After the amazing day I described in my last blog the weather hasn't been quite as good and things have been a little quieter. We can't complain as we are still seeing at least one of our eagles at each of our trips, and there's plenty happening on our Buzzard-cam at the moment with the nest growing every time we look at it. It's fascinating to see the bird carefully weaving grass and twigs into the nest until it looks just right!
The hide (and the island) has been very busy this week with the Easter holidays - all the more reason for us to keep up our vigilance whilst the Sea Eagles are on eggs. For eleven years now the island has run a nestwatch 24 hours a day for our most vulnerable pairs, masterminded by Strathclyde Police. The birds are highly protected by the Wildlife & Countryside Act, but there are still people who ignore the law.
The police had bright yellow signs printed asking members of the public to contact them should they see anything suspicious, and these are positioned all around the island. The watch is carried out voluntarily by islanders supported by the police, RSPB, Mull Bird Club and other enthusiastic volunteers. Over the Easter weekend we were supported by a large group of Air Cadets who camped out in bitterly cold weather to help with the watch. We are also very lucky to have a full-time Police Wildlife Crime Officer on the island who is constantly on call.
You might wonder why we need to go to these lengths, but even in this day and age we still have problems with would-be egg collectors, and people wanting to get close to take photographs. Since we have been running the watch we have only lost eggs once, although sadly these were in two days of hatching when they were stolen. Two years ago, however, a photographer was caught underneath a Sea Eagle nest. Although the police were on site within 20 minutes of receiving the call, the female had already left the nest. It was only the second day of incubation and it took almost two hours before the eagle was confident enough to return to her nest, so the eggs chilled. Of course the eagle went back to incubating her eggs and sat on them for over 60 days (although the normal incubation time is 38 days). It was heartbreaking to watch her sitting on the nest day after day. The photographer was fined and had his photographic equipment confiscated, but of course the damage had been done. Without Operation Easter this could happen again and again and we are so grateful to everyone who takes part and helps to protect our precious Sea Eagles.
To end on a brighter note, the same pair went on to build a new nest the following year and successfully reared two healthy chicks. This was quite amazing as the birds are our oldest pair on the island, from the original birds brought over from Norway and released on the Isle of Rum. The female is now over 30 and she and her mate are incubating eggs again this year - quite incredible.
Next week I'll report back on Skye and Frisa as we start the countdown to their eggs hatching. It's an exciting time!
Showing posts with label raptors. Show all posts
Showing posts with label raptors. Show all posts
Friday, 9 April 2010
Wednesday, 7 April 2010
Raptors, raptors everywhere!
What a day! With the Easter holidays upon us, trips to the hide are really busy this week and today both sessions were almost full. It has been a beautiful day - warm sunshine, blue skies with puffy white clouds, and Loch Frisa looking like a sheet of glass.
When we arrived with our visitors for the morning trip Frisa was obligingly sat in the favoured "off-duty" tree whilst Skye incubated their eggs, sitting well down in the nest cup to keep those precious eggs safe and warm. Everyone had a great view of Frisa through the scopes and this season we also have a fantastic live camera set up which we can pan round to home in on the birds and then show on our screen in the hide.
Frisa stayed put, preening and stretching until we had finished our introductory talk, then took off and after circling above the nest wood she turned and headed towards the hide. We all rushed outside and had wonderful views of her flying right above us before she began circling higher and higher using the thermals to help her. As if that wasn't enough a call went up to point out another bird to the south which proved to be a Golden Eagle. With both birds in the sky it was easy to see the difference between the two species - the huge broad wings of the Sea Eagle (hence the description coined by a crofter on Fair Isle many years ago - a "flying barn door"). The Sea Eagle's flat wing profile, large head with an enormous yellow beak and the short, wedge-shaped white tail contrasted with the shallow v-shaped profile of the Golden Eagle with its narrower wings. The Golden Eagle flies with its finger-shaped wing tips upturned. Its tail is longer and more square than the Sea Eagle, and its head is smaller and appears hunched back into its shoulders when it is flying.
As if this wasn't enough, a pair of Common Buzzards joined in the display. So many of our visitors ask us how to tell the difference between eagles and buzzards, and here we were with the perfect opportunity to see it - the buzzards smaller with a much more pronounced v-shaped profile, and thermaling in tighter circles above us.
Eventually all the birds drifted off in different directions but the display wasn't over. A male Sparrowhawk (which regularly comes in to try its luck with the birds on our feeders) began circling overhead, mobbed by Hooded Crows. The local Ravens flew over their nest crag, diving on each other and displaying.
And finally, our Buzzard-cam came into its own! Last year we had a camera set up viewing a Buzzard's nest. A pair of Buzzards added twigs and grass to it throughout the spring but then moved to another nest to rear their family. We decided to leave the camera in place this year and every morning more material has been added to the nest - but we never saw it happening. Then today we checked the monitor and there was the female, carefully weaving grass into the nest. It was fascinating to watch her on the big screen.
Our visitors were amazed; so much activity in the space of two hours! And our afternoon group were not disappointed either, with Frisa, the Buzzards and the Sparrowhawk putting in repeat performances. Raptorphile heaven!
When we arrived with our visitors for the morning trip Frisa was obligingly sat in the favoured "off-duty" tree whilst Skye incubated their eggs, sitting well down in the nest cup to keep those precious eggs safe and warm. Everyone had a great view of Frisa through the scopes and this season we also have a fantastic live camera set up which we can pan round to home in on the birds and then show on our screen in the hide.
Frisa stayed put, preening and stretching until we had finished our introductory talk, then took off and after circling above the nest wood she turned and headed towards the hide. We all rushed outside and had wonderful views of her flying right above us before she began circling higher and higher using the thermals to help her. As if that wasn't enough a call went up to point out another bird to the south which proved to be a Golden Eagle. With both birds in the sky it was easy to see the difference between the two species - the huge broad wings of the Sea Eagle (hence the description coined by a crofter on Fair Isle many years ago - a "flying barn door"). The Sea Eagle's flat wing profile, large head with an enormous yellow beak and the short, wedge-shaped white tail contrasted with the shallow v-shaped profile of the Golden Eagle with its narrower wings. The Golden Eagle flies with its finger-shaped wing tips upturned. Its tail is longer and more square than the Sea Eagle, and its head is smaller and appears hunched back into its shoulders when it is flying.
As if this wasn't enough, a pair of Common Buzzards joined in the display. So many of our visitors ask us how to tell the difference between eagles and buzzards, and here we were with the perfect opportunity to see it - the buzzards smaller with a much more pronounced v-shaped profile, and thermaling in tighter circles above us.
Eventually all the birds drifted off in different directions but the display wasn't over. A male Sparrowhawk (which regularly comes in to try its luck with the birds on our feeders) began circling overhead, mobbed by Hooded Crows. The local Ravens flew over their nest crag, diving on each other and displaying.
And finally, our Buzzard-cam came into its own! Last year we had a camera set up viewing a Buzzard's nest. A pair of Buzzards added twigs and grass to it throughout the spring but then moved to another nest to rear their family. We decided to leave the camera in place this year and every morning more material has been added to the nest - but we never saw it happening. Then today we checked the monitor and there was the female, carefully weaving grass into the nest. It was fascinating to watch her on the big screen.
Our visitors were amazed; so much activity in the space of two hours! And our afternoon group were not disappointed either, with Frisa, the Buzzards and the Sparrowhawk putting in repeat performances. Raptorphile heaven!
Saturday, 11 April 2009
2009 season is off to a flying start!
The hide opened on Monday 6th April and we have had some wonderful views of the Sea Eagles over the last few days.
Both Skye and Frisa have been active, despite the bad weather on two days, and it looks as if they have chosen a favourite roost tree which is right opposite the hide. Yesterday one of them caught a gull which they took to the opposite side of the loch to eat, before flying to the roost tree.
Later in the day, Frisa flew to the same tree where she sat and preened for a while before taking off and flying right over the hide.
We've had plenty of good sightings of other raptors too, with Golden Eagles and Buzzards, and the occasional Hen Harrier. We now have a Buzzard-cam set up on a Buzzard's nest - the female hasn't laid eggs yet but has been adding greenery to the nest which is a good sign, and we can watch her every move on a screen in the hide.
Although this year's Sea Eagle nest is difficult to see, the views we have had of the birds this week more than make up for this so if you are planning to come to Mull the hide is well worth a visit.
Both Skye and Frisa have been active, despite the bad weather on two days, and it looks as if they have chosen a favourite roost tree which is right opposite the hide. Yesterday one of them caught a gull which they took to the opposite side of the loch to eat, before flying to the roost tree.
Later in the day, Frisa flew to the same tree where she sat and preened for a while before taking off and flying right over the hide.
We've had plenty of good sightings of other raptors too, with Golden Eagles and Buzzards, and the occasional Hen Harrier. We now have a Buzzard-cam set up on a Buzzard's nest - the female hasn't laid eggs yet but has been adding greenery to the nest which is a good sign, and we can watch her every move on a screen in the hide.
Although this year's Sea Eagle nest is difficult to see, the views we have had of the birds this week more than make up for this so if you are planning to come to Mull the hide is well worth a visit.
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