Four Years Since I Began My Blogging Journey~

The young chick would hop/fly back over to the nest for a couple of days and then it did not come to visit the nest any longer, but found places to perch, eat, practice short flights and gain strength in the wooded area nearby.

  It was also learning to hunt from low tree branches.

In this post, I am adding in a few more images from just before the chick began it's journey from the nest rim.  

As I went back through all of my thousands of images taken, I could not resist a few more favorites.

It was always amusing and gave me a quick giggle when the chick would run and hop and flap it's ever growing wings while still on the nest.  

Several had asked me over this season, if I knew of this chick was a male, or female.  

The males are smaller and this bird seemed to be small while on the nest.  

The nest was also in a very tall tree, which could have made for the chick to appear smaller.

 I am thinking that this is a male, but as days and a couple of weeks have now passed since it fledged, it is really very large, so may very well be a female~

Remember to double click on the image, to view a larger slide show of the images shared ~

I am linking up with Mary for:

"Mosaic Monday"

at:http://dearlittleredhouse.blogspot.com
and

I am linking up with Stewart at:

Wild Bird Wednesday

(http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/)

 

This would be the last week that the chick would be on the nest and begin it's hopefully long life's journey.  
It's white downy feathers on it's head were the last to change colours dramatically over following several days into the lovely brown tones that it will now carry into adulthood~

In the above image, the hen is bringing up something that she was not going to digest, however this was not a pellet, or casting as shown in my previous post.

The final images in this post are of the young one after it is no longer visiting the nest.  
It was in a very heavily shaded area and the overgrowth of vegetation was too thick to try to get better lighting opportunities and so, we accept what we get, and are so thankful for the privilege that we have had...

I so enjoy my season with the Red-Shouldered Hawks of Tingsgrove and Beyond.
It is a season that I look forward to every year and I am always hopeful for a successful outcome, both for the birds and for my passion in nature photography. 

This was a wonderful season in all ways...it worked out just as it was supposed to do~

One of the downfalls of only having a single chick once it is no longer on the nest, is that the adults are bringing it meals on such a regular basis, the chick needs not to be constantly yelling for it to be delivered.  
Thus said, with the deep wooded area, and the lack of it needing to yell for food, I have found it more difficult to locate the young one these past several days. 

The young chick was working on a meal of a small bird and trying to get the final bone pieces situated so it could swallow them down.  

 

It had just about mastered the technique, when it began to make an almost whimper like sound...it was being brought another meal, and was awaiting the delivery.
This time the meal was that of a Shrew and the chick took it down swiftly and without any fumbling around~

After a good meal, it was back to a little bit of light exercise~

 

 

And of course much of the day is spent preening itself.  
I could not get over how rich the feather colouration had gotten and in just a few days the magnificent difference...it was now a fine Red-Shouldered Hawk...
Ready to make it's way.
The adults will stay with it for several more weeks, helping find meals and then slowly allowing it to hunt alone.  
This past late Winter, I witnessed one of the juvies from last season soaring with the adults.
That is always a real treat~

 

After preening itself, I found this mosaic of images to be quite endearing.  
The young one could no longer lie down, as it had on the nest, and so it found a nice wide branch to take a little rest in the sunshine~

Bottom right in mosaic below...there it goes, quick flight deeper into the woods~
 

 

 

The  chick had not been off of the nest a day, when we had a drenching rain.  
It had to feel good to be free and get a nice warm bath for the first time~

In the mosaic above, I really like how wonderful the chick looked.  
Very healthy, and clearly enjoying the independence from the nest, still counting on the adults to bring in the supper, but clearly coming into it's own element.
In the beginning, there had been 3 chicks.
In the end, only one remained.
As of yesterday, it was thriving and I suspect it to do very well in the wild.  
There are many hardships that can come to these Birds of Prey.  
A very few percentage makes it beyond their first Winter.  
I have found though, that in my area, they seem to thrive very well, and I enjoy seeing them turn into adults over the following months and then soaring with the parents the coming Spring, as an extended family.  

Someone once told me and I always remember...
One cannot take the wild of nature from the cradle to the grave...so true~

Four years ago on June 24, I posted my first image.  

I had no "followers".

The term "meme" was a foreign word to me, and I really had no idea as to how this would all work out.

A very special thank you to Vickie Henderson, for getting me started on my way~