A family portrait

It is the end of another busy week here at the project. Our three little fledglings are nine weeks old and aren’t so little anymore. This week has seen them spending more and more time away from the nest as they practise their flying and fishing. It won’t be too long before these crucial skills are put to use on their migration. We are making the most of seeing all five birds on the nest together and they seemed happy to pose for this family portrait. Here we have Mum at the back, a proud Dad to the left and for the first time in Wales, three fully grown chicks.

It seems all our little ones are growing up very quickly. The mute swan cygnets that frequent the Glaslyn river just outside the hide are nearly big enough to be ringed, and this weekend brought the fledging of our five little swallow chicks. Our keen-eyed viewers of the swallow-cam have noticed the adult female is ringed - we are hoping to get a closer look to find out a bit more about her. It will be interesting to see how many times she has made it to Africa, she might even beat the ospreys!.
One lucky visitor reported a sighting of our three ospreys fishing by the cob estuary in Porthmadog today. Now is the time the ospreys will be practising their skills including Mum who has had little flying and fishing practise during the last few months. Not forgetting Dad, this means there are five osprey out and about; if you live near Snowdonia or are heading here for your holidays, keep an eye to the sky, you never know who you will see…