I didn’t expect to be posting another blog today, but the information in a FB post by Ben Wurst, Conservation Officer in New Jersey, prompted me to reach out to all of you.
We have been talking about protecting Eagles and Golden Eagles but we MUST protect all wildlife and that includes my beloved ospreys who two years ago found their chicks dying on the nest, and who last year laid eggs and abandoned them. I get letters from individuals in Virginia of nests failed early this season and now we watch Little Dewey.
Little Dewey cannot be allowed to starve to death while people sitting at cafe tables below his nest eat fish. That is simply scandalous. I would go to jail for feeding him – and gladly use that as a test case to get this bloody mess of intervention sorted. I do not live in the US, so some will say that is an empty action, but yes, I would do it. My early life was full of social activism and, in particular, fighting for civil and women’s rights and against the Vietnam War in Oklahoma.
This is what Ben Wurst posted today on the Menhaden – Little Fish, Big Deal today:
Yesterday I flew the entire 130 mile coast of New Jersey. Our goal was to locate schools of menhaden. This was the first time that I’ve ever flown in a Cessna and along the coast. After what we saw with osprey reproduction last year, I knew it was crucial to get independent data on menhaden presence or absence off New Jersey.
The conditions were optimal for flight. Light north winds. Excellent visibility. Great light. We flew from Barnegat Inlet south to Cape May and then north to Sandy Hook.
Throughout the entire flight, which was around 1500 and 2500’ AGL and 1-3 miles offshore, we did not see any schools of menhaden.
The pilot I flew with grew up on the bay and is a life long fisherman, who knows what to look for when reading the water. The whole coast was so calm and quiet that it was eerie. All we saw (marine species wise) were several small pods of dolphins. There wasn’t even much fishing activity.
Right now in NJ many osprey nests are empty, as females did not lay eggs this spring. Those nests with eggs are still incubating, which is odd for this time of year. Most nests should have hatchlings. Those that do have young are entering a crucial period in their development, where plentiful food is required. At one nest that I surveyed today, I noticed how skinny the incubating female looked. All of these behaviors have been observed on the Chesapeake in the past few years. Where are all the fish?
I hope to fly again in another week or two to see if any fish show up but things are looking disastrous.
Do whatever you can to help for the future and for now, if you can.
Thank you for being with us and please wish for fish.
Thank you to the owners of the Dewey Beach streaming cam for allowing us to watch this wonderful family and feisty Little Dewey.
I want to first thank you for all of your messages on FB, comments, and e-mails. There are hundreds of them and I am going to share some of the thoughts that have come in regarding the change to the laws that impact raptors (Eagles and Golden Eagles) in the United States. I am, in particular, referring to the call that something be done after Scout was banded and returned to the natal nest. This single act has caused outrage and I hope activism that leads to a positive end and a law that might be named after Scout.
I have, as you noted, gotten really worked up about what happened to Scout. It isn’t just Scout – it is all the others over the years whose nests would have benefited from a rescue or a fish tank placed nearby. I want to see compassionate governance – people in positions to give permits that allow others to help when help is needed. We do not need government personnel threatening to revoke the licenses of wildlife rescue agencies and rehabilitation clinics if they help. This has certainly happened in at least one instance that I am personally aware.
So thank you to everyone – maybe we can start a movement for change. As I said I do not wish for us to fall into despair, sitting on our hands, and believing that nothing is possible. It is. We might not be able to save them all but each life saved is one life not lost! Remember that.
Just a few excerpts from various social media sources I have received. (I am not going to add names or where people or from- I hope no one minds. These are bona fide readers from around the world who care deeply.)
“I read your blog. You had an awful day and I gave you even more bad news. I’m so sorry. Praying for the eaglet, as you said, hoping beyond hope. We both know that miracles do happen. It depends on how much the eaglet wants to live, if he really wants to, the wish may be granted. Until then many people will send their healing spells to him, he is not alone!
My standpoint is very clear. I believe helping is our sacred duty. We are useless in nature: We don’t have sharp beaks, or claws, we are not fast, have bad eyes and ears etc etc. We are not predators. What we have is brains. I honestly believe that our job is to be the caretakers of Nature. Look what we have done instead. No wonder Nature is angry.
To those that say „many other (in this case) eaglets suffer too“. Yes, they are. But they are beyond our help because they aren’t being monitored. If someone would find one of those eaglets, they would be obliged to help in my opinion.
It’s the story of the woman throwing small sea animals stranded on the beach back into the water. In the big view it’s a useless thing to do since so many more are laying on the beach it hardly makes a dent. For each of those little animals, it means Life.”
“I’m so sad in tears. I would look at that poor little eaglet, before they shut the camera off and knew that what I was looking at wasn’t going to be around forever. It was just too too pitiful. The little one was just hungry!! I despise most people. Scout shouldn’t have been taken back to the nest after they banded him!”
“Where is the courage to do the right thing by our wildlife?”
“Hi, Mary Ann! I hope you’re doing fine. I just read your shoutout about Scout, and I fully support it. I also voted for the change of regulations. It’s beyond my belief how they could let this happen, because, even if his weight was within limits at the time of banding, they knew what was happening. I’m sorry for saying that but the “big guys” not granting the authorisation took part in killing him. That is what I firmly believe in.”
“Thank you, Mary Ann. I totally agree with you & MicPark. I understand there are protected species (though not so much protected as abandoned by our current administration) but I will never understand the “no human intervention” ideology. Scout was suffering & needed intervention. Snow’s nest needed to be propped up because we all knew what was going to happen before she/he fledged. If it is okay enough to intervene and put cameras in their nests for the world to see then it should be just as okay to intervene when these birds are in danger. Thank you for all you do & I’m so sorry for all that you’re not allowed to do ❤️”
“Maryann, thank you for all you say and do for the animals. You will not be forgotten by us or the animals. What you say is correct. I knew animals were part of our world or we are apart of theirs. Whatever way you look at it, we are all in this together. We owe them help when we see a problem. Whoever started this ‘nature knows what’s best’ thing should be shot. Nature is an idea, not an entity. Nature is a word made by man. No wonder the US has turned into an authoritarian nation. Just look at us. We won’t disintegrate if we feed a hungry animal, and neither will they. Thank you, Maryann.”
The thing is not to lose the momentum. A petition is going around to change the Eagle and Golden Eagle laws. It is on change.org. You do not have to pay anything, just repost. That helps reach a broad audience. Gayle Gordon is leading that campaign in the US to get that law changed.
It takes a long time to change laws. Let us not fool ourselves. What we need to do now is positive action. Quick responses. I applaud those individuals who have reached out to me and who have osprey platforms on their land and are near the Chesapeake Bay. I will never divulge their names or locations, but some who had cameras have turned them off. What they did instead was set up fish-farm containers full of koi on their property. I understand that several are having a positive impact on their nests. We have to try.
Images of Snow sent to me by ‘L’ while being rescued and in transport.
Geemeff’s summary was missed by a few seconds last evening. There is now a second baby for Louis and Dorcha at Loch Arkaig nest 2.
Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Tuesday 2nd June 2026
Daily summary Tuesday 2nd June 2026
It was another damp day today, and the chick was kept warm and dry and well fed by Louis and Dorcha. Almost too well fed, as Dorcha fed a too large morsel which got stuck in the chick’s throat, but fortunately she eventually noticed and removed it with no harm done to the chick. Louis delivered three fish taking the Nest Two tally to one hundred and three, and Garry LV0 delivered two fish to Aurora 536, taking the Nest One tally to ninety three. At the time of filing this report (midnight) none of the remaining three eggs has pipped yet. Eggs 2 & 3 on Nest Two could start pipping tomorrow and Saturday respectively, and the single egg on Nest One around Thursday. More rain expected with an overnight low of 11°C and a high of 15°C with occasional sunny spells tomorrow.
And that special video of the second hatch(Edited compilation starts at 05.49 and goes through to 06.22 when hatching is completed, and a bit of footage at 09.36 showing the chick’s progress three hours later:+: https://youtu.be/FMnpIeDqGss
This is from today as I will not have Geemeff’s summary for today in this post. That first hatch of Louis and Dorcha is going to be a handful. It’s already out of the egg cup looking for fish!!!!!!!!!! Look at this video! https://youtu.be/FWh4AUGHiW0?
There is now a third hatch at Borders Osprey for Samson and Augusta!
Jeff Kear at UK Osprey Info FB included the information on the second hatch at LOTL:
A good rescue story from the UK -imagine picking up an osprey and taking it into care. Bravo.
Screenshot
Beautiful baby for Liberty and Freedom at Glacier Gardens.
Heidi reports on Dewey Beach for yesterday: “ Dewey is doing well. I have no concerns so far. They had 3 good meals yesterday. Huge headless shad at 13.53, 30 minute meal; leftover shad at 16.24, 12 minute meal; more leftover shad at 17.24, 10 minute meal.”
Baby Dewey has attitude!
Thank you everyone for all your notes, comments, and mail. I continue to go through them and will post more each day. We need to keep up the momentum and help those that are getting official means started in the US.
Take care. See you soon and thank you for being part of a world that gives hope to our wildlife and our planet. I am so grateful to call each of you a friend.
Thank you to everyone who wrote in, to those who posted information on FB, left comments, and sent me images, to Geemeff for their daily summary, and to the owners of the streaming cams that allow us to watch the lives of these amazing creatures. I also want to shout out to everyone associated with the Great Lakes Bald Eagle nest, and to those involved in Snow’s rescue and care, for their transparency and compassion.
I was not feeling well today, and everything that could go sideways just seemed to do so! It was ‘cake day’ – a celebration that I have mentioned before, of having survived another week. But there was still a lingering ‘greyness’ that should not have been there. We ate outside, the weather was glorious, Toby is doing so well with his walking training, Ann was with us – is there anything else I could want? And yet, what is happening to our wildlife around the world outrages me. It simmers and then comes to a head. Today was that day. I grew up believing that people had the power to change things if they worked together. We made a lot of progress – and I know many of you grew up in that era too. And now to see it all torn apart. If you turn your head, get distracted for a second, someone is doing something to destroy vast swaths of our planet. I sat and contemplated that if those who cared about the land formed a group – a vast group – and each contributed a small amount, to buy the land. Stop the destruction. Is it possible? It would take a keen organiser.
At the same time, vote – and make sure you know what you are voting for. We have some of the most dismal candidates for mayor I have ever seen. I want to know where the young people who are driven by ideas are????
OK. Off the bandstand.
Many people have posted a video of the encounter of Iris with the little European Starling, and if this cannot raise our spirits to new heights, nothing will. It should make the national news – maybe it has!
Thirty-year-old Iris goes ballistic!!!!!!!! She calls NG2 and he comes to save the day!
Dr Green is going to post a selection of names for viewers to pick the name for NG2 soon.
Geemeff’s Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Friday 22nd May 2026
Another perfectly routine day, calm and reassuringly normal. Garry LV0 delivered two fish for Aurora 536, and his personal tally, which is also the Nest One tally, rises to seventy six. Over on Nest Two, Louis delivered three fish for Dorcha, taking his personal tally to seventy seven and the nest tally to seventy nine. Garry seems to enjoy incubating duty as much as Louis does which is a very important characteristic as hatching day comes closer. The weather forecast for Inver Mallie, which covers the nest areas, is for light rain and gentle breezes throughout the night and continuing tomorrow, with an overnight low of 10°C and a high tomorrow of 16°C.
https://youtu.be/VLeYKaNMB2c N2 Louis arrives with Dorcha’s dinner 20.36.18Bonus history – how much do you know about the remarkable Kenneth Watkins who founded Woodland Trust in 1972?
Are you a keen observer? Read below how you can take part in this research project:
“The Golden Eagle nest camera is situated near military training ground. Therefore military training noise is possible to hear quite often. The purpose of this camera is to detect the reaction of breeding eagles to the noise disturbance heard. We invite volunteers to participate in virtual Golden Eagle observations and record them in the appropriate forum (link above). The forum has instructions on how to become a member of the forum and how to post your observations there. This is also possible with pictures or videos proving the event. At the end of the season, we summarize all observations and analyze to what extent the particular Golden Eagle pair is affected by noise disturbances in the breeding area. If necessary, it is also possible to review the recorded video material. Expenses of this webcam are covered by Centre for Defence Investments of Estonian Republic. There in the same nest was one chick fledged in 2024, 2023 and 2022. 2025 the nest was in other place, but not successful. Female is currently without of rings. Male has one ring and transmitter on back. Often these are covered with feathers. Kotkaklubi Link – / @kotkaklubi The Eagle Club (est. 1999) is a non-governmental organization whose mission is to protect, study and introduce the eagles and the black stork in Estonia. Since 2007, the Eagle Club has been running live web-cameras on the nests of protected bird species – black stork, white-tailed eagle, greater and lesser spotted eagles, osprey and golden eagle. Find out more here: https://www.kotkas.ee
CJ7 looks tenderly at her recently hatched chick. Three more to go!
Big Red often seems to just stand and smile overlooking her little nest of hawklets.
Dylan comes in with a late fish for Seren Blue 5F to feed the two hatches.
Little started slow, hatching five days after Big. The wings are getting quite long. Big is not as big as Jill, and most who have watched believe Big is a male; I think Little survived because she is a female. Of course, no one will know unless a DNA test is done (and it won’t be, but it sure would be nice to have them ringed.)
Harry continues to deliver fish to Winken at the Moorings Park nest throughout the day. There was at least one other delivery after 7pm.
Another way that wildlife are losing their habitat. I want to be very clear – it would not matter to me which political party or person was in power – in my City, my Province, or another country – the ability to damage our planet and the living souls that share it with us – needs to be protected. So please see these posts as pro-wildlife/nature/biodiversity/environment. We need balance not destruction.
What a difference. Knepp Wilding’s newsletter celebrations their breakthroughs in rewilding.
Thank you so much for being with us today. Please do take care of yourself. I hope to see you again tomorrow night.
Thank you to Geemeff for her Loch Arkaig summary, to all those who posted information on FB and elsewhere, to the owners of the streaming cams and everyone who loves wildlife.
It was a gorgeous day. Ann took Don and Toby for a walk, but the temperature was hot, and Cavaliers are known not to do well in heat (or cold). It is Friday, and that is cake day – a kind of celebration for making it another week. Today it was Blueberry Lemon Buttercream Cake. Delicious.
Lots of hatches.
There are still three at Manton Bay. I was imagining a crack it seems.
The individual bringing the lawsuit re the Endangered Species Act is not the same individual who owns the land that the Superbeaks Osprey and eagle nests are on. The owner of Superbeaks (or Central Florida) is Mike Savino, Deltona, Florida.
There is a hatch at Poole Harbour!
That little one has a strong neck!
Happy Birthday Telyn, mate of Idris, who is incubating eggs at Dyfi due to hatch momentarily. Telyn was born on this day, 22nd May, 2013 at Rutland Water. So let’s carry this a little further, Telyn is the daughter of Maya at Rutland’s Manton Bay nest!!!!!!!!!!! Maya is now caring for three babies. There is some great DNA in that lineage.
Frankie and Angel have their first hatch at Roundhouse Loch Doon.
It’s everywhere across North America. Money before ‘thought’. This continent is being run by individuals who do not know the value of nature and wildlife.
If you want to find out what is happening to our planet, please check out EarthJustice’s website. Just search for it on whatever engine you use.
I am a little under the weather with a very sore throat so this is quite short and I might not see you again until Sunday. So please take care and thank you for being with us.
Just a quick check in and a correction on the owner of the land who is suing over the Endangered Species Act. More hatches coming! Keep your eyes open.
Thank you to everyone who posted information and images! Always grateful to the owners of the streaming cams so we can watch our favourite families.
