Tag Archives: Cowlitz Osprey Nest

Nest Round Up: Wednesday, 30 June

The heat has not dissipated in British Columbia. It was 51 degrees C in Osoyoos. The Town has turned off the Osprey cam. All three chicks died from heat and it is hoped that the mother is now taking care of herself and rebuilding her strength. The pavement is boiling and you could, literally, fry an egg on it. It is hot on the Canadian Prairies but nothing coming close to 51 C. It is 31 C. Once, many years ago, my son and a high school mate of his and I were in Delhi, India. It was 46 C. You could hardly breathe. It was the monsoon and it was raining and the heat combined with the humidity was unbearable. We headed for the mountains and monkeys in Simla. 51 C is, of course, not typical for Canada in the summer! Not only have our beloved osprey chicks died but also many humans.

I am surrounded by books on my desk, some written two decades ago, warning about heat death. Newer ones like, The Uninhabitable Earth. Life after Warming by David Wallace-Wells, will scare people about what can or is coming. The world did not listen when the warnings came decades ago. Will we listen now? Stopping DDT use is a focused effort. The climate issues are interconnected with everything. It is complicated but needs some really insightful people to figure out how we can really help, if it isn’t too late.

The heat in British Columbia where one of my dearest friends lives is unbearable. Her pottery studio and wood kiln are close to the US border like Osoyoos. I worry for her as the trees get hot, the creeks and the well she depends on gets lower and lower. And, of course, our hearts wrench for the wild life. And then there are the fires.

For now, most of you reading this blog know how to help. Keep your pets cool. Rub an ice cube over them if you have one. Sprinkle them. Maybe skip the long walk and -and of course, keep those precious darlings out of the cars. Leave more water out for the birds. Shallow bowls work! The birds in our garden get many seconds that I have made. But one of their loves are quiche dishes. Don’t ask me why. Maybe they are shallow enough to wade and splash and drink at the same time. The Blue Jay family has been in the bowls almost all day. They have kept me busy running in and out but I don’t mind. The male really likes the little bird sprinkler! Extra treats have been put out too.

I have checked on Electra. She is coming and going on the nest today. Perhaps by Friday, the brooding hormones will be gone. The temperatures have dropped in Washington compared to BC but it is still hot and she needs to get her strength back. Laying eggs, incubating, and trying to feed chicks and yourself when there isn’t enough food will have depleted her reserves. Keep wishing she will find a cool place in the shade and catch fish! Honestly, she cannot count on Wattsworth. What is wrong with him?!

It’s about 2:30 pm and Electra has returned to the Cowlitz Osprey Nest. She stands over her little ones fish crying to Wattsworth. I started thinking about his name. If he were a wattage, it would sure be low. Like a 15 watter instead of a 150 watter. How many of us just want to scream out to Electra to give up on this really dead beat dad. Too many hungry dead babies.

I wanted to check in on some other nests and the first video that came up on YouTube was an old one of Father Stork and the chicks on the Mlady Buky Nest in Czechoslovakia. This is the stork family where the mother was electrocuted. The community came forward to feed the babies and the dad and well, they saved their lives. Lovely, generous people.

This was then:

This is now – these are the babies!!!!!!! Aren’t they just incredibly beautiful? It will not be long until they leave the nest. Father Stork and people of Mlady Buky – you did well! I hope that blessings come to all of you.

Speaking of storks. My son has travelled to Spain from the Caribbean and he sent me images of storks on the old railway station in Caspe. The Ebro River is full of fish including the gigantic Wells Catfish. He tells me that there are storks everywhere along this beautiful river below. He did see a couple of Osprey.

“Sunset in Ebro river / Capvespre a l’Ebre” by Sebastià Giralt is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Just look at that one nest on the far left – it is huge! That nest is really incredible.

The camera on the Black Stork Nest at Karula of Karl II and Kaia has been down since there has been a big thunderstorm. I cannot show you an image of the storklets. They are 31 days old today. From the forum in Estonia it appears that everything is OK. Karl II has brought in food five times and Kaia twice. If there is an error in the transmission system, then the camera will come back on line but if the problem is with the hardware, then it will wait. The fear of staring the storklets off the nest before fledge time is simply too great. The average time for the little ones to stay on the nest is 65 to 73 days so we are not yet at the halfway mark.

Tiny Little Bob on the Foulshaw Moss Nest of White YW and Blue 35 is continuing to try and make nest improvements. This afternoon she spent quite a bit of time working, sometimes upsetting Middle Bob, the male, while he was trying to sleep. It seemed that the sticks she required were always under him! Great Big Bob, also a female, prefers to exercise her wings!

Tiny Little is on the far left in the top image. She has been trying to get a stick from under Middle Bob, the male, with no luck.

It is a little warm here. Tiny Little is doing some panting to keep cool. Nothing like North American though.

Great Big Nasty Bob, the other female, is on the far right doing her wing exercises. I sure wish I could get Tiny Little and Great Big Nasty standing up next to one another so you could see the size difference! We all got fooled. Tiny Little is a girl too. In that image you would see a female at the top end of the growth scale and the other at the bottom. However, we are no longer worried about Tiny Little. She has a crop today and will fledge, maybe just a little later, like Tiny Tot at Achieva. I still like to check in on her every day to see how she is doing.

If you would like to watch this Trio while they get ready to hover, here is the link to the Cumbrian Wildlife Trust Osprey Cam. There is no rewind function. Click on the square at the right top to enlarge the image.

https://www.cumbriawildlifetrust.org.uk/wildlife/cams/osprey-cam

Beautiful Tiny Tot has been on and off the Achieva Osprey Nest. As far as I know there have been no fish today but, of course, Tiny has been eating several large fish for the past couple of days, she is OK. My phone tells me that it is raining in St Petersburg, Florida is 29 C. That is hot! Not in comparison to the Pacific Northwest but the fish could be going down deeper and might not be caught til later in the day.

Tiny in the late morning waiting for fish delivery before the rains hit. Seems she will be waiting til it cools down maybe. We love you Tiny!

It is 5:21 nest time. The rain has come and gone and Tiny Tot is calling Jack wanting her fish! She is persistent and I am sure Jack will turn up with a nice one for her before dark – or maybe even after like the other day.

At the Osprey Nest in the Clywedog Reservoir in the Hafren Forest in Wales, Seren is feeding Only Bob – great Big Boy Bob – his late dinner. (20:50). Look at the size of that Osprey chick. Gracious.

The sun is setting and it is just gorgeous landscape. Just one healthy chick. Thanks so much, Dylan! You are a great dad! I often wonder what it would be like if there were only one healthy chick on every nest. Like most of you, I get terribly upset when the third hatches are beaten on and starving – or die.

The Two Bobs at the Loch of the Lowes Osprey Nest are waiting for NC0 and Laddie to come in with a nice big fish for the end of the day. The sun is turning them golden as it starts to fall behind the horizon. Oh, they are so big!

The evening fish came in at the Rutland Water’s Manton Bay Nest of Blue 33 and Maya. The male chick, 095 nabbed it! Won’t be long til fledge. The hovering is really good on this nest. Indeed, it can be a nail biter.

And then he wasn’t paying attention and he lost his dinner to his Sister!!!!!!!! There is no love when a fish dinner is at stake.

Idris is resting on his perch tree after delivering a really nice fish to Telyn and the Two Bobs. Life is good on the Dyfi Nest!

It rained heavy on the Red tail hawk nest of Big Red and Arthur on the Cornell University campus. It started just before 15:30 and lasted about half an hour. It was pouring and there were no Ks on the nest! I will keep an eye out now that the torrents have stopped. Those two will be soaked! Lucky for them they have feathers, layers and layers of feathers, and don’t need a rain jacket or umbrella!

Yesterday afternoon someone posted a short video clip of K1. She is so cute.

And have you ever wondered how much weight a Golden Eagle might carry? Eagles are opportunistic hunters. If they see something edible, they will not leave it. In this case it was a fox that was carrion (already dead). And this happened in really heavy winds in a storm:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/1427226434164178/permalink/3091832501036888/

Wishing for fish for Tiny Tot and any of the other hungry babies out there. Also wishing for an Arctic Cold front to come pouring through for the folks in the extreme heat area.

Thank you so much for joining me today. Stay well, stay safe. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I get my screen shots: Mlady Buky White Stork Cam, Cowlitz PUD, Cumbrian Wildlife Trust and Foulshaw Moss Osprey Cam, Achieva Credit Union, Clywedog Osprey Nest and Carnyx Wild, Scottish Wildlife Trust and Friends of the Loch of the Lows, LRWT and Rutland Water Manton Bay Osprey Nest, Dyfi Osprey Nest, and Cornell Bird Lab and RTH Cam.

Credit for Feature Image to Cris Martin. Storks on old Rail Station in Caspe, Spain. 30 June 2021.

Bird World – late Monday and early Tuesday ramblings

It has been a day for extreme weather. 44 degrees C in the Pacific Northwest and a snow storm on Taiaroa Head, New Zealand, home to the Northern Royal Albatross colony and their chicks. It is 38 degrees C – and ‘boiling’ my friend living at the base of the Purcell Mountains in British Columbia said. It is 24 degrees C in St Petersburg, Florida where Tiny Tot lives and 27 degrees C in Ithaca, NY where the Ks live. It is 27 degrees where I am on the Canadian prairies with the temperature climbing to 36 degrees C in a couple of days. We will fill extra bowls of water and try and find a sprinkler for the birds as well as keeping their feeders topped up.

Our local crow colony displayed some interesting behaviours in the late afternoon. First, two were on sentry duty on the telephone poles nearby. Each was making a different alarm. Then four other crows flew in and over our house. They were quickly joined by another five or six until 19 crows were in our front tree. We did not see the Great Horned Owl that lives over on the golf course coming to check if there are any nests it could raid. So we are still left wondering what was going on.

Crows defend their territory by summoning friends and relatives to help them annoy the intruder enough so it leaves in our neighbourhood. As things settled down, Mr Blue Jay flew out of the trees to come for his 5pm bath and food but, something alerted him and he decided he would wait. I don’t blame him. Those crows were really in a dither! The intruder remains a mystery.

All of this got me to thinking about Electra. Electra, if you do not know, is the mate of Wattsworth at the Cowlitz PUD Osprey Nest in Longview, Washington. Electra hatched two chicks this year. The nest is notorious for not having sufficient food and the chicks dying. This year there was one siblicide and yesterday, a chick with promise -if enough food came in- died of heat stroke. It was the first known Osprey death due to the extreme heat in the region but it is very possible that it will not be the last. Electra was out fishing since Wattsworth seems incapable. Believe me I have a lot I could say about him! But, right now I want to pull my human heart out of the equation and look at Electra’s behaviour in light of Aran’s present to Mrs G today. So, I want to rewind and I needed to go for a walk to think this through.

Electra leaves the nest to go and fish for her and the remaining chick. When she returns, that chick has died due to the extreme heat on the nest. Electra has a fish that was for her and the chick. Wattsworth arrives at the nest. Electra refuses to give Wattsworth any fish. Then Electra stays on the nest, fish in her talon. There is no need to brood a little one. It is dark and is unsafe for her to fly. Some Ospreys are known to fish in the night – certainly Louis at Loch Arkaig would fish 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to feed Aila and the three chicks last year. But Electra is going to hold tight on the nest until dawn breaks. She then leaves the nest taking the fish with her. Electra’s motherly duties are over. It is unclear what the nest actually signifies to Electra now that the chicks are dead. We know that Aran brings Mrs G a fish today as a means of bonding. Iris returns to her nest to renovate. But what, if anything, this place is to Electra right now is not known.

Electra returns to the nest with what I want to call a ‘fish tail’ later. It certainly wasn’t the big hunk of fish she had with her last night. It could be what remains of it. There is no one to feed on the nest. So why is she up there with a fish? She could eat it on a tree branch in the cool shade of the river, right? That would have been the smart thing to do to do in this heat. She is horrifically hot, panting hard to try and cool herself.

I know of two male Ospreys who like to steal the fish from their mates – you possibly know many more! But I am thinking of Louis and Iris and now Wattsworth and Electra. I am also beginning to consider the need to bond after a tragedy. We see that with Aran and Mrs G. The need for Aran to be able to provide for Mrs G and for her to accept the fish from him.

Electra is looking and calling while she is on the nest with the fish. I now believe that she was calling for Wattsworth. I also believe that she was going to give the small fish piece to him. It doesn’t matter what I think of Wattsworth. Electra needs to bond with her mate after the death of her last chick. It is precisely what is happening on the Glaslyn Nest. Aran and Mrs G are bonding, too. This is just another way to look at the behaviour of Electra. The reality is we will never really know. We all wish her well.

The big winner in the fish category today had to be Tiny Tot over on the Achieva Credit Union’s Osprey Nest. My goodness, gracious. Jack came in with a fish for Tiny Tot at 6:41:16 and it was a whopper. I wish we could have seen Tiny’s eyes – they were probably popping out! But never fear. Tiny Tot learned its lesson months ago – you sit there and eat that fish as fast as you can because someone might come along and want to steal it. And you never ever leave anything on your plate!

Tiny Tot must have thought she had won the lottery. Jack has certainly been very good to make sure that Tiny gets fed. I would like to think that he is making up for when Tiny Tot was starving to death but, that would be putting another human spin on things. Obviously, Jack likes Tiny around. She protects the nest and he isn’t in any hurry for her to move on or he would stop bringing fish. It is a sweet deal for both of them. Jack doesn’t have to worry about getting injured fighting off an intruder. He can spend his time down by the water fishing and bringing Tiny Tot a few fish each day. Tiny is getting heaps of real life experience. Personally I am glad that he is feeding Tiny Tot. If she is to be the survivor of the chicks on this nest (the average is only one out of three), then the longer she is fed and the longer she stays on this nest, the better equipped she will be if she ever leaves the nest. Tiny is a bit like Izzi, the Peregrine Falcon juvenile, of Xavier and Diamond. Izzy is still around the scrape box and she should have left for his own territory long ago. But that is another story for another day. There should be no worries about Tiny being able to fish. It is embedded in them. Jack doesn’t have to teach her. That is ingrained into her and every other Osprey and has been for 65 million years. Now she might not be as good a fisher as an osprey more experienced but she knows the moves and just has to find fish. I loved the stories of Bellie in Belle’s Journey, the way she honed her fishing skills. Tiny will do that, too.

Look at those legs and that little bottom. I think that the chicks on Cowlitz really got to me because of what Tiny Tot went through early on. But, as those who watched the Achieva nest, things turned one day. Diane brought in fish and I quit calling Jack a ‘dead beat dad’. They began to be a team and they succeeded in fledging three chicks. Amazing.

When I think of those super male Ospreys that get wall murals or the ones people talk about decades after they have passed, it is always the praise for providing for their family. Yes, people talk about Blue 33 and Idris’s fishing abilities and the whoppers – but it is always tied to them bringing those to their family and how healthy their chicks are and the pride in counting the children and the grandchildren in the family lineage.

So we go back to the survival of the fittest, perhaps. Wattsworth’s DNA is not being passed along but Monty’s, Blue 33s, and Idris’s is. And I hope Tiny Tot’s!

It was raining in the Sydney Olympic Park today. The beautiful canopy of leaves on the old Ironbark tree where the nest of Lady and Dad, the resident White-Bellied Sea Eagles, is located kept Lady from getting soaked. Lady is incubating two eggs. It is awhile until we will be on hatch alert. I will let you know when that happens so you can join the fun.

The rain finally stopped in Ithaca and the Ks were quite happy. K3 is eating again! It is nice to see the sun come out so they can dry off. It is even nicer to see the pair together on the nest safe and sound.

And, last I am showing you an image of the nest at Loch of the Lowes. I will also try and find the short videos that someone took of NC0 fishing in the loch. She is good! In this image the nest is getting a little crowded with the wingersizing of these two big osprey chicks. Safer for NC0 to get out of the way and sit on the perch, for sure! I was fascinated in the camera set up. That is why I am including this image. It is rather amazing. There is also a microphone in the nest so that you can hear the chicks when they are peeping in the egg right before hatch.

Here is NC0 fishing:

A snow storm and high winds have put out the cameras on Taiaroa Head in New Zealand where the Northern Albatross and their chicks are. They will love it. These birds like the cold. The staff of the NZ DOC (Dept of Conservation) have sprinklers to cool off the chicks. That camera should be back on line along with the weighing of the chicks. The chicks are weighed weekly, unless there is an issue and they might be weighed more. Supplemental feedings by the staff are given if the weight of the chick is not where it should be. That could come from parents not returning, being injured and delayed in their return, etc. NZ looks after their wildlife and accepts that humans have impacted it. There are not the complications with intervention like there are in the US.

Sad news coming out of Canada and the Osoyoos Osprey Nest. It appears that two of the three chicks have died to the incredible heat in the area in the same way that the chick on Cowlitz did. The other chick will require lots of fish but it is not looking very well this morning. A former student and close friend of mine now lived on the edge of the water at Osoyoos and really enjoyed seeing the Osprey family fish. They were forced to move because of the smoke from the wildfires that hits the area every summer. Prayers for all the birds. The heat wave is spreading across North America.

Thank you for joining me today. There will be a big nest catch up later today.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cam where I get my screen shots: Achieva Credit Union, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Scottish Wildlife and Loch of the Lowes, and Sea Eagle Cam Birdlife Australia and the Discovery Centre.

Featured Image is Lady incubating her eggs in the Ironbark Tree in Sydney Olympic Park.

Second Osprey chick dies at Cowlitz

It took me a moment, shaking my head. The Cowlitz camera was not focusing. The temperature is 44 degrees in the area and it has to be much hotter on the nest.

There is the poor little tyke with its full crop looking for its mama. Getting hotter by the minute. The best I can figure is that the chick died around 6pm nest time. One minute he is looking for Electra walking around the rim of the nest and then he collapses.

Electra returns with a big headless fish. It appears that she is confused and doesn’t understand that her little one is dead. The poor thing could not regulate its temperature in that kind of heat and despite having some fish, it did not have enough to hydrate it. Even then it might not have made it on the nest in the blazing sun all alone.

Wattsworth, of course, came to try and get the fish but Electra did not give it to him.

Electra has been standing for hours holding on to the fish.

It is always sad when chicks die. These two wee little ones never had a chance. Born onto a nest that repeatedly does not have enough food and now with these temperatures, it would have been next to impossible for these babies to survive. Electra knew that her and the baby needed food. She went to get fish for them not realizing that the heat could kill the little one, too.

Fly high baby!

It is always difficult to post stories like this one. These two poor little babies, undernourished, both dead. One of siblicide and starvation and the second by dehydration/sun stroke.

Thank you to the Cowlitz PUD for their streaming cam where I took my screen shots.

Whew, what a day in Bird World

It is 42 degrees C in Longview, Washington. It is much hotter on the very high, exposed nest of the Cowlitz Ospreys. There have been two fish deliveries today that I am aware of – that was up to the afternoon. The area is under an excessive heat warning until 11pm on Monday.

Both Electra and Little Bob ate well. You can see Little Bob has a nice crop in the image below.

Electra is doing all she can to keep Little Bob and herself cool. She has mantled and even flapped her wings to try and get the air to stir. Oh, please send your warm wishes for these two.

Sad news is coming out of the Kakapo Recovery Team. Today they began their annual transmitter change on Whenhua Hou Island. When they arrived they found two deceased Kakapo, Xena and Ihi. Zena hatched in 2019. She injured her leg early on and had to have medical treatment. She was returned to the island but they found her, today, with her leg stuck. Poor thing. Ihi hatched in 2011 and bread in 2016. She was the mother of Hondy and Galaxy. This now brings the total Kakapo to 202, down from 208 a year ago.

The photographs below were taken by Lydia Uddstrom. The top one is Ihi and the bottom is Xena.

Please, again, send warm wishes down to those working on this small island where these non-flying critically endangered parrots reside. Let us hope that they do not find any more dead or sick birds.

And, now, for some good news. The heat wave hitting the Pacific Northwest did not happen in Alaska. It is 26 degrees dropping and will be 28 tomorrow. Still, it is hot on that Bald Eagle Nest at Glacier Gardens. Little Kindness who is 38 days old today is regulating her temperature by panting and she is panting a lot! The average fledge age for this nest is 89 days with the national average being 80 days.

Parents, Liberty and Freedom, are making sure she is hydrated. Today, six fish have come to the nest – yes, you read that right – six whoppers!

Speaking of whoppers, Idris appears to have set a fishing record for the Dyfi Osprey Nest. The staff have calculated that he is bringing in mullet in the 3-4 lb range. This means that they weigh more than he does. It appears that he will now hold the record for the largest fish brought to the nest.

Here it is! The staff also understand now why Dysnni is also the largest male chick at this nest ever – at the time of ringing! All that fish. You just have to look at the underdeveloped little one on the Cowlitz Nest to understand how important it is for these birds to have sufficient nourishment to grow healthy and strong.

The graph was posted on the FB Page of the Friends of Loch Garten Osprey Page today along with the image above. Look at the graph below. You will see Dysynni coming into the weight range of the females. Ystwyth is not the heaviest female, however, but she is four days younger than Dysynni.

There has been a bit of a leak of information from the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Nest. It seems that our precious Tiny Little Bob is a female! She is Blue 463. I was shocked! I suppose we all assumed a tiny little male. It seems that Blue 463 is also getting interested in self-feeding. Those of you that watch the Achieva Osprey Nest will remember that Tiny Tot also was self-feeding before the two bigger siblings. It is part of survival and Tiny Little was caught on camera trying to sneak fish today.

Here is Tiny Little in the front. You can just see a bit of her Blue bling. Apparently, one of the two bigger Bobs is a female and the other is a male. I am going to make a guess that Great Big nasty Bob is a female and Middle Bob that hangs out with Tiny and didn’t bother her eating is a male.

It has been a particularly sad year for the Osprey Nests. Today, a friend, sent me news that both chicks on the Newfoundland Power Company Osprey Nest have died. I have not watched that nest this year. It is reported that after the youngest hatched today, it got trapped under the older chick. The mother tried to get the big one off the little one by pulling its leg and sadly, both chicks died.

There were questions about Ospreys and their ability to ‘fight’ intruders. A reliable source tells me today that the talons of the Osprey have developed over millions of years to carry the fish, not to fight like eagles. When the intruder was on the Achieva Osprey Nest, Tiny Tot learned to get on the intruder’s back, just like they would if they were mating, and beat the daylights out of the head of the offender with its beak.

Almost all of the Osprey nests have had intruders. Some are just annoyances but others are more deadly. It was only two days ago that the mother, Alma, and one of the three chicks was killed in Finland. That same day, there was a relentless attack on Iris and her nest by another female. Louis comes to Iris to help protect her. Here is a video of that encounter:

Good news comes in from the Dahlgren Nest of Jack and Harriet. Both of their chicks have now fledged. Congratulations!

Speaking of fledging, any day now and the two Bobs on the Rutland Manton Bay Nest will take off. The hovering has gotten intense on the nest of Blue 33 and Maya the last couple of days.

Over at the Achieva Osprey nest with Tiny Tot and Jack has been busy delivering some nice fish for the little one. Thanks, dad! I have seen two deliveries but there could have been more. Tiny seems to have a nice sized crop.

Beautiful NC0 has taken such good care of her chicks this year. They have grown beyond belief and soon, they will begin their hovering, too, just like those on the Manton Bay nest.

I stopped in to check on the Ks for everyone and found K1 on the nest. Within a blink, she was off. I wonder if Big Red and Arthur were delivering a meal over on the Rice Building?

She’s off!

Checked back later and the Ks are not sleeping on the nest tonight.

Thank you for joining me this evening. Send cooling thoughts out to our lovely birds who are in the extreme heat area. We can sit with fans or AC but they are exposed. If you live in the area please put bowls of water out for the song birds living near you. Every little thing helps. Take care of yourself. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I grabbed my screen shots: Achieva Credit Union, Cowlitz PUD, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Scottish Wildlife Trust and Friends of Loch of the Lowes, Dyfi Osprey Project, and Glacier Gardens Bald Eagle Cam.

The featured image is Xena. The photo credit goes to Lydia Uddstrom.

Sad news about K2 and other nest stories late Thursday and Friday, updated to include tragedy to Osprey nest in Finland

First, I am so very sorry to bring you the sad news that K2 is no longer with us. Cornell Bird Lab released the following statement this morning:

June 25 Update: We have sad news to share about K2, the injured nestling from the Cornell Hawks nest that was transported to the Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Hospital on June 22. There, K2 received emergency care and advanced diagnostics to assess the nature and extent of injuries and determine treatment. Unfortunately, X-rays and other testing revealed severe and irrecoverable injuries that would have prevented K2’s survival in the wild or quality of life in captivity. Because of this, and the chronic pain associated with this condition, the wildlife veterinarians made the difficult but compassionate decision to euthanize K2.

Cornell Bird Lab

Our hearts go out to Big Red and Arthur, K1 and K3 who will forever miss their middle sibling. Fly high little one!

Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to write to me this week. I appreciate the comments and the e-mail letters. It is wonderful that so many people are finding delight in the bird families. As one of you said, watching the birds and their daily lives is certainly better than watching the daily news! I totally agree.

I posted a question about the Cowlitz Osprey Nest. What is happening? Are the lack of significant food deliveries due to a small number of fish in the area? or are there other reasons? Thank you to the person who wrote to me to say that there are fish available. Indeed you mentioned that Electra had been fishing and had come to the nest with fish and shortly after Wattsworth showed up empty handed wanting her fish. I had seen this earlier on this nest so that is a definite pattern. Today Electra didn’t let Wattsworth have any fish – she ate and so did the only remaining Bob. This just screams what is happening to Iris with Louis at the Osprey nest in Hellgate, Missoula, Montana. Both of the females are excellent fishers and both of the males come to the nest and try to take the fish off the female. So I wonder if Wattsworth has a second nest like Louis?

Thankfully, the little Cowlitz baby had a bigger crop later in the day. This baby is going to need so much more fish to thrive but, all we have to do is look at Tiny Tot on the Achieva Osprey Nest to know that it is possible to have a turn around. But this means more and bigger fish. This chick should be in the rapid growth period and instead it looks like half its age.

Too bad these females can’t get an Osprey divorce!

Tonight (Thursday) there were two prey drops on the Fernow light tower. Arthur flew in with one and Big Red came with the second. Neither parent stayed on the nest to feed K3. It is time for a little tough love for this little one. He needs to learn how to unzip that prey and eat it – quickly so no one else comes along to take it.

It looks like K1 and K3 are having some kind of secret conversation in the image below. Perhaps it is about Big Red leaving a chippie but not feeding K3 who was crying for mom to give him some bites? Or maybe it is about who is going to eat the rest of that chippie??? If so, they had better decide quick. Big Red doesn’t like food to go to waste and that would just be a nice little snack before bed for mom! She will take it. Another lesson for these young hawks – leave food and someone else will grab it!

As the IR lights come on you can see that both of the chicks are still in that far corner. They are on the nest for the night. K3 has to be tired. He was flying all over the area trying to get back to the nest. He was on the bleachers, on another light boast, on the announcers both, on the Rice Building and finally got back to the nest. He has to be exhausted. K1 is having better luck at her flying and getting to her goal. Fantastic! When I first checked I saw the empty nest and could not see the pair of them in the corner. So happy to have found their hiding spot.

Big Red brought K1 and K2 their breakfast this morning. K3 remained on the nest resting from its adventures yesterday and K1 went over to Rice Building and was buzzed by Robins and Starlings. It is 11:40 am nest time and they are both back on the nest together. It is a good Friday morning!

Oh, there were terrible storms in Florida. Poor Tiny Tot, on the Achieva Osprey Nest in St Petersburg, was really having to sink its talons into the nest and hold on. The nest is still wet Friday morning in Florida. Jack brought Tiny Tot a nice fish at 11:26.

Tiny was still eating a half hour later. Thank you, Jack! So everything is fine in Florida with Tiny this Friday morning. And the camera is fixed. It must have gotten blown around during the storm. Thank you for doing that. Lots of viewers want to see the top of the perch and the entire nest.

Over in Cumbria, heavy rain was pouring down on Blue 35 and the three chicks on the Foulshaw Moss Osprey nest, too, Thursday late.

Blue 35 is doing the best she can to cover up her three babies on that Foulshaw Nest. There is poor Tiny Little Bob with its head under her wing in front of her tail. Oh, he should almost be directly under her. He doesn’t have the feathering the other two do.

Oh, I hope this rain stops. Ever since those two healthy chicks died of hypothermia in Spain it makes me uneasy when I see a wet nest.

It is Friday morning and the rain has stopped in Cumbria and the wind has dried that nest out quickly. Blessings! Now if Great Big Bob will allow Tiny Little Bob to have lots of fish today – it will be a good Fish Friday! Gosh that sibling 1 is even grumpy looking. Sad to say for my gender but I bet ‘it’ is a big female!

It had been pitching down rain over in Wales too at the Clywedog Nest of Dylan and Seren – and the chick that everyone thought was a huge female turns out to be a boy. Well, there was a break in the rain but the nest was still really wet. The banders went up to weigh, measure, and ring the chick. He weighs 1400 grams at 32 days old and is now Blue 496. Dylan and Seren flew above the nest for the entire 40 minutes that it took making sure their only Bob was safe.

For everyone who is having an eagle withdrawal since the fledging of E17 and E18, Legacy, the Duke eaglets, the Pittsburg-Hayes, the Decorah and many more – there is an eagle nest up in Juneau, Alaska. The parents are Liberty and Freedom. They have one chick this year, Kindness. Oh, I love that name. The world could use a lot more ‘kindness’ and compassion now. Less anger, more hope.

This nest is located in a very unique botanical garden set in the rainforest area of Tongass National Forest in Southeast Alaska.

The beautiful baby eaglet, Kindness, is 34 days old today. It was raining earlier and now that the rain has stopped the adult is standing up and trying to get the rain off their feathers. There is kindness all dry and warm!

There is the second egg. Mom still incubates it but, for those of you familiar with Legacy – this will remind you of ‘Eggie’. The egg is way past the date to hatch and now it is just a kind of pillow or prop for Kindness.

It is such a beautiful nest with little yellow wildflowers growing on it and all those green pine trees.

If you would like to watch this nest, here is the link:

There is wonderful news coming in from the Bucovina Golden Eagle Nest. Both parents have delivered prey to the nest. Yes, you read that right. The male actually came to the nest and brought a small mouse for the eaglet. Oh, this is so very good. Perhaps it is getting less frightened of the camera. The mom brought in a Eurasian Hare. The eaglet ate the mouse from Dad in one gulp and enjoyed having Mom feed it the rabbit.

Lady Hawk caught all the action on video for us:

There is sad news coming out of Finland. This is what happened:

Here’s a verbal description of the attack by an observer:“In air a raven doesn’t match an osprey, but Alma chased the raven into the woods, where her wingspan was too wide. The raven maneuvered on top of her and they fell down clawing at each other.“Alma probably got injured when falling and the raven to get the upper hand and go at Alma with its sturdy beak that’s a sharp and strong weapon.“The raven went at Alma for about 10 minutes on the ground, and when the raven flew to the nest, it had Alma’s feathers and blood on its beak.“Then attacked the chicks, killing one and injuring one, before Ossi [returned from fishing and] chased it away. After a while, the Raven returns to Alma who is still alive and fighting back but not able to get up.“The Raven finally leaves and a fox finds Alma who tries to defend herself one last time before the fox finishes her and hides her body. RIP Alma, you were a great mother and we’ll miss you.”

Thank you for joining me today. I am so so sorry to have to bring to you the news about K2. I know that each and every one of you were hoping she would be able to return to her family. She had the best care a hawk could get and we have to trust that all the right decisions were made in her interests.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Cumbria Wildlife Trust, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Achieva Credit Union, Dyfi Osprey Project, Carnyx Wild and Clywedog Osprey Nest, Glacier Gardens Eagle Cam, and Cowlitz PUD. I also want to thank Lady Hawk for her video and John Williams for the posting of Blue 496 on FB.

Fledging is tiring – and other catch ups in Bird World

I am going to start off with an answer to a common question: How is K2? The last update was from the Cornell Bird Lab on the 22nd. It takes time for test results to come in and it is hard to wait when you are worried. Many of you will have watched the adorable eaglets, E17 and E18, at the Fort Myers Nest of Harriet and M15. You will remember that they had conjunctivitis and were taken into care by CROW. Let me say it for the 1000th time – I am so grateful to the Pritchett Family and CROW for getting a permit and getting those two babies into care. They were in the clinic for five days. Still the test results were not back but the staff was so knowledgable that they treated them for conjunctivitis because that is what they believed was the issue. And they were right! E17 got feisty enough to have to go into its own ‘time out towel’. Those two were so cute and inseparable. So we have to wait and trust that K2 is getting the best of care. The minute I hear anything I will let you know!

Here is the video of K2s retrieval:

K1 and K3 are absolutely flat out pooped. Fledging is hard work. They have to solve problems – physical ones – that they are not used to. Seriously it is so nice to be on the nest and be taken care of by Big Red!!!!!! It is scary out there. They might even decide to stay with mom a whole lot longer!!!!! K3 and K1 have been on the nest together since around noon. I just checked on them at 18:38 and they were both still there. Love these kids. Glad they feel like staying home.

Earlier….While K1 hunkered down and slept, K3 is back in the trees over by the Fernow Building. He looks pretty cute there in that tree.

@ Suzanne Arnold Horning

K1 sleeping on the nest. You can tell it is her because of the wide white terminal band on her tail and the clear black lines on her tail.

Now K3 is back and K1 is off the nest. K3 is listening and looking at K1 upstairs.

Big Red or Arthur left at least one chippie on the nest in case someone was hungry. Remember – Big Red’s kids never go hungry for long – if they ever do!

Resting in the sun.

Adorable K1.

K1 24 June 2021

There are so many who would love to see a photograph of Big Red when she was banded. The only thing I could find out was that she was banded on October 20 in 2003 in Brooktondale. Maybe someone reading this will know a student who had a project or the bander in the area at that time. I would love to know if they took a photo of Big Red. Many banders do take photographs of the juveniles they ring. OK. But that brings me back to the picture below of K1. To me she looks exactly like a juvenile Big Red would look. Isn’t she just adorable?

So the Ks are fine and the minute there is word on K2 I will let you know. K1 and K3 might just decide to stay on the nest all night.

Over in Wales, the two chicks of Idris and Telyn on the Dyfi Osprey Nest were banded and given their names today. Chick 1 is a male. He weighed 1600 grams and his ring number is 490. His name is Dysnni. It is pronounced Duh-suh-knee and is a river in mid-Wales at Gwynedd. Chick 2 who is four days younger than chick 1 is a female. She already weighs more than the male – she comes in at 1690 grams – and she is a full 4 days younger so they know she is going to be a big girl. Her ring number is 491. And goodness, her name is going to take some time. It is Ystwyth and it is also a river valley in Wales. I was told you take the ‘Aber’ out of Aberystwyth and that is how you pronounce her name. Wow.

Here is beautiful Ystwyth with her new bling! I might just call her Blue 491.

Well, here is the ‘Only’ Bob on the Clydewog Nest of Dylan with mum, Blue 35 Seren. Now this is one – can I use all caps – BIG – chick. Just look at her. This bird has to be a female. Oh, I do hope they get around to ringing her! These parents had lots of food and really took care of their only little Bob. The other two eggs which are still on the nest were nonviable.

Oh, I had to close my eyes when I went to check on Tiny Tot at the Achieva Osprey Nest. There had been a huge rain storm with big winds and Tiny was holding on for dear life on the edge of the nest. Of course my mind went back to the tornado that cut through the lakes in northern New York State with the Osprey nests. Hang on Tiny!

I have found it hard to check on the Cowlitz Nest. I thought the little one that was dying had died around noon on the 22nd. But it suffered through the afternoon and did not die until close to 6pm nest time. Some big fish came on that nest that day but it was too late for that little one. Yesterday I only saw one small fish – there could have been more- I didn’t see them and I do not see any significant growth in the remaining chick, sadly. Today the other chick had a fish this morning and must have had something to eat later as its crop was bigger. Electra has not moved the body of the other chick off the nest. She may not. The female at Port Lincoln left the little one there and it became part of the nest. If the chicks are bigger they need to be removed so they do not decompose in the nest. This takes a human and a permit.

This chick is so far behind for its age. But I hope that it survives and does well otherwise the death of the other one was just futile. I am still baffled by this Osprey Nest. This is not the first time that Electra has lost chicks. Is it really down to Wattsworth not bringing in fish? does he have another nest? or is it that there are just not enough fish? It reminds me too much of what Iris went through trying to raise chicks with Louis. [And note- Louis is good to Starr and their chicks. They have 2 this year.]. Is it the same situation? If you have any insights please write to me.

I just checked in on the Achieva Osprey Nest and the wind and rain have stopped. Tiny Tot is not on the nest. K1 and K3 are getting a little antsy. Big Red and Arthur like to do prey drops across Tower Road on the Rice Building. Maybe they are trying to lure them for a meal? Hard to say.

That’s a wrap for now. Tomorrow I hope to introduce you to a mother duck who has decided to use a person’s flowerbed for her nest! Take care everyone. See you soon.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cam where I grab my screen shots: Achieva Osprey, Cowlitz DUP, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Dyfi Osprey Project, and Carynx Wild. I also want to thank Suzanne Arnold Horning for posting the image of K3 in the tree on the Cornell Red Tail Hawks FB page. That reminds me – go to the Cornell Red Tail Hawks FB Page and sign on. You can see lots of wonderful images there!

Featured image is K3 on 24 June 2021.

Sadness on the Cowlitz Osprey Nest

I have tried hard to avoid the Cowlitz PUD Osprey Nest. The sibling rivalry increased because of the lack of fish brought in. The stronger chick got more strong and the weaker one more weak. The more dominant chick kept the other one from having any food yesterday. The day before it had only 1 meal out of 4 deliveries – or was that yesterday? At any rate, it was denied food. Its body became dehydrated in the hot sun. It is always horrific when chicks die of starvation.

There were two fish deliveries this morning but the weakest one was just too ill to even try and eat.

I checked at the nest at 12 noon and the little one has died.

It is unclear how the other chick will fare, actually. These chicks are developmentally delayed physically because of the lack of nutrition. I can only hope that there will be enough prey for this one to move forward, gain weight and fledge.

It remains unclear as to what the problem is regarding ‘enough fish’. Is it possible that there is simply not enough fish in this area to sustain this nest? is there other competition between Ospreys and Bald Eagles? or is Wattsworth the issue? does he have another nest? what is going on? I do wonder.

It is time to take a deep breath and exhale. Let us hope that the death of the little one will actually mean something – mean that this one will fledge.

Thank you for joining me. It It has been a tense day today with K3 flying into Bradfield – but he is OK – the death at this nest – and the news of a tornado near Ithaca that killed several osprey chicks. What a year it has been. Take care all!

Thank you to the Cowlings PUD for their streaming cam where I took my screen shot.

The featured image shows the fat little bottoms of the two chicks just three days ago.

Nest Hopping on the Summer Solstice

Today in the Northern Hemisphere we are celebrating the Summer Solstice. In the Southern, it is the Winter Solstice. My friends in Australia are finishing up their gardens, eating the last of the tomatoes and clearing up the vines, enjoying the first of the cabbages. It is even time for them to light the small fires that keep them warm. For the rest of is it is the beginning of summer officially. A time for school to be over in Canada and people to start thinking what they will be doing to enjoy themselves for the second summer of the pandemic, living under various restrictions.

There has been a lot of action in Bird World this past week – some good and some tragic. We lost the two seemingly healthy Ospreys chicks at the Urbaidai Biosphere Nest. The staff believe the cause was hypothermia. There had been lots of rain and the nest was wet. It is so sad because those chicks were quite large and doing so well. Now at the Golden Eagle Nest in Bucovina, Romania, the beautiful little Golden Eaglet has not had a good meal since the 16th of the month. Today it was so hungry that it had to eat one of the leg bones from the deer brought on the nest. The father had been helping with prey – hunting and then doing an exchange with mom. I wonder if something has happened to him. The female brought in only a small bird since the 16th. It is so frightening because this nest is beginning to feel like a repeat of the absolute horror at Spilve’s nest in Latvia last year. Spilve’s mate died and then her beautiful Klints, almost ready to fledge, starved to death. Spilve could not get enough large prey for Klints to survive. That said there is a difference. A human frightened the male provider while putting up a camera. Spilve’s mate was injured or died. Think about it. This is the reason that no one should go near an active nest once the birds are there. The question is this: does the individual who put up the camera have a ethical obligation to provide prey for the Golden Eaglet?

The eaglet had a crop but I believe it is only from the eating of the bones. I want to be wrong. My friend T sent this picture to me and we both hope he had some real food.

Just now the mother has brought in a very small bird for the eaglet. It is 17:28 nest time in Romania. Eaglet had seen her and started food calling. Oh, I hope that nothing has happened to the father so that larger prey can come on to this nest!

There has been a lot of sadness at various of the nests this year. K2, the middle hatch of Big Red and Arthur, is having some issues. No one knows specifically what the matter is. The beak appears to be layered with dried food that did not get cleaned off. The eye issues could be compounded by the chick’s scratching. It was a good day for a fledge for K1 and K3 but that did not happen. Big Red fed all three chicks on the nest tonight – including K2 who ate well. Big Red knew that heavy rain was coming and she kept those babies on the nest. Oh, she is such a wonderfully experienced mom!

K3 is the one facing towards the street standing in front of the light box. If you look carefully you can see the accumulation of dried prey on the beak. I am hoping that is all that is the matter with her beak and that antibiotics, fluids, and TLC will have her fit to release. I say her. I actually believe K2 is a he. If K2 goes into care they will surely do a DNA test and we will find out – boy or girl.

Around 9:26 this morning Arthur brought in prey for Big Red and the Ks. These parents are being very attentive to their three hawlets as the time comes closer for them to fledge. Already this morning K3 has taken the spot on the fledge ledge. It will be 80 degrees and sunny. A nice day to fly for the first time!

There were three fish deliveries that I am aware of on the Cowlitz Nest today in Longview, Washington. That is wonderful. There continues to be food insecurity and competition on the nest. The smallest chick is very feisty, just like K3, and does take advantage of that when feeding time arrives. I do not know how soon this will stop but I do hope that Wattsworth will bring more fish to the nest so that these two can begin to grow and thrive. Chick 1 hatched on May 27th making it 23 days old and chick 2 hatched on May 29th making it 21 days old today. They are physically behind in their development but that might not be a bad thing unless they are not ready for migration when August or September arrive. It would be like having a child who is either small for their age that they are at the bottom of the chart or, likewise, one that is really big for their age. I was happy to see crops on both the chicks today and also to see a pair of fat little bottoms. Hopefully they will be fine but they need consistent fish brought to the nest for that to happen! Wattsworth!!!!!!!

You can just see the coppery colour starting on their heads. They still have the white stripes on their back and their dark charcoal down as infants. It looks like their spider legs are beginning to fill out a bit but the little bottoms today – at least – are plump and round. These kiddos have been a bit of a worry because there is no rhythm to this nest. All you have to do is look at the nest where the chicks are thriving and see the dad bring in a fish first thing in the morning – it is there just as dawn is breaking – and at tea time or before bed. And, of course, in between. Wattsworth is not regular. It makes for so much insecurity – and hunger – which leads to rivalry.

There they are those sweet little kiddos with their little tails coming in. Oh, you keep every morsel of positive energy you have going the way of these two. They cannot help who their father is – I just hope that for them Wattsworth will continue to provide more and more fish. They can get over it. Just look at Tiny Tot! But they are going to need lots of fish as they should be entering their biggest growth period.

Jack brought in two fish to Tiny Tot at the Achieva Credit Union Osprey Nest. The first of the day was actually the tea time fish at 4:52:33 and the last was at around 7:50. Tiny gets so excited when he sees fish coming in – he food calls and starts mantling – always backing up on the nest so that dad has a place to land.

It was a really quick hand off. Tiny is great – can you tell in the image below that he has a fish in those talons? I couldn’t for the longest time.

In the Karula National Forest in Estonia, the Black Storklings are thriving. Karl II and Kaia have done a wonderful job parenting the three of them. This is the nest where Karl’s former partner typically laid 5 or 7 eggs and then would toss the smaller chicks off the nest. I am hoping that Kaia only lays three eggs every year so that all can survive – providing there is enough food. Food insecurity triggers the elimination of the smaller chicks.

So much on these nests – every nest no matter the species – depends on a regular supply of prey. Any nest can change in an instant if something happens to the amount of prey or the weather turns cold and damp.

Aren’t they adorable?

I do not know if the community is still feeding the storklings in Mlade Buky. You will recall that their mother was electrocuted and Father Stork was going to have difficulty protecting the little ones and getting food for them. The community chipped in little fish and various other small mammals for both Father Stork and the storklings, feeding them three times a day. Those generous caring people made it possible for these three to grow strong and fledge. When I check now, it is Father Stork who is feeding them.

Here is father stork feeding them just after 10pm last night in Czechoslovakia.

And today you can see how big those storklings have grown.

It is morning in Scotland. There is a beautiful golden glow falling on NC0 and the Two Bobs. Look how big they are? At one time I worried so much for the Little Bob and NC0’s feeding ability but she has proved herself to be an excellent mother.

There is a bit of mist as the sun breaks in Wales at the Dyfi Nest of Telyn and Idris.

Let us all hope that the golden glow that falls so beautifully on NC0 at the Loch of the Lowes will bless all of the nests this week so that everyone is well.

Thank you for joining me. You stay well, too!

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Dyfi Osprey Project, Scottish Wildlife and Friends of Loch of the Lowes, Achieva Credit Union, Cowlitz PUD, Cornell Bird Lab and RTH, Mlade Buky, Eagle Club of Estonia, and the Bucovina Golden Eagle Cam.

It was..and then it wasn’t a good day to fledge

The Red tail Hawks and, especially Arthur, have been giving aerial demonstrations for their three eyases, the Ks, today. The weather was lovely and the winds were fantastic. K3, the youngest was really getting into having that wind go underneath his wings.

Some, much more experienced than me have shared their wisdom with me. Large female birds take longer to get their feathers. The females are already larger than the males. As a result, it takes longer for the feathers of the female to come in and for her to be ready to fledge. This certainly was correct last year with J1 who fledged last and was determined to be a ‘she’ at her autopsy. The youngest, J3 fledged second with J2 fledging first. Ironically, J2 was the second to hatch but the first egg laid if I remember correctly. Now we will see what happens this year.

There is a bit of a spanner in the works because of K2. There is something wrong with K2’s beak area and eye on the right. She has been scratching it today which is not making things any better. No one knows what is wrong but if K1 and K3 fledge then an attempt will be made to take K2 into care.

For now, though, K3 is really having a bang up time jumping, flapping, and watching Arthur do his aerial stunts. I did short videos to show you the action.

In the first one you can see K3 watching Arthur flying around the nest and getting excited. At one time he tries to go upon the light box. That is, in fact, the way that J2 sort of fludged last year – climbing on the light box and being forced to fly off as he fell off it.

In the second, K3 really gets going with the wind under its wings and jumping high. Just look at those great legs and that little one go!

Stop and count the dark lines on K3s tail. You will see if you look carefully that there are six! K3 has enough tail length to fly nicely.

And then, as quick as a wink, the rains came. Fledging will have to happen another day. No one wants these Ks trying to take their first flight with heavy wet wings across that road!

If you want to watch all the action of Big Red, Arthur and the Ks as fledge gets closer, here are the links. There are two cameras.

This is the normal camera which can be moved and zoomed in by the camera operators:

This is the Fixed Camera. It looks down towards the fledge ledge.

In other news, Tiny Tot has been defending his natal nest in St Petersburg today. Jack has brought him or her a fish. The Cowlitz kids were eating the last time I checked on them and sadly, if you did not see my earlier news, all three chicks on the Urdaibai Biosphere Park Osprey Nest have now died. It is a very sad day for everyone celebrating the success of the translocation project. And in Australian news, Lady has laid her first egg at the White Bellied Sea Eagle Nest in the Sydney Olympic Park. Another one will be laid in 2 or 3 days.

Thank you for joining me. Take care. Enjoy your weekend.

Thank you to the Cornell Bird Lab and the streaming cam at the Red Tail Hawk Nest on the Cornell Campus. That is where I took my video clips.

Fishy Friday or is it Fish Friday?

My son lives in the West Indies. On Fridays, there is a fish dinner up on the coast in one of the fishing villages. Every kind of fish you could want cooked many different ways along with all of the sides and homemade strawberry ice cream. Oh, yum. The barbecued Red Snapper is so tasty! When I think of all the Ospreys eating fish on Friday it reminds me of those dinners on the island. If my memory serves me correctly almost all of the islands have a Fish Friday at one place or another. If you wind you there, check and see. And then get ready to enjoy.

Most of the time when people are watching nests not much is happening. Everyone gets excited when a fish appears and there is some action and completely distraught when the chicks are hungry. Well, it is Friday and it looks like everyone is being fed.

So far today, Tiny Tot on the Achieva Nest has had two fish. Jack brought in one around 8:41 am and a second before bedtime at 8:25.

Thanks, Jack! Tiny has been guarding the nest for you!

Tiny is really good at mantling. No one is taking his fish.

The poor little munchkins over on the Cowlitz PUD Osprey Nest had two fish deliveries today, too. One was small with the late afternoon tea time one a little bigger. It sure would help both the mental and physical state of this nest if Wattsworth would get 4 fish on that nest every day – and not twiddlers either. The kids fight because they are hungry. Getting enough fish to exist but not really thrive. Right now both of the chicks have a crop. Thank goodness.

And you may not see the fish but when you see a PS like the one in the image below, you know that those Two Bobs on the Loch of the Lowes Nest have eaten well! Laddie and NC0 are nothing short of terrific.

It seems like Idris at the Dyfi Osprey Nest has entered some kind of local fishing contest. He continues to bring in whoppers. Yesterday it was the largest mullet ever recorded at the nest. Today it was another big one. Here is the image of the one yesterday if you missed it. They figure that the fish weighs more than Idris which I find interesting because most people state that these fish eagles cannot weight carry that much. Idris you might be changing our thinking on that. It is the largest mullet ever seen on the Dyfi nest.

Idris might have heard about that wall for Monty and figures he might have a chance at one too if he is a great provider. I guess time will tell. He sure is a cutie! Look at those big yellow eyes.

Idris is up on the post and Telyn is feeding the two Bobs. I believe that these two Bobs will be ringed in the next couple of days. Super!

Idris and Telyn are over on the nest perch keeping watch over their babies while they sleep. Hopefully it will be a quiet night at the Dyfi nest.

Dylan keeps bringing in sticks trying to build up the wall on the nest for the Only Bob at Clywedog. Meanwhile, while he is thinking about that, Seren is feeding this little cutie. You can hardly see the nest. Only Bob is a pretty good aim with that PS! There must be a bullseye on that camera.

It was very sad to lose the little albino chick on the Urdaibai Biosphere Osprey Nest, the other two older siblings are doing really, really well. Like all the others they are also enjoying their Friday fish.

Between the condensation and the PS on the camera it is really hard to see the Two Bobs at the Manton Bay Nest at Rutland Water. It has been raining all day. They are hoping to ring these two Bobs but it cannot happen when the weather is bad. They have a couple more days. Fingers crossed. The rain doesn’t seem to bother Blue 33 (11) – he gets the Fish for Friday up on the nest.

All of the babies are fine and I hope you are, too. Take care of yourself. Thank you for joining me. It is always a pleasure to see so many bird lovers.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I took my screen shots: Dyfi Osprey Project, Urdaibai Biosphere Park, Achieva Credit Union, Clywedog Osprey Project and Carnyx Wild, Cowlitz PUD, and the Scottish Wildlife Trust and Friends of the Loch of the Lowes.