The quiet, early morning in the morning pine forest in the south of Brandenburg is penetrated by high, persistent begging sounds. Yesterday morning the young in the nest of the Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) could still be seen very quietly on the nest and on a branch a little above the nest. In the meantime at least one young has flown and is exploring the surrounding area. But it always comes back to the nest “decorated” with white feathers and excremented branches. The fly-out has begun.
The female Northern Goshawk was also sitting nearby on a branch today. She had probably plucked prey shortly before; in any case, white feathers were still stuck to its beak, which it sometimes tried surly to wipe off. Basically, she let the young ones do their thing. At some point the begging calls are probably too much for her. Suddenly the grey bird with the white underside can be seen between the closely spaced pines. The female Northern Goshawk flies in to the nest through the pine forest. She settles down right next to the young in the nest. The female keeps an eye on her surroundings.
At some point the young that has remained in the nest will also fly off. It is amazingly agile with its flying skills. The mother stays in the nest, watching silently the surrounding.
The young Northern Goshawks are now almost out of the fledgling phase. Fledgling is the term used for young birds that have not yet fledged, which have left the nest but have to be cared for by the adult birds while sitting on branches. When a nestling is old enough to practice flying and feeding independently outside of the nest, it enters this new phase of its life. Most fledglings can already fly short distances or are about to learn their flying skills. But they are not yet able to feed themselves. Under the guidance of their parents, they explore their surroundings and are fed by them for a few days or weeks.
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