JAN 7: Male incubating; odd object in nest

[NewMexiKen]

We checked the nest at 8:00 AM on JAN 7 and found the male (Pride) sitting deep in the nest.



The female (Jewel) was preening on a melaleuca snag to the west of the nest.






We returned at about 10:15 AM and this time only the male was present, again sitting deep. He did get up briefly to re-position and rearrange something in the nest.



Several other observers were present. When he settled down again we all saw something sticking up just to the right of his head. It looked "fuzzy" or furry like a prey item or even the head of a second eagle.



We dismissed that possibility but still could not interpret the odd object. It looked very much like the head of a large bird, but it may have been nothing other than an odd arrangement of nest materials or some foreign object. It moved a bit, probably when the eagle shifted position.