July 2022 thread
Our Osprey family
"Axel", Blue AX6(16) male (yes he does have strong chest markings), a single chick (possibly from 3 eggs) hatched Glen Affric, near Beauly, seen Lossiemouth 2020, then at LG in 2021
"Asha"- Female - Unringed - partnered Axel in 2021.
Axel & Asha (as "Mistle") fled the nest May 2021 due to unknown intruders.
HATCH #1 - 11 June @ 05:30
HATCH #2 - 13 June @ 04:11 (first sighting)
AT RINGING - Quote RSPB Abernethy Facebook "The male BLUE 1C2 is thought to be the older one at 1.5kgs with the female BLUE 1C1 being the younger one at 1.5kgs."
RSPB Video Channel - Osprey, Goshawk, Barn Owls: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl8QdQ9ZaBT65tF1yOmbMBQ
All pictures & videos ©RSPB LochGarten & WildlifeWindows
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IMAGICAT
14 August Not a lot going on again, no fish deliveries, lots of comings and goings by 1C2, a possible intruder or something that upset 1C2 . Visits by wee birds, not identified by me! Axel landed with a nice chunky licheny stick and spent ages reorganising yesterdays spindly affair. Asha popped in briefly.
Here is the narrative. I took some snips which I will try to incorporate idc
05.42 1C2 landed on far left of the dead tee, then flew to the nest calling for fish.
05.50 He gave up and flew off.
06.26 A noisy osprey landed on a lower branch of the dead tree. 1C2 probably
07.33 Osprey flew from dead tree.
7.42 13 A wee birdie appeared over the far side of the nest
07.42.49 1C2 landed and disturbed it.
He landed with a shake of the tail. His petticoat looks a bit bedraggled: has he been for a dip somewhere?
07.48.50 After a six minute preen, a look around and a call, 1C2 took off and flew to the top of the stick/totem tree
07.58.10 Another we birdie landed on the perch
07.59 It flew to the left of the nest, and then back to the perch
It dropped down the back of the nest
08.01.27 One was seen flying near the left and landed back on the nest
08.01.30 Another appears bottom left and flew to the nest near #1 wee birdie! Is that a chaffinch. They look different. #1 looks distinctly buffish/red on the breast.
08.02 They flew off, but there is cheep, cheep, near by!! More like a sparrow, LOL!!
08.36 1C2 has flown from the stick tree, he flew a circuit and exited stage left.
08.44 A wee birdie landed on the perch again. A similar shape to #1 wee birdie
08.47 Wee birdie flew, it or ANOther landed again lower down the perch and flapping up the right side.
08.47.41 Axel landed.with a nice licheny stick. After a good look around he started moving the furniture, including y'sterdays huge stick. First to one side of the nest, they the other.
Pushing it further to the rim, but then to the back of the nest. He's not satisfied and tries there again. Slightly further to the right and nearer the rim top.
08.51 Nope, that's not right, back to the left. Then nearer the front. It's taller than he is!
08.54 Axel is still moving the stick around, persuading it to settle safely on the rim. Perhaps that's it!! On the back left, and he turns his back on it to concentrate on tidying up what remains of the cup.
08.55 He is watching and mantling, now standing up and looking keenly
08.56 1C2 lands calling and squawking, and Axel's peace is broken.
Axel has flown off.
09.12 Still calling. He looks quite 'bonny'. He has had no shortage of fish, even if we think he might!! We have to remember that on migration they can travel for 48 hours without food. Deshar (2008) flew for four days until he finally dropped into the sea, and died.
09.27 He is still calling loudly
09.28 1C2 flew off the nest, calling as he disappeared.
09.30 He returned, still calling, landing on the perch.
10.06 1C2 has given up for now and has flown again.
10.18.56 Asha has returned, a gentle contact call, looking around, before a few louder calls.
10.30 Asha lifted her feathers all over her body, she shook them and took off She looked really puffed up and quite pretty!
12.41 1C2 landed, his calls preceding him.
12.58 No one responded to his calls. He few off , top right.
13.26 Back again, looking above and around. What has he seen or is he hopeful.
13.43 He has been quiet, looking around, preening.
13.50 Having been very quiet, he sunk slowly to the floor, looking above. He gave one call
Another intruder call, and an osprey can be seen flying above the skyline.
13.51 1C2 stays down, lifting his head and neck now and again to watch what was going on, but stays quiet.
13.54 He remained down, quietly, looking.
13.58 He stretches a leg and a wing, but stays down.
14.01 He is still down, and still looking keenly around, but still quietly, and gets in a quick shut eye as well.
14.17 He looked up, got up and called. A stretch after all that lying down and exercising the vocal cords. Intruder, Axel, Asha??!!
14.20 More preening, and calling.
14.22 He calls again, looking above him – but not mantling.
14.23 He lay down, watching the sky again. He isn't mantling or calling now, but watching the skies.
14.30 Whoever it is that 1C2 is concerned about hasn't shown itself to me.
We need Heather on cam duty here, LOL.
14.33 1C2 gets up and fish solicits. A stretch and off he flies to our right.
14.50.10 Osprey landed on top right of the dead tree. It wasn't carrying a fish (I think!).
14.52 1C2 lands, mantles, but fish solicits! Osprey flew from the dead tree, to the right. 1C2 watches.
14.56 He calls and mantles, but not for long. He stands, watching the skies around.
15.00 1C2 is more relaxed now, standing up, watching, calling occasionally, just to remind anyone in ear shot that he's hungry.
15.01 He spots something again, calls.
15.08 Calls occasionally get louder.
15.17 He suddenly got ants in his pants. Calling, looking around, and up, concentrating on something, more calling.
15.18 He lifted off and back down, and away to the right, and back to the perch, calling loudly and half mantling. Wings drop back to normal. He watches the skies
15.19 He took off again, still calling, over 'us'. No sign of Asha or Axel.
15.22 He returned to the perch, took off calling, landed on the nest and jumped to the right side, Calling all the time.
15.23 He gave us a close up on the near side of the nest, and flew off.
15.48 1C2 returns, calling
Those black clouds top left, look as though they are passing
That's me done for now. I do hope we see a fish soon.
Birdie's DU Summaries 2018 https://www.imagicat.com/
Yippee, Scylla. It looks as tho while I've been faffing you've already found the wee birdie! Redstart?? I have no idea, but it's the chestnut tail that I had noticed. Thank you! We now need an ID..
16.42 1C2 has been waiting patiently
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
scylla said:FISH !!! !!! !!!
No wonder 1C2 was so desperate, CATLADY, after the tiny supper he shared with Asha last evening
I am praying for him/her to be as strong as he sounds.
I hope my pics aren’t too big (I’m using my mobile phone) but I wanted to share that the weather might not have been great for fishing today, especially this afternoon. It looks like the thunder and lightning probably missed Loch garten but it rained heavily and flooded several roads in Inverness and Morayshire areas in the time the storm passed over.
pics were taken at approx 1.10pm, 2.30pm and 3.30pm
The weather was so bad, one of the tesco stores in Inverness had to be evacuated because parts of the roof were falling in and there was water running down the aisles. (I saw video clips on the fb page Highland & Islands weather).