Egg #3

Many anxious fans out there will be glad to know that egg #3 was confirmed this morning, 4/3/12, a little after 7 a.m.!

One question I have been getting frequently concerns Durand panting in the nestbox and water intake (or lack thereof). Firstly, most birds of prey rarely actually drink water, rather they get the water they need from the flesh of the prey they eat. Her panting is a way for her to keep cool (birds don't sweat) and does not have to do with her being stressed. It is usually much warmer on the nest ledge because the box faces south. Especially with these bright sunny days we've been having, temps on the ledge/in the box can climb quite a bit higher than the ambient temperature. Panting is how Durand keeps cool and shading the eggs helps to keep the eggs from becoming too warm.