but not quite yet!
This evening I went to check up on Half Pint to see whether he has fledged yet. He and his sibling were 12 weeks old today! Its a bit of a precarious walk and loaded with a telescope, binoculars, daughter in tow, we tentatively made our way to the best position to view the nest without any of us tripping up, dropping the scope or the other threat, getting soaked to the skin by the heavy, intermittent showers we have had on and off today. At Loch Frisa the weather has been mainly bright and blustery with the odd heavy shower passing through - I thought a good day for fledging - a nice blustery breeze - great for taking that first step off the nest.
As we tentatively approached, with heart in mouth never quite knowing what you are going to find, we rounded the corner - a beautiful sight of an adult flying around enjoying the break in the weather - then the heart stopping moment as the nest comes into view (now, if I was Dave he would leave you hanging for a day or two!!).
Sat on the edge of the nest, two beautiful chocolate brown chicks, just chilling, looking around, watching Mum flying about. I was sure one of them would have gone today but no - they looked far too comfortable. Hopefully in the next few days, Mum and Dad will bring food but not take it directly to the nest, thereby trying to coax them out - thats when the fun starts for us, trying to keep an eye on them. But for this evening, Half Pint is looking fantastic, ready to face the world (well, in his own time).
As we opened the Hide at Loch Frisa this morning, we were treated to a beautiful display from Heather and Frisa - Frisa flying high on a thermal, Heather, flying lower and just still a little bit wobbly as she turns but beautiful nonetheless. They spent the morning sat on the other side of the Loch keeping each other company, sat side by side - our visitors were over the moon.
Managed to capture this shot of a Lapwing - often seen in the fields at Loch Frisa Photo Debby Thorne
Debby Thorne - White Tailed Eagle Information Officer, Isle of Mull
PS. To explain a liittle more. I too used to think, what good could one little voice do (or one little person of no importance) and so I spent my life thinking hard, but keeping quiet. But then I saw these magificent sea eagles unexpectedly at close quarters in Wester Ross and loved them, forever it seems. When I heard of White G's horrible death in Angus, it woke me out of what seemed a lifetime's mesmerically miasmal mist. I thought, if each of us does not stand up and be counted when we see barbarism or any other evil, do we really think the world will be a better place for our silence, however little a person we may be? It had me thinking about world wars and although, like Dave, one realises that the death of one bird seems trivial in the grand scale of things, is the 'persecution mentality' really any different, whatever the scale? So - I think now that we have to do what little we can on our small scale and hope that it may have a snowball effect into the larger 'world thought.' Forgive anything that may sound like pomposity in this. It isn't intended that way. I just feel deeply that all of us - every one of you - can help the eagles, and help the world to be a better place.