Osprey Diary

Settled in Mauritania

2012-02-27T12:28:00.001-08:00

25th February

Ozwold is settled in the same area of Mauritania as before, in the reserve of the Banc d'Arguin. He has been making regular flights in and around the area, presumably to and from good feeding and roosting areas.

It is likely that he will spend 2012 in Africa and return to more northern climes in the spring of 2013.

The adult ospreys will soon be returning to their summer breeding sites and we can expect them in our skies once again. There has already been a rumoured sighting of an osprey in Norfolk.

No Change

2012-02-05T15:51:00.000-08:00

Ozwold is settled on the coast although he is ranging a large area of 115 square kms compared to the very small winter ranges of the adults. I wonder if this is because he is competing with established adult ospreys in the area for fishing sites.

Jan 23rd - Feb 5th

Settled in his usual roosts

2012-01-24T01:11:00.000-08:00

Ozwold has settled back in his usual haunts at Banc d'Arguin in Mauritania.

Image from Google Earth of Ozwold's fishing area;

Rutland Osprey Team

Members of the Rutland Osprey Project team are currently in Gambia to establish links with people and schools in West Africa and also to look for colour ringed ospreys. To read an account of their fascinating trip follow the link below.

http://www.ospreys.org.uk/osprey-blog/

Exploring Mauritania

2012-01-15T15:33:00.000-08:00

100 kms flight north and back

January 7th

At 1pm on 7th January he was flying north over the sea and headed 100 kms over the bay to two islands in an inlet on north side of Banc d'Arguin.

January 9th
He flew NW to the coast north of Cap Ste Anne. At 4pm was heading back south to roost that night on the coast near Cap Arzaze.

January 10th
He crossed the bay to the coast south of Arkeiss (Bedouin settlement) and at 10am was perched near Iwik, the HQ of the National Park. At 3pm he was back in his original location and roosted that night back in familiar haunts.

It's good to see he is still safe and building up a mental map of the area. He must have established some good fishing spots by now.

Settled in Mauritania

2011-12-28T03:00:00.000-08:00

Ozwold seems fairly settled in Mauritania at the Banc d'Arguin National Park.

Fishing area (white line) and night roosts in desert.

In the same place but making longer trips

2011-12-15T10:02:00.000-08:00

15 December 2011

Ozwold remains in the same area with a few longer trips;

On December 8th/9th he roosted in the desert 30 kms NE; then on 9th/10th he flew 50 kms south before turning back north (he was just 26 kms N of another osprey named Morven at that point) and on December 10th he was briefly 30 kms north in the afternoon.

It's good to see he seems fairly settled in a fish-rich area.

Sad news about Joe

2011-12-14T02:02:00.000-08:00

Sadly, there has been evidence that Joe, one of the juvenile ospreys Roy tagged this year has died. Joe's transmitter stopped sending signals in mid October, but began transmitting again in November from one site only.

Frederic Bacuez, a French ornithologist working in Senegal has found the satellite transmitter and the remains of Joe.

To see the full account, follow the link to Roy Dennis's website at the Highland Foundation for Wildlife;

http://www.roydennis.org/osprey/index.asp?id=247&sid=244

It is a harsh reminder of the survival challenges facing young ospreys.

I hope Ozwold stays safe. I'll update his progress when more news comes in.

No change

2011-12-05T14:49:00.001-08:00

4th December

Ozwold remains in the same area, a good overwintering site.

Ozwold in Mauritania. Osborne in denial.

2011-11-29T14:41:00.001-08:00

27 November 2011

Ozwold has settled down in the islands of the Banc d'Arguin in Mauritania. In November he ranged over a large area of 440 square kms, but between 21st and 26th November he has settled on the southern side of the islands and is roosting in the desert between 4.5 and 6.5 kms from the sea coast.

A few notes about the Banc D'Arguin National Park;

The Banc d'Arguin is a UNESCO world heritage site and is one of the most important zones in the world for nesting birds and Palearctic migratory waders.

Set on the west coast of Mauritania, this park is made up of sand dunes, small islands, coastal swamps, mud flats and shallow coastal waters. This diverse and unique ecosystem provides habitats for more than 2 million migrant birds, 40,000 nesting population, many fish and invertebrate species. The reserve also supports several species of marine turtle including the endangered green sea turtle and also marine mammals such as the bottlenose dolphin and Atlantic Humpback dolphin.

The reserve is under threat from the effects of commercial fishing. In 2006 Mauritania sold EU fishing rights to reduce their national debt. International fishing fleets fishing these rich waters just outside the reserve boundaries have been reducing the fish population at a dramatic rate.

A few notes about George Osborne's Autumn Statement...

The fragility of the Banc D'Arguin highlights that ecosystems are dependent upon not only national policies of a country but international cooperation and understanding in order to safeguard the future of our wildlife and our own longterm future too.

Unfortunately, only today, Chancellor George Osborne in his autumn statement has declared green policies as a 'burden' and a 'ridiculous cost' to British businesses.

"I am worried about the combined impact of the green policies adopted not just in Britain, but also by the European Union … if we burden [British businesses] with endless social and environmental goals – however worthy in their own right – then not only will we not achieve those goals, but the businesses will fail, jobs will be lost, and our country will be poorer."

George Osborne mentions slackening wildlife protection laws in favour of 'development'. His statement was notably light on references to the green economy or the job-creating potential of industries such as renewable power. Indeed there was mention of £250 million rebate to energy heavy industries.

George Osborne fails to see the seismic shift in public opinion and advancement in technology that sustainable renewable energy is our future. In Somerset, I have seen individuals, schools and sizeable businesses take up this challenge. Yet, Mr Osborne wants to take us back to the Victorian era when the riches of the natural world were deemed infinite and free-for-all.

When will he realise that our natural resources are finite. If we burden the next generation by trying to build industries on fossil fuels we will not achieve his goals of productivity. If we do not protect our oceans, our fisheries will fail. if we do not protect our biodiversity, species will be lost, agriculture will be compromised and we, and our country will be poorer.

Surely politicians intent on short term gain and popularity should not be able to make rash, risky and uninformed decisions that will affect our own long term future and the future of our natural world.

Ospreys just about clung on through the Victorian era...will Ozwold make it through the years following Osborne's legacy?

Children vote for ospreys...

2011-11-18T04:12:00.001-08:00

Sky Hawk has been shortlisted for the Red House Children's Book Award...the ONLY UK national award voted for entirely by children. The winner will be announced in February 2012.

Ozwold has lots of fans out there!

Huge thanks to readers for your votes and your support for Sky Hawk.

You can vote following the link; http://www.redhousechildrensbookaward.co.uk/

...and on...to AFRICA!!!!!!

2011-11-17T05:22:00.001-08:00

WOW! breaking news!

It's been a nerve wracking two weeks waiting for news of Ozwold. Roy Dennis has been in Senegal looking for the Dyfi ospreys and filming with Autumn Watch. He said it was a fantastic trip so make sure you watch this Friday's Autumn Watch and we may well be in for an osprey spectacular.

So what was Ozwold doing all this time? Was he slipping back the sangria in Spain? or resting his toes in the River Tormes?

No, he was not...it looks like he decided the sands of the Sahara and the African Atlantic coast beckoned. What an incredible bird. I'd love to have a real bird eye view of all the things he has seen on his journey.

So, fresh from the press, or rather from Roy Dennis....here is Ozwold's remarkable journey...

He's off again

05 November 2011

He's off aagin - after spending his whole time on the river, he left that area this morning and at 1100hrs was flying south high over the Monfrague National Park and at 1500 was over the western Sierra Morana. By 1800hrs he had cleared the mountains and was roosting on farmlands near a small river N of Marchena, some 100 kms east of Seville, after a flight of 373 kms. Brilliant to see that he has decided he'll try Africa not winter in Spain. Roy said he overtook him on his day's flight as he was flown south from Gatwick to the Gambia - it looked a good day over southern Spain although a bit cloudy.

Crossed to Morocco

06 November 2011
Set off after 0600hrs and stopped several times SW of Marchena and then on SSW. At 1200hrs was just north of Bornos Reservoir flying south at 31km/hr and just after 1500hrs flew out over the Atlantic Ocean just east of Barbate. An hour later he was flying over the sea at 21km/hr south 450 metres above the water; he was ashore at Tangier by 1700hrs and was roosting an hour later south of a big reservoir at Gharbia.

On south through Morocco

07 November 2011
Had set off before 0800hrs and at 0900hrs flew out over coast at Larache and coasted south before coming ashore at midday at Ben Mansour. An hour later was flying south at Kenitra and by dark was roosting NE of Marrakesh after a flight of 452 kms.

On through the Atlas Mountains

08 November 2011
Ozwold flew south over the mountain ridges today and flew a distance of 300 kms - at 1500hrs he was east of Agadir and at 1900hrs was roosting on a high ridge at 1390 metres in the Anti Atlad ESE of Tiznit - tomorrow he will set off over the Sahara.

Flying into the deserts

09 November 2011
He flew SW through southern Morocco during the morning and at 1400 hrs was flying SSW at 31km/hr at 1330 meters. At 1600hrs he crossed into Western Sahara and at 1900 was roosting in a massive dry river valley which finally runs into the sea at the coastal town of Aaiun after a flight of 340 kms

On into the deserts

10 November 2011
Flew on over the deserts heading SW so missed the NW corner of Mauritania. He made rather slow progress although by 1900 hrs he had covered 269 kms before roosting in featureless sand desert.

Dramatic turn to the Atlantic coast

11 November 2011
Instead of migrating on south through the desert, like most ospreys, Ozwold swerved right and flew straight west to the Atlantic coast and at 1500 hrs was coasting down the coast just a few kms offshore.

South to Mauritania

12 November 2011
The first signal at 1400hrs today showed that Ozwold was 342 kms down the coast. He flew south along the coast and at 1700hrs was approaching Mauritania. At 1800 hrs he was flying S at 40kms/hr at 190 metres over the massive iron ore port of Nouadhibou. An hour later he was roosting on the slopes above the southern part of the port.

To the Banc d'Arguin

13 November 2011
Today Ozwold flew 100kms SSE across the bay to Ile Nair, part of the Banc d'Arguin National Park coastal wetlands. This is one of the great wintering sites on the African coast for European waders and waterfowl. He settled down and on 13t - 16th November fished in the shallows and roosted at night in the desert. This could be a good place to winter - it's just north of where Morven winters.

WOW!

What a journey!

Incredible to think this 7 month old osprey has learned to fly and to fish and to follow some deep ingrained instinct to fly south. What is even more amazing is the route he has chosen...to navigate via areas offering protection and rich fishing grounds. Chance? or a genetic mental map? It's interesting to see that he has chosen to rest longer in areas rich in fish to build up strength for his journey ahead.

Keep safe Ozwold....where will we catch up with you next time?

waiting for news...

2011-11-09T04:56:00.000-08:00

Roy Dennis is filming with Autumn Watch in Gambia and Senegal at the moment, looking for the Dyfi ospreys and filming other wildlife too. It would be great if he finds them and manages to film them for this Friday's Autumn Watch.

In the meantime, I'll await further news of Ozwold until Roy's return.

I have a feeling that he is still in Spain, but who knows! He could have covered a lot of ground in these last few days.

I'll update when I hear more news.

No change

2011-11-04T03:23:00.000-07:00

The last data in shows Ozwold is still living and fishing along the River Tormes, south of Salamanca in Spain.

The weather there is warm at 17 degrees but a little unsettled. It looks like rain today but brightening later in the week. It's a good, safe place for him. Let's see what he decides to do over the next few weeks. Will he make a next big flight to Africa or stay put?

On a more worrying note, there are concerns for Leri, the female of the welsh ospreys being followed. Her transmitter had been giving out confusing data, both altitude and position. Frederick, a bird expert living near her last location has been to look for her, but unfortunately has not been able to sight her. The next data for her movements will come in today and will hopefully show good news. To follow the Dyfi ospreys...follow the link below

www.montwt.co.uk/dyfiospreys.html

Furthermore, there has been no more transmission signals from Joe, one of the Highland Foundation for Wildlife ospreys. It is possible that his transmitter has failed or sadly that he has been predated and died. It just shows the struggles juveniles face in their first year. To read about Joe and other ospreys of the Highland Foundation for Wildlife follow the link below.

www.roydennis.org/osprey/

Stopping over in Spain

2011-10-28T09:36:00.000-07:00

27 October 2011

Ozwald is living in the same place within an area of one square km and 2.5 kms stretch of the river. He obviously likes his food and doesn't want to travel too far to find it. Maybe he's re-fuelling after his big hop across France, or maybe he's settling there to overwinter.

Ozwold's eye view...

Cruising through Spain...will he stay or will he go?

2011-10-25T03:41:00.000-07:00

On to Salamanca

22 October 2011

Ozwald was already migrating by 0900GMT and kept a leisurely flight SW being south of Palensia at 1000hrs. Just before midday he flew over Valladolid and at 1400hr was flying at 1760 metres at 25km/hr. At 1500hrs he was just east of Salamnace where he turned south and before the hour had landed beside the River Tormes and remained along the wooded edge of the river in farmlands between Santa Teresa and Fresno Alhardigo. This area is 160 kms WNW of Madrid. His journey today was 210 kms.

Stopping off

24 October 2011

He has remained on the section of the River Tormes - looks to be a very good place for fishing. It would be possible for him to winter in Spain - the old female from nest A11 (which Roy satellite tagged in 1999 and 2000) winters about 70 kms to the SW of the reservoir - Gabriel y Galan.

It will be interesting to see what he does from here. It's such a relief to know that he is already in an area he could potentially overwinter. I wonder if it is safer to overwinter in Spain, where there are no big predators such as crocodiles? I'm so pleased he's out of the UK. We've had cold rain and strong winds in the past few days.

Maps to follow. I've had a look at some of the photo icons on Google Earth of the Rio Tormes and it looks like a perfect osprey river.

Wigan school children...osprey enthusiasts!

2011-10-22T01:12:00.000-07:00

In the past two weeks I've been fortunate to visit two schools in Wigan; Abraham Guest, a secondary school and Winstanley Community Primary school. Pupils at both schools shared their enthusiasm for ospreys and wildlife. Both schools had produced great displays about Sky Hawk and had produced some wonderful wildlife writing. Regrettably, I was so busy that I forgot to take photos at Guest Abraham school, but I have included some photos below of the children's work at Winstanley Primary.

Myself and staff of Winstanley Primary in front of their amazing Sky Hawk display

The wall display of Sky Hawk and some of the children's terrific wildlife writing. The pupils are plotting Ozwold's journey and they were the first to hear from Roy Dennis that Ozwold had arrived in Spain...the news came in during their assembly!

An anthology of osprey poems by year 5 pupils. The artwork and the the poems are absolutely stunning. I think they should be published!!!! There are some beautiful osprey illustrations and vivid descriptions of ospreys in flight...it's fantastic to see all the children so fired up by wildlife...and lots of very interesting questions too.

Wigan must be a hot-spot of wildlife watchers!

Possible sad news on Joe...

After such a fantastic day at Wigan and buoyed up by news of Ozwold, I've just heard news of possible problems with another osprey named Joe, one of the other tagged ospreys at the Highland Foundation for Wildlife. Joe made a very quick and successful migration to Africa, but his transmissions have recently disappeared. This could be a faulty transmitter...a possibility as the battery was showing low voltage, but it could be that he has run into trouble and not survived. It's a harsh reminder that young ospreys face many dangers and many do not make it through their first year.

You can read about Joe here...

http://www.roydennis.org/osprey/index.asp?id=247&sid=244

OZWOLD'S FOUND HIS MOTOR!!!

2011-10-21T15:42:00.000-07:00

Incredible news in today, that Ozwold has really covered some ground. Autumn has really settled in the UK, with night temperatures in the south of England hitting 2 or 3 degrees and reports of snow in Scotland.
So the big news is...in the past couple of days he has passed through France and has reached Spain. Not only that, but he has navigated via two areas often frequented by ospreys...how do they do it? It remains an incredible mystery. Was Ozwold's late and maybe confused migration upset by the usually warm autumn? Or maybe, his late migration was just within the normal range. Who knows! but surely researching osprey migration will build up a picture about the migrational habits of these amazing birds.

So...back to Ozwold's journey...

19 October 2011

At 8am he was flying SE at 32km/hr just west of Ipswich, and left the Essex coast just north of Clacton. At 9am he was flying SE at 32km/hr over the North Sea and an hour later was 20kms east of Ramsgate, where he changed direction to south. He reached the French coast at Sangatte and then steadily flew south passing west of Amiens at 1300GMT. He flew over Versailles to the west of Paris at 1500GMT, when he was flying SSE at 31km/hr at an altitude of 370 metres. He roosted the night in Orleans Forest after a flight of 528 kms.

Roy emailed his friend Rolf Wahl who studies the ospreys in Orleans Forest - he told Roy that Ozwold roosted at or very close to one of two osprey nests in that part of the forest.

I wonder if Ozwold included the Eiffel Tower in his mental-map of France! It's really incredible to think that he found a good osprey area to roost. It makes me think about the theory of Genetic Memory...that possible

behaviour patterns, previous experiences etc are somehow built into our DNA.

20 October 2011

The full GPS data is not in yet but non-GPS data showed that he roosted this night in the hills just north of Ermua, near Bilbao in Spain. It's just 16 kms SE of Urdabai Estuary. Today's migration was at least 643 kms. This is a very strong migration flight. This was near the area that Roy Dennis was filmed in Autumn Watch.
Autumn Watch is on every Friday at 8.00pm...so tune in and you can follow the Welsh ospreys' journeys, plus find out about lots of other UK wildlife too.

21 October 2011

Off in a hurry...he seems to be taking his migration very seriously...

Ozwald was already 61 kms SW by 0924GMT - flying towards Valdegovia in Alava province in the Basque country. The weather in Spain is clear and sunny with no real wind - east 2mph where he is or N 1mph further down the track. The temperature is 8C.

I just hope he makes a safe passage through Spain and is not tempted to go too far west into the Atlantic.

If you haven't already, look at Roy Dennis' website for information of other ospreys including Ozwold on...www.roydennis.org. You'll also find information on conservation of other species such as golden eagles and sea eagles.

Roy Dennis, UK osprey expert and founder of the Highland Foundation for Wildlife has written about Ozwold in his blog.. http://www.roydennis.org/index.asp?id=11

These are Roy's thoughts about Ozwold's migration...from Roy Dennis' blog...

Ozwald's migratory instinct kicks back in!

21 October 2011
Ozwald must be the latest migrating osprey leaving Scotland this year by a long way. At last his migratory instinct has kicked back in and he has deserted the snowy mountains of Scotland and today is flying over Spain through cloudless skies. His behaviour in the last two months has been very unusual and it just shows there is always something new to learn about ospreys.
He set off on migration from Nairnshire on the rather early date of 16th August. Maybe his father had been finding it difficult to catch enough fish for his brood of 3 young, especially in this summer which has been very poor for breeding ospreys in Scotland. The start of his migration was good and in two days he had just about reached England, when suddenly he took a swerve and did a big loop back to the Scottish Highlands. Very strange behaviour which I could not understand.
He then spent his time drifting around the big rivers of eastern Scotland in Angus and Aberdeenshire, and as far north as the River Spey. It looked as though he was never going to migrate and that was even more so, from 26th September, when he settled down on a small river running in to the River Don at Bellabeg in Strathdon. In fact, close to a place called Lost!
His transmitter started to be very intermittent because of the shortening days of autumn and the number of cloudy rainy days. With such a lack of sunshine the battery in the transmitter was failing to charge and as a result failing to give good signals. I was starting to get very worried because the shortening days and colder temperatures were making it even more difficult to catch fish. I was nearly becoming resigned to the fact that he might not survive. One day in particular I was on the point of going to Strathdon to see if I could see what he was doing, but that day he moved further down river.
In the last week, we have had a lot of snow in the mountains and this must have been the trigger for Ozwald to decide to migrate - living any longer in the Scottish Highlands was no longer an option. On his departure on 11th October he would have seen the snows in the high Cairngorms and it was marvellous to find him a few days later in Norfolk.
In the last couple days, he has really started to migrate with 528 kms on the 19th and a staggering 643 kms yesterday. This morning he'd already set off early and was flying south-west through the mountains of the Basque country in northern Spain. The weather is perfect - cloudless skies and no real wind, just east 2 mph where he started and north 1 mph further down his track. If he keeps this heading he will reach Portugal but I hope he turns south and when we hear from him in 3 days time, hopefully he will be in Africa. Bon voyage!
Ozwald's transmitter is sponsored by the publishers, home and abroad, of 'Skyhawk' and the author Gill Lewis, so I immediately emailed the exciting news to Gill when I got it this morning. Gill was just going to give a talk to 100 school children in Wigan, and I bet they, as well as all the other children following Ozwald's migration, will be excited that he is heading for Africa at last.
I also emailed my friend Rolf Wahl, who studies the ospreys in the Orleans Forest, south of Paris, along with the GPS map of where he roosted on the night of the 19th/20th of October. He tells me that he was either at or very close to one of 2 osprey nests in the northern part of the forest - of course those ospreys had gone south long ago.

South East!

2011-10-19T15:11:00.000-07:00

He's on his way, heading south east. It's great to see him making these bigger distances now.

He had a good day yesterday - 163 miles or so from Swaledale to somewhere near Downham Market - just 3 good GPS on the way and he did 48 kms between 2pm and 3pm from north of Knottingley to SE of Doncaster. The evening/night 8pm - 9pm signals were non-GPS and in a group near Downham. The weather in East Anglia is clear and sunny (good for transmitter as well) and light west winds so hope he carries on to continent.

I wonder where he will cross the English Channel. Many ospreys head further west and cross from SW England to the NW tip of France. They then can face a perilous continuous flight across the Bay of Biscay where they can run the risk of missing landfall in Spain and die exhausted out in the Atlantic.

Maybe Ozwold's more easterly path will take him through France and avoid a journey across the Bay of Biscay.

Migration...how do they really do it? Do we all have an intrinsic compass within us? Interestingly, when I visit schools and ask pupils to point south, the majority usually get it right...sometimes because they are thinking of landmarks, or the position of the sun, but many just say it 'feels' south.

Another interesting little animal I heard about today is a little spiral sea-shell which lives in tidal mangrove forests of Kenya. It goes by the lovely name of Cerithidea decollata. or more commonly, the Truncated Mangrove Snail. These little sea shells feed on organic matter on the mangrove mud, but an hour or two before the tide comes in, they crawl off the mud and climb up into the mangrove trees, clustering on the tree-trunks. What is so interesting is they can predict the tides, so that if the tide is a spring tide, (a very high tide) then the snails invariably climb higher. If the tidal reach is lower, the snails to not climb as high. It's not known how the snails 'know' the height of the next tide. But if the snails are moved to a different location, they keep moving in the same pattern, until they become submerged in water and 're-set' their internal body clock.

South bound

2011-10-16T01:11:00.000-07:00

Better weather and some better data in. Yesterday morning Ozwold was near Alston, Cumbria and by evening he had flown approx 40 miles south to Swaledale, Yorkshire Dales, near Gunnerside. So he's moving slowly south.

It was interesting to hear on Autumn Watch of Einion's (one of the Welsh tagged ospreys) 300 mile flight across the Bay of Biscay in just one day. An incredible distance across a potentially harsh environment. The coast of northern Spain looked very wild and rugged. Also interesting to see the German osprey on Autumn Watch...I don't know if I mis-heard but I think the leg-ring letters were RS...same as the osprey in Sky Hawk...I will have to watch i-player and find out, and let my German publisher know too.

Ozwold's got a long way to go yet! Maybe he won't even make it to Africa. Some ospreys are known to overwinter in Spain.

It's a huge relief to see he is out of Scotland...with snow on the way, cold weather and dark nights...I only hope Ozwold finds his motor!

Distance moved 11th October

Roost site 11th / 12th October ; He settled for the evening on the River Till then roosted the night in Floddenford Woods. The Till is a tributary of the river Tweed. It sounds a good river for trout, salmon and grayling, so I hope he managed to stock up on fish. It's the only tributary of the Tweed that runs wholly in England. It joins the Tweed near Berwick-on-Tweed. I wonder if ospreys follow rivers during their migration and build up map of rivers as we do with roads.

According to folklore...about the Till and the Tweed;

Tweed said to Till

"What gars ye rin sae stil?"

Says Till to Tweed,

"Though ye rin wi' speed

And I rin slaw

Whar ye droon yin man

I droon twa"

12th to 15th October

Osprey over Alchester

2011-10-14T03:50:00.000-07:00

While awaiting more news of Ozwold, it's great to hear from my agent about reports of an osprey sighting over Alchester this week. So there are other ospreys lingering in the UK in this mild autumn.

Very warm and sunny here in Somerset today...shirt sleeve weather!

Thank you to well-wishers

2011-10-13T14:10:00.000-07:00

A big thank you to kids from UK, US and France for your good luck wishes to Ozwold...(some 'big kids' included too!).

It's great to have your support and know you're following him. Let's hope he visits France soon.... ;0)

Back in Scotland!

2011-10-13T00:58:00.000-07:00

It look like he was blown back into SE Scotland near Humbie yesterday afternoon. Data showed him to be near Humbie wind farm.

Let's hope fresh data shows him to be further south over the next couple of days. It's still mild down here in Somerset in SW England. Some morning fog, but looks like it's clearing. I hope he flies this way soon.

Heading south...into England

2011-10-12T07:47:00.000-07:00

News just in...It looks like he's heading south. The data has been very scrambled. Roy Dennis puts this down to lack of sun, failing to charge the solar battery. But readings show Ozwold near Strathdon at two different locations on the 10th, but today at 10am there was a reasonable non-GPS signal near Wooler in Northumberland. Some signals show that he roosted last night inland of Berwick-on-Tweed.

I hope he keeps moving south and doesn't repeat his circular loop back up to his nesting site.

But it's great to see he is on the move.

Go on Ozwold....fly!

No dramatic news!

2011-10-12T02:18:00.000-07:00

The readings coming in from Ozwold have been infrequent because of low light intensity and failure to keep the solar battery constantly charged. However, readings show that he has moved further afield, but he is still in NE Scotland, so it's a huge relief to know that he's moving about.

The question still remains as to why he is still in Scotland? I've read reports of other osprey sightings in Scotland at the moment, so I wonder if he has a problem, or is he on the end of the range of normal variation for timing of migration?

Ospreys are tough birds. On their migration they survive extremes of conditions from freezing temperatures across mountain ranges, storms at sea and the blistering heat of the desert. So I hope the reason Ozwold is still in Scotland is because he's biding his time, waiting for the right moment his body clock tells him to leave. I just hope he gets going soon.

On another note, I had a fantastic couple of days at a secondary school in Wigan talking about Sky Hawk, wildlife and the process of writing. It was brilliant to see kids so engaged and interested in wildlife. There were some great ideas in the writing workshops too. So a big thank you to all year 7s for making me feel so welcome.

On my drive back home, I was musing how amazing it would be if all children could have the opportunity to get out to some of our wildlife reserves and national parks for 'outdoor learning'. Actually 'outdoor learning' sounds bland and smacks of sound bites. Although teaching in these locations brings subjects such as ecology, history, geography art etc etc to life and makes them palpable and understandable, it offers much more than that.
There are some processes of learning that cannot be immediately assessed or graded...and that's the ability to simply just be, and observe the world around and time to think, uncluttered from demands of exam grades, TV, computers etc. Children often don't get that time to think, to wonder or to dream...and that's such a huge part of learning whether for arts or for science. Maybe that's the same for all of us. I know many writers...and I have to include myself here, who have to switch off the internet before they start writing or it becomes too tempting to check twitter and Facebook and emails etc.
In the summer I watched my own daughter watching wasps as they flew to and from their hole in a muddy bank. She lay on the grass for ages, just watching them. She told me tiny details she'd observed...the way they wiggled their antennae, the different hum of their wings as they entered the hole. Then she asked the questions...where do they go in winter? what happens to their nest...of course then I had to get the books out to find out!
So I just wonder what would happen if children could have a few days to build dens in wild places and have the time to clear their heads of the busy demands on them, and simply just be...
Any comments welcome...or maybe I have stirred up a nest of hornets?

He's ok

2011-10-07T04:41:00.000-07:00

A few readings from Ozwold...more details to follow. He's still in Scotland, and moving around.

I've just heard of news of another osprey spotted in Wigtown area, SW Scotland, so it's encouraging to know that there are other ospreys still in Scotland.

The weather maps show there will be fresh north easterly winds over the next few days...so he should have a good tail wind behind him if and when he does go.

Worrying times

2011-10-06T01:02:00.000-07:00

I've just had the readings from Roy Dennis for the last few days, but the there have only been a couple of non-GPS readings a little to the east of Bellabeg but still in Strathdon. The problem with signals is that the transmitter is still trying to gather hourly GPS readings from 6 am to 9pm - but the daylight hours are rapidly declining in Scotland and the sun is sinking on the horizon - so especially on miserable overcast days the solar panel cannot charge the transmitter enough to deal with all the readings - so in those cases when battery strength is down the transmitter's position is calculated by the satellite - and this is a non-GPS location which can be accurate to within 150 metres but may be much less accurate in poor weather.

Here in the south of England the weather has turned very autumnal in a matter of days...people were out in shorts and T shirts at the weekend and sunbathing on the beaches, and now everyone is wrapped up in coats and boots.

I hope Ozwold gets going for some winter sun soon. It's a little worrying that he hasn't set off yet. There will be some more readings coming in later today, so I'll post them when I have them.

Don't forget to watch Autumn Watch tomorrow evening...all about ospreys... following the young satellite tagged Welsh ospreys.

A place called Lost!

2011-10-02T13:47:00.000-07:00

In Strathdon...27th to 30th September

Ozwald remained in Strathdon, moving up and down the Water of Nochty which flows into the River Don. at 9am today he was perched on edge of conifer wood near the small river. He has at times been close to a place called Lost!

I wonder how much influence the recent unusually hot weather has had on Ozwold? The impulse for migration is still a mystery. Is it governed by temperature, daylight length, stars, changing magnetic fields as the earth turns on it's axis, some internal body clock? I wonder why Ozwold is much later in starting his migration than some of the other tagged ospreys this year. Could it be genetic...maybe his parents started their migrations later than others. It would be interesting to know where Ozwold's two siblings are. They were ringed but not tagged. Maybe they are still in Scotland too! Only a relatively small number of ospreys have been tagged, so all this information will help to build up a pattern of the variation of migration between individuals.

I just hope this spell of good weather has allowed him to fish successfully and build up the strength he needs for his migration.

Watch this space....he has to go soon...surely!

Heading North!

2011-09-27T08:06:00.000-07:00

He's gone north not south!

I'm biting my nails here. Maybe he'll hitch a lift at Aberdeen airport!

He flew as far north as 4 miles south of Keith in Banffshire yesterday. Last night he roosted near the Cabrach and this morning he's flown south and the latest data at 9am showed him on small river north of Bellabeg in Strathdon. Roy reported that it's a nice day now but a strong SW wind. The weather is improving with high pressure.

He should go or he could be the last osprey in Scotland!

23rd September...back upstream on the River Dee

2011-09-25T14:52:00.000-07:00

23rd September...

Ozwold flew back to the River Dee and made his way upstream to the Linn of Dee. He's been flying over the Balmoral estate and across Braemar.

He'll have just missed the Highland Gathering...the Highland Games held on the first Saturday in September, and regularly attended by a member/s of the Royal family since Queen Victoria first visited in 1848. I wonder if she saw any ospreys fishing along the Dee back then. I guess numbers of ospreys were rapidly diminishing, as the Victorians were indulging in egg collecting and shooting the ospreys out of the skies, eventually emptying Britain of all ospreys. It's incredible to think of the recovery of the osprey in the past 60 years. I wonder if in another 60 years we will be breathing a sigh of relief at having rescued the tiger from extinction...or will the tiger have passed into folklore and legend by then?

River Dee

In the same area

2011-09-22T05:19:00.000-07:00

17th to 21st September

Ozwold is still exploring the same area, making one trip along the River Feugh towards Banchory. Roy Dennis has seen two ospreys fishing near Findhorn bay. Other Scottish ospreys are yet to start their migration.

Better weather will be arriving in Scotland at the end of the week and Roy thinks he might make his move then.

He's still in Scotland!

2011-09-18T13:33:00.000-07:00

Below catalogues Ozwold's movements over the past 10 days. He's still in Scotland revisiting some of his fishing haunts, making a flight back up north near Aviemore. Hopefully, all this is giving him sufficient time to build up fishing skills and strength and stamina for the long journey ahead. With the days drawing in and the temperature dropping, I wonder when he will head south. On the weather forecast tonight, gales are forecast in northern Scotland on Wednesday, so I hope he waits for a clear patch in the weather and makes his move at the safest opportunity.

September 10th - 12th ... back north to the River Dee

Ozwald flew north on the afternoon of the 10th September to Ballater and spent the rest of the day and the next day on the River Dee and up the River Gairn towards the Bridge of Gairn. By 4 PM today he had flown up the river and was on the River Dee between Braemar and Inverey (at 8pm). It's interesting that he's flown back up north to an area that he has visited previously.

September 14th...on the River Dee

There were no signals on 13 September because the weather was so poor that the battery was not charged by the sun. On the 14th, the transmitter gave the first position at midday in Glen Quoich, near Braemar. And then he moved down onto the River Dee, east of Mar Lodge, and he may have been fishing. In the afternoon he was on the River Dee further upstream and roosted overnight in Scots pine trees beside the river just downstream of the Linn of Dee.

September 15th...heading back north! to Aviemore and River Spey

He was beside the River Dee until at least 8 AM, when he flew further upstream and at 11 AM was flying NNW over the west shoulder of Braeriach, in the Cairngorms, then headed over Loch Einich. An hour later he was perched beside the River Spey at Aviemore, and may have fished at the Rothiemurchus fishery - a favourite place for fishing ospreys. He carried on down the river and at 1 PM was flying over the river Spey at Broomhill Bridge(the old railway station Glenbogle for Monarch of the Glen fans). At 2 PM and 3 PM he was perched beside the small River Gheallaidh north of Tulchan and then moved further east to roost overnight in Scootmore forest near Ballindalloch, after a day's journey of 70 kms.

September 17th

No signals in yet for the 16th but today at 9 AM he was on the River Avon near Tomintoul, an hour later he was downstream beside the river at Fodderletter. At 11 AM he was on the Conglass Water north of Tomintoul. It's another cold wet and windy day, so Ozwald is best to hang around and wait for better weather to start his migration proper.

Other tagged ospreys...Ozwold really is one of the last satellite tagged ospreys to set off on migration. Male ospreys and young ospreys do usually leave sometime in mid September, so I expect there are other ospreys still in Scotland...but below I listed some of the UK Satellite tagged ospreys.

The Highland Foundation for Wildlife www.roydennis.org

Red 8T... currently in Morocco

Morven...in northern France

Rothiemurchus...tracking slowly down the French coast

Joe...in central Spain

Beatrice...in her wintering grounds in Spain.

Dyfi (Welsh ospreys) www.dyfiospreyproject.com

Einion...Morocco

Dulas...nearly reached Africa

Leri...in France

Still in Scotland

2011-09-07T13:34:00.000-07:00

Slowly south to Fife

29 August 2011
Ozwold left Glenmuick in the morning and at 2pm was perched at the south end of Glen Clova in Angus. At 4 PM he turned south and flew over Forfar and an hour later was circling over two small lochs at Monikie. He then headed out over the Tay estuary from Broughty Ferry and at 6 PM was flying east towards Tayport. At 7 PM he was roosting in a small wood just north of Cupar in Fife. His day's flight was 82 kms.

Turned back north

30 August 2011
Instead of carrying on south, Ozwold turned back north and at 10 AM was over Dundee flying NNE. At 11 AM he was flying north at 22km/hr east of Forfar and an hour later had settled on the River South Esk between Finavon Castle and Brechin. He was still beside the river but a little further east at 2 PM and had flown just 46 km during the day.

Stopping over in Angus

02 September 2011

Last night he was roosting beside the river a little further west near Justinhaugh. The weather has been overcast and he has been settled along the river for three days.

Still in Angus

06 September 2011

Ozwold remains in the same area of Angus, although on 4th Sept he set off NE and at 1pm stopped by a small river north of Strathcathro Hospital. He flew on up in to Glen Esk and at 3pm had turned and was flying back down the glen at Auchmill. At 4pm he was perched by the river north of Edzell and then flew to roost overnight in a farm shelter belt of trees SW of Edzell. Next day he flew back to his favourite haunts and was still there today. With bad weather arriving in scotland Roy Dennis hopes he stays put and feeds before starting to migrate when the weater improves.

28th August...from Speyside to the Deeside.

2011-08-30T16:43:00.000-07:00

After spending several days making exploratory flights from a small tributary of the river Spey, Ozwold appears to have set off south again. This time he has flown south, about 34 miles, in the region of the town of Ballater. I was relieved to see that he has been moving around successfully after the high winds and heavy rains that have hit northern Scotland in the past few days. (This satelitte picture is west of Aberdeen).

One of the places Ozwold may have flown over on his journey south to Ballater is Corgarff Castle. This castle, set on lonely moorland has had a long and bloody history.

It was built originally by a branch of the Forbes clan as a tower house around 1550. But a spot of feuding between the Forbeses and the Gordons (who lived north over the mountains) saw Adam Gordan a-galloping with his men to capture Forbes of Towie. Laird Forbes was away, and his wife Margaret refused Adam entry and shot him in the knee, whereupon Adam set fire to the castle burning everyone to death. It is indeed a gruesome tale. The tradegy is remembered in the ballad 'Edom o Gordon'.

The castle was rebuilt and used as barracks by the redcoats in 1746 after the battle of Culloden. The striking pentagon star shaped outer walls were added at this time. The redcoats patrolled Strathdon hunting down Jacobite sympathisers and also illegal producers of whisky for nearly a hundred years.

Ozwold is on the move!

2011-08-25T00:13:00.000-07:00

16th August 2011

These are the first remarkable images plotting the journey of Ozwold as he starts on his very first migration.

Roy Dennis readjusted Ozwold's starting location to the town of Nairn, to keep the nest site secret.

Ozwold took us by surprise by starting his migration earlier than anticipated. Many osprey chicks stay at the nest site until mid September and leave about the same time as the adult males, the females having left earlier in August.

In the map below we can see that Ozwold set off on quite a direct line south, a distance of approximately 70 miles to the Grampian mountains.

I hope Ozwold has learnt to fish successfully on his own already, without relying on supplementary feeding from his dad.

17th August 2011

Another fairly straight line south. At the Firth of Forth, Ozwold hugged the coast and headed east, north of Edinburgh and flew south again, a total distance of just over a hundred miles.

18th August 2011

Ozwold headed south, then took a suprise west flight along the southern coast of Scotland, and then north to the remote hill country and high level lochs of the Galloway Forest Park. One loch Ozwold visited was the Clatteringshaws Loch.

Distance, approx 70 miles.

19th August 2011

Another suprise as Ozwold headed west and north across the island of Arran and on to Kintyre. He finished the day near West Loch Tarbert, a long sea loch, perfect for a spot of fishing.

Today's distance, approximately 90 miles.

16th - 22nd August 2011

Since first leaving the nest on the 16th August, Ozwold has flown a remarkable full circle almost back to his nest site. He is currently fishing on an area of the Spey river favoured by ospreys.

All this data helps to build up a picture of the behaviour and flight patterns of young ospreys as they take their first flights from the nest. During this flight, Ozwold will have been building up an important memory map of Scotland that will be essential for feeding areas and potential nest sites on his eventual return. Roy Dennis is relieved that Ozwold made a full circle, rather than heading out too far west. If ospreys leave landfall and are blown out across the ocean, they can die from exhaustion.

It will be interesting to see when Ozwold makes his next move south.

Total distance 16th to 22nd; nearly 500 miles! He's certainly been putting in the miles and building up his flying fitness for his migration south.

Ospreys at Arne

2011-08-19T15:21:00.000-07:00

Ospreys have been sighted at Arne in Dorset. These birds are likely to be the females on their journey south. It will be interesting to see what route Ozwold takes when he leaves the nest site in September. I'll be sure to whizz down to Arne to see if I can catch a glimpse of him if he does.

Marathon run for osprey education in The Gambia.

2011-08-19T15:18:00.000-07:00

In September, Tim Mackrill, the project manager of the Rutland osprey project will be running the Berlin marathon to raise money to develop links with Gambian schools to raise awareness of wildlife, the osprey being the flagship species.

I was really pleased when OUP offered to donate Sky Hawk books to this venture too.

Tim Mackrill's fundraising page

Fundraiser:

Tim Mackrill

My page: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/timsberlinmarathon

Last winter a group of Osprey Project staff and volunteers travelled to Gambia and Senegal in search of European Ospreys. During the month-long trip we visted Tanji school near Banjul to talk to the children about our work at Rutland Water, focussing on Ospreys and migration. The children were enthralled.
Following the success of the visit to West Africa we intend to develop a wildlife education programme for Gambian schools, with Ospreys as the flagship species. We will raise money to provide educational resources for schools located in areas that are important for Ospreys and other European migrant birds, such as Tanji. These resources, including books, posters, optics and computer equipment, will allow the children to learn more about the birds and other wildlife that live close to their communities. With the help of local Gambian bird guide, Junkund Jadama, we will also organise fieldtrips for school children – allowing them to see all this wonderful wildlife at first hand. Furthermore, we’ll link schools in the Gambia with schools in Rutland, allowing the children to develop friendships, with Ospreys as the common link. There is also the potential for similar links to be formed along the bird’s migration route – with schools elsewhere in Europe and North Africa.
All funds raised will be managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust and will be used specifically to purchase educational resources that can be used in the Gambian schools and to fund field trips.
As Project Officer I felt it was only right that I got the ball rolling and so I will be running the Berlin marathon in September. We feel passionately that we have a unique opportunity to provide wildlife education in Gambian schools and that the work can have a real lasting legacy among communities in West Africa. Any money you feel able to donate would be greatly appreciated.
We will be travelling out to Gambia in January, enabling us to visit more schools and to distribute resources funded by our first wave of fundraising. So, if you can, please give generously.

Exploring a wider radius

2011-08-16T15:12:00.000-07:00

Ozwold has been exploring a wider radius, making flights of up to 1km from the nest site. Roy thinks he may be tracking, looking out for his father bringing fish back to the nest. It will be interesting to see how far he ventures from the nest site over the next few weeks before he leaves for his migration and if he visits any potential fishing areas himself.

The female adult birds tend to leave for their autumn migration earlier than the males. Ozwold's mother does not have a satelitte tag so we won't know if she has already left. Beatrice, one of the female ospreys Roy has been following since 2008 has just started to move south from her nest site. You can follow some of these other tagged birds on Roy Dennis' website http://www.roydennis.org/

Roy also tagged three osprey chicks in Wales. You can follow these birds, Leri, Dulas and Einion on the facebook page of the Dyfi Osprey Project.

Ozwold's first flight!

2011-07-25T14:40:00.000-07:00

Great news!

Roy Dennis sent me the news that Ozwold took his first flight on 15th July and has since been making daily flights of up to 500 metres from the nest. It will be a busy time for his parents who will both be bringing fish on a regular basis to feed all three chicks.

It will be interesting to see how far he dares to venture over the next few weeks.

And the name of the Sky Hawk osprey is...

2011-07-20T10:19:00.000-07:00

The winning name from the Young Times 'name the osprey competition' is....

Ozwold

Good luck Ozwold!

I'll put a post up when Roy Dennis has been able to see that Ozwold has fledged and is starting to make flights around his home area.

Once he starts on his long migration, probably some time in September, I will be able to put up a map to plot his route and follow his journey down through Europe and across to Africa.

The Sky Hawk osprey is launched...YAY!

2011-07-15T03:32:00.000-07:00

Last week I set off for the Highlands of Scotland to meet Roy Dennis, the founder the Highland Foundation for Wildlife. I was there to see Roy select and fit a satellite tracker to one of this year’s Scottish osprey chicks. The osprey was sponsored by the UK, US and foreign publishers of Sky Hawk. Their generous donations have made this project possible.

Roy Dennis...Britain's osprey expert

An operation organised with military precision!

Before my visit, I’d spoken with Roy on the phone to discuss fitting a satellite tracker to one of this year’s chicks. I found out that it was a complex procedure to organise and its smooth running hinged on many factors. Firstly, the chick needs to be healthy and at the right stage of growth. The optimum age is about six weeks old, a couple of weeks before it learns to fly. At this age chicks have reached their adult size ensuring a good fit for the satellite tracker. Also the nest must be accessible. Some trees are just too high and the nest base too wide to access the nest without causing damage. If the nest is on private land, then permission from the landowner is necessary. Roy has forged relationships with landowners over the years, all keen to help conservation in this spectacular part of the world. Finally…the unpredictable Scottish weather can cause havoc to the best laid plans. Too wet or windy and it becomes Mission Impossible.

Roy also explained why it’s been a particularly bad year for the ospreys. The sheer weight of heavy snowfall during the winter brought down many established nests, and returning ospreys had to put their energies into building new nests. Ospreys can carry up to half their own body weight…that’s about 1kg of sticks and nest building materials for each journey to and from the new nest site. Completed eyries measure in excess of five foot in diameter and can weigh anything up to 200kg. After all that nest building effort, it’s no wonder breeding pairs of ospreys defend their nest sites so fiercely from other intruding ospreys!

Worse still, spring gales, cold temperatures and very heavy and persistent rainfall affected the survival of eggs and chicks this year. Many eggs didn’t hatch and many chicks became cold and wet and simply couldn’t thrive. Bad weather also affects the fishing abilities of parent ospreys. If the water’s surface is ruffled, fish are less visible beneath the water. Also, the parents need more feed for themselves for energy to survive the colder weather.

Several of the nests Roy had selected for the Sky Hawk osprey didn’t produce any live chicks this year. This is simply nature in action, but it just shows how important it is to maintain conservation efforts and ensure ospreys have safe habitats to return to year after year.

A secret nest site

With everything ready to go, even the sun decided to shine down on us. I met Roy, his assistant and the tree climber at a secret rendezvous, and we set off for the nest site, bumping across miles of roads and tracks going deeper and deeper into wild forest. A fox sloped off into the undergrowth and an osprey, taking a morning bath in the puddle of a deep rut flew up past our heads, startled by our presence. I guessed few people had been this way in a long time. Where the track ended, we left the 4x4 behind and walked across several miles of springy undergrowth, a carpet of heather and wild bilberry until we reached a small clearing. A lone Scots pine held the nest up on high, and above our heads two ospreys wheeled and called out their alarm calls. Fine wisps of mist hung in the air after the night’s storm. The air was still and golden. There was a deeply magical quality about this place, as if it had been held in time.

Thistle

Nest site

Adult osprey

Getting up the tree…not as easy as it might seem!

I watched our tree climber prepare his ropes and harnesses to climb the tree. It wasn’t an easy tree to climb, made even more difficult by the wide spaced brittle side-branches and the overhanging curve of the main trunk at the top.

Negotiating the overhang

At the top and with good news

Three live chicks

Our tree climber called down the good news of three healthy chicks of about 6 weeks of age…perfect for fitting the satellite tracker. He gently lowered them down separately in a canvas bag. All the time, I couldn’t help think of parallels to the story in Sky Hawk, of this same moment, of the anticipation of seeing an osprey right up close.

Lowering the young osprey

The words I had written in Sky Hawk rang true;

“Nothing prepared me for seeing her right in front of me. It was as if the lochs and the mountains and the sky were folded deep inside her, as if she was a small piece of this vast landscape and none of it could exist without her.”

With all three chicks down from the nest, Roy identified them as two male chicks and one female chick. Female birds of prey are generally bigger than their male counterparts. It’s not certain why this is so but some theories suggest it may be that different sized parent birds may select different size prey. Female sparrowhawk can tackle bigger bird species than the male and maybe by doing so they have a wider range of prey and increase the chances of bringing more food to the nest.

The chicks stalked about, wings folded, reminiscent of grounded vultures or strange prehistoric bird forms.

Young osprey eyes are deep amber, so different from the sunflower yellow of the adult.

Their plumage is cryptic. A mottled mix of browns and whites, perfect camouflage against airbourne predators, such as goshawk.

Essential fieldwork

All the young were identified for future reference….and data taken.

They each had a metal BTO leg ring attached, each with a unique number. The BTO (British Trust for Ornithology) ring is more useful when an injured or dead bird has been recovered. The ring contains the address for the British Museum. Returning a ring can give vital information of where the bird was found, what injury it sustained etc.

Roy also fitted each bird with a highly visible numbered colour ring. This allows the bird to be recognised from a distance simply by reading the ring with binoculars, giving more valuable information if someone sights the bird and informs of it’s whereabouts. Not many birds can be satellite tracked due to expense, so being able to build up a record of colour ring sightings is very useful. The legs rings used on these three birds were blue and white; 96 (male) 97 (male) and 98 (female)

Roy weighed each bird…

…measured the length of the longest wing feather…

…and took a tail measurement…

A couple of tiny down feathers from the inside wing were taken for DNA records…

Roy also assessed each bird for body condition, if its crop was full of food, and for any distinctive weak marks along the feathers that may have indicated lack of food during a distinct growing period.

Roy spent some time deciding which osprey to choose to fit the tracker with. He’s particularly interested in the returning males…when and where do they return? Some studies show that they do return to nest sites but also explore a very wide area across Scotland, England and Wales looking for new nesting sites and undoubtedly building up a mental map. Tracking research could help establish breeding ospreys across the UK and bring back ospreys to areas where they once were a common sight. Not only is this research good for the survival of magnificent ‘flagship’ species like the osprey, but also by identifying essential habitats ospreys need for survival, we may be able to ensure the conservation of plants and other animals in ecologically sensitive areas.

Roy decided upon the biggest male to fit with the satellite tracker.

The Sky Hawk osprey

Identification;

Blue and white leg ring 97

Weight 1663g

Wing measurement 320mm

Tail measurement 128mm

Roy fitted the satellite tracker with a small harness around the bird’s back. Note the solar panel on the top of the transmitter to charge up the battery and hopefully give readings for several years.

Satellite trackers are small lightweight radio transmitters which send out signals at set times. These signals are then picked up by satellites and in turn sent to a computer that analyses the data received. Much detailed information can be gathered from this; the location of the bird down to an accuracy of 18m radius, speed and direction of flight and also altitude. This information allows a picture to be built up of the osprey’s route of migration and also flight patterns at breeding and overwintering sites. Already, sites where ospreys rest and refuel on their long migration have been identified, leading to conservation of these ecologically sensitive areas.

The harness was sewn in place with cotton. The cotton will eventually rot and allow the tracker to fall off after several years, ensuring the osprey is not encumbered by the tracker after it the battery has ceased to function.

The Sky Hawk osprey…tagged and ready to go…

Roy Dennis, the Sky Hawk osprey and me

As we sent the Sky Hawk osprey back up to the nest, I couldn’t help feeling elated but also incredibly nervous for him; for his first flight, for learning essential fishing skills, for his first extraordinary migration to Africa across some of the world’s harshest landscapes. But my mind was most filled with worries of the human threats facing ospreys…and I find myself hoping against hope; that he will not be shot or poisoned, that he will not be a victim of pollution or entanglement in human waste, that he will not be electrocuted by overhead powerlines, that he will find ‘safe’ areas to rest and fish during his long migration and that he will find enough fish despite overfishing by European trawlers along the African coastline.

Re-introduction of ospreys back into Britain continues to be a success thanks to the huge efforts of many dedicated individuals. But the migration of the osprey spans whole countries and continents. As the author of Sky Hawk I wanted the osprey to show that the conservation of our natural world cannot be brought about by individuals or countries acting in isolation. It can only be achieved through our understanding of each other; our cultural, social and economic differences, across countries and continents as far flung and widespread as the osprey itself.

The Sky Hawk osprey has been sponsored by children’s book publishers from countries as far apart as the Faroe Islands and Korea. It’s my belief that all children across the world care deeply about the future of our planet and that they should have their voices heard. Let’s just hope World Leaders, intent on the pursuit of the short term riches of power and money, will sit up and listen.

The Sponsors of the Sky Hawk Osprey

2011-07-14T14:52:00.000-07:00

The Sponsors of the Sky Hawk Osprey

A MASSIVE thank you to the following English language and foreign language publishers, for their incredibly generous donations to make this exciting project possible.

Chinese
Yilin Press http://www.yilin.com/

Danish

Forlaget Flachs http://www.flachs.dk/

Dutch

Lemniscaat http://www.lemniscaat.nl/

English (UK)
Oxford University Press http://www.oup.com/

English (USA)

Atheneum

KIDS.SimonandSchuster.com

Faroese
Bókadeild Føroya Lærarafelags http://www.bfl.fo/

French
Gallimard Jeunesse
http://www.gallimard-jeunesse.fr/

German

dtv junior www.dtv-kinderbuch.de

Greek
Patakis http://www.patakis.gr/

Hungarian
Könyvmolyképző Kiadó Ltd. http://www.konyvmolykepzo.hu/

Korean
Yewon Media Publishing Co

Norwegian
Cappelen Damm http://www.cappelendamm.no/

Slovenian
Zalozba Alica Publishing House http://www.alica.si/

Welsh
Rily Publications http://www.rily.co.uk/

The journey begins....

2011-05-07T01:26:00.000-07:00

Hi folks....

Watch this space...this blog will follow the journey of a real live osprey....HOW AMAZING IS THAT!!!!

Thanks to very kind donations from Oxford University Press and the foreign language publishers of Sky Hawk...a satellite tagged osprey has been sponsored with the wildlife charity...The Highland Foundation for Wildlife.

In July this year, I will travel to Scotland to meet Roy Dennis, the founder of the charity, who will select and tag one of this year's osprey chicks. You'll be able to follow its incredible journey right here!

Full details of sponsors to be confirmed and added soon.