A welcome familiar face

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Includes views of fish prey.

New visitor at nest #3 while Taika and Tuulos are away. Yellow band reads UNN.

It's Neo!!! Eura and Eine's chick from 2022.

Relatively peaceful moments

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Includes views of fish prey.

Wingers by N2/USU at nest #4 in the morning.

Three osplets at their nests tonight

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. The last image includes fish prey.

At nest #4, things have changed a lot very suddenly. After just celebrating the oldest chick's fledge, we've lost both the oldest and youngest chick to predation. White-tailed eagles are a big threat to Ospreys, especially young ones, and sometimes not even being able to fly can save a chick, as we saw in 2022 at this nest as well. It's pretty heartbreaking to lose two chicks this late into the season after watching them grow from eggs to fledglings. Nuppu and Nemo have been carefully watching over N2/USU, and I hope they can see their one remaining chick to migration.

Whatever will happen, though, nothing is born in vain in nature, even if its life ends up being short. I've watched several White-tailed eagle nests, too, and they're no villains to me, even if in Osprey watching they are sort of the ultimate boogeyman to watch out for. As much as I would have preferred for them to find prey away from the specific bird family I've gotten attached to, I do also hope N1 and N3's deaths help ensure survival for the eagles' own young.

Made it through the day, best of luck for the days to come. N2 is 8 weeks old as of yesterday.

 

At nest #1, the two weeks younger Lumme and Utu have been working hard to exercise their wings.

Kesämetsää

Pavement sparkles

+ a wall

Fish claims

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Includes views of fish prey.

Two days ago, Lumme and Utu at nest #1.

Lumme wingers.

Many flights

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nest #4, where the oldest chick had her first flight yesterday. She's been in and out of the nest a lot today. The last few images include fish prey.

N1, N2, and N3's tail.

N1 takes flight.

Awake way too early but there was this

N1/URA fledges!

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Includes views of fish prey.

At nest #4, N1 wingercizing at the edge of the nest shortly before the fledge. (N3, and N2's wing in frame with her.)

Weekend developments

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Includes some blood on an Osprey's leg, as well as the usual views of fish prey, some up close.

Lumme (left) and Utu being cute at nest #1 on Saturday.

:>                        :V

Ghost of winter past

Temperature drop during a thunderstorm made the window foggy, and old frost patterns appeared on the fog.

High leaps

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nest #4.

Look at N1 go!

Birthday fishcake

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Include views of fish prey, some up close.

Wingers at nest #4 yesterday morning. First N2, then N3 and N1 simultaneously. N1 turned 7 weeks old yesterday.

Future fliers gym

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. One glimpse of fish prey in the second to last image.

Lumme (left) and Utu at nest #1 yesterday evening.

Excellent time for wing workout.

Uses for wings

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Include views of fish prey.

Some pretty sunset shots from nest #1. Older chick Lumme looking up at the moment. She is 5 weeks old today.

Meanwhile, graduation party downstairs

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Include some barely discernible glimpses of fish prey.

Family portrait at nest #4: Nemo and Nuppu with N3, N2, and N1. Upper camera for a change, because N2 did a bullseye poop shoot on the side camera's lens.

Things that happen in nature

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests.

Nest #3 this morning, empty. In one more stroke of bad luck at this nest, we lost the only chick of the season last night to an eagle-owl. It's sad to see the clutch fail and the chick's life be cut short after already overcoming so many difficulties, but it is nesting season for the owls, too, so this is one side of a raptor parent finding food for its young, this time another raptor's young.

You were a joy to follow and cheer on for the weeks we had you around, little one, I hope your next life is kinder to you.

The other two nests' chicks meanwhile are growing and approaching their fledging. E1 and E2 at nest #1 also have names now: older sister E1 is Lumme (waterlily), and little brother E2 is Utu (mist). Utu turned 4 weeks old yesterday.

Nuppu and her chicks at nest #4. N2, N3, N1 l-r in the first screenshot, 2 and 3 have switched places in the second. The chicks at this nest won't have names other than their band IDs, it seems, but I'm used to calling them by their hatching order codes, so I think I'll stick with those. With N2's ID being USU, N3's UPU, and nest #1's Utu's ID being URU, we also have quite a few "U[consonant]U" names and codes to keep track of, so I feel this might be less confusing.

N2 turned 6 weeks old today, and N1 yesterday.
 

Anklets acquired

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests. Include views of fish prey.

Eve, E1, and E2 at nest #1 still pre-banding.

And post. E1 using a gift fish as a pillow. Eura arrives at the nest with a fish he'd caught.

Still ringless for a little while

Screenshots from Sääksilive Osprey nests.

T2 and Taika at nest #3 last night. Playing with a stick, and preening. T2 is 4 weeks old today, and as I'm typing this the broadcast at the nest has just come back online after banding!

Arches and flashes

Ilmoja pidellyt