MORE COMINGS & GOINGS
The last week has seen both the regular unringed birds (one male, one female) continuing to strengthen their pair-bond at the nest. The male has primarily been occupied by bringing in sticks for the nest-rim, soft nest lining for the cup and fish for the female.
At the start of the period the female caused some concern by disappearing for 48 hours during the latter part of the early May Bank Holiday weekend but probably unrelated to it. This was perhaps to be expected knowing both these birds have a wide selection of perches up and down the Usk Valley – she may simply have not been visiting the nest or was out of camera view. She returned to the nest from Tuesday 7th May and seemed settled.
The female is now spending more time on the nest than the male, the latter simply acting as a delivery service – and a few mating attempts thrown into the bargain. She has been recorded calling more frequently too, her way of demanding more fish from her partner. Calls are audible from the towpath.
A small number of new Osprey Watchers were trained up on the 12th May, the majority of these being long-term UVO members who were telephoned with invitations to the first Training Day on 20th April but were unable to attend through previous commitments. Usk Valley Ospreys continue to apply pressure on Welsh Government to release a live nest-cam video stream to the wider public.
Don’t forget to join our Facebook Group for further lively osprey chat
