Four seasons in two days at the hide

Things are moving up a gear at Loch Frisa with only 9 days left to go before we expect our first chick to hatch. Skye and Frisa are patiently sitting it out and taking it in turns to incubate, but the recent weather must have confused them. One day we have brilliant sunshine and temperatures of 20 degrees, the next it is 6 degrees and pouring with rain. And as the weather changes so does the eagles' behaviour.

When it is wet the bird on duty is way down in the nest, huddled around the egg(s) to keep them warm and dry, and just occasionally raising its head over the edge of the nest to check all is well. On the warmer days it will sit a little higher in the nest, maybe preening from time to time and rearranging the twigs on the nest.

During the torrential rain last week there were very few changeovers, with the incubating bird patiently sitting it out for hours, but on the first day of fine weather the eagles were changing over every two or three hours.

Today was one of sunshine and showers, and during one of the sunny spells we watched Skye gently turning the eggs underneath him before settling down again to wait for his mate. Frisa, on the other hand, had enjoyed 6 hours off the nest returning just after our last trip to the hide had finished. She can be forgiven for being away for so long, since she is usually the one to stay on the nest all night.

Both birds have been bringing in grass and twigs to line the nest and keep it clean, something that they will continue to do until the chicks fledge. There has been plenty of activity from other wildlife, including a male and female Hen Harrier seen in the same area on separate occasions so we are hoping to watch a pair sky-dancing in the future.

Yesterday we were watching two Buzzards being mobbed by a Raven, when in flew Skye, then a Peregrine Falcon joined in the fray. The Raven transferred its attentions to Skye who quickly turned the tables and our last sight of them was of the Raven disappearing over the ridge hotly pursued by a very indignant Skye!

So far this week our trips have all been full, so if you are thinking of visiting the Sea Eagle hide do be sure to book a place through the booking office on 01680 812556.

Time for a Bath

After yesterday's torrential rain, with more overnight, you would think our eagles had seen enough water, but no! We arrived at the hide this morning with the first trip of the day and thankfully it was dry enough for everyone to stand outside to get the best views of the eagles.

Skye was on the nest incubating those precious egg(s), and I started to tell our visitors about the history of the White-tailed Sea Eagle in the UK, whilst they scanned the sky and trees for a sign of Frisa. Suddenly a shout went up - "Eagle" - and we all watched as Frisa flew in over the trees.

At first we thought we were going to witness a changeover as she came right over the nest and she and Skye called to one another. But she kept going and suddenly dropped rapidly over the loch. I saw a group of gulls fly up as Frisa swooped, came up and swooped again, and I thought she must be trying to catch one. For a few moments she went out of sight, then someone spotted her. She wasn't sat plucking a gull as I expected, but standing in the water at the edge of the loch having a very thorough bath!

She dunked first one wing, then the other right under the water, then crouched down flapping both wings and her tail. Then she walked onto the shore and sat preening, cleaning individual feathers with her beak.

We thought she would be satisfied with her ablutions but a few minutes later she was back in the water going through the whole process again - whilst all the time the gulls mobbed her. Once again she hopped out of the water and this time she travelled further up the bank and spent at least another half hour preening, before flying back over the loch and disappearing out of sight.

It's likely that Frisa had been hunting earlier in the morning and her feathers were probably soiled with the blood and innards of whatever she had been feeding on. Birds of prey are very fastidious about keeping their feathers clean and healthy - soiled, sticky or salt-laden feathers lose their waterproofing and the bird can chill much more quickly.

One favourite component of Skye and Frisa's diet is Fulmar - a sea bird which they catch either in flight, or pluck from its perch on the cliffs. However, the Fulmar has an unpleasant but highly effective defence mechanism - it spits a disgusting mess of regurgitated fish at its adversary! This substance is very oily and can severely damage feathers, so predators are quick to clean it off.

Although the sun didn't manage to break through the low cloud today, it stayed dry until later in the afternoon and Frisa was spotted during the afternoon trip sitting in a tree with her wings spread wide. The breeze would have quickly dried off her damp feathers, ready for her to take over incubation duty from Skye.

We had a scare today when the alarm which warns us that someone is walking, cycling or driving along the track near the nest kept sounding at our watch point, yet no-one appeared at our end of the track. The worst possible thing for the eagles is for someone (or worse still a group of people) to stop on the track to watch the nest. Incubation is such a sensitive time and it doesn't take much disturbance to put the adult bird off the nest. In this cold, damp weather the egg(s) would chill within minutes, so I jumped in the van and drove down the track wondering what on earth (or who on earth) I was going to find.

The perpetrator of the crime was none other than a harmless spider! It had woven its web across the front of the sensor, and every time it crossed the beam it set off the alarm warning us that someone was in the wood. I carefully gathered up the spider and relocated him to a nearby tree, and peace reigned again. There's never a dull moment on sea eagle watch!

Back in Business at Loch Frisa

Well, the last six months have flown by and, as expected, I wasn't able to keep away from Loch Frisa during that time! Skye and Frisa kept us guessing as usual, building a new nest at the North end of the loch and then ...guess what? They flew back to the "Springwatch" nest and laid their egg(s) there.

So another season starts and I am delighted to be back in post (as of today) and privileged to follow the lives of these very special birds. Our eagles are about mid-way through their 38 days of incubation and are sharing their responsibilities on the nest.

Followers of our "celebrity pair" will know that they are using the same nest they used last year, and with that comes the same problems. The nest is very close to the Forestry track which, of course, is a public footpath. So in order to protect the birds and those precious eggs "Operation Easter" has swung into action and we have brought all the necessary technology into play.

"Operation Easter" is now in its 10th year and was originally the brainchild of Finlay Christine who was at that time the island's Police Wildlife Liaison Officer. Volunteers from the island, visitors, and the Mull Bird Club organise themselves to watch Mull's White-tailed Sea Eagle nests during incubation, backed up by the police. It seems ludicrous that it should be necessary in this day and age, but these rare birds are still at risk from egg collectors, and the possibility of disturbance by greedy photographers wanting to take the ultimate picture from a position too close to the nest.

Our dedicated team of watchers guard the nests 24/7 from a safe distance, aided by CCTV and alarms to notify us when someone is walking past the nest. This year the hide will be in a different position, to the north of the nest, so visitors to the hide will be escorted in from the Dervaig end of the track.

At the moment we are using a temporary hide as we can't move the main hide past the eagles' nest whilst they are incubating eggs. We will wait around two weeks after the chick(s) hatch and then tow the hide along the track to its new position. Once the eagles have chicks to feed they won't leave them, so they will be safe whilst the hide is moved.

With the new site comes a whole host of new views of the loch and the wildlife around it. Today the weather has been appalling with strong winds and torrential rain, so the on-duty eagle has been sat tight on the nest, with just its head visible to our visitors. But we have a Raven colony on the cliffs above us so we can watch the adults bringing in food to their young, and this morning we were lucky enough to see a pair of Golden Eagles flying right above us, being harrassed by one of the Ravens.

The drive from the meeting point to the hide is a little longer than last year, but the views are spectacular and we have already seen Hen Harriers. So despite the weather my first day back has been all it promised to be, and I'm looking forward to keeping you up to date with events at Loch Frisa. Until next time.

Going out on a high

Once again my final week of the season has come round and on Friday I sadly have to tear myself away from the hide - though I don't think I'll be able to stay away from Loch Frisa for long, and I can envisage at least one visit a week to check out the eagles.

It's been an odd year with no chicks for our pair to rear, and sometimes it has been a struggle to guess what they are up to, but with some extra effort on our part we have managed to keep up with them and our visitors have, as always, been thrilled at the spectacle of the fourth largest eagle in the world gracing our skies.

From the poignant days when we watched Frisa sit on her second egg day after day (78 days in all - a record for a White-tailed Sea Eagle), through the period of limbo when she left the nest and seemed to be at a loose end, the birds are now wowing our visitors with spectacular flights.

It's early days yet, but already they have taken a look at a nest for next year, though who knows which one they will choose, or whether they will build a new nest altogether? We have seen them talon-grappling over the loch, flying together, or sitting in the trees preening each other - all part of pair-bonding and a great sign that they are gearing up for next year.

We've also been treated to views of a number of juvenile Sea Eagles recently, sometimes flying with the adults. All the young birds fledged around seven weeks ago and are beginning to explore further afield - there are few territorial disputes now as we are outside the breeding season so there are no nests for the adult birds to defend. We have seen up to five Sea Eagles flying close together, and the Golden Eagles have been making plenty of appearances too. Mull has the highest density population of Golden Eagles in Europe with over 30 pairs on the island, and 2010 has been one of the most productive years for fledged chicks for a long time.

The Sand Martins and Swallows have left, great skeins of Greylag Geese are flying in to increase our already large population, Fieldfares and Redwings have been seen as well as Bewick Swans. Autumn is truly upon us.

Yesterday I had a full trip at the hide; right on cue as we arrived both birds flew in to their favourite perches in the Larch trees and settled down together. It was a typical September day on Mull, and although it had been dry and sunny a sudden squall blew through with both eagles getting drenched. Frisa moved deeper into the Larches nearer the hide whilst Skye flew into one of the Spruce trees. As the rain cleared and the sun came out again, Frisa took off and treated us to the best display I have seen all year. Leaving the Larches she flew round to the track in front of the hide. We all rushed outside and there she was, perhaps 30 feet over the car park, circling slowly on those enormous wings and looking down at us. She stayed for almost ten minutes before gradually getting higher and drifting off. One lady was in tears, saying she had waited so long to see a wild Sea Eagle, and that it had made her holiday. I was full of emotion myself, and almost wished that that had been my last day - what a wonderful way to remember the Loch Frisa Sea Eagles.

Till next year .....!

Mull Sea Eagle hide - a four star experience

This year we decided to apply for Visit Scotland accreditation, and shortly after putting in our application their assessor visited the hide. Imagine our delight when a couple of weeks later we heard that we have achieved four stars! I'm told it's quite unusual to score this highly at the first application, so we're very proud - and determined to pull out all the stops and achieve the ultimate goal of five stars next year!

As usual when all the children go back to school the weather changes for the better, and this year is no exception with a week of fabulous warm, sunny days. Fortunately for us there is usually a slight breeze near the hide which stops us from becoming too hot and has the added bonus of keeping the midges at bay! The eagles have been performing well this week too, with plenty of great views of Skye and Frisa soaring overhead and enjoying the thermals. Normally birds of prey tend to fly when they need to hunt, and spend the rest of the time just sitting, digesting their last meal and conserving energy since they don't know where the next meal is coming from. But on a lovely warm day, when the hot air currents mean the birds don't need to flap their wings in flight, I am sure that our eagles fly just for the sheer joy of it. They find a thermal and just sit on it with their wings outstretched, circling higher and higher, almost like they are on a lift, then glide across the sky. It is a joy to watch them. I was once lucky enough to go up in a glider and fly with a colony of Griffon Vultures in South Africa - the nearest thing to flying like a bird I'll ever experience. Every time I see Skye and Frisa fly I envy their freedom and am in awe of the way they can drift across the sky so effortlessly.

Life at Loch Frisa

They may not have chicks this year, but Skye and Frisa are keeping us on our toes. With no young to rear they have had plenty of time to themselves and have found several new places to roost, and although they are still up and down the loch we are never quite sure where they are going to be. This is an added bonus for our visitors as they are often taken on an extra journey to different viewpoints, and as a result we have been treated to rare sightings of other special wildlife too!

One favourite place overlooks the loch from a high vantage point, and we have had the occasional view of Black-throated Divers (although we usually hear their mournful call before we see them). Red-throated Divers have also been seen, and these stunning birds have been venturing closer to the head of the loch near to the hide.

Our Buzzard chick fledged successfully and is seen daily. Occasionally the female leaves a piece of food on the nest to give him a helping hand, but generally he is managing to hunt well for himself, still favouring frogs. He is easily recognised by his juvenile plumage, and by the fact that he has inherited his father's tail - two ginger feathers in the middle of the other brown ones. In today's torrential rain he was hoping the worms would come to the surface and was running around on the ground and pouncing every so often. He calls frequently - probably reminding his parents that he is still there - and he has turned into quite a character, very popular with our visitors. Sometimes we see all three Buzzards flying together.

All the other Sea Eagle chicks on the island have fledged now - of our ten pairs eight were successful and produced a total of ten healthy fledglings between them. Although they have all left their nests, they are still in the vicinity, and there have been some great views of the chicks sitting with their parents. Two more chicks have been satellite tagged this year so you will soon be able to follow them on the RSPB website when they start to venture further afield.

Skye and Frisa may not have a family this year, but they are reinforcing their pair bond as we often see them sat side by side on the same branch, and recently they were perched with their necks entwined (more like a pair of swans!). As they are not defending a breeding territory now their daughter from last year, Heather, has decided it is safe to return to roost with her parents and we sometimes see all three of them sat together. Her beak is almost the same bright yellow as the adults' now, although it will be three or four years before she gets her full white tail.

Our large flock of Siskins have fledged all their young and left the area now, although the Chaffinches are still going strong. The Redpoll family are still visiting the feeders, and both the Pied and Grey Wagtails nested in the quarry by the hide car park. The Sandmartin colony has been constantly busy with the first brood fledged and the second brood still to go, all of which has been captured on our camera showing live footage in the hide.

So there is plenty to see on Loch Frisa, and if you are thinking of visiting Mull in the next month or two, do come and see us at the hide.

Skye and Frisa settled again

At last Skye and Frisa are back into a routine, albeit a strange one for them. After my last blog Frisa returned to the nest and sat for 78 days in total, but then left it altogether and the birds went through a period of limbo when they didn't seem to know what to do. They would sit in their favourite tree together, then disappear for a couple of days at a time which is most unusual for them. Thankfully now they are back and we are getting great views of them, especially since we have a very powerful camera which we can pan around the landscape and home in on wherever our eagles are sitting, with the live pictures showing on our screen in the hide. Of course we have our telescopes as well, but the camera is over twice as powerful as our strongest scope so the images we get are fantastic. Sometimes we don't need binoculars, scopes or the camera; one day last week Skye left his perch and flew towards us and straight past the hide with great deep wing beats - obviously on a mission. It was a beautiful warm day with bright sun which highlighted his white tail, leaving our visitors speechless.

It is great to see them back, although it must be very odd for them to have no chicks to care for. They are both moulting heavily; they sit in the trees preening, then every so often give a shake of their wings and a huge cloud of tiny white body feathers appears like snow, and the trees look as if they are covered in little white flowers. They are spending a lot of time sitting together, maybe reassuring one another; one day they sat with their heads entwined in the way that swans do, and they often call to each other. With no hard work this year feeding hungry chicks, Skye and Frisa should be fighting fit by next year's breeding season, and they are both still in their prime.

Just an update on our Buzzard nest: egg number two failed to hatch, but the first chick is thriving. Now three weeks old it seems impossible that it could have come out of an egg the size of the unhatched one it is sitting next to. Both parent birds are bringing in food for the chick, ranging from vole to rabbit with plenty of frogs and slow worm in between. The female will not tolerate the male bird on the nest and grabs the food from him before chasing him off. It has been known for male raptors to eat their own chicks (possibly confusing them with other food left on the nest) so our female isn't taking any chances. Our visitors have been transfixed watching the female tenderly feeding her chick, but now as it grows the chick is greedily grabbing food from her almost before she can tear it up. She is busily bringing in greenery to line the nest and keep it as clean as possible, but already the chick manouevres himself to the edge of the nest to evacuate himself, so the nest actually looks cleaner than many I have seen.

So all's well at Loch Frisa, and if the weather stays as beautiful as it has been, our visitors can look forward to a fabulous trip.