Good morning everyone! This topic has been created for you to discuss events you see on the Bosch KestrelCams. Please ask questions, post observations and share knowledge about what our kestrels do during this 2015 nesting season.
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One nestling and 2 fledglings
One nestling and 2 fledglings still in the box
The little female fledglings
The little female fledglings and the little guy who hasn't left yet are in the box right now. Nice how they haven't left this last little one all alone! 7:44 Boise time.
Did not give him much of
Did not give him much of their food though, LOL. Ate it almost all themselves, except some crumbs.
I thought of another
I thought of another hypothesis - knowing from my budgies that when feathers grow in, feather sheaths protect them until they disintegrate, could it be that the little guy still needs all his feathers ready to go?
The two female fledglings
The two female fledglings are spending the night in the box together with the little male who did not fledge yet.
Interesting, that the two
Interesting, that the two female and one male fledglings spend most of the time in the box, now the second day ( second for the females)
Have not seen this before, at least not to this extend
the rodent feast is over .
the rodent feast is over . the three fledglings in the box tore it in pieces.
one of the fledglings left
one of the fledglings left the box. Sitting on the roof watching the sunset, then moved on to the roof.
two little female fledglings
two little female fledglings resting in box, probably for the nite
yeah, the male fledgling
yeah, the male fledgling decided to stay outside, so the two sisters will stay alone in the box, neatly warming each other.
After spending the night in
After spending the night in the box, both female fledglings left the box.
exciting watching the seven
exciting watching the seven doing fly-bys at the nest box!!!
Amazing. Male fledgling in
Amazing. Male fledgling in the box, at least 5 kestrels flying around, 3 landed on the top od the box, another one on the roof, another one flying by.
You can tell that the youngsters are not very skilled fliers yet, LOL.
Couple of fledglings on the
Couple of fledglings on the top of the box, at one moment a fledgling was perching from outside and another one from the inside of the cavity.
It is amazing how the family works together.
I think that the time of fledging and the days after are the most exciting times!
No kidding - it's great that
No kidding - it's great that the kestrel fledglings stick around after fledging - they have quite a bit of hunting and flying practice to work on! It makes for some fun watching for us
Just a few suggestion for
Just a few suggestion for next year for the drop down menu.
The biggest issues are there in the week prior to fledging and at after the fledging. also missing option between one bird and all birds
Also, it is often , due to poor resolution, difficult to identify the sex of kestrels in question.
so
- providing options for multiple birds, e.g. 2 kestrels looking out of the cavity, two kestrels stretching and flapping wings etc.
- clarifying perching/looking out
- perching inward/outward
- short touch down at the cavity ( to reassure or to ask to fledge)
- option for non id sex chick/fledgling/adult
- chirping
- landing on trees, roof , trellis
- fly by
- non kestrel specie- option for multiple, also option for a.magpie b.other
- providing for option how many chicks fed at time.
After certain stage, delete/disable from menu obsolete options
Might be a few more things, this is just what came to my mind.
Thanks for the suggestions!
Thanks for the suggestions! We'll likely tweak it after this season and going into the next
You can hear the chick
You can hear the chick communicating with other family members- even got food delivered twice.
Fledgling on the roof eating
Fledgling on the roof eating pray. Unfortunately, the inside cam is down.
Fledgling on the roof eating
Fledgling on the roof eating pray. Unfortunately, the inside cam is down.
Fledgling on the roof,
Fledgling on the roof, another on the railing. Fly by s, landing in trees.
fledglings perch in the
fledglings perch in the cavity from outside.
you can hear the fledglings
you can hear the fledglings even if you cannot see thnem- chirping loud and clear.
Now we can see him/her 9
Now we can see him/her 9 resolution does not allow ID) , sitting on the "trellis' and chirping.
kestrel landing at the
kestrel landing at the opening, looking inside and leaving.
the family is now less around the box than before.
A lot of activity again this
A lot of activity again this morning! A male fledgling in the box. Others landing on the top of the box or on the roof. Playful interaction between two kestrels in flight. Fly by s.
Now both male and female
Now both male and female fledgling in the boX !. A lot of chirping and excitement Others around.
Awesome, cb! Sounds like fun
Awesome, cb! Sounds like fun to watch!
A couple of fledglings
A couple of fledglings arrived, touch downs, a lot of chirping, one of them entering the box.
https://flic.kr/p/tXwpYQ
https://flic.kr/p/tXwpYQ
https://flic.kr/p/uU55qb
https://flic.kr/p/uUxSCF
https://flic.kr/p/uC6E5M
A few pics of todays activity in the box.
2 fledglings in the box and
2 fledglings in the box and the third one looking inward through the cavity. A lot of activity on the roof.Food calls.Parent delivers some food to the little male.
How beautiful our little
How beautiful our little fledglings are! They appear less little now. How long until a fledgling is as large as his or her parents, and how much longer will it be until they are considered adult birds?
A young kestrel chick reach
A young kestrel chick reach their adult body size before fledging actually occurs - we band nestlings around age 20-25, which is when their legs do not grow any bigger. After their body is full-size, however, it is just a matter of how much their feathers grow in.
So, by the time they leave the nest, they are technically the same size as the adults - they just have shorter flight feathers. Their flight feathers will be fully grown in by late summer.
They are considered "fledglings" during the entire period of the parents continuing to care for them. Once they become independent and leave the care of the adult kestrels, they are then considered "juvenile" birds. They remain juveniles until they are about one year old, which is when they become old enough to breed.
Compared to other birds of prey, American Kestrels grow up very quick!
All five fledglings on the
All five fledglings on the roof at 9:19 PM Boise time!
Gosh, two magpies! Lets' hope
Gosh, two magpies! Lets' hope the fledglings stay safe.
The lag between the two cams is unacceptable.
what's with the camera's
what's with the camera's today (Sunday)?
The cameras have been reset.
The cameras have been reset. Everything looking better now? :)
Yes and thank you very much!
Yes and thank you very much! - I enjoy watching these little kestrels so much, and they grow up and leave the nest so fast, I just hold on to every second of being able to see them as they grow and get out in the wide, wild world out there.
Saw one on the ladder!!! Not
Saw one on the ladder!!! Not sure if a parent or fledgling or male or female - but I saw one!!! Thanks for the re-set!
Bit of a storm rolling in? -
Bit of a storm rolling in? - and, no, I"m not just sitting here watching for the kestrels to make an appearance - cleaning up the house and the computer sits in the middle of my living room where I walk past it every couple of minutes,, but glad to see any appearance the kestrels make! Hope they are safe out of that wind!
This hard wind has to be
This hard wind has to be challenging for the fledglings- but they are still out there.
Wow, five magpies! Lucky us
Wow, five magpies! Lucky us all the chicks fledged...
There is some kind of
There is some kind of software issue with the outside cam. The picture
is covered by the log in page of the system.
I spotted a family group of
I spotted a family group of kestrels kiting in the valley on my way up to The World Center for Birds of Prey. The fledglings are definitely becoming adept little fliers, and I bet they are getting good hunting practice in as well!
This year it seems to be a
This year it seems to be a real success story.
BTW, one question: In the first year o9f the cam, the dad kestrel got killed a few weeks after fledging.( he was a great dad) So the male is definitely a new one. I wonder whether the female is still the same one as in the two years before.
Hello!
Hello!
We believe that this year is a new pair entirely. Last year the female was banded, and this year neither male or female were banded. This male could be the same one from last year, but he seemed to be behaving quite differently, which is why I suspect that both are new.
The female is definitely new - the one this year has no band, and we banded the female from last year.
Thanks. My impression was
Thanks. My impression was also that the male behaved differently. Wonder what happened to the old pair. Kestrels are small and I could think that their casualty rates are higher even as experienced adults than let's say red tailed hawks.
For kestrels, nest territory
For kestrels, nest territory shuffling isn't always related to mortality. Males migrate from wintering grounds first, and then they claim nest boxes and nesting territory. Once established, the males try to attract a female to their nest and territory.
A male kestrel can (and often does) claim the same territory year after year for nesting. However, if a different male makes the claim first, or outcompetes the old male, territorial shuffling can occur. This means a different male and different female nests. The original male can often be found nesting nearby, however.
So, in areas with an active kestrel population, such as the Idaho Treasure Valley, a pair relocating does not necessarily mean they have perished :) Experienced adults have a high rate of making it from year to year, much like other birds of prey.
Thanks. Are there other
Thanks. Are there other kestrel boxes near by or is it the only one in the area and the other kestrels just nest wherever they can?
There are some other nest
There are some other nest boxes in the area, within a mile. They are not very close, however, as we want to maximize the chance of kestrels choosing to nest in the box with a camera mounted to it.
The other nest boxes are managed by Boise State University, and they are a part of their decades-long kestrel study. After fledging occurs, family groups from those nest boxes are spotted by staff here, often grouped with the kestrels that fledged from the KestrelCam box. One Peregrine Employee even counted 21 kestrels hanging out on the hill one morning!