AND THE HEAT GOES ON

As if the ringing activities of 4 July wasn't excitement enough for the inhabitants of the Usk Valley osprey nest, this past week has certainly seen its fair share of dramas. Close encounters of every kind have been observed with the likes of red kites, buzzards, a hobby, a gull, farming activity, ‘lampers’ at night, osprey intruders, low flying aircraft, a “gunshot” and even a plucky thrush which chanced its wing on the cup camera! All credit to the osprey family for steadfastly weathering all comers.

A peaceful visitor, a juvenile mistle thrush

The mention of weather has to take centre stage again as the heatwave continued to deliver extreme temperatures and unrelenting sunshine beating down on two chicks with increasingly absent parents. On 9th July in the middle of the day, Syfaddan was observed sheltering in the shade of an oak tree after initially delivering a fish to the nest. He remained there 'sensibly' until it was cool enough to emerge. Chicks were observed “calling for shade” but Clogwyn's shielding abilities are now virtually superfluous due to the size of the chicks. On 10 July, with the heat reaching its peak, the chicks were observed gravitating to the edge of the nest under the cup camera pole and, rather worryingly, repeatedly looking downwards as if searching for an escape. Fortunately there were no mishaps apart from some understandable sibling irritation. The heat was of such magnitude that at 11.56 that day the remaining egg was seen to open with an audible 'pop'!

0U0 beginning to ‘helicopter’

So it is with some admiration that we note the continuing development of the two chicks who are regularly wing-flexing and are now lifting off from the nest as a precursor to eventual flight, an activity known as 'helicoptering' for obvious reasons. Another noticeable development has been the ability of the chicks to self feed. They have now become proficient at feeding from the fish delivered by Syfaddan rather than having portions fed to them by their parents. 0U0 appears to be currently more proficient at this than 0U1.

Chick proficiently self-feeding

Debates on the variety of fish being caught continue. Bream and perch appear to be high on the menu. It is apparent that with the continued hot weather, the depth of water in the River Usk has become greatly reduced with fish tending to 'hide' in shaded areas like tree roots thus providing a greater challenge to being caught. Green algae has now formed extensively on the waters of Llangors Lake, another impediment to osprey hunting. One roving osprey observer has noted on 9th July that Syfaddan appeared to be making forays south around Tor y Foel which begs the question: is he now subsidising the diet with fish from Talybont Reservoir?

It's not surprising that the birds have been especially jumpy in a week of incursions of every kind. However, the number of osprey intruders recorded during this time has been of note. On 6th July from 11.25 for a good 1.5 hours alarm was being exhibited first by Clogwyn then by her chicks constantly looking skywards. An intruding osprey had been seen on camera at 10.56 circling the nest for a full minute. Then again the same day at around 9pm the chicks assumed their 'danger response' lying flat in the base of the nest – was this the same uninvited guest or another? No identification was possible. The next day, 7th July, was peppered with similar alarm behaviours in the nest, Syfaddan and Clogwyn seen to mantle in the presence of presumed intruders. And again, on 11th July around 11.00 am Syfaddan was observed 'seeing off' an unknown osprey intruder which may have returned in late evening to prompt more alarm in the nest. With southbound migration not really started yet it is possible these incursions were all from the same bird perhaps considering setting up a future territory of its own in the valley.

Perhaps the most dramatic intruder incident, because it was captured on camera, occurred on the morning of 13th July at around 11 a.m. A skirmish involved an unidentified osprey intruder making close forays over the nest. The worry was that it may have been a goshawk with evil intent. However, it appears that it was indeed an unringed osprey which swooped low over the nest snatching at sticks as it passed. Chick 0U0 was inadvertently stepped on during this exchange, possibly as Clogwyn went into desperate protection mode.

Aerial hostilities

Fortunately 'our' osprey family is made of strong stuff it would appear and all had settled down by the evening when fish deliveries returned to normal (trout) and the two chicks tussled over it with their new-found expertise in self-feeding.

A gentle breeze at last arrived to bring harmony to the nest.