Around 6 AM yesterday, June 11, the first eyass safely took flight from the nest. It landed on top of the Civil War monument about 100 yards from the nest.
About 30 minutes ago, at 7:12 AM (Saturday, June 12), the second eyass took off from the nest, shortly followed by the third. Hawkwatchers on the ground this morning report all three are now sitting in nearby trees with the haggards in attendance.
Unlike last year's shaky first flights, these eyasses all seem to be flying really strongly and are landing well!
The formel just visited the nest and removed the remains of that rabbit visible in the nest picture above, and will probably deliver it to one of the eyasses.
Here are some pictures from yesterday (Friday, June 11) taken by Kay Meng and George Lloyd of the first eyass out in the world.
This is the tall monument about 100 yards from the nest with an easy flat surface on top - perfect for one's first landing! Ironically, the carving is a stylized eagle, and the eyass seems to be peering intently down at those wing feathers!
The young hawk was soon visited by the formel. The haggards (parent hawks) are totally aware of where their youngsters are, and will bring food to them as they learn to perfect their flying and hunting skills.
The eyass seemed quite comfortable up there - doing some more wing flaps and then preening.
I will be posting frequently here with updates and pictures of how our young hawks are faring in their next excellent adventures.
Let's congratulate the Franklin Institute on successfully providing and managing this superb nest site for the hawks that allowed them to bring their second brood to fledging.
A wonderful way to show our appreciation of the Ustream web cam feed they provided us to watch this unfolding hawk drama would be to become a member of the Institute and/or visit the stunning Cleopatra exhibition which is now showing.
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My thanks to the Franklin Institute, and to you and your fellow "hawkeyed" friends who provide me with what I would never see if not for your being there. You are all great and so generous with your time, I appreciate it and thank you.
ReplyDeleteYEAH FI!!! Thank you! And many thanks to you for posting an amazing account of our beloved feathered friends. I found this late, maybe early May, and it was a wonderful way to catch up - in fact I was glued to it. thanks again!! ~tribaldancer
ReplyDeleteI am grateful to all those who have made the hawk's nest and activities accessible. What a show! The photos have been stunning. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHooray for our little friends, so nice to see them out and about :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, thank you, one and all for the fantastic photos, descriptions, hawk information and the fascinating webcam. I checked in daily, as the saga unfolded and now flying! Love the first landing above sculpted eagle feathers...perfect. Bravo and gratitude to all from a big fan out in Devon.
ReplyDeleteThank you for all the updates and thanks FI! Please do continue to post pictures and updates of our little babies--especially if you catch any of them actually flying! Cheers to all!
ReplyDeleteThank you for another wonderful season of Hawkadelphia! Love the shot of the eyass looking down at the sculpted feathers; actually, all of these pictures capture scenes I would never have seen. Thank you to the FI for their time and dedication, and thank you to the photographers. This has been two years of glorious success.
ReplyDeleteThanks again for the beautiful photography. Your eyes have given my eyes a feast. Thank you for sharing your art.
Delightful...thank you for this experience!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the updates, great pictures, and interesting information. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the three fledglings beat the odds and successfully left the nest!
Thank you so much, I have really enjoyed watching the progress...up close and personal...I see Hawks flying over my property, gracefully gliding, but have never seen them up close....this has been such a joy !!! Thanks again.
ReplyDeleteCarol
Vineland NJ
This was a most extraordinary experience from beginning to end. As a first-timer, I learned so much thanks to the experts online, these magnificent photos and informative updates by J. Blakeman. Thank you FI for opening a whole new world to viewers new and old.
ReplyDeleteSusanne
California
Another wonderful hawk season. When I saw the empty nest this a.m. I just knew that good things had happened in the last 24 hours! Many thanks to all for your excellent reporting and photography.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for all the photos and updates. I started watching last year and it was thrilling to see the adults return to breed again. These photos are wonderful (especially the penultimate one above), I feel as if I am there watching - although I am 3000 miles away.
ReplyDeleteTHANK YOU! I CHECKED IN EACH DAY TO SEE THE CHICKS GROW. WHAT A THRILL.
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