What's she got in her Mouth Round 2

Well I knew the Crested Caracara I posted last week was a female.... Because I have photo documented and have field notes on her, her mate and their offspring going back three years...... Crested Caracaras are not sexually dimorphic.... But the females are always about 10 percent larger than the males.... So when I started following pairs and documenting their activities I started to be able to tell the females... And when I started watching nesting behaviors I could confirm this.... I never read this anywhere and no biologist told me (I have had direct conversations with biologists on Caracaras based on conversations that I have had... There is an Ornithologist and Cornell University that

has been trying to talk me out of my field notes on Caracaras for over a year) but when I started watching nesting behavior the larger of the pair sat on the eggs by far  the most.... And the smaller brought food to  her as well as the chicks after they hatched.... And as the chicks grew in size... If there was a threat to the nest and the chicks, the smaller bird would be the one that actively went after the threat. And  the larger bird would stay at the nest and cover the chicks with their wings.... I am convinced that the number one threat to Caracara Chicks is young adult single Caracaras.... The next would be Great Horned Owls and Bald Eagles behind that..  I have seen all three of those species of birds try to make an attack on a nest... And I have seen Great Horned Owls try it in pairs.... I have never seen a successful attack on a nest... How successful those predators are... I am not sure....But since 2022 I have actively watched 16 Caracara chicks from three pairs..... I did not see any this year as I had some personal commitments and then got sick during their nesting season.... but of those 16 chicks 15 fledged... I do not know what happened to the one chick.... I can only visit them about once a week.... I may take a few days off work when I think they are getting close to fledging.....  One saturday it was there... The next saturday... where there were three chicks there were only two..... I am almost convinced that they have no real natural threats once they fledge.......  All of the other birds of prey back off or try to fly away if a Caracara Challenges them.... I have seen young birds less than a year old back a dozen vultures, and a mature Bald Eagle off of Road kill... And Mature Caracaras take prey from other birds of prey.

Over time.... I started to be able to tell who was who on the birds I have seen and well documented.... They all look alike... But if you know them.... They are all a little Different....  Just like All Black Cats look alike, All Rottweilers look alike.... but if there is one you know well, you could pick it out of group of 100...

Anyway that is the LONG version of why and how I knew that bird last week was a female.

For this weeks entries.... I have a Great Egret and a Crested Caracara that I do not know... Sub adult Just coming into maturity.... I have no idea if they are male or female....

The Egret has some sort of catfish....  I have no clue what the Caracara has...