LOCH ARKAIG - THE WOODLAND TRUST - June 2024 - February 2025

13.57 The chicks are very relaxed. A big wing and leg stretch from the chick at the back.

14.46 “Just look at the size of my feet!”

EDIT -  16.44 Dorcha very excited to see Louis incoming with a fish

16.46 Fish #2, which I’m sure Geemeff will cover! The chicks get some greens (moss) with their fish at the same time!

19.59 Dorcha cuddled in with the chicks.

©️Woodland Trust

June 26

20.02 This was fish #3 from last night, small live trout.

Dorcha secures the fish

1st piece goes to the more dominant chick, C2?

20.03 It can’t swallow it and spits it out.

20.04

20.05 Dorcha picks up the piece that was spat out by the chick earlier

It’s a bit of a struggle, but she manages to swallow it.

20.07 The chick to the front C2? gets the tail fin to eat.

It was a very quick feed. Both chicks got some although the more dominant chick had the larger share.

©️Woodland Trust

Thank you Glider! The website went down last night and I kept getting error messages every time I checked, right up until half past midnight when I went to bed. 

I’ll post the videos and summary shortly.

Tuesday 25th June

Garry returns and does some nest prep:

14.45.25 An Osprey is seen flying towards the nest - it's Garry LV0, who brings a clump of moss. He does some nest prep, rearranging sticks and moss, then perches and preens

15.05.33 He departs flying eastwards and disappears by the WT logo.

Tuesday 25th June

Fish number two, chicks queue politely:

16.44.47 Louis arrives with a headless trout - fish number two

16.45.15 Louis departs, 28 second handover

Chicks queue politely, both are looking huge and only C2 has a few fluffy downy feathers left

Not much left for Dorcha after she's dished up to the chicks

Tuesday 25th June

Personages with long sticks: part of my Classic Ospreys series

17.17.01 - 17.25.29 Dorcha decides to move sticks around, and the chicks have to get out of her way.

Set to The Carnival of the Animals - Personages with long ears by Camille Saint-Saëns, performed by the Seattle Youth Symphony and reproduced here with many thanks under creative commons copyright-free performances.

Link to their performance here: https://musopen.org/music/1454-the-carnival-of-the-animals/#recordings

WT forum member Eyefrabird who requested this video describes it thus:

Mum, leave it. Mum, it was all right where it was. Mum, you’ll have someone’s eye out.

For goodness sake, mum, that mad fella with the bag of plastic thingies will be here soon: let him sort it out. Dad, tell her!’

Tuesday 25th June

Fish number three -  Dorcha gets hardly any

20.02.23 Fish number three arrives, a very small whole live trout

20.02.56 Louis departs, 33 second handover

Doesn’t last long! Dorcha only got a small chunk, and gave the tail to a chick.

Daily summary Tuesday 25th June 2024

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A day with few fish but plenty of good manners, and confirmation of two chicks on the Bunarkaig nest (thanks Chaddie), whose parents may or may not be Prince & Affric 152. Louis only delivered three fish today, none of them especially big, so Dorcha gave the two chicks, who queued up politely and took turns, most of the fish and only took a little for herself. Louis' tally rises to two hundred and forty nine, although judging by his bulging crop, he may well have caught more than three today. Dorcha took out her hunger on some sticks and the chicks paid close attention making sure to keep out of her way. Garry LV0 paid several visits to Nest One, bringing nesting materials and doing housekeeping as well as perching quietly and preening. The weather was settled today, and more of the same tonight with a forecast of light clouds, light winds and a low of 12 °C.

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Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 00.18.32 (03.29.13); Nest Two (04.08.47)

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Today’s videos:

https://youtu.be/K3WvjHDOV-M N2 Fish number one, not much left for Dorcha 09.29.00

https://youtu.be/Z_3zm3AQWgc N1 Garry LV0 brings bedding but only stays a short time 12.04.22

https://youtu.be/Y2Gv_Oh4iNk N1 Garry returns and does some nest prep 14.45.25 

https://youtu.be/dFLYF7Ayh0E  N2 Fish number two, chicks queue politely 16.44.47

https://youtu.be/ySDyxYVtZpw  N2 Personages with long sticks 17.17.01 (Classic Ospreys - Saint-Saëns)

https://youtu.be/4vw_4rNXK2g N2 Fish number three, small headless trout, Dorcha gets hardly any 20.02.23

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Bonus shopping - bag a bargain in Woodland Trust's sale - every purchase made from WT's shop funds vital work to plant and protect trees and woods across the UK: https://shop.woodlandtrust.org.uk/summer-sale

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Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

https://youtu.be/IxEocs_nb_E  N1 Louis arrives in a blaze of bronze wings 2020

https://youtu.be/J6rFYgLidLs  N1 Littlest Osplet doesn't wait for Aila and starts tucking in 2020

https://youtu.be/C5KxpCHmN9s  N1 Osplets feed themselves 2020

https://youtu.be/SRa-ozwUAcY  N2 C2 forced onto the cot rails by C1 2022

https://youtu.be/o476vS1eKf8  N2 Songbirds visit - Dorcha doesn't notice 2022 (zoom)

https://youtu.be/p1Ld48KF9vE  N2 Pickup sticks game (2022)

https://youtu.be/64i7qXf299g  N2 Chick regurgitates a pellet 2023

https://youtu.be/NUbDWzUxeDM  N1 Garry BlueLV0 arrives followed by Affric Blue152 2023

https://youtu.be/htYG1Q0iAME  N2 Mumbrella needed: chick wants shelter from mum 2023

https://youtu.be/ILBs4egeKOg  N1 Garry departs leaving Affric still calling for fish 2023

https://youtu.be/jke4_DT2IpA  N2 Chick's crop is full! So Louis takes the fish tail 2023

Fish number one, finally - but Louis has had a good munch and there's not a lot left