Early September...

Little Arb has been waiting and begging for a fish this morning, poking at that crusty old one that remains on the nest after about 4 days....finally the male delivered breakfast! As we are seeing here, these young birds usually don't go catch their own fish, and they rely on the nest post fledge as a place to get fed. This nest is still very much her "home base". They often remain dependent upon their parents for food, especially females. Yesterday I visited five nests, and I found four chicks and three adult males. Two nests had two chicks still hanging around their natal territory, food begging, waiting....and when the male delivered a fish a skirmish erupted for possession of the fish. On one nest I found the adult male perched nearby on a cell tower eating and looking around, sometimes displaying the fish in case any youngsters were in need of fuel. No chicks arrived so he ate. I visited his nest twice and never saw any chicks and he was eating a fish in different places each time. Clearly he is preparing for his departure. On two of the nests I found no Ospreys at all....where the polygamous male raised his two families. Perhaps they have all dispersed and begun the journey south. Little Arb is lucky that she does not have to compete for food. She will undertake her migration with a full tank! I expect her to be around for several more weeks...we hope anyway!