21 April 2025
Hello Everyone,
I have been thinking about each of you.
The recent collapse of the NCTC Bald Eagle nest belonging to Bella and Scout has left us all shaken. On that fateful day, both eagles were seen with full crops in the afternoon, seemingly captivated by something just beyond the nest. Scout truly stepped up, proving himself to be a devoted father, while Bella and he nurtured three healthy eaglets. These eaglets were nothing short of a miracle, yet they now stand as a poignant reminder of the heartbreaking tragedies that have unfolded and continue to unfold across so many nests this year.
E10, E11, and E12 with their thermal down and little dandelions. Pin feathers coming in. Happy Eaglets. Soar higher than high, you three.
Take a moment and send Bella and Scout some good positive energy. They spent the night together, chortling in the nest tree. Breaks our hearts. https://youtu.be/V2bvwO7otpI?
The last time the NCTC nest had eaglets fledge was 15 June 2023. The three eaglets hatched on March 20, 22, and 24, 2025, and would have been around 12 weeks old when they left the nest in June. The 2023 fledging was part of a nesting season where the first and second eaglet hatched on March 15 and March 20 respectively, followed by the third eaglet on March 24.
Deb Stecy’s tribute to Scout, Bella, and the trio. https://youtu.be/FbvoK69eY-Y?
We never know when the last moment will be when we are with someone. Take the time today to tell someone how much they mean to you.
A Potential Crisis was averted at the USK Valley Osprey nest on Sunday. A piece of wood with a wire was taken to the nest and is now around the leg of one of the resident ospreys. The osprey managed to get that wire off and fly away free!
At Llyn Brenig, the second egg was evicted and was eaten by Blue 372. Both eggs are gone. Another unsettled year for this nest.
Hellgate Canyon: Iris. Most of us do not ‘love’ Louis and we wish he would stay over at the ballpark with Star. This year he is spending way too much time focused on Iris and her nest. Sometimes it is a good thing! There was a kerfuffel Sunday. Some said it was another male, some another female. If Iris does not have Finnegan, then Louis will help her to keep her nest that she has had since it was moved to the Riverview Health parking lot more than a decade ago.
Really good article written in 2023 about Queen Iris and her history.
OPPD Fort Calhoun, Nebraska: ‘PB’ captures that second eggs arrival.
UdeM Falcons: Four eggs!
Sodankyla Osprey Nest Finland is live: https://www.youtube.com/live/3sw1Ogpq94U?si=qZbH6LVHy1uzttyS
Wolf Bay, Alabama: The third egg was laid on March 21st. Now, we are getting really close to pip watch for Josie and Elbert!
Charlo Montana: Charlie and Lola on Sunday.
Frenchman’s Creek Ospreys: Not a Baby Bob anymore! Look at those gorgeous juvenile feathers. Hatched on 5 March, this is the only osplet to survive the owl predation, which destroyed the two other eggs.
Sauces Canyon: Betty Lou showing off her crop and plumage.
Fraser Point: Gorgeous and growing.
Fort St Vrain: Both eaglets continue to do well, although I would like it if they didn’t sleep on those rails all the time. Lots of various prey in the nest, too.
Geemeff sends us the daily summary from The Woodland Trust and Loch Arkaig:
Woodland Trust daily summary for Loch Arkaig Sunday 20th April 2025
Another exciting day where once again the main action was on Nest One. Blue 536 arrived at sunrise and spent a great deal of time on the nest throughout the day. Garry brought three fish, taking his tally to nine, although he wouldn’t give the third fish to Blue 536 despite her calls. He also brought more bedding and sticks, and the nest is looking very ready for eggs although
there may not be any this year. Others also seem to have their eye on the nest – Affric 152 made a brief touchdown with an aerial battle going on around her seen in the distance involving several Ospreys. Louis may or may not have been one of those Ospreys but he did make time to deliver two fish to Dorcha, taking his tally to forty two, and take his turn on incubating duties. The weather was drier today and will continue dry overnight, but after a sunny start, the forecast calls for rain tomorrow afternoon.
Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 21.41.25 (05.15. 20); Nest Two 21.38.20 (05.19.03)Today’s videos:https://youtu.be/F2ypJD3KP48 N2 Dorcha gets a lively breakfast 05.48.11 https://youtu.be/DIzr6UZLn7E N1 Blue 536 arrives at sunrise 05.53.27 https://youtu.be/_U3zHvEiUHY N1 Garry brings breakfast for Blue 536 07.34.05
https://youtu.be/s6GNJOcs4Qg N1 Garry pole vaults in on a huge stick 08.40.23
https://youtu.be/ogHunWjD9iA N1 Affric lands with an aerial battle going on nearby 12.41.19
https://youtu.be/lIwgUA-IQi0 N1 Blue 536 stays on the nest to eat fish number two 14.26.17https://youtu.be/Uv7aXoZf5hA N1 Garry LV0 brings a third fish but won’t let Blue 536 have it 15.06.34 https://youtu.be/CT170vqlgUg N2 Dorcha grabs fish number two and departs immediately 18.34.07
Bonus
watch – context: In 2021 when Aila failed to return, Louis decamped to Nest Two which didn’t then have a camera. LizB who lives nearby kept us updated and took these long lens videos of Louis’ first chicks with Dorcha, males Aspen LW3 & Alder LW4:https://youtu.be/Efd8s1nkSz8
https://youtu.be/-AQUSjWRQYE
Blast from the past, this day in previous years:
https://youtu.be/wHZ82lsjm0w N1 Is an egg on the way? Aila rejects Louis 2020
https://youtu.be/PeTIDHTcCy0 N1 Strange Osprey intrudes and Louis chases 2020 (Slo-mo)
https://youtu.be/BmWPo9QWyCo N1 Aila attacks Louis! 2020 (Slo-mo)
https://youtu.be/aafgLlitPRM N1 Louis pays a flying visit to his empty nest 2021
https://youtu.be/9VqSvrxPL_E N2 Fish fight, Dorcha wins eventually 2022
https://youtu.be/Cc8twF7MOYs N2 Dorcha stays the night on the nest 2023
https://youtu.be/VhqDI8j3w8s N2 First fish arrives and departs 2023
https://youtu.be/upyTm7MQoaY N2 Egg number three! 2024 (zoomed repeat)
https://youtu.be/IrJUd9po9EQ N1 Garry LV0 does a flypast before bringing his fish to Nest One 2024
https://youtu.be/PlkidBYXpsg N2 Dorcha shows no sign of injury on leaving with her fish 2024
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
Parliamentary Debate in the UK set over driven grouse moor hunting! Finally, all of the groups got their 100,000 signatures, and this will cause politicians to be accountable. Geemeff says, “This is a huge result! Parliament is forced to debate this, and out in the open, there is no hiding in committee rooms. Now we’ll see who’s for wildlife and the environment, and who’s for needless slaughter and destruction for money.” Well done, everyone. I hope to never hear again of a Hen Harrier nest with five little chicks being stomped on, or our precious raptors being shot.
Why are Purbek Puffin numbers declining? And why are the adults refusing to raise their young?
Baby Hope really looks like Mamma Calico. Her personality is nothing short of Sticky Toffee Pudding sweet.
Missey is in need of a good brush!
What is Hugo Yugo looking at?
A Dark-eyed Junco getting seed off the outdoor carpet. There are dozens of them all over the carpet and deck, hopping around entertaining ‘The Girls’.
Check out Audubon Photography Awards!
‘A’ like so many others is enraged that the term ‘harm’ is being defined and that Bald Eagles and other raptors might find themselves endangered or extinct because of that word. ‘A’ sends us a video to explain: https://youtu.be/UdynP7ssHxo?
Calico’s Tip of the Day: Watch Rachel Carson on streaming cam (Amazon Prime) if you can. ‘The Girls’ and I are watching Rachel Carson on one of the streaming channels. Carson did something to help wildlife – she wrote Silent Spring, which led to the banning of DDT.
While we may not rise to the status of Rachel Carson, we can make our concerns known, and we must not give up because the task is hard or people try to scare us. Some nests need repairs or replacing – speak up! Chicks and adults need protection against human debris that can harm them. Many issues need to be made public. Several of us are concerned about the platform that was installed at Florida-Gainesville. At the same time, good advice should have been sought about the camera. They could be persuaded to partner with Connor at Window to Wildlife. They would install and monitor the platform and camera. It would be a win for everyone. What you want to bet is that it might not cost anything for Florida-Gainsville Extension! Dani Connor lobbied for, crowd-funded, and purchased the Squirrel Forest to protect the animals from having all the trees cut down and their homes lost. Never assume that we cannot have an impact. Think outside the box. Don’t give up. Make your voices heard.
While we cannot do anything about winds of 70 or 90 mph from tearing up raptor nests or snapping the trees or poles, we might cause enough noise to get those individuals or companies operating streaming cams to inspect and repair/restore the nests during the off-season. If it saves one life, then it would be worth it!
Smile. Look at those cute little eyases of Monty and Hartley at the San Jose City Falcon scrape!
Check out SK Hideaways’ video of Sunday night’s feeding. I know—you have missed the sound of falcons. Enjoy this nest! https://youtu.be/qfqbrR4CGs0?
Thank you for being with me today. Please take care. See you soon!
Thank you to the following for their notes, posts, comments, videos, articles, and streaming cams that helped me to write my post today: ‘Geemeff, J, PB’, Deb Stecyk, NCTC Bald Eagle Nest, Usk Valley Ospreys, Llyn Brenig Osprey Cam, montanakiman.com, Montana Osprey Project/Cornell Bird Lab, OPPD Fort Calhoun Ospreys, UdeM Falcons, Sodankyla Osprey Nest Finland, Wolf Bay Ospreys, Raptor Resource Project/Explore.org, Frenchman’s Creek Ospreys, IWS/Explore, Xcel Energy, Geemeff and The Woodland Trust and Loch Arkaig, Raptor Persecution UK, The Guardian, The Damage Report, Rachel Carson, SK Hideaway
It’s been a complex start to the season with no fewer than four combinations of osprey pairings appearing on the nest 
; *NC0 (resident breeding female 2020-2024, not seen since 2nd April) & a New Male *The New Male and an Unringed Female (with the ‘Cluedo’ marking on the back of her head) *LM24 (aka The Dark Intruder, who held territory in second half of 2024 with NC0) & the same Unringed Female, and finally… *LM24 & the Dark Female (with the ‘Bandit’ eye mask who intruded in 2024, and possibly 2023)! Confused !? It’s taken a lot of careful reviewing and analysing to pick apart the rapidly changing dynamic, but it looks like LM24 and the Dark Female have finally become ‘top ospreys’ at the Lowes nest, appearing to be settled as a pair and dominant for a week! Talons crossed for eggs in the next 7-10 days! 
[Note: The osprey which attacked and knocked the Dark Female off the nest was thought to originally be the Unringed Female (with the ‘Cluedo piece’ marking on the back of her head) – however, thanks to some excellent photos by Scott Duncan from the hide, we were able to spy a silver BTO ring on the right leg of the osprey!!
