Loch Arkaig web cam: It will be switched back on next month, and should be found here
Here are "All the best bits from the Loch Arkaig Pine Forest osprey camera, Summer 2017, in 2.5 minutes", from the Woodland Trust.
Here is the RSPB Forum for the 2017 Season.
2008 A pair may have started nesting at Loch Arkaig
2013 Chick White KL(09) f, hatched 2009 Loch Arkaig, Inverness seen in Senegal, 2011 & 2012, 2016 by Rutland team and Chris Wood. 2013 is the likely first breeding year at Bassenthwaite of White KL(09) and unringed male
2015 No chicks
2016 No chicks
2017 The nesting platform used by the birds for more than ten years has been rebuilt almost from scratch as, with the birds adding new material every spring, it was beginning to sag under its own weight
Unringed m 10 April named Louis m arrived. Inconclusive whether same 10-yr male, but later concensus was that he was a first-time breeder
Unringed f 30 May new unringed female accepted by Louis
4 May 2017 WT named her Aila
10 May 17.20 Egg #1 Arrives with a grunt from Aila!
22.39 Owl on the nest. Spooked Aila who flew off. A slow start but the action is here.
13 May 19.26 Egg #2 - speckled
Egg #3
18 June First chick hatched
18 June 17.13 Second chick seen struggling out of shell
22 June Two chicks alive, just.
One chick survived, and was ringed 22 or 23 July. Blue JH4(17) m, Lachlan
At 35 days old it has a body mass of 1,305g and wingspan of 291mm.
9 August Lachlan fledges unexpectedly
The Loch is home to otters (three orphans were released in the late autumn 2017) Pine marten have been seen on the nest. WTE and Osprey breed. It's about time I tried to get back there!
Where is Loch Arkaig?
Birdie's DU Summaries 2018 https://www.imagicat.com/
What a shame it's a wet first night for Aila:
IMAGICAT
Louis flew in a few minutes ago. Tried to mate then does his " I'm an Imperial Eagle' pose.
© THE WOODLAND TRUST, LOCH ARKAIG OSPREY PROJECT
Birdies LG DU update.
Day cam on now. Something has disturbed the pair. Both up and mantling like mad. Louis takes off eventually.
07.00 - they swapped over, Louis taking his share of incubating. Ian
07.25 - Aila returns but as yet Louis is stil sitting on the egg. Ian
07.35 - Aila takes over. Ian
Mike B said:Louis flew in a few minutes ago.
While checking the morning events I noticed Aila looking up in the sky and wondered if a skydance was going on, so listened hard and heard it faintly. You can't imagine the skill and dedication it's taken ;-D but here is audible skydance, just the tail end...Then Louis arrives, apparently uninterested in what's under Aila, he postures, mates and flies off.
Scylla, I think there have been previous reports of early morning skydancing by Louis on the WT chat page. Ian
Ian S said: Scylla, I think there have been previous reports of early morning skydancing by Louis on the WT chat page. Ian
I'm sure he's been doing it every morning but I don't hear it (1) often have sound muted in favour of LG on the next-door laptop, and (2) it's very faint and the wind is stronger!
Are you daring to say that I've wasted my and everyone's time, Ian? ;)
scylla said:Are you daring to say that I've wasted my and everyone's time, Ian? ;)
Certainly not, I wouldn't be that impertinent :) Ian
scylla said:You can't imagine the skill and dedication it's taken ;-D but here is audible skydance, just the tail end...
Always love to hear sky dancing, thank you scylla!
Looks like Louis just delivered a fish into the nestcup. Only the fish being dragged out caught my eye.