Near the beginning of May, I posted picture of a Bald Eagle chick in down attended by its two parents. I went back to the nest at the end of May and the chick was in dark brown plumage, but had not yet fledged.
The eagle chick in dark brown plumage sits on its nest.
An adult (probably the mother) brings a fish to eat. The head of the chick is on the left. There is evidence of a dead osprey in the nest: a body feather below the chick’s bill and some tail feathers on the right.
The chick scarfs a hunk of fish.
Later, the chick works on the whole fish. Note the fish bits on the adult’s beak.
Although it has yet to fledge, the chick exercises its wings to strengthen them. Note the fine white lines extending from the flight feathers. These are the rhaches, or the feather shafts of the flight feathers. The rhaches grow quickly and then the barbs extend from them and fill in the feather, but flight is still a while off.
So ready to fledge this quickly…surprising to me! Do you suppose the bully mama (imho the BE is the biggest bully bird) took the osprey?
Usually the Osprey follow the Bald Eagles in next occupancy…at least along N. K. Lake.