Tag Archives: Dunrovin

The name is Wensi…Late Wednesday in Bird World

22 July 2026

Hello Everyone,

What a day it has been – one of those where great things happen and then something else goes sideways. Toby is at the vet. It appears that something has gone wrong with his eyes. Ann has taken Don to the zoo. They are trying to get a glimpse of Lumi, the little lynx. Tomorrow we are having a big curry dinner and the photographer is going to meet us at the park. It is possible it is the last time that we will all be together. So, it will be very special.

Toby update: mild conjunctivitis. Eye drops. Oh, he was so good letting me put them in! I cannot tell you how much I missed him while he was at the vet’s for three hours. With Don and Ann gone and all The Girls sleeping, the house was TOO quiet.

A huge storm swept through the NE of the US impacting osprey nests. Our hero Viki who is feeding a male and his two chicks writes, “Just as both chicks were routinely getting fed, an awful storm last night took out one of them whose remains are a puddle of feathers. I just can’t believe it. I suspect it was the elder chick who died because the remaining chick is not wingercizing and it’s a perfect morning for it. The younger chick was getting food and had pretty much caught up in size to the elder.

Ethel (of course) was on the nest with the chick this morning when I got up and LB (dad) on the nest next door (which in osprey territorial deeds also belongs to LB’s nest with the chick). Apparently, the entire creek has noticed LB’s new fish source. 

LB back on his perch waiting for my next pitch. I’m beginning to worry about his expectations. Ha! Those parents in the Australian nest still keep fishing even after the fish fairy deliveries …. Right? Cripes! He is becoming as insistent as a female hollering at him !!!

Dad LB; deceased puddle; last chick standing on Island Creek.”

This is so sad.

But later today Viki writes with some incredible news: “LB had brought a fish home while I was out and filled himself and delivered the rest to the nest. Why do I know he was full? He greeted me but didn’t go after the fish I threw …. Until a gull tried to get it. LB was off that branch, grabbed the fish I’d thrown, delivered it to the nest AND FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER STARTED FEEDING THE CHICK.

Naturally while standing in the hot mess that was the other chick. Nature is so ugly for being so gorgeous.”

And then..”Ethel is the hero. She has begun showing up on the nest waiting with the chick when I throw a fish to LB. It’s like watching Peyton Place around here – so many alliances and subterfuges !!!!

Maybe other people aren’t as nutty as us. Aren’t we lucky !!!”

More attention is now coming to the plight of the ospreys starving because of the industrial fishing of Menhaden.

https://www.audubon.org/magazine/ospreys-chesapeake-bay-are-starving-death-disastrous-rates-what-will-it-take-save-them?fbclid=IwY2xjawTN7jdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFFc3hWN09VdENzUmE3b3Azc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHtOZ_uh1rAjB7xdcRGn7dLRkaMBnY8rJXnzjpnOYCUzaDuYXzBWEsFMoQxmH_aem_iWffc-3US_Qow_bf-VQ-xg

They are ringing the chicks at Dunrovin today.

We all hope that Jackie can return home and be reunited with Shadow as soon as possible. SK Hideaways brings us the latest: https://youtu.be/lFjfSoF_-7o?

Update on Snow:

Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Wednesday 22nd July 2026 

More intruder action today, but only seen at a distance, and Louis and Dorcha worked together to see off the intruder. Louis had plenty of time to go fishing, and delivered six fish, the first two arriving within eleven minutes of each other, taking the Nest Two tally to three hundred and fifteen. Garry LV0 delivered one fish to Aurora 536, taking the Nest One tally to one hundred and seventy eight. Both he and Aurora are completely ignoring the egg now, it’s hidden under some nest bedding and with luck it will quietly disappear. The chicks on the other hand are more visible and vocal than ever, and boldly seize fish from Louis when he lands. Dorcha often gives way to them letting Juniper and Amber tussle it out for possession of the fish. There was a comical moment today reminiscent of the spaghetti scene in Lady and the Tramp, with Amber on one end and Dorcha on the other end of a long piece of fish skin, and later Juniper and Amber had a tug of fish (spoiler alert – Juniper won). 
The weather was settled and continues with thick cloud, light wind and a low of 13°C overnight, and light cloud, light winds and a high of 18°C tomorrow.

Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/XLvMt-xOs7I N2 Louis brings a second fish eleven minutes after the first  05.06.10 https://youtu.be/hgTRT8HVSu8 N2 Lady and the Chick: Dorcha and Amber share a fish skin  05.20.42  (zoom)https://youtu.be/PIVM4_91XzI N2 Everyone’s ready for third breakfast 09.49.42https://youtu.be/El3A61Iye1I N2 Dorcha and Louis work together to see off an intruder 10.47.02https://youtu.be/1_3hxjIgCKQ N1 Garry brings a fish for Aurora 14.25.40https://youtu.be/zkxq-UypR4k N2 Juniper tussles with Dorcha for fish four 16.11.17https://youtu.be/gBkrXhv9n0w N2 Amber and Juniper have a tug of fish over fish five 19.29.11https://youtu.be/8y7YeED1noM N2 Despite bulging crops the chicks are eager for fish six 21.24.15

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

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

Two chicks have fledged at Santiam Canyon. Well done.

Pam Breci reports that the only chick at William & Mary has fledged. Excellent news.

Last, but never least, on a day I didn’t intend to post – Iris and Clark now have a name for their chick. It is Wensi and means dancer in Salish.

Thank you so much for being with me today. I wanted you to know the lovely name of Iris and Clark’s chick and to hear the good news coming from Viki. Take care. I will be back at the weekend.

Thank you to SK Hideaways and Geemeff for their videos and summaries, to my hero Viki who stood up for the ospreys, to everyone who posted on FB and included information and images, and to the owners of the streaming cams – we are always grateful to you for if it were not for those cameras we would not know the wonders of these amazing birds.

First hatch for Winnie and Swoop and Sasha fledges…Late Tuesday in Bird World

9 June 2026

Hello Everyone,

We are in the direct path of a series of supercells forming south of us and moving slowly north, so this post is going to be short and sweet. We are under a severe tornado watch and have had ping-pong-ball-sized hail. Toby has been very upset by the storm and the heavy, heavy downpours. We are fine. I grew up in Oklahoma, so I am familiar with those big F4S tornadoes, and we know what to do.

Image on FB by Katie Powell in St Anne Manitoba:

A dark, ominous sky with a large, swirling funnel cloud forming above a building, indicating a severe storm or tornado.

Sasha has fledged at the Fraser Point Bald Eagle nest of Andor and Cruz. Congratulations! SK Hideaways has it on video: https://youtu.be/TGfNgOd13wg?

Clark brought in two fish yesterday. Some of the local fisherpeople believe that he had to go to the Rattlesnake River to get them – one came late at night also. That was incredible. It is difficult enough for ospreys to see in rushing muddy water, but at night?

A pair of ospreys perched on a nest made of branches and twigs, with one osprey sitting while the other stands nearby. The background shows a parking lot and trees.
Close-up image of an osprey sitting in its nest, showcasing its distinct brown and white plumage and sharp beak.
A close-up of an osprey nest, showcasing a young osprey interacting with three eggs on a bed of twigs and grass.
Close-up view of an osprey's talons resting near two eggs on a nest, surrounded by pine needles and greenery.

It is just past 1500 on the Canadian Prairies. It is one hour earlier at Iris’s nest. I have seen no fish deliveries today, but it has been raining periodically. I wish we could find out more about the status of the river near the nest. This issue with getting fish is going to seriously impact these chicks!

Clark came in with a small fish that Iris quickly snatched.

Two ospreys near their nest, one holding a fish while the other stands nearby, with a blurred parking lot in the background.

‘PB’ alerted me to Jill’s big fish for the kids. This nest is doing so well and those fledglings are getting big and strong so they can survive on their own. She has been an outstanding mother.

A close-up of a dog holding a fish in its mouth while standing on a pile of sticks and debris.

Geemeff – thank you for following what is happening with that natural material or twine or whatever it is that Dorcha worked hard to try and get off that chick! We will appreciate any updates.

Geemeff Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Tuesday 9th June 2026

It rained on and off today but more concerning than the weather was something wrapped tightly around the leg of one of the chicks, Chick2, it seems, but a closer look is needed to confirm. It appears to be organic rather than man made but it will be a relief when it’s off, Dorcha tried and failed to remove it today. Another, minor, concern is the attitude of the chicks – not yet in the reptilian phase, but their aggressive instinct to dominate and ensure priority on the feeding line has kicked in early. Chick3 does its best to keep out of the way of its older siblings but doesn’t always succeed. However, this is all perfectly natural and seen every season in varying degrees. Even a season with a solo chick had aggression – lacking siblings, the chick constantly attacked Dorcha! Louis ensures there’s a steady supply of food and each chick got fed from every fish so this season is proceeding along the usual lines, including the inevitable arrival of unsuitable sticks which cause mayhem, it was Dorcha’s turn today. Louis brought two fish, taking the Nest Two tally to one hundred and twenty one, and Garry’s single fish for Aurora takes the Nest One tally to one hundred and seven. Day forty for Aurora’s egg ended with no sign of a pip yet, but there are still a couple more days in the hatching time frame, perhaps we’ll have a surprise in the morning – fingers and talons firmly crossed for Garry and Aurora. Light rain forecast for overnight with a low of 7°C, changing to thundery showers with a high of 13°C tomorrow.

Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/1ZJd_MubgFo N2 Two eldest chicks prefer fighting to fish! 07.44.17
https://youtu.be/jbhaZwjRscs N2 Not good! One of the chicks has something tight around its leg 14.23.01 (zoom)https://youtu.be/xD5vP8wcEUI N1 Garry arrives covered in fish blood, Aurora grabs the fish and goes 18.01.11

https://youtu.be/spH0oa8uJRI N2 Youngest chick doesn’t get much of fish two 19.15.39

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

At Dunrovin, the first hatch for Swoop and Winnie! That is one strong-necked chick.

An adult bird feeding a chick in a nest surrounded by eggs and natural debris.

It appears that the Little Tiny Bob at Steelscape did not survive the sibling rivalry.

Dewey Beach, on the other hand, is doing well. Love Baby Dewey. There are issues with fish deliveries at many of the nests that sadly might continue. Send good wishes. So far, Dewey isn’t one of them. Look at that chubby osplet chick. That is what they should all look like – fat.

An osprey standing on a nest with a chick and two eggs, overlooking a waterfront area with buildings in the background.

I am going to say good night. It looks like the storms are now east of the City of Winnipeg, so I am going to relax. We still have some lightning, but I hope no more hail or wind, but oh, there is thunder again. So far, only one tree fell on a car on our street (not mine).

Take care everyone.

Thank you to Geemeff for their daily summary and for keeping an eye on that material on nest 2, to SK Hideaways thank you for the videos, and to all who posted information and images on FB, I am very grateful.

We want fish! and more news in Bird World

24 September 2022

Good Morning Everyone,

Our thoughts go out to all that are being lashed about by tropical storm systems and hurricanes.

It is a quiet drizzly grey Saturday morning in the garden. Little Red has been eating at the solid suet cylinder and the Blue Jays are pecking away at the cob of corn left for them. The sparrows have not really been around much. I hope to have some photos of Little Red cleaned up for tomorrow. But, so far, the gang is all here – Junior and the 3 fledgling Blue Jays and the 3 fledgling Crows plus Little Red, Dyson, and Scraggles. Dyson’s two from the summer come and go as well. There has been no sightings of Little Hedwig and the neighbours and I are beginning to fear the worst about those cats. Fingers crossed we see a bunny shortly.

The temperatures are dropping at night. All of the Grape tomatoes have been picked and will turn green in the lovely Birch basket. All of the plants to come inside are here but one which means a trip to the garden centre today for soil. Even so, we have not had a hard frost in the garden and this is absolutely remarkable considering it is now the 24th of September.

In the Mailbox:

The other day I was asked if non-parental male peregrine falcons could harm the eyases in the scrape. I told a story of an Osprey that had kicked the eggs out of the nest when he suspected they belonged to another male. Today, a cartoon that Chloe Baker did of Odin and EJ showed up on FB.

It was Loch Garten, 2013, and here is the video of that egg being kicked out of the nest. Odin waited til EJ went for a break! (not HD) I wish some of these great old videos could be cleaned up. They are fantastic. Of course, Odin was not the only male. Some of us waited to see if Aran would go after Mrs G’s eggs this season but, he didn’t. Presumably they were his and not the Pont Cresor Aeron Z2.

This also happened at Dunrovin a couple of years ago – much clearer image.

And here is another a couple of years ago. There are many examples. We do not know what will happen if the young male totally ousts the old male at Melbourne. Indeed, we do not even know if that will happen this year. My fingers are crossed that he goes and sits and waits til this breeding season is over! But, we also have to prepare ourselves for the worst. It is much better when the males get rid of the eggs.

Making News:

Some additional images were released of Victor taking his flight to freedom. He sure must have been so excited to be back in the wild. Victor is a magnificent eagle! Thanks to Paul K for cleaning these up!

Nest News:

It is all about life lessons at the Sydney Sea Eagles nest. The parents are deliberately branching, demonstrating how to ward off the Currawong, and then how to eat a fish. It is really a privilege to be able to watch the daily lives of these amazing raptors.

Xavier looking at the eggs. Hatch watch is 1-3 October! Xavier is one of the most devoted male Peregrine Falcons that I know. This is an incredible nest to watch and there are several cameras and a chat.

Xavier has been doing some of that enfluffing in the scrape.

I wonder how many of you are counting the number of fish flakes that Little Bob is getting at Port Lincoln. Big Bob is bigger and will need more and Mum is smartly feeding it several nice helpings before moving on to Middle and Little Bob. Dad, for his part, brought in a whomping size fish that will last the day.

Oh, Little Bob you are going to have to push and figure out how to get to the front with Big Bob in the front line!

Little Bob got himself in the right position for the next feeding at 10:50. Big Bob has a super crop and Middle is laying down. Little is going to get some really nice bites.

The camera operator gave us some fabulous close ups of the three after the 1415 feeding so we could see that each had a nice crop. Little Bob is holding its own. You can really see the egg tooth of each of the osplets – that hard piece of white beak used like a pick axe to get out of the shell. Enjoy this soft fluffy down. We will not realize it but time passes quickly and soon they will be in their reptilian phase.

Incubation continues at the 367 Collins Street scrape box. It is now the 25th in Melbourne and we are on hatch watch for the 27th.

For everyone who cannot wait for the Bald Eagle nests to be full of little eaglets, the first on streaming cam mating of the year occurred at the Northwest Florida nest of Samson and Gabby!

Migration News:

Do you know about EuroBirdPortal.org? It tracks all of the European Ospreys movements during the migration period.

I will be checking on Karl II and his family for tomorrow.

Thank you so much for being with me today. Little Bob is doing well. He isn’t our Ervie – no one could ever be Ervie but, I hope he holds his own against Big Bob and thrives. Mum and Dad are doing a great job. I fear that when Dad is late with fish it is either the wind or the gulls. Let’s blow those gulls away! Take care of yourselves. See you soon!

Thank you to the following for their posts and streaming cams that form my screen captures: Chloe Baker, Loch Garden RSPB, Dunrovin, Castnet, Bald Eagles 101 and the Ojai Raptor Centre, The Wonderful World FB, Sea Eagles@Birdlife Australia Discovery Centre Sydney Olympic Park, Charles Sturt Falcons, 367 Collins Street by Mirvac, Port Lincoln Ospreys, EuroBirdPortal, and NWFL-AEF.