Tag Archives: Cowlitz

Fledge watch at Cornell…late Wednesday in Bird World

17 June 2026

I am feeling very nostalgic. The very first time I visited Japan was in 1988. It was August. My friend, Ikuhiko, introduced me to the culture, the temples, the gardens, the pickles, and the food in a much condensed two-week period. It was the first of so many trips – most of which centred on Kyoto.

Tuesday night, I watched a gardening show from the UK, Monty Don’s Japanese Gardens on YouTube, that looked at Japanese gardens in both spring and fall. It is a strange thing, but I can close my eyes and walk from the JR Station to the little apartment where I stayed a few blocks from the Kamo River and the old area of Kyoto. The place that I found tranquillity, however, was in Ohara, a the Sanzen-in temple on the mountain. It is a very old site, sacred to the Tendai sect, and famous for its gardens. To get there, I had to take the #11 bus, if I recall correctly. At the beginning of the trek were two shops – one with delicious food and the other with textiles created in various techniques using Indigo. They seemed to specialise in Shibori. Away from the road and up the mountain, artists were drawing and painting at the edge of a field. It was the amazing moss gardens at the top that drew me there. I do not have the proper words for how peaceful it was away from the hussle and bussle of Kyoto.

Ironically, one of the other programmes on the telly that Don enjoys, Death in Paradise, is set in Deshaies, Guadeloupe. There are always one or more images we recognise, including Katherine’s restaurant, which is on the beach in the main town.

Wonderful memories.

Tuesday was a very beautiful day. There was a breeze, and the temperature remained mild. No rain, no hail, and dinner was on the deck with the birds singing their little hearts out. Beautiful. Oh, being outside just brightens one’s soul!

Wednesday is busy. We have Tolu; Toby will stay with Ann while Don goes to his psychiatrist’s appointment; and then there is the first day of our South Osborne Farmers’ Market. Think yummy Chinese dumplings and fresh local honey! So this report is shorter than normal.

The weather has been more than windy in Hellgate Canyon. Clark had trouble bringing in a minnow-sized fish. I became concerned for the little one. He stayed with Iris and his baby and finally came in with a good-sized fish around 1020. Relief

Two ospreys resting in their nest at night, with a dimly lit parking lot in the background.
An osprey standing on a nest made of twigs and branches, overlooking a parking lot in the background.
An adult osprey is feeding a young chick in a nest, surrounded by twigs and leaves.
Osprey feeding a chick in its nest, surrounded by twigs and dry leaves.

It is still very windy at Hellgate Canyon. Clark brought in another fish after 1500 (he might well have brought in more earlier).

An osprey nest with two ospreys, one perched and one standing, surrounded by a parking area and greenery in the background.

Iris feeds the baby while Clark keeps guard. Clark is so protective of his family!

Two ospreys perched on a nest made of sticks, with a parking lot and green areas visible in the background.
Close-up view of an osprey nest with a chick and surrounding twigs, leaves, and nest materials.

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Wednesday 17th June 2026

Today was calm and routine, no upsets, not much in the way of chick aggression, and no intruders. Louis brought three fish for his family, taking the Nest Two tally to one hundred and fifty one, and Garry LV0 brought one fish for Aurora 536 taking the Nest One tally to one hundred and twenty one. It rained on and off today and rain will continue through the night with light winds and a low of 12°C, continuing tomorrow with light rain, a gentle breeze and a high of 17°C. 

Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/AXFpJ8nfXoU N2 Louis brings his leftovers for breakfast 03.54.38https://youtu.be/Wet3grKylU8 N2 Dorcha’s dulcet tones summon a second fish 06.34.51https://youtu.be/C1actFs_pO8 N2 Louis’ third fish is a magnificent and lively big trout 12.49.59https://youtu.be/rnC3K-WuNTM N

1 Garry remains while Aurora flies off with her fish 17.17.46

Bonus watch – Classic Ospreys series, special moments over the years preserved and set to classical music, quite a few involve sticks!

https://www.youtube.com/@GeemeffGeemeff/playlists

Why not come and 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

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Tuesday 16th June 2026

The chicks threw a strop and fought each other, Dorcha took no notice, Louis got his toe nibbled, Aurora got a fish and Garry didn’t spend much time on the nest. He only brought one fish for Aurora, on camera anyway, he almost certainly is bringing fish during the approximately four hours daily cam down time, and his tally now stands at one hundred and twenty. Louis brought four fish for Dorcha and the Nest Two tally rises to one hundred and forty eight. The chicks fought with the eldest coming out on top but then looked ridiculous attacking the nest itself! The weather forecast for the Inver Mallie area is light rain and winds overnight with a low of 13°C, continuing tomorrow with light rain showers, a gentle breeze and scattered sunshine with a high of 17°C.

Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/boMblyAoBC4 N2 Louis’ first delivery is a large flapping fish 04.47.56https://youtu.be/4YvuTEwPFYs N2 Louis’ second fish is snack-sized 09.41.49 https://youtu.be/mCbfkDybVic N2 Older chick throws a strop, batters the younger then the nest! 11.33.30https://youtu.be/UIH0JbgLebs N1 Both Garry and Aurora leave when he brings a fish 15.48.25https://youtu.be/efCAsuesBwA N2 Is fish blood why C2 keeps nibbling Louis’ toe? 16.58.26https://youtu.be/WJY4sDQmPIE N2 Louis looks magnificent and well fed bringing a fourth fish 19.05.00

You’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

==========================================================

Fledge watchers are ready and signs will be going up on the Cornell Campus for Big Red and Arthur’s hawklets.

I love Big Red. She knows when her babies are about ready to fly, and she often chooses to feed them. She is an incredible RTH. The number of chicks she has fledged is unknown, as she has only been on camera with her mate, Ezra, since 2012. She hatched in 2003 and was probably raising babies in 2006. She glows when she has chicks. Positively glows.

Four red-tailed hawk chicks huddled together in a nest on a balcony, with a view of a tree-lined street and buildings in the background.

On the rails.

A red-tailed hawk perched on a nest near the edge of a building, overlooking a tree-lined street below.

This one decided to check out the camera! https://youtu.be/x3kee2NoBCc?

A close-up of a young red-tailed hawk perched on a railing, with a nest visible in the background and trees and a road below.

Big and Little fledged, and Jill, with some help from Jack, is still feeding these two at the Achieva nest. What a wonderful nest this turned out to be this year, thanks to Jill.

A post featuring ospreys Jack and Jill engaging in fishing activities, with Jill holding a headless spadefish and siblings fighting over the catch in their nest.

Big and Little waiting for Mum to deliver an evening meal. They ‘trust’ that she will being food back. What an incredible nest.

Two ospreys are perched in their nest, surrounded by greenery and a view of a residential area in the background.

Mum never disappoints. ‘PB’ thinks it could be a mackerel.

A bird holding a fish in its talons near a nest made of twigs and branches, set against a green background.

Hatch at Sandpoint!

An osprey sits in a nest with a visible egg, surrounded by twigs and branches, overlooking a parking lot with trees and buildings in the background.

Not quite sure what is going on with Bety and Bukachek this year. Will keep monitoring. Gosh, that nest is full of human debris.

A stork standing on a nest filled with twigs and grass, with a village and mountains in the background under a blue sky.

Baby being fed at Cowlitz.

An aerial view of an eagle sitting in its nest made of twigs and branches beside a road.

The trio at Dyfi are fantastic. Telyn and Idris are exceptional.

An adult osprey is perched on a nest surrounded by three young chicks. The nest is made of twigs and is situated in a green, grassy area.

We have a second hatch at Ilomantsin sääkset #2. It is rainy and wet, and I hate that when there are babies in the nest. They get cold and die – let’s hope for sunshine.

An osprey in a nest made of sticks and moss, feeding its chicks near a body of water.

Storks being banded: https://youtu.be/xI-AJgtA6Fc?

A person in a safety harness is interacting with young storks in a nest on top of a structure, with a scenic landscape in the background.
A person in a safety harness is working on a large stork nest on a rooftop, with several chicks visible in the nest. The background shows a lush green landscape and houses.

Boys being boys at San Jose City Hall. https://youtu.be/u0dIuFbxwBs?

It is really raining in Estonia at the nests of the Golden Eagle and Lesser Spotted Eagle. Both Lesser Spotted chicks have eaten, with the oldest having more – a rat that came in later. Wish them better weather.

Some have been worried about Little Bob at Poole Harbour. He was in a food coma earlier and gets up and eats when he is hungry. Everything looks fine to me.

A bird nest containing three chicks and one adult bird, surrounded by twigs and greenery in a forested area.
An aerial view of an osprey nest, featuring several young chicks and one adult osprey, surrounded by twigs and greenery.

Family portrait at Rutland with swans. Chicks will be ringed soon.

A nest of osprey chicks surrounded by adult ospreys near a body of water, showcasing the birds in their natural habitat.
A group of ducklings resting in a nest made of twigs and branches by a body of water.

Smile. Little Dewey at Dewey Beach has had seven fish so far today.

An adult osprey stands in a nest with two chicks, surrounded by twigs and foliage, overlooking a waterway.

Thank you so much for being with us – there is so much happening, fledges, hatches, and sadly, what looks like pending deaths at some nests. Will try to catch everyone up on the latest tomorrow or Friday. I may take tomorrow off -. Need to enjoy some time with Don in the country! In the meantime, take care! See you soon.

Thank you to Geemeff for those two great reports on Loch Arkaig, PB for alerting me to some nest news, SK Hideaways for their wonderful videos. I am grateful to everyone who posted information and images on FB and to the owners of the streaming cams that allow us to watch these incredible bird families. Thank you.

Compassionate humans help wildlife, Cornell hawklets anxious to fly…late Tuesday in Bird World

16 June 2026

Good Afternoon Everyone,

We woke up to blue skies and sunshine! And, while sipping our tea and munching on croissants, we counted two Blue Jays at the feeder! Did I tell you about the Cooper’s Hawk hiding in the lilacs that Mr Blue Jay flushed out on Sunday? It was a frightening moment. Mr Blue Jay was screeching at the top of his little lungs. I thought the hawk had his mate or one of their newly hatched chicks BUT maybe Mr Blue Jay just say the hawk loitering in ‘his lilacs’ and wanted him gone. He sure chased him out of the neighbourhood. Imagine.

Ann is taking Don to his annual appointment today and I am going to sit on the deck with Toby and relax. We had an accident yesterday. I know each of us has spilled a cup of water and marvelled at how much there is when you go to clean it up. Well, imagine an extra large mug of hot chocolate. My goodness. Poor Don just couldn’t hold it (early Parkinson’s). The key is like training dogs – nothing negative. Our little Bissell worked overtime after I had scrubbed with a brush. The space is dry but there is still a dark stain in one spot and hopefully after a couple more bouts of cleaning, we can get that out. I bought this big old carpet years ago when wool and silk carpets didn’t cost the price of a car. I love it but, is it time to give it up?

From our monitor, ‘V’, who is writing a book on her twenty-year experience with ospreys living right in front of her. Sadly, life has changed for the birds, but today VV sends us some good news. Please note that I am protecting the location for obvious reasons and the individual.

“Most of my observed nests are a bust again this year. But one of the two nests in front of my house still has at least one chick still alive (bad early bullying, haven’t seen bobble heads in a few days, but someone is still getting fed)— but in the oldest nest, THREE chicks have reached dinosaur stage — first time parents, male an excellent fisher. We’re rigging up a pulley to that nest so we can start adding fish if times get too lean for them. 🤞🏻”

More good news from ‘V’: “It seemed one of the nests up the road also had feeding going on as I drove by. So perhaps there will be a couple fledges from here this year. I can’t imagine we’d be so fortunate.

The fish- pulley apparatus has been “rigged” — waterman vernacular — and we’re going to try to attach it in the morning when the tide is lower. That’s what someone needs to video, the 74 year old woman wading out to the piling for the 83 year old man to haul and attach a bird feeder.   Dodo birds to say the least. Ha!”

V is my hero. Not afraid to save their babies. There are others – I’m like a geisha – I never tell, but there are a number this year that have decided to establish fish ponds to help their ospreys.

There has been questions about Iris’s other two eggs. Egg 2 is 40 days today. Not going to hatch. It is possible that Egg 3 might hatch. Personally, if every osprey nest fledged one very healthy chick, we should feel blessed. I keep thinking about Dewey Beach in the same way. One healthy – not four with 2 or 3 dying of starvation and battering.

Baby One is doing just fine. One nice, strong chick. Yesterday, it disappeared into that bark that was brought in, and many of you became concerned that something had happened. You had to look closely to find its little head.

A close-up of a baby osprey chick interacting with a parent, surrounded by nesting materials.

Another human is helping some storks, with one of the adults in trouble. There are so many compassionate people throughout the world. Sometimes we have to pull away from the news – and just look at the good or we can easily drop ourselves into despair.

Here is the video: https://youtu.be/fp6ZQJJmDbE?

A nest with young storks and an adult stork feeding them, with a view of a village in the background.
Two young storks are being fed in their nest, with a view of a rural area in the background.

“One of the storks with a leg ring has both legs wrapped in long pieces of metal bands. It can’t free itself from the tether. The parent with the ring was in the nest this morning and again this afternoon, and you can see that its legs are still tied. One parent is feeding the young, the other is charred with soot, but it’s not enough food. Yesterday, the storks received a large portion of meat food from a human, and today, the human also threw a large amount of fresh meat into the nest. Storks are afraid of people; it will be difficult to remove the metal band (because it’s not a string) from its tangled legs. Perhaps this stork will be caught on the ground and its legs will be freed.”

‘J’ sends us the latest installment of Kakapo news.

Kakapo Files podcast episode 18:
15 Jun 2026

Six months after this record-breaking kākāpō breeding season began, all 91 living chicks have fledged and left the nest. The chicks remain with their kākāpō mums and are still being fed by them, as well as eating a range of plant material, and as cold wet midwinter weather sets in the chicks are learning to find dry roost sites. The Kākāpō Team’s Daryl Eason and Andrew Digby answer listener questions, including why did Kākāpō cam star Rakiura spend so much time in the nest digging, what can you learn from a piece of egg shell, and could old museum specimens be a source of lost kākāpō genes?

In this episode:
02:06 – Island news with ranger Daniella Whitaker
06:21 – Update on Kākāpō Cam star Rakiura
11:43 – Sick kākāpō
15:19 – Are kākāpō smart?
18:19 – Previous nest cams
20:05 – Why did Rakiura dig so much in her nest?
24:00 – Do kākāpō compete with other species?
25:30 – Kākāpō on Coal Island and at Sanctuary Mountain Mangatautari
30:57 – Museum specimens and lost genes

Learn more:
Follow the Kākāpō Files podcast to keep up to date
Listen to the Voice of the Kākāpō series for a recap of the 2019 breeding season. Also listen to the episodes covering the interim 2022 breeding season, and about how a few male kākāpō have fared in the North Island, in the fenced Sanctuary Mountain Maungatautari
For more New Zealand science and nature find and follow the Our Changing World podcast, and subscribe to the show’s monthly newsletter

Guests:
Kākāpō ranger, Daniella Whitaker, Kākāpō Recovery Programme
Kākāpō technical advisor, Daryl Eason, Kākāpō Recovery Programme
Kākāpō science advisor, Andrew Digby

Kakapo Files season II:
https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/k%C4%81k%C4%81p%C5%8D-island-diary/id1447593081?i=1000762432199 
https://www.youtube.com/live/UL6P1TdsRXc?list=PLB06qFjAt4VBoq1t-spjkxq6IB5WcEexS 
https://www.rnz.co.nz/podcast/wild-sounds

Dewey Beach. This must be a female – and continue to send positive wishes to her so that she fledges!

An osprey adult stands near a nest with two chicks, one visible and looking up. The nest is surrounded by sticks and located near a body of water with buildings in the background.

The trio are so fully feathered at Manton Bay and the nest of Blue 33 and Maya.

A closely grouped family of ospreys in a nest made of twigs and sticks, with one adult bird observing the chicks. The background shows a body of water.

‘PB’ reports that Cowlitz has its first hatch today.

A pair of images showing bird eggs in a nest, with one egg hatching and a chick visible next to the eggs.

The reality of not enough fish is spreading through the nests – Forstythe, Field Museum, Farm Field amongst others.

Heidi reports on the loss at Field Farm:

An osprey feeding its chicks in a large nest made of twigs and branches, surrounded by green grass.

Heidi also reports on The Bridge Club osprey nest in NY.

An osprey taking off from its nest with young chicks visible inside the nest, surrounded by a natural landscape during dawn.

‘PB’ reports on Achieva:

Facebook post detailing a fishing report with timestamps and observations of interactions between birds and fish.
A collage of images depicting an osprey nesting area, showing the bird with its wings spread, sitting on a nest made of sticks, and interacting with nestlings or prey.

Charlie and the New Female together on the nest at Charlo Montana feeding their two babies.

Two adult ospreys in a nest with several chicks and remnants of food.

Look at those beautiful juvenile feathers on the Pitkin County Trails Osprey nest in Colorado!

An osprey stands over its chicks in a large nest made of sticks, set against a green landscape with shrubs in the background.

It can be very dangerous being an osprey chick during fish deliveries. We have seen chicks killed, almost smashed…today it was Louis turn at Lock Arkaig 2 to flip a chick. Geemeff has it on video: https://youtu.be/boMblyAoBC4?

A very successful nest is Wolf Bay in Alabama! One of the three chicks has fledged and the live feed has now returned. Aren’t they gorgeous?

Three young ospreys in a nest, surrounded by branches and overlooking a body of water.

At Osoyoos in British Columbia, Canada, the three osplets are still alive. Please send this nest good wishes. They have had trouble with heat and getting fish to the nest for many years.

Two ospreys sitting in their nest surrounded by twigs and branches, with some chicks visible beneath them.

So far it looks like we still have four osplets alive at the Blackbush nest in Prince Edward Island, Canada.

Two ospreys in their nest with several chicks at Blackburn Beach Resort.

Two big osplets at the Havre de Grace Maritime Museum osprey nest.

An adult osprey feeding two chick osprey in a nest made of sticks and foliage.
A nest with four young ospreys, sitting on sticks and leaves, while one adult osprey is feeding them.

The Fortis Exshaw streaming cams in Alberta appear not to be working.

We still have two osplets at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. I will try to find any news I can about the woman who was caring for three osplets alone in Minnesota and post it tomorrow. If you happen to know, send me a note!

An aerial view of an osprey nest made of sticks and straw, with two adult ospreys visible near the edge of the nest and a chick resting inside the nest.

At the Red-tail Hawk nest of Big Red and Arthur (one of my favourites) the two older chicks P1 and P2 are preparing to fledge. Cornell did a video of their anxious moments: https://youtu.be/vS44rBVDG_U?

They are so cute. Big Red and Arthur will be showing them where to fly to – and you can count on Arthur for making sure that his babies are well fed after they fly.

A group of red-tailed hawk chicks standing on their nest, preparing to fledge, with greenery and a road visible in the background.

Thank you so much for being with us today. Please take care. There is so much happening – it is very difficult to keep up.

It is so nice to have you with us, and I appreciate all your notes, your e-mails, comments, and good wishes. Everyone is so kind, and it means so much to me. I want to add that there is something odd going on with my e-mail at times. Several letters from one of my friends in SF, who supplies us with those wonderful videos, SK Hideaways, were a week late in arriving in my ‘Inbox’, and they all came at once. I could be missing yours, or they might not have arrived – so if you sent me something and I did not respond, please resend. I do try to reply within 48 hours, and normally the same day if things at home are going smoothly.

Thank you to everyone who sent me news, posted information or images on FB, created videos – I am so very, very grateful. To the owners of the streaming cams, we are all so very thankful that you allow us to watch these incredible families.

Bird World News: Rescues, a fledge, and a Hurricane?

I want to give a shout out to Fortis BC for helping the South Okanagan’s only birds of prey rescue centre, SORCO, retrieve two baby Ospreys from a nest in Penticton. People saw the babies hanging over the sides of the nest panting and looking very dehydrated. The parents were unable to feed them because of the extreme heat driving the fish to the bottom of the rivers and lakes.

The Osprey platforms are out in the open – in the direct sun – and the chicks took a real hit by the heat when temperatures in the area rose into the high 40s on Wednesday.

@ CastaNet News Kelowna
@CastaNet News Kelowna

The babies are being fed and rehydrated. SORCO says they are doing well. They will be kept in care for approximately six weeks. SORCO says they have rescued 23 raptors during the extreme heat wave.

Elsa is now a hurricane and is expected to impact Florida and the region of the Osprey nests in St Petersburg early next week. The National Hurricane Centre is advising everyone to keep an eye on the hurricane as it now develops and what happens after it passes over the Antilles. You can follow the news here:

https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/graphics_at5.shtml?start#contents

All of our eyes will be on that system now that it has strengthened from a Tropical Storm to a hurricane because of our beloved Tiny Tot at the Achieva Osprey Nest in St Petersburg. The hurricane is currently located over Barbados (the white circle in the purple area).

Electra did not spend the night perched on the Cowlitz PUD Osprey nest but she has returned sometime this morning before 7am nest time.

The female chick, Blue 095, at Rutland Manton Bay has fledged today, 2 July, one day after her brother, Blue 096. Here is that flight:

It is definitely getting harder, at first glance, to tell who is who on the Foulshaw Moss Nest in Cumbria where Tiny Little Tot lives on the nest of White YW and Blue 35. Indeed, Blue 35 is testing the kids self-feeding skills today!

The male claimed the fish that arrived and didn’t do a bad job with the self-feeding. Tiny Little was right there hoping he would share! or feed him!! I do hope Blue 35 feeds Tiny Little today and doesn’t just let the bigger ones grab all of the fish.

The last time I saw Tiny Tot on the Achieva Credit Union nest she was waiting for a fish delivery. K1 and K3 had been fed and were over together on the Rice Building. So all is well in Ithaca.

Take care everyone. That is our early morning nest round up for Friday, 2 July.

Thank you to the following for their streaming cams where I get my screen shots: Cumbrian Wildlife Trust and the Foulshaw Moss Osprey Cam and the Cowlitz PUD.

Featured image is FortisBC and SORCO going up to rescue osprey chicks in Penticton.