Loch of the Lowes Osprey Wildlife Diary
Osprey Diary 29th June
June 29th, 2010 by Osprey Team

A beautiful morning again here at Lowes, with glorious sunshine and a gentle breeze ruffling the surface of the Loch. There are duckling and goslings a plenty around the shores, and great crested grebes nesting again amongst the yellow water lilies near the hide.
We have been focussed very much this last week or so on our female osprey ( quite rightly) and her plight, but I would like to mention our male today, because he deserves a Hero of the Loch award as far as I am concerned.
Most of you will know that he is a new male this year, ten years old born at Ballinliug in 2000. As a new partner for our lady, he was very much an unknown quantity at the beginning of the season. His courtship was text book, his nest building skills in no doubt (he virtually buried our lady!), but his fishing skills took a while to impress us! He ahs turned out to be a specialist pike fisherman and capable of bringing in very large fish (though his average is small and some truly tiny!). He did give us a couple of frights when he abandoned the eggs during incubation for half an hour or so- he was called a few very bad things those nights!
Most of all though, he has impressed all his doubters with his dedication, first feeding his mate tenderly on the nest, and then proving himself incredibly dedicated to his hatchlings. Once the chicks arrived he stepped up his hunting to an incredible level and hasn’t slacked since- there has never been a lack of fish which has meant the chicks having the best possible start in life.
It is thanks to dad however, that the chicks survived their mother’s terrible illness, because he stepped into the breach when she was unable to, and fed them himself. Though not unknown in ospreys, this kind of behaviour is considered rare and a sign of our male’s total dedication to rearing his offspring- what a super dad!
three cheers for Green 7Y- hero of the Loch!
Emma Rawling
Perthshire Ranger

Hi All

Just a wee update on the camera. We have had interference problems so I changed the feed as you have seen from the black and white picture. I will keep at it and get the original picture back.

Thanks for your patience.

Peter

 

This is very sad news, thanks Carly.

yay

The temporary diagnosis responsible for Eve's death is, in french:
Hépatite à Herpesvirus et pneumonie bactérienne. A more complete result will come.

Horus is in a great form and a superb flier. He will be able to hunt by himself very soon.

Ahhhh, poor girl. I loved watching them. Thanks Nic.

Looked good to me!

Me too, I love the small species of owls. Cute cute cute. Lucky Jim P

Blackberry's rescue.   http://www.peregrine-foundation.ca/w/2010/06/sightings/blackberry-rescue/ with pics

Continued>>>>

 Yonge & Eglinton
-
Zoe Berger Reports:

Frank and Harry were there when I arrived - watching the 3 chicks (the 2 rescued chicks and the female who had been doing lots of flapping the past 3 days and apparently finally fledged) on the black building where the Eglinton busses turn in and out (constantly!).

 We still had one in the nest - the male who had not been flapping at all the 3 days I’d been watching. We kept eyes on the 3, sometimes 1 completely out of sight…and all of a sudden we had to decide who the 4 birds on that building were. It appears that quiet little guy fledged on his own totally unnoticed. We checked and definitely had 4 chicks on the black building. After lots of sitting all around, Frank and I suddenly had to get up to watch the path of a chick flying…and we BOTH watched it pass a tree and not come out the other side. We both walked up and down the roads in the area, both scanned the tree many times and finally Frank listened to a robin on the roof next to the tree where we had lost that chick on and sure enough there he was. The quiet non-flapping male had gotten himself trapped in many oak leaves and branches. Shortly after locating him he was really ready to get out of that mess and tried as best as he could to fly out - but he was trapped by a few leafless branches right above him and could not get flight…his wings got tangled in the bare branches and he lost his footing and literally  fluttered in slo-mo down to the street just out of traffic. Frank got the towel and we checked him as best as we could and got him in the carrier which was taken by Lyn to her  cool and comfy apt - all of which coincided with Lyn arriving at the scene just after the rescue.  So, rescue #3 from the site, he will be banded too (3 of 4 chicks).

Just before I left one of the female chicks took flight north across Eglinton and had a very good landing.  Linda and Bruce had arrived so I left.  Can’t wait for the update from Frank of what happened after I left.

I wanted to add more photos but my computer is not cooperating…!

[!!! Two fledged, two rescued, two banded, two named, and two returned to thier nest ledge and their parents!]

!!! Two fledged, two rescued, two banded, two named, and two returned to thier nest ledge and their parents!  PHEW!!!
June 27, 2010 - Toronto - Uptown Yonge and Eglinton
Mark Nash Reports:

A long day in the heat with endless traffic delays and tie-ups due to the G8/20 and looking like a police state, we did our best to navigate around the city trying to do the rescues and re-releases of the three downed juvenile fledglings. Now on the road from Bloor & Islington back to the CPF centre in Woodbridge to hook up with Mark from the OMNR, and with Tracy on the road to pick up one of the earlier rescued downed fledglings from the Up-town Yonge & Eglinton nest site that was also trapped behind the glass on a condo balcony, we all assembled at the CPF raptor centre to get the two young fledglings banded. The Good news, with one juvenile male and one female fledgling in hand, both birds were banded without incident and in good time. The heat, sun and humidity was although debilitating at times for all of us, and the juveniles were re-hydrated with fresh water from spray bottle on numerous occasions. Reports from the watch team at Yonge & Eglinton still indicating that the other two juveniles are still on the nest ledge.

Obviously one is a male and the other one given its much larger size in comparison is a female.

With banding successful completed, its back on the road yet again to Yonge & Eglinton nest site for the release of the two banded fledglings. After hooking up with Lyn and Frank who were holding the fort at the fledge watch, we waiting for darkness and let up of the torrential rains to do the release back to the nest building.

The two banded juveniles will be named:

For the first young female - (banded 21 over X) - was named “Cyclone “ - (violent hurricane) - given her robust energy and very nasty attitude, this is a most suitable name for her!

For the young male, (banded *6 over D), he was named “Typhoon�,, - (very appropriate given the torrential flooding and rain storming that we are currently experiencing in Toronto at the moment !

Under the cover of darkness (and with two juveniles still on the nest ledge),, we were escorted by building security to a lower balcony ledge just below the actual nest ledge to do the release of Typhoon and Cycloon. A big thank-you to Tracy, Big Frank, Lyn, Marion, building security and the building management for allowing access, and Mark Heaton, his son, and both of this parents for assisting with the banding, the rescue and the release of these two fledglings!

A very special thanks also to Toronto Wildlife and The Toronto Animal Services for their support, and to Zoe, Bruce, Jan and Linda - (some of the greatest fledge watch team members in the world) for also coming to our rescue (or should I say to the birds rescue) . As you can see, there are MANY involved in the rescue of these birds here in the urban settings.

Stay tuned………
There are still two more to fledge…….

Way to go Toronto!!

Jemison's first night alone    Too bad he's on the opposite end from where his sister is!  Good luck Callidora. Sleep well baby girl!

MAK on watch...NO sight of A or B....could be hiding.

She was supposed to be cooking and cleaning!   

I'd drop everything too..watching/more important. 

It wasn't graceful..she swiped the TS building and went DOWN, not up!

Sounds like a pretty standard fledging flight, if you ask me...  Good work Callidora!

I guess she did a great job, just looked scary from the cam.

How very very sad. I usually keep up with all the nests but I'm so distracted. Poor baby. They are the same age as C & J too. Awful. 

MAK on watch...NO sight of A or B....could be hiding.

She's on the Wilder building! Rooftop.....Good girl Callidora!