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

Welcome to Loch Arkaig Ospreys season 8

Will Louis and Dorcha return to Nest 2?  White check mark

Will someone take up residence in Nest 1? X

Will any of Louis' chicks with Aila and Dorcha be sighted? X

2024 season:

Louis arrived on Thursday 28th March at 15.18.38

Dorcha arrived on Saturday 30th March at 14.21.27

They reunited on Saturday 30th March at 16.13.37

First egg laid on Sunday 14th March at 11.13.48  Congratulations!!

Second egg laid on Wednesday 17th March at 05.55.52

Dorcha is injured in an eagle attack on Friday 19th April at 11.08

Third egg laid on Saturday 20th April at 02.26.08 

Welcome little bob - first chick hatches! Wednesday 22nd May at 06.16.45 

Welcome little bob - second chick hatches - it's twins! Wednesday 22nd May at 22.26.15

Welcome little bob - third chick hatches! Friday 24th May at 16.36.10

Sad death of little chick three Sunday 16th June at approx 19.02

Louis disappears, last seen Wednesday 26th June 11.22.56

Louis returns but is clearly not well Saturday 29th June 08.26.37

Decision made to place the two surviving chicks in a translocation programme Sunday 30th June

Licensed raptor team collects the chicks Monday 1st July 10.15

Chicks 1&2 arrive at Pego-Oliva marsh, Spain and ringed Yellow 1JW (C1) & 1JR (C2) Thursday 11th July

Sadly, 1JR (C2) started having seizures and succumbed to a heart condition Tuesday 23rd July

FLEDGE! The surviving chick 1JW (C1) found his wings and flew Thursday 25th July 3pm

Dorcha last seen on camera (Nest One) 11.19.43 Saturday 27th July

Louis  last seen on camera (Nest Two) 13.31.18 Tuesday 30th July

1JW (C1) last seen at Pego-Oliva marsh (Spain) on Tuesday 10th September

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Link to February 2024 - May 2024 thread:

loch-arkaig---the-woodland-trust---february-2024---may-2024

2023 season highlights:

Louis returned on Sunday 2nd April at 12.26.54

Dorcha returned on Sunday 9th April 08.09.46

They reunited on Monday 10th April at 12.33.03

First egg laid Friday 21st April at 05.44.19

A Golden Eagle touched down on Saturday 22nd April at 11.50.56

Second egg laid Monday 24th April at 07.03.30 

Third egg laid on Thursday 27th April at 07.35.39

Violent Owl strike sends an egg overboard 23rd May at 00.26.46

First chick hatches - and it's Egg3! 31st May at 13.08

Another Owl strike - Bob's unharmed. 6th June at 00.18.16 

It's a boy! The chick is ringed LY7 on 9th July around 10am

Fledge! LY7 finds his wings and flies 19th July at 15.05.11

Hello Ludo! The voting results are in and LY7 is named Ludo! 19th July

Dorcha leaves on her travels - last seen on 17th August at 06.30.34

Louis was last seen on 24th August at 15.50.34

Ludo LY7 was last seen* on 25th August at 10.03.28  (*on the nest)

Ludo sighted in France 24th September! Still there 8th October

Link to 2023 thread: 

https://community.rspb.org.uk/placestovisit/lochgartenospreys/f/loch-garten-ospreys/282446/loch-arkaig---the-woodland-trust---march-2023-to-february-2024

Brief history of the nests:

2016 Woodland Trust acquire the Loch Arkaig ancient Caledonian rainforest remnant and manage it in partnership with Arkaig Community Forest. An Osprey pair is seen.
2017 A nest cam is installed on a refurbished ancient Osprey nest. The old pair don't return but a young male Louis and a young female Aila take up residence and raise one male chick to fledging: Lachlan JH4.
2018 Louis & Aila return but a Pine Marten steals all their eggs.
2019 Louis & Aila return and raise two female chicks to fledging: Mallie JJ0 and Rannoch JJ2.
2020 Louis & Aila return and raise two male and one female chicks to fledging: Doddie JJ6; Vera JJ8 and Captain JJ7.
2021 Louis returns but sadly Aila doesn't. Louis takes up residence on a new nest with a new mate Dorcha and they raise two male chicks to fledging: Aspen LW3 & Alder LW4. This is designated Nest 2, no one takes up residence on Nest1.
2022 Woodland Trust install a nest cam on Nest 2. Louis & Dorcha return and raise two female chicks to fledging: Willow LW5 and Sarafina LW6. Still no residents on Nest 1.
2023 Louis & Dorcha return, and raise one male chicks to fledging: Ludo LY7. No residents on Nest 1 but male Garry LV0 spent a lot of time flirting with Affric 152 despite her mate Prince still being around.
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Louis is a father of thirteen, six with Aila (2017-2020), and seven with Dorcha (2021-)
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In hatch order 2017 - 2023:
2017 Lachlan (JH4)
2019 Mallie (JJ0), Rannoch (JJ2)
2020 Doddie (JJ6), Vera (JJ8), Captain (JJ7)
2021 Aspen (LW3), Alder (LW4)
2022 Willow (LW5), Sarafina (LW6)
2023 Ludo (LY7)
2024 males 1JR, 1JW (Spain)
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Highlights:
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2023 Nest Two highlights 
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2023 Nest One highlights 
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All captures in whatever format are copyright Woodland Trust - with many thanks for allowing captures from their nest cam livestreams.
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Osprey cams funded by People's Postcode Lottery
  • 14.20 Look who’s just had a feed and not wiped their beaks! Slight smile

    15.24 Their feathers have dried out nicely in the wind.

    15.25 Dorcha returns and can’t believe her eyes!


    Where did this come from?!

    Her first piece. She even gave some of it to her chick (who didn’t tell mum it had already been fed!)


    ©️Woodland Trust

  • 15.25.02 With the licensed raptor experts having departed after their errand of mercy feeding the chicks in the inexplicable absence of Louis, Dorcha returns and spots the fish they left for her.

    She immediately starts tucking in and the chicks, with full crops from the whole mackerel they were each hand-fed, crowd around her.

    She gives them some of the fish but eats plenty herself. Where is Louis? Fingers crossed for his safe return.

    Woodland Trust said they sought expert advice and were granted permission by the government agency who handle these matters - NatureScot - to intervene.

  • We have been asked by Woodland Trust admin not to record the intervention by Lewis so I am not putting up a clip of the feeding, although I’ve seen photos and clips posted on social media by others. It will be visible on youtube scrollback until approximately 1.30am tomorrow.

    Editing to say George has posted that photos and video were taken by the raprtor experts during the intervention and will be out in due course - they'll be fabulous hi-def ultra close-up shots, worth waiting for.

    Meantime, WT are trying to damp down the sensation a bit until, as they put it, 'we know the ending to the story'. 

  • Fabulous vids Geemeff, so heartening, Fingers crossedfor good news of Louis!

     

     2013 photos & vids here

    eff37 on Flickr

  • 20.32 Current scene on the nest. Dry and still very windy. Dorcha forever watchful to see if Louis is around.


    ©️Woodland Trust

  • I do hope that no harm has come to Louis. My fingers are crossed that he returns after time away for whatever reason. Thank you WT for feeding the birds, and hopefully again tomorrow, if needed

    Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

  • The plan is to feed the chicks again tomorrow. A platform safe from Pine Martens, Badgers etc was set up near the nest with fish left on it for Dorcha. Not sure she's had any - or at least hasn't brought any back to the nest. Of course, the Hoodies might have got there first. 

    Hoping, hoping, hoping Louis turns up.. if still a no-show by Sunday, a licence has been granted by Nature Scot to remove the chicks and place them in a translocation programme.

  • Nest One 10.06.18 An Osprey is seen flying across the cam view from left to right. Moments later Garry LV0 arrives on Nest One, and stands and preens for a while.

    10.14.25 He departs only to return a few moments later with a clump of moss.

    10.18.55 He sets the moss down and does a little housekeeping before perching again.

    10.35.41 He departs and isn't seen again today.

    (zoomed)

  • 23.38.35 Dorcha and the two chicks huddle together on a dreich night with the wind howling around them, a long night is ahead of them

    Where is Louis? No one knows.

    Last seen Wednesday 26th, acting unlike his usual self.

    Hurry home Louis - we miss you, Dorcha and the chicks need you. 

  • Daily summary Friday 28th June 2024

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    There is no easy way to say this: Louis is still missing, not seen since Wednesday evening. We still hope to see him safe and well, but as the chicks were beginning to suffer from the incessant rain and lack of food despite Dorcha's heroics with catching an eel yesterday, Woodland Trust took the unprecedented step of approaching NatureScot for permission to intervene. They are the Scottish Government’s lead adviser on wildlife management. In this case, using the evidence of Steve Quinn's meticulous fish stats showing Louis' decline and first hand observations of Louis' unusual behaviour by LizB, permission was granted. Intrepid licensed raptor experts Lewis and Henry braved the climb to the top of the very tall nest tree and hand-fed the chicks with mackerel, leaving some on the nest as well as on a specially built platform below for Dorcha. Not a moment too soon as Lewis observed the second chick was approaching the stage of being too weak to eat. Luckily, after the initial strangeness, both chicks fed well and downed a whole mackerel each. Dorcha returned soon after they left and fed herself and the chicks from the fish left on the nest. Whatever your opinion about intervention, it's good to see the chicks with full crops again. In other news, Garry LV0 paid a visit to Nest One and returned bringing nesting materials. Tonight's forecast for the nest area is light rain showers and a gentle breeze, but the sound of the wind and the movement around the nest suggest otherwise. 

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    Night cam switches on (day cam): Nest One 23.48.40 (03.30.52); Nest Two 23.19.18 (03.59.43)

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    Today’s videos:

    https://youtu.be/6maD-9zG5xk N1 Garry LV0 visits twice and brings nesting materials 10.06.18 (zoom)

    https://youtu.be/9HYxpRU-hjY N2 Dorcha returns when the fish fairies leave after feeding the chicks 15.25.02

    https://youtu.be/c2oZrwNXbvI  N2 Dorcha and the two chicks huddle together on a dreich night 23.38.35

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    Bonus read - Morphometric sex determination of young Ospreys: 

    https://www.researchgate.net/publication/233013597_Morphometric_sex_determination_of_young_Ospreys_Pandion_haliaetus_using_discriminant_analysis

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    Blast from the past, this day in previous years:

    https://youtu.be/hAJchYM7NIo  N1 Aila ignores an intruder Osprey skydancing for her attention 2020

    https://youtu.be/6T4blnBVQXA  N1 Louis looms out of the mist with an early breakfish 2020

    https://youtu.be/GvBAoPCLWDc N1 Louis brings a very large trout 2020

    https://youtu.be/Zzh6ihZO6Q8  N2 Coal Tit pays a visit 2022 (super slo-mo)

    https://youtu.be/B2msIMScD6s  N2 Lots of happy squeaking when fish arrives 2022

    https://youtu.be/r0IOlFls9Og  N2 Another intruder Osprey alert 2022 (zoom)

    https://youtu.be/wZ-KmF2cTNA  N2 Dorcha strikes the wrong note 2022 (Classic Ospreys: Chopin)

    https://youtu.be/OjdfAzv_aYI   N1 Affric stays and calls for hours but Garry doesn't return 2023

    https://youtu.be/BQ-is6X0Gqs  N2 Louis sorts Dorcha's tricky stick 2023

    https://youtu.be/tN0NyYd1Bk0  N2 Fish arrives but the chick's home alone 2023

    https://youtu.be/tcUkgVA5LFs  N1 Short-Eared Owl pays a visit 2023 (slo-mo, zoom)