The Dark Female (Ginger/Lima) spend another night on the nest this evening.  Around 7:40 p.m. she circled the area of the hawk bench and then landed on the nest. 

My original hypothesis about this year’s nesting seems to be holding true.  I thought that the Dark Female, who was hanging around with a young hawk who she stole food from, didn’t yet have the hormones to bond properly with Pale Male in January. 

This allowed the Pale Female (Pale Beauty) to come in and try to bond with Pale Male later in the season.  But I think she was too young to lay eggs yet, so things didn’t work out.  She never seemed interested in the nest.  I believe this allowed the Dark Female, who was now more motivated to mate since the days were much longer, to move in and displace her.

Even though it was late in the season, I wasn’t concerned.  Triggers other than longer days must play a part in getting a female to ovulate.  This must include copulation, nest building, constant displays of food by the male, etc.  With help from other hawk watchers, we estimated that it would take three to four weeks for the Dark Female to ovulate from the date of her return.  It’s been sixteen days since the Dark Female returned, and now our timing estimates look like they might be correct.  I certainly hope so!