Santa Cruz Update, Thursday, March 29, 2007

[IWS Crew]

Hello Everyone,

We have a bit of sad news to report this week: the south side nest has failed. Ryan was at the nest last week and immediately noticed that K-11 and A-04 were no longer incubating. The adults perched near the nest for most of the afternoon before flying out of view to the west, ultimately indicating to Ryan that the nest had failed. Ryan then went to the nest location and collected shell fragments from the ground to be sent to the lab for analyzing.

Nest failures among wild bald eagle pairs are not uncommon. There are several explanations to why the nest failed. To begin, like last year, A-04 and K-11 chose to nest on the ground. Unlike a tree or pinnacle nest, a ground nest is more exposed to terrestrial predators. It is possible, but not likely, that a fox or skunk flushed the incubating eagle of the nest and snatched the eggs for a quick meal. The nesting location is also an area inhabited by a large population of gulls and ravens, both whom would love to have a chance to grab and eagle egg. Additionally, A-04 and K-11 never actually ‘built’ a nest. Without the normal stick structure and grass cushioning, eggs are exposed to sharp ground objects (like rocks or sea shells) that could easily puncture a fragile egg. Another explanation was that the egg was unfertilized and not viable, resulting in a broken egg and abandoned nest. We are not sure exactly what happened or why it happened. We will be sending the shell fragments to the lab, but we don’t anticipate the nest failure to be attributed to DDT and DDE contaminates. Sometimes these things just happen.

So, what next for K-11 and A-04? According to recent GPS data, A-04 remains in the original nesting territory. With the early nest failure, it is possible that A-04 and K-11 could try again this year. We will continue to monitor the pair for copulation and nesting activity. It’s not over yet.

In other eagle news, we are still monitoring potential nesters on Santa Cruz and Santa Rosa. We are keeping a close eye on A-16 and A-00 on the north side of Santa Cruz, and A-08 and A-22 on the north coast of Santa Rosa. Today, Andy and I will be heading to the south east side of Santa Cruz to check on A-21 and A-11, another potential pair. These birds travel between Anacapa and southeast Santa Cruz, potentially building a nest in either location. A-49 and A-60 are content staying on Santa Rosa while other eagles are moving around between the islands. That about sums it up on the Northern Channel Islands. Our internet is still very slow out here so we are unable to post pictures.

See you 'nest' week,
Chris

[harpo516]

Sad and disappointing news but one can certainly hope that they may yet decide to try again this year - hope, hope!! Thank you for the updates on the other activity. You guys rock!

[Troth]

Oh very sad news, poor K-11 and A-04, I hope they get together and start another nest and try again. Maybe this experince will show them they should try nesting high up away from ground preditors, if that is in fact what the cause was for the failure.

[Eagle Duo]

Thanks for your report, Chris. It is sad that K-11 and A-04's nest failed, but hopeful that they'll try again this year...and maybe next year try building a real nest. Question.....if it was a preditor, would the lab tests be able to show that?

Good luck to you and Andy and everyone else in your continued search or nests, etc. on Santa Cruz. Will ya'll still be there when we come the end of April?

[Loverofchicks]

Thanks Chris and so about the egg. I know that it is hard to lose any eagle egg. Maybe they will still get it together and have another. my talons are crossed. The rest of the news is great. Keep up the good work. I know it is such a pleasure to be out there and would love to be there doing just that, but alas I am old and can't do that anymore . Thanks again Chris and all you others. Frances

[Patti]

I'm sorry about the lost eggs, but I understand these things are not uncommon. Well, too late to build a nest off the ground, but maybe they'll try a second time for ground eggs. Looking forward to the lab results.

Thank you so much for the other island news. Overall, all seems well, aside from the sad loss of eggs. From what we have learned and seen of raven behavior, nothing they would attempt would be surprising.

[Cockney2]

Thanks so much for the update. Do wish that couple would learn to build a real nest off the ground. Hopefully, they will try again.

[SheilaSB]

CHRIS - So sad to hear about the eggs of K-11 and A-04 - hope they will try again to lay eggs - are ground laying eagles every successful in producing chicks? Is it possible they will eventually try to build a nest high off the ground?

[peppermint]

Ohhhhhh such sad news....I hope they add a LOT of fluff to their nest and try again...and keep a watchful eye out for thieving ravens!

[Bea]

I agree, very sad news. But thank you for the update nevertheless!! It is always very appreciated!! Good luck in your continued search. You guys Rock!!
Till nest time!