We have all waited patiently with fingers crossed to see if our pair of buzzards would settle down and raise a family on our webcam nest but after a lot of early activity they seem to gone to somewhere else. So not to worry here at Arne we have always got something else up our sleaves and I am sure a lot of you will remember our kestrel family from last year. They had a brilliant 2011 by succesfully raising four healthy chicks including the smallest one that worried a few people early on.
We have decided to put this nest back online now and you can also come and watch it in the visitor centre. The female is sitting on 5 eggs at the moment and this is the same as last year although one failed to hatch. We are not sure when she laid her eggs as she was already sitting on the 5 when we turned the camera back on a week ago. However we think she is at least 2 weeks earlier than last year and the first chick actually hatched on the 21st May 2011. It is a bit difficult to predict when they will hatch but the female will incubate for about 28. So given this information please feel free to have guesses on dates!
To Watch this webcam online follow the link on our main web page or click here http://www.rspb.org.uk/reserves/guide/a/arne/webcam.aspx
Don't be confused by the buzzard information still on the page it will be updated in the next couple of days!
EB - think that I shall move there then - we have rain forecast until Sunday at least!!!
2013 photos & vids here
eff37 on Flickr
Wendy - just read Michael Wilson's post and it looks like our morning and evening images of the two sheltering kestrel fledglings on 7th July will be the last from the Arne box for 2012!
Good luck with your kestrels.
Tiger and Chloe's Osprey Info
Thanks for the explanation Michael, thought it odd to have been turned off without a warning. Many thanks to the RSPB again for riveting viewing, has been wonderful to be able to watch the Arne Kestrels again. Hope they might still be around for a while too. Everyone's captures have been brilliant thanks to Wendy and Birdsong we can still look at those last images :-)
Hope you are having a good break, was such a gorgeous day yesterday, went up to Durlston last evening and saw Peregrine, Black Redstart (a tick for us) and lots of Gannets over the rough sea, amazing couple of hours :-) (Not Arne, sorry!)
Just popped on to say a big thank you for the wonderful coverage of the kestrels; I 'left' shortly after the fledging but do hope we can do it again next year. The last chick to leave has a special place in my heart, partly due to the fact that I watched him unable to bring himself (or herself) to kill his prey. But when he returned I knew he'd survived and now have him as my avatar.
PUDWEENA and JOT do hope we 'meet' again next year :))
Hi mims, just read your post and it literally brought tears to my eyes - how lovely to have this little one as your avatar :-) Yes, do hope we 'meet' again next year and let's hope that all these chicks make it safely in the big wide world out there.
We have now switched over to a Swallows nest for the next little while - It is a little bit dark at the moment but the female can be seen sitting on the nest! The nest is in our work shop and the top panel of the door has been removed so that the birds can fly in and out. Swallows have built several nests in here for the last couple of years! The female is sitting on at least 3 eggs at the moment and this will probably be her second brood.
Good morning Michael - thanks for news of swallow webcam but it is extremely dark - can hardly see anything, just her beak in silhouette - any chance of extra lighting??!!
We have got a small light on the camera and the image should become clearer as we move camera closer in the next few days! At the moment we are having to keep the workshop light on!
I think its intimate.Weird having me head jammed up in yer roof 1st thing though.
Oh this is lovely to watch from this level, yes a bit dark at the moment but just looked in and saw Mum get up from nest, come out and then settle back in again, suppose to stretch her legs a bit.