Alyth is located in Perth and Kinross on the east coast of Scotland. The Osprey nest is at the Alyth SSEN Transmission sub station and is the tallest of all the nests on camera in the UK.
Background information:-
The Ospreys have nested at the site for many years since around 1990.
They were nesting on a nearby electricity tower, but due to a planned expansion of the site a decision was taken to resite the old nest to a specially constructed 25-metre nesting tower and two nearby 8.5 metre resting perches, which were erected in 2014. Advice was sought from Roy Dennis.Since that first breeding season in 2014, a total of 17 osprey chicks have been observed to have fledged from the new site.
Due to the height of the tower, no ringing can take place.
The resident ospreys are called Harry and Flora (blue HK0), named by a local school in Alyth. All pupils were also given their own osprey soft toy as a thank you from the teams for getting involved and for showing such enthusiasm about the ospreys.
In 2023 Flora HK0 arrived on 30th March and Harry on 4th April. Together, they successfully raised three chicks to fledging.
Flora was last seen on 10th August and Harry 7th September. (The camera stream was offline from 13- 23 August)
Thank you Richard for initial information which I’ve edited to include last year’s figures.
Links
August 2023 to February 2024
Live stream - SSEN Transmission as provided by Wildlife Windows
RETURN DATES 2024
Flora (Blue HK0) 28 March 19.19
Harry 29 March 14.40
EGGS LAID
15/04/24 at 11.01 ———————-Hatched 21 or 22/05/24
18/04/23 at 09.04 (I think!) ————--Hatched 23/05/24
21/04/23 sometime in the morning. ————Hatched 26/05/24
SADLY, ONE CHICK DIED ON THE NEST ON 30/05/24
LIVE STREAM WAS DOWN FOR OVER TWO WEEKS FROM MAY 31. WHEN IT RETURNED, IT WAS EVIDENT THAT THERE WAS ONLY ONE CHICK REMAINING ON THE NEST.
The CHICK FLEDGED on 26/07/24
MIGRATION
Flora and the juvenile left at some point before the end of August when the live stream was down. (12-22 August)
However, I suspect it may have been the 21st August that the last one (or both) left as Harry was seen on the nest on the 22nd with a fish.
Harry was around for a few days after, seen on the 26th August and probably it was him on the 30th as well, which would have been his last sighting.
All photos and videos copyright SSEN Transmission Alyth and Wildlife Windows
Harry (left) and Flora HK0 at the beginning of season 2023.
July 2024 - (from left) Flora, chick, Harry.
July 2024 - The chick and Flora.
May 2
The camera has been down nearly all day.
Here are some early morning snaps.
04.19 Harry arrives early to relieve Flora.
04.50 Harry with the morning skies.
04.51 Flora joins Harry.
04.56 As Harry gets up to roll the eggs, all 3 are visible.
05.52 Changeover, Flora to the eggs as Harry flies off.
06.54 Flora in the mist
08.40 The mist has burnt off and reveals a lovely bright morning. Harry yawns.
The cam went down at 08.42 and has not returned yet. (20.11)
©️NWWT, WW, BOP
May 3
18.48 Cam still down. We have the green screen.
The cam has been on for a few bursts today, but off most of the time.
09.04 This was Flora preening this morning.
This is the current view of a wet Flora with the circle of doom on its way round. Frozen at 16.49.
Do hope it's better weather soon and the cam comes back
Yes, both have been so unreliable Wendy!
May 6
Camera very intermittent today. Some snaps from in between down times. 02.01 Flora under a downpour during the night.
05.11 Still wet
06.26 An hour later, a dry Harry
09.43 Flora on the nest calling for fish, Harry busy preening on the post.
Cam currently frozen at 11.25. Flora on the nest.
©️SSEN Alyth
Cam has still been unreliable but it did show a fish delivery at 17.13. It was a small but whole one.
Flora takes the fish in her beakbut transfers to her talons to fly off with it.
However, she landed on the nest cam at 17.28, vocalising to Harry. She flew to the nest a few seconds later with empty talons.
17.29 Harry flew off with a spray of water coming from his wings as he flapped upwards.
Flora quickly covered the eggs to keep them dry and cosy.
©️SSEN ALYTH
May 7
The camera has been a bit better today with more nest coverage.
09.00 A view of all 3 eggs as Flora got up to roll them.
11.31. Later in the morning, an intruder visited the nest whilst Flora was on the eggs.
It was not made welcome. Flora lunged at it.
It flew up then back down onto the nest again.
Flora lunged again and the bird left the nest
The Osprey flew round past the nest
11.32 and returned for another try
but misjudged it’s landing, skimming off the edge.
Going by Flora’s reactions, it flew again over the nest but was soon on its way.
Whatever is wrong with the live stream is taking forever to get fixed. Down for practically all day today. Some coverage early morning.
06.42 Flora’s asking for fish.
06.57 Harry is on his way. Flora calls continuously without hardly taking a breath!
He arrives empty taloned. She momentarily stops calling as she checks his talons.
And she starts again!
09.27 Flora gets up to roll the eggs, giving us a view of them.
10.06 Still fish calling
The cam was down for half an hour from 09.30 then for all day from 10.07.
It’s still currently off.
May 12The cam seems to have been on today.
This was a late fish Flora got at 21.28
whole, freshly caught
Flora flew off with it clasped in her beak.
21.40 Unfortunately, she flew back 12 minutes later clutching a clump of grass. She’d lost her fish.