She is never gone more than a few minutes. The Nature's Promise bag has become a beloved feature in the nest, and mom seems loathe to remove it. (The white line is a reflection from the privacy screen by the window.)
Dad brings in a mid-morning bird snack, and starts ripping out the feathers with his beak.
The feathers rain down on the eyasses below.
After he finishes plucking the bird, the tiercel leaves and the formel begins feeding the youngsters. She has to reach way down from the nest edge into the bowl to fill those hungry beaks.
Those beaks gradually stop demanding food, and it's coma time. Mom
appears to do a last check to see if anyone needs a final morsel.
In addition to eating and sleeping, the baby hawks are starting to pay attention to their environment. Mom's Nature's Promise bag intrigued one of them...
... and soon all three bobbleheads poked out from under their mother.
For some unknown reason, she decided to drag the Nature's Promise bag right over the top of the curious eyasses...
... covering them completely.
She sat quietly content, but it was not long before the bag started twitching. I wish I had video of this as it was hilarious to see her looking down in apparent astonishment...
... trying to figure out why the bag was heaving up and down.
Finally, one of the eyasses managed to get its head out from under the bag, and mom greeted it as if to say, "Oh, there you are!"
The other two struggled out and then all three took a nap to recover.
Dad arrived with pigeon for lunch...
... and headed right back out for more prey.
Mom tucked into her lunch...
... and the eyasses gradually awakened, and lined up to get fed with #3 always at the back of its bigger sibs.
Whoever is at the front and moving around the most gets fed.
Eventually, everyone gets a share and then it's nap time again.
The formel moves carefully around the edge of the bowl and has to clamber down to reach the eyasses.
A little later in the afternoon, she gets up to eat some more pigeon, and the breeze blows that ubiquitous bag back over the eyasses.
An indignant little face eventually peers out...
"Can we get some help here? Anyone....?"
Finally, mom seems to see the problem, and nonchalantly pulls the bag away.
A little too nonchalantly, as it turns out, because no sooner does she fly off...
... than the bag flaps right back over them again!
Nothing to do but take another nap, and await further developments. When she returns, she pulls it away a little...
... and makes up for the bag bother by making sure all three get a hearty share of the pigeon.
It's wonderful to see all three hatchlings eating well, thriving and growing fast. #3 is holding its own despite its small size.
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