Tuesday was a beautiful day in the Canadian prairies. Oh, you cannot know how grateful I am. We have been planning to take Anne to Bird’s Hill Park to hand-feed the Black-capped Chickadees. She has heard us talk about our walks there and how the wee songbirds land on your hands to take the Black oilseed. It is a pre-Thanksgiving ‘thank you’ to Anne. I could not survive without her help and support.
It was so warm that we had a wee picnic of sorts at Pineridge Hollow. Toby was so good, and I am certain that The Girls were happy to have a wee break from their brother for the afternoon. It was just a perfect day. Walking the trails among the tall pine trees was renewing!
The little birds did not disappoint!
It was a wonderful surprise Tuesday evening to see that the Dark-eyed Juncos have returned from the north and have stopped over in the garden to fatten up for migration! There were at least two dozen of them pecking away at the seed on the deck. I hope to get some decent images of them for the next blog. They are so cute!
Several have asked about Brock. He is still here despite Toby. Toby seems to know when Brock is around. So Brock and I have developed a method of getting his food to him without Toby knowing. Brock comes to the door and lets me know he is waiting for food. Once I see him, he goes under the deck and waits. I take out the food, sometimes with Toby, and then as I close the door and secure Toby inside, I call ‘kitty kitty’. Brock will come out to eat within five minutes.
Migration count is underway in West Africa, posted by Mary Cheadle:
Dyfi have posted a wonderful blog, and I urge each of you to read it. Mrs G is the ‘UK Iris’ equivalent who bred at Glaslyn. Her last mate was the adorable Aran, who was usurped this year by Teifi. Perhaps Aran will return and take his nest with Elen in 2026, as the nest failed this year due to all the drama. We will wait. Aran will need to return early and work to win Elen’s heart. Elen might be smart to breed with Aran again because his chicks (along with Mrs G’s great DNA) are returning!
Blue 497 -talk about a handsome bird!!!!!!!!! Just look at him. The first Glaslyn male known to be breeding in Wales. Two chicks this year, but one possibly fell out of the nest at 5 weeks, and the other disappeared at 7 weeks, possibly predated by a goshawk.
The cameras at Captiva’sWindow to Wildlife Bald Eagle and Osprey nests are going live today.
Ashley Wilson continues to find Newmann and Elaine at the scrape at Spirit Bluff. They will migrate soon.
The fledgling at the Selati Black Eagle nest has brought its first caught prey to the nest!
Meanwhile, like other Bald Eagles, Jackie and Shadow are returning to their nest to kick start the 2025-26 season at Big Bear Lake.
At the West End, the juvenile Bob returned to spend some time with Haku. https://youtu.be/Hlct5mJkthw? SK Hideaways caught it!
Gorgeous Haku on Tor:
Beau and Gabby are ready for a very successful season at the NE Florida Bald Eagle nest.
The Majestics are working on their Denton Homes nest.
Andor with his blue wing tag at the Fraser Point nest on the Channel Islands. Cruz flew in, too.
The IWS is having its annual fall fundraiser. You could be a winner! At least one of my readers has named one of the eaglets at the West End nest (Treasure), and I was selected to name one of the other eaglets – Phoenix – at one of the other nests without a streaming cam. Many have won beautiful photographs and kit. We are eternally grateful to Dr Sharpe and his team for all the work they did to restore the Bald Eagle population to the islands after the DDT debacle.
There is much discussion over the female (or perhaps both) eagles at the John Bunker Sands Wetlands nest. Is this Mum? Or is it a new female? Is this even Dad??? Without definitive markings (the mark on the head could be an injury, prey blood, etc), it is impossible to know without Darvic Rings.
Checking on the Australian nests –
The 367 Collins Street adults are doing an incredible job feeding and taking care of their triplets in Melbourne.
Dad took over incubation so Mum could have his breakfast. She returned with a really full crop. Oh, hatch is coming so soon – seriously, I cannot wait to see a baby osprey. It seems like forever.
There have been at least nine different species of prey delivered to the kiddos at the 367 Collins Street falcon scrape in Melbourne since they hatched. Nothing short of adorable with their pink beaks and feet but now their eyes appear to be open (normally after five days).
ABC Science discusses the life of urban birds in Melbourne. Have a watch and a listen. They even mention the falcons! https://youtu.be/0EA3VNP2vJM?
Oh, how I love the Sydney sea eaglets. Lady and Dad are doing a magnificent job bringing in prey. Their plumage is stunning. About this time in their development, my stomach gets a little queasy. The mobbing of the eaglets as they fledge, causing them to bolt out of the forest, on occasion, or to be injured and hanging around the Discovery Centre, sends me running for the Gaviscon.
Calico urges you to help her and her feathered friends. Educate those you know who might be opting to get their lawns ‘greener’. The toxins kill the ‘food chain’.
‘PB’ asked me when I plan to publish the results of this year’s Osprey data. I hope to have finished entering my data by the end of October. Heidi is finished! I have the following to enter: 35 nests in Nova Scotia, 18 nests in Italy, and 15 failed nests from Maryland. There are, of course, hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands, of failed nests in Virginia and the surrounding area that will not be in the forms, sadly. We do not have enough information other than that there were no Menhaden for the adults, and the nests failed, resulting in no eggs, eggs being abandoned, or chicks starving to death on the nest.
The report from William & Mary University is below and paints the stark picture that Heidi and I have seen and predicted for a couple of years. I am embarrassed that this is a Canadian Company that is killing the entire ecosystem. It makes me so angry.
If the waters of New Zealand are warming up faster than we can blink, when will the impact hit the various seabird colonies? This article in The Guardian discusses the warming seas.
There is other good news – not just for us but for the birds. I am forever an optimist that we can change the way we live and, in turn, create better spaces for wildlife, including our feathered friends. For the first time, considering the international scene, renewable energy is powering homes and industries instead of fossil fuels. PRC is leading this change. China is rapidly expanding its solar and wind energy capacity, surpassing the total of the rest of the world combined. India has turned to renewables and is lessening their need for coal. Solar power is gaining momentum in Pakistan and various African countries, including Nigeria, Algeria, and Zambia. In fact, solar power provides more than 80% of the new energy.
It’s migration season. Some tips on when to help a bird from Wild Birds Unlimited.
Thank you so much for being with us today! Please take care of yourself. We will see you next Monday if not before! Looking for a hatch at Port Lincoln. Wonder when it will come?
Thank you to the individuals and owners of streaming cams and individuals posting for various FB groups listed in Bold. You keep us informed. A particular shout-out to SK Hideaways for their videos. The Guardian and Bush Heritage Australia continue to publish great articles on wildlife and the environment. We are grateful.
We are one week away from the autumn solstice. It is a beautiful Saturday on the Canadian prairies. It is 24 C. The sky is a hazy light blue with the sun beating down on the garden. The cranberry bushes are turning flame red, the leaves have been turning for some time, and early in the morning, sitting on the deck with Toby and a coffee, we can hear the geese far above us honking.
Time passes too quickly. Not two blinks ago, the children were getting out of school for the summer holidays, and now they are back. We are even having our annual street party tomorrow. It felt as if the last one was just months ago. Do you ever feel this way? Like time is melting between your fingers? Still, it will feel like aeons until Gabby and Beau have their first egg. Time will drag til the ospreys return, and then it will fly again!
I am happy to report – thank you to all the good energy you sent – that Baby Hope is completely healed and new fur is growing over her injury! I cannot tell you what a relief this is. We worried that she would continue to scratch at the injury so that it wouldn’t heal. Toby is also fine. He is a little ‘stiff’ going down the stairs but he is back to wrestling some with Hugo Yugo. They continue to sleep together in the big dog bed. It is so sweet. Missey and Calico are well, too. I cannot ask for more.
So what is happening in Bird World? For the most part, the ospreys are gone. Tiger Mozone reminds us it is approximately 178 days til they return in the UK. What will we do without them? — Watch Port Lincoln! And the Bald Eagles, right?
We will start with two video offerings by SK Hideaways to get us excited! None other than Monty and Hartley and, of course, our favourite Big Bear Valley Eagles – Jackie and Shadow.
San Jose City Hall Falcons Hartley & Monty (2025 Sep 14)
Monty arrived to tidy up the nest prior to Hartley’s arrival. Their meeting was a veritable beaky kiss fest. Guess three successful broods is the key to a successful relationship.
Heidi reports that the male is still at Field Farm feeding his two juveniles who fledged mid-August.
It has gone quiet at Rutland Manton’s Bay Osprey platform.
Making the departure of Blue 33 and Maya complete, Colin, the Cormorant has moved into the nest!
As I shift the blog to Mondays until the first hatch at Port Lincoln, I hope to fill you in on some of the books that Calico and I have been reading. Yes, it has been more than two years, and we are still having story time – four cats and a dog! Here are our first offerings. Some will make great holiday gifts.
The Naturalist’s Notebook for Tracking Changes in The Natural World around You by Nathaniel T Wheelwright and Bernd Heinrich (2017).
It is a beautifully illustrated book with gilt edges and just the right size to hold and read comfortably. The authors discuss their ancestors and how they learned to observe the changes in the natural world, day by day and month by month. In the back is a five-year calendar divided by the seasons, reminding us to be present in our lives. I am particularly fond of the extensive calendar, which allows me to easily compare the arrival of the Starlings, the fledge of the Blue Jay babies, and the first honks of the geese flying overhead to their winter homes. It would make a lovely gift for someone just beginning to learn about the world around them, or for someone like me who wants to keep track of what is happening in my garden. $24.95 CDN.
The Company of Owls by Polly Atkin.
This is a review on Goodreads – and it is spot on! Atkin, like Wheelwright and Heinrich in The Naturalist’s Notebook for Tracking Changes in the Natural World around You, observes owls that live near her. She doesn’t travel far and wide, and like so many, she is not a professionally trained expert in the behaviour of owls. She is a person, just like all of us, who loves animals and birds and is a keen observer of their lives. That review reads: “Polly Atkin does not profess to be an expert on owls or anything else. This refreshing book brings the love of birds, especially owls, right from her heart to yours. It also brings the sights, sounds, and weather (oh, the weather!) of England’s Lake District right into your sitting room.
In The Company of Owls, we are treated to the author’s observations of the owls that choose to live near her. This nips off to other places she’s lived and visited, which adds richness to her descriptions, but it is her ‘home’ birds, and particularly one year in their lives, that is the primary focus.
The author has wonderful descriptive powers, and it is no surprise to glean her interest in poetry from her tale. Her description of the bog habitat where she went looking for short-eared owls is superb, although given the daily walks that provide the basis for her writing about her local owl family as they grow, it is amazing that there is no hint of repetitiveness.
Atkins supports her story with solid research, comparing owl numbers now with the records since Victorian times. These details tend to slip in as anecdotes, and more narrative quotes combine to give a really good picture of how owls have fared over the last century or so.
It’s a very personal record, and she isn’t afraid to reveal her own mistakes, which brought me back after a slight dip in attention in the middle of the book. On the whole, I think this is a really good book for the cosy bird lover, and people who like to know all the birds on their patch, rather than the twitching variety. I’m a patcher, of course.”
Both of these books take a very personal look at the natural world that is around them. They are inspirational to each of us to look just outside our back door – we don’t have to travel the world checking off lists – great things are happening beside us – now.
The power couples of Florida’s Bald Eagle streaming cams are returning to their nests and restoring them for the new season.
M15 and F23 have been home at SW Florida working on their nest.
Beau was absolutely delighted when Gabby arrived home to their nest in NE Florida early.
Ron and Rose are at the WRDC nest near Miami.
Now what is going on with Connie and Clive at Captiva?
In California, Andor and Cruz are at Fraser Point.
‘A’ is keeping a close eye on the Royal Cam chick for us as well as the others in Australia.
“Dad came in a couple of hours ago and fed his big girl breakfast. She was very excited to see him, and watched him closely as he took off after the feeding. It is hard to think this may be the last time they see each other. We (the viewers) hope not because Miss SS Trig still has what the viewers are calling a belly mohawk, with quite a bit of tummy fluff we would like to see gone before she leaves. Her feather development when compared with dad’s this morning was obviously still a week or so away from being ready, so we do hope she doesn’t get overexcited (or caught in a storm Lillibet style). Miss SS Trig is 229 days old today (Lillibet fledged at 219 days, the second youngest ever, the youngest being 218 days old a few years ago). And that number I was trying to read the other day wasn’t 555 at all – her number is YE55 (so the E looked like a five and the Y was further around her leg and not readily visible). This may become important later on, as she will lose the GPS device with her first moult, I presume. I did read something about this being a better GPS device but can’t remember what it was.”
Wow. Doesn’t SE35’s feather development over the last few days astonishing? So much more advanced than SE36, who is still a fluffball with few discernible black lines along its wings. This afternoon, the pair have been left alone on the nest in the dappled sunshine, working as hard as they can at converting fish into eaglet feathers. The effort is obvious, as they are flat out like a lizard drinking (sorry – old Australian saying). SE36 has a huge crop so has obviously eaten well today. SE35 is never hungry so there’s no need to update you there! Oh they are exquisite at this age, are they not? Every bit as gorgeous as they were last week and probably just as beautiful as they will be next week when their plumage will be completely different to what we see today. (In other words, they are absolutely lovely every single day of their growth, from the moment they hatch to the day they fledge, and even then, their plumage has many stages to go through before (hopefully) they finish up looking like Lady and Dad.
I did mention to you that the juvenile red wattlebird in my garden has breast plumage that reminds me of the young falcons but from doing a bit of reading, I think those vertical striations (in either greys or caramels with cream) must be common to many (perhaps most) young birds – the red-tailed hawks have a similar pattern. Obviously, it is an excellent camouflage because it is very similar to the way objects appear when struck by the rays of the sun glinting through leaves.
But I digress. I came here to Olympic Park to say that the littles are doing fabulously well, as usual. Lady is such a devoted mum, and Dad, despite or perhaps because of his advancing years, is an incredibly reliable provider, even in difficult conditions. I have to believe that is the result of his experience – he must know exactly where he can fish when the winds are coming from a particular direction or when there is prolonged rain or whatever the prevailing conditions are. These are the advantages of old age I suppose. And Lady is no slouch herself – she often brings in a late afternoon fish when she has the chance to stretch her wings. It’s easy to forget how old these two actually are. Their fertility appears stable – two fertile eggs per year.”
Incubation continues at Port Lincoln Osprey barge.
It has been a wonderful year at the Osprey House Environment Centre. If you didn’t follow the nest, the fledgling from 2024, helped the parents to care for the little ones in 2025. It turned out marvellous. The babies thrived and now the first one has fledged.
Incubation is still going well for the falcons in the CBD of Melbourne at 367 Collins Street.
Little Gimbir is winning hearts and minds as he has proven to be an exceptional hunter and provider for Diamond at the Charles Sturt Falcon scrape in Orange.
The Wedge-tailed Eagle is the largest in Australia. This is a short film, 18 minutes by Filming Wildlife, of this large raptor hunting! https://youtu.be/TEJ7gSYUOek?
Meldrs, the Golden Eagle fledgling of Spilve and Grislis, no longer comes to the nest in Latvia but is out following the adults, learning to hunt.
‘L’ from South Carolina sends me the most gorgeous images of a Cooper’s Hawk that visits their garden often, drinking at the bird bath. It is a reminder that we should all put out water for the birds that stay and those, so thirsty, that are passing through on migration. (The hawk is enjoying a Shrike lunch).
Emergence Magazine is launching its next volume, Seasons. I am attaching a link to a film, Crying Glacier by Lutz Stautner. The author says, “In the trickling, creaking, and gurgling heard through hydrophones and contact microphones, sound artist and composer Ludwig Berger listens for the voice of Switzerland’s dying Morteratsch Glacier. Directed by Lutz Stautner, this short film follows Ludwig on one of his many visits to the glacier, where he gathers its hidden sounds, the pop of centuries-old air bubbles and the groan of ice, inviting us into the intimacy of listening to more-than-human voices. One hundred years from now, we may only be able to hear the sounds of glaciers through recordings like these.”
Dedicated individuals continue to fight to end the industrial fishing of Menhaden if the osprey and other species are to survive in the Chesapeake Bay and region.
It’s migration. Please encourage everyone to turn off their lights!
One lucky little gosling.
Your smile for the week comes from Toby who is busy excavating peanuts in the flower pots where the squirrels have hidden them!
Very pleased with himself.
Toby had his operation on Tuesday. He can’t have a bath for another week and a half! He is so dirty and stinky!!!!!!!!!!
Thank you so much for being with us today. We hope that you had a lovely weekend and were able to get outside and enjoy lots of fresh air and bird song. Take care. We will be back with you again on Monday the 22 of September. Fall will have officially begun!
I want to thank our notable contributor, ‘SK Hideaways’ for their videos highlighting the nests we are following, the owners of the streaming cams listed in bold, the individuals who take the time to create videos and the authors of posts such as Jeff Kear at UK Osprey Information, and all others, often too many to name but whom I have tried to cite in bold. I am very grateful to you and to the newspapers and journals that still cover environmental issues as they relate to our precious feathered friends. My blog would not be what it is without your input into the world of birding.
Perhaps one final update from Seattle – 25B (as I have come to call the last-to-fledge) is still mostly hanging around the nest and as of yesterday, dad is still delivering fish (pictured). I have not seen 25A in over a week – perhaps he/she is in the area but fishing on their own already, maybe headed out to points south? I hope that B will start fishing on its own soon, too. 25A – one of the last times I saw it – was practicing on some land mammals (pictured) in a very cat like way, including losing interest once the mouse stopped moving. I also trust that dad knows what he’s doing – and isn’t waiting too long to head south. What a summer it’s been with these birds! Can’t wait to see them again next spring. https://www.flickr.com/gp/193514804@N08/xqa8vrBiT4
Teifi has been seen at the Glaslyn osprey nest and area on Monday. KL5 is still at Loch Garten. Female 1H1 from Poole Harbour nest 2 was seen catching fish on Sunday late.
Despite a couple of torrential downpours, the weekend was not ‘half bad’. We love fall and the energising winds that it brings. Summer clothes are being packed, with sweaters being made ready. Scarves, toques, gloves, and winter coats are at the ready. I really hope we do not need them for several more months!
As I write this, it’s a beautiful Friday evening, quintessentially fall, with a gentle breeze and golden light flooding the backyard. The birds have been eating and eating since early morning. Anne even had to put out more food mid-afternoon. So, today, they have had 9 gallons of seed. It is just after 1820, and almost all of it is gone. Even the Crows are coming in for nuts.
Saturday morning, the sky was out and there was a clear breeze. We had lots of migrating birds in the garden, heard by Merlin but mostly unseen. They included our usual Blue Jay family, the Crows, the House Sparrows along with American Goldfinch, Grey Catbirds, the Hairy Woodpecker, and House Finches! Merlin recorded a GHO, but I didn’t see it, so was it wrong or loud at a distance? We do have one that lives in the area. The squirrels were in abundance, and Toby enjoyed the idea of trying to catch a butterfly that was high above his head. It is a ‘crisp’ day, and in the oven is the last of the rhubarb in a crisp to be enjoyed with ice cream shortly. I love autumn. The cooler, clear air is refreshing from the heat and humidity, as well as the wildfires of summer. It gets down to 6 °C at night. Toby and I sleep under my grandmother’s quilts that she made as a young woman. The logs are stacked next to the log burner for use on a cool evening.
Sunday brings us the Blood Full Moon. Our day was up and down, no doubt thanks to the influence that it flexes.
‘PB‘ sent us the latest news on the necroscopy completed on MO, the Dunrovin first hatch that died recently.
Soar high, little one!
I haven’t switched from osprey season to eagle season in my mind so I more than likely will miss many arrivals. One of those was Rose at the WRDC nest. She and Ron are busy preparing the nest. It looked like they were putting up the rails on Friday.
The cam operator at the NE Florida Nest of Gabby and Beau gave us some fabulous close ups of our couple on Friday.
Eagles are coming to the Kisatchie National Forest nest in Louisiana! Hello Alex. Thanks Tonya Irvin.
Jackie and Shadow need your help to stop a development in Big Bear. Please read.
Haku and MV working on the West End nest in the Channel Islands.
At the Dyfi Osprey Platform in the UK, Brianne is now 112 days old and she is still home. Idris continues to deliver fish!
Idris and Brianne were still at Dyfi on Saturday.
Dyfi dates: Dyfi Osprey Project: Idris and Brianne both seen today 06/09. Telyn last seen 23/08. Cwellyn and Honddu last seen 21/08.
At Glaslyn, Aran was seen on Friday. It seems that no one was seen on Saturday. The winds might have been perfect for a departure.
It looks as if Harry and Forest have started their migration leaving the Alyth SS osprey platform. Marlow flew earlier and poor little Oakley soared high before all of them.
Kids are still at home in Finland’s Ilomantsi osprey nest.
At Rutland Water’s Manton Bay osprey platform, both Maya and 8 began their migration on Friday, 5 September. This leaves Blue 33 to eat some fish to help him fatten up for his journey. He was still at Rutland on Sunday eating a fish in a tree.
The winds must have been perfect. Harry and Forest appear to have left the Alyth SS Osprey platform in the UK on the same day as Maya and 8 – 5 September.
9K5 is still at the Usk Valley nest in Wales along with Dad. Seen on camera Friday evening. No action on the nest on Saturday and things were really quiet on Sunday.
Sad news, but hopeful for a recovery for these ospreys!
Look at the migration map that Sunnie Day posted — get outside, yes, that is right. Go out and see them live!
Tiger Mozone recommends that everyone watch the 2004 film “Living the Dream” on YouTube. It is about the Loch Garten ospreys. Not giving anything else away. https://youtu.be/3JFZvHqM8po?
T3 is still around the vicinity of the nest in Trempeauleau, Wisconsin. Locals continue to take beautiful images of her sitting atop light poles, in trees, etc. Check out their FB page!
Heidi is reporting that Dad is still bringing fish to the two juveniles at Field Farm!
C20 and Charlie remain at the Charlo Montana nest on Saturday – Charlie came with a fish, and C20 has it at Roger’s Place. C19 was last seen on 1 September and assumed to have begun its journey. C20 was last seen on Saturday as was Charlie. Have they departed? The clean up crew is on the nest.
After SE36 joined in Lady and Dad’s duet, the two eaglets had some time to themselves. They enjoyed a robust game of tug-of-scrap, worked on coordinating their balance in the face of giant clown feet, cuddled, and stretched their wings and talons. It was a serious cuteness overload morning.
See video description on YouTube to jump to these highlights, if you want:
Second year Gimbir (2024 hatch) and Diamond successfully mated twice. If completely successful, Diamond will lay eggs in the next few days.
Courtesy FalconCam Project, Charles Sturt University N
Gimbir Cornered on Cilla Stones ~ Makes Great Escape ~ Brings Prey to Empty Nest (2025 Sep 8)
Diamond and Gimbir continue their courtship at full speed. During the day’s second pair-bonding, Gimbir got cornered on the Cilla Stones. When he got an opening, he exited the nest at full speed. Later, he brought prey, but Diamond was out. He waited a good long time before departing with the gift. Maybe he’ll try to gift it again later.
Courtesy FalconCam Project, Charles Sturt University
Gimbir is ‘very cute’ and he is beginning to take good care of Diamond.
FalconCam Project, Orange NSW Gimbir Brings Diamond First Food Gift ~ It Wasn’t Starling (5 Sept 2025)
An important next step in Gimbir’s courtship of Diamond ~ a food gift. She happily accepted the offering.
Courtesy FalconCam Project, Charles Sturt University
Jenny Powell caught Iris at home at the Hellgate Canyon, Missoula on Saturday.
Iris came to her nest with a stick for the rails shortly after 7pm on Sunday! Hello, Iris. So good to see you.
Some falconry history from The Archives of Falconry:
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Sunday 7th September 2025 One little songbird and a lot of rain, with a goodly helping of wind too, was today’s action. However, there’s plenty of interesting content on the rest of Woodland Trust’s website, once you can tear yourself away from the Osprey FAQs and behind the scenes info,
and it’s always worth a trawl around. On this day in 2017 Louis & Aila’s very first chick Lachlan JH4 was still around, and Louis & Dorcha’s fourth chick Sarafina LW6 likewise in 2022 – both were still coming to the nest and Louis was still bringing them fish, links in the blast from the past section. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 20.44.58 (
05.53.18); Nest Two 20.42.04 (
06.02.19) Today’s videos: none
Bonus read – the vital role of managing the Woodland Trust’s estate for wildlife conservation:
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Saturday 6th September 2025 A visit by a Tawny Owl to Nest One and a Robin visiting Nest Two was the extent of the action today but in previous years Louis and some of his female chicks were still around, links in the blast from the past section. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 20.56.10 (
05.50.12); Nest Two 20.47.50 (05.57.58) Today’s videos:
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Friday 5th September 2025 Breac’s sighting in Spain got an article in West Coast Today (
https://walkingwithdaddy.com/osprey/?ht-comment-id=27886985) and the usual handful of songbirds visited, otherwise no action on the nests today. But there’s plenty of action to look back on, all contained in Woodland Trust’s 2025 Osprey cam clips playlist:
They are calling it a dry autumn in the UK. Something similar is happening in Manitoba despite the rain we have. It is still drier than normal in our province.
While we openly back protection for nature, things are not going as smoothly as they should – up in the NE of the US and other parts of the USA and now in Asia.
If the bays, the oceans, and the seas are drained, there is no food for the seabirds, like the Albatross, that depend on these fish to survive. Please work to protect the water ways.
The fledgling at the Black Eagle nest at Sellati flapped its wings and then hit the rock face before sliding off. Did it fly?
Mum arrives and the eaglet clamours to get back on the nest. It is fine!
Fledge could happen any time!
From the Norway Osprey nest – thank you Anna-Liisa Heleniemi:
We have our second leg for Mum and Dad at Port Lincoln barge in South Australia.
Giliath stays close to Port Lincoln like dear Ervie did for years.
But where is dear Ervie and did he find a mate? Well, it seems he is staying around Port Lincoln and the barge, too. No word of a mate. Do we need PL to translocate some Scottish lasses?
Have you seen how an Osprey catches its fish lunch? Cornell Bird Labs has a great little film for you – it is amazing! https://youtu.be/doYuBVUUXZg?
They are the most amazing raptors.
American Bird Conservatory’s Bird of the Week: The Double-Crested Cormorant.
How can Puffins fly in the air and in the water? Want to find out? Cornell Bird Lab shows us: https://youtu.be/nz4kPuRjqOI?
Keeping an eye on the Hellgate Canyon nest of Iris. Iris had a fish early morning Sunday. Lucille Powell caught Iris for us:
9/7/25-08:02,08:13am MT- Owl Pole Cam- I am thinking this is Iris. She likes to perch on that branch of her favorite tree. If so,She had a lively fish that she enjoyed.. Good morning.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please enjoy your week! We will be back with you on Friday.
I want to thank our notable contributors, ‘Geemeff, PB, SK Hideaways, ‘, the owners of the streaming cams listed in bold, the individuals who take the time to create videos and the authors of posts such as Jeff Kear at UK Osprey Information, and all others, often too many to name but who I have tried to cite in bold. I am very grateful to you and to the newspapers that still cover environmental issues as they relate to our precious feathered friends. My blog would not be what it is without your input into the world of birding.
Exciting Update: George Anderson has posted that a confirmed sighting of Breac (Loch Arkaig 2025) on the north coast of Spain on the 30th of August. He was last seen at Loch Arkaig on 15 August. This is incredible news.
The photographer sent the Woodland Trust the images to share including this one of the location – and they note that Breac was flying with another osprey.
I am so thankful for this BlueSky post. White YW is one of my all-time favourite UK male ospreys, and he is often overlooked by the nests at Rutland and in Wales. He deserves a gold medal. This year, he stayed and fed a juvenile that wasn’t even his at Foulshaw Moss in Cumbria!
August is now a page turned in the calendar. Children are getting excited about returning to school to see their friends, and, for us, it really marks the time that most of the ospreys have migrated to their winter homes, with the Bald Eagles thinking about returning to their nests. In fact, M15 and F23 have now returned to SW Florida! Fantastic.
The real active nests are those in Australia. There are chicks in the nest in the Olympic Park, eggs being laid on the ledge at Collins Street in Melbourne’s CBD, eggs expected at the Port Lincoln barge and the other nests around South Australia, and then there is Diamond’s scrape. It may be a failed year if dear Xavier does not return. In New Zealand, the Royal Cam chick is set to fly off on her grand adventure within the next fortnight.
At Port Lincoln, Mum and Dad are cosy, and I get the feeling that eggs are imminent.
The weather in the Canadian prairies is hot and humid. The paint stores are busy as new colours are appearing around my neighbourhood. We even managed to get our front door re-painted. It was ‘too’ blue for me, so now it is ‘nearly’ black, a colour called Railings. It works well. Now to do the window frames.
Brock looked pretty shabby not that long ago. His coat is improving, and the missing fur from his tail is growing back. Toby often scares him, but Brock appears to have learned to let me know that he is here for food, then step back, let me put it out, and come back up to the deck to eat. Tonight he had two huge bowls! Another cat has appeared. She is a lovely grey, almost tortoiseshell, with some nice apricot splotches. She has either had kittens or is going to have kittens – she will not let me get close enough to tell. Toby often sends her running.
Baby Hope. Gosh. I had no idea it was a long weekend. That is what happens when you are retired. It was impossible to get a vet! She continues to allow me to have a ‘guarded look’, but clearly, she would benefit from antibiotics. Anne and I are going to attempt to trick her into a carrier and get her to the clinic on Tuesday. She is eating well and had jumped up to the ledge of the piano window in the living room, where she was last seen washing herself. I am grateful for your good wishes for this darling girl and to ‘MP’ for their expert guidance on what she might benefit from, including a long-term antibiotic injection. — Well, I haven’t slept much because of the injury, which is on her chin, where she can’t wash easily, looked bad on Saturday, and, as a consequence, I didn’t sleep. Come Sunday morning, and I got a great look, and things are very much improved. I will have to trap her, but ‘MP’ has given me some great advice about getting medicine to calm her to help that along if it is needed – a tiny bit of Gabapentin. How kind. At any rate, she seems to be on the mend. Fingers and toes crossed.
The Troublemakers:
Bird World news is going to become ‘thin’ as we wait. I hope to fill some of the void with book news and articles for you to read over the winter in the coming months as we wait for baby eagles to hatch in North America.
Our Canadian osprey fledglings are very smart! One or the other or both from the Russell Lake osprey platform in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, is catching their own fish! Thanks, Connie and Don Dennis.
SK Hideaways new videos!
Flirty Haku Gets Frisky with MV on Night Perch🌠
West End Eagles🦅 Catalina Island, CA (2025 Aug 29)
The budding romance between Haku and MV is fascinating to watch. Here, Haku is in a particular frisky mood when she arrives on the night perch.
Courtesy Institute for Wildlife Studies, explore.org
Dad Juggles Growing Chicks🤹♂️ SE36 Gets Wise for Bites!
Sydney White-Bellied Sea Eagles Lady & Dad (2025 Aug 30)
At 2 weeks old, SE35 and SE36 are getting too big for Dad to brood, but he does his best. SE36 is finding clever ways to get plenty to eat when Lady brings a whopper for breakfast.
Diamond has a Young Suitor ~ He’s Making Himself at Home (1 September 2025)
Diamond’s long-time mate, Xavier has been missing for 5 days. In that short time, a young male falcon (tiercel) has appeared and seems to be courting Diamond. The tiercel visited the nest and took a good look around. Diamond met him there for what appeared to be a short bonding session. We will have to watch and wait to see how the story unfolds.
Courtesy FalconCam Project, Charles Sturt University NSW
Sacha Dench and Conservation Without Borders have uploaded the entire 22-episode series of The Flight of the Osprey to YouTube. There is some really great information and discussion in these. Here is your link:
The Queen of the North American ospreys, Iris, is still at her nest at Hellgate Canyon in Missoula, Montana. She arrived on Friday in need of a fish! Was she looking for the New Male to chase her down? He has been very good at providing meals and helping renovate the nest.
Hard not to check on Iris all day long. She is still home and as beautiful in that golden light as ever.
Iris is still home in Missoula on Monday.
Charlie continues to deliver nice fish to C19 and C20 at Charlo Montana. What an amazing place for ospreys. It is a gorgeous landscape.
At least one fledgling is still in Idaho at the Coeur d’Alene South Osprey platform.
Teifi is still at Glaslyn. Here he is on the old Oak snag. Elen has not been seen since Thursday, 28 August. Teifi was also seen on Monday and so was Aran so both of the males are staying around Aran’s ‘old nest’? Or will Aran return early and try a takeover in 2026??
At Rutland Water, both Blue 33 and Maya and their 110-day-old fledgling 3R8 are still home.
Birds of Poole Harbour: 1H1 from Nest 2 was seen fishing at the Christchurch Harbour on Monday.
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Sunday 31st August 2025 Not much to say – a handful of songbirds and a Great Spotted Woodpecker paid a visit, and amidst concerns about the invasive spruce bark beetle, currently trending in the news, Woodland Trust’s 2025 update to their 2021 State of the UK’s Woods and Trees report is available, link in the bonus section. Within the report there are links for each of the four home nations, it’s a very interesting read. George will post the official season summary on this page when it’s ready, and I’m working on my highlights video and hope to be able to post it here before the comments close. In any event, I’ll shut down the increasingly redundant daily summary in the next few days. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.07.46 (05.41.14); Nest Two 21.01.03 (05.48.18) Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/eVzQjLMvX0E N2 Songbirds and a Great Spotted Woodpecker visit 09.57.55 Bonus read – Woodland Trust’s 2025 updated
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Friday 29th August 2025
Today started with Nest One receiving a midnight visit from a Tawny Owl, and both nests had daylight visits from songbirds but the most interesting event was Steve Quinn publishing his end of season fish stats. Louis delivered four hundred and thirty seven fish, and Dorcha doubled her previous score with two deliveries, ending the season with four hundred and thirty nine fish brought to the nest. Steve says: “As a community we have now counted/reported 2222 fish over the 5 seasons”.
Every single one of those fish was observed and recorded and scrutinised to make sure it wasn’t an earlier fish returning, and everyone who played a part should congratulate themselves for a remarkable feat of citizen science, with huge thanks to Steve for his very thorough analysis. Link to his report:
Your smile for today: African Crowned Eagles incubate Egyptian goose eggs and they hatch! Liznm captures it on video! https://youtu.be/Jh9X9yV7rpg?
On Monday, one of the goslings jumped to the ground safely and was confirmed to be alive and well by the environmental team at the Zimbali Estate. Liznm has it on video: https://youtu.be/3Iv4wfRnxCw?
The August newsletter from Birdlife International:
On the Cornell Campus, Big Red and Arthur have been seen. O2 appears to be off exploring the area. It is that time when the fledglings leave their parent’s territory to set off on their own. We wish the three of them a good fall and winter and will watch for Arthur and Big Red to bring sticks in for next year.
In Orange, a new male has shown up at the scrape.
Then Holly Parsons noticed a similarity with one of our favourite fledglings from this nest – Izzi. Poor Cilla. She put him back in the scrape twice that season. Izzi was such a character – do you remember his cicada popsicles?
Thanks, Karen Leng.
Richmond and Rosie are still home with 112 day old fledgling Beacon keeping them company at the Golden Gate Audubon osprey ‘light’ nest in San Francisco Bay. https://youtu.be/fcqdZFri2DU?
Our Melbourne commentator ‘A’ writes: “This is such devastating news, and at this stage, there seems little possibility of his return. A hunting accident is being considered the most likely but perhaps we’ll never know for certain. It is a tragedy, but Diamond is not wasting any time in moving on. There is a male juvenile falcon (such a cutie) who has been bonding with her and who seems very at home in the scrape and on the ledge. He has been eating in a leisurely manner on the tower as well, and Diamond has been engaging in bonding behaviour with him (see 06:08:10 this morning and again at 13:02:03 – on both occasions he was in the scrape, e-chupping, and Diamond came in for bonding). So it seems as though she may be getting to like him. His plumage is still not adult, though, so he is still too young I think to be a mate for Diamond. Time will tell.
Meanwhile, I have been so sad about the loss of Xavier, who has been a wonderful mate for Diamond. We all adore Xavier. I really didn’t know how to cope with his disappearance initially. I still don’t. He was the sweetest falcon, and we’ll never forget the way he stepped in and stepped up when Diamond was left to raise eyases alone. He is a huge loss to all of us who watched him and loved him.
There has been talk of a second male hanging around Diamond, so perhaps she has two suitors. Most of the chat seems to think there will not be fertilised eggs this year, but mating has been seen, so Diamond for one is not giving up just yet. To be honest, there is a surreal aspect to even typing this. I tried to do it yesterday but I just couldn’t. I’ve kept on thinking if I don’t acknowledge it, maybe it won’t be true. I know. It’s pathetic. But I keep wondering what it is that is so lethal in that seemingly idyllic environment for falcons. Why do none of the fledglings seem to survive? What kills the males at this scrape? Is there that much competition in this area? “
Want to know more about hummingbirds – and who wouldn’t? Great programme with David Attenborough – so much nicer than the news (which we don’t watch anymore). Forty-five minutes of great images and information: https://youtu.be/Lbmy4TLkVFU?
If you would like to attract hummingbirds to your garden, have a watch! The Nature of Things shows you how to create the perfect environment. https://youtu.be/g02Ss3xgABc?
We are right in the middle of migration season. Many have written to tell me that the Canada Geese have arrived in some southern locations. This is about European geese. If you haven’t seen it, take the time to do so. The images are magnificent and, as always, there are many things to learn. This could be, along with some of the others mentioned above, a good alternative to the news cycle. We found that our minds are no longer spinning since we literally stopped watching or listening to the news! Yes, we buried our heads in the sand, and it is terrific. https://youtu.be/Rxo-IbAF7kQ? Thank you Animal Documentaries.
If you missed the August edition of Condor Chat with the Ventana Wildlife Society, here it is archived on YouTube: https://youtu.be/SrasdEJfexw? This is the 5th anniversary of the Dolan Fire and the rescue of Condor 1031, Iniko.
There is a discussion about Bob Cats killing young condors. The Condor Chat is excellent – you can learn and learn and never know enough about these amazing carrion eaters.
Calico wants everyone to try and aim for zero waste!
Thank you so much for being with us. Please take care. We look forward to having you back with us on Friday.
I want to thank our notable contributors, ‘A, Geemeff, PB, and SK Hideaways’, the owners of the streaming cams listed in bold, the individuals who take the time to create videos and post them on YouTube, and the administrators of FB groups such as Jeff Kear at UK Osprey Information, and all others, often too many to name. I am very grateful to you and to the newspapers that still cover environmental issues as they relate to our precious feathered friends. My blog would not be what it is without your input into the world of birding.I also want to thank ‘MP’ for the generous sharing of their knowledge of veterinary medicine with me so that I could help Baby Hope.
It feels like summer again, but the tips of the trees tell me that it is decidedly pre-fall on the Canadian prairies. Migration is definitely underway. The ducks had left the pond at Assiniboine Park, while the Canada Geese are fattening up on the golf courses around the City. We continue to enjoy the fantastic weather and spend most of our time outside. The Girls (for the most part) and Toby are doing well, and I can tell you that a new sense of calm has come over the house. My husband is doing very well.
The only hiccup in the ointment is Baby Hope. Nine days ago, something happened. We do not know precisely what happened, so we cannot place blame. Baby Hope is injured. She had been play wrestling with her Mum, Calico. But then there is Toby. It appears that ‘something’ got caught in her fur and tore a slit through the fur about 7 cm or 3 inches long. Two days ago, it had healed, but today it is oozing again. The underlying issue is that Hope is partially feral. She will allow us to sit next to her and give the occasional strokes. I cannot put antibiotic ointment on the wound, but she allowed me to see it this evening. Tomorrow, I will see if any of the mobile vets have experience with ‘these cats’. Wish us luck. Hope never complains. I might never have known she was hurt if I hadn’t paid particular interest in her face that morning. She is eating and has never stopped. She loves flowers and always enjoys the ones I bring from the farm, which are pet-friendly. Send her some love.
And if Hope’s injury was not enough, then there is missing Xavier. My heart has sunk to great depths. It has been a wretched year. You might hear me saying that a lot.
At Orange, Australia, Peregrine Falcon Scrape, there is hope tinged with a hint of potential sadness. My heart sank when I saw this. I adore Xavier. His name means ‘Saviour’, and that is what he did – he saved Diamond’s clutch when her previous mate did not return after eggs were laid. Xavier took care of Diamond and the chicks, and she then bonded with this wonderful lad. Was that nine or ten years ago? This was posted on Thursday, and I know that you will be as concerned as I am for Xavier. Please send your good wishes to him!
In the wild, peregrine falcons typically live an average of four to five years, although they can live much longer, with some documented cases reaching 15 to 20 years or more. High mortality rates, particularly in their first year due to learning to fly and other factors, shorten the average lifespan, but survival improves for adults. The record for a banded peregrine falcon in North America is 19 years and 6 months. This fall, Diamond is at least 12 years old, and Xavier is at least 11 years old. Diamond arrived in Orange in 2015 and Xavier in 2016, and since peregrine falcons typically begin breeding at 2–3 years old, they would have been at least that age when they started their courtship at the Orange falcon scrape.
And then there was the missing MO from Dunrovin Ranch Osprey Nest, who was seen to have a very raspy voice. Sadly, she has been found dead. The other three have been returning to the nest. So sad. It has been a wretched year. Thank you ‘PB’.
‘A’ sends us the Ranger reports for the WBSE:
August 26: An early feed at 6am – both fed with no pecking, but SE35 had more. Then Lady settled again. Soon after another short feed. It was a sunny, warm morning. The nestlings were left uncovered in the morning for over six hours – parents often close by with duets and matings seen. Dad brought in a trevally (fish) after 12, and both ate more. Dad came in to the fishy remains later and fed them as well. Lady came with a really big fish after 3pm, and fed more. Seven good feeds today, and then last thing, Dad fed them a few extra mouthfuls. They were uncovered in the afternoon until Lady came in at last light. She was standing by them – will she cover them now?
August 27: Lady spent the main part of the night just covering the nestlings, rather than complete brooding. It was a milder night, and after an early morning duet, she fed them from the remaining tail end of the fish. Both ate, SE36 second. Later, SE35 was busy grooming its itchy down, with a very full crop. Dad came back with a bream just after 7am, grabbed by Lady and fed to the young. SE36 did very well. She then went to cover the chicks. After some time, Lady was up and eating some herself. She then fed them both well again – three feeds before 9am. Dad came in and ate some fish – the youngsters were full and not interested. Late in the afternoon, Dad bought in another two fish, and during the day there were a total of seven feeds. The day became cooler and Lady spent longer brooding than she did yesterday. At the end of the day, she was over the chicks, settled for the night.
August 28: Last night was colder and Lady slept over the chicks, only partly covering them as they get bigger. She left in the morning just after 6am. Dad brought leaves in early and later a big stick, dropped on the chicks and then moved by Lady. Both were bringing in more leaves – and the wind was becoming stronger. The chicks were huddled together in the nest bowl, uncovered all morning, though both eagles came in a few times – even the parents tossed by the wind. Of course the nest camera moving makes the wind seem stronger. Finally, Lady came to shelter the chicks at 1:14pm – covering them for some 90 minutes. Then she was up again, with the chicks cheeping for food. At 4pm, both parents were in but still no food. At 4:30pm, Lady settled on the youngsters again. Late in the afternoon, the wind eased a little – both parents were there, but still no prey. At dusk, Lady was settled over the hungry chicks, with a cooler night expected again.
‘A’ adds: “I did miss that crop on SE36. It’s a brave little eaglet. Such a cutie. When these two hatched, they were so similar in size it was very hard to tell them apart. Have a look at tiny little SE36 now. It’s half the size of its sibling. I can only hope it’s primarily a gender-based size discrepancy – otherwise, SE36 would have to be the smallest female I’ve seen on this nest. I wonder how many two-egg clutches have a female first hatch and a male second hatch and how many the other way around. Is it just my imagination or is a first male hatch with a second female hatch quite unusual? Perhaps we are very much aware of the large female first hatch dominating a smaller second male hatch because it leads to a lot of the bonking and siblicide problems we see on the nests, so it just seems that there are more of them. I would be very interested to know.
It is SO windy at WBSE – that nest is tossing around and there are lots of fresh leaves on the nest, shaken loose by the winds and brought by the parents. Today, there has been no food whatsoever brought to the nest, so the chicks have not eaten. It is 6.45pm and there won’t be anything brought in tonight. This is not good. I’m not sure why Dad has failed to provide – he is usually able to bring in something regardless of the weather, even managing to fish successfully in the rain. But perhaps the wind made today’s hunting impossible for him. So we can only hope tomorrow is more productive. It is very cold at nights and the chicks will be using a lot of calories keeping themselves warm now they no longer fit properly underneath Lady (she does have an excellent method of covering them though, her wings spread wide, so she is doing her best to keep them cosy).
I hate to imagine losing Lady or Dad. They are there on the Parramatta River all year round, and we love them dearly. But they are elderly – in their 20s, yes? And they are wild birds, living a difficult life. Two fledglings per year, none seemingly able to thrive in the wild, as far as we are aware. I wonder what happens to them once they do disappear from the area. I wish they would track the fledglings from this nest so we had some idea of their ultimate fate. It is so frustrating not to know.
But back to SE36. The daily ranger reports are the best way to tell what is going on – I find it fairly hard to watch at the moment, although both parents are making an effort to make sure SE36 is getting fed. I don’t need the stress, and I hate watching a younger smaller chick being intimidated and scared away from food. It is just more stress than I need right now. But this is the only nest at the moment, so I have little choice, though I am keeping something of a distance from the nest to keep from obsessing. That’s not good for my blood pressure or my mental health. And days like today, with both chicks hungry and no food for either, are too hard to watch.
At Taiaroa Head, the day draws nearer, and SSTrig chick continues to explore the headland and potential take-off points for her maiden voyage. Only a few weeks to go now – she’ll be gone in under a month. It’s so hard to think that after watching them for eight months, we are now going to have to wait several years before perhaps seeing them return to court and then to breed as adult birds. It never ceases to amaze me that they travel thousands of miles and return to within 50 metres of the nest where they hatched. It boggles the mind. And when they leave on that incredible voyage, they have never flown before, never fished before, never navigated before. It’s incredible. And yet these are the longest-living wild birds in the world, with Wisdom still breeding into her seventies. No wonder the albatross is the stuff seafaring legends are made of. No sailor would ever harm an albatross. “
SK Hideaways captures some of the rivalry between the SeaEaglets and news from other nests:
SE36 Bonks SE35🥊Chicks “Brood” Each Other🪆Lady & Dad’s Duets+Matings💞2025 Aug 26
Sydney White-Bellied Sea Eagles Lady & Dad
Lady and Dad started the day with a duet, followed by a peaceful feeding. SE36 worked on asserting itself with a couple pecks to SE35. The peck was returned each time, but the aggression was mild and brief. The finale brought some family time plus two more duets and two matings by Lady and Dad.
Courtesy Sea-EagleCAM@BirdLife Australia Discovery Centre, Sydney Olympic Park
🪽Mum & Dad Welcome Egg #2🥚🥚Dad Cheerleads Effort🎉(2025 Aug 26)
367 Collins St. Falcons
Juvenile Overnights in Roost Tree 🌲 Visits Nest & Does Brief Clean-Up🥢2025 Aug 28
Big Bear Valley, CA, home of Jack & Shadow
What a beautiful and heartwarming surprise! A beautiful juvenile bald eagle spent the night in Jackie and Shadow’s regular roost tree while they were elsewhere. The nest visit took our break away. We cannot know if the visitor is Sunny or Gizmo, but it was a welcome visit nonetheless.
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Thursday 28th August 2025 The usual – no activity on the nests today, but there’s plenty of interesting material to peruse from Woodland Trust, including history of the nests, sightings away from the nest, how to ID males and females, and fascinating facts from behind the scenes. There are clickable links on the Osprey cam page, and here are some of the direct links:
05.23.48); Nest Two 21.15.01 (05.33.41) Today’s videos: none Bonus watch – link to LizB’s YouTube channel for videos of Loch Arkaig, Nest Two in 2021, the Bunarkaig nest and more:
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Wednesday 27th August 2025
Today had the usual lack of action barring a few songbirds visiting, however we have plenty of interesting information from Steve and George to digest. Steve published stats with special reference to age of chicks at migration and the season duration of the adults, and George informed us of a new Nature Scot initiative called Nature30, with Loch Arkaig PIne Forest among the first four organisations, links here:
UK Juveniles have started making their way south to the West coast of Africa (or the Iberian Peninsula). The trio at the Foulshaw Moss Nest of White YW and Blue 35 left on the 13th and 14th of August. White YW remains in the area delivering fish to a fledgling from another nest!
Harry is still delivering fish to Forest at Alyth SS.
On Tuesday the 26th, there were four at Rutland including Mum, Maya!
Blue 3R7 is still at the Rutland Manton Bay nest along with Blue 33 on Thursday, the 28th. She is 110 days old today and is set to break a record for the longest fledgling to remain on the nest. Maya was there on Wednesday, but it appears she might have migrated. It is raining, and Blue 33 is delivering trout.
Brianne is still getting deliveries from Idris at the Dyfi Osprey Platform in Wales.
5R3 remains at Poole Harbour with fish deliveries coming in from Dad, Blue 022.
9K5 remains at the Usk Valley nest in Wales. Dad is busy! Mum has left for migration.
Loch of the Lowes sends their season summary. Will Blue NC0 return early and claim her nest? I am betting on it!
Glaslyn was a failed nest this year with Elen arriving and mating and bonding with Teifi while Aran arrived very late and eggs were destroyed. In the end, Teifi took over the nest. We hope that they both return safely and that Aran does as well and finds another mate and raises a family. Aran is an amazing Dad!
Looks deserted at Dylan and Seren’s nest at the Llyn Clywedog Reservoir in Wales.
Iris was still in Missoula on Wednesday the 27th of August. That nest that she has been working on with the new male will be ready for them in the spring of 2026.
C19 and C20 are still getting fish deliveries from Charlie at Charlo Montana.
In Nova Scotia, the Dads continue to deliver the fish. Nova and Russell, the fledglings of Oscar and Ethel at the Russell Lake Osprey Platform in Dartmouth are no exception!
The Eagles are returning to their nests for bonding before eggs being laid later in the year.
There is some question about the identity of the Bald Eagle that has been at the NE Florida nest of Beau and Gabby. Rain and hail on Thursday at the nest.
If you are a fan of TE3, she remains in the area of the nest at Trempeauleau, Wisconsin according to neighbours.
People continue to fight for the Menhaden! I wonder when the politicians of Virginia will wake up to the fact that having a thriving ecosystem – not a dead one – can only enhance tourism business and the joy and wealth of their State?
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. We look forward to having you with us on Monday!
I want to thank our notable contributors, ‘A, Geemeff, PB, and SK Hideaways’, the owners of the streaming cams listed in bold, the individuals who take the time to create videos ande post them on YouTube, and the administrators of FB groups such as Jeff Kear at UK Osprey Information, and all others, often too many to name. I am very grateful to you and to the newspapers that still cover environmental issues as they relate to our precious feathered friends and to the rehabilitation centres like Ojai Raptor that care enough to try hard to send their patients back into the wild. My blog would not be what it is without your input into the world of birding.
Happy Summer Solstice to Everyone! It occurs at 2242 EDT.
Today would be my grandmother’s birthday. She was such a special person to me. I miss her every single day, even though she died ever so long ago. I have said several times that my mother was a ‘Tiger Mum’. That was when I didn’t even know what that meant but she could put any contemporary Tiger Mum to shame. There were reasons for this. She had three university scholarships to study nursing. Her father was a very traditional German-Swiss individual. He didn’t believe in girls having an education and a profession. So he said ‘no’. That ‘no’ coloured her entire life. I was to do what she had not been able to do. There is no question that I would attend university. Her plan for me was to attend law school. No pressure, right? She worked and was extremely independent. I came along after she had been married eleven years. Lucky for me, my grandmother did not mind, in her old age, taking care of me. My grandmother’s gentleness has changed my life in ways I’m not even aware of: so happy birthday, Maude Bruesch, daughter of Simeon and Louisa from Jenins, Switzerland. Your love is the life in my blood.
Off to the birds….
It is Monday afternoon. The little one at Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is still alive to the shock of many. Mum and even Dad have tried to feed it. Everyone wonders what is wrong. Is there a problem with their eye sight they ask?
On the chat at Barnegat Light, the discussion starting at 1503 on Monday was all about the Canadian company, Omega, moving its ships up the NJ and Delaware coasts to try and find the last of the Menhaden. Meanwhile, the ospreys have abandoned their nests, giving up on raising families. Some didn’t even breed. While many hope that it will be better next year, it will not be until the stocks of Menhaden are significantly built up. Even then, there have been few chicks to replace the adults over the past two years. ———Of course, this is deplorable.
‘B’ sends us a link to an article about the Campanile and the sighting of a few falcons passing through, and what this might mean for the future. I still miss Annie.
Charlo Montana: Look at that trio—sweet little osplets.
Poole Harbour: CJ7 and Blue 022 have a nest full of osprey chicks! They will be ringed around the beginning of July.
Rutland Manton Bay: It is hard to find any real estate left on that nest for mum, Maya, and dad, Blue 33.
One of the many fish that Blue 33 brought in on Monday. The four will be ringed this week – Maya and Blue did it again! One Super Osprey Couple. Maya and Blue 33 have successfully fledged 26 chicks at Rutland Water. This includes the chicks they raised together since 2015. In addition, Maya had 11 successful juveniles with her previous partner, 5R, between 2010 and 2013. This will be their third set of four chicks to fledge!!!!!!!!
The chicks were ringed on Wednesday – 2 little boys and 2 little girls. The posting below was incorrect. The first two hatches were determined to be female, while the last two are believed to be male.
Dunrovin Ranch Osprey Nest: Third hatch on Wednesday, the 18th. There is another egg. Oh, please do not let it hatch! It is difficult to feed three, and it’s even harder to feed four. Let’s watch though. The nests on the interior of the US will be better than those on the NE coast of the US around the Chesapeake.
You are going to be hearing a lot about the destruction of the osprey population in the NE United States in the States that adjoin around the Chesapeake Bay areas. Heidi posted this today:
There are people working hard to bring attention to the alarming decline of ospreys in this region. I will post ways you can help them in the next couple of posts.
It is not just in the NE, however. I received the following note from ‘MP’ regarding some recent comments by wildlife photographer,Ron Dudley: “I know you are aware of this guy Ron Dudley. He took a trip to Montana to take photos. I was taken back by his comment about what he’s seeing. Here it is: “My first night here, it got down to 35 degrees, which was refreshing but I’m sure glad my furnace worked. Most birds I expected to see have been plentiful, except for the surprising scarcity of large raptors.”
Treasure the ones that live. Mourn those who die, but do something about it. Ospreys are the canaries in the cold mine, just as they were with DDT.
I have not yet caught up on the 2025 Memorial Wall, but I am posting it live today with the hope that you will send me names and/or images of our feathered friends that I am missing. I know there are many. I was behind and then as I was trying to catch up, more osplets began to die.
Heidi’s Osprey notes: Great Bay osprey nest: The first 10 days of little chick3’s life were great. He was right up front with his two older and much larger siblings at most meals. On 6/17 a switch was flipped, and chick1 became very aggressive. Since then, it has been quite difficult for chick3 to eat even a few bites of fish. Dad has delivered fish fairly regularly, but it simply has not been enough to satisfy the appetites of the two older, rapidly growing kids. On 6/19 Dad had delivered 8 fish by 16:30. Chick1 had been satisfied enough at a couple of the later meals that chick3 was able to eat. Way to go, Dad.
Thanks, Heidi!
Sometimes people wonder if they should build an osprey platform. Would the birds come? Well, look at this news from the Norfolk Wildlife Trust!
There is more exciting news coming out of the UK. CJ7 and Blue 022 were the first pair of Ospreys to breed in the south of England. Now there are two pair! One is a ‘child’ of Blue 33 and Maya from Rutland Water’s Manton Bay.
Angel and Frankie’s chicks at Loch Doon will be ringed on 25 June.
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Thursday 19th June 2025
A quiet day apart from some shenanigans with sticks and adults’ big feet accidentally trampling the chicks who grow by the hour and are starting to test their wings as their eyes turn amber. Steve Q published his weekly fish stats and Louis is on track compared to previous years, however the report states he’ll need to step up the deliveries as the chicks move towards the next stage of their development. His four fish today, including the season’s first mackerel, take his tally to two hundred and five. There wasn’t much activity on Nest One, Aurora 536 waited and was eventually rewarded with a single fish from Garry LV0, taking his tally to ninety four. The weather was settled but a little too warm for the chicks who were gular fluttering to cool down, they’ll need this new skill as the heat continues tomorrow with a forecasted temperature of 26°C, sunny with light winds, and an overnight low of 14°C.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 00.23.46 (02.26.32); Nest Two 23.27.49 (03.17.48)
Bonus read – London Assembly calls for protection for ancient trees following the illegal cutting down of the White Webbs Oak despite being listed on Woodland Trust’s ancient tree inventory:
The legendary queen of the mountain gave us an unforgettable moment on this day in 2020: Aila has a brain fade and decides to move an awkwardly shaped stick from one side of the nest to the other, apparently oblivious to the presence of her chicks. They duck this way and that trying to keep out of her destructive path, and when Aila finally leaves the nest, one of them delivers a parting shot with perfect emphasis.
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Wednesday 18th June 2025
A reasonably calm day today with the main drama being caused by parents Louis and Dorcha, who stood on the chicks, nearly speared them with pointy sticks, and threw fish and sticks over them, all in an effort to protect them and feed them! Fortunately they’re old enough and big enough at 25 and 24 days old respectively to withstand a little rough treatment, and Louis keeps them very well fed. His three fish today took him past the milestone of two hundred for the season, and his tally now stands at two hundred and one. On Nest One Aurora 536 had to wait a long time and did eventually get a fish from Garry LV0 but not until suppertime. That fish takes his tally to ninety three. The weather was reasonably settled, and the overnight forecast for tonight is light cloud and light winds and a low of 10°C continuing through tomorrow with a positively tropical high of 22°C. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One (03.12.17); Nest Two 23.20.59 (03.39.12) Today’s videos:
Many years from now, as the wind howls down the Glen, and the rain lashes the loch, young osplets will courie doon beneath their mother, and cheep softly to her as they fight off sleep: “Tell us again. Tell us about Legendary Louis and the Day of the Nine Fish!”
https://youtu.be/U-tu9Y00WH0 N2 The chicks attack each other, ignoring the sad remains of Chick3 2024Why not come and join the lively community at Woodland Trust’s Osprey forum, it’s friendly, free and everyone’s welcome:
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Tuesday 17th June 2025 Another routine day except for Louis chasing an intruder Osprey away from the nest, caught on camera as they flew across the view. Speculation is it might have been Aurora 536, zooming in didn’t help to establish an ID, and the threat didn’t last long. Nest Two is now a sea of yellow from the moss Dorcha has been bringing in and although there aren’t any chicks on Nest One, Garry did a little nest cupping anyway. He brought Aurora one fish taking his tally to ninety two, while Louis’ four fish take his to one hundred and ninety eight. The forecasted rain did materialise, but there was a fair amount of sunshine today too, and with luck tomorrow’s forecast of light rain and light winds with a low of 11°C and a high of 16°C will allow for some patches of sunshine too. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.56.59 (03.25.21); Nest Two 23.12.13 (03.55.07)
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Monday 16th June 2025
Despite today’s wet weather, Louis was in excellent fishing form, delivering four fish for his family on their sodden nest, including a colourful Arctic Charr. The wriggly chicks were kept as dry as possible by Dorcha although they’re getting too big to fit under her, and today being mumbrella meant holding her wings slightly out at an angle to keep them covered. With mum protecting them from the elements and dad keeping their crops stuffed full, things are looking good for the family. Over on Nest One, Garry LV0 brought one fish for Aurora 536 – she constantly calls for more but one fish daily seems to be sufficient to keep her looking in great condition, and there’s always the possibility she’s receiving the odd fish off-nest. Following the recent power outage, Steve Q has adjusted the fish stats, see bonus section for details, and including today’s fish, Louis’ tally now stands at one hundred and ninety four and Garry’s at ninety one. The heavy rain forecast for tonight has already started as at the time of filing this report (midnight) and the Met Office’s ‘gentle breeze’ will seem stronger at the top of the nest tree. An overnight low of 13°C is forecast, with the rain changing to light showers tomorrow with more of those ‘gentle breezes’ and a high of 17°C.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.45.11 (03.17.57); Nest Two 22.56.15 (03.45.06)
Independence, Oregon: Home to River and Laurel. The first of large prepped fish arrives at 0542. There are osplets in this deep nest but how many – well, that will be answered in about a week when we might finally be able to see their heads!
Norway: Herr and Frau Rauer and their two osplets and a delicious fish delivery. Look at that water! What a wonderful place for a nest.
Cornell Red-tail Hawks: In these images, you not only see how much the hawklets have grown, but also the construction that is right up by the nest. It did not deter Big Red and Arthur from choosing this nest again this year.
Llyn Brenig: Great news coming in from Jeff Kear on the UK Osprey Information FB page for this nest.
Alyth SS: The camera has been down for some time. Thanks to BOGS, we know that there are at least two osprey chicks on the nest of Harry and Flora.
Glaslyn: It is the first time in 22 years that osprey chicks have not hatched on the nest. For those of you that might not have followed this nest, Aran, who had been the mate of Mrs G, became the mate of Elen a couple of years ago when Mrs G did not return from migration. This year, one of Idris and Telyn’s sons landed on the Glaslyn nest and provided fish for Elen. Aran arrived late. Elen laid eggs. They were dispersed from the egg cup. The younger Teifi and the slightly older Aran did attempt to settle the situation. Aran lost his nest. Aran is very much loved, and thankfully, individuals living near the area have kept a good eye on him, providing photographs that are shown on the UK Osprey Information FB page. Elen and Teifi remain around the nest.
Gilestone/USK Valley, Wales: Hot. Fish arrival to provide the hydration the Only Bob and the adults require.
Dyfi Osprey Project: A family portrait of Idris, Telyn, and the two kiddos.
Maryland Western Shore: Two chicks lost. Only Bob is doing well. Large fish are arriving at the nest on Monday.
Dyfi Osprey Project, Wales: Idris has been delivering fish all day and comes in with a Flounder for the lastlate-night snack for Telyn and the kiddos.
Boulder County, Colorado: It was hot. Mum became a mumbrella. This nest still makes me uneasy. Please don’t ask me why. I will be glad when the little one is a bit larger!
Denton Homes: Three beauties are still at home.
Saaksilvie #4: Oh, that sweet little 3. You can really see the difference.
Taipalsaari, Finland: Fish arrive regularly for Mum and the two osplets.
Pitkin County: Emma, Charlie, and two osplets. Little two got fed first at one of the feedings on Monday! Yippee.
Sauces Canyon: Betty Lou treated everyone by flying to the nest with a fish in her talons on Monday!
Seaside: Bruce and Naha are doing a great job with their trio in Oregon. I was very pleased to receive notes from many of you saying you just found the Seaside nest. It is a good one to watch!
Jann Gallavan and the IWS give us the history of Princess Cruz, current mate of Andor, at the Fraser Point nest.
The raptors are having challenges enough. They don’t need to be shot when they are hunting for food and don’t recognise the territories of various estates. Stop driven grouse shooting! What an archaic practice!
I was so mad this evening when we took Toby for his late walk. Big sign on a small property – I do mean small. Let’s think 4 feet by 22 feet at best. The sign said that pesticides had been applied, so do not walk pets on the lawn. I took a deep breath and decided to gather information on the damages and leave it for them in their mailbox.
Calico wants to remind everyone that balloons are not fun. They are unnecessary to having a celebration, and they go up, come down, and harm wildlife. Please find and suggest alternative ways to decorate and celebrate that are environmentally friendly. Dry leaf confetti is great. Get some small hole punches, a basket of leaves, and bowls, and take the children outside. They will be busy for some time, and they can toss them around without worrying about damage.
Calico’s Tip for the Day: Become a birder and save your life. Stop staring at screens all day and night and get out and see ‘real’ birds in your neighbourhood. Connect with nature. Discover how you can contribute to restoring habitat to help them. Imagine people around the world doing this and connecting!
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care of yourselves. We look forward to having you again with us on Monday.
Thank you to the following for their notes and comments: ‘A, B, Geemeff, Heidi, MP, PB, TU’, to those who created videos, including SK Hideaways, and to the owners of the streaming cams and FB pages whose names are in bold throughout my post today. Also, Raptor Persecution UK, Mrs Gardenette Cultivation Plant Vlog, MARS Wildlife Rescue Centre, The Guardian, and the UK Osprey Information FB page and Jeff Kear
On Wednesday afternoon, we looked up and saw blue skies – a first in days where the sun was masked by heavy heavy haze from the wildfires. All of the citizens from at least two communities have been evacuated and any animals left behind are being fed and evacuated if they are fit enough. Many groups are stepping up to help those who have lost everything but a suitcase of items and maybe a dear pet. Hockey arenas have been taken over and community centers to house and exercise the pets. This is a blessing. Our City is rallying and collecting clothes and toiletries and pet food. It is making me proud.
In our garden, six baby European Starlings have fledged. The adults were feeding them, and tonight they had them at the big table feeder, eating various items – small bits of cheesy dog treats, chopped peanuts, cat and dog kibble, as well as various seeds.
This photo was taken with an iphone through 3 panes of dirty glass. Those babies are cute! They are growing so fast and eating lots of finely chopped cheesy dogs and kibble – the bowls get filled at least 4 times a day!
You can see four – three at the table and one in the tree to the right. There are two more on the wire above the feeder so all six made it through the first days! So happy.
Toby is very tired. We bought a small 14″ push mower and Toby was just so excited! We cleared off the only spot of grass in the back in order to fix him a little pen so he can be smelling and moving and not on a lead when we are weeding and watering. I could fix the holes in the old fence but it would mean that Brock could not get into the garden so this is a good alternative.
Toby with his favourite stick. He loves to play fetch and there is a long area in the house that is perfect for this!
Hugo Yugo will be having her dental surgery on Wednesday the 11th. It already makes my mouth hurt! Poor little girl.
Hope is sound asleep in the small enclosed space at the base of the cat tree while Hugo Yugo is at the top. It is hard to see her. Maybe she is hiding from Toby!
It is another mixed bag of news in Bird World.
The only surviving osplet of the Red Kite attack in Germany is alive. Zeus and Fjona at Goitzsche-Wildnis are very diligent about keeping this one as safe as they can.
At Sauces, Betty Lou has been coming home and enjoying many big fish dinners. She can mantle spreading across that entire nest to protect her snack!
Please note that the IWS still has its Adoption Challenge going and I am ever so happy that last year one of my long-time readers on Bird World got to name one of Thunder and Akecheta’s eaglets! It could be you this year.
Gizmo has still not fledged but was so delighted when Sunny returned to the nest tree at Big Bear Valley. A few of the news agencies that carried this fledge at Big Bear! The fledglings are international stars now, too. Not just Jackie and Shadow.
At the Dyfi Osprey Project, Idris brought in a huge mullet for the family. They are doing well – Idris is an amazing provider and Telyn is just like her mother, Maya, fantastic.
Idris continues with his delivery of hugh fish for Telyn and the trio.
All four osplets of CJ7 and Blue 022 are alive and doing well at Poole Harbour.
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Thursday 5th June 2025
Once again Aurora 536 spent many hours on Nest One, waiting quietly, and her patience was rewarded when Garry LV0 brought her a fish. That fish takes his tally to seventy one. On Nest Two Louis just kept bringing fish, five today, and the fifth one takes his tally to one hundred and fifty for the season. The smallest chick seems to have worked out strategies for feeding times, and was front and centre during several feedings. All three chicks ended the day with bulging golf ball crops, but that didn’t stop chick1 suddenly attacking chick2, and later chick 2 unwisely retaliated and paid the price. Chick3 very wisely ducked down and let them get on with it, as did Dorcha, who watched but didn’t intervene. She was busy bringing cot rails including one with a sharply pointed end and had some difficulty choosing a suitable place to put it. She succeeded only for Louis to come along later and move it! It rained during the night and earlier today but not as much as forecast. Light rain and light winds are forecast for tomorrow and overnight tonight, with a low of 7°C and a high of 15°C. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.50.46 (03.23.17); Nest Two 23.06.45 (04.01.17) Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/b_Djl6ySh8w N2 Chick3 moves in front of chicks 1&2 to get a good feed 06.39.56https://youtu.be/7rxHzjOTrWw N2 Chick3 moves around and gets a good share of the second fish 10.36.10https://youtu.be/ok_po0c7qNs N2 Chick2 unwisely retaliates and picks a fight with dino chick1 12.35.17https://youtu.be/58FdzKDL7Tc N2 Dorcha brings an unwieldy pointy stick 16.23.36https://youtu.be/rZnavAZfoA4 N1 Aurora’s calls are answered when Garry brings a fish 17.09.05https://youtu.be/__WBMKkPcMM N2 Louis arrives blood stained but it’s only fish3’s blood 18.21.53https://youtu.be/ktznutwuAms N2 Late night snack arrives – fish number four 22.04.00
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Wednesday 4th June 2025
Business as usual today – Aurora 536 spent a lot of time on Nest One and Garry LV0 brought her a fish. Later he swooped past carrying a second fish but kept going leaving Aurora calling in vain. His tally rises by one to seventy. The family on Nest Two are all doing very well, Louis brought two fish raising his tally to one hundred and forty five and Dorcha shared them out leaving the chicks ending the day with golf ball size stuffed crops. The wind wasn’t as strong as predicted for today and is forecast to remain light until Sunday. It will be wet overnight with a low of 6°C and wet throughout tomorrow with a high of 13°C, in fact rain is forecast for the next week. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.25.30 (03.20.47); Nest Two 22.54.18 (03.57.46) Today’s videos:
Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Tuesday 3rd June 2025 Apart from some noisy gusts of wind and the odd non-threatening intruder alert, today was fairly routine. Everybody got fed – four fish for Dorcha on Nest Two and one fish for Aurora 536 on Nest One – and the chicks ended the day with bulging golf ball crops. Garry LV0’s tally rises to sixty nine, and Louis’ to one hundred and forty three. The weather was wet and windy as forecast, changing to drizzle and a gentle breeze overnight with a low of
5°C, and light rain showers and a moderate breeze tomorrow with a high of 11 °C.Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.52.43 (03.21.04); Nest Two 22.50.40 (04.00.58) Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/W6s8zOwX7-k N2 Home alone chicks in quicktime 02.53 – 03.00 https://youtu.be/–NG_Z6RU-M N2 Season’s earliest breakfast arrives 03.39.15 https://youtu.be/Z7MgJ2PDjgQ N2 Second breakfast arrives and Louis sticks around while the chicks are fed 08.48.29
https://youtu.be/zFtBedllEzE N1 Aurora grabs the fish and tells Garry to leave 08.58.46https://youtu.be/wRnQq_QXtR8 N2 The gusting wind doesn’t stop fish number three being fed to the chicks 19.53.35 https://youtu.be/vnYqbvwP4QE N2 Littlest chick makes sure of a good share of fish number four 21.33.56 Bonus watch – all the highlights of the season to date on Woodland Trust’s YouTube channel
The news from Tweed Valley is not good, if you missed it. The nest 2 had Mrs O, an experienced female osprey, and another female and a male named New Guy. New Guy went MIA from the nest and the new female did bring in a single fish as their four eggs hatched. The first three were Mrs O’s and the last the new female. Sadly, all of the osplets died when mothering behaviour did not lead to fishing behaviour.
At Glaslyn, it seems Teifi is finding all the good fishing spots. Let’s hope he turns out to be a good provider for Elen next year.
Rutland’s Manton Bay: All four chicks are doing well. Little four got some fish. Dad came in with another big one but Maya had the kids already quiet and in bed.
Llyn Brenig: The second chick has hatched!
Foulshaw Moss: Some bonking is taking place.
Kielder Forest: A returnee to their natal nest. Wow. They used the word amazing. With only a small percentage of the osplets that fledge returning as two years old, this is something to celebrate.
One of the blog chatters says, “I never cease to be amazed by the inherent navigation skills of wild creatures. Not only did IB7 find his own way to West Africa, with no parental help, but two years on he returns to the very nest where he hatched. And most human beings cannot reach an address a few miles away, without satnav!”
Moorings Park: Fledgling Ozzie comes in and gets a late dinner on Thursday.
Trio at Pitkin County. Look at that sweet little third hatch getting right up there for some fish.
San Jose City Hall: ‘PB’ sends some images and a note: “Chico and Emma being playful on the roof tonight. Look at the size difference and colors. Chico smaller and darker compared to Emma.”
Chichester Peregrines: The two little eyases were ringed on 2nd of June and determined to be female!
I wrote to the Greens Ledge Light Preservation Society about their ospreys. I received this response: “We just saw the first hatching this morning – at least 2. There were 3 eggs in total. The late-May Noreaster brought some wave action into the nest briefly during the worst of it, but avoided major impacts. The upgraded nest (as of last season) held it all together. We were very happy to see the little heads poking out this morning. The nest live camera isn’t optimally perfectly – the eggs have been just out of frame – but we’ll see more action shortly as the babies emerge and start walking around the nest. https://savegreensledge.org/osprey-cam“.
Steelscape Ospreys:
Charlo Montana: Pip Watch is coming soon.
Hellgate Canyon: Iris was on the nest on Wednesday. She looks great! The New Guy has been bringing her fish. I hope both return next year, and New Guy keeps Louis away so there can be other osplets on this nest!
Lots of in and outs on Thursday, too. New Guy will fly in with his fish gift and Iris will remove it to eat it.
Boulder Fair Grounds: A cold front appeared to come through the area on Wednesday evening and the third hatch was exposed and not under Mum and perished. All had been well fed. There are two surviving chicks.
The weather on late Thursday is wet and cooler again. Poor babies. I hope these two survive.
Longmont, Colorado: The third hatch died Wednesday night of hypothermia.
Allin’s Cove East: There is at least one little osplet that has hatched. You can barely see it on the left of this short video: https://youtu.be/0O7AQ_MnPjc?
Wolf Bay, Alabama: The trio are growing. They have beautiful juvenile plumage. The oldest is 45 days, the middle is 44, and the third is 42. This nest has done well this year! There is still some time before fledge!
Cornell Red-tail Hawks, Ithaca: Big Red and Arthur’s O’s are working their legs walking around that nest, which must be very difficult. They are starting to flap their wings, too! These two are so cute.
Big Red sleeping and protecting her babies.
Look at the beautiful ‘peach’ on the breasts of these Os and their lovely feathers that are coming in. These two images show you the difference in size.
Saaksilvie #1: Can you find the newly hatched osplet?
Saaksilvie #3: Incubation and egg rolling. Hatch expected soon.
Saaksilvie #4: Two of the three eggs of Nuppu have hatched so far! This nest was the home of the first osprey to hatch in Finland for the 2025 season on 1 June. Here it is on Nesting Bird Life and More’s video: https://youtu.be/yDF4ZYsy-Uc?
And now there are three osplets!
Saaksilvie #5: No one is home.
Janakkalan: Incubation continues. The egg cup is so deep that it is impossible to see the number of eggs or any piping.
Paltamo: Three eggs are being incubated. Dad brings in a nice fish for Mum so she can have a break after a long incubation period.
Muonio: Eggs being incubated. Again, it is so difficult to see how many are in the nest.
Norway: Two really healthy osplets! They hatched on May 31 and June 2. Their Mum is Fru Rauer.
Carthage Ospreys: The only surviving osplet on the nest is doing well. At least three fish of various sizes came in on Thursday.
Minnesota Landscape Arboretum: Only one egg left in the nest. ‘MP’ tells me that the cold wet weather of a week ago, caused one egg to get kicked to the side of the nest with a second sticking to the breast feathers of Mum. It rolled back to the egg cup and was buried.
Mlade Buky: Bety, Bukachec and two storklets.
Trempeauleau Eagles: Mum did it. Look at T3. Surely nothing can stop this amazing little miracle from fledging.
Denton Homes: All three still on the nest.
Sad news accompanied by the warmth of human kindness at a stork nest: “OUR WONDERFUL KROPECZKA UNFORTUNATELY PASSED AWAY … 💔
The wonderful hostess of the main nest in Klekusiów, the most wonderful stork mother and perfect partner, had an accident and despite the best care of specialist doctors, our Beloved Kropeczka unfortunately passed away! 😭
Kleks was left alone, taking care of three tiny chicks, but we believe that with the help of a very good Guardian – the Host of Klekusiów, he will manage to raise all three and at the end of the season the youngsters will go to the wintering grounds! 💖👍
Milda and Zorro’s White-tail Eagle nest, Latvia: The two chicks are almost ready for fledge and neither is hesitant to fight over prey deliveries! https://youtu.be/n5j5NiFLrC4?
Golden Eagles in Estonia: Liznm brings us up to date (the date of the banding was 4 June): “The eaglet was banded yesterday . Since then, Helju has stayed away Kalju takes care of the eaglet. He brought a small bird. The eaglet pulled another prey from under the hay! A furry animal.it managed to eat some of it. it looks like a part of a fox puppy – the back part with legs and tail.” https://youtu.be/bCf0pQo5z8g?
Golden Eagle in Latvia: Spilve feeding her surviving chick in the rain.
Over the years, you have likely heard me express my frustration with the attitude of humans towards wildlife more than once. Well, who in the world believes that poison of any kind is a good thing? Sticking paper? Seriously. Well, it now appears that the oldest breeding White-tailed Eagle in Ireland has been poisoned! Since raptors don’t produce poison or put it out to kill animals, then it had to be some mean two-legged idiot!
Many of written to find out if ‘The Girls’ are still getting their story time. Yes, they are. It has taken me some time to find quality books on birds that I wanted to purchase this year. In past years, we have had stacks of books to read. We have gone back and read some old favourites. Now I can tell you that our reader ‘J’ from Germany suggested a wonderful book, BirdNote. Chirps, Quirks, and Stories of 100 Birds from the Popular Public Radio Show. It arrived yesterday and we will have a review for you in next Friday’s post! I can already tell you that Calico quite likes it!!!!!!!! Thanks, ‘J’ for this great recommendation.
Thank you so very much for being with us today. We are delighted that you are here and that you care so much about our feathered friends! Take care. We hope that you can be with us on Monday when the next blog will be posted.
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, articles, videos, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, J, J, MP, PB’, CBC, Goitzsche-Wildnis, IWS/Explore, ABC, Fly High Eagles, Fox News 5, NBCLA, RSPB Scotland, Dyfi Osprey Project, BoPH, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Jeff Kear, UK Osprey Info and Tweed Valley Ospreys, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, LRWT, Llyn Brenig, Kielder Ospreys, Moorings Park Ospreys, Pitkin County Ospreys, San Jose Falcons, Janet Shaw and chichester Falcons, Greens Ledge Light Preservation Society, Pam Breci, Joy of Ospreys, Steelscape Ospreys, Raptor Research Institute, Montana Osprey Project, Boulder Fair Grounds, Anderson Moor and Longmont, Colorado ospreys, Allins Cove East Ospreys, Cornell Bird Lab Cams RTH, Saaksilvie 1, 4, and 5 osprey nests, Finnish Osprey Foundation, DDTC, MN Landscape Arboretum Ospreys, Mlade Buky Capi, Trempeauleau Eagle Cam, Alukin, LDF, Liznm, Lodz Black Storks, B Isia, Raptor Persecution UK, The Narwal, Cumbria Wildlife Trust
I have added the latest news that I have received at the top. It’s great to be back with you. I trust that you have been keeping up with your favourite nests and have an eye on Sunny and Gizmo. They are going to fly this week.
I have received staggering news from our monitor VV living in Maryland. They have 15 osprey nests within sight of their porch. This is yesterday’s report. When you finish reading it, I want you to educate yourselves. Join the good folks at Menhaden- Little Fish, Big Deal FB page and find out why ospreys are starving in the Chesapeake. Then I want you to write everyone you know to stop the industrial fishing of Menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay. It could be too late. For several years, the osplets have been dying. There is no one to replace the adults once they die or leave the area. They are going extinct, faster than DDT killed them, due to one company – Omega and that company is Canadian. It makes me furious as a Canadian.
VV writes: ” I wish I had a shred of good osprey news for you. But I have not. Many nests were incubating but nearly simultaneously nests were abandoned, some osprey have returned after gulls and crows cleaned out their eggs. Some have not returned. Two unpaired males I know by name abandoned their nests a good week before the pairs left. Those without eggs quit mating and they, too, left their nests. I guess a food issue, males no longer able to provide and females having to fish for themselves to survive.
It all happened within a matter of a week, a week and a half. It happened last year after chicks hatched but all died in early July. A second year of no fledglings.
Another observer on the island continues to see eagles stealing ospreys’ food. And the osprey behavior toward eagles is muted to non-existent this year. As little as two years back the entire creek full of osprey would leave their nests to chase an eagle passing overhead. Osprey ignore them entirely this year. The osprey grow silent when the eagles fly across the creek.”
This was the largest area for Osprey. Heidi and I have seen a steady decline and I believe a few years ago I predicted that there would be no osprey in the area in 3-4 years. I am beyond sad. I am angry that humans take money and profit takes over the quality of life for everyone on our planet. What happens in the Bay impacts all of us.
The UK and the Roy Dennis Foundation know what extinction of raptors looks like. In comparison to what is happening in Maryland and the neighbouring states of the Chesapeake Bay, the very first osprey has hatched in the USK Valley (think south Wales) in 250 years! Congratulations.
It is also expected to start raining on Monday morning in Winnipeg. Outside, it smells like a campfire. The fires continue to rage, people are being evacuated, and there are areas where only a helicopter can access. There are so many fires burning that there are not enough helicopters. I hope private companies are helping.
I am starting to write Friday evening. We have just finished watering the garden plants. The air is acrid. The sky is hazy. You might think you were in the middle of hundreds of car tyres burning. I cannot even imagine what it is like for those on the front lines fighting the fires in northern and eastern Manitoba (or other parts of Canada). It is 29 C.
While others are caring for the people in the towns and villages under threat, there is the wildlife that makes their late spring and summer homes in our province. Imagine hundreds of raptor nests with chicks and the fires burning. The adults can fly if they do not get ‘smoke inhalation’ and hopefully get to safety. Those chicks cannot fly. There are still many issues trying to rescue more than 17,000 people. They are leaving with nothing. If they are lucky they can bring their pets. One of the problems when they get to my city with those beloved pets is that the hotels are not allowing them inside! I find that incredibly ‘mean’. We are fortunate to have a few agencies that are rescuing the dogs and cats that had to be turned out on the streets. They will provide care and food for them and return them to their owners when it is convenient for the owners. I hope they can find the owners. So many of the pets might not be tattooed or have a microchip. Many of us are busy collecting toiletries and clothes as well as pet food for these unfortunate people. Can you imagine losing absolutely everything?While many are dedicated to helping the people in towns and villages facing danger, we must not forget the wildlife that calls our province home during late spring and summer. Picture this: hundreds of raptor nests filled with helpless chicks, surrounded by raging fires. The adult birds may be able to escape if they avoid smoke inhalation, but the chicks are unable to fly.
Simultaneously, we are confronted with the daunting task of rescuing over 17,000 individuals who are fleeing with nothing but the clothes on their backs. If they are fortunate, some can bring their cherished pets along. Yet, upon arriving in my city, they face a heartbreaking reality—many hotels refuse to accept pets. This is utterly unjust.
Thankfully, a handful of compassionate agencies are stepping up to rescue the dogs and cats abandoned in the streets. They are providing much-needed care and food for these animals, with the hope of reuniting them with their owners when the time is right. However, many pets lack identification tattoos or microchips, complicating the rescue efforts.
In the meantime, many of us are rallying together to gather toiletries, clothing, and pet food for these displaced individuals. Can you imagine what it feels like to lose absolutely everything? We must come together to support them in their time of need.
Menhaden overfishing has significantly disrupted the ecosystem in the Chesapeake Bay, leading tof whales and dolphins several years ago. Additionally, striped bass are starving and turning to crabs for food, leaving ospreys without the necessary sustenance. I have mentioned this to you before: overfishing causes widespread disruptions. In Ireland, for example, similar overfishing issues are driving whales and dolphins away. I wonder what the long-term outlook is for the ospreys that are beginning to breed there.
Other news comes from Arctic research showing that birds lived with the polar bears in an area of Alaska more than 74 million years ago. “Researchers believe their discovery of more than 50 bird fossils from the Prince Creek formation in Alaska is the oldest evidence of birds nesting in polar regions, pushing back the date by more than 25m years.”
Heidi has a good report for us on the US osprey nests she is monitoring:
Osoyoos: Soo and Olsen bonded after their return from migration, however after some battles at the end of April, a new male took over. Two of their three eggs were laid after Olsen was no longer seen, but the new male destroyed all three of those eggs. A new egg was laid on 5/30. I believe the female is Soo. Comparing photos, she looks like the same female for the past 4 seasons, but some believe it is a new female. The new male is a big fellow, and he has a very large dark crown mark and a necklace. This new clutch may not be a good thing. In the past, the ospreys have had difficulty finding fish during the heat, and now they may be trying to raise chicks a month later than previous years.
Patuxent River Park Nest 2: After the cam was offline for 9 days, two of the three osplets were missing. It appeared as though the oldest one was the only chick in the nest. We have been told that the other two chicks blew off the nest during a storm. But, I suspect that the park staff may not really know what happened to those two chicks, and we can’t rule out the possibility predation.
Dewey Beach Lions Club osprey nest: Things were going very well for this family of two osplets… until a few days of wind and rain spoiled the fishing. Then chick 1 became aggressive. When the weather improved, Mom supplemented Dad’s fish, and even the past 2 days when there were 9 fish, and 6 fish, chick 1 would not let chick 2 eat. The fish Mom and Dad were catching were on the small side. They never caught that really big fish that would have allowed chick 2 a chance to have a good meal. Little 2 died on 6/1, at 16 days of age.
Thanks, Heidi!
The news that has come to my inbox is mixed – osplets dying by the nestfuls while others are thriving. Betty Lou has fledged and returned to the nest, where she was rewarded with a giant fish. Jak and Audacity know how to raise ‘children’. Let us hope that the circumstances come together so that they can do this again in 2026!
BUNDGoitzsche-Wildnis: “Red kites are fast and skilled hunters. When an attack occurs very suddenly, the adults often have only a fraction of a second to react. Furthermore, wild animals instinctively weigh up whether a defense could endanger their own life or the remaining clutch of eggs. We suspect that the adults were taken by surprise and didn’t recognize the danger. They have been breeding successfully on this eyrie for so many years now, although they have never been threatened by red kites before; perhaps there is simply no strategy for dealing with it.
June 1, 2025: A red kite takes a second chick from the nest.
May 26, 2025: Drama for the ospreys: a red kite comes while the chicks are being fed and steals a chick from the nest. The attack lasts only seconds.”
White Rock Eagles: It appears that the male may be providing some assistance. The two eaglets, Miracle and Phenom, are doing well. Their crops are about to pop. Sweet little babies. Another miracle and a fish fairy. Love it! https://youtu.be/BvEHLnh-Wh4?
Dyfi Osprey Project: Telyn and Idris are doing a fine job with their triplets. They are kept warm and nicely fed.
Rutland Manton Bay: The fourth hatch is tiny. We wait to see if it will survive. Blue 33 has fish in the largest freshwater lake in Europe at Rutland Water and he is an excellent fisher and provider. The pair have raised several clutches of four. Fingers crossed. Blue 33 spent a lot of time on Sunday on the nest with Maya and the four kiddos.
Foulshaw Moss: Little Three gets right up there to eat. White YW and Blue 35 have raised nests where there were two quite larger chicks and a tiny one and all three fledged. Indeed, the third hatch in 2021 became the dominant on the nest!
Birds of Poole Harbour: Blue 022 and CJ7 raised four to fledge in 2024, to the shock of everyone. Looks like they are going to do it again this year. I wonder if they might become another ‘Super’ Couple like Blue 33 and Maya at Rutland? Or maybe this pair could beat Rutland’s record!
Family Portrait.
Llyn Brenig: We’re on hatch watch week!
Llyn Clywedog: Dylan is keeping the fish coming in despite some inclement weather. The chicks are doing well and Seren is being the perfect Mum.
Tweed Valley: The two females now have four osplets to raise between them. The male, New Guy, has not been around and it is understood that he is not assisting the ‘women’ in any way. The first three eggs to hatch belonged to Mrs O, an experienced female, while the fourth hatch belongs to the new female at the nest. The females do not seem to care whose is whose – they are happy to bring in fish to share between them. An incredible display of cooperation and another one of those miracles from this year that we must enjoy.
Glaslyn: Everyone loves Aran. He was not seen for the past five days. The weather in Wales was horrible. Well, to the delight of everyone, Aran came out and was seen on Sunday. Fabulous. He was enjoying the sunshine that finally came out.
Loch of the Lowes: Raining on Saturday. The female incubates the remaining egg for this new couple, taking the place of Laddie LM12 and Blue NC0.
Alyth: The camera is down, but there is evidence that Harry and Flora are feeding at least one chick on the nest. Thanks, Jeff Kear, UK Osprey Info, and VG for checking and reporting.
West Midlands Ringing Group:
MNSA Oceanside Ospreys: Three chicks on the nest. Cold weather event occured on the 23/24 of May. Little three could not fit under Mum and died of hypothermia. The feeding on the 24th without little 3: https://youtu.be/RGwYSUptOqA?
Loch Arkaig:
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Sunday 1st June 2025
Today saw the return of Garry LV0 to Nest One, although to Aurora’s disappointment, he arrived with empty talons. Later when Aurora was alone on the nest, she was disturbed by a Raven’s kronking as it did a fly-by, and flew off to chase it away. Over on Nest Two, Louis continues to provide plenty of fish – four today, taking his tally to one hundred and thirty six. The second fish was a little tiddler that vanished in three minutes, and Louis was instructed to get more, if that’s how we can interpret Dorcha’s reaction. He returned an hour later with a fish so massive, it travelled on and off the nest providing several meals as it went. He is very strong to be able to lift such a big fish out of the water which bodes well for the continued well-being of the chicks who were stuffed full today so much so that one chick did a comical faceplant during feeding time, as if its bulging crop was too heavy to keep it upright. It rained throughout the night and sporadically throughout the day but a dry night with light winds is forecast for tonight with a low of 7°C, continuing dry through tomorrow with a high of 15°C. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 00.01.18 (02.50.57); Nest Two 22.56.00 (04.01.47) Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/WJsJLdNJmqM N2 Bobs 2&3 have a tug of war over a piece of fish one! 07.07.28
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Saturday 31st May 2025
Not much happened today on either nest, Aurora 536 did a bit of perching and preening on Nest One but again there was no sign of Garry LV0, and over on Nest Two all was routine which is what’s needed as the chicks enter their rapid development phase. Expert fisherbird Louis delivered six fish, taking his tally to one hundred and thirty two, and Dorcha ensured all three chicks got plenty to eat. It was wet and windy today and more of the same is expected tonight with heavy rain and a gentle breeze with a low of 8°C, with the rain lessening a little to light rain with a high of 14°C tomorrow.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.21.00 (03.33.01); Nest Two 22.50.14 (04.05.20)
Bonus action – People’s Postcode Lottery helped Woodland Trust buy Arkaig Forest, fund its on-going restoration, and support the Osprey cams giving us our 24/7 livestreaming joy. If you’re a social media user, could you please thank them when posting Loch Arkaig content:
Sauces Canyon: Sauces Canyon: Jak and Audacity are amazing parents. Not only did they reward their young daughter, Betty Lou, with a big fish to encourage her to return to the nest, but they have also sat with her in the pine tree and delivered food to her there! Thanks to ‘PB’ for the wonderful report on Saturday!
Fraser Point: Mama Cruz has been missing for almost a day. When she returned to the nest, it was clear that she had been fighting an intruder. I am just holding my breath.
FOBBV: Jackie and Shadow adore their two eaglets, Sunny and Gizmo. I cannot imagine what is going through their heads as these two darlings ready to take to the sky. Jackie is feeding them on Saturday!
Trempeauleau Eagles: T3 doing fantastic. Mum brought in at least three fish on Friday.
Duke Farms: All three fledglings on the nest wanting some dinner! I did not see any prey delivered. Maybe you did.
Boulder County Fairgrounds: Three osplets with the fourth egg pipping on Saturday. Experienced Mum and new dad are going to be busy keeping these crops full.
OPPD Fort Calhoun: The triplets are so close in age. It appears everything is going very, very well. So tiny. They blend in to the point that if your eyes are tired, you really have to look close or hope they move!!!!!!!!
Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home: The only surviving eaglet is doing well. Thanks, ‘PB’ for posting this message on FB.
Pitkin County: Three little heads peek up out of the deep nest cup when it is dinner time. Two hatched on the 27th, with the third on the 28th. Fantastic, they are so close in age.
Cornell Red-tail Hawk Cam: The Os are walking around and pecking at prey. Arthur has the nest looking like a massacre. No one ever goes hungry on Big Red’s nest. Never.
Hellgate Canyon: Iris was on and off the nest on Sunday. She is looking good.
Charlo, Montana: Incubation continues.
City of Independence, Oregon: Female looking down. I did not see an indication of a hatch or feeding. Incubation continues.
I am delighted that you could join us today. Everyone in the family is doing fine. We hope that you are happy and well and getting outside whenever you can.
Calico and Baby Hope on the table watching Toby but not having their tails bitten!
Toby can climb up the cat tree!
Hugo Yugo loves to sleep on the top of the small cat tree. She will have her next dental cleaning and surgery on 11 June.
Missey in Toby’s toy box!
Brock waits and sleeps on a deck chair for when we get up and he gets some fresh food.
Thank you to the following for their letters, notes, comments, posts, videos, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, Heidi, J, PB, VV’, The Guardian, Osoyoos Town Council Osprey Cam, Patuxent River Park, Dewey Beach Lion’s Club, Crooked Lake, Seaside Ospreys, Colonial Beach Ospreys, PSEG Oyster Bay, Brevard County, Moraine State Park, BUNDGoitzsche-Wildnis, Hancock Wildlife Foundation White Rock Eagle Cam, LRWT Manton Bay Ospreys, Cumbria Wildlife Trust, BoPH, Llyn Clywedog, Tweed Valley Osprey Project, Scottish Wildlife Trust (LOTL Ospreys), West Midlands Ringing Group, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Mary Cheadle and Friends of Loch Arkaig FB, Jane Goodall Foundation, IWS/Explore, CIEL and Barbara Wolfsong, FOBBV, KTLA, San Jose City Hall and SK Hideaways, Trempeauleau Eagle Cam, Duke Farms, Boulder County, OPPD, Cornell Bird Cam Red Tail Hawk Cam, Cornell Bird Cam Hellgate Canyon, Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home, Oregon Public Broadcasting, CBC Manitoba, Robert Fuller, Farmer Derek, Discover Outdoors, Nesting Bird Life and More and the LDF, Raptor Resource Project/Explore, Usk Valley Ospreys, Jeff Kear and UK Osprey Info and Llyn Brenig
Update: Third chick just hatched at Loch Arkaig for Louis and Dorcha. Oh, I was hoping that this one would stay in the egg as the others are so big. But, no. They have three!
Hatch at Boulder County Fairgrounds.
Hello, everyone. It is nice to be back with you after being away for a week. The hours and days flew by and it was a week that was anything but uneventful! Let’s see if I can remember a few of the highlights:
-Toby’s ear infection got worse. Then he started clawing at his left ear, and went back to the vet. This time, they realised that putting drops into Toby’s ear wasn’t working for Toby, me, or the infection. They gave him a treatment that was to last a fortnight. Hopefully that will do the trick! A snood has been ordered. A scrunchie ties these floppy ears back with a covering for the ears themselves. I will send photos when it arrives. To make my life easier, Toby is sleeping through the night. He has learned to go potty outside. This is a big deal and I am shocked at how smart he is. Does every puppy parent say that? The issue is you cannot do something once and think you won’t have to repeat it so it takes thinking at every turn not to be caught into creating a bad behaviour. Toby loves to play fetch, and he drops his little lamb at my feet so I will toss it again. That poor lamb. Toby shakes it and shakes it. I am told it goes back to when Spaniels were ‘helping with the hunt’ and would subdue the prey. Today, it is often a way of getting rid of some energy, thank goodness. Toby has lots of energy and continues to be either in ‘off’ or ‘on’ mode. There is no middle ground. Toby loves Hugo Yugo, and they often play chase! Initially, I wondered if I had made a mistake getting a puppy. It was ‘my’ first dog. My father always had dogs, but they were under his care, and I loved the cats at our house. So Toby has been a new experience. It is getting easier and I adore him.
-I lost my credit card. Anyone who has lost a card will understand the frustration this causes.
-Garden planting. We have all the containers on the deck planted with pollinator-friendly plants, herbs, or a combination of three types of beans and peas. The Kentucky Wonder beans have already sprouted! There are cherry tomatoes and peppers in patio pots, and we picked up some bright red Salvia today for the hummingbirds when they arrive. The new hose is heavy. The new brass nozzle is divine. We also planted four hydrangeas, and to our delight, the three peonies we planted last year are coming up nicely.
-Little trips. We helped with my bestie’s Golden Retriever while she was away – a walk and a small feeding at noon. Then we headed out on various trips, including Baby Days at the wildlife rehabilitation centre, the opening of Oak Hammock Marsh, and a couple of trips to Pineridge, where the antique shop held a yard sale. We found two lovely French terracotta jardinieres, as well as another on a stand. The plan is to create a focal point on the deck. We have been able to visit with some friends during all of this, which was delightful. Today, at Pineridge, we ran into our granddaughter, who was there with a friend checking out its potential as a wedding venue for June 2027.
-Nice things that happened. I have desperately been trying to make my life easier. Three areas that require attention when one has a puppy is grocery shopping, hair cuts, and doctor’s appointments. We were able to solve the hair cuts by getting an appointment with one of our City’s most respected mobile salons. Will keep you posted. We ordinarily do not go to malls or large grocery stores and Toby is welcome in the Farmer’s Kitchen at Pineridge and St Leon’s Market, thankfully. That is perfect for us. Now just to figure out what to do about the doctor’s appointments or treatments. If I know that they are on prone to be on time, it is not a problem. We are trying not to be away longer than 1.5 hours due to the issues related to ‘withdrawal/separation anxiety’ within this breed.
So the week was a balance of the good and the bad. Thankfully, there was ‘no ugly’.
What I realised during this time away from writing the blog is that our summers are very short. This past winter was not conducive to being outside often due to the ice on the trails. One of the things I want to do is spend much more time in the garden with Don and Toby, as well as friends and family. Simple meals and laughter, hopefully with few wasps! (The feral feeder is being relocated to help with that.)
I have consistently emphasised the importance of spending time outdoors in nature and finding a balance in our busy lives as crucial for prioritising self-care. I often remind myself to secure my oxygen mask before assisting others. As Don’s dementia evolves—albeit subtly—he continues to help with many things around the house, which allows him to feel valued. Yet, sometimes I find it challenging to discreetly untangle his assistance without him noticing. Communication is growing more difficult, but there are moments of striking clarity that leave me almost speechless.
This summer, my intention is to dedicate more quality time to him, fostering patience, fun, and cherished memories that will sustain us during tougher times. With all this in mind, I’ve made the difficult decision to shift my blog schedule. Difficult? I have made so many long-time friends through the blog that not reaching out to you every day has caused me some anxiety. I need to slow down, and I know you understand. Rather than daily posts, I will share updates twice a week—on Mondays and Fridays.
I intend to summarise all the weekend happenings on Mondays, while Fridays reflect the week’s events. I aim to revamp the format to better engage with you by addressing your questions from the mailbox, spotlighting key happenings at the nests, and featuring one educational topic of current interest related to nest activities. I appreciate your understanding as I navigate these changes.
I also want to thank all those wonderful people who continually support me by sending me news from the nests. You have no idea how helpful that is.
Australian Bird news: Alison gives us a run down on what has been going on ‘down under’:
“In bird world, Diamond and Xavier are well. Diamond regularly has a giant crop – she was crop dropping this morning, twice actually, so she has plenty of room for a largish lunch. Xavier is such a darling. He is very fond of Diamond, though he is twinkle-toed when it comes to bonding sessions, when he darts out of the box as if afraid he’ll get squashed.
At Port Lincoln, mum and dad were both on the barge this morning, Mum on the nest and Dad in the mancave. Both are looking well and seem to like their renovated nest.
At Collins Street, there is no activity, and won’t be until eggs are due to hatch (assuming we get eggs this season).
At Olympic Park, Mum and Dad have been working on the nest, bringing sticks and nesting material around lunchtime yesterday. They went fishing in the afternoon, then settled near the nest overnight.
At Taiaroa Head, SS Trig chick is on her nest this morning, looking absolutely gorgeous as usual. It is so lovely to see that snowy-white plumage unblemished by any incidents of spilling. This is plumage that indicates a childhood totally free of bullying! She is exquisite, she really is. Mum came in yesterday at breakfast time to feed her chick and the little one was given a supplementary feeding two days ago (24 May). We’ll see what her weight is like tomorrow (Tuesday 27 May), which is weekly weighing day. SS Trig chick has fairly consistently been on the skinny side, with her parents seemingly unable to find enough food for her. Thank heavens we have the rangers – the squid smoothie fairies. These gorgeous birds really are given the very best of care. It’s astonishing how far these rangers go to ensure their safety and to assist them to breed successfully. A wonderful example to the world.
Winter is quickly approaching in Melbourne, with icy mornings but sunny days.”
Stork Intervention is not new to the European Union.
‘PB’ reports: “Watching white stork cam in Hungary and they rescued baby #5. They said its taken to a rehab where they later release it. So happy they saved it before parents threw it over.”
So, just why do people help the storks?
People in Europe help storks due to a combination of cultural beliefs, environmental concerns, and the birds’ role as a symbol of positive aspects like good luck, new beginnings, and family life. Storks have been associated with good fortune, and their presence on rooftops was believed to bring harmony and even protect against fires.
Here’s a more detailed look at the reasons: Cultural and Symbolic Reasons: Good Luck and Fertility: Storks are widely believed to bring good luck, and in many regions, they are associated with fertility and the arrival of babies. Family Harmony: In Central and Eastern Europe, storks are believed to bring harmony to families on whose property they nest. Symbol of New Life: The storks’ tendency to nest on rooftops is seen as a symbol of the arrival of new life, contributing to the belief that they bring babies. Protection Against Fire: In some regions, storks’ nests on houses were believed to offer protection against fires, further enhancing their revered status. Conservation and Environmental Efforts: Habitat Protection: Storks are highly dependent on wetlands and other natural habitats. People in Europe are actively involved in protecting and restoring these habitats to ensure the continued survival of stork populations. Awareness and Education: Programs like the “Stork Route” in Brandenburg and initiatives like the European Stork Villages network help raise awareness about storks and their conservation needs. Public Relations: Festivals and events celebrating storks, photography contests, and other public relations initiatives help foster a positive relationship between humans and storks. Stork Villages: The European Stork Villages Network encourages communities to embrace storks as part of their natural and cultural heritage, fostering a sense of responsibility for their well-being.
As an advocate for intervention, I find the actions of individuals helping storks to be noble and I wish these attitudes would translate themselves to the eagles and ospreys that need help throughout the world.
One significant relationship that became internationally famous was that of a Polish man and a female white stork who could not fly and her mate. If you do not know this story then please watch this video that captures the extraordinary measures that were taken to care for this female and to ensure that each year she could spend the summer with her mate raising storklets.
Bonus: You might also recall when Urmas rescued the surviving storklets of Jan and Janikka after Jan disappeared on June 1, 2022. It is believed that he was probably electrocuted. The storklets were taken to the veterinary clinic on June 5, and there, along with Dr Madis, they were first raised by humans and mechanical storks before being placed into nests. Bonus was adopted by my favourite Black Stork of all time, Karl II and his mate, Kaia on 30 June. Bonus was fitted with a transmitter. We know from a sighting that the transmitter was down when he was alive and well on August 3, 2024, at Turov, Belarus.
Mlade Buky, Czech Republic: Community comes together to feed the stork nest when parent is dead. Caught on video by Tomas Borbely: https://youtu.be/nm5wTNjWfC4?
There are many more examples of human kindness towards storks. I encourage you to find them; they will warm your heart.
I want to publicly thank the individuals at Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home Osprey nest and streaming cam for rescuing baby three on Monday, the 26th of May. Owl Moon Raptor Centre will be trying to save this little one. It is one of the youngest, if not the youngest, osplets I have seen go into care. I know they will try their best to help this baby. It had been pecked and had a bloody head, had been denied food, and on Monday morning, Dad stepped on its head and stood there for some time. The little one was rescued and taken into care. It is unknown whether it is too small or ill to survive at the time of this writing, but I am grateful for the kindness shown. It is time for all interventions to occur. Fish are in short supply, and fish fairies are needed! As are rescues.
What has been happening in the UK Osprey nests (and the few North American ones) while I was away the last week?
Rutland Manton Bay: Blue 33 and Maya have four osplets this season. It is not the first time. Sadly, the last time there were four, tiny little Bob perished. Blue 33 is hauling in lots and lots of fish and all four are doing well. The tiny little Bob is quite the character and gets itself up there for the feedings!
Birds of Poole Harbour: Blue 022 and CJ7 have three beautiful and healthy chicks! Chick 4 is emerging from the egg.
Loch Doon: Frankie and Angel have sadly lost their little third hatch. It is quite cool at the nest and the older two got under Angel after a feeding, but little three didn’t. It perished very quickly being unable to thermoregulate.
Llyn Clywedog: Miserable damp cold weather here, too. Seren Blue 5F is keeping her two Bobs fed and warm. Unclear about the third egg.
Glaslyn: First up. The good news is that Aran has been seen after being MIA for a number of days. People were getting concerned. Thankfully the BOGS have been keeping a good eye and saw him!
Elen and Teifi are sheltering in the trees.
Dyfi: The weather is miserable and Idris was trying to feed them a very tough flounder this morning. Idris and Telyn have had their three eggs hatch! Dates were:
Foulshaw Moss: All three eggs of White YW and Blue 35 have successfully hatched.
Kielder Forest:
Nest 7: KX7 and KM18 have three successful hatches.
Tweed Valley: This is the latest news, and it’s a week old. I hope the weather has improved and more fish have come for the two females – eggs should have hatched or be hatching soon!
Loch Arkaig 1 and Loch Arkaig 2: See Geemeff’s daily summary below.
Hellgate Canyon: Iris and the ‘New Guy’ are still together! She often gives him a right ear full. It is too funny. No more eggs this year, just take the time to enjoy every moment with this amazing osprey! The new guy shares some of his fish. What a couple.
Charlo Montana: Pip Watch is coming soon! Coyotes were observed on the streaming cam going across the valley.
Golden Gate Audubon: Richmond and Rosie have one chick this year, which hatched on either the 10th or 11th of May. (I have no knowledge of another hatch, but please correct me!)
Snow Lane, Newfoundland: Beaumont and the New Female have been sighted around the nest. No eggs yet. Maybe not this year.
Russell Lake, Nova Scotia: The unseasonal weather has stopped. Oscar and Ethel are incubating eggs, but only for another 7 or 8 days.
Trempeauleau Eagles: The success of thissingle-parent nest (male has another nest) is outstanding. Just look at T3 all kitted out with its juvenile feathers.
FOBBV: Sunny and Gizmo are getting great height as they prepare for fledging.
Sauces Canyon: Betty Lou has also been getting some amazing air. What a miracle child for Jak and Audacity. So thankful that they were able to be parents this year after so many tragic attempts.
Fraser Point: Kaimana and Blue Day are 65 and 63 days old. Adorable eaglets! Andor and Cruz are great parents.
Denton Homes: The trio are really getting into jumping on that nest. They have survived storms and what a relief it is to see that nest held during some dramatic weather. It will not be long.
Kansas City Eagles: Kanza is 9 weeks old and getting some air. Ellie, Harvey and Kanza have suffered through some rough weather like The Majestics.
Latvian Golden Eagle Nest: Spilve, Grislis, and Meldrs. Food has not been plentiful. Grislis finally brought a squirrel! https://youtu.be/7uXlT8ve3bk?
Fort St Vrain Eagle Cam: We worried they would get caught in the sticks and could not escape. We feared they would fall over the edge. Could you look at the two surviving eaglets on this nest?
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Monday 26th May 2025
A slow day on Nest One, Aurora 536 spent time perching and waiting, then Garry LV0 arrived but without any fish. He had other ideas and mounted her successfully but it’s probably too little too late for eggs this year. His tally remains at sixty six. Over on Nest Two, Louis brought a big breakfast in the form of a massive trout from which the bobs had plenty of feeds. He’d eaten the head but still seemed hungry and returned for a mid morning raid, discovering the fish tucked under Dorcha’s feathers and foiling her attempts to stop him taking it by pulling her across the nest until she let go. He did return the fish a little later, however the fish’s travels weren’t over as he took it away again with Dorcha in hot pursuit until he returned it for the bobs’ next feed. Later Dorcha’s attention was on a distant aerial chase as two Ospreys pursued each other, too far away to confirm ID but one was probably Louis. The day’s action ended with Louis bringing a small fish supper so fresh it was still flapping, and he remained on the nest watching Dorcha feed the eager chicks. At the time of posting this report (midnight) some watchers think the third egg has pipped but the view hasn’t been clear enough to confirm it. Perhaps those who watch through the night and submit their excellent reports will have exciting news for us tomorrow morning. It was a wet and windy day today just as forecasted, and the rain’s expected to continue overnight with a low of 6°C but with the possibility of sunny intervals tomorrow and a high of 13°C. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One (03.50.35E); Nest Two 22.35.27 (04.04.54) Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/Tz7Y_155TwI N2 Dorcha tucks into breakfast, Louis covers the chicks 07.30.55
Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Sunday 25th May 2025
A soggy night and wet for a good part of the day too, but that didn’t prevent the second chick hatching. Pipping was seen yesterday around 10pm, and tucked away warm and dry under Dorcha, bob2 allowed brief glimpses from time to time as it made its way out of the shell, emerging fully by 3am. By 5am bob2 had had a first feed from Louis’ first fish delivery, and things are looking good for these two. The third egg is a few days away from hatching and will need to be strong and determined to compete with this pair. Louis delivered a second fish and his tally rises to one hundred and eight. Unusually when returning the second fish to Dorcha, he sat on top of the chicks and wouldn’t let her feed them, prompting a discussion about his usual lack of enthusiasm for chick-sitting as opposed to his extreme enthusiasm for egg-sitting. Over on Nest One, Garry LV0 put in an appearance after not being seen yesterday, and rewarded Aurora’s patience with a fish. His tally rises to sixty six but Aurora would probably prefer it rises a bit faster as she sat patiently perching for many hours waiting in vain for him to return with more fish. Dorcha’s mumbrella skills will be needed as more rain is forecast throughout the night with a low of 6°C, and thundery showers and a moderate breeze with a high of 11°C tomorrow. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.08.17 (
03.51.04); Nest Two 22.39.52 (04.10.50) Today’s videos:
Big Red and Arthur and O1 and O2. The hawlets are getting their feathers! What a beautiful nest! Everything continues to go smoothly with Big Red in her element as Queen Mum.
Wildfires continue to burn in our province. Grave concerns for wildlife – not only the mammals but also the migrant raptors and songbirds that come to Manitoba in the late spring to raise their young. Send positive wishes.
A beautiful story of people working together to transform sheep fells for birds. “A groundbreaking tree-planting programme is uniting farmers and rewilders, as portions of common ground in the Yorkshire Dales national park are being restored to their ancient glory.” Why can’t this be happening everywhere?
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. I will see you again on Friday!
Thank you to the following for their notes, comments, posts, messages, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, PB’, Eagle Goddess, The Dodo, Liznm, Unity, Tomas Borbely, Maryland Western Shore Old Town Home, LRWT, Birds of Pool Harbour, Loch Doon, Llyn Clywedog, Bywyd Gwylld Glaslyn, Dyfi Osprey Project, Cumbria Wildlife Trust, Kielder Forest, Tweed Valley Osprey Project, Montana Osprey Project, Charlo Montana, Golden Gate Audubon, Snow Lane Osprey Cam/Newfoundland Power, Nova Scotia Ospreys/Connie and Don Dennis, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Cornell Bird Lab Red-tail Hawk Cam, Trempeauleau Eagle Cam, FOBBV, Sauces Canyon/IWS and Explore, Fraser Point/IWS and Explore, Denton Homes, LDF, Xcel Energy, The Weather Centre of Manitoba, LDF/Verotaja, San Jose City Hall, SK Hideaways, The Guardian, Loon Preservation Society, Farmer Derek
The Victoria long weekend is over. People have gone to the greenhouses and planted their annual flowers and herbs. We now live in the hope that frost does not return!
Toby is doing much better. His switch is either on or off. There is nothing in the middle! Today Toby discovered The Girl’s water fountain. He loves drinking out of it instead of his dish. Yes! That makes my life much easier. And he even got to go on an adventure. Toby went in his pram to the greenhouse so we could pick up some red and purple fuchsia for the hummingbirds and some bright red Salvia. Once home we planted three different types of peas/beans: Latvian Soup Peas, Osayo Endo Pea, and a Kentucky Wonder Climbing bean. The cherry tomatoes are in big pots with frames along with the peppers. Dill and Rosemary are planted and all we need are to move the Hibiscus outside and plant some Japanese eggplant, English cucumbers, and maybe some of the small watermelons. Hopefully the weather will cooperate. I bought a new watering hose last fall and the hope is that it does not tangle around itself – it is not supposed to!
I should say that Toby was an angel both in the car and in the pram moving around the greenhouse. What a wonderful little traveller. Today I knocked on wood because he also doesn’t bark or whine. If he is on the sofa and needs to get down, he makes two faint little barks and I do mean faint. I could not ask for anything more – he loves his cheese and peanut butter, eats his kibble, and is about 97% accurate when hitting the bull’s eye on the puppy pads. Our friend ‘AK’ sent us an ad for scrunchies to hold back the ears. These should really help as his ears and legs seem to grow over night. I am hoping that they will help prevent water getting in the ear when he is drinking and maybe help with infections! So cute.
The Girls are doing very well. Do you remember when Hugo Yugo was small? It seemed that she was destined to stay small. Well, something happened. Overnight, she seemed to grow, and I do mean grow. She is long and tall, and I believe it is bigger than Calico overall!!!!!! I hope to take some better photos in the next few days, so you can see what I’m talking about. It is a shock. She is still the lovable baby of the group, regardless.
The relief in hearing about Akecheta’s survival has filled my inbox. Monday morning there were over 1900 letters with more than 1000 of them overflowing with love for A61, blue wing tag, male resident at the West End nest. Each and everyone of us hopes, beyond hope, that Thunder is with him. I will continue to ask: Why not? The experts didn’t think Akecheta would be near Ojai, California so why not have Thunder with him? She left her eggs (almost unthinkable for an eagle mother) and was not seen at the West End after the 28th of February. That was approximately six weeks after Akecheta’s injury on the 19th of January. It makes sense to me. Everyone wishes Thunder had a wing tag, too! But maybe someone will capture more images of Akecheta with a female and we can see if it might be Thunder.
Coupled with this unbelievable miracle was the sadness at the Golden Eagle nest of Spilve and Grislis. It is a rare exception that the second eaglet survives. Knowing that this is practically inevitable in this species, it is much better if the little one goes quickly right after hatch. We have, in the past, witnessed the second eaglet survive to the point they were getting juvenile feathers and then get starved or killed or both in that order.
If you watch, there is often a pattern. The adults will withhold food. Once the second eaglet is no longer, food arrives, like a reward.
More information: In golden eagles, siblicide – the killing of a sibling – is a well-known phenomenon, particularly when there is a difference in size or strength between the nestlings. The older, larger chick may aggressively attack the younger, smaller sibling, leading to its death through physical injury or starvation. This behavior is often referred to as “bill-stabbing,” where the older chick jabs its younger sibling.
Here’s a more detailed look at siblicide in golden eagles:
Asynchronous Hatching:Golden eagles often lay two eggs, and the first-hatched chick is usually larger and stronger.
Size and Strength:The larger chick may start aggressively attacking its smaller sibling soon after hatching, leading to its death.
“Bill-stabbing”:A common method of killing involves the older chick stabbing the younger one around the neck or body.
Obligate Siblicide:In some cases, siblicide can be obligate, meaning that the younger chick almost always dies.
Survival:The larger chick’s survival is often favored due to the potential for more efficient resource allocation and a better chance of fledging
We have certainly noticed the difference in ospreys. There is a higher likelihood of siblicide if the first hatch is a female and is much larger and older than the third hatch. All we have to do is think of Solly or Zoe at Port Lincoln to understand this. There is, of course, the all-time issue of enough food for all the chicks and the ability of the female to manage the feeding of all.
Glaslyn: It would appear that Aran has, indeed, relinquished his nest to Elen and Teifi. I am glad that he is alright. Many times these raptors will fight to the near-death or death for their territory.
Llyn Brenig: We have sat mesmerised by the ringing of the chicks on all of the nests, whether it be an osprey, an eagle, or a hawk. Chicks are weighed, measurements are taken, and identification rings applied along with satellite trackers (sometimes). Genders are announced based on the measurements at the time. A colleague once told me “Don’t argue with the ringers!” They do not always get that gender correct. Olwen is a good example!
Hellgate Canyon Ospreys:
Union County Falcon chicks are ringed! Watch Sylvia’s video for all the action: https://youtu.be/JMxgasJZLT4? She comments: “It’s banding day for the 4 eyasses of Union County. The chicks are taken out one by one, put in a tote bag and taken downstairs where they will be banded and examined out of view. The inside cam is wiped clean and the igloo gets some new gravel inside. The torn greenery is also replaced. The crew returns with 3 females and 1 male. Unfortunately there was a big glitch in the stream and time gap. Three are already inside and the 4th comes out of the bag. They have a lot to say but eventually they calm down and recover from their field trip”
White Rock Eagles: The two eaglets being raised by the single mother are still thriving! Sandy Jo captured a recent feeding. It does include a live bird as prey so exercise caution if you might find this disturbing. https://youtu.be/fxTg8DNHXPU?
Trempeauleau Eagles: Another eaglet being raised by a single Mum. T3 is doing very, very well. There is a big fish waiting for dinner!
‘PB’ reports that it is going to be a wet day for this nest.
Denton Homes and OPPD Fort Calhoun Ospreys are in the line of a huge storm that is approaching as I write this (1900 Monday the 19th of May). The winds are really picking up. ‘PB’ advises that the storm chasers are in the area as the line of tornadoes approaches.
At 1930 the winds are really picking up at Denton Homes. You cannot see the swaying unfortunately. Mum is on the nest with the babies.
By 1955, the winds were roaring, and the sway of the tree could make even a sailor seasick. Hang on, Majestics. This is a bad storm. We need this nest to hold. Remember, Clive rode out Hurricane Milton by hunkering down in the nest. Many people are sending prayers and positive wishes to the Majestics.
Mum and chicks are shaking off the rain while it and the wind continue. The nest is soaked to its core. I hope the weight of it is not a problem.
‘PB’ says the rain should stop for both nests around 0300 – that is six more hours.
The nest held!
Foulshaw Moss: The second chick has arrived for White YW and Blue 35.
Heidi’s Nest Note:
Brevard County: The eldest chick is practicing self-feeding and doing some wingers. The chicks are 41 and 40 days old. There is no doubt in my mind, chick 2 has thrived because of Mom catching those huge fish at least once a day. That has made all the difference at this nest.
Heidi is absolutely correct. Many of the females resort to adding to the pantry and in almost every instance it has meant that a smaller chick has survived to fledge!
Geemeff Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Monday 19th May 2025
Daily summary Monday 19th May 2025
As I was preparing this report stating no fish today, Louis turned up with an unusually late first fish – just a tiddler, but Dorcha tore into it and polished it off on the nest while Louis stood next to her, not moving towards the eggs, and he departed soon after she’d swallowed the tail. His tally rises to ninety seven. On Nest One, Aurora paid a visit in the morning but Garry didn’t come to the nest today, although an Osprey was seen via LizB’s telescope eating fish in a tree near the nest, with another Osprey perched nearby. As only fish delivered to the nest are included in the fish stats, his tally remains at fifty eight. The weather was settled again and will stay that way until the weekend. If the forecast is correct, hatching could take place in the rain, but Dorcha is a very good mumbrella and should keep the the tiny chicks warm and dry. Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.27.00 (03.14.45); Nest Two 23.50.27 (03.45.19)
Latvian White Tail Eagles, Durbe County: Milda and Zorro’s chicks have names -Leo and Neo -and are going to fight over prey! https://youtu.be/XzgP_axFDsE?
Cornell Red-tail Hawks: O1 and O2 are the cutest little things. They are getting big and often peek out from under Big Red.
Everyone’s welcome to join the community at Woodland Trust’s Osprey forum, it’s fun, free and friendly:
I would like to take a moment to acknowledge that Kelly Sorenson is celebrating thirty years with the Ventana Wildlife Society. Congratulations!
Thank you for being with us today. Please take care. We hope to see you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, comments, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘AK, Geemeff, Heidi, PB’, Wilson Bulletin, Cornell Bird Lab Birds of the World, Rosie Shields and Border Ospreys, Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn, Llyn Brenig, Montana Osprey Cams, Sylvia, Sandy Jo, Trempeauleau Eagles, Denton Homes, OPPD Fort Calhoun Ospreys, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, Lizmn, Brevard County, Foulshaw Moss/Cumbria Wildlife Trust
. Good morning.
