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Well she has finally gone....EJ is well on her way to Africa by now. The last time we had a confirmed sighting was 15th August when both Henry and EJ appeared from nowhere to defend the nest against an intruding male osprey. They were victorious, of course, you wouldn't expect anything else.  A female osprey was seen sitting with Henry at the back of the nest site for a further four days, presumably EJ, and then she disappeared.....so the 19th is the last time we say a female on site; and this is what we expected, EJ to go in the 3rd week of August....chicks or not.

What of Henry? His departure has been mentioned several times by visitors and workers alike, yet he still manages to pop up to surprise us all...... on the 24th he landed in full view of everyone at the centre with a huge trout and sat devouring it. Since then several sightings of a male osprey have been reported...is it Henry? Probably.

The centre is still open... we are entering our last week but still the visitors come; is it the hope of seeing one last fleeting glimpse of Henry? Is it to see the 2007 DVD presentation? Or is it just to show support for efforts this year? Whatever it is they have been welcomed and so are you. If you are in the area for the next few days... pop in, say hello. We can't promise a cup of tea but a warm welcome goes without saying.

If you want to specifically help the Loch Garten Osprey Team 2007, you might consider supporting the RSPB. You can do this online via the RSPB website: http://www.rspb.org.uk/join, if you add the code PR08, your membership will be credited to the Loch Garten team.

Perhaps I was slightly hasty in saying summer had finally arrived in Scotland last time I wrote. It looks like the sun didn't like the cool air and promptly tucked itself back into a cloud again.

But never mind, it means EJ has decided not to migrate yet, and is now able to spend some quality time with Henry, and my, what quality flying we have seen! EJ has been gaining the attentions of quite a few males recently. Perhaps they are single males still on the look out for that elusive impressionable female? Hoping to pair up in preparation for the following spring when they will meet up again. Or maybe they are simply on their way south for the winter, having bred, when all of a sudden they come across a Blue Peter style ready made nest, (here's one I made earlier) so they thought they'd test out their flying skills and see what the competition was like...any chance to make themselves look macho.

So we've been seeing quite a few displays over the past few days. Yesterday afternoon we had an unknown male swooping and diving, rising on the thermals and calling and then dropping again, making us gasp as he let gravity take control until the last minute when he pulled up just above the nest to show off his flying prowess. It was difficult to see how EJ could resist, even we were impressed! But Henry being Henry wasn't going to let that bird get the better of him, oh no! A few hours later and he put on an even better show, displaying to EJ for all he was worth, with a fish in his talons as well. Now that's what you call impressive. He's not going to give up his nest OR his female that easily. 

Again today we saw a male displaying above the nest at about 5:30pm. EJ wasn't in sight, but Henry had delivered her a fish at about 2:15 and she seems to be ignoring all attempts to rouse her interests from other males and sticking with the man she's got.

I should probably explain the title...This afternoon I was sitting at the reception watching the red squirrels hanging upside-down munching away on their peanuts, (I wonder if squirrels ever get indigestion?), when all of a sudden the camera on the monitor screen starts spinning. 'Oooh', I thought, 'they must have seen something exciting up at the centre...' Two seconds later, and Henry's fine figure was taking up the whole screen, for all the world looking like a proud king posing for a painting, about to have his lady join him. He looked so regal, looking off into the far distance with his head held high. He was on the perfect perch to get a close view of him, and we were able to zoom in even more, bringing us eyeball to eyeball with Henry. A superb view! More of that please.

Well, that's it for now, bed time I think. I hope the weather improves for everyone, Autumn is coming round far too quickly for my liking! Perhaps we could re-open the Osprey Centre as the Squirrel Centre in the winter?? Then I wouldn't have to leave... 

If you want to specifically help the Loch Garten Osprey Team 2007, you might consider supporting the RSPB. You can do this online via the RSPB website: http://www.rspb.org.uk/join, if you add the code PR08, your membership will be credited to the Loch Garten team.

• Nest maintained to standard - check
• Nest defended and now secure for next year - check
• Male still here collecting fish for me - check
• No other ospreys in the area (to oust me out) - check
• Wings fully functional - check
• Feathers preened and in top condition - check
• Navigation systems online - check
• Weather: dry and slightly breezy - check
  

All I need now are a few long flights to stretch my wings and then systems will be go, go, go!

...I expect that’s what EJ will be thinking anyway…

As you can probably guess, EJ is very close to leaving for West Africa. The females always leave first to start the long three and a half thousand mile journey, and we’re expecting her to go within the next week and a half. Although Henry will be here for a few more weeks yet, good old Henry!

Despite our ospreys spending more and more time away from the nest, our visitors have been as enthusiastic as ever. Our red squirrels continue to surprise and delight, and our twin juvenile great spotted woodpeckers are still making regular appearances, muscling in on the peanuts as soon as the squirrels have turned their backs.

We also had a charming visit from a wee kestrel yesterday morning, who sat on Henry’s favourite perch for a while preening itself. We had a close view of it for around twenty minutes whilst it posed for the camera in several positions, tucking its head behind its wings to get at those well-used feathers.

While I’m on the subject of charming, I would like to mention a very special date for a lovely couple coming up on the seventh of August. On that date a year ago, a young couple in love took a walk down to the edge of our very own Loch Mallachie. Where upon that place he asked his beautiful girlfriend if she would marry him…the answer was yes! Congratulations to Ellie and Nick, it will be a year since that day soon, all the staff and volunteers here at the Osprey Centre, plus I’m sure our diary readers, wish you all the very best for the big day, which will be happening next summer. We love a happy ending!

Well, I suppose I better be off now. We will keep you updated as soon as EJ has left, if not before. Please make a visit to the Osprey Centre before the summer has ended, (yes the sun has finally come out), we have had a spectacular season to talk about so far, we’ve got the footage to prove it! So, if you want to see the full, uncut version of Henry and EJ’s story for yourself, come up and see.

Until next time...

If you want to specifically help the Loch Garten Osprey Team 2007, you might consider supporting the RSPB. You can do this online via the RSPB website: http://www.rspb.org.uk/join, if you add the code PR08, your membership will be credited to the Loch Garten team.