For those of you who haven’t been watching the webcam this afternoon I’m delighted to tell you that our remaining osprey chick has finally fledged the nest. After many days of “helicoptering” and hopping around on the nest FR4 finally plucked up the courage to take the plunge at around 3.35pm.

As if this wasn’t exciting enough, shortly after the fledging, two of the chicks (we aren’t quite sure which but most likely FR2 & FR3) were observed making a number of practice dives into the loch in full view of the hides – a real treat for the lucky visitors who happened to be there at the time! This is very encouraging behaviour to observe at a relatively early stage in the final phase of their development (they’ve only been on the wing for just over a week).

It was a strange sensation to see the nest empty this afternoon for the first time in several months. However, the birds will continue to use the nest as a base to explore from and call in when the male brings a fish to share with them. So keep tuning in to the webcam over the next few weeks!

Jonathan

Visitor Centre Assistant Manager