In the midst of taking care of the nest and weathering more storms, Jackie and Shadow are still focusing on their special bond with each other.
During some welcome sunny weather, Jackie flew into the front porch, surveyed the neighborhood and settled onto the eggs. Then, she must have noticed a fish on its way to the nest--she immediately called out her claim to that fish, but couldn’t wait for it to arrive and flew off the nest to intercept it…
It seems they crossed mid-air paths, as Shadow landed in the nest a few seconds later, still clutching the fish. Jackie could then be heard claiming the fish from a distance.
And kind caretaker that he is, Shadow waited patiently, laying the whole fish out across the snow just right. Jackie arrived, still calling ‘mine, mine.’ As Shadow stepped aside giving that perfect dinner to his loving mate, he seemed to be making sure she noticed that it was a whole fish and that he had carefully laid it out just for her.
Shadow stuck around for a bit, eating snow and cleaning his beak—giving a hint that there might have been 2 fish caught on that trip to the lake and he maybe enjoyed one before bringing the other to Jackie. After her nice meal, Jackie settled back into the nest for the afternoon.
On Wednesday evening, Jackie took her rest time on the Stick Depot Snag. Shadow apparently decided it was a good time to take a break from nest duty and he joined Jackie…for some sweet mating action. Both during and afterward, they both loudly announced their success to the neighborhood. And then they spent together time on that snag and another one nearby before Shadow headed back to the nest.
The next day was Jackie’s turn to show her devotion. As soon as she brought a stick to the nest, Shadow argued that he was not ready to leave. Instead of her usual insistence, Jackie just patiently waited beside Shadow without pushing him to leave. She waited… and waited…and waited, with a few little discussions between them. She sat beside him for over 15 minutes waiting until he decided to get up. Then Jackie gently took over nest duty as the next snowstorm was blowing its way into the valley.
As devoted as they both are to the nest and the eggs, Jackie and Shadow continue building their strong bond with each other. Even during the off season, they are often seen together on nearby perch trees or roosting side-by-side at night.
Sandy

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