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The History of the Nest of Altyn and Altynay. Part 1

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11 мин

A lot of thanks to Max Sonthonax for the translation

На русском: https://zen.yandex.ru/media/id/5f645f9bd6777b300c9ebf2d/62c3d4e16b4f7029827e40cf

Part 2: https://zen.yandex.ru/media/id/5f645f9bd6777b300c9ebf2d/62e82c5567640f327277323b

Since 2018, the staff of the "Lower Kama" National Park, under the leadership of ornithologist Rinur Bekmansurov, has been implementing an online observation’s project of daytime birds of prey in Tatarstan during the nesting period. During this time, a small webcam is installed above the nest, which shows the life of wild birds as it is, live. Thanks to this, anyone can, without intermediaries, observe their habits and learn about the difficulties they face on a daily basis.

The aim of the project is to popularize knowledge about the life of diurnal birds of prey inhabiting lowland areas in densely populated and man-made territories, to establish a positive image of these majestic representatives of the fauna of Tatarstan.

The online broadcast from the nest of Eastern Imperial eagles has been conducted since March 2021. The nomenclature title of these eagles in the Russian literature "Mogilnik" (burial-ground eagle) incorrectly reflects their character, so ornithologists also suggested using the Turkic name "Karagush". The Latin name of the species Aquila heliaca translates literally as "Solar Eagle". In European countries, for example, it is the Imperial Eagle (En), Kaiseradler (De), Karaliskais ērglis (Lv).

The names Altyn (translated from Turkic – "gold") and Altynay (translated from Turkic – "golden moon") were given to the couple as a result of a popular vote on the project's social media pages. Before the camera was installed, ornithologist Rinur Bekmansurov regularly ringed chicks at this nesting site. According to him, the pair nested in a nearby tree in 2017. In 2018 they settled in this same pine tree which is currently being broadcast: 2018's nest was just lower than the current one, from which we are happy to observe events for the second year. The exact cause for the move is not known. The current nest is located at a height of about 20 m above the ground. By following the link, you can look at Altynay with a chick taken in 2018 and compare the location of the nests in 2018 and in 2021: https://zen.yandex.ru/media/orlanbeloxvost/videonabliudenie-v-onlainrejime-za-gnezdom-solnechnyh-orlov-mogilnikov-aquila-heliaca-v-tatarstane-624ee88c88a5f40d45a24f82

One of the first questions that new viewers ask us is how do you distinguish them? To answer this, we have prepared pictures depicting Altyn and Altynay from different angles: https://zen.yandex.ru/media/orlanbeloxvost/obnovili-kartinki-s-nashimi-liubimymi-altynychami-6266a6c0e8c1ab0d8f61b42d

In 2021 and 2022, Altyn and Altynay flew back from their wintering grounds into their native nest in March, almost to the day: the exact dates are given in the table.

This year was not without a surprise. Concurrently with Altynay flying into view of the camera, an unfamiliar male also arrived, whom the observers called Amir. He enthusiastically began to repair the nest, inviting Altynay to join. The next day Altyn returned, who drove away the uninvited guest.

According to Rinur Bekmansurov, in 2020 the couple successfully raised and fledged three chicks. Not all of them managed to embark on their first winter migration. The body of one fledgling was discovered below power lines, lying near the nest. Last year we watched the maturation of two chicks Aydar and Aygul (names also chosen by popular vote). Unfortunately, tragedy at the power line was repeated and Aydar was found dead on 6 September. Now bird protection devices have been installed on this site, which will help prevent the death of birds in the future.

Videos about the life of the nest in 2021: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLO9Mvus-QTww6Gb2W3wq-tvc0MDg0ly69

Table displaying dates of egg laying in 2021 and 2022, and how each went this year can be seen in our videos.

Altyn wanted to participate in egg hatching equally with Altynay, but his requests to sit with the "kids" were not always crowned with success. And over time, the male found an approach to his partner: he began to bring gifts. How carefully and tenderly the parents handled the eggs: they made sure that they did not overheat and did not freeze, stroked and listened carefully to them!

At the end of May, we were all eagerly awaiting the appearance of the eaglets. The hatching dates of the first two chicks in 2021 and 2022 coincided. Last year, Altynay began feeding the chicks with meat later, and she did not immediately try to delight and show the new hatchlings to their father. You can see how things went this year in the following links.

This year has not been without loss either. Unfortunately, the third chick died due to malnutrition and facultative siblicide caused by prolonged rain and cold (the temperature dropped to +10 degrees) in early June (6-9th). All this time Altynay sheltered the chicks beneath her, unable to feed them or eat herself, even though the nest had sufficient stocks. The youngest one was too weak to survive and recover from such stresses. During that time, hysteria broke out on the stream's YouTube chat window, facilitated by the influx of completely new observers and the appearance of provocateurs in amongst the armchair experts. While many sincerely worried about the fate of the youngest one, there were users who began to blame the incident exclusively on the older chick, to say that the oldest one damaged the wing of the middle one, and to attribute "obligate cainism" to the Eastern Imperal Eagles. In general, in every possible way to misinform and escalate the situation.

Now let's analyze what Cainism is. Cainism in the broad sense is the killing within one brood of one hatchling by another. It can be obligate (mandatory), or facultative (optional). Eastern Imperial Eagles are characterized by facultative Cainism, i.e. dependent on external stressful conditions. In our case, it was specifically the weather conditions that resulted in the older chick's aggression, not genetically inherent aggressiveness. We will use the term facultative siblicide as a synonym for the term facultative Cainism, since the interpretation of Cainism varies between different countries: some understand it to mean obligate Cainism, elsewhere, it is understood it to mean both obligate and optional.

Now the eaglets feel great and get along well with each other. They have no physical injuries and an excellent appetite. Their parents regularly bring gophers, marmots, woodpeckers, crows and jackdaws. Sometimes hares. Of course, the stress experienced could not but affect the character of the second chick: he became more cautious. The eaglets have already learned to stand and started to train jumping. Whenever possible, imitating adults, they flap their wings. The approximate dates of the first flight of the chicks are 11 and 12 August.

Altynay has shown herself to be an exemplary mother and wife. She knows when they need a caress, when to hide them from the cold or heat, when to send her husband to the "shop" and rearrange the nest. She is endlessly concerned about the satiety of chicks and availability of supplies. Altyn, while not as efficient in the business of incubation, is no less gentle. He has not yet mastered the "mumbrella" mode, when Altynay spreads her wings over the chicks in order to hide them from the scorching rays of the sun and prevent overheating, but he also strives to demonstrate his worth. Observers noticed that Altyn periodically takes prey out of the nest and returns with it after a moment. Why he does it exactly, we don't know. Some interesting moments from their lives can be viewed by following the links:

Our Team

Rinur Bekmansurov is the project manager of online observations of daytime birds of prey during the nesting period. We have written about him here: https://zen.yandex.ru/media/id/5f645f9bd6777b300c9ebf2d/62111a53fa4f5170d3187869

Over the years of the project's existence, people from all over the world have gathered around it. This year, from 56 nations, according to YouTube statistics. We have formed a backbone of volunteers and of regular viewers who, from the outset, sustain (and support) us. We would like to express our great gratitude to everyone who constantly monitors the actions in the nest and leaves notes in the chat, moderates the chat on YouTube, keeps records of events in online diaries and on other sites, helps with translations, and records and edits videos. Without such assistants, the project is impossible. To date, most of the work to support the project has been undertaken by volunteers. We are very glad that our love for birds has united us and helps us to continue working for their benefit. You are the best!

View the geography of hits from the links on Google Maps & Yandex Maps below.

We invite you to join the friendly team of observers for the Altynychs!

The live stream from the nest is simultaneously broadcast on:

YOUTUBE:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=VlZa4mHDL1U

VKONTAKTE: https://vk.com/video/@orlanbeloxvost?section=uploaded
This VK broadcast's picture is higher quality, in widescreen and high definition. An archive of recordings of each daily stream can also be found there.

More screenshots of this year from our observers here: https://vk.com/album-205817899_284114280

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Telegram: t.me/orlanbeloxvost
Vkontakte: https://vk.com/orlanbeloxvost
Rutube: https://rutube.ru/channel/25135601/
Ok: https://ok.ru/group/68985433555003

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