Black Stork Nest in Karula, 2021

[Heloise]

July 08

Good morning!
Hello Swenja, hello Anne7!

Nice to "see" and read you every day!


It's such a hot day (right now)... it's hard for both humans and birds to suffer.
The maximum temperature today is 32 degrees

The weather in Karula today, there is a chance of rain (I really hope it starts to rain!):

https://freemeteo.ee/weather/karula/hou ... ry=estonia

I hope that Karl II and Kaia bring water to the nest...
It is a pity that the storklets are not yet able to find food and water for themselves.
And the camera... I'm still trying to believe we'll see a transmission one day

Have a nice day, everyone!

[Anne7]

Hello, everyone.

Swenja, Heloise

Swenja, yes, the current tendency appears to be that Karl II does not stay at the same feeding place for a long time.
He flies quickly from one place to another in search of food. He is exploring/visiting all possible feeding locations within his reach.
I don’t like to see that happening. I’m afraid it is getting difficult to find enough food.
Karl II flies long distances and works as hard as he can.

Heloise, thank you very much for the weather forecast. It is very hot, yes, but the biggest problem is indeed the drought.
Depending on their (food-related) physical development, it takes about 64 to 74 days for storklets to make their maiden flight. But even then, they are not yet ready to take care of themselves.
Ideally, they are fed by their parents until they are about 84 to 92 days old, again depending on their development and body weight.

Today is the 13th day without camera transmission. Nearly 2 weeks.
The oldest storklets are 41 days old, the youngest one is 39 days old.


OrniTrack MORNING information

Battery level: 91 %
Data intervals: 5 minutes

Karl II spent the night in the forest, at about 2.5 km from the nest..

At 04:08 he flies to a well-known brook (oja) at about 4.5 km from the nest.
He looks for food, moving along that brook until 05:03.
At 05:08 he flies towards a lake in the forest (järv). He looks for food on a small ditch(?) that flows into that lake, until 06:13
Then, at 06:18, he continues his flight, to the well-known river (jõgi) in a forest, on the other side of that lake, at about 8 km from the nest.
At 06:38 (last known data) he is fishing on that river.

I don't know why today the morning information ends at 06:38
(Usually we receive data until about 10:30-38)
Maybe this evening…

[Anne7]

Good evening, everyone

OrniTrack EVENING information

Battery level: 97 %
Data intervals: 5 minutes
Distance flown: 189 km (all day)

At 06:38 (last known morning data) Karl II was in a forest on a well-known river (jõgi), flowing into (or out of?) a lake, at about 8 km from the nest.

At 07:48 he is on his way to the nest at 53 km/h.
At 07:58 he is on the nest.
He stays on (or very close to) the nest until 08:08.

At 08:13 he starts flying towards a brook (oja) connecting two lakes, at about 9 km from the nest.
He stays there from 08:28 until 09:43.
Next he flies to a lake at 18 km from the nest.
He is there between 10:13 and 10:53.
Then he flies a bit further to a watercourse (oja) at 20 km from the nest.
He searches for food in that brook between 11:03 and 12:28.
Next he first flies a little further, but eventually decides to return to the nest.
At 12:48 he is heading towards the nest.
At 13:28 he is on the nest.

At 13:33 he starts flying a very wide arc (a semi circle) about 23 km from the nest.
At some point he turns back and flies in the direction from which he came.
At 16:13, after this long uninterrupted flight, he finally stops on a brook that flows into a big lake at almost 24 km from the nest.
There he searches for food until 17:23.
At 17:28 he is in flight towards the nest.
At 18:04 he is on the nest

At 18:13 he flies to a place in the forest at about 2.7 km from the nest.
It looks as if there are some small ponds and a brooklet.
At 22:38 Karl II is still in that area.


Good night, everyone.

[Heloise]

Hello Anne7

Many thanks for the thorough information!
Great job!


It's a pity that we don't know if it actually rained in Karula today... in the neighboring county, where the ospreys Miina and Marko nest, it rained quite well.

Ah, beloved Karl II and Kaia and your cute storklets, we miss you so much...

Good night everyone!

[Swenja]

Hello @Anne7
many thanks for the track data.

Distance flown: 189 km (all day)

Apparently the search for food in the immediate vicinity of the nest is no longer successful. Karl II therefore seems to be under stress.

Hello @Heloise
Some precipitation over the area of the Nationalpark seems to have been measurable in the weather radars. But today wasn't much. It should be a lot more rain. It's too dry and hot.

Good night!

[Heloise]

July 09

Good morning!

Swenja, thank you for your comment!
Yes, maybe, I didn't look at the radar picture, I studied the life of ospreys later that evening.

Rain is needed everywhere, there are areas where it has not rained at all...
The tropical heat continues...
Weather in Karula today:

https://freemeteo.ee/weather/karula/hou ... ry=estonia

Weather maps: rain (light rain in Karula)

https://freemeteo.ee/weather/karula/map ... ry=estonia

Karula National Park (Karula RP) in Estonia:



https://goo.gl/maps/UZ1Tq6Sy8sfFtUY68

Have a nice day!
Still waiting...

[Anne7]

Hello, everyone.

Swenja and Heloise

Many thanks for the weather forecast and for your reflections.

I saw yesterday on AccuWeather that it rained 3 times in Karula in the afternoon.
Twice light precipitation, and a third time somewhat heavier rain. Rather short showers.
But all water is very welcome!

Today is the 14th day without camera transmission. Exactly 2 weeks.
The oldest storklets are 6 weeks old (42 days), the youngest one is 40 days old.

I don't think we would be able to recognise them if the camera transmission were to be repaired.


OrniTrack MORNING information

Battery level: 91 %
Data intervals: 5 minutes

Karl II spent the night in the forest, about 2.7 km from the nest.

At 04:25 he flies towards the well-known river (jõgi), close to a lake, at about 8 km from the nest (speed 42 km/h). He is foraging in that watercourse between 04:40 and 08:05.
At 08:10 he is on his way to the nest (speed 41 km/h; 46 km/h)
At 08:20 he is on the nest.

At 08:25 he flies (speed 41 km/h) to a river (jõgi) at 4.3 km from the nest.
He looks for food along that small river (gradually moving on), until 10:30.
At 10:35 (last known data) he is in flight (34 km/h). It's not clear yet where he is flying to.

[Anne7]

Good evening, everyone

OrniTrack EVENING information

Battery level: 100 %
Data intervals: 5 minutes
Distance flown: 124 km (all day)

At 10:35 (last known morning data) Karl II was flying (speed 34 km/h) to a river connecting two lakes, at 17 km from the nest.
He stays there between 11:25 and 13:30.
At 13:35 he starts flying to the nest (40 km/h; 49 km/h; 59 km/h; 54 km/h; 53 km/h)
At 14:05 he is on the nest.

At 14:10 he leaves the nest and flies to the brook that flows into a lake at 24 km from the nest.
He was there yesterday too.
He looks for food in that area between 14:45 and 15:35.
Next he flies back to the river connecting two lakes, at 17 km from the nest.
He is foraging in that river between 16:00 and 17:55.
At 18:00 he leaves that area and flies in the direction of the nest but stops at a lake about 9.5 km from the nest.
There he is fishing (where a brook meets that lake), from 18:40 until 20:20.
Next he flies to a brook at 5.5 km from the nest.
There he looks for food until 21:25.
At 21:30 he flies (speed 37 km/h) to a place close to (50-60 metres away from) a brooklet at 2.2 km from the nest.
He didn't go fishing on the brooklet.
At 22:35 (last known evening data) Karl II is still at the same place.


Only 2 feedings by Karl II today.
After an entire afternoon (and evening) of flying and fishing on several locations, he apparently does not return to the nest...
This isn't good. Why did Karl II stop flying at 2.2 km from the nest?
Is his crop empty? Or does he have some kind of problem himself?

I worry.
Unless he flew home after 22:35 ?
(To be honest, it does not look like he will)

[Heloise]

Hello Anne7!

Many thanks!

There is a lot of concern
Let´s hope that Kaia has been a good mother and brought food and water to the nest.
We know the half-truth, we can only hope that everything is fine...
And if you didn't do a lot of work every day and write to us, we wouldn't know absolutely nothing!

It's really very sad that we can't see the nest life from the camera!
And just a few weeks ago, everything was so nice...

We have no choice but to hope for the best.

Good night!

[Anne7]

Hello Heloise.

I am afraid Kaia is having just as hard a time as Karl II gathering food. Karl II is a very dedicated, clever and strong bird. If he fails - despite all his efforts and experience - I think Kaia won't stand a chance either.
They are both very good parents, we have witnessed that, but if there is not enough food available, they are powerless.

I hope that some miracle happens and the situation improves soon.

Sleep well!

[Swenja]

Hello @ Anne7 and @Heloise
Thanks for the track data and the weather report.

I too wonder what was the reason this afternoon why Karl II did not fly to the nest again. The obvious answer is
that he couldn't find enough food.
But there is also the possibility that Karl II met Kaia on the way to the nest in 2.2 km at the brook.
We know that Kaia is very communicative and has a strong will. Maybe she was about to go to the nest.

Even if the first possibility is probable, I also want to believe in the second possibility.
I assume at least 3 feedings.

Good night!

[Heloise]

...
But there is also the possibility that Karl II met Kaia on the way to the nest in 2.2 km at the brook.
We know that Kaia is very communicative and has a strong will. Maybe she was about to go to the nest.

Even if the first possibility is probable, I also want to believe in the second possibility.
I assume at least 3 feedings.
...

Hello Swenja, I want to believe that too!

Anne7, thank you for your comment!

Let´s try to sleep well!

Good night, Anne and Swenja!

[Heloise]

July 10

Good morning!

I would like today to be better than yesterday!

But the weather has not changed.... It's hot in the early morning.

https://freemeteo.ee/weather/karula/hou ... ry=estonia

Maximum temperature +32...
A bit more rain seems to be coming at 18:00,14 July...
https://freemeteo.ee/weather/karula/map ... ry=estonia

Karula - 7 day weather meteogram:
https://freemeteo.ee/weather/karula/7-d ... ry=estonia

Have a nice day!

[Anne7]

Good morning, everyone

Heloise, Swenja

There are many possible (or conceivable) scenarios. Some are more likely than others.
But the fact is that we simply do not know.
We only observed that Karl II was heading towards the nest - after a whole afternoon of fishing - and that, at 2.2 km from the nest, he stopped (50-60 metres away from a brooklet). Why? In about 3 minutes he could have been home.

We don't see what the situation is on the nest. We don't know how the storklets are doing. We don't see how Kaia and Karl II are doing. We have no idea where Kaia is and how often she comes on the nest and what she brings.
We only see how often Karl II appears on the nest, but we don't know how much food he is taking to his storklets.
Without the camera, we know very little, unfortunately.

Thank you very much for the weather information, Heloise!

Today is the 15th day without camera transmission.
The oldest storklets are 43 days old, the youngest one is 41 days old.


Today, the OrniTrack morning data session for Karl II failed.

Last data received by GPRS: 2021-07-09 at 22:39:08 (UTC+3)
Next data session expected: 2021-07-10 at 22:39:08 (UTC+3)


Hopefully we will receive reassuring data tonight.
Hopefully all is well with Karl II, and hopefully we will see that he was on the nest several times today.

[Anne7]

Good evening, everyone

Hurray, Karl II sent data and seems to be OK!

OrniTrack information

Battery level: 99%
Data intervals: 5 minutes
Distance flown: 108 km (all day)


Karl II spent the night close to (50-60 metres away from) a brooklet at 2.2 km from the nest.

At 04:31 he starts his working day.
At 04:36 he flies (speed 43 km/h) to a brook at 5 km from the nest.
At 05:16 he flies to a lake at 9.5 km from the nest.
At 07:36 he flies towards the nest (speed 37 km/h)
At 07:51 he is on the nest.

At 07:56 he flies to a river at 4.3 km from the nest.
At 11:16 he flies towards the nest.
At about 11:25 he is probably on the nest.

At 11:26 he is in flight again at 37 km/h, still close to the nest (250 meters).
He flies towards a stream at 18 km from the nest.
I haven't seen him there before, I believe.
There he is fishing from 12:11 until 15:01-05
At 15:06 he flies towards the nest (speed 48 km/h; 43 km/h; 57 km/h; 55 km/h; 44 km/h)
At about 15:29 he is probably on the nest.

At 15:31 he is in flight again, at 48 km/h, still close to the nest (600 meters).
He flies in an arc towards a brook that flows into a lake (water reservoir?) at about 9.5 km from the nest.
He is in that area from 16:06 until 17:11
Then he flies to the lake where he was in the morning, at 9.5 km from the nest.
At 18:06 he flies to a brook that flows into a lake, at about 9 km from the nest.
At 21:41 he flies to a forest close to that brook (670 metres). Bedtime!
At 22:36 he is still in the same place.


Sleep well, everyone

[Swenja]

Hello @ Anne7
Thanks for the track data. There is nothing noticeable in the Karl II movements of today.

We don't see what the situation is on the nest. We don't know ..
Without the camera, we know very little, unfortunately.

As long as we don't see anything, I want to believe in the best guess. I'm glad you didn't mention in the list
that we don't even know whether there are still 3 chicks left.

Hello @Heloise
Thanks for the weather report. It will be better tomorrow (today now). Still warm, but not above 30 ° C.

Good night!

[Heloise]

Hello Anne7 and Swenja, so good to see you here every day!

Anne7, many thanks for your great report!

It's great to know that Karl II flies every day in to the nest and that you got the data in the evening!
(I'm afraid the faults are from excessive heat)

I share the same worries with you, but let´s hope for the best, that is all we can do!

I'm away tomorrow (I still share the weather forecast, although you can definitely see it for yourself)

Good night, sleep well!

[Heloise]

July 11

Hello!

The weather in Karula:

https://freemeteo.ee/weather/karula/hou ... ry=estonia

The maximum temperature is 28C.
And from 13 July to 17 July it rains a little every day

https://freemeteo.ee/weather/karula/7-d ... ry=estonia

Have a nice day!

[Tatiana60]

Good morning to all.
Heloise, good morning.

We are looking at Karl's footprints in Estonia blindfolded... and our Ann helps us...
Thank you, O our guide!

Today is the 16th day without transmitting signals from the camera.

The two oldest storks are 44 days old, the youngest is 42 days old.

I wonder when Urmas plans to visit the nest to put rings on the legs of our children? (Sorry, but I really want # 1 and # 2 not to get confused and helped to test my theory... because No. 2 can overtake - outstrip the size of the first...)

I am sure that we all agree to see storks even on a recording from a mobile phone!

[asteria]

They are ringing ospreys today, maybe next week there will be the turn of K&K storklets and the cam will be repaired.