Hello bloggers! We apologise for the lack of blogs recently - we have been two team members down for a while now, due to personal reasons, so we're all having to work extra hard to make sure our visitors have a great time when they come to the Osprey Centre, leaving little time for writing blogs!

We are all so sad because of the situation on the nest this year, especially because it’s going to be the second year…

Hello all,

This week we have seen George bringing in a few fish for EJ, and he has also spent some time incubating the eggs and attempting to mate again. Who knows? Maybe he is finally putting the pieces of the puzzle together and we remain optimistic at Loch Garten that in time, he could be a loyal and successful partner for EJ.

George incubating the eggs after giving EJ a fish! 

EJ is spending some of her time…

Good afternoon,

Just a quick one from me today, really to let you all know that the situation with EJ and her eggs hasn't really changed except that we are now certain that the eggs won't hatch. Although she is currently sitting on them, EJ has been away from the nest for whole days over the past week or so (including on Tuesday which was particularly wet and cold). Her instinct is clearly still telling her to incubate…

Hi all,

News from the nest is much the same I'm afraid. EJ is still incubating and George continues to show up periodically, usually without a fish. On Wednesday, after one fish in a week and a half, EJ was forced to leave the nest to feed herself. She was off the eggs for a long time (between 7 and 8 hours!) and unfortunately this means things don't look good for the viability of the eggs. A couple of hours here and…

Hello from Loch Garten,

Another quick update from the nest to keep you in the loop.

EJ is still busy incubating her three eggs but unfortunately hasn't been receiving the support she deserves from her young male, George. She, as chief incubator and egg protector, has passed on all fishing duties to George, so that she can diligently attend to her duties. Since Saturday, however, George hasn't brought her so much as…

Hi Folks,

 Just a quick update from the front-line, penned during my lunch-break on a fine, if a little chilly, Friday afternoon.

I’ve just caught up with the forum after a crazily busy week and I realise some of you are a little concerned about our George and are doubting his abilities /commitment to EJ. All I can say is, when he’s not here, obviously we know as much about his whereabouts as you do! He has shown that…

Stunning and impressive, the largest grouse species in the world make their home here in Strathspey. Favouring the enchanting Scots Pine woodland with a mixed bilberry and heather field layer, capercaillie have become increasingly illusive in Scotland. Over time their habitat has become fragmented and has significantly reduced in size. We only have 1% of our native Caledonian Scots Pine forest left; one of the largest…

Good afternoon all.

Now that the male osprey seems to have stepped up and is regularly feeding EJ, as well as incubating the eggs and seeing off the occasional raven, we feel it's only fair to make him part of the Loch Garten family. Tune in to BBC Radio Scotland's "Out for the Weekend" programme at approximately 3:20 this afternoon for a grand announcement (and it's not that his favourite food is fish)...…

Photo: Jo Sinclair

We are hosting Wake Up With Wildlife mornings at the Osprey Centre every Saturday and Sunday up to 6 May. Our stalwart volunteer Kenny welcomed in the first redstart of the spring this week, capturing a handsome singing male that seems to have chosen the camera tree as a regular perch. He can often be heard in the visitor centre on the microphone. It's always worth listening out for EJ and other…

Hello again bloggers,

I’m writing this blog on one of the calmest, sunniest days we’ve had so far this year. The insects are out, bees are buzzing, birds are chirping and visitors are smiling. But this isn’t the only reason for us to be happy today. Today we welcomed EJ’s second egg of the season, EJ and the male have both just started to incubate the eggs and the male has just brought her another fish!! Wooooohooooooo…

Hello all.

What an interesting few days it's been here at Loch Garten. I'll fill you in as best I can!

After not seeing EJ at all for about two days towards the end of last week, she promptly turned up and laid an egg in the early hours of Tuesday morning! Of course, we were delighted and the news was met with excitement by the team and visitors alike. However, EJ soon started demonstrating rather strange behaviour…

Good afternoon,

Another quick update from me, rounding up the latest activity at Loch Garten. Sort of like the 6'o'loch news...

At the weekend a young male osprey arrived at the nest, eliciting excitement among the team here and, no doubt, many of you. Almost as soon as he turned up at the nest, he attempted to mate with EJ which she seemed fairly receptive to although we don't think there were any successful…

Hello bloggers! I am happy to present to you a new section of the blog “EJ in numbers”. We are very lucky to have an accurate record of all our ospreys’ movements, important dates (arrivals, departures, hatching, fledging, etc.) and numbers (eggs, chicks, fish brought to the nest, etc.). I will be using all this data to give a numerical approach to the life of our beloved EJ and her family.

As many…

Good morning all,

As you can probably guess from the imaginative and inspiring title of the blog, this will be a quick recap of the events at Loch Garten over the past week or so. I'll be writing these short updates at least twice a week from now on so that you are all up to speed with what's happening at the Osprey Centre. They will be interspersed with longer, more detailed blogs from the rest of the team about life…

Hello everyone and a Happy Easter to all,

We've had a brilliant Easter weekend at Loch Garten. After opening slightly earlier than usual on the 29th of March, we weren't sure whether we'd get many folk through the door for the first few days. How wrong were we? Loads of you have been to see us (and a certain osprey who we'll come to later) over the past few days and it's been great to see the new team chatting to captivated…

Good afternoon everybody.

It’s a pleasure to be able to write this blog, safe in the knowledge that a rather special bird, with a white leg ring adorned with two simple, black letters has returned to Loch Garten. Yes, that’s right, EJ is here! Last Wednesday, at approximately 17:46 and 23 seconds, our vigilant webcam viewers were treated to her sudden appearance on screen. It’s the joint earliest she’s ever returned…

Happy 2018 everyone. It's been a while since I last blogged - it's difficult to type with a mince pie in one hand and a glass of something festive in the other! I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and have enjoyed the new year so far.

So, what has been happening? Well, Loch Garten (like much of the UK) has been hit with severe snow and extremely cold temperatures. The lochs here (both Garten and Mallachie)…

Hello all,

Just a quickie before we break up for the festive period.

The eagle-eyed among you may have noticed Chris and I filling the web-cam feeder yesterday afternoon, in preparation for the festive break. You may also have noticed the really badly-timed rope disintegrating! It turns out it was completely rotten and despite our best efforts in the fading light, we couldn't re-secure it. Fibres just kept falling out…

Snow is falling, all around me. It is clear that winter is well underway - it has been getting gradually colder (just ask my toes) and the days are now dark by four'o'clock. The forest, hills and bogs of Abernethy are covered in white snow, like the icing on a giant Christmas cake. Even Loch Garten is white, having frozen over and received a dusting of the white stuff, and we're all dreaming of a white Christmas. There…

I worked late last night. That’s not unusual for me (or many others!), as doing a combination of long and short work-days means I can spend more time at home when I need to. It’s just how my life has to work. The last thing I did before I shutdown my computer at 10 o’ clock, was make a “To do” list. I’ve not been sleeping that well recently, and as soon as I stir into consciousness in the middle of the night, my thoughts…

The pine forest here at Abernethy is amazing. It's a truly magical place, housing trees that are hundreds of years old, regularly revealing new and previously unrecorded species and providing habitat for thousands of species of plants, animals and fungi. Scots pine trees are beautiful to behold - from the very upright youngsters, with their thin, straight trunks to the twisted and gnarled Granny pines, the OAP's of the…

Good morning everyone and hello from a very autumnal Abernethy!

This morning I was delighted to receive this postcard from a very confused looking postman...

Incredible! Not only does EJ appear to have very neat writing (another use for that amazing reversible toe) but her spelling and grammar is impeccable. Not bad for someone whose first language consists of high-pitched whistles and repetitive one-note calls. As…

...it is now(ish).

Empty nest

Yes, today is the last of the 2017 Osprey Centre season. And what a season it has been, filled with highs and lows that repeatedly reminded us of the beauty and fragility of nature. This final blog gives us a chance to look back at the events that combined to tell the story of our nest this year. So, here goes...

23rd March - A last minute glance out of the viewing hide on a chilly March…

Hi folks, 

Just a short note to let you know that we've had some electrical issues at the Centre today and have been advised to switch off all our sockets overnight - so there won't be any webcam tonight. Sorry for the inconvenience. The sparky is visiting us tomorrow, so hopefully normal service will be resumed.

Here's a blog from Sarah White telling us all about pin badges. Enjoy.

Hello Bloggers!

This year I had the honour of donning the crown and cloak that accompanies LG’s most prestigious role... pin badge queen! It is my responsibility to source and keep stock of a frankly stupendous variety of RSPB pin badges. As I was counting out puffins the other day I started pondering the history of this branch of fundraising…