Category Archives: turtle dove

Thursday in Bird World

3 April 2025

Good Morning Everyone!

Well, I am over the moon with the arrival of Louis and Dorcha at the Loch Arkaig 2 nest on Wednesday. I mean, seriously, this is magical. I couldn’t believe it and then I couldn’t stop smile and quietly giggling to myself. Just like the miracle eagle babies in the US, it just doesn’t get much better than this in UK Osprey World!

‘The Girls’ divide themselves into couples.

Hugo Yugo and Missey are always together. Always.

Calico and her only surviving kitten, Baby Hope, are likewise always together. Hope waits for Mum to finish eating before she eats – just as she did when she was a kitten.

I am showing it again just for you to get the idea. Hope is very good friends and plays with Hugo Yugo and she doesn’t mind Missey. Calico and Missey are not pals. They do not like one another and so, today, I am off to get some more of that diffuser that should make them ‘love one another’. Wish me luck!

While they are curious about the feral cats and tolerate Brock, they do not like the new ones that are arriving. To keep the stress down for them, the plan is to move the feral feeder to the back of the garden area away from our garden door. I can still keep an eye to see if Brock is coming and if he needs our help.

This blog contains the mention of Louis’ arrival home at least three times. Here are the videos in case you missed them. This in response to the more than 400 e-mails of you with tears in your eyes and the following from one of our long time Bird World friends. ‘B’ writes: “Oh, thank goodness!!  Thank you Mary Ann!  It has been such a difficult year, with the loss of Annie and Archie, and Thunder and Akecheta, E24 and E25, and (so far) the loss of Chase and Cholyn’s eggs at Two Harbors.  We have to be thankful for every blessing we get with Jackie and Shadow at Big Bear, Audacity and Jak at Sauces, Bodie at NE Florida, and now the return of Louis (Louis the Legend!!) and Dorcha at Loch Arkaig.”

‘B’ is so right. There are miracles and blessings and each day with our feathered friends has to be treasured and never taken for granted. We love them dearly.

Welcome home Dorcha! Resident female Osprey returns to Loch Arkaig Nest Two 2nd April 2025 (zoomed):13.58.57 An Osprey call is heard off camera – is it Louis? Sounds like him. I boosted the audio the better to hear the call. 14.04.19 An Osprey lands with a chirp – but it’s Dorcha, not Louis! Welcome home! 

14.06.20 She departs, flying lochwards and disappearing into the distance. Where is Louis?

Welcome home Louis! Resident male Osprey returns to Loch Arkaig Nest Two 2nd April 2025 (zoomed):19.43.55 An Osprey comes unseen from the cam side and lands on the cam post with a thunk and a soft cry. 19.47.30 The Osprey takes off, circles round, heads back to the nest  

19.47.44 It lands – it’s Louis!! Welcome home, it’s so good to see you.

https://youtu.be/8WyDfBGdXgYTogether again! The reunion of the resident Loch Arkaig Ospreys Louis and Dorcha 2nd April 2025:

20.11.35 Louis is on the nest and starts displaying, flapping his wings 20.12.00 Dorcha arrives and is reunited with Louis Louis starts coy-mantling, she just stands there quietly 20.21.54 Dorcha leaves, Louis remains behind and starts nest prep, doing some nest scraping 20.46.57 Louis leaves for the night

Heidi’s US Osprey Report:

4/2 – Venice Golf Club: Congratulations to Mom and Dad on their first hatch.  The baby hatched sometime overnight.

4/2 –  Brevard County:  Mom was very secretive, but the first baby hatched at approximately 13:30.

Updates to the hatches from Heidi!

4/3 – Brevard County: A pip was first seen 4/2 at 21:00, and the second baby was out of the shell 4/3 by around 00:30.

4/3 – Venice Golf Club: The second baby arrived sometime in the overnight hours.

4/3 – Havre de Grace osprey nest: The first egg of the season was laid this morning at 06:59.

Heidi asked me to make a correction: CORRECTION:  PLEASE CHANGE DATE OF Maryland Western Shore egg #2 to  4/1.

And I missed this one from Heidi!

Kent Island: 3/30 – Kent Island, Maryland (Chesapeake Conservancy):  ‘Tom’ arrived home on the same day that he returned last year. Nice to see you, Tom.  Tom is waiting for Audrey, who is currently a week past the date that she arrived last season.

Mary Ann’s Osprey News:

Rutland Mantou Bay: Maya lays her first egg on 2 April.

Golden Gate Audubon: Richmond and Rosie welcomed their first egg of the 2025 season on Tuesday 1 April.

Loch Arkaig: If you missed it, Louis and Dorcha are home. More from Geemeff below but I had to mention it twice. My inbox flowed with over 400 e-mails about this fantastic couple. We all remember Louis and Aila and their triplets during the pandemic. We miss Aila, we embraced Dorcha, and then we worried ourselves to death that Louis might not return this year. Well, he fooled us and I hope that he has recovered from whatever ailed him last season.

Glaslyn: Elen is home waiting for Aran. Now we have a visitor, a male.

Cowlitz PUD: Electra arrived at the nest on 30 March.

Goitzsche Wildnis : J Castnyer writes: “If yesterday it was Herbert, from the Eschenbach nest, who brought a red fish to the new couple, today Zeus did the same to the one from Goitzsche Wildnis. Very attached to the claws, yes. There was a moment of tug-of-war between him and a Fjona who was very interested in the teak, not only because of the color, but because of the appetite it had.” From this it would appear that the original Fjona has not returned but I hope this is just my misunderstanding. Stay tuned for clarification.

Here is that ‘red fish’ that Herbert brought to the Eschenbach nest yesterday:

Geemeff’s Daily Summary for Loch Arkaig!

Daily summary Wednesday 2nd April 2025

What an eventful day – apart from the Really Dark Female (RDF) turning up on Nest Two this morning, the main action took place in the afternoon and evening. Louis and Dorcha have returned! We heard Louis’ characteristic call off-camera then an Osprey arrived, but confusingly, it was Dorcha! Looking a little hollow cropped but otherwise in good shape. She left and the nest stayed empty as the light started to fade but then a chirrup was heard and a wingtip seen from someone up on the cam post, then the Osprey departed, flew off, circled round and landed on the nest – it was Louis! He is looking in magnificent shape with a nicely rounded crop. He stayed on the nest looking around then suddenly started displaying and the reason soon became obvious when Dorcha arrived. Their reunion was quiet, no noise, no mating attempts, just some coy-mantling from Louis, with Dorcha not calling for fish as judging by her crop, she’d eaten since first appearing on the nest. Had she caught her own fish, or had she met up with Louis earlier and he’d given her a fish off-nest? We’ll never know, but what is certain is the resident pair are both safely home, and the nest cam community is absolutely thrilled. And for a bonus, the weather cooperated too.

Night cam switches on (day cam): 

Nest One 21.10.08 (05.41.53)

Nest Two 21.23.55 (05.58.36)

Today’s videos, all Nest Two:

https://youtu.be/GdxCrcgFs9w  First visit by an Osprey – and it’s the RDF! 10.35.35 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/0at1Hn1OO68  Welcome home Dorcha! 14.04.19 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/8WyDfBGdXgY Welcome home Louis! 19.47.44 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/drkXe1oXJ6E  The resident pair are reunited 20.12.00

Bonus link – several members of the community have kindly made donations to celebrate the return of our Ospreys, here’s the link if you’d like to join in: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/support-us/give/donation

If you prefer to show support in other ways, you can buy from Woodland Trust’s shop: https://shop.woodlandtrust.org.uk/

Or become a member: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/support-us/woodland-trust-membership/

Or link your Nectar points and donate them to WT: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/support-us/join/nectar/

Blast from the past, all from this day last year:

https://youtu.be/jKAmWUAhVTY Dorcha stars on BBC Breakfast TV 

https://youtu.be/xopDMmwwx2E Louis delivers the first fish of the day

https://youtu.be/GVX93Gmg5KI George on BBC Radio Scotland 

https://youtu.be/ziFi6Kiqclc Prince brings another fish to Nest One 

https://youtu.be/5eWslEsf8-A Freeze frame comparison of the stranger with Garry LV0 

Come and join the friendly community at Woodland Trust’s Osprey forum, it’s free and everyone’s welcome:

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam

Bald Eagle News:

‘J’ sends news that we have a pip/hatch underway at Fort St Vrain in Colorado!

Big Bear: Sunny and Gizmo just cannot stop growing. Snow has started falling but let us all wish that this nest misses any big storms heading for the north of California. https://youtu.be/3rTqyFDnlXE?

More cuteness from the FOBBV Cam: https://youtu.be/CLYP4TJXuYs?

NCTC: It might have been horrific year for Bella last year, but this year is an entirely different story. Bella and Scout’s triplets are doing very well.

John Bunker Sands: The kids are really wanting to fly! https://youtu.be/R06mn7eepQQ?

Other Birds:

Cornell Red Tail Hawks: I reported that Big Red laid her third egg Wednesday morning. Oh, I love this 22 year old incredible Mum and dear Arthur. Here he nudges her off the eggs so she can have a break and he can have some incubation time. I always wonder if Arthur senses that she is more tired than she was 8 years ago? And he is really stepping up to help. Love them. So glad to have the privilege to watch them raise another family. https://youtu.be/ih0pGF7rguQ?

Great Spirit Bluff: Newmann and Elaine have their third egg on 2 April.

‘T’ sends us a video of the Imperial Eagles in RU welcoming a new breeding season.

https://vk.com/feed?w=wall8472470_5332&z=video8472470_456239537%2F8c0732251b6beea12d%2Fpl_post_8472470_5332

Calico’s Tip for the Day: Please read this and educate everyone you know.

I don’t want to end the blog on a negative note so I am putting this article here. I want you to pause and think about how many billions of animals we – humans – kill in the factory farms across the world and the inhumane conditions those animals live in. Now, the EU is allowing the shooting of doves. Seriously? I get an ‘acidic’ stomach just thinking about this. What is wrong with people?

Turtle doves to be shot for sport again across Europe as EU lifts hunting banhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/apr/02/turtle-doves-to-be-shot-for-sport-again-across-europe-as-eu-lifts-hunting-ban?CMP=share_btn_url

Huge storms heading east from Arkansas could impact many of our beloved birds. Stay safe everyone.

Always nice to see a utility company helping our beloved raptors:

Utility company trying to help nesting Ospreys find suitable nests and prevent electrocution and / or power outages:

Eversource Hoping To Help Ospreys Establish Proper Nesting In Chatham

Thank you so much for being with us today. Take care everyone. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for giving me help with my blog today: ‘B, Geemeff, Heidi, J, T’, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, VGCCO, Brevard County, LRWT, Kent Island/Chesapeake Conservancy, Golden Gate Audubon, Jeff Kear and Byryd Gwylld Glaslyn, Cowlitz PUD, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust, FOBBV, SK Hideaways, NCTC, John Bunker Sands Wetlands, Great Spirit Bluff Ospreys/Explore, Joan Castnyer, Eschenbach Osprey Platform, Goitzsche Wildnis Osprey Platform, SK Hideaways, The Guardian, CapeCod.com, Kaitlin Wright Meterologist, RU Imperial Eagle Cam

Sunday in Bird World

5 January 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

Another -22 C with bright sunshine. Cold. Cold.

We spent the day being ultra-busy securing a month’s worth of cat food for the indoor and outdoor felines and fresh fruit and veg for us. The birdseed arrived on Friday. After checking and seeing six deer in the forest, we got home in the deep cold and started moving furniture. Yes, cleaning the house is great exercise, but warmer weather and a walk in the forest is much more enjoyable! So the point of moving all the furniture – which delighted the cats as they discovered old toys again – is to make way for a stationary bicycle. We can peddle through the Highlands, go through Bali’s rice fields, or enjoy the golden fields of southern France. We will get those 4-10k walks in one way or another. It arrives on Wednesday.

I don’t make New Year’s resolutions because they have never worked for me. However, our goal is to make 2025 an even better year than 2024. Wish us luck! We plan to plant more trees and shrubs, modify the wood boxes with chicken coop lamps, and launch Calico’s Corner to help feral cats and wildlife—that should keep us busy for a while. What are you hoping to do?

As someone commented in the Achieva chat, it is difficult to watch Jack sitting on the perch, calling for Diane. We have no evidence of what happened or any ring numbers to provide clarity. The one thing we do know is that the platform is currently unsafe for eggs and chicks and requires restoration. There are many ospreys in the area that could utilize the platform if it were fixed, but if I were a female osprey, I certainly wouldn’t lay my eggs on that nest!

Osprey platforms are very expensive to build and install. Just ask the folks at Friends of Osprey South Australia! The Achieva nest has withstood several hurricanes, including Hurricane Milton. I am surprised that no one has volunteered a cherry picker to fix the holes and replace the nesting material to encourage occupation. We learned from Newfoundland Power that helping ospreys by adding nesting material and making the nest comfortable can change the behaviour of the female. For the first time in many years, Beaumont and Hope successfully fledged two osplets in 2024. It felt like a miracle happened at that nest.

Raccoons can get almost anywhere. One was on the Whirly Crane, the old nest of Richmond and Rosie in SF Bay, early Saturday morning. I wonder if they moved their nest last year because of the predators? https://youtu.be/vnp2jx-bzlU?

Need a smile? Wisdom is back from foraging and has relieved her mate to incubate their egg on the Midway Atoll.

Many people are finding comfort in watching the Bald Eagle nests in Captiva and Southwest Florida. The adult eagles are demonstrating experienced parenting, and there is plenty of prey available on the nests. We have the joy of observing four adorable eaglets as they develop into fledglings before we know it!

It looks like it if fish dinners with an egret side course at the Captiva Bald Eagle nest of Clive and Connie and C12 and C13.

M15 brings in some interesting meals. It looks like fish and the two SW Florida eaglets are just cute little itchy pin feathered buttons.

Already stuffed to the top of their little Mohawks and they are getting more food at SW Florida! It was one of those beautiful tandem feedings.

Gabby took her typical spa day before the eaglets hatch. She used to do this when she was on the nest with her much loved Samson.

Jackie comes to the nest with a nice fish and she doesn’t want anyone to share it! https://youtu.be/y7RhOCQisdc?

Many people in the UK are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the first ospreys. We hope to see Blue NC0 at Loch of the Lowes and Maya at Rutland in early March.

Some of the Peregrine scrapes are getting busy.

A nice thought.

Idaho is working for wildlife. I would love to have a few of these in Winnipeg!

If you have been following the saga of the Florida Manatees, there is good news and bad coming out of the state.

Florida Manatees Rebound In Indian River Lagoon | Weather.comDownload

You can’t find a happier osprey FB group – I seriously mean this – than the Ospreys of Nova Scotia. Healthy, happy nests (31 nests lost only 2 chicks last year post-fledge), a responsive utility company that amends nests if there is an electrocution, lots of friendly chatters who check on their sites and post daily, and then there are the frantic laughs provided by the members.

Geemeff sends us news about walking our dogs!

These little birds fly up to 10,000 km, only to be disturbed by humans walking their dogs, who probably don’t even notice these gallant little migrants.

https://www.countypress.co.uk/news/24814126.sanderlings—small-wading-birds-isle-wight-beaches

A new word for everyone today comes to you from Calico. that word is FLUORESCENCE!

A ban on killing Turtle Doves will protect the highly endangered species. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/jan/01/turtle-doves-european-shoot-ban-species-recovery?CMP=share_btn_url

“Turtle Dove” by Andy Morffew is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

What are the threats to the European Turtle Dove? The European turtle dove (Streptopelia turtur) faces many threats, including:

  • Habitat loss: Intensive farming practices, such as the use of pesticides and herbicides, reduce the number of seeds available for the doves to eat. 
  • Illegal hunting: Turtle doves are often illegally hunted or trapped, especially in the Mediterranean. Hunting is prohibited during breeding season by EU law, but the problem persists. 
  • Disease: Disease can contribute to the decline of the turtle dove population. 
  • Unsustainable hunting: Unsustainable levels of hunting can threaten the turtle dove population

Operation Turtle Dove gives us more information:

Why are turtle doves in trouble? – Operation Turtle DoveDownload

The video of the first egg at Hilton Head. Thanks J: https://youtu.be/VoxhzjTlesc?

‘J’s eagle tally so far:

Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. We hope to see you soon.

Thank you to the following for your notes, posts, articles, images, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, J’, Achieva Credit Union, SF Bay Ospreys by Golden Gate Audubon, Jeff Kear and Colins Cornflake Capers, Window to Wildlife, SW Florida Eagle Cam, SK Hideaways, Tewkesbury Peregrine Falcons, Alt National Park Service, Idaho Transportation Department, The Weather Channel, Ospreys of Nova Scotia, National Wildlife Federation, The Guardian, OpenVerse, Operation Turtle Dove, Countrypress, Hilton Head Wildlife Reserve