22:36 Update

What a day it has been for all involved. Isn’t this bird amazing, she has now fed herself and the chicks 4 times now this evening. This is good news and yes there is a but, but she still is not 100%. Lets hope our male can get some fish into the nest early tomorrow morning so she can feed again soon. Fiona and I will be here through the night to keep an eye on her. We will keep the blog updated as usual, which reminds me to thank the guys at Red Paint for getting the Web blog up and running again. They do a great job for us.

Peter

6pm Update:
Our female osprey, though a wee bit stronger, is still definately weak and dehydrated. Her eyes are still partially closed and she has taken on a very sunken appearance, and her co-ordination is poor- all of these are worrying signs that still indicate a poor prognosis.
Obviously we will be with her through the night and watching every
detail. The good news is that the chicks are looking good- dad is really an amazing bird.
Please be patient with us on the Blog- with all that is going on here we may not be able to give individual replies just now, but tommorrow we hope to summarise lots of answers and recap events.
Thanks Emma Rawling
Perthshire Ranger

As the sun stands still on this, the longest day of the year, an eternal light seems to be hanging over the loch tonight. It is eerie yet calming. I think we have all been on a very bumpy roller-coaster ride for the last two days, and now the lack of sleep and over-indulgence of coffee is taking it’s toll! I’ve had to take a moment to contemplate and take it all in.
As I listen to the oystercatchers fly overhead, the tawny owls call and the loch gently lapping at the shore, I realise that life carries on all around us without us even noticing. How nice it is that if we stop for a while, we are allowed a glimpse, an intimate view of life at it’s simple best. Two squirrel kits chasing one another up and down, round and round the tree. The divinely black and white striped great crested grebe chicks hitching a ride on mums back. The blackbird beautifully signing, just because he can. The woodpecker that continues to feed her young even though he’s big enough to feed himself. The bluetits who try in vain to raise their large brood. The new boy in town, who will do anything to impress the lady. The mum who won’t give up the fight to protect her chicks the only way she knows how. By just being with them.
I feel very privileged to be surrounded by it.
Our mum has continued to fight her battle through the night and at first light she is still with us. It is amazing the strength a being can find solely to protect their offspring. She continues to amaze even in her decline!
Today will be another very busy and tiring day for us all here so your continued updates are particularly important to us, as we may miss a fish or interesting event that could be vitally relevant in the success of our dad and chicks.
I would just like to thank each and every one of you for your support and words of comfort and encouragement over the weekend. It means a lot to us.
Slainte mhath!
Fiona

9am
As I am very tired at the moment I will have to ask if this is all real later!
There have been 3 fish in so far this morning and the chicks had a good go at getting stuck into a left-over fish from last night. They are learning fast. Mum seems to be making the most miraculous of recoveries, sitting up, preening herself, flapping her wings (almost taking off it seems!) and opening her eyes for a brief time. This is all positive progress but we must keep grounded and realise she is still not out of the woods yet. She must eat, and soon, in order to rehydrate and build up her energy reserves, and at present she is showing no interest in the food being brought right to her. It is also very possible that she has sustained long-term damage to her brain or eyes and may not recover fully, in which case she won’t leave for migration and may have to face a winter at Lowes. There are many different scenarios and we cannot predict anything at present. We will just have to continue the roller-coaster ride and see where the journey ends.
Dad continues to be brilliant and the chicks seem none the worse for wear for being left to survive the elements for 2 nights. Lets see what today brings. Hopefully some sleep for me!
Fiona

12.29 Hi All

As you all know Fiona was up all night and has now went to bed. I would just like to thank her for staying on and letting me go off for a sleep.

Yes our Lady does look much better today but she is still very weak and has her eyes closed most of the time. We still think she will not survive this as she is not eating so not getting any fluids. A bird this size could last 4 days without water. This gives her till tomorrow evening. It is heart breaking to watch but we do have an up side and that is our male continues to feed the young. They do have a good chance of surviving.

Peter

Hi All

Sorry I have not been able to update as often as you would have liked. As you can imagine myself and the volunteers have been very busy looking after the visitors and press. For those of you who can watch we will be on BBC Scotland news and STV news tonight at tea time.

There has been no real change in the Lady over the course of the day and I can only expect her to go down hill very soon. This will be due to the lack of liquids. For those of you who are new to ospreys, these birds get all they need from their food, including water so she will not get the urge to leave the nest for a drink. I can also say that it is unlikely she has been poisoned as the chicks and 7Y are fine. This is (as the Vet has said) probably due to old age. If she does decide to go walk about and tumbles out of the nest, we will retrieve her.

Thank you all for your kind words and support at this very hard time.

Peter