Looduskalender

... el macho delivers a withered pine branch:


He informs his partner that he has fully recovered from his previous shift (3 days and 6 hours):


And la hembra is away the next moment:

La hembra, perched on a branch to the right of el macho, spreads her tail for take off:


Back to business as usual:


A quick stroll and egg inspection:

There are some unseen visitors in the afternoon:


The tail goes up, the wings come down, etc.:


The wings are out, and the rocking gait begins:

That danger is not quite over yet:


Six minutes later things are quiet:


Another minor threat passes overhead:

With no noteworthy incidents to report since, it seems that el macho is in for another night shift:


A tired hero with his head buried in his back:

13 April

The male continues to attend to his nest duties:


His feathers form an impressive pattern while he is engrossed in preening:


What's this stick doing here?

The male surveys the airspace above:


Then he decides to get up...


... and flex his muscles:

El macho makes sure the intruder doesn't come near:


Take that!


The afternoon passed quietly:

The male's shift ends in the evening:


The female says hello to the egg:


And the male takes off ten seconds after his partner's arrival:

Naturally, he returns less than a minute later - with a clump of soft stuff in his beak:


And of course he leaves again shortly:


The female has little time to settle on the egg...:

... because the male soon storms back with more nest material:


Communication and/or affection?


The male completes a total of six trips before disappearing for the night. Here he's brought a sizeable branch:

El macho and la hembra - one vision:


While the male is searching for more sticks, here's a chance to take a closer look at the green stuff (it turns out to be a plastic bag...):


The male's penultimate stay at the nest today lasts a little longer:

The male comes back for his final visit equipped with the biggest branch of all:


He places it carefully on the rim:


The final takeoff:

La hembra by herself:


Dead pine needles as an embellishment?


Good night:

14 April

La hembra surveys the neighbourhood:


She decides to move the green plastic bag...:


... a bit to the right:

How d'you like it?


Facebag:


Apart from some fog and rain, there are no dramas in the afternoon. Finally, the sun comes out:

She's been on her shift for just over 22 hours now:


And she decides it's time to take wing:


A minute later the male arrives at the nest:

The male makes himself comfortable:


And the female is back a few seconds later:


The female gets the male to stand up and barges into him with her left side...:

... throwing him off-balance (his right foot is in the air) and pushing him to the side effectively:


She can now place a new clump of soft nest material right next to the egg:


The male concludes that his services are not needed:

He spends around a quarter on his perch...:


... and sets off...:


... before rain arrives: