Mlög

Wednesday, July 17, 2024

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.

Thursday, July 11, 2024

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!