May 29, 2008 - One chick struggling, others learning to fly

We have some good and some bad news about the red-tail nestlings. We visited the office that looks out on the nest a carefully observed the red-tails from the windows this week. (This opportunity is not open to the public as it is an active business and also heavy visitation so close to the nest would stress out the birds.) The office residents are very cool and have put paper over much of the window to give the birds some privacy.)

Video: View Raptor Cam LIVE

First the good news: The two larger chicks (females) are doing very well. They are likely within several days of fledging. Their estimated date of fledging is within about five days.

 Video: Close-up view of injured raptor chick

They jump from the window ledges to the railings practicing their flying skills and move rapidly about the fire escape landing. They look quite healthy. They are actively ripping and tearing food that mom brings to the nest. The nest itself is an absolute mess---full of animal parts, garbage the parents have incorporated into the structure and a lot of bird poop!

Now the sad news: The third nestling (male) unfortunately is not doing so well. Many regular viewers of the raptor cam have noticed that he seems more lethargic than his siblings and does not eat as much. He also begs from his parents rather than self feeding.

KGW photo/Audubon Society

This is the struggling raptor chick. If you look closely, you can see a problem with his lower beak and his eyes are cloudy and swollen.

As a result, he begs almost continuously for food and his parents are still feeding him. The malformation makes even this a real challenge at this point. Mom is very patient with him attempting over and over to put food into his mouth and cleaning his beak for him where food remnants are building-up. She is a good mom!

His eyes appear somewhat cloudy, swollen and crusty, perhaps from some sort of infection. He is still able to see at least short distances right now. How he came to be in this state is uncertain. Birds like all creatures can have natural deformities. Also they are growing so fast that even a small injury sometime during the development process can rapidly become a major problem. Infections and parasites can also cause developmental problems.

Our plan it to let the fledging process continue uninterrupted for right now. The two healthy nestlings are so big and active that any attempt to access the fire escape would likely cause them to jump prematurely. We are going to let the two healthy birds fledge (leave the nest) without any disruption. If possible, we will grab the third nestling once his siblings are airborne. We will give him an exam and see if there is anything that can be done to fix his ailments. If it is something that is quick and easy, we will put him back out on the ledge to rejoin his family. They will all remain in the area for many weeks following fledging so we would have at least a little time to treat him and still be able to put him back out. If it is something more complicated, we will have to explore other options.

This is the hard part about watching so closely. It is not uncommon for at least one nestling not to survive. In each of our neighborhoods, dozens of birds are going through similar nesting processes with similar challenges right under our noses. The only difference is that we are not watching closely. Some would legitimately suggest that what is happening with the red-tails is simply nature and we should let it take its course. In general I would agree with this sentiment---As hard as it is to watch, mom and dad are better equipped than we ever will be to raise their own young and not every egg and nestling is meant to make it through. We do want to respect the natural process. However in this case the fact is that we are watching closely and if we can do something to give the little male nestling a little extra help once his siblings have taken to the air, we will try to give him that chance.