And it was all going so well. Too well.

Kellan, the young male white-tailed eagle from a nest on Mull in 2010, had successfully fledged from his nest high up in a block of Sitka spruce. He was being eagerly watched by many people on the campsite, by visitors on wildlife expeditions and from the boat trips up the loch. He'd been seen flying well by many observers and had even made it as far as his parent's favourite…

I was used to handling eaglets from the nest when they were being ringed at 4-5 weeks old and even at the satellite or wing tagging stage when they're usually 8-9 weeks old. But what lay before me was a totally different ball game. This was a fully grown eagle who had tasted freedom and was not about to surrender it lightly. Maybe it was just too risky to attempt it alone. If one talon pierced something critical I could…

Sunday January 3:  Hello everyone and welcome to 2010. I actually drafted this on January 1st, hit 'save' and promptly lost the lot...or so I thought. I've been unable to access the RSPB blogs for a few days (did the system crash?) but just now I tried again and amazingly here we are and my first blog of 2010 had saved and was still there! The wonders of technology. So here it is. More soon...

Happy New Year…

Only this week I was watching the fabulous Frisa with the winter's sun beaming down on her and thinking how much like her mother she looked. Of course to some, all white-tailed eagles will look the same. Maybe they do? But for a while there I was transported back 25 years to those lonely but wonderful days on the edge of the loch watching Frisa's mum Blondie raise the first wild bred chick in the UK for 70 years. How…

At last Frisa and Skye have been revealing a few secrets of their hidden world of courtship. At first light last week I discovered them cosied up on an old favourite nest. If this is their choice, there is much to be done to this trusty old eyrie to get it ready in time but they seemed to have a distinct lack of urgency about them. Or at least Skye did.

While Frisa was busy rearranging sticks, Skye was perched to one…

Even by west coast standards, it had been an unseasonally violent and stormy night. And it had been raining continuously for 24 hours before that. It was almost mid summer's day for goodness sake! Lying in bed and listening to the storm raging outside at 3am, your mind runs riot and there's nothing you can do about it. I knew there were big eagle chicks hunkered down flat in the nests all around Mull. They were too big…

Well - just back from Loch Frisa, having been soaked and battered by the wind and rain.  I am pleased to say that both Skye and Frisa are well and Frisa has been feeding two chicks.  They are fantastic parents doing such a great job in this awful weather we are having!  The chicks are only 3 weeks old so still have a lot to get through but at the moment, both doing OK.

 The rain had eased for most of the day but was replaced…

We can't pretend it's always wonderful and perfect here on Mull. You only have to look at the TV weather maps at the moment to see what's going on. It seems like one low pressure system after another drifting in and then standing still. It's not been a very memorable day at the hide for Debby and indeed many folk took the sensible course of action and postponed their visit until a better day. Usually we still press on…

I got the call from Strathclyde Police this morning at 1100. A local lady driving near Tobermory was sure she had just seen a sea eagle by the side of the road - the main road into the town. She thought it was struggling to take off. I wasn't too far away so quickly made my way to the scene. When I had passed this spot an hour or so earlier I was surprised to see several ravens hanging around by the road. I assumed some…

It's been a crazy and exciting week here on Mull Eagle Watch. Frisa and Skye have been up to their usual tricks and have made life even more frustrating than usual for us this year. There have been days when Frisa has been sitting on one nest and Skye has been building at another. Behaviour I've never seen before at this late stage in their breeding cycle. It's almost as if they've had a serious disagreement. …

Day One at the Loch Frisa Eagle Hide: and so it begins...

Some 30 excited visitors joined Debby, Sue and myself for a day to remember as the Isle of Mull's famous Eagle Hide opened its doors for business. The sky was bright but a chilly wind blew from the south east. After a brief stop at the Mull Eagle Watch volunteer's lookout post to get our bearings, we descended to the luxury 'hide' and out of the cold. From there…

Hello everyone

Just a short update to let you know that with Frisa and Skye settled, we open the hide today for trips which you can book on to by calling 01688 302 038. Or visit our Date with Nature web page on this site. There was some concern yesterday when two adult sea eagles were seen high up in the clouds above the nest site. But it turned out not to be Frisa and Skye but another pair who are clearly not settled…

First of all my apologies for the delay in posting a new blog. It's been a very hectic week with interviews, admin and field work. The season seems to be kicking off earlier than ever! Most of the pairs of white-tailed eagles on Mull are busy refurbishing their nests or building new ones. One day I feel like I know what's happening with each pair, the next it's all up in the air again - literally. Needles to say…

I've been holding off writing, hoping to give some news on Frisa and Skye - like where they're going to nest this year. Not too much to ask by early March you'd think. But a combination of dreadful weather and the birds going AWOL means that we still have no definitive news. There have been occasional sightings but the wet and cold seems to have cooled their nesting instincts for now. Oh well, plenty of time yet...…

I've seen that look before and it worries me. At Loch Frisa today as the hail, sleet and snow storms raced through, I found a stranger lurking in the woods. I've seen her before. She's doing the rounds. Last time I saw her at Loch na Keal eyeing up the territory there. Then she moved north and then back south to Loch Frisa. She was there a month ago but I didn't particularly think anything of it. But today…

There are some days which put you on top of the world and for me, one day earlier this year was one of them. There is a pair of sea eagles on the Scottish mainland which is just so elusive you wouldn't think they had eight or nine foot wingspans! I mean how could anyone miss them? And yet, year after year, they have proved very difficult to track down.

They have now had three or more different nest sites, all many miles…

The office phone rang late today. An excited, breathless Ricky Clark, from the excellent Ardnamurchan Natural History Centre on the stunning mainland peninsula just to the north of Mull, was on the 'phone. He'd just reviewed the footage recorded earlier in the day from their remote cctv cameras placed near a golden eagle feeding area. They beam back amazing live pictures to the centre for visitors to watch without…

Wow. Where does the time go? All of a sudden, the harsh frost-filled icy winter is fading and spring is racing towards us like an eagle after a rabbit. The title of this blog (The Eagles 1972) doesn't exactly sum up this phase of stress and worry all of us feel as the white-tailed eagles settle down to nest again but it does portray the sense of satisfaction we feel when an old friend comes home.

Gazing out from…

Its amazing how we drag ourselves through winter with the long dark nights and then all of a sudden, its Spring! 

Skye and Frisa are now well and truly into the routine of incubation.  Frisa tends to do the night shift on the nest, with Skye taking over for a couple of hours first thing in the morning while she has a preen.  They then take it in turns throughout the day though if its wet, the bird on the nest will stay…

At last we have some warm sunny weather on Mull, following what has seemed like day after day of rain!  I know it has been wet in the south today but this was the scene at Loch Frisa. 

Sadly Frisa and Skye are still taking turns at sitting on the nest.  At the moment, its just a waiting game until they decide to eventually give up on this year's nesting attempt.  Its been a huge disappointment for everyone…

Breaking news:

Skye and Frisa proudly announce the successful fledging of their healthy, bouncing, miracle chick. She weighs in at about 6kg, plumage and eyes are brown and she's already taken her first wobbly flaps. Mum, dad and chick all doing well.

Blog to follow but for now raise your glasses to Skye, Frisa and ????

Dave Sexton RSPB Scotland Mull Officer

Mull Eagle Hide: 01680 812 556

"Drinking in the morning sun, blinking in the morning sun"

Frisa felt stirrings beneath her. The first time had been in the middle of the night. If the moon had been full and bright she may even have stood up there and then to see what was happening but in the darkness of a moonless April night, she sat low and tight until dawn.

Skye was unusually keen to arrive at the nest at daybreak to take over his incubation…

Autumn is in full swing - beautiful shades of red, gold, orange and brown are everywhere; the rowan trees are laden with berries which are being picked off by the fieldfares and redwings that have recently arrived on the Island.  Autumn is my favourite season - a chance to reflect on the season just past and time to look ahead as the evenings draw in - wondering what lies ahead.

The Mull Eagle Hide has had a fantastic…

Well - I cant believe how quickly the time has flown this year.  It doesn't seem like 5 minutes that we were announcing Iona (our female) and Fingal (our male) were incubating and then the great news we had a hatching!  Over the last 11 weeks we have watched their two chicks develop from 2 little white fluff balls into a pair of very healthy, almost full grown white-tailed eagles.  And what stunning birds they are!