6 April 2026
Hello Everyone,
Let’s get on with the great news. No confirmation yet but first thing I checked was Iris’s nest and look what I found.
There was sad news coming out of Florida late Sunday. The little third hatch, Nod, that had captured so many hearts died from starvation caused by siblicide.
Earlier in the day.
It is difficult raising three – it is extraordinary to fledge four but there have been osprey families that have done it repeatedly. Maya and Blue 33 and, as of late, CJ7 and Blue 022 seem to be setting some kind of record.
When a little one dies, I always think of two nests where the tiny one did not die. The first that comes to mind is Tiny Tot Tumbles (2021) at Achieva. We held our breath—79 hours without food. That little babe searched the nest and ate bones. It learned to ride the rails to sneak a bite and attacked the older sibling because it had nothing to lose. Diane noticed this chick wanted to live. When the older ones were asleep, and it was dark, she flew in with one of her catfish. Tiny Tot Tumbles, who was on the verge of death in March and April, survived and thrived. She defended the nest with Jack against an intruder during the third week of June after Diane had left the area. Tiny Tot was still on the nest later in the summer. She was extraordinary. I have always wondered what happened to her, and that is the problem with the US lack of ringing. The chicks on the streaming cam nests need to be ringed – and, yes, that goes for Big Red’s hawklets on the Cornell campus. Surely the folks at Cornell Bird Lab understand that knowing the dispersal area of Big Red’s babies could be important!
The second nest was Foulshaw Moss. White YW is an extraordinary male, and Blue 35 is a great Mum. The two older siblings in 2021 were much, much larger compared to the tiny third hatch. Blue 35 was clever! She managed to fill up the older ones, and once she flew off with the fish, they fell asleep. She returned with the fish and fed the tiny, tiny one. It was a brilliant strategy. I wish I could find my notes. I believe that, once ringed, the osplet was Blue 465. I really hope that Blue 35 returns this year. I am watching and waiting and so is her mate, White YW, who has been home for some days.
At the Glaslyn nest, Aran had a visitor, Blue 019. She is from the Fron nest. Elen was no where to be seen.
Geemeff reports that Dorcha spent an hour on the Loch Arkaig nest 1, an unusual event. She has stopped in over the previous years, but never stayed this long. Geemeff believes that Dorcha flew in right before Storm Dave hit, while the other migrating ospreys are going to wait til the storm leaves. We are all looking forward to Louis’s arrival.
Geemeff sends us the daily summary:
Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Sunday 5th April 2026
The weather continued to be poor with snow and ice, and Louis hasn’t yet returned. Dorcha however turned up not only on her own nest, but paid a visit of over an hour to Nest One. She has visited Nest One before but only a couple of fleeting visits. Looking forward to the return of Louis and the Nest One residents, probably when Storm Dave passes and the weather settles – in previous years, Louis has arrived as late as 11th April.
Today’s video:
https://youtu.be/jwSZFrPoQRM N1 Dorcha visits and perches for an hour 10.28.32
Blast from the past – this day in previous years:
https://youtu.be/000ExVIHdTk N1 He’s back! Louis returns 2020
https://youtu.be/s45fByu5-ZE N2 Louis swoops around before landing with a fish 2023
https://youtu.be/_tcny1NvSfs N2 Louis is heard sky dancing at dawn 2024
https://youtu.be/onRZQMzzFec N2 Did Dorcha catch a fish or did Louis give it to her off-nest? 2024
https://youtu.be/15LM_bVIrGk N2 Comedy with a sticky situation (Classic Ospreys – Mozart) 2025
https://youtu.be/HPXA4EJ5uQc N2 The dulcet tones of a hungry female! 2025
Why not come and join the lively community at Woodland Trust’s Osprey forum, it’s friendly, free and everyone’s welcome:
https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam
At Loch of the Lowes, there are ospreys but not Blue NC0. It is rumoured that she has been seen at another nest. Wherever she winds up, I hope she has a good mate and raises some healthy osplets. We all loved Laddie LM12, her late mate, and feel sorry for these ‘singles’ that are left and have to leave their former homes.
Take care…chek those cutie pie eaglets out at Big Bear and the babies at Achieva.
See you soon!
Thank you to ‘PB’ for her messages and to the streaming cams that let us see these wonderful birds in all their glory and saddness.
