Third osprey chick hatches at Loch of the Lowes!

The third osprey chick has hatched here at Loch of the Lowes Wildlife Reserve. The chick emerged fully from its egg at 7:46pm on Monday 23 May. You can watch the hatching process unfold in the video below.

The first crack in the egg was spotted at 8:45pm on Sunday 22 May.

A close up of the third egg in the nest, revealing a crack or 'pip'
Crack or ‘pip’ in the third egg © Scottish Wildlife Trust Webcam
Third chick starts to fully leave its egg
The third osprey chick at Loch of the Lowes 2022 raises its head for the first time © Scottish Wildlife Trust Webcam

Our breeding pair, LM12 and NC0 have made an incredible effort to provide for their growing offspring since the first chick hatched on 19 May.

If you’ve been watching the webcam you might well have noticed that resident male LM12 has an injury on his right eye – this may have been caused by an abrasion sustained when his protective, translucent, third eyelid, also known as a nictitating membrane, was open.

Fortunately this injury seems to minor and it doesn’t seem to have affected his ability to fish. LM12 brought two perch to his hungry family at 20:05 and 21:20 this evening.

Male osprey LM12 arrives on the nest with a perch, greeted by his partner NC0 and now three chicks
LM12 greets his family with a perch clasped in his talons © Scottish Wildlife Trust Webcam
All three chicks upright in the nest, NC0 carefully watches over them
And then there were three! NC0 keeps a watchful eye on the three chicks © Scottish Wildlife Trust Webcam

Keep an eye on the webcam here! Follow us on Twitter or Facebook for regular updates from the loch! 

 

Charlotte Needham

Species Protection Officer 

The Trust’s Osprey Protection Programme at Loch of the Lowes is supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery.

 

Help protect Scotland’s wildlife

Our work to save Scotland’s wildlife is made possible thanks to the generosity of our members and supporters.

Join today from just £3 a month to help protect the species you love.

Join today


Preface

The third osprey chick has hatched here at Loch of the Lowes Wildlife Reserve. The chick emerged fully from its egg at 7:46pm on Monday 23 May. You can watch …

Posted in

Blogs -

Stay up to date with the Scottish Wildlife Trust by subscribing to our mailing list Subscribe now

Back to top