26-27 June 2022
There are people all around the world sending good wishes, saying prayers, lighting candles – wherever their beliefs take them – for Little Bit 17 and his nest. Each of us wants the same thing – for the nest to hold out long enough for ND17 Little Bit to fledge. If it lasts longer and he gets prey drops there from the adults – well, that is the whipped cream and the cherry on top of what has been a very difficult season for this third hatch. It was not very often Little Bit caught a break but he learned skills that ND16 might not still know – and it is those skills that will help Little Bit out in the big world.
I made 3 video clips because watching it happen is so much easier than my narration. An adult lands on the nest with a really nice sized fish at 20:11:38. Little Bit immediately mantles it and then 15 flies down to the nest. It is difficult to imagine having enough room on that nest for all three never mind the dust ups. I thought both might go off the nest wings tangled.
There is a dust up over that fish between 15 and Little Bit 17. In fact, there are a couple. Here is a 30 second clip of one of those.
Little Bit 17 gets his fish! ND15 will fly off the nest. Watch carefully and you will see that 17 gets a nice size portion of fish. He will have sweet eagle dreams tonight.
Nothing was ever easy for Little Bit 17. He continues to be a great inspiration to so many of us. He never gives up, never. If you go to the streaming cam it is at 20:28 that Little Bit gets the fish. At 20:30:54 ND15 leaves the nest.
If you are interested in the growing population of Ospreys in the San Francisco Bay area, Tony Brake gave a Zoom presentation on this very topic this morning. Here is the link to the archived Zoom presentation.
This is the latest tracking of our favourite Eastern Osprey, Ervie. PLO notes that he still flies by the barge but it appears he understands he is no longer welcome. How sad for Ervie!!!!! Believe me when I say that I hope Ervie stays right in that area and that when Dad and Mum no longer need that barge that he moves right in – just like Samson did at the NEFlorida nest of his parents Romeo and Juliet.
Karl II has been to the nest he shares with his mate, Kaia, in the Karula National Forest in Estonia. He has brought breakfast. Just look at these cubby little storklets – OK, not so little. They have certainly began to do that amazing ritual to get the adults to let go of their fish. Incredibly beautiful.
And a feeding from the step-dad Toru for the three storklets of Jan and Janika who are in care at the Vet Clinic. There was a plan to move them outdoors but it seems that the complicated care that the trio require is difficult to find a place for them. It is the busiest time for the ornithologists as they are not only caring for wildlife but also ringing the birds. It is not clear but perhaps a temporary outdoor area for them can be built at EMU.
It is another wet cool morning in Wales at the Dyfi Nest of Idris and Telyn. Telyn his huddled with her three osplets who would love to be small again so they would fit under Mum and be toasty warm.
Just look at those beautiful amber/orange eyes. Penetrating. When they are adults they will be yellow. (Exceptions apply like Monty who kept his amber eyes).
Mrs G looks like she is not as drippy wet at her Glaslyn Valley nest as Telyn is at Dyfi.
It might be utterly miserable outside but it appears that Dylan is the first of the Welsh males to get a fish on the nest. Seren is busy feeding those big Bobs.
Oh, Dorcha looks a lot drier at her Loch Arkaig nest in Scotland than poor Seren. It is nice to see Dorcha and the nest drying out. She has had a rough time of it this breeding season with the weather – snow, pelting rain, wind – gale force winds – and then losing Little Bob.
Louis brought in lots of fish on Monday for Dorcha and the chicks. Just look at Big Bob’s crop!
Blue NC0 flew in with a fish for the two ever growing and big Bobs. She does not appear to be wet – although she could have dried off before arriving at the nest with the fish. Or she got a hand off from Laddie. At any rate, there is fish on the nest early and that is a great way to start the day at Loch of the Lowes.
Laddie brought in a decent fish early in the morning but has been contending with intruders all day. This is a popular place for Ospreys and sadly NC0 and the chicks are sometimes hungry because of his territorial duties.
The Foulshaw Moss nest is having the chicks ringed today so the camera is off line.
Check on the ND-LEEF nest. The first prey delivery for Little Bit 17 falls off the nest. At 08:17:34 Dad arrives with a possum.
That arrival prompts 15 to fly in and take it away from Little Bit.
All three are on the nest including ND16 who was seen but not on the nest that I know of since fledging. That is good! I have no idea how this nest is holding up with all this activity.
Little Bit 17 gets to spend some time with his buddy 15. Sweet.
Another prey drop just now. It looks like 15 got it but 17 is snuggling up to get some. I don’t think Little Bit 17 got any of that meal unless it was some scraps. He is going to be very hungry today after loosing that first prey item overboard.
ND16 is on the nest at 13:00 with Little Bit. Must be very tired from all that flying and happy to be home.
Cilla Kinross – whose name you might know from Xavier and Diamond’s scrape in Orange, Australia posted a very cute video clip of the three falcons of Eve and Milo at the University of Montreal this morning. The eyases have names – Red ring is Vega, Yellow is Mira, and the Black band is Sirius.
Two weeks away from fledging. Here is the link to their streaming cam:
For Kestrel lovers, there are three chicks at the scrape in the Dordogne in France:
Cal Falcons has just posted a very cute video of Lindsay hunting moths at night. My goodness Alden has had such a huge influence in this moth hunting!
Lindsay did this on the 21st and in the video below the top one she returned today – the 27th of June to hunt moths, too.
Thank you so much for joining me this morning. It is much appreciated. Please take care. See you soon!!!
Thank you to the following for their streaming cams for the screen captures and/of videos used in this blog: Cal Falcons, Cilla Kinross, Faucons UdeM, ND-LEEF, Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn, Friends of Loch Arkaig, People’s Post Code Lottery and the Woodland Trust, Friends of Loch of the Lowes and the Scottish Wildlife Trust, CarnyXWild, PLO, Emu and LizM and Faucons Crecerelles Dordogne.
What a beautiful screenshot of the three Dyfi osplets!
And that Alden is a brilliant educator! Who else would have thought of it — encouraging moth-hunting to help develop the talon-eye coordination of the young ones. Genius!
My apologies, B. I just saw your comment. It was stunning to see those three Dyfi osplets and their eyes. The two from last year were the same – they all look like 5 identical birds. Stunning. I think Alden is such an interesting falcon. Have you ever seen the adult teach a falcon to hunt moths? I haven’t but you are so right – it is genius.