Category Archives: White-bellied Sea Eagle

Who’s Home? …Monday in Bird World

8 September 2025

Hello Everyone,

Late Update

From ‘PS’ on the Seattle Osprey Platform:

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.

Usk Valley sent a newsletter:

Clogwyn — Usk Valley OspreysDownload

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.

Bella and Scout are at the NCTC nest. Thanks, Deb Stecyk, for the video: https://youtu.be/8YhYtp-1NNw?

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!

A feeding for the little sea eaglets posted by Nesting Bird Life and More.https://youtu.be/l6YJo-k-KiU?

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.

The baby is still at Dunrovin along with Swoop.

SK Hideaways sends us their video offerings:

Sydney WB Sea-Eagles: SE35 & SE36’s Tug-of-Scrap, Cuddles & Clown Feet Complications (2025 Sept 6)

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:

00:00 SE36 joins Lady & Dad’s duet

01:15 Playing tug-of-scrap

06:10 Coordinating clown feet

07:05 Cuddling cuteness

07:50 Wing & talon stretches

Courtesy Sea-EagleCAM@BirdLife Australia Discovery Centre, Sydney Olympic Park (https://www.sea-eaglecam.org/video.html)

Nest cam also at https://www.youtube.com/@SeaEagleCAM4/streams

Diamond & Gimbir Mate Twice ~ Much Merriment Follows (7 Sept 2025)

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: 

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/vital-role-managing-woodland-trusts-estate-wildlife-sam-tarrant-z3spe

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/MLfW-peV_XQ  N1 Lachlan’s first landing 2017 (thanks Scylla)

https://youtu.be/I0uoAC0dlUQ  N1 Louis brings fish for Lachlan 2017 (thanks Scylla)

https://youtu.be/_FLrEFyGezQ  N1 They’re all gone: nest is empty except for a songbird 2020

https://youtu.be/aeXz-KzosR4  N2 Sarafina, Hoodies, Louis, a fish and a flypast 2022

https://youtu.be/MG1nx4CSbgE N2 Four types of little birds visit the empty nest 2022

https://youtu.be/o7A0pWVlZuk  N2 Louis brings Sarafina a mackerel 2022

https://youtu.be/z7eY4ch5_7g N2 Louis’ crop is full when he brings the first fish 2022 (slo-mo)

https://youtu.be/vp8aULxjQAY  N1 Great Tit (Parus major) investigates the empty nest 2023

https://youtu.be/39uwe2TbACQ  N1 Arachnophobes beware!  Spider gets up close and personal 2023

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

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:

https://youtu.be/sCb2ipoH3K8 N1 Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) visits 02.22.09

https://youtu.be/VRxbEZsSP8Y N2 A Robin (Erithacus rubecula) visits 06.00.02Bonus read – are migration patterns for UK Ospreys changing?
https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/2023/09/osprey-shortened-migration/

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/Xl_8AxlIfkc  N1 Cheeky Hoodie invades the nest despite Rannoch nearby 2019

https://youtu.be/poMrwR2FX_w  N1 Confirmed: Final sighting of Rannoch on the nest 2019

https://youtu.be/hL6JazzmUEg  N1 Confirmed: Vera’s final visit to the nest (short version) 2020

https://youtu.be/I0aAo6YU6F8  N1 For fans of Vera: her final visit (long version) 2020

https://youtu.be/Y3XChI4pFV4 N1 Small raptor (Sparrowhawk?) visits the empty nest 2020

https://youtu.be/rkJolVwk_Y8 N2 Business as usual for Louis and Sarafina 2022

https://youtu.be/HHXIj2ufC50  N2 Hoodie alert! Sarafina exits hastily with her fish 2022

https://youtu.be/o5NcT2J4KTc  N2 A Hoodie targets Sarafina and her fish 2022

https://youtu.be/n85DjMBiPQY N1 September sunshine tempts a Coal Tit onto the nest 2024

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

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: 

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbKmvYI09ziwqjG5qfUnNdty4hB4uSFXT
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 20.57.26 (

05.45.31); Nest Two 20.50.26 (

05.49.33)
Today’s videos: none

Bonus recipe from our very own Woodland Trust Scotland George – make some bramble whisky!

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2019/08/bramble-whisky

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/LEMJm8XBfas  N1 Lachlan eats one fish, departs with another 2017 (thanks Scylla)

https://youtu.be/o-WY7x6x5Xc  N1 Whose nest is it anyway? Rannoch and a Hoodie 2019

https://youtu.be/VOXzZ-0vTSo  N1 Confirmed: final sighting of Louis 2019  

https://youtu.be/1310c1jFxaU  N1 Who’s on the nest before Vera gets breakfast from Louis? 2020 

https://youtu.be/7pj8uTDrCKc  N1 Confirmed: final sighting of Louis 2020

https://youtu.be/j4z65mVcjkI  N2 Sarafina departs and the Hoodies move in 2022

https://youtu.be/BV2mAedbJ9o  N2 Hoodies on the nest force Louis to abort landing with his fish 2022

https://youtu.be/vPO_llkryLo N2 Mobbed by crows, Sarafina loses her fish! 2022

https://youtu.be/4ekm0Uf7r7c  N1 Misty morning sunrise 2023 (Artistic Ospreys timelapse)

https://youtu.be/C5w-9s869M4  N2 Juvenile Sparrowhawk visits 2023 (zoom)

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

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.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/sep/06/country-diary-the-river-runs-dry-in-this-false-autumn?CMP=share_btn_url

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.

Public strongly backs aim of 30% of land and sea set aside for nature, poll findshttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/sep/05/30×30-biodiversity-target-protecting-nature-land-seas-survey-public-support-aoe?CMP=share_btn_url

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.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2025/sep/05/fishing-south-east-asia-in-pictures-thailand-philippines-indonesia?CMP=share_btn_link

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.

Doublecrested Cormorant American ShagDownload

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.

Monday in Bird World

1 September 2025

Good Morning Everyone!

I’m late! Lots of news.

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.

Courtesy Sea-EagleCAM@BirdLife Australia Discovery Centre, Sydney Olympic Park (https://www.sea-eaglecam.org/video.html)

Nest cam also at https://www.youtube.com/@SeaEagleCAM4/streams

SE35 and SE36 Nibble Clown Feet, Beaky Kiss, and Cuddle

Sydney White-Bellied Sea Eagles (2025 Aug 31)

SE35 and SE36 had the nest to themselves, so cam ops took the opportunity to zoom in to the cuteness. 

Courtesy Sea-EagleCAM@BirdLife Australia Discovery Centre, Sydney Olympic Park (https://www.sea-eaglecam.org/video.html) 

Nest cam also at https://www.youtube.com/@SeaEagleCAM4/streams

Here’s one more – the young tiercel at Orange.

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 

State of the UK’s Woods and Trees report:https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/state-of-uk-woods-and-trees/

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/ECZCvjfv2RE  N1 Breakfast for Lachlan 2017 (thanks Scylla)

https://youtu.be/BrP-yVmDLTg  N1 Daddy’s little girl: Louis brings breakfast for Rannoch 2019 

https://youtu.be/ASzCFlv2ZWU  N1 Daddy’s little girl: Louis brings Vera another mackerel 2020

https://youtu.be/0dzTFe878FI N2 Daddy’s little girl: Louis brings Sarafina a flapping fish 2022

https://youtu.be/P1ssYays84o  N2 No takers for the fish so Louis takes it away again 2022

https://youtu.be/cdSV6EEtVwA  N2 Sparrowhawk causes Hoodies to flee the nest 2023 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/FzP9g_92PQI  N2 A small raptor flies across the nest 2023 (slo-mo zoom)

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:

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam/?ht-comment-id=27717133
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.24.35 (05.13.38); Nest Two 21.15.19 (05.34.04)
Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/ParQX-rqPec N1 Tawny Owl (Strix aluco) pays a midnight visit 00.44.09

https://youtu.be/TFLcoXLuJOE N2 Coal Tits and a Blue Tit investigate the nest 09.20.27

https://youtu.be/7geTciJSH4s N1 Coal Tit flits around the nest 10.30.31Bonus read – WT scientist is examining the 800 year old Druid Oak to see if its DNA can help save future forests:https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2xz8r7egpoBlast from the past, this day in previous years:
https://youtu.be/jsDHToe6rUM N1 Breakfast arrives for vociferous Vera 2020
https://youtu.be/yqjTp04jfSc  N1 Vera does a flypast before arriving ready for Louis with fish 2020
https://youtu.be/-hi-VABn-l4  N1 Little songbirds visit the empty nest 2020
https://youtu.be/gYLmi9ILHEo N2 Cocky Corvid tweaks Sarafina’s tail and steal her fish 2022
https://youtu.be/Q384cYlIOz0 N2 Louis does a flypast then waits patiently until Sarafina arrives 2022
https://youtu.be/Ni3VtPGi4Pw N2 Harassing Hoodies eventually cause Sarafina to flee the nest 2022

Idris is still delivering fish to Brianne at the Dyfi Osprey Platform in Wales.

‘DL’ found a juvenile landing on the Clark PUD nest in Washington State, US.

‘IP’ posts news of the Norwegian Nest:

13L has been spotted trying to fish at the Frau Rauer Norwegian nest: https://youtu.be/_dPJuiJ2JOc?

In Finland, at the Ilomantsin nest, the three juveniles remain at home screaming for fish! https://youtu.be/-ACc1KOu3_0?

Milda is delivering prey to her two fledglings in Latvia! Liznm caught it. https://youtu.be/KrAgqNWzBv0?

Meldrs is roosting off the nest of his mum, Spilve and father Grislis in Latvia. Isn’t he a gorgeous Golden Eagle?

A gorgeous Black Eaglet in the Sellati.

Victoria the Eagle has died.

More about the Berkshire Bird Paradise Sanctuary and its founder:

About — Berkshire Bird ParadiseDownload

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:

August newsletter see how conservation is helping wetlands and oceans thriveDownload

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.

Sadness at Dunrovin…Friday in Bird World

29 August 2025

Hello Everyone,

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.

Courtesy FOBBVCAM, Friends of Big Bear Valley

🪽 Egg #3 Arrives🥚Dad Brings Breakfast🥓 Congrats, Mum & Dad🎉 2025 Aug 29

367 Collins St. Falcons, Melbourne 

Mum and Dad welcomed their third egg. Dad took on incubation duties and brought breakfast as well. Busy guy. 

Courtesy 367 Collins St. Falcon Cam 

South Facing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oibsohQ14cY

North Facing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNKk0ivuWe4

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:

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

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2023/04/osprey-identification

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

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/animals/birds/osprey/
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 

21.18.33 (

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:

https://www.youtube.com/@lizbracken3674
Blast from the past, this day in previous years:
https://youtu.be/fVMtG5F3ThI  N1 Jumping jellyfish! Rannoch’s sneezing panda moment 2019
https://youtu.be/1RMV5UfWHHE  N1 Give and take: Louis brings a fish and takes a stick 2019
https://youtu.be/pGXgK0GMNl8  N1 A bat visits the nest 2019 (slo-mo)
https://youtu.be/aGEs5Tpn7Ng  N1 Rainbow and flatfish for Vera 2020
https://youtu.be/guCEb2Gy-VY  N1 Fast food! Is this the last supper for Vera? 2020
https://youtu.be/2grUWl7Mdeo  N2 Holy mackerel! Another fish for Sarafina 2022
https://youtu.be/y1sRBxzlF8E  N2 Confirmed: last sighting of Willow 2022https://youtu.be/62dNfGk0AEc  N2 Dyson the Hoodie pays a visit 2023
https://youtu.be/pitvvk8HnhQ  N2 Dyson returns but no more fish til next year! 2023
https://youtu.be/Y4UJXG3BY40  N1 A pair of little birds visit 2023https://youtu.be/9raQZmSsDdE N1 By day and by night: Penelope the magic weaver 2024

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:

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam/?ht-comment-id=27669614  Steve’s migration age stats

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam/?ht-comment-id=27669204  Steve’s season duration of adult stats

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam/?ht-comment-id=27661789  George’s Nature30 links

Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.35.46 (05.07.50); Nest Two 21.50.48 (05.30.51)

Today’s videos: none

Bonus read – minister Jim Fairlie visited Loch Arkaig Pine Forest to explore issues around sustainable deer management:

https://www.thescottishfarmer.co.uk/news/25418231.minister-gains-insight-sustainable-deer-management

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/OB6LtEsTwig N1 Is this it, dad? Rannoch gets a very small fish 2019

https://youtu.be/mOuak3yiihg N1 A fish arrives and departs under its own steam 2020

https://youtu.be/TT9PseXWqGM N1 Dangerous intruder: a Pine Marten visits! 2020

https://youtu.be/R-KhzHiFgLw N2 Willow’s wonderful wings 2022 (slo-mo with zoom)

https://youtu.be/KD-1nkX6pkc N2 Hoodie cleaning crew move in 2022

https://youtu.be/beaeal1Hayo N1 Colourful little Redstart visits 2022

https://youtu.be/KHoE1Rzw2T0 N2 Lightning fast handover from Louis to Sarafina 2022

https://youtu.be/hTR19iu3QpQ N2 Willow protects her fish and tries to prevent Sarafina landing 2022#

Hawk Mountain’s most recent migration news:

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!

Season’s End with some Final Twists in the Tale! _ Scottish Wildlife TrustDownload

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.

The Dulles-Greenway Bald Eagle nest is now live. https://www.youtube.com/live/guYNIOtN5EE?si=DuGCqKYQbu3geqyN

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.

Prepare to fall in love…WBSE 35 is here

13 August 2025

Oh, what a day it was. There was a lot of positive vibes being sent out to the Olympic Park WBSE as WBSE 35 worked its way out of a shell that appeared to be crushed. Meanwhile, WBSE 36 is working to get out.

Look at this sweetie! What a nice strong neck! And Dad in with a fish and a change of incubation and brooding!

Thank you to the Sea Eagle cam for the captures!

Thank you to you for being with us – so excited to see a little eaglet on the nest.

Little sea eaglets making their way into the world…Wednesday in Bird World

13 August 2025

Good Morning,

‘A’ is keeping me on tenterhooks as we waited to see how long it would take that little sea eaglet to get out of what appeared to be a crushed egg!

“No time to chat now but the hatch was well underway this morning when Lady got up from the eggs. The little one can be seen working away (see 09:58 this morning, 13 August) but the shell is very crushed and it is looking like it could be a long hatch. By 10.20 the top half of the egg looks to be crushed almost entirely. At 11:11 not much progress appears to have been made. A glimpse at 13:06 and still no hatch. Another glimpse at 13:23 and the little one has still not made an appearance though nearly half the shell has been crushed. 

At 13:46 the eaglet appears to be breaking out through the crushed shell. It is now 2.30pm and I am hoping to see a hatch very soon. The wee one has been working for quite a while now and it appears to be getting very tired, though I hope I am wrong. Mum has remained on the nest during the day so far, though Dad has been nearby a lot of the time, ‘singing’ his half of a duet, though Mum is preoccupied and has not joined in. 

I will let you know when we have a hatch – as I said, I’m hoping it will be free within the hour or even sooner. It is so close to breaking out. 

14:50 and we can see a large hole in one side of the egg. But I can’t see the chick working inside the egg and it can’t have broken out of that hole yet. I do hope the little one is alright. I suppose it has plenty of oxygen and mum is keeping the egg and chick warm, so there is no reason why it can’t take a bit of a rest without it being a disaster. But I didn’t like the look of that eggshell. There has been so much rain during the incubation of these eggs, and they have got wet on several occasions though they haven’t really been soaked. The chick was working hard from inside the shell this morning, so we know it was fine at hatching time. There should be no reason for concern here, so why am I feeling so worried? I suppose it’s the first hatch on the Australian cameras for this season so it’s all a bit nerve-wracking. I will keep you posted. 

15:27 and still no hatch. The shell is completely crushed on one side and the shell is ‘breathing’ so we know the chick is alive inside. But still it hasn’t managed to get out of the shell. The crushing has not pushed inwards onto the chick, so it has plenty of room. It is just tired, I think. But it’s been working for a long while now. Theoretically, it should be fine. Enough oxygen. Enough warmth. Still absorbing the last of the nutrients from the yolk sac. So all should be good if it just has a bit of a rest and then completes the hatch. Of course the nights have been very cold and it would have been better if the wee one had been able to dry and warm up and perhaps even have a snack before dark but there’s plenty of time for all of that. I just want to see the eaglet safely out of that shell. It’s nearly 4pm here (and in Olympic Park) so it’s been a long day for mum and chick. There has been a close-up of the second egg that suggests the beginnings of a pip. In this nest, it’s always hard to tell because of the thinnish long dark damp leaves which can look like a crack or pip (and which can also stain the egg), but there was some delayed incubation practised so it’s possible that the second egg is no more than a day behind the first. Fingers crossed for two safe hatches close together. “

You can watch the action with the video captures by SK Hideaways: https://youtu.be/T8X9xLNys3w?

Here is the link to the cam so you can watch and welcome these little ones into what appears to be a wet world: https://www.youtube.com/live/Pgan3kbMr7w?si=AXTaRbvK-FtRb9MZ

Thank you to ‘A’ and to the Sea Eagle Cam for the screen captures above.

Thank you for checking in. Head over to the cam and watch the action in the Olympic Park. Let’s hope Dad catches those fish and other prey on that nest. These are going to be close hatches, we hope.

If you are a Royal Albatross fan, who isn’t???? RLK came in to feed the Royal Cam chick! Cornell Bird Lab shares that moment with us: https://youtu.be/Bpv85jcHWf4?

Busy Osprey Dads feeding fledglings with empty tanks…Monday in Bird World

11 August 2025

Hello Everyone,

We spent Saturday in the English Gardens admiring the gorgeous plantings, chatting to other dog lovers, and eating ice cream. Dogs get free ‘pup cups’ complete with a dog biscuit. Toby is already familiar with the routine!

You can see the ‘pup cup’ in the image below. The photos make Toby look ‘tiny’ – the dream of all humans when they get their picture taken! But he is now 16 lbs.

While we were there, we had a chance to talk to a photographer waiting for the elusive hummingbird. Yes, singular. Usually, the gardens would be full of hummingbirds, but he told me that he had talked to photographers in North Dakota, and they have so many hummingbirds they can’t believe it. The theory is that the wildfire smoke kept the hummers moving til they got to clean air.

Bears and other wildlife are still suffering.

Each of you will remember the wildlife and the fires in Australia – people helping with water for the koalas, many of them on fire. It is heartbreaking – well, beyond sad. Only time will tell how many eagles and ospreys will return next year, and whether there will be any trees for them to make nests. I wondered about the ash from the fires falling into the pristine lakes, and this is what I learned: “When ash from wildfires falls into lakes, it can introduce nutrients and toxins, potentially causing temporary algal blooms and impacting water quality. While the effects are often short-term, particularly in well-mixed lakes, they can disrupt the ecosystem and affect aquatic life.” 

Migration has started early, with geese congregating on many golf courses and sports fields.

At the park today, there were many more ducks and, in particular, Wood Ducks than I remember from previous years.

The weather is cooler and since the rains the past couple of days, the smoke has not been so bad. Earlier we had extreme warnings about being outside especially if anyone had respiratory issues.

At home, all is well. There are a couple of ‘witching’ times during the day when Toby needs to be calmed – after breakfast and in the late evening before bed. Otherwise, life with cats and a dog is going much better than I expected! Hugo Yugo continues to do better. She has been seen multiple times eating hard food and today ate two small tins of wet food for breakfast. She really wants to play with Toby and I must warn him that ‘the cats plot to get him in trouble’. Toby will go for his first little grooming session on Thursday. His nails really need trimming!

Missey does not quite fit on the small space at the top of this particular cat tree. She looks miserable.

Calico was inspecting the blueberry cookies for dogs thinking they should make some nice things for cats, too.

Toby spots Baby Hope inside the house when he is out.

They keep us busy.

Sunday waw three hours of sheer bliss at King’s Park. We walked and picnicked with Toby. The charcoal clouds left and the sun came out and it was simply glorious.

Part of our rigid routine is that Saturdays and Sundays are ‘family’ days. On the other days, we have Anne, Jaine, or appointments with doctors, haircuts, etc. So the weekend is reserved for ‘fun’, enjoying being together and walking outside. Our big disappointment is that there are not a lot of geese about – we will continue searching for them!

Time to get checking on those ospreys, and I want to start with one of our favourite fledglings from 2021 in South Australia, who is now old enough to be frantically looking for a mate – Ervie!!!!!!! Searching far and wide, Port Lincoln Osprey FB says, “Barge 2021 – Ervie is on the go again – still in search of the elusive partner. He has been for a visit to Taylor Island, and we know there are Osprey down there.”

The UK Hobbys are darlings.

Here’s the video capture by SK Hideaways: https://youtu.be/GoI0WP7RO1Q?

The pair were ringed, and here is the video by Wildlife Windows: https://youtu.be/h1XWCEbYKZs?

Leicester and Rutland’s Manton Bay:

Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s Foulshaw Moss:

Dyfi Osprey Project: Idris is very busy getting those fish to the nest for the fledglings.

Birds of Poole Harbour: Both CJ7 and Blue 022 are delivering fish to their four fledglings. One, 5R5, hasn’t been quite as lucky on getting fish at the nest. Fingers crossed their luck picks up!

Glaslyn: Teifi continues to deliver fish to Elen and to seal their bond for the 2026 season.

Balgavies Loch:

‘PS’ give us the news from the Seattle Osprey platform:

“Visited the last few days – Saturday I saw 3 fish deliveries from dad in 40 minutes or so! Two Starry Flounder and one Coho Salmon. With the fledglings around but not always on the nest dad’s arrival often led to a bit of a scrum – though on this particular day the loser didn’t have to feel that bad as fish after fish kept showing up. One of the Flounder I saw dad circle, dive, and catch, at a distance, and then bring it straight back to the nest. It was so close he didn’t even turn the fish and just flew it back facing the wrong way. Today I arrived at the tail end of a feed, with one of the fledglings finishing up what looked to be a Salmon of some sort. 

I haven’t seen mom since Aug-1; do you think she could have started her migration already, 7-10 days after the first fledge? Or maybe I’m just unlucky and keep missing her. 

The ever growing album in the same spot – https://www.flickr.com/gp/193514804@N08/2n65zuEk4k.”

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Sunday 10th August 2025
Today was about fish, plenty of them – Louis brought five fish, and not only did Darach 7P0 get four of them, but he also flew with fish for the first time. It was unintentional, as he slipped over the edge of the nest while pushing his brother Breac 7P7 away from his fish, but nevertheless, he took off flying clutching his fish, and returned a little later with it still firmly held in his talons. That’s a big milestone achieved as the ability to fly with fish is an essential skill for Ospreys, sometimes called fish hawks. After being the dominant chick for so long, Breac was forced to defer to Darach who grabbed fish first, then lunged at him and pushed him off the nest on several occasions, making it clear he would not be giving up his fish. Breac also lost fish to invading Hoodies, but luckily it was only a few scraps. Louis’ fish tally rises to four hundred and five (407 nest total) while the total for Garry LV0 who hasn’t been seen since the 7th remains unchanged on one hundred and forty. Dorcha also hasn’t been seen since the 7th and the last sighting of Affric 152 was on the 8th, we wait to see if any of them will still make an appearance on nest cam. The weather was reasonably settled today but the forecast for the next 24 hours is light rain and light winds with an overnight low of 14

°C and a high tomorrow of 18°C.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 

22.08.04 (04.32.48); Nest Two  21.57.01 (04.42.08)
Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/JTtFfH5B2Tc N2 Darach flies with fish for the first time, albeit accidentally 06.47.34https://youtu.be/w_Pz9_Y-138 N2 Louis waits patiently with a second fish, Breac finally arrives for it 09.27.57  https://youtu.be/-q-8BEQ-qAs N2 Darach pushes Breac off the nest to keep fish number three 16.36.05

https://youtu.be/aaBcMqNz-B0 N1 A little songbird visits – no Ospreys seen since the 8th 

17.13.43https://youtu.be/S2F9L9aJnTU N2 In the stramash over fish four Louis gets his leg bitten 18.33.33  https://youtu.be/XJfd2Bxpf0M N2 Darach also gets fish number five then turns on Breac 20.03.38 

https://youtu.be/8OlfdpONB9w N2 Breac suffers an invasion of Hoodies who steal scraps from him 20.37.17Bonus opportunity to support intrepid Morag who’s going to swim Loch Arkaig to raise funds for Woodland Trust:

https://www.justgiving.com/page/mary-cheadle-3

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/h7sWHXV4gck  N1 Pandemonium among Pandions 2019

https://youtu.be/nEEzGfX3qOE  N1 We missed you! Welcome back Aila 2019

https://youtu.be/yvB2ZHq5W6I  N1 Just shut up and eat, Rannoch! 2019

https://youtu.be/vmct7etDQpo  N1 One fish, two fish, new fish 2020

https://youtu.be/ZJLmsHHd1Lg  N1 Captain ends up with two fish 2020

https://youtu.be/a2dk_AA0gAA  N2 Several different little birds visit the nest 2022

https://youtu.be/MBQ8n7dL9zA  N2 The chicks fight as fish number one arrives 2022

https://youtu.be/tgrYhwgMc1w  N2 Ringed intruder perches on the nest 2022 (slo-mo zoom)

https://youtu.be/FFJsvTMjkzE  N2 Ludo arrives seconds after dad brings fish 2023

https://youtu.be/jUf5fhmCtZE  N2 Fish number three arrives, departs, and returns again 2023

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Saturday 9th August 2025
Louis delivered his 400th fish for the season (402 nest total with Dorcha’s two) when he brought fish number three today, and it went to Breac 7P7. Breac did very well today, after finishing off the substantial remains of last night’s mackerel, he also got two fresh fish from Louis. Darach 7P0 was ferocious in his determination to get a fish and actually pushed Breac off the nest causing him to fly away. The strategy worked again when he got the next fish despite Breac being on the nest, once Darach had the fish secured and Louis had gone, he flew at Breac and forced him off the nest again, making it clear he would not be bullied to give up his fish. This is necessary as he has yet to acquire the skill of flying with fish and must therefore eat on the nest. There was no activity on Nest One, not even a songbird visited – Affric was last seen yesterday, and both Garry and Dorcha were last seen on the 7th. Have they gone south? It’s probably much too early to tell. After rain and wind and some sunny intervals today, the forecast for the next 24 hours is cloudy with light wind, an overnight low of 11°C and a high of 17°C tomorrow.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 22.17.38 (04.24.47); Nest Two 22.16.54 (04.55.56)
Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/fTaTXlZRdfM N2 Breac arrives and finishes off last night’s mackerel 05.24.47https://youtu.be/AzHy7AQUYVc N2 Darach arrives late and it’s Breac who gets fish one 09.48.05

https://youtu.be/ZwJBjmeA050 N2 Breac attempts to stay on the nest but Darach pushes him off 15.00.16https://youtu.be/k5moRjVq8Og N2 Darach makes sure he gets fish two from Louis 16.47.46

https://youtu.be/ovoRIslJuX0 N2 One fish two hungry brothers: Breac wins Louis’ 400th fish 21.15.32

Bonus read – energy boost for Woodland Trust as E.ON Next plan to step up their donations:

https://news.eonenergy.com/news/e-on-next-set-to-surpass-gbp-500-000-woodland-trust-commitment

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/oNzCzAn0VeM  N1 Stop please daddy! Louis pulls Rannoch off the nest 2019

https://youtu.be/11qAuMkDdL4  N1 Louis brings breakfast, all three are there but Doddie gets it 2020

https://youtu.be/8IC3e70LhTw  N1 Temperature inversion seen from the nest 2020

https://youtu.be/sdVgKT4YE3I  N1 Synchronised helicoptering by Doddie & Captain 2020

https://youtu.be/Jk-V4-DQZHI  N1 Aila brings fish and gets pecked by Vera! 2020 (slo-mo)

https://youtu.be/9Moy1yWHtW4  N1 Juvenile Mistle Thrush pay an evening visit to Nest One 2021

https://youtu.be/291niuqJOvQ  N2 Fish number five causes a screaming frenzy from all three females (2022)

https://youtu.be/ORcpN6aPcSY N2 Hoodie lurks as Willow shows off her beautiful eyes 2022 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/vj0dVfDdwQI  N2 Form an orderly queue! 2022

https://youtu.be/HT4f5n1Gss4 N1 Bullfinch lands after Affric departs 2023

https://youtu.be/xwkgVWCJ1aY N1 Garry LV0 brings a duvet of moss to Nest One 2023

https://youtu.be/aYN_ysUW3U8 N2 Ludo watches a parent chasing an intruder 2023 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/raBkskKShcc N2 Louis is back! Looking good, and brings a fish 2023

https://youtu.be/7k-yZUR493k  N2 Second fish today – number 350 for the season! 2023

https://youtu.be/2PUZSP_N918 N1 A trio of songbirds visit in the absence of any Ospreys 2024

 Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Friday 8th August 2025

Today’s fish were pretty evenly shared out between the two chicks – Breac 7P7 got the substantial remains of last night’s second fish, a flatfish, for breakfast this morning, beating the Hoodies to a free meal, then got one of Louis’ three fresh deliveries today while Darach 7P0 got the other two. The nest total now stands at three hundred and ninety nine, including the two delivered by Dorcha. She wasn’t seen on camera today, neither were Garry LV0 or Affric 152, in fact the only activity on Nest One was the brief visit of a juvenile Great Tit. Garry’s tally remains at one hundred and forty. Steve Quinn published his fish stats for Week 18 today, an interesting read as always, link’s in the bonus section. Steve told us about his recent visit to Avalon Marshes and meeting with photographer Andrew Kirby who was the first to photograph 2020 chick Doddie JJ6 who’d stopped off there practising his fishing skills on his first migration journey. Doddie caused much excitement by becomlng the first Loch Arkaig Osprey to be sighted away from the nest area, link to Andrew’s fabulous photos of Doddie in the bonus section. Today’s weather was windy and sometimes wet, and tonight’s forecast is for heavy rain and what’s referred to as a moderate breeze but when seen on nest cam looks much more powerful, with a low of 12°C, changing to thundery showers with a high of 15°C tomorrow.

Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 22.22.04 (04.46.07); Nest Two 22.13.40 (04.52.07)

Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/qq0Q16iCA40 N2 Breac claims the leftover fish before the Hoodies invade

https://youtu.be/CEh1emWe62w N1 A Great Tit (Parus Major) visits  09.12.37

https://youtu.be/lDkie7NcVUk N2 Darach’s waiting and gets the first fish 14.49.08

https://youtu.be/Zx0j2kT7I9E N2 Breac gets a flatfish when Louis brings fish two 16.47.44

https://youtu.be/gRcp6ywmUz0 N2 Darach gets a mackerel when Louis brings fish three 21.31.26

Bonus analysis – Steve Quinn’s breakdown of week 18’s fish stats:

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam/?ht-comment-id=27220830

Bonus photos of Doddie JJ6 in Somerset by Andrew Kirby:

https://www.akwildlifeimages.com/p488027889

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/AIAdCPIubvI Don’t bite the foot that feeds you! Louis’ difficult delivery (2019)

https://youtu.be/zLddX6xt-i0 Exit nest right pursued by Mad Mallie (2019)

https://youtu.be/_byBlgH5F0c Osprey antics as Mallie & Rannoch fight Louis and each other (2019)

https://youtu.be/DHWUsnxCNhE Vera is obviously better and pecks Aila (2020)

https://youtu.be/Rpc2uq34oKU Doddie and Vera fight for fish five (2020)

https://youtu.be/OugBSDzamKo Louis delivers a colourful Arctic Charr to Aila (2020)

https://youtu.be/vaI9BRb46fE News! Both Louis’ chicks have fledged and been named (2021)

https://youtu.be/ZQ9uid57ZLc A Sparrowhawk, a Hooded Crow and Sarafina all on the nest (2022)

https://youtu.be/oKC8m2YeWE0 Spooky Nest One in quick time (2022)

https://youtu.be/xLnSvyYalcA A good look at Dorcha coming and going 2023 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/p7p0fEb6KnQ Fish number one, headless trout 2023

https://youtu.be/Ylyt2kQJkdU A shadow flies over Nest One but it’s not Affric or Garry! 2023

https://youtu.be/npgzBhJ8jJc N1 Garry notes unseen danger but still attempts mating 2023

https://youtu.be/-jdvLTKv3rE Fish number two, headless trout 2023

https://youtu.be/qd5T_c7Pt_4 Ludo does an involuntary helicopter in the wind 2023 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/P5S76XoQiuE N1 Coal Tits and Robins visiting in the absence of any Ospreys 07.29.42

More cases of Bird Flu have been found in the UK, reported by Raptor Persecution UK.

Six more Bird Flu outbreaks in England, Scotland & Wales – Raptor Persecution UKDownload

It makes me wonder if we will discover from the necrscopy of Big Red and Arthur’s first hatch, O1, if she died of Avian Flu.

At Knepp Farm (you have no idea how much respect I have for their rewilding project), the sound of the Nightingale has not only returned but is becoming more abundant.

Knepp News bumper year for nightingales our MICHELINlisted Restaurant and Paul Hawken author supperDownload

In the US, the two oldest of the four osplets of Winnie and Swoop have fledged at Dunrovin Ranch in Montana.

Green Ledge Light Preservation Society: The three osplets of Ollie and Olivia have fledged!

Coeur de’Alene, Idaho: The three surviving osplets have fledged and ‘PB’ reports that each has taken a different osprey platform at the park where they are fish calling. I caught up with two of the trio.

Hellgate Canyon: New Male has been consistently bringing our dear Iris fresh fish to help her prepare for her migration.

Charlo Montana: Charlie has been busy bringing in some fish.

At the Fru Rauer nest in Norway, beautiful flounder are being delivered to the nest. Here is the video: https://youtu.be/F6wBsAZ6YaE?

Joan Castnyer catches a delivery at Goitzsche Wildnis: https://youtu.be/IQH_lg6K4Ak?

Zeus delivering a fish – the family trio are now rarely seen at the nest, with speculation that they are spending more time at the nearby lake.

‘A’ is keeping an eye on the Australian nests for us. So nice to hear from them! “As we reach day 37 for the first egg, the pair at WBSE have been dutifully incubating their clutch, through a lot of rain and cold nights. Lady has as always taken every night shift and on some days has sat on the eggs for eight hours or more as well. Dad relieves her often, if she’ll leave, but sometimes, she sits tight and refuses to budge.Apart from the frequent rain and the consistently cold nights, the pattern has been for not much food to be brought to the nest. Lady has done much of the hunting for herself, though Dad does bring in the odd bream tail or half-eaten fish and often arrives with a full crop himself. I do worry about whether he will step up deliveries once the eggs hatch – things will be difficult if he doesn’t. This pair appears strongly bonded, though, with duets every morning and Dad staying close to the nest each night, and they’re very experienced parents, so I’m probably just worrying about nothing. It’s just all the rain… 

There have been a number of sightings of one parent or the other being bothered/swooped/chased by ravens or lapwings or currawongs so that aspect of life in Olympic Forest, sadly, has not changed. The constant rain is a concern – the eggs have for the most part been kept warm and dry but there have been a few occasions when Dad has left the nest before Lady’s return from a break, leaving the eggs uncovered in the rain for ten minutes or so. Hopefully, there won’t have been any damage to the lives inside but only time will tell. 

Diamond and Xavier are doing well. Not egg time quite yet but both are looking healthy and are bonding as always. Xavier is STILL bringing Diamond starlings (and, worse yet, recycled starlings she has already rejected). It seems he has to relearn this lesson every single season. On the other hand, there seems to be a relatively plentiful supply of starlings and this can be useful when it’s time to feed some hungry eyases. 

At Port Lincoln, it’s R-rated. This pair seems to be mating constantly, with occasional dinner breaks and fly arounds. Eggs are definitely on the minds of these ospreys, and when they’re not mating (or eating), they’re bringing in nesting material. I do hope we have two eggs and not three. I’m never super happy when a third egg hatches on an osprey nest, although I know you are (for research purposes of course). I suppose at this nest, which is blessed to be overseen by a Fish Fairy, the research is partially compromised, in the sense that the lessons learned on the nest are different ones, at least to some extent. I hadn’t thought much about that, but obviously you would have, given the nature of your research. 

Nothing at Collins Street yet, and we don’t really expect there to be for at least another fortnight. I do wish we caught a little more of the early part of the season at Collins Street instead of having to wait until the second egg is laid (they usually don’t even switch the cameras on after the first egg, let alone before it, though they must have a fair idea of when the egg-laying window is likely to open. Frustrating.”

How in the world did we get here?

‘Erasure of years of work’: outcry as White House moves to open Arctic reserve to oil and gas drillinghttps://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/09/national-petroleum-reserve-alaska-oil-gas-drilling?CMP=share_btn_url

Thank you so much for being with us today. We hope you have a great week and we look forward to having you with us again on Friday.

I want to thank our notable contributors, ‘A, Geemeff, PB, PS’, the owners of the streaming cams listed in bold, the individuals who take the time to create videos, including SK Hideaways, Joan Castnyer, Cornell Bird Lab, 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.

Friday in Bird World

11 June 2025

Good Morning Everyone,

It has been extremely hot, with the heat index exceeding 40 °C and temperatures reaching around 32 °C. The heat has reignited the wildfires north of the City, but the smoke and haze are now making their way south. The European Starlings left the garden a few weeks ago, and they have now returned for food and water. I believe it is because the fires have driven them south.

One of the juvenile Starlings who has eaten some cat kibble and is getting ready to jump to get some water at the bird bath.

Cat and dog kibble are perfect foods for Crows, Starlings, and Blue Jays. Leaving out a single bowl of water can be life-saving. Please do leave out water. Find a shallow dish. Fill it often.

The wildlife is being squeezed in every direction. The heat is causing the fish to go deep or to die. Pesticides are running off agricultural lands into streams and rivers, killing fish and contaminating the land and water. As I have repeatedly stated, commercial fishing in the Atlantic is driving many species to extinction. Omega is now using helicopters to drive the Menhaden from the shore to their nets at the three-mile limit. How can this be legal OR moral?

I have become more militant as I see the little osplets starving on the nests. It is something that can be stopped, but the voices of millions of people—and the votes—have to be there, or the Chesapeake Bay will be ‘dead’. The ospreys will be gone, along with the terms, the striped bass, the Rockfish, the Crabs, and the Terrapins. The Dolphins and Whales have already deserted the area.

PamBreci is stepping up. Please sign this petition! But don’t stop there. Contact the news agencies, write to the politicians, phone them! We need a tsunami to turn this around. Every voice counts.

You don’t need to donate. It is sent to the company to be posted on other sites. You can do this yourself. Please send it to every group and person you know. What we want is an end to commercial fishing in the Bay and a ten-mile limit in the Atlantic!

Here is that link: https://www.change.org/p/stop-industrial-fishing-kick-canada-out-of-the-chesapeake-bay-and-virginia-waters?utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=mobileNativeShare&utm_campaign=share_petition&recruited_by_id=d8263160-56f4-0130-cb1f-3c764e049c4f&recruiter=41216441

Thanks Pam for not turning away but getting mad and making a difference.

Some places stock the lakes. For example, Forestry England releases 45,000 brown trout into the Clywedog Reservoir for both anglers and ospreys. A family of two adult osprey and three osplets eat on average 525 fish per season (information comes from Forestry England).

Today, there are pictures of The Girls and Toby. I was reminded that it seemed I had forgotten my precious cats! No. Never. The Girls have been very busy watching the new bird babies in the garden. They are everywhere! The conservatory is a perfect spot to watch. It is like a hide. This morning we had a treat. Dyson was at the feeder along with the adult Blue Jays and the Crows. We have three grey squirrels now instead of four. Three adult blue jays. Two adult crows and four baby Crows. There appears to be only one Little Red. The Starling adults and juveniles come and go.

Calico and Hugo Yugo making themselves at home on the little table in the conservatory. Our little Hugo Yugo grew! She is nearly as big as Calico.

Sweet Calico who put her trust in us and came into the house two summers ago.

Baby Hope prefers to be out of the limelight. She is now two years old and is our miracle baby.

I have only seen one Little Red lately. Isn’t this one a sweetie?

Toby. What can I say? He knows who needs comfort. He never barks except at the Bissell floor cleaner, which he hates. He growls and chases it, barking his head off. Toby sleeps with his head on a silk pillowcase next to me like a human. Hugo Yugo sleeps in Toby’s dog bed below him. Going from a King to a Double bed was a bit of a shock, but I slept 11.5 hours on my new bed Wednesday night. It was sheer bliss waking up rested and refreshed. What a change!

Missey’s birthday is next, and that is the 15th. So a party is in order. She will be three!

Monday was a day of sadness, and it was coming from the UK. The third hatchling and the fledgling of Maya and Blue 33 at Rutland Manton Bay drowned Sunday evening. https://youtu.be/T8ug4xyIqTw?

Dyfi: Idris and Telyn have a second fledge! Brianne is their big girl first hatch.

Then word came that the little third hatch, Oakley, at Alyth SS had died of siblicide. Things were going well for the fourth hatch at Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, but the tide has turned nasty again with the third hatch continually attacking little four. As I write, four had not eaten in 24 hours.

Foulshaw Moss:

Foulshaw Moss Nest 2:

Second brood of osprey chicks hatch at Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve _ Cumbria Wildlife TrustDownload

Rutland Water Manton Bay: The baby fledges! So Maya and Blue 33 raised four to fledge. Sadly they lost one and we will wait the results of all the tests before making any attempt to find out what happened other than drownding.

Birds of Poole Harbour: Blue 022 delivers a late fish so everyone has a full crop before bed!

Birds of Poole Harbour Nest 2:

Usk Valley, Wales: The latest news:

The Chick (Blue 9K5) at 5 Weeks Old — Usk Valley OspreysDownload

Roundhouse Loch Doon: Gizmo has fledged! All chicks of Frankie and Angel are flying! Congratulations.

Lyn Brenig: It is a girl first and a boy second.

Orihula, Fremont, WI: Those chicks are doing well. See what happens when companies don’t take all the fish!

Loch of the Lowes: Failed nest, but what might we expect next year?

A Journey of Learning for First Time Breeding Osprey Pair _ Scottish Wildlife TrustDownload

Foulshaw Moss (above)/Cumbria Wildlife Trust: Middle chick fledged Wednesday morning the 9th!

OPPD Fort Calhoun:

Cape Henlopen: Tornado warning Wednesday night. Mum is holding tight with thunder and lightning, trying to keep the babies safe. Heidi reports on this nest below, but the storm and lightning were intense at this nest.

Couer de’Alene, Idaho: The situation is not good. Since 1 stopped punishing little 4, 3 has stepped up the attacks. I do not expect 4 to survive unless there is a miracle. It didn’t. The wee 4 fought hard to live. It died during the night.

Juurusvesi, Finland: Chicks are doing very well. Fish are arriving every two hours or so.

Heidi’s Osprey Notes:

Kent Island, Chesapeake: Tom is doing a nice job providing his family with fish.  Chick 3 doesn’t always get to eat at meals, but thanks to Mom Audrey, s/he seems to be able to have its crop filled a couple times a day.

The Fortis Exshaw nest is another nest where the third chick has had some rough days with not much food. But lately, Harvie has been having some great luck with fishing, and Little 3 has been able to eat well for a few days.  (Cam is black and white this season)

Cape Henlopen:  There have been some very good days recently with lots of fish including some big ones, and chick 2 has been able to stuff his crop.  Thursday however, was a lean food day, and chick 2 did not have much to eat.  There were 10 fish, but they were all fairly small, so  Chick 1 never got full enough that s/he didn’t care if chick 2 ate.

OBX (Outer Banks):  These chicks are doing very well, and there’s lots of fish.  Chick2 has started to catch up to chick1 in size.

I’m so proud of one of my ‘home’ nests…Mispillion Harbor.  Della and Warren have done an exemplary job in raising their two osplets.  They are 54 and 53 days old, and I think they may be two big gorgeous girls.

‘PS’ report from Seattle: “Visited July 8 and today, July 9. July 8 was just a quick peek at sunset – mom was tucked in with the two osplets, waiting on dad and a last fish of the day, perhaps. I was hoping for a nice sunset and got an ok one but nonetheless nice to wish them goodnight. July 9 was a short visit but what a short visit it was! I arrived to find mom watching over the 2 youngsters sleeping in the nest (windy and overcast day), and over the next 29 minutes dad brought in 3 fish! All some kind of sole/flatfish – one after another after another, he’d come in high from the west, swoop down against the wind before flaring for landing in the nest, then off again, then back – 3 times while I was there! Quite a show to witness. The kiddos look good – flexing their wings, eating well, and being relatively civil with each other, too. Hope mom and dad keep up the good work! Few pics here, rest at the usual spot (https://www.flickr.com/gp/193514804@N08/h36YS14h3R). 

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch ArkaigThursday 10th July 2025
Chick2, Breac 7P7 looks like he might fledge ahead of older brother Darach 7P0, judging by the amount of wingercising he’s been doing, along with little bunny hops across the nest. He’s only a day younger than Darach, who’s also been wingercising – perhaps they’ll fledge within a few hours of each other like Vera JJ8 and Captain JJ7 did back in 2020. Not long now before we see how it all pans out. They’re getting plenty of fish from dad Louis, four fish today which takes his tally to two hundred and eighty nine, while over on Nest One, Garry LV0 turned up with a fish for Aurora 536, raising his tally to one hundred and eighteen. Steve Q produced the weekly fish stat analysis showing Louis is on track with previous years, last year excepted, link to the details in the bonus section. The weather was settled today and is expected to remain so. Tonight’s forecast is for partly cloudy skies and light winds, with a low of 14°C. Tomorrow is expected to be sunny, with a high of 26°C.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.29.16 (03.38.40); Nest Two 23.17.31 (03.47.38)

Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/EKUJEJQ2_M4 N2 Early breakfast arrives but it’s a tiny tiddler trout 05.26.51

https://youtu.be/R5bwQmLA99g N2 The chicks tug over fish two, Darach downs the tail 10.18.19https://youtu.be/-aSYWT7lrrU N2 Hop, skip, but no jump yet! Breac prepares for lift-off 13.13.58

https://youtu.be/eYA98_Bx2aI N1 Aurora gets a fish from Garry 17.16.12

https://youtu.be/QoAql6aqmGA N2 Fish number three is a flatfish 17.53.52 

https://youtu.be/5A6EdxuX8JY N2 Darkness is falling when Louis delivers fish four 22.55.43
Bonus info – huge new project for Woodland Trust and partners:https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/press-centre/2025/07/highland-estate-as-big-as-glasgow-to-be-revitalised/
Steve’s fish stats for Week 14:https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/osprey-cam/?ht-comment-id=26476166

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/_iu1YJVku2o  N1 Get a grip! Aila falls off her perch 2020 (slo-mo)

https://youtu.be/VMZvWZBGfmk  N1 Louis is mobbed when he brings a fish 2020

https://youtu.be/9klb1W99PXE  N1 Little nippers! Poor Aila! 2020

https://youtu.be/5bDQeEybGZc  N2 Record smallest fish? minnow-sized trout arrives 2022

https://youtu.be/nnD0tCN49Bo N2 Chick2 suddenly lunges at Dorcha 2022

https://youtu.be/VXrDZxGxdZ0 N2 Louis does the housework while the family dine 2022

https://youtu.be/whUichthUIA  N2 Early morning workout for LY7 2023

https://youtu.be/jcZQEBw36sc N1 No fish for Affric but Garry tries his luck anyway 2023

https://youtu.be/enEZd33NpbI N2  LY7 getting ready for take-off 2023

https://youtu.be/8K5xHkUZWuo  N2 Chick’s not too grown up to want mum’s protection 2023

https://youtu.be/SRSKU62lfrE N2 Colourful sunset seen from Nest Two last night 2024 (time lapse)

https://youtu.be/HOdzu0e6hQc N2 Skydancing is heard nearby then Louis lands on the nest 2024

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Tuesday 8th July 2025 
There were a couple of intruder alerts but none seen on nest cam, and it didn’t put either male off fishing – Garry LV0 delivered two fish to Aurora 536, raising his tally to one hundred and seventeen, but Louis was in fine form and delivered five fish to Dorcha, taking his tally to two hundred and eighty one. He delivered three fish in under an hour before 5am, setting a new record Nest to Nest (N2N) time of only 6 minutes 26 seconds in the process. Darach and Breac continue to grow almost before our eyes, and Darach managed to decorate Louis with an ill-judged squirt. Louis is an old hand at chick rearing – this pair take his total to fifteen ringed chicks – and merely ignored it but departed quickly. The weather was settled today but is set to change overnight to light showers and light winds with a low of 14

°C, and the wet weather will continue on and off tomorrow with a high of 17°C.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.47.59 (02.42.44); Nest Two 23.30.08 (03.05.17)

Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/AxfPFYxXqZc  N2 Louis overflies the nest before landing with breakfast 03.50.16https://youtu.be/VIgml9E8l7A  N2 Second breakfast arrives 04.38.10https://youtu.be/gbMdYI__vZA  N2 Record fastest N2N time (6m 26s) when Louis brings the third fish 04.45.40https://youtu.be/a5FV4CW1bN4  N1 Garry brings breakfast for Aurora 08.52.36https://youtu.be/YJOlWYRx83g N2 Louis brings a fourth fish and gets decorated by Darach 11.17.44https://youtu.be/harJ1LC4QA4  N1 Aurora gets a second fish from Garry 13.56.37https://youtu.be/-qWZNzfz6Xg  N2 Dorcha keeps shouting even after she gets a fifth fish 20.32.04
Bonus listen – BBC Radio Scotland programme discussing the rescue of three helpless Osprey chicks from wildfires:https://youtu.be/zbuuKsnm2Ug

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/eQ-H9XnoL-k  N1 Who’s that visiting the nest? It’s the ringers! 2019

https://youtu.be/rY2duI6UrU4  N1 Magnificent super-fisherbird Louis brings two fish at once! 2019

https://youtu.be/dgMWXNUvbRw  N1 Eine Kleine Munch Musik… 2020 (Classic Ospreys: Mozart)

https://youtu.be/gJ28U_EFMdg  N2 Branching out: the family wrestles with a tricky stick 2022

https://youtu.be/TFJCxF4Z6x8  N2 Chicks unsure about a flatfish 2022

https://youtu.be/CASjS-XxceU  N2 Wingercising in slow motion 2023

https://youtu.be/_IFRrJVjosI  N1 Another fish for Affric after Garry’s second delivery attempt 2023

https://youtu.be/FuyIgvRXi3w  N2 Hello LY7! Chick shows off his new Darvic ring 2023

https://youtu.be/d_21ncEqyMU N2 Dorcha on the nest and Louis nearby deal with an intruder 2024

https://youtu.be/FcIBmfScUJ8  N2 Still no fish from Louis: Dorcha gives up calling and departs 2024

https://youtu.be/VfO3nAk5XNQ  N2 Dorcha pays a sunset visit looking wet – been fishing? 2024 (zoom)

‘TU’ sent me this update: “Well, there are more sadness and birds for the Memorial Wall. A few days ago, I think on July 4, a tailed eagle killed two big storklets in the nest in Lithuania. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlDz3mwwMbc“

Lovely White-bellied Sea Eagles at the Olympic Forest in Sydney sing their duet: https://youtu.be/Qi_kSz55q8k?

The hibiscus in the garden is blooming and blooming. Hot and humid. They think they are in the tropics!

We wish you a wonderful weekend. Take care. See you on Monday!

Thank you so much for being with us today. I want to thank our notable contributors, ‘Geemeff, Heidi, PB, PS, TU’, the owners of the streaming cams listed in bold, the individuals who take the time to create videos, including SK Hideaways, and the authors of posts and articles, including Jeff Kear at UK Osprey Information. I am very grateful. My blog would not be what it is without your input into the world of birding.

Friday in Bird World

27 June 2025

Good Morning Everyone,

One of our dear readers from Japan suggested a ‘snood’ to help protect Toby’s ears. What do you think? It is excellent for baths! Those big curly floppy ears are prone to infections, and I cannot thank ‘AK’ enough. Toby is a little shy and asked that his sisters not see him!!!!!!!!

We continue to declutter, and thank you for all the letters sharing your efforts to reduce clutter in your life. I appreciate the fact that I have kick-started some activity. Today, we are hosting a book sale. I wish you lived close if you like fine art, craft, ceramics, Asian art, and cookbooks. They are in mint condition and going for $5. Donations will be made to local pet rescues, as well as supporting the food for the feral cats that visit our garden. It feels good to clean out these books, knowing that they will have new life in someone else’s home. My mind feels lighter with them gone — they are in boxes wrapped in plastic waiting for 1400 to arrive! Anne is going to take Don on an excursion, and my friend, Susan, is coming to help me and Toby. We will be exhausted at the end of the day.

The book sale has kept me from losing my mind over commercial fishing for Menhaden – the boats have set their nets outside the Bay because there are no more adult Menhaden in the Chesapeake Bay. Can you believe this! We are witnessing the decline and potential extinction of ospreys in this region.

As I sat listening to the birds in the garden and the distant sound of a Pileated Woodpecker working on one of the utility poles, I was drawn to a quote by Rachel Carson in her insightful volume, Silent Spring. I have substituted part of the paragraph, and the words that I have inserted are very apt for today. Carson would approve.

As man proceeds toward his announced goal of the conquest of nature, he has written a depressing record of destruction, directed not only against the earth he inhabits but against the life that shares it with him. The history of recent centuries has its black passages – the slaughter of the buffalo on the western plains, the massacre of the shorebirds by the market gunners, the near-extinction of the egrets for their plumage. Now, to these and others like them, we are adding a new chapter and a new kind of havoc – the direct indiscriminate killing by starvation of birds, mammals, fishes, and indeed other species by the commercial over fishing of Menhaden fuelled by greed and power. (85)

At Fenwick Island, on Tuesday afternoon late, the Only Bob suffers from heat exhaustion and what appears an inability to cast a pellet. On Tuesday, it was weak and refused to eat much fish. Mum tried to shade it and feed it so this is not a case of parental neglect nor siblicide, no siblings to harm it. Heidi and I have struggled. Does a physically weakened chick have a lesser ability to cast a pellet?

A fish did come to the nest later, and only Bob ate, but it did not matter. This feathered beautiful osplet perished. More is included in Heidi’s report, below.

Many people want to know how they can help halt industrial fishing. Do not think it might not happen in your state. It’s time to establish a ten-mile limit. That would help. They might also want to breed some Menhaden in fish ponds to place back in the Chesapeake Bay.

Heidi’s Osprey Report!

Fenwick Island osprey nest (Captain Mac’s Fish House):  Johnny and June’s only surviving chick died on 6/25 at 38 days of age.  The cause of death was most likely starvation/dehydration, but it was not for a lack of fish.  Despite the heat in recent days, Johnny had delivered (starting with 6/19) 5, 5, 6, 6, 3, 5 fish for June and her chick. On 6/24, we noticed that the chick was not eating despite being offered fish many times.  Once in a while June’s baby would attempt to eat, perhaps ate a few bites, but then would quit.  The temperatures were in the mid to upper 90’s, so the chick was dehydrating rapidly.  On the morning of 6/25 the chick was seen attempting to cast a pellet a couple of times, but was unsuccessful.  At 08:03 on 6/25, June brought her first fish to the nest since she laid her eggs.  She wanted to make sure her youngster had a good breakfast.  The chick moved closer to Mom, and June attempted to feed her baby.  The chick was obviously hungry, wanted to eat, and tried to eat, but simply was not able to. Perhaps it was the inability to expel a pellet that caused the youngster to not be able to eat.  

In 2024, June was a first-time mom, and she obviously had a lot to learn.  She did not protect her first two eggs that year, and they were predated by crows.  She did not incubate egg #3 adequately, and it did not hatch.  Her fourth egg produced her only osplet, named ‘Fen’, and he was her pride and joy.  Johnny and June nurtured Fen, and Fen fledged.

I was watching June very closely this season to see what kind of mom she would be.  I must say, I will give her an ‘A’.  She did very well.  It is unknown why baby #3 died this year at 10 days of age, but it was possibly weather related.  Baby #2 died of siblicide/starvation on 6/6 at 18 days of age, after a few days of bad weather caused Johnny to have difficulty fishing.  Now, my heart simply breaks watching June look down at the body of her last remaining chick.  Take care, June… You and Johnny did your very best.

Mispillion Harbor has two cameras that show the osprey nest.  However, the Nature Center cam is set on auto-tour, and shows different views of the harbor.  Once in a while, I can manage to find one of our ospreys flying to or from the nest, and that’s pretty cool.  But, yesterday, I was extremely lucky to actually see Warren catching a fish in the river!  Very cool indeed!  I recorded a video of the event.

And a late addition to put a smile on your face form Heidi! Cape Henlopen osprey nest: An intruder delivered a fish to Hennie! Miles soon arrived to take charge. The kids thought it was ‘Uncle Bob’ bringing a fishie to Mommy, lol.

Video on YouTube:  https://youtu.be/FD2duIvU2UE

Thank you, Heidi! Great report. Sure is wonderful to see some healthy chicks in Canada, too!

There was a great feeding for all three at Chesapeake Bay.

Smile. Big Bear. ‘PB’ sent a screen capture of Sunny and Gizmo together on a pine. When the nests in the NE get us so despondent, there were miracles this year that we did not think possible. Big Bear is one of them, and we should never forget these two amazing fledgling eagles. Brings tears to my eyes just thinking about them and seeing them together.

Please sign the petition to halt fireworks displays in the Big Bear Valley. Can you imagine the havoc this causes to wildlife including Jackie, Shadow, Sunny, and Gizmo!

Petition · No Big Bear Lake Fireworks Show for the Safety of Sister Eaglets (Gizmo and Sunny) – United States · Change.orgDownload

There is other good news. A reader from the NW United States wrote to me. They have found an osprey nest and have been monitoring the progress of the couple, the eggs, and now the osplets. ‘PS’ is delighted to share the images with all of you. There are plenty of fish, and the nest is doing tremendously well. Have a look. You can see the timeline and follow the progress on PS’s Flickr account!

This should brighten your spirits. There is no commercial fishing in the area, which impacts the wildlife.

 https://www.flickr.com/gp/193514804@N08/x125M54o11

Rutland Manton Bay: The four youngsters have new bling on those legs! At least one is hovering!

Birds of Poole Harbour: Chicks to be ringed shortly – maybe before publishing time.

What a startling contrast. Rutland’s Manton Bay and the Birds of Poole Harbour easily (well, the parents worked hard) raised four osplets. Something truly needs to change in the United States regarding the overall affection and care for wildlife, our planet, and all living things. What the politicians are allowing to be done to the water and the fish that provide life for so many other species is beyond unthinkable.

A beautiful website with everything you wanted to know about the Llyn Brenig Ospreys and a link to their camera:

Llyn Brenig Ospreys – Llyn-BrenigDownload

Kielder Forest: Sad news. The only chick at nest 5A has died.

Double bad news _ Kielder OspreysDownload

The Dyfi Osprey Project Family Tree with this year’s chicks! You will see that the ringers believe that the first chick is a female with two little brothers.

The latest news from the Usk Valley. The only osprey chick to hatch in this area of Wales for 250 years is now three weeks old. Brilliant.

Family Life at 3 Weeks — Usk Valley OspreysDownload

Hen Harriers continue to be killed near the estates that practice grouse hunting.

New report highlights the ongoing criminal persecution of Hen Harriers on UK driven grouse moors – RDownload

Red Kites being poisoned – come on people.

Police launch investigation after Red Kite killed in poisoning hotspot – Raptor Persecution UKDownload

Sending a big thanks to Geemeff for all her daily summaries for Loch Arkaig.

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Thursday 26th June 2025
Today started out very wet and improved as the day wore on, allowing the chicks and Dorcha to dry out. The fish likewise improved, starting out with a couple of tiddlers which were devoured very quickly but ending with a sixth fish that was a very good size. Louis’ tally now stands at two hundred and thirty two, while over on Nest One, Aurora 536 waited in vain – Garry wasn’t seen today so his tally remains at one hundred and two. Back with Nest Two, there were several intruder alerts causing the adults to alarm-call while the chicks pancaked, but no intruder was seen on camera. In fact, the only hint of a threat came when a disgruntled chick nipped Dorcha but the brief display of aggro didn’t last long. Tonight’s forecast is for light rain and light winds with a low of 12

°C, getting wetter tomorrow with heavy rain and gentle breezes with a high of 18°C.

Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 00.01.50 (03.13.11); Nest Two 23.27.44 (03.52.07)
Today’s videos https://youtu.be/UgED2vaVnqM N2 Tiny tiddler fish one disappears in 2 mins 44 secs! 06.01.22

https://youtu.be/T3wcvWqr90s N2 Fish number two is another tiddler trout, finished in 4 mins 18 secs  06.34.17

https://youtu.be/orl47PFpCZw N2 Alarm calls don’t put the chicks off fish three, C2 downs the tail 12.10.29

https://youtu.be/94_-OBRKhMg N2 The weather’s improved by the time Louis brings fish number four 14.31.44

https://youtu.be/_Tccc54DSoc N2 Dorcha seems distracted and doesn’t immediately start sharing out fish five 16.01.41

https://youtu.be/2c04CmwTpIw N2 Dorcha moves to shelter a chick and gets nipped! 20.24.31

https://youtu.be/Op1paAvV5o4 N2 Fish number six is greeted with enthusiasm by the family 22.43.48

Bonus read – BTO history of ringing (you might be surprised at how long it’s been carried out): 

https://www.bto.org/our-science/projects/bird-ringing-scheme/about-ringing/history-ringing

Blast from the past, this day in previous years: 

https://youtu.be/7yjPCfe3BBM  N1 Aila is alarmed and departs leaving her chick home alone (2017) 

https://youtu.be/weTByvoNmU0  N1 Little bird lands on the nest unseen by the chicks (2019, slo-mo) 

https://youtu.be/FePBgx3QZcM N1 The nest’s getting pretty crowded so Aila perches for the night 2020 

https://youtu.be/Vbhk_9zm_cg  N1 The chicks start getting ready for lift-off (2020) 

https://youtu.be/xfmi6cOZFm8  N2 Louis brings leftovers for breakfast (2022)

https://youtu.be/UolftDEfSiE  N2 Chick left alone with dad watches his every move 2023 

https://youtu.be/tAe5tiIbdh4  N1 Dramatic 15 mins with all three players in the love triangle 2023 

https://youtu.be/staRRldEFb8  N2 Carnival of the sticks: elephant feet on the nest 2023 (Classic Ospreys – Saint-Saëns, quicktime) 

https://youtu.be/Dn2-ZuLvotg N1 Affric finally gets another fish and it’s not from Prince 2023 

https://youtu.be/XYwCiVtw5pE  N2 The family enjoy a quiet cosy time as the day draws to a close 2023

https://youtu.be/AITavG2FXxw N2 Fish number one and only, small trout remnant, Dorcha gets very little 2024

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Wednesday 25th June 2025

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Tuesday 24th June 2025

Another routine day with plenty of fish, the only disturbance was both Louis and Dorcha being pecked by their chicks, angry at being trampled. However the pair are old hands at the business of raising chicks and don’t retaliate, they merely move away. Louis delivered four fish for the family including his first flatfish this season, and his tally rises to two hundred and twenty three. Over on Nest One, Garry LV0 brought two fish for Aurora 536, bringing his tally up to three figures with the second one being his hundredth fish. The weather was more settled than the forecast had suggested, and it’ll be a dry cloudy night tonight with a low of 11°C, staying cloudy with occasional showers tomorrow and a high of 18°C.

Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.52.42 (03.26.57); Nest Two 23.12.54 (03.52.33)

Today’s videos: 

https://youtu.be/OsAAdFr1wtg N2 First flatfish from Louis this season 07.46.24

https://youtu.be/QbHgqBIf850 N2 Fish number two is a headless big Silver Tourist 10.09.44  

https://youtu.be/hflj4TIC2CU N1 Aurora seizes the fish as soon as Garry lands 10.10.58

https://youtu.be/pHhG2Zgdl1w N2 Fish supper for the chicks – a whole trout 20.49.43

https://youtu.be/uPinOwoSN8k N2 A mystery dark fish four provides a second supper, the chicks queue politely 21.36.59

https://youtu.be/0z96lSwSiq0 N1 Garry brings Aurora a second fish 22.22.31

https://youtu.be/SHVFvR_3BPs N2 Both Louis and Dorcha are pecked by chicks angry at being trampled 18.34.24

Bonus read – Flights, Camera, Action! Postcode Lottery discuss their sponsorship of the nest cam:

https://www.postcodelottery.co.uk/postcode-hub/news/flights-camera-action

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/ArAamS1fRzQ  N1 Ouch! Bad-tempered Bob1 pecks Aila in the eye (2019, slo-mo)

https://youtu.be/fT6FvDGs30I  N1 Is that a chick snoring? (2020)

https://youtu.be/Gp2lut-Uwg4  N1 Golden goddess: Aila at sunset (2020)

https://youtu.be/wZd7bvRqhOY  N2 Dorcha drops the fish tail chasing Crows (2022)

https://youtu.be/2cdE4bMAN_M  N2 Dorcha senses the presence of a Hoodie under the nest (2022 zoom)

https://youtu.be/b_KmDWwbjOc N2 Sleepy Dorcha rests her weary head on the chicks (2022)

https://youtu.be/cnrmWr6Mc1M  N1 Fish for Affric from LV0 2023

https://youtu.be/ivJXSVb4nAs  N2 Lovely waggly wing wave 2023

https://youtu.be/_x3tC69zmB4  N1 New pair Affric & Garry looking settled 2023 (quicktime)

https://youtu.be/_8Z0ryX0F5Q N2 Fish supper arrives and the chick has a nibble 2023

https://youtu.be/Alfrd7novqE  N1 Garry LV0 arrives early and does some nest prep 2024

https://youtu.be/iQA9jIPeDsE N2 Fight! Is the nest getting too crowed? Chicks have a pop 2024

https://youtu.be/opTBHM-Q3jk N2 Dorcha brings a stick and hangs it round Chick1’s neck 2024

https://youtu.be/45KVDHPY0x40 N2 Fish number three, headless small trout, soon finished, Dorcha’s still hungry 2024

Geemeff’s     Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Monday 23rd June 2025

Another wet and windy day, dawn broke showing a very soggy nest. But Louis brought an early breakfast, the rain stopped, and the well-fed chicks soon dried out. It did rain again during the day and the wind picked up with gusts strong enough to overturn Dorcha and show off her underfluffies again, but the chicks were safely hunkered down and in no danger. Louis brought a total of four fish, taking his tally to two hundred and nineteen. The third of those fish was the 2000th fish counted and recorded by Steve Q and the fish counting team over the past five years – citizen science in action, well done team! Over on Nest One, Aurora 536 did eventually get a fish from Garry LV0, taking his tally to ninety eight, but first he decided to reaffirm their bond with what looked like a successful mating attempt, purely to strengthen their pairbond as it’s not possible to raise chicks now, however this behaviour bodes well for next year. Tonight’s overnight forecast is light rain and light winds with a low of 12°C, continuing through tomorrow with a high of 15°C.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 00.01.11 (03.19.14); Nest Two 23.08.33 (03.46.25)

Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/5SQEpQsyBQk N2 After a wet night the family is glad to see Louis with breakfast 06.59.13

https://youtu.be/nhAAPpCkdAE N1 Aurora wants fish but Garry prefers to reaffirm their bond 11.35.37

https://youtu.be/cV1jsH31ook N2 The chicks wait politely while Dorcha shares out the second fish 15.11.20

https://youtu.be/nQTfYzY5tVY N1 Aurora demolishes her fish in 15 minutes, returns demanding more 15.20.21

https://youtu.be/ltX67OdWZmU N2 Oops! Dorcha gets blown over, underfluffies on display again! 15.36.44 

https://youtu.be/bWyjtRWbBcw N2 Louis brings a third fish and stays to do some nest tidying 16.44.45

https://youtu.be/PbLaUGIVZs4 N2 Fish supper arrives when Louis brings fish number four 21.45.27

Bonus opportunity to make a difference – jobs and volunteer positions available at Woodland Trust:

https://jobs.woodlandtrust.org.uk/   and    https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/support-us/act/volunteer-with-us/

Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/Oay1Lrgh3O0  N1 Another Osprey intrusion, the chicks pancake 2019 (Slo-mo)

https://youtu.be/obBc6-JVTgU  N1 The family ignore fish three and track an intruder 2020

https://youtu.be/5CFk79DzWVg  N2 A large unwieldy twiggy stick arrives and departs 2020

https://youtu.be/Zl0Mf-1ZbRs N2 Dinner en famille! Dad feeds C1 from F3 while mum feeds C2 from F2 2022

https://youtu.be/ElJNzd8XcRA  N2 Sunlight sonata: a slice of family life 2022 (Classic Ospreys – Beethoven)

https://youtu.be/04jToc-igIg  N2 Prince intrudes at Nest Two 2023 (slo-mo, zoom)

https://youtu.be/cQ1zI4L_ng4  N2 Bombs away! Thankfully chick misses the nest cam! 2023

https://youtu.be/ovW-q9Dcbkc N1 Is Affric becoming more accepting of LV0? 2023

https://youtu.be/FaLhOxt1U50  N2 Mumbrella Dorcha does her best to shelter the chick 2023

https://youtu.be/e1DJpaL8Dlo N2 Dorcha causes chaos with a stick, tbut it soon goes overboard 2024

https://youtu.be/e3oZRUuHIzs  N1 Garry LV0 visits for just seven seconds 2024 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/35Zn71fWiCg N2 Fish number five breaks all-time latest delivery record! 2024You’re invited to join the lively community at Woodland Trust’s Osprey forum, it’s 

friendly, free and everyone’s welcome: 

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

Thank goodness for Suzanne Arnold Horning, who has a Miss Marple nose for tracking down Big Red, Arthur, and their fledglings. Otherwise, we would know nothing except for Ferris Akel and others who visit and post images. Thanks, Suzanne! If you want to see all the images, please join the Cornell Haw Cam Chatters FB group.

A recent video of the activity at Big Red’s nest in Ithaca, New York: https://youtu.be/LqRMYGHBwzA?

Norwegian Osplets at the Frau Rauer nest are doing fantastically. A video of a Gar fish delivery on the 21st and some images from today. Look at that beautiful plumage coming in. Gorgeous amber eyes, paired with a bold black band, will help them avoid glare when catching their fish. https://youtu.be/8JYzeY3e2gg?

News from Loch of the Lowes:

San Jose City Hall. SK Hideaways caught Monty and Hartley having some bonding time now that their four fledglings have flown the scrape! https://youtu.be/ZxdGDgrU7kE?

Charlo Montana: Mum and her three chicks! So far, Charlie is keeping the fish coming for his family. Cheer them on.

We were not sure that the female at the Trempeauleau Bald Eagle nest in Wisconsin could provide for her eaglet to fledge. Well, she did it! T3 is gorgeous! https://youtu.be/YjTK95bVETc?

Boulder County: Family portrait.

Saaksilvie #4: Three chicks are doing well.

Eschenbach, Germany Osprey Platform: Joan Castnyer reports: “This morning, early in the morning (07:23), the two young birds of this year were ringed in the Eschenbach nest. The operation was perfect and quick. Tomorrow (if the wind permits) the only chick from Goitzsche Wildnis is scheduled to be ringed. For reasons of protecting my own image, I have not published the specific moment, but when the ringer leaves and only the helmet is visible. I hope you understand.”

Golden Eagle Nest of Spilvie and Grislis, Latvia: Looks like our eaglet is fully feathered or nearly.

White Storks, Mlade Buky, Czechoslovakia: Bety and the two lovely storklets on the nest waiting for Bukacek to come with food.

Smile. Alukin’s new video of the white storks in Poland, which a generous and caring human helped. https://youtu.be/murd58vSLsU?

Marcin Kus films more help at another nest for little storklets in Poland! https://youtu.be/QJAD98Jp81o?

I would like to see this kind of caring – and courage – in parts of the US. Just feed them! With all that is going on – seriously? Wildlife is suffering.

I was shocked to receive a note from ‘B’ in California appraising me of the removal of Peregrine Falcon eggs to be hatched away from their natural nest. ‘B’ writes: “Hi Mary Ann,

I wondered if you had seen this, that three Peregrine chicks have hatched at Ojai Raptor Center (ORC)?  US Fish and Wildlife evidently reported that the adult Peregrines had established their nest in the middle of a nesting area for endangered and threatened species (California Least Terns and Western Snowy Plovers, respectively) and were preying on those species.  USF&W removed eggs from the Peregrine nest and took them to ORC, where they have now hatched.

Gosh, it is hard to know what to think.  It is sad that the Peregrine nest was removed, and I do worry for the outcome of these eyases, who will need to learn to hunt and live for themselves (apparently without the benefit of foster parents?) if they are to thrive.  But one also needs to weigh the fate of the endangered and threatened species. In the discussion on the ORC facegook page (https://www.facebook.com/theojairaptorcenter/), ORC says USF&W planned to capture and relocate the parents, but that sounds difficult to accomplish.

I don’t know what the plan is for the coming months.  Perhaps a falconer could help with the final steps of the pre-release process, as was done for Nox, one of Annie’s last chicks in Berkeley, after he was rescued injured from SF Bay.  (Recall that Nox did pass away not long after release.  I am not sure if I heard the cause.)

From what I read, it sounds like ORC was not involved in discussions and decisions that led up to them getting the eggs, so I do not want to criticize them for a difficult task they have inherited.  I certainly wish them — and especially the eyases! — well in what sounds like a challenging process.”

‘A’ brings us her report for Australia. Can you believe that we are now anticipating an egg for the White-bellied Sea Eagles? Where did the time go?!!!!!!

“June 24: Lady stayed in the same place all night. Dad turned up at the nest around 7am – he must have been somewhere close last night. There were early duets and mating by the nest, off for a while, then another duet and mating. A windy morning, with more bonding heard. Rain started around 10am. Later the wind was really strong. Both eagles came to the nest – but no action. Dad returned alone around 2:30pm, off again then back with leaves. Lady must have been close, as there was a duet when he left. Then both returned with leaves – then away, with another duet close – and again. They have been very vocal today. Dad brought leaves at 4:20pm, followed by Lady with more. Then again a duet, leading to mating at the end of the day. They both went to the nest – is this it? Then to the branch again. Again lots of bonding behaviour today, with duets and mating. They settled for the night nearby – but we are still watching and waiting for her first egg.

Sea-Eagle Cam: Lady and Dad worked on their nest at the Sydney Olympic Forest.

In New Zealand, our princess continues to grow rapidly, preparing for her great adventure. Mum GLG came in yesterday to feed her baby, and happened to time it perfectly such that the wee one was weighed before and after the feeding. She gained 1.6kg!!! That’s a helluva lot of squid for one feeding. Good work, mum. The day approaches. Still a few weeks to go. September I think is usual. She really is exquisite. 

At Orange, Diamond is sleeping on the Cilla Stones. She and Xavier are bonding, eating and waiting for eggs. It’s very windy there tonight, as it is in Olympic Forest. And wet. Diamond has a huge crop (courtesy of a large dinner presumably) as she always seems to do when I check in on her. Xavier is a very devoted mate (although Madame would prefer duckling to starling). 

Finally, in South Australia, the ospreys are both asleep on the nest, tucked and puffed up against the cold wind. Earlier in the evening, dad was actually snuggled up against mum, sheltering her with his body and wing. Too sweet. She seems happy to have him there. Both appear to have full crops (although they are also puffed up against the weather). 

As for the Collins Street falcons, you know the situation there. I will begin checking the site but the cameras won’t be switched on until there are eggs (they usually wait for two to be laid before they deign to let us in on the situation but we’ll see what they do this year. I do wish they would allow us to see the pair bonding and give us a chance to get to know the pair and establish whether it’s the same two as previously or a new pair or some combination of the two. It’s usually pretty hard to be sure at Collins Street so the more time we are given with them, the more chance we have of being sure of their identities, this year and subsequently.”

Thanks so much ‘A’.

We are also getting excited about the beginning of the Kakapo breeding season in New Zealand. Read all about it in the DOC’s Conservation Blog!’

Kākāpō breeding season 2026 | Conservation blogDownload

Sad news coming in. You might recall that Keo and Keke were forced to make their nest on a light stand when the goose family took over the osprey platform. Now, tragedy has struck as a result of this. ‘PB’ writes: “Sandpoint Keo and Keke 3 babies fell from their nest. A stick was brought, and that side collapsed, and three babies didn’t make it.” This is the first time that Keke has had three babies. They were healthy and will be buried under the nest today, according to Robin on the chat.

Thank you so very much for being with us today. We hope to have you with us again on Monday! Take care.

Thank you to those amazing people who help me by sending raptor news – special thanks today to: ‘A’, ‘B’, Geemeff, Heidi, ‘PB’, and ‘PS’, to the owners of the streaming cams or photographers mentioned in today’s blog and whose names I hope to have highlighted in bold. To all of the writers of the articles, chat moderators, and blogs that are included today – I am grateful for your hard work! Thank you.

SE33 is dead…Monday in Bird World

6 January 2024

Good Morning Everyone!

Very sad news has come forward late Sunday. I have decided to publish this posting tonight and not Monday morning. I know that each of you will feel as gutted as I do now. Dear SE33 is the first raptor on the Memorial Wall for 2025.

It breaks my heart to bring you this news. SE 33 was euthanised. This beautiful White-bellied Sea Eagle fledgling was found injured.

Brock is eating his lunch and Star has already visited the outdoor feeder so all is right with the feral cat community. There really are only two – the others are domestic pets let out by their owners to roam. They are kept inside when the temperature hits -25 C as it did this morning. I continue to hope that Star and Brock have homes in the spring – whether it is inside with us or with another loving family.

The cold weather continues. It is also icy and it was nice to get the thumbs up from my daughter about the exercise bike. In the warmer weather we certainly build up our leg muscles. It is frightening how quickly that muscle can go. Or as my mother’s hip surgeon said to me after he had operated and she was refusing to walk – “If you don’t use it, you will lose it!” That thought has stuck in my mind.

There are not nearly as many birds coming to the feeders. That may change if it warms up some, but where do they go? And what do they eat? Or do they eat what they need and then return to whatever warm spot they have found? I don’t know.

‘J’ has asked me not to identify the eagle nesting table as theirs. Apologies. They simply sent the work of Eagle Nest Date Charts so that we would all be aware of the upcoming events; there was no intention to claim it as their own as I might have implied. Thank you to Eagle Nest Date Charts – your work really helps us keep focused.

My inbox is always packed with questions about donations. I feel awkward advising individuals about particular institutions, streaming cams, etc., but I will tell you how I decide, and then you can test that yourself. I donate locally first. Why? Because I can check on their work and see if it is something I value. For example, the new vet at Wildlife Haven is incredible. I met her during the fall Open House. Dr Tess is from Arizona, and she has been here for at least a year. She is the one who said that we do not know enough about wildlife and what they can do. So why not a three-legged deer? She is working on a Snapping Turtle and has built a little device to raise its shell back into the correct shape. (Shells are to be hard, but due to poor quality food, this turtle’s shell is soft). I avoid large charities where the CEO makes millions that should go to the wildlife in the agency’s care. For streaming cams, which ones get out and help the birds? I know that you can answer this one yourself!!!!!!!!! I mean helping them when they need help and working hard to get a permit. Let’s see, we recently saw the removal of twine at Captiva. Then there is our superhero out on the Channel Islands, Dr Sharpe, who cannot retire because no one can replace him, and he is too dedicated to the eagles. That is the Institute of Wildlife Studies. Port Lincoln Osprey and Friends of Osprey South Australia do a bang-up job with your $20 enrollments and funds for the fish fairies. You have to look at the platforms they are installing. So, there you go. That is my list and why these particular places are unique to me. You will have your list, but think hard before you give away your dollars, Euros, or yen.

The necroscopy for Lucina, the female Golden Eagle at Bucovina in Romania has been released. She was healthy, showed no signs of outward harm. Lucina died of rodenticide poisoning. Human caused. Such a loss. Lady Hawk covered news of this nest after contacting the owner several years ago. She published the findings along with some beautiful footage of this gorgeous eagle: https://youtu.be/UDQg1UkTy28?

The Golden Eagle in Romania. It is one of the rarest birds. I don’t think anyone suspected rodenticide poisoning when Lucina was found dead. This is a huge tragedy and individuals in this area need to stop using rodenticide and let the owls and other raptors do their jobs catching vermin. Raptors really are the solution.

Nature in Făgăraș Mountains: The golden eagle in Romania | Romania InsiderDownload

The Golden Eagle is one of the rarest birds in Romania.

Golden Eagle – Milvus GroupDownload

Our hearts go out to all those who loved this beautiful Golden Eagle. We lost so many in 2024.

I am very nervous about the upcoming hatch at NE Florida because I do not know how Beau is going to react to the hatchlings or if he will bring sufficient food for them and Gabby. The bottle of Gaviscon is out on the counter along with the worry beads.

At Port Lincoln, Kasse cleaned up on the fish on Sunday! They are still waiting for fish on Monday as I write this.

All is well at the Captiva Bald Eagle nest of Connie and Clive. The eaglets are growing and growing. No shortage of prey.

It is similarly good at the SW Florida Bald Eagle nest of M15 and F23.

M15 flying into the nest with a fish dinner for the family. https://youtu.be/MLpoREhjiq4?

Jackie and Shadow are singing away! https://youtu.be/kregqFGb_lU?

Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. See you on Tuesday!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, images, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post this evening: ‘Geemeff, J, MP’, Eagle Cam, Lady Hawk, Romania.Insider, Milvus Group, NEFL-AEF, Bart M and the PLO, Window to Wildlife, SW Florida Eagle Cam, The Real Saunders Photography, SK Hideaways

Friday in Bird World

3 January 2024

Good Morning Everyone,

It’s a new year! ‘The Girls’ have been up to lots of mischief and they have given us much fun and some very loving moments as one year ends and another begins.

Who would have thought? Hugo Yugo has taken to washing Calico! Notice that HY does a great ‘bug-eyed look’ while trying to clean that ear. Calico looks like she doesn’t mind!

The European Starlings rush to eat the cat kibble if I don’t get out with the birdseed soon enough. Before they do, they hang off the vines above the door, and it drives the cats crazy. Calico and HY are being teased by them in some of the images below.

It also looks like Calico has been into holiday shortbread. Her annual check-up is on the 6th. I wonder if Dr. Green thinks she should try that diet again. (My neighbour said she is beginning to look like a Corgi!)

Baby Hope remains one of the most beautiful cats I’ve ever had the pleasure of sharing my home with. Her temperament is just the same – sweet and gentle, quiet. A little shy. Never into trouble. I cannot say that about the other three!!!!!!!!!

Missey always gets the ‘sweetness’ award despite the fact that she looks like she can eat you alive.

Clive continues to win high marks. Not only did he ride out Hurricane Milton in the nest, but he recently got in with Connie to help protect the eaglets during the latest storm – and to reassure the family that it really wasn’t all that bad! Today it looked like he was going to get the angler’s award, too. That nest is full of fish. No one is going hungry on Clive’s watch. Connie picked well.

‘A’ sends her remarks: “It’s raining again at Captiva tonight but it looked to me as though lots and lots of dry grasses were brought in during the morning – by afternoon, the nest looked to have a thick dry layer on top. The littles are so cute and I am worried about the dampness on this nest, especially with more rain at the moment. It is nothing like the other night but the nest is still not dry from the storm. The parents have obviously worked hard to get a thick dry layer on top but I hope it is enough. Clive has been doing a lot of aerating too. He’s such a good dad – he does a lot of feedings too, making sure he takes care of both eaglets. He often feeds one and then the other (you will notice that on the logs). I am so impressed by him. 

But then, the more you watch these birds, the more impressive you realise many of them really are. I haven’t had time this season to have much of a look at Thunder and Akecheta, but any couple that routinely fledges three has to be doing something very right indeed. So that is a pair I would like to get to know a lot better. Their nests are not only successful but largely peaceful from what I have observed. I have not seen any bonking problems at West End and nothing that would ever make one worry about siblicide. That doesn’t happen by accident. And of course Ron and Rose are becoming an old married couple by now, gaining in experience and becoming better parents by the season. I am so hopeful for Gabby and Beau but it will be an interesting season, assuming these eggs are viable. Beau has good protective instincts and he is obedient to Gabby, which is a good start. I am keeping my fingers crossed that he also becomes a great provider, but that is the big unanswered question, isn’t it? 

I am still concerned at SWFL. I fear we may have a tragedy at this nest. I cannot believe that a bird with the experience of M15 is not making it clear to F23 that this is not safe practice here, and certainly not this year after what we saw pre-laying. Both adults were knocked from their perches by the GHOs at least twice, and surely that is enough to warn them. After all, these owls are their major predators. I really find it very difficult to understand. What are your ideas on this? Why are they leaving the eaglets totally unprotected and in such danger?”

To answer ‘A’, everyone continues to worry about Beau’s ability to provide for Gabby and the eaglets post-hatch. Now, of course, there is the chance that the pair will change roles with Gabby procuring the food for the family and Beau brooding the eaglets. It doesn’t sound like a real possibility, but the eagles always surprise me. I just hope that we do not have a situation here like we had last year at two of the nests when the new male did not realize the hatchlings were to be fed, not eaten. We are just going to have to wait and see and that day is fast approaching. As for M15 and F23 leaving the eaglets, I am a little suprised because of the presence and tenacity of that GHO. Perhaps the eagles know something that I do not. Certianly if the adult eagles are asleep, they might not hear the GHO approaching in time. Again, we will just have to wait and see how this season transpires and hope beyond hope that the motto, ‘Trust the Eagles’ prevails in a good way.

Beau decided to burn one of the eggs this year like he did last year. Gabby wasn’t having it and she uncovered that precious one. https://youtu.be/SAvMuo-jEPY?

Some people spent New Year’s counting albatross on nests. How lovely.

Liberty and Guardian spent their time working on that new nest after their nest tree finally collapsed a few weeks ago. https://youtu.be/iZ1Hq9z4veM?

Wilko and Kasse each have a fish so far on Thursday. Mum and Dad are doing well.

And Mum did much better:

Gorgeous Kasse.

On Friday both kids waiting for fish.

There are no eaglets in nests except in Florida at the moment. It won’t be long until there are eaglets everywhere and like this one in Alaska that was rescued earlier in the year, the wildlife rehabilitation centres will be bursting at the seams.

I love the stuffy.

Remember the clinics always need our help. Clean sheets, towels, bleach, laundry soap, tools, pet carriers, stuffys, and monetary donations. You could also volunteer your time!

Guardian is giving some love to Liberty! https://youtu.be/JYiUB7b3csE?

Input is being sought on the release of White-tailed Eagles in the UK – with several groups taking on projects after the success of the Roy Dennis Foundation on the Isle of Wight.

Public views wanted on plans to release White-tailed eagles in Cumbria, Wales, Severn Estuary & ExmoDownload

There is a new female at the Achieva Credit Union nest and I wish there was a younger male, too, but it appears that Jack is there. I am 90% certain that the female bird on this nest is the female fledgling of 2020 who defended this nest against adults when she had barely fledged (June) and who stayed around and returned several times later. She has a heart on the top of her head in espresso black. She went 79 hours without food. Was given up for dead several times as a wee, wee one. Was saved because her Mum brought those big catfish on that nest and fed her privately once Diane realised that this third hatch wasn’t going anywhere. Well, I believe this female is Tiny Tot Tumbles. Thanks, MP for that head shot!

I wish I were younger! Just look at this great opportunity. If you know of anyone that might be eligible and would be interested, please pass this information on to them. A fully funded PhD – that is what I had to the University of Leicester – and it is worth a truck full of gold and more. Pass the information along, please.

Fully funded PhD available: The Impacts of Avian Influenza and Toxicants in Scottish Raptors – RaptoDownload

‘A’ is only one of hundreds who have written to me about Angel, the Leucistic Red Tail Hawk who had her nest in Tennessee. What happened to her? No one knows. ‘A’ writes: “ill searching for any word on the fate of Angel and Tom. There is none, though I am not the only person looking for news. I get such a bad feeling when I think about what has happened. We would not recognise Tom in the absence of Angel – if someone were to see him, the ID could not be certain. So it is her that we would recognise and the fact that she has not been seen is very worrying indeed. Not a body either, so she hasn’t had a flying accident or caught bird flu. The landowner has kept an eye out for them I am sure – I know that was the case back when they first disappeared and I imagine that would continue in the course of the day-to-day operations on the property. So we would probably know if she had been killed or had died within or near her territory. 

I do suspect she has been trapped by someone and is imprisoned in a cage somewhere or even dead. I suppose I would prefer that she be dead than locked up for life in a cage. Birds bred in captivity are one thing (and not a nice one) but those who have lived a wild and natural life like Angel would suffer dreadfully from being restrained. It makes me want to cry. Not a week passes that I don’t search the web for some news of her. “

One of the biggest problems with the streaming cams is this. No one wants anyone to know where the nest is unless it is made public. I won’t go into how people can find nests because I don’t want to add any more stress to our raptors and I don’t want to give away methods and secrets. Despite the claims to try and hide the locations, many of the chat moderators give away far too much information. It makes me really upset. The nest of Angel was one of those – too much information. We already know that there are international crime circuits that collect eggs and birds. Wonder how much a pure white Red-tail Hawk was worth? She definitely could have been trapped. She could have died of Avain Flu. She could have died of West Nile Virus. She could have been shot. She could have died of natural causes. Anyone that is on a chat – whether they are a moderator or a chatter – should never ever mention anything about where they live especially if they live in close proximity and check on nests. Criminals are clever. Nothing should be mentioned. Not even the weather! And those cameras should be careful what they show in the background. Believe me people can put the pieces together if they are intent on doing harm and making money.

Gabby and Beau continue incubation. It won’t be long now – a little over a week til we will be waiting for hatch at the NE Florida nest.

Clive continues to prove himself, over and over. Those little eaglets are the cutest things – even with fish juice all over them.

There is worry for F23 leaving those eaglets alone on the nest with that GHO about. But look at those little cutie pies with their dark thermal down coming in and their pin feathers.

Look at the body shape of the SW Florida eaglets compared to Captiva. This will give you an idea of the growth that happens in just a couple of weeks.

Look at that fluffy white mohawk.

I wish Mum would stay in that nest all night tonight!

The image below comes from the following publication: tps://www.researchgate.net/publication/313384900_Monitoring_Bald_Eagles_in_Southwest_Alaska_Network_Parks_Standard_Operating_Procedures_Version_10?enrichId=rgreq-410614b7533b2248c3f0ad792f63b549-XXX&enrichSource=Y292ZXJQYWdlOzMxMzM4NDkwMDtBUzo0NTg4NTI4NjE3Nzk5NzBAMTQ4NjQxMDQ1NTgxMA%3D%3D&el=1_x_3&_esc=publicationCoverPdf

Look at the image above and then look at the screen captures from the SW Florida nest to see the age and development of the plumage of the eaglets.

This poster was created by the Southwestern Bald Eagle Management Committee. Look carefully. It will not be long that M15 and F23’s eaglets will be moving quickly to image C.

Peregrine Falcons are amazing. 42 days. An incredible journey.

What an amazing osprey nest in South Australia.

If anyone ever tells you that our raptors and other mammals (non-humans) do not have emotions and do not grieve, please share this tragic story with them.

Grieving killer whale who carried calf’s body spotted again with dead baby | Whales | The GuardianDownload

The increasing tragedy of bird migration when cities will not turn their lights off. It is so simple and yet few have had the tenacity to flip the switch. It angers me just like my city does when it decides to shoot the deer and the coyotes and not question its planning model.

Live ones go in paper bags, dead ones in the freezer: the volunteers saving birds that fly into windDownload

Sasha Dench and Conservation without Borders are trying to save ospreys from power line deaths. https://youtu.be/jlkw1cGA8aI?

Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘A, Geemeff, J, MP’, SK Hideaways, Friends of Midway Atoll National Wildlife Preserve, Port Lincoln Ospreys, Bart M and the PLO, Alaska Raptor Centre, Raptor Persecution UK, NEFL-AEF, Window to Wildlife, SW Florida Eagle Cam, Researchgate, Southwestern Bald Eagle Management, Sandeepa Imasha Punsara, Fran Solly, The Guardian, Achieva Credit Union, Conservation without Borders