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I'm a mother of four grandmother of seven and great grandmother of three. I live with my husband in the house that we built with the help of my brothers and will have been married for 57 years this February.

Friday, July 11, 2014

NASTY ARTHUR, HE WENT AND BROKE MY HEART

When I posted pictures of some of my flowers the day before hurricane Arthur hit, I wasn't expecting for him to be so angry. After all the weatherman had said it wasn't going to be as bad as Hurricane Juan was last year. I knew there was going to be high wind and heavy rain.  We were not overly concerned as Juan didn't do much damage around here although it did a lot of damage in Halifax in Nova Scotia.. The only preparation I did was to weed my garden before the the rain hit so it wouldn't spread the seeds everywhere. The boys got all 500 big bales of hay inside the hay building before the rain started. Big mistake to underestimate the weather, especially when a hurricane is coming up the coast.

How did Arthur broke my heart you may ask? He knocked down the big pine tree where a pair of eagles have nested for the last 10 years in our lane by the barn. There was two young eagles in the nest and one of the parent had just brought them their meal. A gaspareau  fish.


This is a picture I took last year of the pine tree and the eagle nest. It was even bigger this year as they add branches and stuff every year. I think that if you double click you can see the pictures bigger.


and here is a close up of the nest  also taken last year.


The tree broke in many pieces and also the branches and the nest was sprawled for a long distance. You can't really judge the size of this nest. Being so heavy and wet, it's no wonder it fell dowm. Those branches are pretty big.

If you look at the top of the right corner of the picture, you'll see what's left of the tree stump. It's only a splinter left.



You can see George by the fence in the upper right corner. It might give you a bit of perspective.



This is one of the baby eagle. It was raining hard and the wind was blowing hard so it's not a great picture.

Here I was about 5 feet from him and he was hopping with a bent wing.  I had my big lens on and somehow it got to the wrong setting to focus and I wasn't thinking of how to set it right.  It was raining pretty hard and I was also trying to keep the rain from hitting my lens. I missed some real good shots.


This is the other baby eagle near the fallen tree. He's all wet and looked a bit stunned.


As I got closer he lifted both his wings  and  I  decided to leave them alone. Nothing I could do.


Here is the gasperau fish that one of the parents had brought them. It just laid there near the demolished nest. I felt so very sad for them. My heart was in my throat. I can't imagine how it must have been, being hit with such high wind and rain and flying leaves and coming down with such force. They must have been dazed.


The next morning George and I went back to check on the babies and only could find one. We didn't hang around too long as one of the parents was circling around but I got close enough to this one who stayed close to the fallen tree. He looked dry and healthy.


This is a better shot of what's left of their tree.

This is my first instalment on the ravage of hurricane Arthur, the bad boy... More photos and stories to follow.

Stay safe and enjoy the sunshine.
Thanks for your visit.
JB

25 comments:

  1. oh, that must have been very hard for you. i can imagine after so many years of them nesting there...

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  2. ohhhhhhh that's awful! hiss on Arthur... 10 years... oh, blast it! the little things.... sniff

    glad you all are all right but jeeeeeeez i hate reading that about the Eagles...

    sniff and bawl

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  3. Julia, that's really upsetting to lose the nesting tree for the eagles.
    I hope the one with the bent wing will be able to survive. Do you have any kind of wildlife rescue people in your area just in case? He may need time to heal in a sheltered environment.

    Did your livestock come through the storm OK? And I hope the flowers are not too badly damaged. You and all your family members are safe, right?

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  4. Nature is as cruel as it is beautiful.
    Hopefully they will survive.
    Maybe call wildlife rescue to help?

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  5. SO sorry he got your favorite tree. Hurricanes are tough monsters. It's good everyone's safe and your home wasn't impacted, though.

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  6. Oh, how sad. I sure hope the eagles survive. What a terrible experience for them and for you sweet Julia. I am so sorry for all the damage Arthur did at your place and I do hope it is not extensive. I am glad you and your family are okay. Hugs

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  7. Nature can be so cruel... These storms seem to be getting more wicked all the time. Maybe the young eagle can manage to make it if the parents survived. It's fascinating to see the nests they build. And even more amazing to me that animals can survive that type of force wind. Sending prayers for you folks as you clean up after the destruction and that you stay safe. My thoughts will be with you!
    Hugs!!
    Cathy G

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  8. Awww... that's so sad! Poor little babies! We have Eagle rescue groups in our area that would catch and nurse the one with the bent wing. Anything like that where you live?

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  10. A Conservation Officer lady came with a gun in her holster to assess the situation with the injured eagle the morning after the hurricane but couldn't find the baby eagle with the injured wing and told us to leave them alone and the parents will look after them. I don't know of any wild animal rescue in our area. She never said anything about that.
    JB

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  11. Oh Julia, that is just so sad. Those are some enormous trees. So sad to see poor eagles on the ground. I know it breaks your heart. It breaks mine.
    What a lot of damage. I am glad you are safe. Did it hurt your barns and your house?

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  12. So sad!!! Maybe they will decide to "rebuild" nearby.

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  13. Those pics are amazing and how heartbreaking to see the baby Eagles and not be able to do anything. Nature will weed out the weak and helpless I'm sorry to say. I'm glad you are safe and I hope your home is OK. Those huge pines remind me of our pines here. We have tornadoes and they can do some bad damage also. We always worry about the trees. They sure do harbor many birds and wildlife here at the Pines. Take care and hope your weekend is a good one.

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  14. The closest wildlife rehabilitation center is 2.5 hours away near Sackville NB.http://atlanticwildlife.ca

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  15. Hi Julia, I need to watch the weather it has been so hot here. I am so sorry poor birds. That would break my heart too. Hugs cheri

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  16. Awe so sad Julia, eagles are such a majestic bird, they'll set up again & I bet it will be close by for you & George to watch for years to follow. Excellent pictures to go with your sad story. The tree that fell was huge! That was a hurricane storm & it lasted for such for so long too, so much damage. So many are still without power. Enjoy the good weather while we have it Julia. Your eagle family look to be industrious & hearty, they too will rebuilt & most importantly it's - location location, you'll be seeing them again. Hugs, Cynthia

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  17. oh those sweet babies....I hope they rebuild in time (do they do that?)
    I'm so sorry Arthur gave you such a pounding. Storms:/
    Peace to you in the aftermath....hope your skies are extra blue for awhile.
    -Jennifer

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  18. Ohhh how heartbreaking. I think I'd be up all night fretting over those baby eagles. I do pray it turns out all well for them. Such a tragedy that you lost that big tree too:(

    Storms can do such damage- I'm glad you and your home are safe.

    Love
    Vicki

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  19. Well, I'm not sure my comment has been registered, so I'll try again and just tell you that I'm hoping all will be all right with the eagles and you as well. I know you had a power outage. Hopefully there was no major damage for you and the farm.

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  20. Sorry to hear about your tree and the eagles -- I hope they are ok. I'm glad you and your family are fine. Sarah

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  21. Oh, my...this breaks my heart. I really hope the baby makes it. I know this is nature, but it makes me sad. Hugs.

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  22. Oh my gosh, how devastating! This makes me really sad, I know its nature and there is nothing you can do about it, but the poor little things.
    Your pictures really tell a story, thanks for sharing!

    Take care
    Saimi

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  23. That is so heartbreaking! Such a magnificent nest and two babies. So sad.

    I hope the parents are there.
    In Idaho we could call the Fish and Game as eagles are protected here.

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