Kestrel Dad Learns to Care for Chicks After Mum Disappears | Mr & Mrs Kes | Robert E Fuller
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Published 2022-10-13
Watch Mr & Mrs Kes interact live on my nest cam: • Live From Fotherdale | Robert E Fuller and follow their story in this playlist: • Kestrels 🦅 Mr & Mrs Kes | Wild Lives ... …
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ABOUT THIS FILM
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Male kestrel must learn to parent
Female kestrels are the primary caregivers for the chicks, keeping them warm and tearing up food for them. With her gone, this male kestrel doesn’t know how to fill the role.
Taking care of the weakest
After 10 hours without their mother, I take the six kestrel chicks out of the nest for a health check. Three were small, cold, and weak, and needed to be cared for. I placed the three older, stronger chicks back in the nest, to keep them wild.
Mr Kes tries to brood
Mr Kes has the right instinct and when he arrives, bringing in food for the chicks, he tries to brood them. But he isn't very good at it and soon gives up.
He doesn't know how to feed
The kestrel returns to the nest with a vole but makes no effort to tear it up. They’re starving but are too small to feed themselves.
Mr Kes slowly learns to break up food
It is some time before he realises and begins to tear a vole into smaller morsels. But he is impatient and soon gives up. That the afternoon, I head down to the nest to feed the chicks myself. They haven’t had a meal since I took them out this morning, so they’re hungry. I’m careful not to give them too much, I still want them to call for food.
Mrs Kes briefly returns
At dusk, Mrs Kes suddenly returns. The chicks perk up as they hear her outside. She’s been gone for over 20 hours but doesn’t enter the nest… and when a tawny calls, she bolts off.
I take the chicks in
It’s such unusual behaviour for her, in previous years she’s taken on any threats to protect her own.
Without their mother to protect and brood them overnight, they’re vulnerable to predators and could die if they get cold. So, as darkness falls, I collect them from the nest. They’ll be safer with me overnight.
Placing the chicks back in the nest
The next morning, I pop the three chicks back into the nest, thankfully before Mr Kes returns with a vole. The chicks don’t immediately grab it, and he looks a bit unsure, so he settles for the safe option, brooding again! He seems confident with this task now.
At last Mr Kes learns how to feed
Later, Mr Kes comes in with a special catch, a common lizard. Thinner and easier to swallow, and one chick guzzles it down whole. It seems like a lightbulb moment for Mr Kes, who at last begins to realise that the prey needs to be smaller. He returns with a vole and starts tearing the meal up for the chicks. Against all the odds, this male kestrel has learned how to feed his chicks.
Next time
Mr Kes settles into his new role, and the chicks grow fast. Soon, with a bit of help from me, it’s time to get the younger chicks back into the nest!
ABOUT ME
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I am a British wildlife artist and filmmaker on a mission to share my love for wildlife with the world. As well as creating detailed animal film and art portraits, I promote wildlife tours around the world and do all I can to help conserve and protect wildlife here at my home in Yorkshire. I hope that by putting nature in the frame I can foster a deep love for wildlife amongst my followers.
You may like to purchase my artwork which you can find on my website: www.robertefuller.com/. Many of my paintings are portraits of the wonderful characters you watch here!
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CHAPTERS
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00:00 Single Dad With An Impossible Task
00:14 Male Kestrels Don't Feed Chicks
00:32 Recap
01:20 Mr Kes Tries To Brood
02:01 No Idea How To Feed
02:44 Three Chicks In My Care
03:07 Mr Kes Tears Up Food
03:43 A Helping Hand
04:27 Mr Kes Calls For His Mate
05:06 Female Kestrel Briefly Returns
05:35 Bringing The Chicks In
06:03 Back To The Nest
06:33 Mr Kes Tries Again
07:03 Chick Swallows Lizards
07:27 Male Kestrel Successfully Feeds Chicks
08:07 Next Time...
08:26 End Credits
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© Robert E Fuller
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#robertefuller #kestrel #falcon
All Comments (21)
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I hope you've enjoyed the video! Watch more Mr & Mrs Kes films: bit.ly/43x2rxL See them 24/7 on my livestream: bit.ly/44ScRZT Support my work with wildlife: www.robertefuller.com/support_and_donate/ Shop my kestrel artwork: www.robertefuller.com/product-tag/birds-of-prey/ Follow me: Facebook - bit.ly/43LiisV | Twitter - bit.ly/43yuiO9 | Instagram- bit.ly/3XV7rLA | TikTok - bit.ly/3XUnEAJ
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I love how Mr.Kes gets his kids MULTIPLE voles before realizing they need help eating it. It's like a human dropping a whole loaf of bread in front of a baby and going "...No? Not this one? Ok let me try some pumpernickle." and soon the baby is just surrounded by six different loafs of bread that it 100% cannot eat on it's own. XD
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I remember the first time my dad cooked for me and my siblings when my mom wasn't there to cook. It wasn't the best, but it was good enough to feed his hungry children. This video helped me to realize to appreciate those small moments, to appreciate my own dad.
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Mr. Kes after getting used to feeding a small brood and then returning back to six chicks again: WTF?! 😅
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I actually started to cry when I saw him calling out for her, in hopes she would come back and help him with their babies. Then I cried again when he found his purpose and determination to raise them, despite being clumsy about it. I hope he doesn't give up. I'm glad you're helping him, otherwise it would be a sad ending to this family
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The female being alive is an interesting plot twist, but raises more questions about what happened that set off this behavior, maybe a really bad fight with an owl?
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Mr. Kes finally learning to feed his chicks was one of the most amazing developments I've seen in the livestream. I remember tearing up while watching him feed his chicks. it goes to show how animals adapt to survive. The last time Mrs. Kes returns, it feels like she's saying farewell to her chicks. Her bouts with the Tawnies must have put trauma and stress on her, thus leaving the nest.
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He is absolutely adorable with how hard he tries, and also his little head bops when he sits at the entrance. I want to give him a kiss on the head
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I kinda love the "I have sat on you and dropped food on your heads, that's what mom did! I've seen it!" Attitude he has lmao. So cute.
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As a single dad, it melted my heart. I remembered the old days when I used to struggle to take care of my daughter. I think Mr Daddy bird did an excellent job.
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The best dads aren't perfect, they just never stop trying.
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i was raised by just my dad for most of my life since my mom was violent and abusive. after we kicked her out of our life, it was just me and him. he was never good at cleaning or cooking, but he always tried his damn best, and has always been there for me to keep me safe. i can tell that the love he feels for me is really strong... despite everything he hasnt ever given up on me, and i wont give up on him either seeing mr. kes struggle but try his best to care for his babies, determined to see them survive, struck a chord with me. mr. kes reminds me of my dad like that
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Robert thank you for interfering when seeing suffering. I am not a fan of the pure naturalists out there who say humans should not interfere when they see suffering. I appreciate that you step in and fix things when you feel they are not right. Kudos to you. I love all your videos.
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Hehe, the chicks went from the usual horrified looks of Robert “abducting” them to “Oh, you again.”
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Everyone talks about mothers love towards their children but no one talks about a fathers love toward their children, this is so beautiful ❤️
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I think they should make Father’s Day cards featuring Mr.Kes. What gem of a papa bird ❤️
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This is amazing! In every case of American Kestrels that I’ve ever read, if mom dies or vanishes, the babies just slowly starve, surrounded by heaps of rotting food, while dad is just visibly confused. His tiny bird brain tells him “if baby birds hungry, it means bring more food”, since that’s his only job. I’m so happy to see Mr Kes figure out how to fill in for mom!
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8:24 it's never not funny to me how the chicks went :O when they see their siblings come back ahaha i loved rewatching this, it's so inspirational to watch!
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This made me cry to see him learn, shout out to all the single dads out there doing their absolute best
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My mom died of cancer when I was young. And for years I never really understood how hard my father worked just to keep us fed from going down to one paycheck and thousands of dollars in medical bills. When I turned 18 and I left to do things on my own, I found out that taking care of just myself isn’t that easy and what he did (selling things, not having a meal, paying things late…) was probably the hardest thing in the world since he did it for me and my sister. This video definitely brings back memories of times when me and my sister didn’t really understand why he didn’t always have a plate at the dinner table but he always made sure we were fed.
