Thursday, September 3, 2015

Oooops...not missing after all!

Apparently I wrote too soon...today I returned to visit the nest where the  22 year old male was  missing. I have been to this nest 8 times since Aug 1, usually watching for about an hour or more. I have never seen him, but have seen the female delivering fish at least five times...but today he is here! One chick was alone on the nest when I arrived, quietly finishing the tail of a fish. I waited. Suddenly the young one errupted into hysterical food begging. I checked the old males favorite perch and sure enough, it was him. He ate part of the fish and then delivered it to the youngster in the nest who was almost apoplectic. The other chick did not show up, so must be out of earshot...or on its way south. So I breath a sigh of relief. He may be slowing down in his  old age, but he is still here. I am crossing all my fingers and toes that he will survive another migration and set a new longevity record next year by breeding successfully in his 23rd year.

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