23 Feb 2013 - Wings of eagles

Those amazing wings are still very young - but already quite magnificent...

23 Feb 2013 - Playing with food

Like most young animals, Esther plays with her food while eating. 

Here she is tossing a Dassie head around...(5 MB)

Then Mother arrives to restore a bit of discipline...(4 MB)

03 Feb 2013 - 3 Meals a day

Esther has a voracious appetite - ordering in her meals 3 times a day.
Here the food courier (aka Mother), has just delivered and readies herself to launch for the next hunt...

Esther sometimes bites of more than she can chew...

Actually, this is just the skin and fur left in one piece after she has consumed all the flesh and bone.
Now she attempts to swallow the whole piece at once - not a simple task!
After much effort, she gets it half-way down, finds she can't take in any more, regurgitates it, picks at it a bit, and starts again, repeating the whole process a few times until she finally somehow manages to put it all away.

Satisfied with her accomplishment, she looks around for a suitable perch on which to chill while her digestive system does its work...

Notice how well camouflaged she is up in the gum tree.
She's already thinking about her next meal...

22 Jan 2013 - Flying!

Esther has been flying for about a week now.
Here she is - trying to get a grip of things.

Being a girl - cleaning her toe nails is important ...

26 Dec 2012 - Mistress of the nest

2 weeks after being ringed, Esther has taken charge of the nest.
Though not yet flying, here she sits on high, keenly surveying her all beneath her.