It was a gorgeous day spent partly in the English Gardens at our Assiniboine Park. Three – yes, 3 – hummingbirds were seen. We felt like we had won gold medals at the Olympics! They were feeding in the white trumpet looking flowers (I have forgotten their name – sorry). I only had my iPhone and seriously they are in there, but you can’t see them.
The Black-eyed Susans were tremendous.
But the winner for the day was the Peacock Flower whose scent was simply stunning. It stopped me in my tracks!
I was sitting in the gardens when ‘J’s note came through that Gabby had arrived back safely at NE Florida. It simply brought tears to my eyes! Gosh she is beautiful! Eagle Goddess caught the arrival on video: https://youtu.be/snsaRCeKZAE?si=5_ti-SJw72R6XW4a
The tears poured more when I realised that Beau and Gabby were together on ‘their’ tree. Let us hope that this is their year to have a family.
When we got home the Bird Feeder with the camera had arrived. Do not let anyone tell you these are easy to install. This one is completely together now and sitting on the large table feeder. No one will go near it!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Darn thing. The other issue is scanning the QR code for the app so that you can actually see these birds with the camera. Yes, I made sure the light was bright and that the camera was clean. Nothing. Nothing. Very annoying. I will try again in the morning!
Starting off with a note about the male at Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. There was some confusion on my part about the band. Thank you ‘MP’ for reminding me of the information we received last year: “Vanessa Green told me the band was green over black with MS lettering and was banded in 2018 at the nest off of Grimm Road in Carver Park Reserve off of HWY 11 between Hwy 5 and Hwy 7. That makes the male on the Minnesota nest 6 years old not 22 years old. I thought I would correct it so you could retract your statement on 9/3/24 blog.
Although, there is a bird that was banded in 2002 with black over green and white lettering MS like I said this one was, it was banded at the nest off of Kings Point Road just north of HWY 7 and Carver Park Reserve in Hennepin County. How she knows this one is the green band vs the black I don’t know, unless she saw it with binoculars. She told me she was there when the bird was banded in 2018, and besides she said, she is the one to change the coloring in 2009 from black to green.”
Last year, in 2023, the male and female had already migrated by the time they were last seen at the nest. I have included them and the juvenile in the Memorial Wall listing because of the horrific storm and the juvenile seen with the Bald Eagle and not seen again. Should the male show up next year, I will remove him. Female is not banded and will have to rely on head and underwing marks to confirm in 2025.
Geemeff and the Daily Summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Wednesday 4th September 2024 While the Ospreys have gone and the local wildlife isn’t very visible either, the view from the nest cams is stunning and it’s worth popping in from time to time to have a look as the seasons change. The nests looked beautiful bathed in sporadic sunshine today, and more of the same is forecast for tomorrow. Drop in also to Woodland Trust’s campaigns page to see what they’re currently working on, and how you can help: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/protecting-trees-and-woods/campaign-with-us Costs nothing but a few seconds and a couple of mouse clicks, and makes a huge difference. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.12.13 (05.30.11); Nest Two 21.06.15 (05.38.41)
The Royal Cam chick is readying to take off from the headland at Taiaroa. They will be out on the water feeding for 5-6 years before they step on land again at which time they will be very wobbly. Wish this little one all the luck in the world! It will need it.
At Hellgate Canyon, Antali spent the night on the perch. Iris and Finnegan fed him nicely during the day. Sum-eh was last seen on the 30th. She has probably migrated or fishing for herself and not in view of the camera.
Antali has had several fish deliveries at the nest. Iris is still home and she arrived with a huge crop and a nice piece of fish for her second hatchling at 1214 on Wednesday.
‘PB” got this great screen capture of Iris’s crop and sent it in! So glad Iris and Finnegan are both eating well and fattening up after a busy year with Sum-eh and Antali.
More fish from Dad – a nice bedtime snack!
At Charlo, C16 is still getting fish deliveries from Charlie!
It looks like fish deliveries are being given off nest at Dunrovin. Junebug waited patiently and took off several times after mantling.
The juvenile was on the Cowlitz nest and was getting fish from dad! As ‘PB’ says, this little osplet fledgling is a miracle – it survived the eagle that took its two siblings.
Sadly, there are no surprises on these necroscopies. I wish more people had taken the time this year because there would have been a flood of osprey chicks that starved to death. Besides the heat, the reason is staring us in the face – the industrial fishing for Menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay and at its mouth (within 3 miles of the mouth) has to be stopped. This is outright decimation of a species just like DDT nearly wiped out all the ospreys. Please write your Senators and anyone else that will listen. Omega has to be stopped.
More sad news. Big Red and Arthur’s N1 died of West Nile Virus.
For everyone cheering that the male at 367 Collins Street was M22, the chap who saved the day that year, Victor Hurley has confirmed that it is, indeed, him! He survived. He has a new mate. Let’s hope they have great success. Here is some additional information from Hurley:
The Olympic Park Sea Eaglets are growing. They are standing and moving around. SE34 is still skiddish and is submissive during feedings. Thankfully, there is often enough for both!
Migration is ongoing where I live. Goose flight evenings have begun at the nature centres. People arrive before dusk and watch hundreds, if not thousands, land on the ponds. I will be heading up to Oak Hammock for their migration evening. The hummingbirds are passing through, and in Saskatchewan, the Sandhill Cranes are being seen moving south. Several flocks have been seen just north of where I live. I am hoping I will have some luck and catch these beautiful birds feeding on the newly combined fields, too. Will keep you posted.
Hummers are on the move as I noted earlier and you can track them if you like as they move through the US.
The first successful nesting of the Great Egret takes place in Scotland.
‘J’ sends us news from the Marathon FB of Ron’s Rita in permanent care at Marathon:
Thanks for being with us today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, charts, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘EJ, Geemeff, J, MP, PB’, Eagle Goddess, NEFL-AEF, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, The Cool Down, Cornell Bird Lab, Montana Osprey Project, Charlo Montana, Dunrovin Ranch, Pam Breci and Cowlitz PUD, Menhaden – Little Fish, Big Deal, Virginia Osprey Project, Suzanne Arnold Horning, Victor Hurley, Tweed Valley Osprey Project, Llyn Brenig, BirdGuides, Hawk Mountain, Olympic Park Eagles, iflscience.com, Marathon Wild Bird Centre, and Hummingbird-News.
Thursday was an ‘odd’ day. We woke up to overnight torrential downpours with pools of water everywhere. The dishes for ‘The Boyfriend’ were scattered everywhere, and one of the birdbaths was turned upside down. Now, as this wind? Or was it the fox? I couldn’t tell. By early morning, it was muggy outside – but it didn’t stop us from heading off to check on birds. There were hundreds of Red-wing Blackbirds in the corn fields. According to Wiley On-Line, “Red-winged Blackbirds are often initially attracted to corn fields to feed on insect pests during the 2–3 week period between silking and kernel development.” I learned something new today.
The minute I stopped, the birds all dove down into the corn. Would they come up and do their fancy flying while I was there? Of course not! LOL
Then a Red-tail Hawk was spotted on a branch above a wheat field. Looks like it is moulting.
The animals at Pineridge Hollow do have a nice life. They are not continually caged up so they can be exploited for our benefit. There is a large field at the back where they can feed and wander except for the chickens that are likely taken into a coop at night.
This must be Rufus!
This is Sugar.
The goats were simply not interested in being friendly today.
The field behind the pen enclosures where the animals can roam.
We were not home for a minute before the Crows came calling. Some were on the wire demanding cheesy dogs while a couple were eating of one of the nut and bug suet cylinders. Gosh, I love these characters!
The lesson for today comes from the garden’s Blue Jays. Here is Junior. Junior is the father of one group of this year’s fledglings. I know him by the pattern of the white on his tail. His other distinction right now is that he looks ‘ill’. Junior is healthy. He is moulting. The process of replacing feathers often happens a few feathers at a time. This allows the birds to fly to feed and protect themselves. They also need those feathers to protect them from the summer heat and torrential rains. That said, some of the Blue Jays will lose all their head feathers and become completely bald. That is what Junior is doing. Because our summer season is so short, most Blue Jays in my neighbourhood opt to lose them all so that the time to have a full crest again is shortened. Some say it takes about a week. You may read that Blue Jays of all ages moult and become bald. I have not found this to be the case. This year’s fledglings have their full crests and that is how I can tell them from the adults quickly.
You can see that Junior’s crest is just beginning to come in.
This is one of this year’s fledglings. I want you to look very closely. This is the little one that I was concerned about. It’s tail is still not straight but its crest is in better condition. It is eating and flying well. I shed tears seeing this one today as I had not seen it. We have several new feral cats and a fox coming to the garden and I was so concerned that one or the other had killed the poor baby. Not so!
This is Mamma. She is moulting, too. She is a little behind Junior. You can even see her ‘ear’ – the dark circle behind the eye.
A perfectly healthy 2024 Blue Jay fledgling who has just enjoyed some peanuts and is pondering what to do next with that tiny seed in its mouth. Behind him, you will see one of the ‘new’ baby Sparrows. They keep upsetting the frame that holds my cherry tomatoes upright.
I love our geese.
News about another female checking out another osprey platform in Poole Harbour. Notice the comment about CJ7 coming in 2017. CJ7 waited and waited for her prince – Blue 022 to arrive. They have raised chicks in 2022, 2023, and again – four this year – 2024.
If you live in Nova Scotia, why not head down to Hope for Wildlife. They are the leading rehabilitator in that province.
Will Port Lincoln’s Mum and Dad be grandparents this year? Calypso has a mate at the Tulka platform!
Iris is tired. She has been busy making sure that her babies, Sum-eh and Antali, are well feed. But has she been practising self-care? I sure hope so. We want to see you back next year, Queen Iris.
Hope calling to Beaumont when she sees him coming in with a fish at the Newfoundland Snow Lane nest.
It is all good.
On the other side of North America, it was quiet at the Cowlitz PUD osprey platform of Electra.
Well, it wasn’t quiet at the Fortis-Exshaw Platform near Canmore, Alberta. Harvie brought a fish to two hungry fledglings on the nest just after 1600. I bet his talons hurt as much as Iris and Finnegan!
What a gorgeous place for an Osprey platform at Charlo! Lola on the perch and C16 on the nest.
Dad is delivering a lot of fish to the Olympic Park Sea Eagle nest. Big Sibling seems to always have a huge crop! They both still resemble little snow people. So cute.
The extent of plastic in the ocean is killing the beautiful petrels and albatross. I know it is hard to avoid plastic, but make a pact with yourself that you will try! And reuse plastic in your home whenever you must buy items enclosed in it!
Only Bob joins all the other fledglings worldwide, screaming for fish to be brought to the nest.
The four are hanging around Field Farm, too, and getting some nice big fish.
Crows and fledglings are at Oyster Bay on Long Island.
It looks like our great Patchogue Long Island Mum is still in town. She was on the nest at least once on Thursday.
Just look at the fish on the nest at Osoyoos! My goodness. What I would have given to have had fledglings so full they couldn’t eat anymore when Little was still with us!!!!!! Maybe a movement will start where people deliver fish to nests when the birds are hungry. Just to carry them through. It takes on average 500 fish for a family with three fledglings according to all the studies done by John Williams for Forestry England up at Clywedog.
I kept getting the ball of death when I tried to rewind at Marders in East Hampton Long Island. The fledgling is on the nest being fed. It is in the blue rectangle.
Geemeff’s Daily Summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Thursday 22nd August 2024 Today brought a lovely surprise – Garry LV0, thought to have left on migration after last being seen on 18th August, turned up at Nest One today. He spent more than fifteen minutes on the nest, preening and looking around, before flying off eastwards. The weather was wet and windy and it’ll be about a week before there’s a chance of sunshine. Woodland Trust have announced their candidates for British Tree of the Year, one of which, the Skipinnish Oak, is a neighbour of Loch Arkaig Pine Forest. More info and link to vote for your favourite here: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam/?ht-comment-id=15806183 Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.40.30 (05.15.27); Nest Two 21.37.17 (05.21.30) Today’s videos:
https://youtu.be/H_ddzxroEpkN1 Garry LV0 turns up after a 4-day absence! 13.19.20 Bonus action – after voting for your favourite British tree of the year, please sign the petition to save them and other living legends:
This fool, #IdiotsWithGuns as I call them, is contrite, but the fine and punishment is not nearly enough – he’s broken up a breeding pair, killed one of the adults, and a chick starved to death in the nest while an egg didn’t hatch as no adult around to incubate. Just disgusting. And to make it work, he effectively got just a $350 fine. And the neighbour who chopped down the nest tree forcing the family to move onto the idiot’s land is also culpable.https://cdapress.com/news/2024/aug/22/hayden-man-fined-for-killing-osprey/
Geemeff sends us the Latest video of Loch Arkaig Osprey chick ‘Jaws’ 1JW, plus photos of the late Paen JH3, both in Parque Natural del Marjal de Pego-Oliva Spain from Fundación Migres and tweets from Woodland Trust Scotland:
I am reminded by a message from ‘PB’ about the growing numbers of wildlife in rehabilitation centres. SOAR is only one of thousands of centres.
Our wildlife rehabilitation centres are often so full that they turn away animals. It is so very very sad that these excellent doctors and their clinics do not get an ounce of government support. Everything is done by donation and an army of volunteers. So this brings me to my last point for the day. Help. Do what you can to help the wildlife. You might only be able to put out a life saving bowl of water – do it, please. You have no idea how many lives you could be saving. But you can also do more. Every one of us has more stuff than we can possibly use. The next time you clean out the closet or the garage or the basement, look at what is there. The rehabilitation clinics need stuff. From bleach to tools to food for the animals – garden produce, etc. Good clean towels and sheets, laundry detergent, toys – don’t forget the toys for enrichment. Paper towels…the list is endless including kiddie pools! Look around you. Set you a neighbourhood campaign. Gather up everything you can and if you can’t deliver it, I promise you the wildlife centre will find a devoted volunteer who can. You will have cleared out some space and you will be smiling because this is one way to really help.
Thank you so much for being with us today. We so hope that you are having a good end to the week! Remember to get outside and listen for the birds and look up – you might just see a hawk sitting on a branch in the most unexpected of places.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, images, articles, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, PB’, Sweetbriar Nature Centre, BoPH, Connie Dennis, Friends of Sth Aus, Cornell Bird Lab, Newfoundland Power, Cowlitz PUD, Fortis-Exshaw, That Kat, Charlo Montana, Olympic Sea Eagle Cam, Agreement on the Conservation of Albatrosses and Petrels, Boulder County, Field Farm, PSEG, Osoyoos, Marder’s, Geemeff and the Woodland Trust, BTO, Liznm, and SOAR.
First up, if you would like the recipe for the Nova Scotia Brown Bread with oatmeal and molasses, send me an email (maryannsteggles@icloud.com), and I will happily send you the recipe that I used. It was delicious, especially after 24 hours! I did not use a bread machine (a few of you asked). Having spent a few decades as a potter, the kneading of bread is enjoyable. The bread slices nicely after it has a chance to sit for several hours (perhaps 6) and even better the next day. It was good with a curried chickpea filling as a sandwich today.
Oh, I thought the baby Cowbird had left the garden…Well, I should say that the House Sparrows raised three cowbirds in their nests in the lilacs and nearby trees. But, there, sitting on a lilac branch, big and bold, was a beautiful little Cowbird. It is making my day. I don’t like what they do to the other little birds – laying their eggs in their nests and having tiny birds feed those big hatchlings, but I like to know that all of them are safe. Despite knowing that the local hawk has to eat, I still have a big ache when I hear he had a Blue Jay for lunch or a little woodpecker.
It remains hot for Winnipeg – not in the 30s anymore, but a hot 27 C. The bird baths are busy and have to be filled constantly.
The peppers are ripening every day, and so are the tomatoes. I wish you were here so I could give you armfuls of herbs! Hugo Yugo and Baby Hope are playing Hungarian Sweet Pepper hockey tonight!
Mr Crow has left me some feathers from his moult. The squirrels are busy eating. In about a month, they will begin hoarding peanuts. Right now, they are eating them at their leisure. My neighbour finished my planter, and I put in three big gobs of grass. It is a little late. We will see if their roots take before winter. If this heat keeps up, we might not have winter until the new year. That said, a goose wedge (or skein) flew overhead around 1800, heading to the river. They will begin flying into the pond at the nature centre in a few weeks from the north (or that has been the historical practice). On the ground, they are called a gaggle.
It could be a better image – heavily cropped and taken with an iPhone through the conservatory windows – of either a Great Crested Flycatcher or an Eastern Kingbird – sitting on the lilac branches this morning. It is so tricky seeing the birds when the foliage is dense.
I wonder what else is lurking in those branches. When I set Merlin to listen, everyone becomes quiet. It is too funny!
I had hoped that we would not see any more osprey deaths this season, but such is not the case. The middle chick at the Osprey Environment Centre in Australia has died. The weather turned cold, rainy, and quite nasty and it was difficult for George to fish. The stronger sibling, the first hatch, did survive. Parents are George and Hope.
The fish deliveries and the anxiousness of Sum-eh and Antali are ramping up the action at Hellgate Canyon.
Just look at Antali’s crop!
There is good news about Yellow USU. Nothing wrong with the wing. It appears that the issue had to do with a bit of a lack of fish. USU is doing well in care and eating buckets of Bream. What a relief for this sole survivor of its nest in Finland.
There is a lot of fish coming to the nest of Eura and Eve (nest # 1). The fledglings have huge crops – there are three of them, two females and a male, but I cannot see the yellow Darvic rings in the images below.
Adult cleaning out the nest bowl at nest #4. He was sure working on that nest bowl – you would have thought there was another male’s eggs in there he wanted to get rid of but, it is just preparations for next year.
Two on the nest at Pitkin County fish calling!
Windy and one on the nest at Llyn Brenig. Three fledglings apparently at Clywedog, but I missed them.
All of the youngsters are still at Glaslyn.
Those fish that are coming in are a nice size to fatten these babies up for their long flight.
Kiddos of Idris and Telyn still wanting fish at Dyfi.
Xavier and Diamond are working on eggs for the 2024 season!
Do the Osprey (and other fish and mammals) a favour if you live in the US. Find your Senator on the list and write to them to push an end to the industrial fishing of Menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay and at its mouth – we need more than a 3 mile ban.
Gabby is expected back at the nest in the NE of Florida within the next three weeks! It doesn’t stop many from checking in daily. When will Beau return? Will this be ‘their’ year?
Blue 5F Seren is still home at Llyn Clywedog and those fledglings are getting some whoppers for their dinners.
Mr North and Mrs DNF are getting a new nest after theirs collapsed during torrential weather this season.
Another Montana fledgling with a crop that is about to pop!
Juveniles eating fish at Allin’s Cove East on Long Island.
At Rutland, Maya, Blue 33, and 1R0 were all on the nest Monday morning. I caught 1R0 screaming for fish and Blue 33 obliged with a whopper for their Only Bob.
Geemeff’s daily summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Monday 19th August 2024
No activity on the nests today bar a fleeting visit by a little Robin. Has Garry LV0 headed south? He only made a brief appearance yesterday, and with the wet and windy weather which is set to continue for days, he may have decided to seek out warmer climes. As always, nothing is certain so it’s wait and watch to see if he turns up again. If you’ve enjoyed watching the Osprey cams this season, the bonus section has the different ways you can support Woodland Trust.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.48.46 (05.20.05); Nest Two 21.37.58 (05.21.11)
Geemeff sent us some more very interesting news items. I am including all the links as I am certain there are several that will be of interest to you if not all!
The day old White-tail Eaglet is doing well according to PLO.
Jolene and Boone are visiting their nest in Johnson City, Tennessee. More and more eagles will be returning in the next month to get reacquainted and freshen up their nests.
Today’s special! A free copy of August Birdwatch Magazine!
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, messages, images, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, H, PB’, Osprey House Environment Centre, Cornell Bird Lab, Pam Breci, Pyhtaan lintuhoitola, Saaksilvie, Pitkin County Open Spaces and Trails, Llyn Brenig Osprey Cam, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Dyfi Osprey Project, Cilla Kinross, SK Hideaways, Save our Menhaden, NEFL-AEF, Llyn Clywedog Osprey Cam, Raptor Resource Project, Allin’s Cove East Osprey Cam, LRWT, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, fws.gov, Sky Hi News, Country Times, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Sara A,
The plane left late, sat on the tarmac in Winnipeg on arrival, and it seemed it took forever to get home. Of course, I was anxious – that old saying that it is a good thing to be away and even better to be home. ‘The Girls’ are so excited. All four of them are running around playing but staying right close to us. The birds were well looked after, and my neighbour is building a large planter out of stones so wild grasses can be planted. He even weeded the area around the weeping Caragana. I am so grateful. The rest is so overgrown and needs some good attention. Ten years ago it was easy – the heat just seems to take the ‘steam’ out of everyone. Everything is growing like I recall the vegetation did in Grenada. I need some sheep and goats out there!!!!!!
It was a magnificent holiday – one of the best ever, and we have had many holidays- graduate studies ensured that. I think it was because we chose not to do too much and not run around the province of Nova Scotia trying to check out tourist sites and osprey platforms. We did that one day and went ‘no’ after. The small villages and the surprise birding areas fuelled our joy. Sitting on the sidewalk sipping coffee and eating the most delicious lemon cake in Canning was just the right speed. Tonight, we are sipping some of the nicest coffee from beans roasted in Berwick and eating chocolate processed in Antigonish while the girls cuddle. It is hard to describe how wonderful it is to have Hugo Yugo wake me up during the night, nuzzling her head under my chin. Then, I looked down and saw Calico at the foot of the bed. Everything is alright in the world. The squirrels are out eating this morning – it seems I left them enough food for two weeks, not six days! When I think of Jen and her sanctuary, it is farm animals. In our garden, it is a sanctuary for those who find themselves living in an urban area that used to be wild. It makes me feel good. It also made me feel guilty as I dreamed of moving back to the hills of Nova Scotia. I think the key is to travel there often! Settling in a beautiful small village without a doctor, a grocery store, or a bank might be challenging. Today, we will revisit Nova Scotia by making a lovely brown bread with oatmeal and molasses. It is traditional – most eat it with scrumptious baked beans, just like in the States of New England. So, despite the heat, the oven will be on.
Well, the bread tasted much better than it looked. First effort! The chowder was top-notch if I say so myself. It’s Missing Nova Scotia.
The cat sitter had one thing to say, and you won’t be surprised: “Hugo-Yugo is such a little helion. LOL. She chased all the others throughout the house one morning.” The tiniest ginger cat has been the boss since she arrived. There is no question. She is not vicious, just persistent.
Calico, who loves to eat, will quickly move out of the way when she sees her coming towards her dish! They do get along. No fighting…just everyone needs to remember the hierarchy – the youngest is the boss. Antali would like that.
I ordered two books that I could skim at the sanctuary apartment. One of those is The Pig Who Sang to the Moon. Anecdotes from this volume will, no doubt, fuel some of the stories in my post in the future.
It is hard to fully articulate just how tired I am. Hopefully this posting will make some sense and not seem too scattered.
It is time for annual summaries and Dr Green has supplied us with two for Iris and Finnegan. I will continue to add these as I find them as it is so nice to revisit our nests before everyone departs.
Antali finds a fish hidden in the nest! And then Antali gets another. Well done. Don’t worry. Sum-eh has had fish.
Dr Green prepared this timeline for Iris and her nest happenings this season. Finnegan did fantastic. 8-9 fish a day, and the one day he and Iris brought in 10. Incredible. This was the biggest miracle in the eyes of all watchers who sent me their ‘miracle’ lists.
‘PB’ caught Antali waiting at the nest at Hellgate Canyon wanting a fish.
The ospreys around the Clarke Fork River are helping the scientists. Here is a podcast by Dr Green.
“Osprey chicks are helping scientists track pollution in the Clark Fork River
Iris the Osprey is a world-famous bird who’s nested along Missoula’s Clark Fork River for most of her long life. She’s also a longtime participant in research tracking mining pollution in the river. After more than a decade, the latest data on the health of the river is expected soon.”
Iris has certainly caught and eaten her share of fish in the local river. Today, she had another whopper on the Owl Pole! And after she has a good feed, Sum-eh and Antali will be wanting some.
Dad is busy filling up the little sea eaglets!
‘A’ comments on the sea eaglets breakfast:
“The littles had someone else’s chick for breakfast (probably a baby water bird with white feathers, which Lady took the prey away to pluck. Dad arrived early and was sent off on a breakfast mission at 06:48, returning just five minutes later with the bird. Once the breakfast was defeathered, Mum decided the littles were still sleepy and settled down to brood them a little longer. She got up and began feeding them breakfast soon after 07:15. SE33 is still sleeping, so she starts by feeding SE34, who is in front of SE33. After a few bites, SE34 wakes up, so Lady gives it some bites. The pair are both eating nicely, side by side, with each being given bites. SE34 is not afraid to accept the food it is offered and SE33 does not interfere.
By 07:20 Lady is feeding SE33 exclusively. When she offers SE34 a bite at 07:22:25, it is refused. She returns to feeding SE33. Again, about a minute later, SE34 refuses a bite to eat, even though it is sitting up and indicating it would like some breakfast. At 07:23:40 Lady again tries to get SE34 to take food and it refuses. This is a worrying development. Lady again returns to feeding SE33.
At 07:24:10 Lady again offers a bite to SE34 who is slow to accept it, but Lady persists and eventually SE34 takes the bite, without any response from SE33. From this point, Lady offers the eaglets alternate bites, with both littles accepting the food they are offered. They are like the best of mates, side by side at the table. Plenty of food and mum keeping a close eye on the kids and ensuring both get enough to eat. Lovely;
Well that was a nice start to the day at WBSE. Dad is really doing a great job of keeping food on the nest for the family. That fish he brought in, was it yesterday?, was the largest I think I have ever seen brought in to this nest. And of course Lady is her usual self when it comes to doling out the food evenly and ensuring that the kids play nicely. “
“It was time that I spent a day with the littles at WBSE and ensured that everything was progressing well and that both parents were doing their respective jobs, while both littles were eating well and behaving themselves nicely. So today, I watched the feedings in some detail. I have already talked about the breakfast feeding.
There was bonking at the lunchtime feeding. Dad brought in a nice fish, and Lady began feeding SE33, with SE34 asleep in front of it. After a while, SE34 woke up and lifted its head. Lady offered it a bite, which it accepted without any objections from SE33. Lady then returned to feeding SE33. At 12:38 Lady eats a big mouthful of fish herself – it was easier than preparing it for one of the littles. This seemed to frustrate SE33, causing it to wait too long between bites, and it beaked SE34 in the back of the head. SE34 ducks and tucks. It is slow to accept bites now, and Lady is slow to offer them. Lady continues to feed SE33, however, leaning over SE34 to do so. SE34 just sits, head up and waiting but not competing for food. It is a little intimidated when SE33 tries to remove a bone from its beak, thinking perhaps it is being bonked, By 12::41, SE34 is leaning towards the fish, only inches from his beak. Mum continues feeding SE34. By 12:41, SE33 is full, refusing a bite that Lady offers three times. When SE33 turns its head away, Lady offers the bite to SE34, who accepts it without hesitation. She gives the next bite to SE33, who takes it. She then resumes feeding SE33. When SE33 refuses the third bite, she offers it to SE34, who is slow to take it so she again offers it to SE33. This time, it is accepted. SE34 lifts its head and makes it clear it is wanting food but Lady offers the fish to SE33. Whenever Lady tries to clean fish off SE33’s face, it cringes away from her as if scared. Neither eaglet is keen on having its face cleaned by mum!
!2:42 and SE34 has its head down as Lady feeds SE33. Just before 12:43, SE34 lifts its head again but Lady continues reaching past it to feed SE33. When she leans close to SE34 to pick up a dropped piece of fish, it immediately pulls as far away from her as it can. This is such strange behaviour, as mum has never hurt either of the littles, intentionally or otherwise, so I have no idea why her movement close to the eaglets causes them to behave as if intimidated. 12:43:20 and SE34’s head is up again and it is waiting hopefully for fish. Lady continues to feed SE33, who is sitting up behind SE34. At 12:45:38 Lady finally offers a bite to SE34, who takes it immediately. She offers another bite to SE34, who takes that one too. There is no reaction from SE33. From this point, Lady offers bites to both eaglets, sometimes giving SE33 two bites in a row but usually alternating between them. SE34 is initially a little cautious but is soon confidently eating with its sibling. Nice.
By 12:52, SE33 is full and Lady appears distracted. SE34 could certainly eat more but Lady decides the feeding is over. ABut Sgain, I think SE33 did better at this feeding than SE34, and this appears to be the case at virtually all the feedings, unless Lady takes the opportunity to give SE34 a private feeding while SE33 is sleeping. This situation provides SE34 with its best opportunities to eat without concern or trepidation. There is still half a fish left on the nest (though this fish is a different species from the giant one Dad brought in yesterday and is a medium-sized, plate-shaped specimen.
At 13:46:46 dad removes the half-fish from the nest and takes it up onto a branch to eat. At `3:53:30 he returns what remains and Lady gets up from brooding the eaglets to feed the remains to the littles. SE33 is too full for more food! It gets stepped on as mum leaves the nest, waking it up. SE34 snoozes on. But SE33 finds room for some more fish and SE34 wakes up and is also happy to eat more. Lady feeds both. By 14:04, SE34 is being offered every bite, with SE33 finding itself too full to accept bites. SE33 is behind SE34 and leaning on its sibling, leaving SE34 a little cautious, though it is not stopping the little from eating. It is finally getting its fair share of this fish! SE33 momentarily finds some more room in its crop and rejoins the feeding but by 14:06 it is again full. The bites Lady is giving SE34 in this feeding are large, but the eaglet is managing them with ease.
Lady keeps coaxing SE33 into eating yet another bite, and SE34 is still eating with gusto. Lady is getting careless about the size of the bites she is offering, many of which are so large, she is eating them herself after the eaglets reject them. 14:09 and both chicks are accepting bites. By 14:10 Lady is feeding only SE34, who is really stretching to take the bites from mum. The winds are so gusty, Lady loses her balance on the nest and has to use her wings to steady herself. 14:11 and Lady has switched to feeding SE33. Then SE34 gets a few bites in a row. Lady is doing her best to feed both eaglets, moving the fish closer to SE34 and continuing to offer bites to both chicks. 14:12 and she is again concentrating on SE34. These chicks have impressive appetites and are gradually demolishing this fish, which is larger in pieces than it first appeared when a whole fish. 14:13 and both chicks are sitting side by side at the table, eating nicely together as they are fed alternate bites. What a cute picture they make when they’re not beaking each other in the head. Just too sweet for words.
Both chicks ate a good breakfast of bird and a good lunch of fish. They both did small but healthy PSs while I was watching those two feedings. There was no significant aggression and nothing that intimidated SE34 from eating in any meaningful way. There were moments when it was cautious because its sibling was behind and leaning on it, but nothing that prevented it from eating a decent amount of food at breakfast and at lunch. It had a full crop after each feeding.
I am hopeful for this nest, despite the immediate bonk-fest that these two started almost as soon as SE34 hatched. They are two very feisty eaglets and it would not surprise me if we had a female first hatch. I am unsure about the second, but it could be a little brother, based on its size and behaviour. It does appear to be the dominant hatchling, and SE34 is obeying nest order etiquette by being careful not to trigger SE33 with, say, direct eye contact. SE33 occasionally enforces its dominance but this is rare and SE34, beyond observing the courtesies, is not being intimidated by its sibling or prevented from eating. I am keeping an eye on the obvious size gap that has opened up between them since SE34 hatched, at which stage they seemed remarkably similar in size. I cannot be certain whether the size gap that now exists is the result of gender or of SE33 getting a larger proportion of the food. I suspect the former. “
Geemeff’s summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Saturday 17th August 2024 The promised dry spells did appear on and off today – a bit like Affric 152 and Garry LV0, who spent hours on the nest, coming and going at different times over a three hour period. Garry showed off his nest-building skills, bringing moss and sticks, but no fish, to Affric’s displeasure. She rebuffed his advances and if he has any hope of getting her to abandon Prince and pair with him, he’s going to have to do better. Fish is key! No activity of any sort on Nest Two, and rain forecast for tonight, tomorrow and the whole of next week. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.48.22 (05.05.22); Nest Two 21.39.17 (05.09.41) Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/K86m0Q234Sc N1 Something scares Garry and Affric off the nest 12.12.38https://youtu.be/_qwTc6b2sdY N1 Affric wants to see Garry’s fishing skills, not nest-building ones 12.24.16
Bonus video of beautiful Loch Arkaig scenery – Eas Chia-Aig waterfall near Spean Bridge:https://youtu.be/N7G3OfNTKGI
Watch the Loch Arkaig Osprey livestream 24/7 and join in the conversation here:
Not much happened today, Garry LV0 provided the only action on either nest when he popped in to Nest One with half a flatfish in his talons. Ironically Affric 152 wasn’t around to take it, so he departed with it less than a minute later. LizB posted a possible reason for her absence: “Bunarkaig update – second hand information, but apparently the male was fishing in the bay this morning for around an hour, making a few trips back to the nest with fish for the chick. Perhaps there was plenty for Affric too which might explain her lack of appearances at nest 1 today”. Weather was wet as forecasted, and will remain wet for the rest of the week, with winds varying from gentle to moderate.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.47.38 (05.09.00); Nest Two 21.39.08 (05.12.56)
The Colonial Beach Osprey Project sent me the following information: Joanie Millward, President of the Virginia Osprey Association, kindly included numbers for last year and this for comparison. This information will go into the International Osprey Data Project to help us continue to grow a more thorough understanding of what is happening in each region.
You will note the high proportion of nests that only fledged one chick. This is an indicator of the nests’ lack of prey in that region, which is so sad.
We should all be enjoying the adults and kiddos flittering around the nests occasionally. Migration is well underway as we saw with the Shorebirds in Nova Scotia.
Will Blue NCO return and breed successfully again at Loch of the Lowes? Will her mate be the Dark Knight? We have to wait til next spring and see.
Tweed Valley reports:
Another miracle nest this year is Snow Lane, the home of Beaumont and Hope and their fledgling and soon to be fledgling in Newfoundland. It has been eons since osplets fledged from this nest and I am certain tears are being shed by all who love this couple. It is truly wonderful.
Trudi Kron posted an update from the Hancock Wildlife Foundation regarding Blue:
What a gorgeous group at Glaslyn! Aran and Elen’s 2024 graduating class.
Lola and fledgling at Charlo on Sunday.
Still home in Minnesota!
‘H’ reports: “8/18 Osoyoos osprey nest: The new fledglings seem to be doing great, flying to and from the nest. And, their parents are providing them with plenty of fish to fuel their flights. The cam was down until 0844, so we may have missed an early fish. At 0946, Soo delivered a huge salmon to the nest. Soo kept the fish, and Chick 2 was the recipient of the first meal from that fish, then Soo removed the huge leftover. At 1023 Olsen brought a medium sized whole fish, Chick 2 nibbled at it, but was already too full. Chick 1 flew to the nest at 1108 and ate that fish. Soo brought back her fish at 1109, but neither chick was interested, so she left with it again. She returned with the fish at 1134, fed Chick 1, and again Soo removed the large leftover salmon. At 1246 Soo brought the same fish back, and fed some more to Chick 1. It was interesting that Soo would never allow the chicks to take that fish from her. Then at 1254, Soo removed the large leftover again. At 1316 Chick 2 grabbed a medium sized partial fish from Olsen and ate it. At 1317, Soo returned with the same fish she initially brought to the nest at 0946. The massive fish had been gradually getting smaller. She fed Chick 1, and finally the fish was all gone except for the tail. That salmon should certainly qualify for frequent flier miles! Olsen brought the last fish of the day at 1927, a whole fish that Chick 2 grabbed and started to eat. But, Chick 1 flew to the nest after a few minutes and stole the fish from Chick 2!
8/18 Fortis Exshaw osprey nest: All three fledglings are still returning to the nest for fish, and they also like to hang out a bit on the perches. Harvie brought six fish to the nest for the juvies today, and there were some pretty good battles for the fish. The intruder was only on the nest for less than a minute in the morning, and she left when she saw Harvie approaching. We did not see Louise today.”
We watch these beautiful birds from the time they hatch to fledge. We cry sometimes and then they are free. It is time we protect their environment as there are far too many electrocutions.
Netflix is requesting the removal and/or relocation of osprey nests. Seriously? Thanks, Geemeff.
Cowlitz fledgling caught on the nest Sunday morning.
Chicks home at Oyster Bay.
Raining at Patchogue – no one home.
Keke and River on the nest. Keo continues to deliver fish.
Port Lincoln has a new baby on a barge and it is not an osprey – it is a White-bellied Sea Eagle!!!!!!!!
Iris wasn’t the only female raptor catching a whopper on Sunday. Just look what Jackie hauled into the nest at Big Bear!
Xavier and Diamond are thinking ‘eggies’.
In Latvia, the first hatch, a female, Red 59T, flew for the first time on the 15th of August followed by her little brother, Red 59V, on Sunday, the 18th. Congratulations!
Thank you so much for being with us today. It is always nice to have you here – and I always enjoy your letters, your news messages, and your comments. Keep them coming! Take care. See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, articles, images, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, H, J, PB’, Montana Osprey Cams, Cornell Bird Lab, @HellgateOsprey, Montana News, Birdling Life and More, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Rosie Shields for Border Ospreys, PLO, Raptor Persecution UK, Joanie Millward, Scottish Wildlife Trust, Tweed Valley Osprey Project, Imperial Eagle Cam RU, Newfoundland Power, Trudi Kron, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Charlo Montana, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, PSEG, Sandpoint Ospreys, Celia Aliengirl, The Two Rivers Times, Pam Breci, SK Hideaways, LDF, Osoyoos, and Fortis Exshaw.
Gosh, it is almost the middle of August, and the French are well into their annual August vacation. The entire month is taken off with businesses in Paris closing and everyone (owners and staff) heading off to enjoy the countryside, time with their family and friends, and good food. I was fortunate to spend an entire month a few years ago in a pottery village (Le Borne) and it was there that the French taught me ‘really’ how to slow down and chase after the joy of life – finding a balance and not letting work take over everything. Sitting and tasting the best bread with a good cup of coffee in the morning in a garden could not have been matched by anything. Lunch with vegetables, local bread, and goat cheese could have come from a Michelin-star restaurant – it was that good. Walking through the forest, time to smell the wood burning in the kilns and touching centuries-old ceramics were simple but profound joys. Those memories and the people who I met have never left me. Calico suggests that everyone stop and smell the roses, turn off their cell phones, grab a good book, and pet a cat!
Hugo Yugo is precious. She continues to sleep under my chin during the night. She has grown some, but, in comparison to the others, she remains rather small.
Hugo Yugo and Baby Hope continue to play fight all day long. They keep their nice figures due to all the exercise. Hugo Yugo will have her first birthday on 2 September. Baby Hope came to live in the house on the 4th so we shall have a nice party to celebrate both.
Missey just loves parties. She wants lots of squeezy treats while Hope has ordered 5-grain bread with peanut butter, and Hugo Yugo wants a grilled cheese sandwich! Baby Hope will run you down for peanut butter. It makes me think that while she and Calico were living ‘wild,’ someone fed them bread and PB. Hugo Yugo loves cheese and every evening has to play ‘hockey’ with small pieces of a nice old cheddar. She knocks the piece off the countertop onto the floor and then knocks it about before eating it. I have always believed she needs calcium.
Yesterday I had images and for some strange reason, no text from ‘H’ despite her sending it in the same e-mail. It was like half of it was cut off on my computer and then, this afternoon there were 2 more e-mails with all the information. I am including the text now. It will give you good background on what is happening at the Fortis-Exshaw nest – which appears to be a repeat of last season’s dramatic and devastating year. ‘H’ did a great job in her report – apologies it is late.
“8/9 Fortis Exshaw osprey nest: There have been some intruder issues the past few days, but today was the worst so far. At 0700 Harvie delivered a fish and one of the three juveniles grabbed it. The female intruder showed up early. Initially she was passive, but by 0800 she started attacking the chicks. Over the next couple of hours the intruder dive-bombed the chicks at least 30 times. Sometimes she made significant contact with her talons, and a few times she was able to flip the chicks onto their backs. She landed in the nest several times, and would jump on the chicks. Only the two oldest osplets have fledged. Nakoda has yet to fly, and we were worried that Nakoda was going to get pushed off the nest. At 0851 the intruder flushed one of the fledglings off the nest and she gave chase. The intruder was establishing control. The two remaining chicks in the nest stayed tucked in submission. Any time they would so much as move a wing, the intruder would flap her wings at them. At 1003 Harvie brought another fish and the intruder grabbed it. Harvie jumped on her, the intruder flew out with the fish, and Harvie followed. After eating her fish, the intruder returned. She was in and out of the nest a few times, and jumped on the chicks a few times. At 1050 Harvie delivered another fish, a chick grabbed it, the intruder fought the chick for the fish, Harvie jumped on the intruder, Harvie left the nest and the intruder chased him. The intruder returned and took the fish.
At 1142 the intruder saw Louise approaching the nest and she immediately flew away. Louise is the only deterrent for this female intruder. Louse had brought a fish for the chicks. Louise stayed for about 10 minutes, and then she left. At 1154, the fledgling that had been flushed from the nest earlier returned to the nest. For the next few hours the family had some peace. Nakoda was practicing wingers, and getting some nice wind-assisted lift, and was even hovering. The intruder returned at 1524, and started doing her usual thing… dive-bombing, jumping on chicks, and flapping at the chicks. Harvie delivered a fish at 1621 and the intruder took it. Harvie dropped off more fish at 1700, 1720, and 1817, and thankfully the osplets were able to eat those. At 1843 the intruder was back, jumped on the chicks, and may have left with a piece of leftover fish. With the glare of the afternoon and evening sun, it became increasingly more difficult to see because of the dirt on the camera. At 1931 the intruder was back, and she appeared to arrive empty taloned. But, she soon started to eat. She must have found some more leftovers in the nest. While she was eating, she was intermittently flapping at the kids. Harvie brought another fish at 2006, and one of the chicks grabbed it. Harvie and the intruder stared at each other for a while, then Harvie left. The intruder continued to harass the chicks, but finally at 2127 she left for the night.
What a terrible day this family had. Louise’s presence is needed to keep this female intruder away. But, we only saw Louise once today. Is it possible that Louise is already curtailing her involvement with her family to begin her rest and recovery phase? Would she do that before they all have fledged? Well, we certainly hope to see more of Louise tomorrow. “Your kids still need you, Mom.”
8/9 Osoyoos osprey nest: Chick 2 was doing some nice wingers early in the morning, including some flap-hops going about 3/4 of the diameter of the nest. The first fish I saw was brought by Olsen at 1505. It was a large partial fish, and Chick 2 acquired it first and ate for about 4 minutes before Chick 1 took it from him. Chick 1 had the fish for a long time, finally leaving it at 1628. There was still a good size piece remaining, and Chick 2 started to work on it. By 1727, Chick 2 had accomplished all he could, because the remainder had a lot of dangling tough skin. Soo took over and fed both of her juvies. But, even Soo had a difficult time with the skin. At 1927 Olsen dropped off a small whole fish. Chick 2 grabbed the fish, and mantled strongly. Chick 2 ate the fish, and was able to rebuff Chick 1 each and every time Chick 1 tried to steal the fish. Nice moxie, Chick 2 ! “
Today’s post from ‘H’:
8/10 Fortis Exshaw osprey nest: The intruder was still around today, but she wasn’t nearly as aggressive toward the chicks as she was yesterday. She spent a few long periods of time at the nest. She would flap at the kids now and again, but there were only a few times that I saw the intruder jump on them. And, the intruder did not do all that dive-bombing like she did yesterday. I have 6 pages of notes on the day’s events, and I will summarize to spare you the minutiae. Harvie brought 9 fish to the nest, and the intruder managed to acquire 3 of them. The chicks didn’t make it easy for her, they fought the intruder for those fish. There were a couple of times when the intruder did not make a grab for the fish. She would simply ‘let’ them have it, and then she would just stand there and stare at them while they ate. Strange. But, it seems that poor Harvie is fishing for four. Sometimes when Harvie would make a delivery with the intruder on the nest, they would have a staring contest, and then Harvie would flap his wings at her, but he always flew away. One time, Harvie buzzed the intruder on his way out and made her duck. Harvie knows that he cannot afford to get hurt fighting her. The fact that we saw the intruder less often today may mean that Louise is helping to monitor the airspace in their territory. And, we did see Louise today. At 1211, an adult carrying a fish landed on the t-perch beside one of the fledglings that was believed to be Peyto. Then, the adult provided a nice long feeding to the juvie on the t-perch. It had to be Louise. The youngest chick, Nakoda, ate two whole fish today. Nakoda is no push-over when it comes to battles for the fish.
Nakoda branched today! At 1003 Nakoda flew up to the nest perch…wow! At 1040, after figuring out how to turn around on the perch, s/he hopped back down to the nest. Later on in the afternoon, Nakoda did several hovers that were out of our view lasting several seconds each time. Yesterday, those hovers by Nakoda were 90% due to the wind, but today the height and hang-time was 90% due to Nakoda’s skill. Prediction: Nakoda will fledge on 8/11, at 56 days of age. The three siblings are very difficult to differentiate by their appearance. We will do our best to determine when Nakoda fledges and when s/he returns to the nest.
In my opinion, it does not seem that this intruder wants to take over the nest. She is hungry, and wants some easy meals. Last year it was Louise against a male/female pair of intruders, and they definitely wanted to take over the nest. This year, it is Louise and Harvie against one intruder. Perhaps the intruder will decide to move along soon.
8/10 Osoyoos osprey nest: The live stream was frozen for about three hours today. But, we did see plenty of fish at the nest, including some really big ones. Some of the fish were obviously recycled… that is, they had previously been removed after everyone was full, and those same fish made return appearances. There were lots of feedings and self-feedings. A couple of times this morning, Chick 2 was seen doing some flap-hops all the way across the nest, from rim to rim… that’s progress! Unless I’ve missed it due to recent cam issues, I have not seen Chick 2 perform hovers with decent hang-times. Chick 2 is 64 days old on 8/11. Weather forecast for 8/11: partly cloudy with smoky air, high temp 90F/32C, winds gusting to 11 mph.
8/10 Fenwick Island osprey nest (Captain Mac’s Fish House): Johnny delivered two good sized fish today, and June did not disappoint when she caught her daily striped bass. ‘Fen’ ‘branched’ to the perch this morning, and hopped back down to the nest after about an hour. Fen will be 58 days old on 8/11, and I think he is ready to fly!
More than a few letters have come to the inbox about donations. We cheer, clap our hands, wish hard, pray, and jump up and down in support of our birds, especially those in distress. It is natural to want to rush and help fund their care and food. It just makes you the wonderful people who you are! This also happened after Meadow went into care and subsequently died. To begin, wildlife rehabilitation centres rely on donations. I know this because of our local rehabilitation centre, Wildlife Haven. They depend on volunteers and donations of all things, from bleach to large buildings, for flight training. But when to donate and what? This is going to depend on your personal circumstances. Having had many of you pour your hearts out after Meadow and Cobey passed, I think I have come up with a simple suggestion. If you wish to donate following a rescue, you might want to wait 48-72 hours. The wait period would allow insight into whether the bird might survive. Remember that anything can happen anytime – a bird looking as if it is improving might suddenly pass. We don’t have crystal balls. You might also want to save up and give to a rescue/rehabilitation centre at the end of the year. I like to watch what these centres are doing all year and like to help those that rise to the occasion to try and do anything to save the birds.
Speaking of rescues and rehabilitation, the Denton Homes fledglings are in flight training. Isn’t this marvellous. All survived. Thanks, ‘PB’.
The two osplets from the Green Ledge Light Preservation Society were holding on tight as the remnants of Debby hit Connecticut! I am waiting a post to see how they fared during that violent storm.
Geemeff’s summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Saturday 10th August 2024
Both nest cam livestreams were restored by 09.30 this morning after yesterday’s shutdown which was due to the internet connection for the local area going down. Actually, in such a remote area where it’s very challenging to provide services, being able to watch the nest cams is a bit of a miracle. Therefore tonight’s bonus is about how the nest cams work with no wifi and no electrical plug points nearby. Today was wet and windy again with no sign of any Ospreys, but Nest Two did get some colourful visitors in the form of a pair of Crossbills. More rain is forecast for tonight, but there is the prospect of sunny intervals tomorrow.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 22.30.33 (04.45.22); Nest Two 22.23.05 (04.52.51)
A gorgeous image of Lady feeding her babies from the Olympic Park Eagle Cam:
As is typical, these little bobbleheads have begun to do some bonking. It will stop! It always does.
The Australian Museum describes the White-bellied Sea Eagle and how these fluffy little white nestlings will change: “The White-bellied Sea-Eagle has white on the head, rump and underparts and dark grey on the back and wings. In flight the black flight feathers on the wings are easily seen when the bird is viewed from below. The large, hooked bill is grey with a darker tip, and the eye is dark brown. The legs and feet are cream-white, with long black talons (claws). The sexes are similar. As in other raptors (birds of prey), Males (2.5 kg – 3.7 kg) are slightly smaller than females (2.8 kg – 4.2 kg).The wingspan is about 1.8 m – 2 m. Young Sea-Eagles are brown as juveniles than slowly become to resemble adults in a patchwork manner, acquiring the complete adult plumage by their fourth year.”
Iris, Sum-eh, and yet-to-fledge Antali.
Finnegan is very busy catching and delivering fish – Uber Dad!
‘A’ remarks: “Little Bro is getting lonesome on his own on that nest, but it so far has not prompted him to copy big sister Sumeh, who has been flying confidently for nearly a week now. C’mon Antali, you can do it! He’s having a pleasant nap in the late afternoon sun. Around 19:32 he begins looking around, and at 19:32:45 Finn arrives with a nice fresh fish, Sumeh hot on his tail.
Antali is fish begging and considering self-feeding but dad keeps moving the fish. He is looking around for Iris. Antali already has a noticeable crop and Sumeh is not asking for fish, so dad eats a bite or two himself. By 19:35, however, he has started feeding Antali. Sumeh just watches the feeding. She is very used to watching Antalia being fed, after all! He has always been completely confident about getting to the table and accepting bites of fish. I have never seen him intimidated at a feeding. Sumeh has been an amazing older sister. She is very laid-back indeed. Around 19:38 she begins to show some interest in the fish, but still waits to be offered a bite.
Finn begins feeding Sumeh and Antali stands up as tall as he can, turning away from the table. He has very long legs, which is the most obvious proof that he is a male. He is too cute. It’s Sumeh’s turn. Antali has a good crop.”
It is mid-afternoon Saturday at Charlo Montana and C16 could fly at any moment. Got so much height on its hover you couldn’t see it on camera!
C16 has not fledged as I write this Saturday evening but he could still fly as there is some time difference. Charlie delivered a fish and C16 had a nice fish dinner.
It was painful. The wind was gusting around the tree below the nest and C16 kept hovering. The sticks in the nest aren’t helping the matter. C16, you are going to fly soon – probably today or Sunday morning.
River and Keke continue to return to the nest waiting for some fish – just like nests all around the world. Chicks wait and watch for Dad flying in with a fish and they have a singular focus – nevermind who gets in the way! In that instance, being an Only Bob has an advantage.
The fledgling comes and goes from the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest wanting a fish dinner, too.
On the eve of the Inglorious 12th, there are more and more calls for regulations and the policing of the Red Grouse Moor shoots.
Pam Breci brings us up to date on the Fort Calhoun osprey family:
It is always reassuring that fledglings returning to the nest to get their fish. The Fab Four at Poole Harbour keep Blue 022 very busy! CJ7 is also delivering fish and some are being fed off nest because they show up on cam with a huge crop but have not been seen eating on camera.
Osplets fledge, on average, at 55-56 days after they hatch. They should return to the nest over and over again as they remain dependent on Mum and Dad until they migrate. Many say they stay until they can fish for themselves, but much research in the UK indicates that they actually don’t normally (there is always an exception) catch their first fish until they are on their way which is generally in September. The Mum will migrate first leaving the Dad behind to do the fishing for the chicks. In one year, I forget which one, Monty (Dyfi Ospreys) remained until the 20th of September til his chick fledged! The Dads and fledglings generally leave 2-3 weeks after Mum.
Please remind everyone you know that fish to please try their best not to leave lines and hooks. I know that lines break and there are snags on trees on the shore – if that is the case then everyone should pitch in to do bi-annual clean ups to protect the birds.
White Storks continue to move south throughout Europe feeding on the seeds left after harvest in places such as Lithuania and Croatia. Some have already made it to Europe. Black Storks are moving as well. Waba continues to feed in Ukraine near the Moldova border.
‘A’ reminds us that Xavier is getting excited for the possibility of eggs at the Charles Sturt Falcon scrape in Orange: “We are getting ready for egg watch at Orange. Certainly, Diamond and Xavier are in parental mode, with Xavier bringing food gifts, and the pair doing lots of bonding and mating frequently. The first egg was laid on 26 August last year, so we still have over a fortnight to go. We would be very happy with just the one, Diamond. I don’t want this pair worn out – they are not young falcons. Xavier has just come into the scrape, chupping away. There is no sign of Diamond, who is no doubt perched on the microwave or along the roof. Xavier is looking his usual handsome self. Adorable little falcon that he is. What a man. Remember his first season? Saviour, he most definitely was. “
Xavier brings breakfast and it is not a Starling to Diamond’s delight.
The Dorsett Hobby branched Saturday afternoon but did not fledge. Look to the top left. That is coming swiftly. Such a strong, beautiful little Hobby! (see further below)
Fish deliveries at the Muonio Osprey nest in Finland.
Did you know that Rita has her own FB page? Rita of Ron and Rita and the WRDC Eagle nest? Thanks, ‘J’.
There are no reported sightings of Blue at HWF-BBCentral area. We hope that s/he has found fish and will be heading north to Alaska to enjoy the salmon.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care of yourself!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, questions, videos, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, H, J, PB’, Fortis Exshaw-Osoyoos, Fenwick Island, Fortis-Exshaw, SOAR, Greens Ledge Light Society, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Sea Eagle Cam, Australian Museum, Montana Osprey Project, Charlo Montana, Sandpoint Osprey Platform, MN-LA Ospreys, The Guardian, Pam Breci, Animal Welfare League of Arlington, Looduskalender, Charles Sturt Falcon Cam Project, Nesting Bird Life and More, Osp, Rita the Eagle FB, Dorsett Hobby Cam.
Be sure to read all the way down. There is some terrific news waiting for you today.
Oh, Friday started out with a trip to the wildlife rehabilitation centre for this little fellow. The baby is one of the Blue Jays with a nest in a tree across the lane. He was in the garden trying to eat a cheesy dog. He appears to have a problem with one eye, and his tail seems to have some issues as it was turned to the side, not straight. He could not fly. The rehabilitation centre said they would happily take him into care as they agreed on both issues after seeing a photograph. Send him good wishes!
It is not clear what caused the issues/injuries or how he will do but it was unsafe for him to be hopping around on the ground with the feral cats and the hawk about.
Next was a visit to check on the American White Pelicans at Lockport. There were a few there along with about forty Double-crested Cormorants on the other side of the dam. (Taken with iPhone at a great distance so not the best!)
Since it is now the 10th of August, the Pelicans will be making their move to go south in about a month or five weeks.
Bird World is fairly quiet. It is a good thing. As the weeks went by ‘H’ and I got wearier and wearier and at times just couldn’t wait for osprey season to end.
I was very grateful for a comment by ‘DV’ on my blog post on FB. They write: “Discussing the rescue of the chick of Saaksilive #4 nest on the chat of #1 nest, I thanked them for responding so quickly, and was told, “It’s in the law in Finland, you need to help an animal who can’t keep up or is struggling”. In view of the procrastination of the ‘permission authority’ in the Colonial Beach rescue, maybe we should do something about such a law, here. No wonder Finland is rated the ‘happiest’ country in the world….they seem to be the most sensible, as well.”
What do you think about trying to get the laws changed for immediate intervention like they do in Finland in Cobey’s name? I am certainly willing to lend a hand to try and get the archaic Bird Migration laws changed in North America – and attitudes around the world. Thank you ‘DV’.
The person who might be able to help is:
Mr. Jerome Ford, Assistant Director, Migratory Birds Program, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS), 1849 C Street, NW, Washington, DC 20240. Via Email: jerome_ford@fws.gov
Paraphrased from a letter regarding the Dale Hollow Nest to Ford in 2023: Citing article 50.CFR.22.76-22.80 of the Migratory Bird Act, a “take” anticipates a rehabilitation permit will authorize the rescue, or take, and further expects the temporary possession of and/or transportation of an eagle and/or eaglet to an authorized and permitted rehabilitation facility. The guidance from USFWS advises take permits will not be issued to address “interference with the natural course of events at the eagle nest”, however, a take would be authorized if such a take “is necessary to protect an interest in a particular locality. The Dale Hollow situation had to do with harm done to the eaglet through manmade materials – fishing line. In the instance of Colonial Bay and other nests in the region, I believe it can be argued that the lack of restrictions on the taking of Menhaden hgas caused the ospreys to starve to death. That coupled with an extreme heat situation – also caused by human activity – should be grounds for an emergency ‘take’ in the instance of starvation, etc. Something can be argued. Evidence can be gathered.
That adorable Dorsett Hobby is about to fledge. What a darling.
Nox (Annie and Archie’s 4th hatch that got himself into a bit of mischief has some company).
Tuesday was a special day for our Heidi (aka ‘H’) as she got to Mispillion Harbour. She runs the Mispillion Harbour Osprey Nest FB group and reports on Warren and Della whose platform is at the DuPont Centre.
Richmond and Rosie’s two chicks have now fledged. Pax on July 24th and Tulley on 7 August.
The late Toni Costello and I used to banter back and forth about which were the most beautiful juveniles of the raptors. Her pick was always the White-bellied Sea Eagles. They sure are cute as little bobbleheads, too.
Antali isn’t a little fuzz ball any longer and is getting those wings working towards fledging. Iris is such a proud Mamma.
Antali is one handsome boy with that pure white chest just like Finnegans’.
Iris just looks so proud.
The Dyfi Osprey Project posted a video of Idris delivering a fish and all of the chaos ensuing when the fledglings each want it! It was on the Dyfi Osprey Project FB page. Here are a few screen captures. There is no love lost when it comes to a much wanted fish and fledgling siblings. Reminds me of Ervie, Bazza, and Falkey.
In New Zealand, the Royal Cam chicks were ringed.
Geemeff’s daily summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust.
Daily summary Friday 9th August 2024
Same as yesterday – except it was some Great Tits and Coal Tits taking advantage of the absence of Ospreys and spending time on Nest One. Nest Two had zero activity again. However, we did get some news and a photo of 1JW in Valencia – he’s doing well and enjoying exploring the Pego Oliva marshland, link below. The rain and wind continued as forecast today, with thundery showers expected overnight changing to light rain showers tomorrow. Both nest cams went down shortly before 21.00 and are still down now (23.45).
Season highlights for the Lodze Bociany Black Storks in Poland.
The trio at Blackbush at Old Tracadie wishing and hoping for fish.
At Charlo, Montana, C16 is really working its wings. Fledge is near. The chick ate all the fish Charlie brought in but lost the tail over the edge – and didn’t share a morsel with Mum Lola.
Two beautiful well-fed osplets at the Newfoundland Power platform in Snow Lane. Mum Hope and Beaumont have done a commendable job this season!
If your pet is treated for fleas and then gets to have a swim in a pond, a river, a stream, or a lake, the toxins in the treatment are killing wildlife.
The Storks are on the move, both Black and White -. This Polish stork is already in Egypt.
I promised to include some of the memories that were forgotten with the first listing. Have some more smiles!
‘B’: “hi Mary Ann — Thanks for compiling the wonderful list of birds and nests and events that made us all smile. There are so many things that have touched the followers of your blog and these nests, and we all clearly share many of the same happy experiences. If there is one that I kick myself for not remembering it is the SW Florida nest of M15 and his new mate F23 and their eaglet E23. It was so nice to see life go on for M15 with a wonderful new mate and the lively and joy-inspiring E23. I apologize to M15 for totally forgetting them when my eagle attention moved on to the midwest and western eagles — it’s inexcusable!
SE31 also definitely makes my list, and I even thought of him, but it was so long ago that I thought the fledge and remaining in the area must have all been before the first of this year.. It brought so much joy to see one of Lady and Dad’s sea eagles be able to stay in the area and remain with parents for a very reasonable amount of time. I still am sad (and mad) about the chick of several years ago who was euthanized after she had worked so hard to fledge in spite of their injured leg. I forget the number — SE26 or 25?
And I agree with “L” that pictures and stories of your “girls” — Missey, Hope, Calico, and Hugo Yugo — and your garden visitors always bring a smile.”
‘R’: “Thank you for all the memories today. Sorry I did not get my email to you sooner, my fav was Flaco 🦉🥲❤️ and of course, Iris’s prayers being answered by Finn 💕💞”
‘J’ : “Just read the newsletter and it made me smile, laugh out loud and cry. What a wonderful (can’t think of the correct word, “habit”) to do an “what made you smile” to end the season.
I thought of two more moments that really made me laugh.
M15, F23 and E23 all down by the pond. E23 flew away, both parents followed him with their heads, then, at the same time, lowered their heads and looked at each other. Precious!
Made me think of when Harriet and M15 were perched next to each other, Harriet looking at E15 from behind M15, and someone captioned it “honey, what are we going to do about our kid?” (that didn’t want to leave).
The other moment was Archie feeding his chick, trying to be all stealthy and then scampering out of there before Annie could have a go at him.
I have more great moments to share:
On the way back from the pond I watched a beautiful (as opposed to mangy and thin, which often is the case in the city) fox.
Unfortunately when I had no camera with me, all four swallow chicks were on the nest, next to each other and all four looking out. So my view were 4 little faces in a row. MELT!
Yesterday just before I left the cemetery, on the bench were I usually take off/pull on my shoes, was a squirrel eating a eh, what’s the word, pine cone? He made rapid work of it. Beautiful bushy tail, he was very small, so I think it was a baby.
I went to a hardware store that also sells garden stuff, and it always makes me smile that birds are flying about inside. But this time I laughed out loud, to see a pigeon stand in front of a sack with bird feed. I have no doubt that he’d managed to open it.”
‘V’: “OMG. I forgot M15 and his new lady! How could that happen?”
A miracle? Is it possible that these are the two osplets from Cowlitz PUD? Thanks, ‘PB’.
No words from ‘H’ this morning. We all remember last year and the intruders at Fortis-Exshaw with Jasper and Banff.
The intruder is now on the perch.
And at Osoyoos!
Thank you so much for being with me today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to everyone who sent a comment, a note, to others for their posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this morning: ‘AM, AMW, B, Geemeff, J, H, PR, RP, V’, SK Hideaways, California Raptor Centre, Heidi McGrue, SF Osprey Golden Gate Audubon, Cornell Bird Lab, Montana Osprey Project, Dyfi Osprey Project, Sharon Dunne, Lady Hawk, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Polish Osprey Cam Highlights, Blackbush at Old Tracerie, Charlo Montana, Newfoundland Power, The Guardian, SOS Tesla-Save the White Storks, Raindancer Wild Bird Rescue, Fortis Exshaw, and Osoyoos Ospreys.
It is with a heavy heart that I write that little Cobey has died. He had convulsions, like we have seen in other chicks, who had restricted access to food. Unfortunately, he was not rescued several days earlier as he arrived at the rehab in critical condition. I wish I knew the argument that the woman made because it was effective in getting some action, just so late for this sweet baby. (Many are upset as Cobey was left in the cold rian overnight and fear that this might have accelerated his demise).
Thursday turned out to be a day for a pot of soup, a sweater, and warm socks. Damp and cool compared to the 32 degrees we had a few days prior. Hugo Yugo was right there helping with the soup – every ingredient except for the carrots came from the garden. It has been a bumper year for herbs, peppers of all varieties, and tomatoes. Even Celery. There is nothing nicer than fresh celery just cut. It could make a celery lover out of anyone! Calico says ‘the secret’ to the soup was the inclusion of finely chopped Jalapeno peppers along with the Persian and Hungarian ones. What a nice broth! But the nicest part was the dessert – Passionfruit Ice Cream. Calico has kindly offered to share her ‘secret’ recipe: 1. Get a nice tub of vanilla ice cream. 2. Use about 4 ripe Passion Fruits for a litre – although we love Passion Fruit and often use more! Slide the fruits in half and scoop out everything from inside. Put in a bowl. 3. Let the ice cream get soft. We put it in a large bowl. 4. Taking a whisk gradually pour in the passion fruit and mix thoroughly. 5. Re-freeze. Calico says you can thank her later. She also says to not worry about those seeds. Leave them in there!!!!!!!!!!!!
Because of the rain, today’s walk was ‘inside’. Some people go to the local malls, a practice that gets into full swing in the winter months. I do not like the bright lights, and the crowds and loud noise cause havoc with those struggling with mental health issues. It’s not the place for someone with dementia, so off it was to The Leaf. I have written about this space before – a huge, wonderfully designed conservatory with a rainforest area, a Meditteranean area, a special exhibit space, and a butterfly garden.
In the beginning I wondered if, after several visits, the gardens would become ‘boring’. Not so. Today many of the plants in the tropical zone had fruit for the first time and some beautiful flowers.
A third visit to the Healing Garden, the special exhibit, did not disappoint either. One of the plants, Sage (often associated with cooking and in particular Sage Browned Butter of Thanksgiving day stuffing) is a plant believed to have the capability to cleanse and purify the mind. It is often used in smudging ceremonies by the Indigenous people of our province to clear out negative energy.
Torch Ginger.
Star Fruit.
Silver Sparkle.
The Koi in the pond were particularly active today. (Apologies for the voices of individuals watching – turn volume down).
Koi Pond, The Leaf, Assiniboine Park, Winnipeg, Manitoba. 8 August 2024.
Things are not moving forward for non-lead ammunition, but backwards. Can you lend a hand and help all of the raptors that eat carrior – not just Condors but also Eagles, Vultures, and some Corvids?
At 07:34:04, the only surviving osplet on the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum nest fledged!
The fledgling has been on and off the nest and is perfecting that return landing.
In Finland, ‘AM’ brings me what could be sad news of little USU at nest #4. During the night, the osplet toppled off the nest. There is a slight chance it could have gotten to the branches of some trees in the forest. This was the osplet believed to have had the wing injury. Its two older siblings, UPU and URA, taken by the White-tail Eagle. USU had just had a nice meal from Mum and was looking rather well. The time was approximately 20:46. And in joyful tears – USU is alive and the ringers will be there!!!!!!!!!!
Geemeff sends the daily summary from Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Thursday 8th August 2024
A pair of Coal Tits and a Robin, or possibly two, took advantage of the absence of any Ospreys and spent a little time on Nest One. Nest Two had zero activity again. The rain and wind continued as forecasted, and no change expected overnight or tomorrow.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 22.18.36 (04.49.42); Nest Two 22.09.31 (04.57.00)
Geemeff sent me this posting giving us an update on Louis and Dorcha’s surviving chick (amongst others). They are all flying. Isn’t this grand!
‘H’ reports:
8/8 – Osoyoos osprey nest: Well… it seems as though the Osoyoos osprey nest has a ‘Fish Fairy’. The live stream was down for most of the day. When it resumed, we were pleasantly surprised to see two good sized partial fish just laying on the nest, and being ignored. It had apparently been a good fishing day. At 1423 Olsen arrived with a small partial fish, and since no one was interested, he ate it. It was unusual for Dad to stay in the nest and eat. It was even more unusual in that he actually offered Chick 2 a couple of bites. Chick 2 did eat the morsels Dad offered, but then walked away because s/he was already too full. Soo had been standing on a large leftover fish, and at 1426 she took that fish off the nest. I assumed that she would eventually return with a smaller version of it, but at 1529 Soo arrived empty taloned. At around 1553 Soo fed Chick 2 from the other leftover fish that was in the nest. Later, at 1742 Soo brought a large partial fish to the nest. It looked to be the same size and species of fish that she had removed from the nest 3 hours ago. Chick 1 flew to the nest for supper. Soo fed a very long meal to her two big juveniles. So what about that fish fairy? This story was related to us on the Facebook group: One of the local viewers, ‘AMW’, visited the nest in the afternoon. She found a fish lying in the grass below the nest, and had the idea to move the fish onto part of the road that was not accessible to traffic (and, it is not a heavily traveled road, anyway). ‘AMW’ said she sat very still in her car for a long time. After the coast was clear, Soo swooped down and picked up that fish and took it to the nest! It was indeed the fish that Soo flew off with at 1426, and that Soo subsequently fed to her youngsters at 1742. So, ‘AMW’ is a Fish Fairy (sort of), lol. Chick 2 spent the night on the nest all alone for the first time.
Audubon Boathouse osprey nest: As you may know, all three of Dory and Skiff’s chicks were killed by a great horned owl the last two seasons. The past several weeks, our beloved pair have been busy building another nest… just a little north of the boathouse nest, and over in the pines. Good for them. It has given them something to do this summer, and has strengthened their bond. We don’t know which nest they may use next season. But, neither nest will provide refuge from the owls. So sad.”
Lavc58.134.100
The movie trailers are gone form the parking lot and Iris, Finn, Sum-eh and Antali will enjoy a much nicer view.
Waiting for fledge at Charlo. The nest lost two chicks, but if all goes well this one will fledge.
What is there not to love? Two little cutie pies so white and fluffy with those huge black beaks! WBSE 33 and 34 – the ‘apples’ of Lady and Dad’s eyes. Dad is keeping fish on the nest and Lady is busy providing tiny bites every hour.
Full house at Field Farm waiting for a fish delivery.
It appears River fledged from the Sandpoint nest on 8 August around 14:56. Had a short flight, returned, and did a few others.
The oldest Black Stork at 21 years! That gives you a moment to have a huge smile. Thank you ‘TU’ for the notification and the translation! I am simply over joyed.
Hortobágy National Park Directorate 9 h. · Methuselah is still alive! Although it has been quite stormy… We finally got the world’s oldest black stork! It’s hard to believe, but the bird is already years old, which means that it is the leader of the species, we are not aware of such an old, ringed black stork. The bird was tagged by Béla Kalocsa in Hercegszántó in 2003, while it was still a chick, and the plastic tag that can be read from afar has provided a lot of information about the stork since then. The number 5082 has already been read 11 times – once in Israel. The fact that it has been going back for so long is also the success of practical nature conservation. If it returns next year, we will give the bird a name, which is unusual in nature conservation. Let’s hope that we can do it and then we can not only refer to the iconic black stork as 5082! ️ ️ What difficulties do you have to face year after year? Why is it important to protect its habitat and breeding habitat? More information can be found on our website: https://www.hnp.hu/…/termeszet…/1946/meg-el-a-matuzsalem Gábor Nagy Gábor Nagy and Ákos Monoki Nature Protection Guard Service
I want to give a shout out to an individual in Osoyoos, British Columbia. Soo dropped a fish from the nest. ‘AMW’ picked it up and placed it in a safe place for Soo to grab not knowing if Soo would try to get the fish or not. Soo did grab that fish and flew away with it returning to the nest to two screaming chicks. I wish more people would stop and see a fish at a bottom of a nest and place it so the adults could get it. And if anyone says that ospreys only eat freshly caught fish, they are ‘dead’ wrong. Thanks ‘AMW’ for this wonderful gesture and also for taking Little to your own garden and burying the wee one that was loved so much. I am in tears.
No sightings and no news of Blue who fledged two days ago from the HWF-BBCentral nest in Boundary Bay. As CG says, “We’re all blue—no Blue today. No mention of parents seen on the cams either.”
Mum might have been hoping for a fish but it looks like Dad found her a dead bird. Perhaps he wants to make a feather bed? If you want to guess on the day of the first egg at Port Lincoln, be sure to put it in a comment on chat.
At Orange, Diamond has been sleeping on the Cilla stones. Wonder how long til we have eggs here? Two and a half, three weeks?
Bonding with Xavier before dawn.
A sad story with a golden lining about Mother Goose:
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care! See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, images, summaries, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘AM, AMW, CG, Geemeff, H, J, PB, TU’, Colonial Beach, Destination Winnipeg, Ventana Wildlife Society, MN-LA Ospreys, Saaksilvie 4, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, David Warrington, Osoyoos, Audubon Boathouse, Montana Osprey Project, Charlo Montana, Olympic Park Eagles, Field Farm, Sandpoint Ospreys, PLO, and Charles Sturt Falcon Cam.
It is grey and very windy today. The only animals in the garden are Dyson and her kits waiting for me to put out new peanuts. Some of the larger container pots of tomatoes were blown over during the night and I have a thick jumper on with wool socks this morning. It feels like fall!
We hope you enjoyed a little trip down memory lane with the events at the nests and the birds that gave us hope and smiles so far during the 2023-24 breeding season. I enjoyed reading every list that you sent! Thank you again. Some of you have sent in more memories than reading the lists triggered. I will include a mini-listing tomorrow or the next day. I am so happy that you enjoyed that post. If you forgot someone, feel free to tell me.
‘H’ sent me a note saying little Cobey at Colonial Beach was rescued. Tears. Thank you to the owner of the cam who persisted in requesting help, to the DWR who came to the rescue, and to Dominion Energy, which brought in the bucket truck to help get little Cobey down. Cobey’s condition was described as ’emaciated’.
And her report: “8/7 Colonial Beach osprey nest: This morning David delivered a partial fish to Cobey at 1131, and he also chased away an intruder. Cobey worked on the fish on and off for a couple of hours before David removed it, thinking that Cobey was done with the fish. Mom Betty had been missing for over four days. And, David was not providing enough fish, nor was he feeding his 44-day-old youngster, Cobey. Cobey had to take a crash course on self-feeding the past few days. But, Cobey wasn’t getting enough to eat, and he was declining. Everyone knew it. The weather forecast was predicting a few stormy days, and Cobey would not have had any protection from the weather. The nest owner continued to consult with the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources, and the earlier decision to not intervene was reversed. We were notified on the chat at around 1430, and within a half hour, we saw the bucket being raised and someone with gloved hands reaching across the nest for Cobey. Many of us were crying. It was a miracle. We owe a debt of gratitude to Colonial Beach Osprey Nest Cam, and VA DWR, that Cobey now has a chance to live. Cobey was taken to Alton’s Keep Wildbird Rescue and Rehabilitation Center, and will be under the care of Mr. Harley Thomas White. “Now, you listen to Mr. White, Cobey, and do what you’re told… and he will make you better… And one day you will fly.”
Screen captures from a video Heidi posted on FB of the rescue:
Harley Thomas White is caring for Cobey. He made a fish gravy and fed Cobey some fish pieces, emphasising Cobey’s critical condition. Cobey is thin and weak. There will be daily updates. These images came from a video on the website of Altons’ Keep Wildbird Rescue and Rehabilitation Center Inc. Check out Harley Thomas White’s FB page for the videos and updates for Cobey as well as the website of the centre. (Want to show your support for this rescue from the nest? Have a spare tenner? I bet they would appreciate it).
WordPress Media Storage. Once again, I have hit 99.95% of my storage capacity. Tuesday afternoon, I spent some time deleting educational and information files, videos, and images from posts in 2022 and 2023 to make room for Wednesday’s post. I will gradually go back through the Memorial Walls and try to leave the single best image for the deceased bird instead of including several. Moving forward, you will see that I am putting in links to articles and videos instead of inserting the video or the PDF file. It all goes to saving space. I pay the top subscription fee for WordPress, and they will not sell me any more storage, so this is the only alternative I have discovered. There will be images, but fewer of them, sadly. If you know any secrets to getting around this issue, please let me know!
I am getting extremely excited about the upcoming trip to Nova Scotia. There are three reasons for this. You might recall that we were in Toronto a few weeks ago. It was a trial run for a longer vacation. Two years ago my husband (at the age of 63) began having memory issues. This was followed by hallucinations beginning in March 2023. All the while, I could not get a doctor! With the help of an old friend, we were able to see a specialist in December of 2023. That visit, MRIs and trips to a neurologist confirmed a diagnosis of Lewy Body Dementia. Some of you might remember that the American comedian Robin Williams had LBD. It is a terrible illness – not the memory issues. They come and go and never disappear like those who have Alzheimers, but it is the hallucinations that are tormenting. Thankfully, the pharmaceutical cocktail Don is taking is helping, and after Toronto, we got the green light to travel a little further and stay a little longer. (Please do not worry or fret. Believe it or not, we are doing great. Being outside on long walks fits me perfectly and it is also good for those with dementia. Nature heals and changes everything! We are living a good life – and enjoying every moment that we can). We are excited to return to a place we called home for so long but haven’t seen for 26 years. The second thing is that Nova Scotia is a birder’s paradise. While we will miss seeing the osprey chicks in the nest with the adults because they have now fledged, we hope to see them fishing and getting strong before they leave on their migration. We also hope to look out our windows in the morning and see Bald Eagles flying and get to add some shorebirds and waterfowl to our life lists. Meeting the Dennis family, who organised people throughout the province to observe and record the osprey nests, will be an honour. Last, luck found us the perfect place to stay. It is an Animal Sanctuary for rescued farm animals – pigs, goats, cows, etc. The entire property is Vegan, and we will be staying in a new apartment above a gallery. Across a quiet country road is the estuary where the eagles fly and the shorebirds scurry. What a wonderful change from living in the middle of a growing Prairie city! We are even hoping to ride bicycles!
‘CG’ reports on the search for Blue at HWF-BBCentral nest in Boundary Bay, British Columbia: “No reports yesterday of hearing Blue or the parents after Blue left the nest. Also, the parents were not seen later in the day. Normally, Mere would come back to the nest and be perched above from around dinner time until Blue was tucked in for the night. At 1251 hours today a parent was seen on a post near the water. Departed.”
In the United Kingdom, the fledging of two White-tail eaglets is causing a stir.
Beaver kits in the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland are also putting smiles on the faces of those who worked so hard on their reintroduction. You may be aware that beaver activity is essential to establishing thriving wetlands and biodiversity.
In Finland, all chicks at Saaksilvie #1 have flown.
USU is on the nest with Mum at nest #4 in Finland. The status of its wing is unclear or what might happen to the chick.
Beautiful osplets in Latvia waiting to fly.
Hollywood movie crew members watch Iris as she feeds her chicks. They should be considering making a movie of her life! Sum-eh fledged and returned to the nest after practising flying. She is flying around the parking lot and Dr Green reported she had also gone up and down the river. Antali is yet to fledge. S/he is five days younger than Sum-eh.
‘A’ comments: “When a lovely big fish is brought in at around 16:55, the only one home is Antali, who does not try to claim the fish or self-feed. Iris, in response to the constant begging for fish, soon begins feeding Antali. who already has a healthy crop. He can see Finn and/or Sumeh flying above – watching from below but not at all alarmed as he would be were the osprey above an intruder. Sumeh flies in at about 16:59, eager for fish. Iris obliges. She feeds both osplets, but Sumeh is hungrier and more demanding, so she is given more food. This is a very big fish – there is plenty for the whole family. By 17:39 Iris is feeding primarily herself, although occasionally, one of the osplets (usually Antali at this stage of the feeding) decides one more bite could just fit. Dad arrives just before 18:04. Sumeh is closely studying the leftover fish mum is standing on. Iris is not pleased at the arrival of Finn, although he has BYO fish. It looks like a chunk of fish but may be something of the smaller variety. Finn takes it to the perch – the remainder of the earlier fish is still on the nest (about half of the fish) so there is still another meal for Iris and the kids.”
Beautiful osplet at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum on a cloudy day. Waiting to fly. The chick has officially ‘perched’.
It really is not a coincidence that so many ospreys are dying in the Chesapeake Bay area. The extreme heat arrived, and there was no fish to hydrate the ospreys. Adults and chicks are being found dead. It is interesting to note that the Pacific Northwest had the extreme heat – even hotter in places – as did Iris – and the deaths were much less. So think about the lack of fish! The overfishing of the Menhaden needs to stop, and so does the rescue of starving osplets. We need a healthy population of fish hawks.
Mark Avery reminds us: “The Inglorious 12th – the start of the grouse shooting season is approaching. It’s one of the few issues that brings animal welfare, climate change, nature conservation and law enforcement together so clearly.” So what is the Inglorious 12th those that do not live in the UK ask? (12 August)
PETA UK says: “Traditionally, the Glorious Twelfth – or the “Inglorious Twelfth”, as it should rightly be named – marks the start of the red grouse shooting season. But this year, many estates have been forced to delay or even cancel it after human-induced climate change saw unseasonably hard sleet and cold rain, resulting in fewer birds for hunters to blast out of the sky…About 700,000 red grouse will be killed between now and December. According to a report by the League Against Cruel Sports, 40% of birds shot are wounded rather than being killed outright, causing intense and prolonged suffering. Grouse are low-flying and difficult to shoot cleanly, and hunters need no formal training or competence with a gun to go on a shoot – it’s a free-for-all. These are just a couple of reasons why this barbaric “sport” should be banned.
Grouse are charming, sensitive birds who are devoted parents to their chicks. They deserve better than being killed in cold blood for someone’s twisted idea of entertainment. And it’s not just the grouse who suffer at the hands of the hunters. To preserve the interests of their own sick pleasure, hunters remove the grouse’s natural predators, meaning foxes, stoats, weasels, squirrels, and birds like hawks, falcons, owls, hen harriers, and eagles are trapped, poisoned, or shot or their nests are destroyed.
All this cruelty and destruction so that a tiny minority of bloodthirsty people can wander through the British countryside gunning down sentient animals – it’s a senseless massacre, not a hobby.”
When you sibling wants your other slipper!
In a comment to a post about migration and if the males ever leave a chick on the nest (the question was in regard to nest #4 in Finland where the sole surviving osplet appears to have a wing injury), the author of Belle’s Journey and many papers on Osprey behaviour and, in particular, migration, Rob Bierregaard says: “Adult females almost always leave first, usually a week or two before the males. In the northeastern US, it’s usually mid-August for females and the first 2 weeks of September for the males and young. This information is based on 107 satellite-tagged birds, so I know when birds start migrating, as opposed to leaving the nest and hanging around somewhere, which they’ll do, especially after a nest fails. When young leave the nest, they are not necessarily starting their migration. Some wander all over the place and and delay the start of their migration until, exceptionally, November. I had one young from Martha’s Vineyard, an Island off the east coast of Massachusetts, wander 1,200 miles all the way to the Great Lakes! I had one male linger into late September when a young couldn’t get its act together and was constantly on the nest begging. The male finally gave up and left before the young did.”
The Eurasian Hobby in Dorsett is becoming a Hobby instead of a ‘baby chick’. Don’t you just love those strong legs of the falcons?!
Geemeff sends both a happy and sad story of Ospreys at the Cape which has grown from a few pairs to now over 500 they estimate.
Geemeff also sends the daily summary from Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Wednesday 7th August 2024
No action whatsoever today, not even a visit from a little bird. It’s not yet the middle of August, but with night cam switching on ever closer to 10pm and staying on until almost 5am, and no chicks flying around demanding fish from Louis, the season feels suspiciously like it’s over for this year. Affric152 and Prince should still be around as they have a young fledgling to look after, and with luck we might even see their chick testing his wings on or near one of the cam nests. Garry LV0 was the last one to leave last year so perhaps he’ll do that this year too but it does seem as if the star pair, Louis & Dorcha, have already headed south. With the weather being wet and windy today, and more of the same forecast for the next ten days, moving south seems the sensible thing to do.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 22.21.45 (04.41.53); Nest Two 22.14.31 (04.49.20)
Today’s videos: none – not even a visit from a little bird!
Bonus read – a free ebook by W. H. Majoros Season with the Osprey:
The wind appeared to be strong at the Port Lincoln barge. Both Mum and Dad were tucked in and then Dad flew off and left Mum hoping he was going to bring her a nice big fish for brekkie.
Jackie and Shadow were at the nest for morning chortles on Wednesday.
Ceramic nests save the life of little seabirds and they are coming to Alcatraz to save birds. Thanks, ‘EJ’ – a very engaging story of people figuring out solutions.
But this is good news. It is time for some serious consideration about taking all the Menhaden that keep our ospreys alive (and other birds and mammals).
Atlantic menhaden board votes to study more restrictions on controversial Chesapeake Bay fishery
The measure passed this week is meant to help protect birds and fish that rely on menhaden as a key food source. But researchers say more data is needed to understand the dynamics in the bay.
I really hope that my readers living in this area and loving the Osprey will speak up – and anyone else that feels it is important for Osprey to have fish to eat! The commercial fishing of Menhaden has to stop – inside and outside of the Chesapeake Bay.
‘H’ reports:
8/7 Osoyoos osprey nest: Unless I missed one, it seems that there were only 4 fish brought to the nest, all delivered by Olsen. There were two good size fish from which Soo provided nice feedings. And, the two very small fish were acquired by Chick 1. Chick 2 was doing much better with his wingercizing today. At 1749, Chick 2 was so high that s/he was almost completely out of view for a second. Keep exercising those wings #2! Weather forecast for 8/8: Partly cloudy with smoky air, high temp 92F/33C, light winds.
8/7 Fenwick Island osprey nest (Captain Mac’s Fish House): Everything is going well for Johnny, June and 54-day-old ‘Fen’. Today was the first day in a few weeks that June did not catch a large striped bass, but the wind and rain may have had something to do with that. Fen was wingercizing with some nice hops today.
8/7 Fortis Exshaw osprey nest: There was another fledge today. Due to the dirty camera, it is still difficult to see details of the birds. But, at 1200, we believe that chick 2, named Peyto, fledged at 54 days of age. Peyto landed on the nest perch at 1240, and dropped to the nest when a fish arrived. Congratulations Peyto!
A wee peak at WBSE 33 and 34. They always look like fluffy little snow people to me.
Hugo Yugo wishes everyone the best Thursday (or Friday) depending on where you live. She is a sleepy girl waiting to get her eyes cleaned, poor thing.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care! See you soon.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, CG, EJ, Geemeff, H, J, PB, RP’, Heidi McGrue and the Joy of Ospreys, Henry Thomas White and Altons’ Keep Wildbird Rescue and Rehabilitation Center Inc., Pam Breci and The Joy of Ospreys, Sea Eagle England, Cairngorms National Park, Finnish Osprey Foundation, Montana Osprey Cams, LDF, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Minnesota Landscape Arboretum Osprey Cam, Chesapeake Mermaid, OpenVerse, PETA UK, Dyfi Osprey Project, SK Hideaways, CBS News, SFStandard, The New York Times, Mark Avery, Brian Collins and Menhaden- Little Fish, Big Deal FB, Osoyoos Ospreys, Fenwick Island, and Fortis Exshaw.
Some of our morning updates before we get to what is the real thrust of today’s news: SE33 has hatched at the Olympic Park Sea Eagle nest in Sydney. Congratulations Lady and Dad. What a beautiful strong little eaglet!
‘A’ remarks: “August 7 (Afternoon) After another shift for Lady, Dad was on incubation duties again for nearly an hour, though he left quickly when she returned. She then fed the chick again, with gentle, tiny bites offered, before settling again. She is restless, as you would expect with a chick and a pipping egg. Just before 2pm, Lady ate a little of the stored fish, and although she tried to feed the chick, she gave up because it was facing the wrong way. Shortly afterwards, she tried again and this time, SE33 ate a little. The pip on the second egg is more raised now. At 14:51, Dad brooded again, then went to the pantry but didn’t feed the chick. Lady was back after a 15-minute break. She was on the nest from just after 4pm, after a last short feed for SE33. Dad brought in a late fish at dark, and Lady ate a little before settling. She has spent longer on the nest today, though Dad has had a couple of shifts. He brought prey, and SE33 was fed four times. What will this night bring? Last season, the eggs hatched 32 hours and 46 minutes apart.”
‘H’ reports:
8/6 Osoyoos osprey nest: I had a busy day, so when I got home, I primarily rewound the stream to check for a possible fledge for Chick 2. S/he did not fledge today. And, when Chick 2 did his wingercizing, he was still only achieving what seemed to be a few inches of lift off the nest (cam view can be deceiving). A person very experienced with ospreys stated on a chat a few weeks ago, that ospreys typically need to do wingers and hovers for 10 days to build up their muscles for flight readiness. I’m not an expert, just a nest cam watcher… but, I have seen ospreys suddenly have the ability to perform some nice hovers, and then fledge in a day or two. Side note: Little died from starvation on 7/15, and his body has remained in the nest. This afternoon, a strong gust of wind lifted Little’s body and swept it off the nest. ‘AMW’, a very kind and caring viewer that lives nearby, drove to the nest to recover Little’s remains. She posted in the Facebook group: “Little is now buried in my yard … and I will plant a flowering annual plant in Little’s memory.” Thank you, ‘AMW’, from all of us.
8/6 – 8/7 Colonial Beach osprey nest: Cobey was awake early and at 0630 he picked up the old piece of fish and managed to pull off some pieces of fish-jerky. He worked on it now and again, and by 0800 he was still trying. David did not bring a fish for Cobey until 1348. It was a large whole fish. At the very young age of 43 days, Cobey has become quite the self-feeder by necessity. Cobey had managed to eat the head of that fish before there was an intruder issue. At 1415 David landed in the nest first, and it seemed that David may have been tangling with the intruder nearby. The intruder landed in the nest immediately after David, and stole the fish, despite David being on the nest. Oh no, no, no! Poor lil Cobey’s only meal of the day was gone! David did not bring another fish.
The nest owner, host of the live stream, is a very caring and avid osprey conservationist. She and others monitor many osprey nests in the Colonial Beach area. She stated that they are finding many dead ospreys, on the ground or in nests. It is thought that not only was fishing difficult when it was very hot, but that there may in fact be a shortage of fish for the ospreys to catch. Some ospreys are having to resort to kleptoparasitism to survive, or to feed their young.
Cobey’s mom, Betty, will have been missing for 4 days on the morning of 8/7. The cam owner provided a statement regarding a possible rescue of Cobey. “The VA DWR recommends that nothing be done at this time… we will continually monitor the nest, things may change.” Please note that the cam owner’s hands are tied, and she must follow the advice of the regulating authorities. Some comments on the chat were hurtful to her. Go easy on the chat. The cam owner is hurting as much, if not more, than you are. Colonial Beach weather forecast for 8/7: Cloudy with showers, risk of thunder storms, high temp 81.
8/6 Fortis Exshaw: There was a fledge today. It appeared to be the same chick that was doing the high hovering yesterday. We missed seeing them for about 3 weeks when the cam was dirty, and we still do not have a completely clear view. As a result, we were never able to learn how to differentiate the siblings. We know that the oldest chick in a brood does not always fledge first, but I suppose we will simply assume that’s the one that flew. The eldest chick was named BJ, and BJ initially seemed to only go as far as the camera at 0803, then returned to the nest at 0834. But, BJ made a true fledge at 0927. S/he made a nice landing on the T-perch at 1536, followed by a return to the nest at 1538. Well done, new fledgling!
‘CG’: “Blue branched this morning, and between the time she branched and the time she fledged, she was doing wingers, hopping, getting some good height, and went from the nest to the branch a number of times. She went to the back of the nest and totally surprised everyone at 1557 hours by fledging from the back north corner of the nest by the screen. One minute she was there then she was gone. She is 100 days old today.
They have been looking for her but haven’t been able to locate her on the cams. There is a ground crew out looking for her too.
Congratulations Blue! Way to go!!”
Geemeff’s Summary for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Tuesday 6th August 2024
No activity at all on Nest Two, today’s action all came from Nest One, where Affric 152 turned up at dawn quickly followed by Garry LV0. However the pair fled the nest when a third Osprey appeared in the distance – Affric’s mate Prince, perhaps. Garry returned a little later with a stick but didn’t stay long. A few hours later birds were seen in the distance on nest cam and a Wood Pigeon overflew the nest. It rained pretty much throughout the day, and more rain forecast for tonight and tomorrow.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 22.23.05 (04.07.43); Nest Two 22.22.22 (04.27.15)
Thank you so much for sending in the moments during the 2023-24 season that put a smile on your face. I really appreciate the time and thoughtful regard that you put into your choices and for sending them in. Most people will hesitate. Why do we think our voice doesn’t count? I hope that there are some surprises in here. I received 79 e-mails with the single word Iris along with what is posted below. So if you sent one of those in and I did not include your initials, my apologies. Just know that you counted in making Iris and her year with Finnegan, Sun-eh and Antali the top of the charts by a long mile. Also I didn’t ask for images but have included them if you sent them in!
‘MM’: “After a season filled with heartbreak after heartbreak it has made the happy moments even sweeter! One happy moment that happened early on in the season was when Beau finally figured out how to mate with Gabby and she was able to lay two eggs, unfortunately Beau got the mating mastered but that’s where the happiness ended, hopefully next season he’ll be ready.
Another happy moment was the successful fledge of two healthy osprey chicks from Port Lincoln thanks to the fish fairy and the generosity of so many who donated. The two happiest moments of the season for me are tied for first place. I was beyond thrilled when the season started in SWFL and M15 had taken F23 as his new mate after the loss of our beloved Harriet last session. The season got even happier with the hatch of the incredible E23 💜 And of course the other happy moment at #1 is sweet Iris finally getting sweep off her talons by the handsome Finn and their two amazing chicks 💙 ❤️ Thank you for the opportunity to reflect on the good after dealing with so much bad. Praying next season will be filled with many happy moments .”
‘H’: “As I understand it, you are asking for happy stories. Well, this makes me happy. This may sound strange. But, I am happy for Darling at Captiva. Darling fledged on 6/26 at 63 days of age. His post-fledge life was not easy. There was competition for the nest and food from his sibling, Ding. In addition, both of his parents may possibly have had issues with their health, and they stopped bringing food to the nest. Darling had not eaten for 3 days when he ended up in the water and was rescued and taken to CROW on 7/4. He passed away at CROW that night. We don’t know why things turned out the way they did, and we will never understand it. I wish it had not turned out that way. So, why does this make me happy? It doesn’t. The part that makes me happy is that Darling flew. I think of all the ‘littles’ we have known that died from nest accidents, or weather events, or starvation, or illness, or predation, and they never got a chance to fly. Darling was able to experience the sheer joy and exuberance of flying. And, I am so happy for him.”
‘SP’: Amongst all the turmoil of this year, there were more golden moments and miracles to celebrate. (Photos below in order of the list)
Cal Falcons Annie & her new mate Archie fledged four beautiful falcon chicks in Berkeley. This was the first time since Annie’s been a YouTube star that all 4 of her eggs hatched. We were entertained, enamored and completely enthralled with Aurora, Solstice, Eclipse, and Equinox.
San Jose City Hall couple Hartley & second year dad Monty also fledged four beautiful falcon chicks – all girls. Though we lost one, we enjoyed weeks of the girl power brought by Luna (RIP), Zoe, Lucia, and Alma.
Southwest Florida M15 and his new mate F23 fledged the ever-endearing E23, further mending the holes in our hearts left by the disappearance of Harriet the previous year. F23 proved to be a most nurturing and loving mother, while M15 continued his legacy of being provider extraordinaire. E23 was such a character and embraced being an only child with gusto. He proved to be an excellent flyer and at one point a protector of his natal nest.
Oh, thank you for the opportunity to revisit these wonderful moments!”
Cal Falcons.
San Jose.
SW Florida:
‘B’ writes: Too many sad stories, but always some nice ones, too. I liked how you said you think of all the miracles we have seen, to help offset the sadness of the sad stories. I had meant to write you a couple of weeks ago how I followed a similar strategy to help offset the sadness. I had a lower threshold than you, just thinking of the things that make me smile, rather than holding out for “miracles”. But my number one was the same as yours: the arrival of Finnegan, so that Iris has a real and proper (and wonderful) mate for the first time in years. Enough of that two-timing Louis!
In fact, two more of the top things that made me smile were also from Hellgate: the wonderful job Iris does as a mom when having chicks for the first time in years. Especially protecting those chicks in that awful heat. I swear, if “Mumbrella” were an Olympic event, Iris would be a medal winner. And the other is how peaceful and calm those osplets are when there started with such a huge difference in size. Part has to be what a great provider Finn is, and also how diligent Iris is in making sure each chick is served well. Gosh, the larger of the two would just stand and watch patiently if Little was served first, knowing his/her turn would come.
Also, Tuffy’s story always made me smile (even if hard to watch in earlier days), seeing him do what he needed to do to make it to being a beautiful and healthy fledgling in spite of the “Ruff” treatment from Ruffie.
And I couldn’t help but smile whenever I checked in on the Decorah eaglets after their nest (and branch) fell away, to see them happily perched on branches, as if to say, “we don’t need no stinkin’ nest, so long as we got our branch and our parents!”
In spite of all their hard luck getting a hatch, one can never help but smile to see Jackie and Shadow together. I have to hope for another Spirit next year.
And wonderful to see both Annie and Archie at Cal and Hartley and Monty at San Jose have four healthy hatches make it to fledge, even with the sadness of losing Luna at San Jose and the injury to Nox in Berkeley. I was so worried, especially for San Jose, what with the tough urban environment and seeing Lucia get rescued from the sidewalk and taking the elevator back to the roof twice before successfully fledging.
There’s more, but these are some of the stories that make me smile. (And, oh yes, of course there is Treasure and her siblings, also treasures.)”
CG: “My first thought was Tuffy. I watched this nest with trepidation. Tuffy was the underdog. How many times did we think he wouldn’t make it. He was so endearing, and I loved his sneakiness to try to get food. He never gave up. You always talk about the will to survive, and boy, his little body was bursting with it. The last time I saw him was just before they shut the cam down, and he was proudly standing on his nest.
Iris and Finnegan. I knew nothing about her until you talked about her. Finnegan came along and showed Louis the door. He has been a wonderful mate and provider for Iris and their osplets, and Iris has been a wonderful mum feeding and protecting her little ones the way she does. Just look at how they have turned out under their care. They look so healthy, and Big has been a wonderful big sib being so patient with his little sibling except for the one time little sib got uppity and boldly attacked big sib. That won’t be happening again! This has been a wonderful osprey nest to watch.
I could not fail to mention my peregrines Annie and Archie and Hartley and Monty, each pair with four chicks this year. Hartley and Monty went from newbies with one feisty Soledad last year to FOUR this year. What a jump! They handled it all with finesse. No nonsense Annie always handles her chicks with finesse, and her new mate Archie was a great provider and dad. Peregrines are a wonder and miracle every year. I wish all nests could be as calming as theirs with equal feedings, no shortage of food, no predators, and lots of chick shenanigans. “
‘BHA’: My smile of the year has to be Iris, Finnegan and family. (Along with you and probably everyone else.) What a miracle nest this year!!
Also, the San Jose falcons. The antics and shenanigans of the four girls were priceless! (Of course with a bit of sadness that we lost one of them…)
‘PB’: The bird that made me smile is Smallie. He was such a fighter especially how small he was up against 3 big sisters. I’m still sad about it. O18 became my favorite osprey, she was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. Her personality matched her beauty. I miss her too! It’s making me cry thinking of them. But before them was a tie between Tuffy and Tiny D. They will all be in my memory forever.
‘J’ loves the Tortilla Bird. ” The photo of that tiny little babe in the tortilla just melts my heart (the feet! the feet!). That someone thought of wrapping it in a warm tortilla to keep it from getting cold is just brilliant – and hilarious at the same time. “
Geemeff: “But just want to say the names chosen for Iris & Finn’s miracle chicks are lovely and very suitable. In a season of sadness, they and the Poole Harbour Four have been some comfort. Iris’ success after so may years of being bullied by her ex, together with the unexpected success of saving one of Louis & Dorcha’s chicks to the point of successfully fledging, are my favourites of this season.”
‘TU’: My favourite article for a good mood is the one in The Guardian about the bird of New Caledonia. I loved it from the first sight.
‘L’: Iris finding Finnegan or vice versa. A wonderful memorable miracle. This nest brings pure joy! Iris is the best osprey mom I’ve ever had the privilege to watch and Finnegan is a precious gem.
Blue is amazing at the Boundary Nest. I think he’s a miracle for surviving erratic food deliveries.
The rescue of Rutland’s Little Bob. Golden moment.
The Purple Martins in Erie PA. All 5 fledged. Enjoyable to watch.
McEuen Park. One, out of 4, that survived to fledge after losing father.
Eagle Country-Tears for Meadow but Swampy lived and fledged.
Thunder, Akecheta and their 3 beautiful eaglets! Koa, Treasure & Sterling. A delight to watch. A stress free nest.
Cowlitz PUD- happiness, a survivor golden moment.
Osoyoos, losing Little which was sad enough. Thankful two will fledge. Happiness and a miracle in my book.
Little Miami Conservancy-All 3 eaglets fledged! Happiness.
Southwest Florida Eagles-One hatch, smart and accelerated in growth. An amazing first eaglet for M15 & F23.
BONUS!!!! Pure joy.
Challenger surviving his health issues.
Hugo Yugo, Calico, Hope & Missey and all the birds and squirrels that visit your garden.
(I could go on and on. So many more miracles and golden moments….The 2 miracle eaglets that definitely would have made my list were unfortunately killed by father Scout at the NCTC nest.)”
‘BA’: “The first time Lucia accidentally fell from the nest area and had to be rescued. First lots of worry about her, and then the smile moment when she was released on the rooftop. And then the chuckle: later watching SKHideaway’s video of it all. Lucia was just out of the box, looking around wide-eyed at all the contraptions and weird stuff, and SKH’s caption said, “She thinks she’s in Disneyland!” That cracked me up. It was such a tense moment, worrying about how frightened Lucia might be, and somehow we knew then she was going to be okay. (And then a couple of days later when she made it back down to the nest area and was reunited with her sisters – that was also a big smile moment.)”
LL: “Anything to do with Iris and Finn”.
JT: “The hatch of E23.”
PM: “Iris, Iris, Iris…West End nest. Those three eaglets were remarkable.”
‘A’: “Just before 09:32, there is a lot of thunder at Hellgate and Iris immediately flies to the nest. The rain really sets in, and Iris opens her roller doors and does her perfect mumbrella, managing to keep two fully grown osplets perfectly dry in the heavy downpour. What a mum she really is. Sumeh is the sweetest big sister ever, and little bro is adorable and such a feisty wee lad. This nest has been such a joy to watch. I could not have imagined enjoying watching a big sister/little brother osprey nest without a moment of stress or worry, but then along came Finnegan.”
I am with you – Iris has put everything into this season, and it may be costly. But it may also give her a reason to return no matter what it takes, as she now has Finnegan waiting for her. These two have bonded strongly and I am really hopeful that the strength of their relationship will give Iris what she needs to make it home again. She truly has been the most wonderful mother. What a waste – Louis truly is a cad.
BT: “Too numerous. 1. Fish Fairies at Port Lincoln. 2. Finnegan ousting Louis and winning Iris’s heart. 3. Annie and Archie raise four little falcons. Jackie and Shadow because they just make me smile all the time.”
RW: “The Fabulous Four at Poole Harbour ties with Iris and Finn.”
CB: “SE31 fledges and spends time with Lady and Dad on the Paramatta River learning to be an eagle. Iris and Finnegan because I never thought Iris would ever raise chicks again. The eagles at Decorah North because they survived so much and continued to be a family at their nest tree even when it had fallen over.”
CD: “I loved Smallie. The wee little falcon longed to live and it did get to fly.”
DDS:
Iris and Finnegan. Never thought this would happen.
Jackie and Shadow and their sticks and hopefulness.
M15 gets another chance to be a Dad.
They didn’t raise a family but seeing Gabby and Beau together made me smile.
The rehabbers that help.
The small Dutch falcon that died but got to fly.
The people who dared to provide fish to the osprey chicks at the barge in Australia.
Thanks to everyone who participated and to those who didn’t but sat and thought about what made them smile this year!
My list in a bit of a narrative and in no certain order:
The day I learned that Bonus was alive, I cried. Knowing that both Black Storks Waba and Bonus, raised by Karl II, are still flying gives me hope that there are others, too. I continue to be ever grateful for the work of Urmas in Estonia and his team in providing fish for the storks, ringing them, and checking on their well-being. It makes me smile to see the fish baskets that he sets up and fills to keep the storks alive. I wish that more people would engage with wildlife positively and constructively. I am grateful to the Roy Dennis Foundation and the Woodland Trust for removing the two chicks of Louis and Dorcha for translocation. Louis was not himself, and while I had an enormous smile when he reappeared after so many days, he needed to get his strength up, so it still felt like a good win-win. But knowing dear Louis is alive is a huge grin and a happy moment. The fish fairies at Port Lincoln took a stand and saved the osplets of Mum and Dad at the barge and I will forever think that this was a miracle that saved the chicks lives. Didn’t you just grin seeing the hand lay the fish on that nest? Whenever I checked on the nest at Poole Harbour, I smiled at the absolute dedication and great parenting of CJ7 and Blue 022. I remember the year they were courting, and it didn’t seem possible that CJ7 would get a mate, and now, to the astonishment of all, in their third year together, they successfully raised four to fledge. The California falcons will always make me smile: Larry at Alcatraz, Annie and Archie, and Monty and Hartley. Incredible families and, oh, our dear little ones that got themselves into some mischief, including Nox, who is recovering. That photo of him with his wing wrapped was lovely. I was happy when Smallie could come and go in and out of the scrape and got to fly and feel the wind under its wings despite its subsequent death. Big Red always puts a smile on my face as does Arthur when he lines the nest bowl with squirrel fur. They love being parents. And this year, because of the year that it was, I am grateful and smile whenever I see one of the nests have a fledge because they are just that much rarer. So many bird families lost so many of their offspring this year. To the delight and relief of many, Hope and Beaumont look like they will fledge two chicks this year from Snow Lane in Newfoundland – the first for many, many years. The Moorings Park nest just melted my heart when Tuffy overcame the abuse of the older sibling, Ruffie, and survive to become a gorgeous osplet that returned time and again to the nest so we could see that he was alright. What made me mad and also sick at times was the Frenchman’s Creek nest with fish after fish piled up and the poor osplets having to learn to feed themselves to survive – not from starvation but lack of parental attention. They triumphed, and somehow, the nasty fish disappeared. That made me smile big time. There were so many moments. Seeing SE31 flying over the Paramatta River with Lady and Dad, free of the harassment of the Pied Currawong, was simply one of the best moments ever, along with Flaco, the Eurasian Owl, who escaped from the Central Park Zoo and flew freely for a year. Perhaps I have said it more than once, but the resilience of Jackie and Shadow makes me smile every day.
The ultimate smile was Iris and Finnegan, though. I never thought I would see Iris raising chicks. Louis drove me nuts, and to see a young male osprey keep Louis on the other side of the territory made me grin every day, especially when Finn chased Louis off the owl pole. Iris is simply amazing. She is old (I have great empathy for her), raising chicks in that heat, and now Sum-eh has fledged. I also smile whenever I get a note or a letter from you. It makes my day, along with my garden animals, my family, and the girls, that much better. Thank you for being there.
Thank you to everyone who sent in their memories and for the images and videos thank you to ‘A, CG, Geemeff, H, J, PB’, NestFlix Memories, Osoyoos, Fortis-Exshaw, Colonial Beach, Menhaden- Little Fish, Big Deal, HWF-BBCentral, Heidi and Windows to Wildlife, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, SK Hideaways for the images of the falcon families from San Jose, Cal Falcons, and SWFlorida Bald Eagles, Wildwest Rehabilitation Centre, Texas Monthly, SK Hideaways, and The Guardian.
Thank you to everyone for your lovely notes. We must continue to find the happiness, the miracles, and as ‘B’ says, ‘the treasures’ in this breeding season. And there certainly are miracles and the most amazing events happening. Iris and Finnegan continue to get top billing with managing to keep themselves alive during the heat and not having been blown off to Las Vegas during the winds! And we still have two chicks at Osoyoos despite the odds being so against Soo and Olsen. Fledges are happening. Take the smiles when they come and as one reader ‘J’ said, ‘I hope Blue falls off the nest’. (There is a rescue in place if he does)
It is hot and humid. 31 degrees. It rained just enough to make it more humid. The birds in the garden frantically ate their breakfast and it i snow after 1600 and they are starting on the last feeding of the day. Their behaviour makes me think a storm is coming despite the weather network saying ‘no’. One day they said ‘no rain’ and it was raining when I checked! They are not always very accurate, but the animals are. Frantic eating means a storm….And it did rain and a thunderstorm was predicted for today and tomorrow. Not bad for a ‘Murder’. They should hire Mr Crow!
What will he choose? Enchiladas? Cheesy Dogs? Peanuts?
I am so very, very sad. Both of the fledglings of Big Red and Arthur of 2024 are dead. N2 died from a window collision, and N1 died from an illness after being seen by BOGs behaving oddly.
A White-tail eagle has taken the smallest osplet, Yellow UPU, off the Finnish #4 nest, to the dismay of all of us that loved that osplet family. The time was 18:11:56. Thank you, ‘AM’ for alerting me. The Ilomansti chick was 55 days old.
Screenshot
The following morning, at 0510, the oldest osplet, Yellow, URA, a male, flew off the #4 nest and was chased by the Eagle as it flew. You could hear it calls. The Middle osplet, a female, is in the nest, scared to death.
There has been an incident at the Patuxent River Park. An osplet/osprey fell off the nest at 1445 and it was not until after 1100 that anyone went to check. Earlier flapping could be heard but high tide came in and all went quiet.
Feeling so grateful. Iris is the poster child of osprey miracles this year and if something had happened to her or her family, I think we would have crawled into a hole and stayed there. Thankfully, Iris and Finnegan and their kids survived category 2 hurricane force winds.
Please help name Iris and Finnegan’s chicks. The site where you vote gives the meaning of the two pairs of names to select from -.
Cornell gives us a fantastic video of Iris’s kids and their amazing juvenile eyes!
Welcome back, ‘A’ who is so happy to be checking on Iris’s nest and the WBSE for us: “I checked our gorgeous boys at Hellgate today – they are looking wonderful and Iris is so proud of them. They had a naming competition underway – I believe it ends on 31 July – so the time has come to name this pair. Fledging is on the calendar and we will soon lose our Hellgate ospreys until next season. I do hope that the bond between Iris and Finn will persist next season and that they will return to each other. This has been a love story for the ages, and I have adored watching his devotion to her.
Gorgeous boy brought in a large headless fish around 06:39 and there was something of a melee. Iris grabbed and took control of the fish. Finn did some arrangement of the baby rails, which are huge (as are the babies) and then flew to the perch while Iris arranged the feeding of breakfast. As usual, Baby Bob is given the first bites, with both osplets sitting up nicely at the table, side by side, without any aggression. I have adored watching the fraternal behaviour on this nest. Not once has there been any bonking or even any intimidation. Even direct eye contact has failed to prompt dominant behaviour from the larger sibling. The situation remains peaceful, although I sense we are about to enter the ‘fight for food’ period as the osplets begin to claim and mantle delivered prey from their parents. So far, though, Iris is maintaining control of the food distribution.
Baby Bob is fed for some time before Big Bob is offered a bite, but the older sibling is perfectly prepared to wait its turn. Based on size, I am again thinking that Big Bob is female, with a younger brother, but if that is the case, then the behaviour from both has been exemplary and civil at all times. If we do have a big sister and a little brother, then I can only put the excellent nest dynamics down to Iris’s control on the nest and Finn’s regular deliveries of huge fish to the nest. As far as I can see, the only logical explanation is that these two have not been hungry.
I do wish they were banding these two osplets, given how incredibly special they are – It is a long time since Iris raised a chick, let alone two. They are healthy and they have inherited some pretty special genes from both parents, it would seem. I would love to know their genders, for obvious reasons, and we would all love to know how they fare as juvenile fledglings and hopefully, later, as adult ospreys. I suppose we will never know for certain if and until they find a mate. But I have wavered backwards and forwards on the gender question, with the size indicator contradicting the behavioural one much of the time. “
July 26: After some rain overnight, it was fine for early morning duets. Lady was off at 6:36. Dad was in shortly after, then incubated for an hour and 25 minutes, giving Lady a good early break. Dad then left the nest, as Lady was close and returned to take over incubating. After a couple more changes, Lady appeared around midday with a good crop – she had caught her own prey it seems. Then she spent the afternoon on the nest, incubating for nearly three hours until Dad bought in a late fish. She grabbed it and took it to the branch to eat. The eggs were uncovered for some time as Lady ate, then dad incubated for a short while until she finished eating. She then settled for the night. Today she spent a total of 6h27m on the eggs, while Dad incubated for 5h7m.
I love to see how this pair shares the workload so evenly – check the daily division of incubation duties between them, giving each plenty of exercise and the chance to hunt, although Dad does sometimes bring prey to Lady on the nest. But they are a tightly bonded team and I am looking forward to seeing two small fluffy heads appear on this nest. Perhaps THIS year, we will get two successful fledges, with fledglings safely returning to the natal nest despite the attempts of the smaller birds to drive them from their nest and their forest.
They have not yet hatched and yet already, we are worried about their chances of successfully fledging at this location. I have no idea how we can protect them from this fate, but it is hard to watch season after season after season. Two cute, happy, healthy little sea eaglets are effectively sacrificed every year. It is a tragic waste, of the babies and of the devotion and time the parents put into raising their eaglets. “
Three healthy chicks at the Castle Bolton Estate in Yorkshire – two females and a male!
Kristel fledged, as predicted, at 81 days old on the 26th of July from the Golden Eagle nest in Estonia. You might know that this nest is in a military zone in Estonia where active military exercises take place daily. Many can hear the gunfire in the background. Despite this, the area is large and normal humans cannot enter it. It actually makes this forest area safer for the wild animals and raptors like Kristel and her family who are used to the military exercise sounds.
Richmond and Rosie’s PAX caught on video!
Everyone is home at Field Farm and hungry. Flying uses up a lot of calories!!!!!!!!
Geemeff sends us her daily report for Loch Arkaig and The Woodland Trust:
Daily summary Friday 26th July 2024
The Lochenders saga continued today with a game of musical nests – after an absence of two days, Dorcha turned up paying a visit to Nest One while Garry LV0 was there, and then Affric 152 and Garry LV0 visited Nest Two, flying off very quickly when Dorcha appeared. Where were Louis and Prince while this was going on? Was Prince back at Bunarkaig looking after his and Affric’s chick? Was Louis having a leisurely fishing session? Is he still around? As usual, the only answer is ‘wait and see’. RAF jets did a flypast but both nests were empty at the time. More good news from Spain with a tweeted photo of our chick 1JW out and about exploring the neighbourhood, and the message “We are told all the birds are continuing to feed well after taking to the skies for the first time yesterday.” 1JW is certainly better off in sunny Spain – it rained throughout the day here, there’s a chance of rain tonight and tomorrow with a high of only 17°C.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.01.49 (04.04.45); Nest Two 22.58.14 (04.15.15)
Bonus tweet – photo of Loch Arkaig Osprey chick 1JW in Spain exploring his new neighbourhood:
It is so great to see #1JW looking strong and thriving in Spain, having fledged yesterday. it's been a strange sad season for the #ArkaigOspreys and many other nests here and in other countries too. Stay strong 1JW, all your fans are cheering you on. @RoyDennisWF@FundacionMigreshttps://t.co/SuCmVBVmW1
‘CG’ has been monitoring the Hancock Wildlife Nest at Boundary Bay. She sends us the following from the forum:
On 7/25, Blue received food and ended the day with a nice crop. She also received food Friday morning which she was eating. She has also been doing wingercises and reached a good height yesterday. PSs that were seen were good. There are pictures with the comments.
It is painstaking reading all the comments; you need lots of time on your hands. People are questioning the lack of food being brought by the parents (Pere and Mere). Apparently, there was plenty of food at the beginning. They are wondering if there is something in the surroundings that has changed. So, . . .
Link to site (press ctrl + click to follow link). This will take you right to afternoon of 7/25, and from there you can go backwards and forwards. Page numbers are at the top and bottom of the pages.
I haven’t herd from anyone one rescue of Blue. When, where, and how?
Judy B writes: At the moment, it does not appear that Blue needs to be rescued. The parents delivered two fish today – and Blue waited almost an hour before beginning to eat the first one, which suggests to me that Blue was not very hungry (which makes sense because Blue had quite a lot of food yesterday).
Blue is old enough that she or he would likely try to fly if anyone approached the nest with a lift to try to remove Blue from the nest – and so far I haven’t seen enough sustained flapping to think that Blue is ready to fly safely.
We do have plans in place if Blue ends up on the ground, and the local rescue/rehab organization is aware that there are concerns about Blue – but personally, after seeing two fish delivered today, I’m less worried than I was yesterday.”
‘H’ reports:
7/26 Osoyoos osprey nest: The high temperature was only about 84 degrees, and Olsen delivered 10 fish to the nest today! Soo started out very early in the morning trying to feed some of that leftover fish jerky skin. No one was able to eat very much of that. At 0617 Olsen delivered a nice sized fish that provided a 14-minute meal. The siblings ate from opposite sides of Soo, and Middle ate 71 bites of fish. Olsen came right back at 0635 with a similarly sized fish that Soo fed for 13 minutes. Middle did not have good positioning, with Big hovering over him the entire time, and was only able to eat 4 bites of fish. At 0944 Olsen arrived with a tiny fish. Middle had been fed 5 bites of that fish, then s/he grabbed it from Soo and spent the next five minutes eating the rest of it (and was not harassed by Big). The next fish at 1117 was another ‘Tiny’. Big bit Middle on the wing, ouch! Soo fed Middle for 3 minutes. Fish #5 at 1153 was also a ‘Tiny’. Middle was fed 20 bites before Big grabbed the fish and finished it. Fish #6 at 1205 was a bit larger, and Soo fed Big for 7 minutes. Middle did not make much of an effort to join in. At 1319 Olsen dropped off a medium sized whole fish. Big was not hungry, and Soo fed Middle for 11 minutes! Fish #8 at 1435 was a ‘Tiny’… Big gave Middle ‘The Look’, and Middle didn’t even bother to approach Soo, so that was just a small meal for Big. Fish #9 at 1448 was a large whole fish that provided a 26-minute meal. The problem was that neither osplet was very hungry. They ate peacefully on opposite sides of Soo’s beak, but after a few minutes, Soo was having difficulty finding an open beak. Both sibs would repeatedly back away, and then later they would somewhat reluctantly accept another bite or two from Soo. It reminded me of being at Grandma’s for Sunday dinner, and she just kept coaxing us kids to eat more! Middle ate 55 bites of fish at that meal, and Soo had a nice meal for herself as well. The last fish of the day was a small fish delivered by Olsen at 1531. Big was not interested in eating. Middle almost reluctantly ate 20 bites of fish, and refused many of Soo’s offerings. Everyone looked quite ‘croppy’. It was a good day. Weather forecast for 7/27: Mostly sunny, high temp 90F/32C, winds 9 mph.
7/26 Colonial Beach osprey nest: It has been a rough couple of days at this nest. David was last seen the morning of 7/23. Betty seemed to be on her own to care for 32-day-old Cobey. There was not any fish brought to the nest on 7/24, and only one medium-sized fish on 7/25. We did not think that fishing was difficult because of the weather, so we were perplexed. Well…today was a better day, and we witnessed the return of David. Four fish were brought to the nest, two each from Betty and David. Poor Lil’ Cobey was so hungry. At one point, he even tried to pick up a fish and eat it, but of course he was not able to. Forecast for 7/27: Mostly sunny, low 80’s, light winds.
7/26 Fenwick Island osprey nest (Captain Mac’s fish House): This nest continues to do well. Johnny usually drops off a couple of fish each day. And…well then there’s Momma June…June has continued to bring in at least one massive striped bass (I think) every day, and they are usually alive and quite active. Watch out for those big flopping fish Lil’ Fen!
7/26 Patuxent River Park osprey nest: As mentioned yesterday… late in the afternoon on 7/25, we heard what we thought was an osprey in distress flapping its wings underneath the nest in the marsh. Obviously the bird was not able to fly. Many folks reached out for help to rescue the osprey. As high tide was approaching in the evening, the wing flapping was obviously in water. By late evening, we no longer heard any flapping. At 11 am this morning, we heard some men below the nest. Patuxent River Park later put out a statement that they had done a thorough search below the nest and did not find an osprey. You can read their entire lengthy statement in the description under the live video feed on Youtube. We believe the osprey may have been ‘Big’, the eldest fledgling from this nest. Yesterday afternoon, Big was knocked off the nest by an adult intruder. It could have been Big or Middle, but Middle has been back at the nest, and we have not seen Big since the attack. If Big was okay, we believe that we would surely have seen her back at the nest at some point. The other option is that it could have been the adult intruder that may have ended up in the marsh, after it went off the nest awkwardly after stealing a fish from Middle a little later that afternoon. Since a rescue was unable to be done in an urgent and timely manner, in all likelihood whatever injured osprey it was under the nest, was carried away with the tide.
Middle had a good day at the nest. Dad is supplying ample fish for the fledgling, and fortunately there were no intruder issues today.
We saw Little fledge and return to the nest on 7/18. Then the cam was offline for five days. We have not seen Little since the live stream resumed on 7/24. It’s too bad that we missed so much activity at the nest. There are some 70 osprey nests in the entire Patuxent River Park, and I believe at least 12 in the immediate Jug Bay area. I hope that Little has found a welcoming nearby osprey nest to care for him. We also have not seen Mom since the live stream resumed. She is most likely taking a well deserved break to restore herself to optimum health before heading south in a couple of weeks. At other osprey nests in the past, we’ve seen some of the Moms stop by the nest and even bring a fish before they depart. We may see Mom again.
Cumbria Wildlife Trust gives us the annual wrap up for the Foulshaw Moss Nest of White YW and Blue 35.
The naming contest for the Royal Cam chick has started. Please go and vote.
If you missed the July condor chat, here it is:
Hope and Beaumont have two beautiful feathered osplets.
Everything is good at Sandpoint.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Take care everyone. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their letters, posts, pictures, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, AM, CG, Geemeff, H, PB’, Saaksilvie 4 Finnish Osprey Foundation, Montana Osprey Cams, Cornell Bird Lab, Sea Eagle Cam, Yorkshire Dales Moorland Group, Eagle Club of Estonia, Golden Gate Audubon, Field Farm, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Cumbria Wildlife Trust, Lady Hawk, Ventana Wildlife Society, Sandpoint Osprey Cam, Newfoundland Power, Osoyoos, Fenwick Island, Patuxent River Park, and Colonial Beach.
We finally got the world’s oldest black stork! It’s hard to believe, but the bird is already 
years old, which means that it is the leader of the species, we are not aware of such an old, ringed black stork. 
The bird was tagged by Béla Kalocsa in Hercegszántó in 2003, while it was still a chick, and the plastic tag that can be read from afar has provided a lot of information about the stork since then. The number 5082 has already been read 11 times – once in Israel. 
The fact that it has been going back for so long is also the success of practical nature conservation. 
If it returns next year, we will give the bird a name, which is unusual in nature conservation. Let’s hope that we can do it and then we can not only refer to the iconic black stork as 5082! ️ ️ What difficulties do you have to face year after year? Why is it important to protect its habitat and breeding habitat? More information can be found on our website: 
Gábor Nagy 
Gábor Nagy and Ákos Monoki Nature Protection Guard Service
