Loch Garten osprey diary

The ospreys at Loch Garten have people across the world gripped in their tale of violence, adultery and... well... fishing.  More...

Deshar

Osprey chick DesharDeshar was the second chick to hatch in 2008, on 26 May. His parents were White EJ and Orange VS.

Deshar was fitted with a satellite tag and a white plastic ring marked 'AZ'. His name came from Deshar Primary School, not far from Loch Garten. When he was ringed on 5 July, he weighed 1.43 kg.

Deshar and his sister left the nest on the same day, 20 August. He flew east to the Scottish coast and took a 150 mile round trip out over the North Sea before coming back to land not far from where he'd set out! Next day he headed south and eventually arrived in Kent on the afternoon of 23 August.

He stayed in Kent, mostly around Hythe, until the morning of 26 September. Unfortunately, for some reason he headed out down the middle of the English Channel and kept flying south-west, bypassing western France, Spain and even the Azores. This took him way out into the Atlantic, further and further from land until eventually he couldn't keep flying and landed in the sea on 30 September.

This journey was the longest non-stop flight recorded for a satellite-tagged juvenile osprey. It shows how tough it is for young, inexperienced birds to navigate correctly and deal with what can be tough conditions.

Follow Deshar's migration online

Posted by Administrator at 11:24 on 10 July 2008.  4 comments

Comments

Kathy J
Posted on Wednesday, 1 October 2008 at 14:51

RIP Deshar.  If only he knew how we had all taken him into our hearts and willed him to find land.  I type this, still hoping against all hope that he landed on a buoy, as I am sure there is one somewhere near to his co-ordinates.

Steph
Posted on Sunday, 5 October 2008 at 23:30
RIP Desh. x
Sheila
Posted on Monday, 6 October 2008 at 20:22
Thanks for everything, Deshar. You were great and opened my eyes to a world I never knew existed. So sorry. X
jswscot
Posted on Monday, 31 August 2009 at 17:49

Dear Deshar - definitely our favourite.  You will never know how many people were willing you to find land.  We were devestated by your very sad demise.  R.I.P  Deshar.    Pru

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