Link to July 2023 thread
July proved to be a less nail-biting month than June. Brodie re-appeared early on the 1st and delivered fish (including flounder) to the nest every day bar 1 thereafter, with a record count of 7 on the 21st. Asha also fished and delivered a salmon on the 3rd, as well as quite a few sticks, not least one to replace the sticky-up stick on the nest that got removed on ringing day - 12th July. We have 2 boys, as only 7% of those surveyed had predicted. 2C5 (oldest) became Sid (Vicious) and 2C4 (youngest) is Harry (Nilsson). We had some cracking snaps particularly from the PTZ camera, a 2am fish, self-feeding started, and wing-flapping and helicoptering. Bets are on for a fledge or two very early in August. Sid is 58 days and Harry 56 days on the 1st of August
Well spotted Trevor. KL5 is still there at 19.50. He looks quite at home. I can't see any line
On one leg. Cool dude
(c) RSPB Loch Garten
He flew off at 20.01. The egg is still intact, but not broken as far as I could see, and remains on the nest. KL5 has done what many males do at the end of the season, but usually there is a female to accept or witness his attentions. Tidying up and preparing for the next season.
If only he had turned up on time, it might have been a completely different story for 2023!!
Birdie's DU Summaries 2018 https://www.imagicat.com/
trevor l said:Looks like line on leg and neck
Well spotted,TREVOR - and here's the solution - these are 3 frames one after the other. In frame #1 you can see that his throat is "torn open" and the line descends from there, then in #2 the throat is closed slightly, then in #3 iit's all healed up and the thread is gone. So that was all part of the fault we get when feathers appear to break off in the sky - very misleading!
I'm doing a second edit on the video to shorten it.
IMAGICAT
Still too long, too bad ;)
KL5 on nest at 8 32 am
Hawk below nest at 8 45 ish
It's a windy old day today, but so far no rain. I am sure it's on its way.
The nest just now, lest we have any unspotted visitors moving sticks around!
I watched Scylla's vid of KL5's visit again. It was fascinating to watch him go down on the egg. He was in two minds whether to kick it out or incubate it. As he went down in the cup he curled his talons to make sure he didn't puncture the egg, which by this time he had moved/kicked further up the side, as it lies now.
As last year, he looks very at home on the nest. If he does arrive at the same time as Asha next year, I feel he could claim both her and the nest.
But one big query, where has he been all season?
He may have been the intruder on 17 May, just after midday, and again at 12.20 when he hovered over Asha Scylla's vid: Valerie said on Chat that "LG confirmed it was KL5 who intruded earlier".
Then later in the evening at 19.51 Brodie arrived to defend v unseen intruder, which Asha lay low over the eggs. Brodie flew off - after the intruder? - and it was the last time Brodie was seen for the day. There had been no fish for Asha for two days, but her crop wasn't obviously hollow. 18 May Brodie arrived with the first fish since 15 May. Were he and KL5 battling for the territory?
7 June an unseen intruder that Brodie reacts to. 9 June unseen intruder that Brodie reacts to, but later that morning Brodie intruder chipped and flew off. Later that morning Asha called and mantled as an intruder flew over the nest. 10 June KL5 was back. He touched down on the nest, Asha flapped him away. Later that morning Asha intruder called and was joined by Brodie, who went off after the intruder. Brodie wasn't seen for the rest of the day nor early afternoon on 11 June. Was he chasing KL5? In Brodie's absence KL5 makes a nuisance of himself, trying to land on the nest, and on Asha but she saw him off. He returned in the afternoon and landed n the nest while Asha was feeding the chicks. KL5 stayed on the rim, watching. She finished feeding the chicks before at last yelling at him to leave - but she doesn't flap him off. 16.37 he returned to the nest, but it wasn't until 16.48 that she saw him off.
11 June he was back on the bare topped pine/conifer, eating a fish - didn't bring it to Asha though!
I'll try and find some more later. KL5 was really persistent for a while