo by Cleve Nash
Right now it’s all speculation, in time it will happen. Meanwhile, it gives me something to write about and the rest of us something to ponder.
Happy trails, Bob
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If you are confused about the suspense about not knowing, wait a month or two and you can jump right over the “suspense” part.
Love the story and the way you write it, Bob. See you one of these days.
Glad you enjoyed it. We think the stories that Bob writes are great, too. You’ll know where to find him… out at the rock! ~Heather
Bob, thanks for keeping us up to speed on happenings at the Rock. Now I defer to the expert. What is the large bird flying by? Booby, Albatross, I’m stumped. Steve from Mi
There was a pod of Brown Pelicans. Only one was in the photo.
Inclement weather has held us to a minimum of observations. Saturday not even foot traffic was allowed in the south parking lot due to the high seas and rollers in the inlet between the jetties. ~Bob