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©RSPB Loch Garten OSPREYS - ©WildlifeWindows - www.youtube.com/.../wildlifewindows
2024 Season (link)
At the beginning of May, just after we celebrated an improved start to the season for Brodie and Asha (née Mistle), catastrophe descended upon the nest, in the form of KL5-Klive, whose aggression had ruined the end of 2023 for the two fledged siblings.
Brodie and Asha had returned on 06 and 07 April respectively.
= 21 April 2024 @ 10:47 = 24 April 2024 @ 14:06 = 27 April 2024 @ 13:0502 May 2024 - BlueKL5 "Klive" destroyed/kicked out all eggs.
Brodie was soon overpowered and he fled, returning occasionally.
Axel was seen to intrude very occasionally.
On 07 May SheilaFE reported: Sunday 05 May 2024 20:36:24 KL5 flies off the nest to chase an O flying by – last time Klive is seen on Sunday evening engaging in an aerial battle. Maybe he got his behind kicked and is laying low?
But he returned
Klive wooed Asha, unwelcome and incompetent (re mating), and teasing and selfish (fish-wise), Brodie made the odd appearance, and in the end Asha left early, leaving Klive to assert himself over the nest area for the rest of the season.
This was Imagicat's take on the season (thanks to ChloeB ️and Tiger ).
For IDs
Asha (unringed)
Brodie & Asha - so very similar!
Klive-KL5 (Blue)
He'll be 5 years old this season - might he have matured in the right direction?
Axel-AX6 (Blue)
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The as-yet untended nest (and cam)
The nest cam is glitchy and the PTZ is offline. There is no news from LG HQ. WildlifeWindows' own YT channel has only peregrine falcon streams active.
This is a very busy OP - but who knows who may turn up? and we do hope one familiar face (or feathers) in particular turns up:
IMAGICAT
I think the one who preened for the 2hr 20mis was Asha?
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Thanks Scylla! Lovely snaps, esp the close up! I do think its Brodie in the last year video, and the 14th one. I find the presence or absence of spotty bloomers my best way of distinguishing Asha and Brodie, but of course you can't always see them. I think Brodie is a slightly darker brown, Asha is a bit more milk chocolate. As well as Holly, I *think* Canuck also mentioned Brodie to have a spot on his chest. Somehow Asha's head feathers usually stick up more, but when Brodie's do stick up it makes him look more like Asha! So I think it was most likely Brodie on the branch for the couple of hours today. But I am no expert.
I agree that it was Brodie on the branch as well
Thank you for the who's who advice, girls, I do hope you're not wasting your breath on me - we'll see
16 April
Between 06:00 (when Brodie turned up after Asha had been here an hour) and 06:30 there were a couple of good matings and Asha was lookiing very comfortable with Brodie, nestorising while he coy mantled.
This was my mistaken Asha:
Here's a short video - so awkward of him not to turn to face us, but YT managed to choose the best thumbnail, for a change! I'm hoping he took the fish to Asha elsewhere than on the nest:
I shouldn't have finished that off - look what I found over an hour later - did he ever find her?
Oh dear, hours of fun here - and poor Asha, hopeful in the rain, but in vain:
.And I accidentally left off a clip of the rainy evening:
17 April
04:42
OSPREY ON THE NEST - it's Asha - I added in the crescendo of skydancing from the nestcam, it had gone on more distantly for a couple of minutes prior. With Brodie's mating visit tagged on:
Asha is still on the nest.
Brodie has been on a roll, Asha is staying on the nest, spending longest in the nestcup.
It sees that Brodie is either on a break or gone fishing, Asha remains in the nestcup.
The male REDSTART lorded it from Asha's perch more than once yesterday - here he is on one occasion, synced sound from nestcam but not edited shorter cos every time I went to make a cut he opened his beak or fluttered a feather or something else 'fascinating'
When I was doing the sound on nestcam I noticed what he actually did when he flew off - aggressive !!!
18 APRIL 05:45
FISH !!! !!! !!!
EDIT - Actually, it was of no length or girth to shout about, but it was a (piece of) fish, at least, which is something to shout about, in the circs.
Video of the morning to follow.
It could have been the same fish Brodie withheld the evening before.
Since this video - more matings!
"They" have posted a short video update on Facebook - it includes an unringed female visitor on the nest in Asha's absence yesterday, and I have lost my footage for the 17th so I've taken these snaps from the video:
This is, apparently, the same female on the same morning:
They show a mystery bird after that, at the end of the video, but I noticed the date was 07 April so it was Blue047 tagged on, we covered the same footage ourselves at the time.
Today there's been a third osprey around, I can't find out if it's anyone we know but it's not blue-ringed, thank goodness.
I'm supposed to have packed up but got spooked by that third bird. I think Asha's preening on the nset at the mo. Sorry to be so disjointed, am all hot 'n bothered.
An attempt at a screen shot! It worked!! No idea what I did so don't expect a repeat