Alyth’s resident ospreys have returned to their nesting platform for the summer – and they can be viewed on a live stream.
The two ospreys, named Harry and Flora by pupils from nearby Meigle Primary School last year, returned to their nesting platform close to SSEN Transmission’s Alyth substation.
After migrating to Africa for the winter, female osprey Flora was spotted first in early April and was soon joined by male osprey Harry a few days later.
A special live osprey camera is up and running again for this year’s breeding season so avid bird-watchers can keep track of the famous Alyth residents.
Last year the live webcam, which was installed by Wildlife Windows, attracted more than 2,000 subscribers.
Hope for new chicks
In 2022 Harry and Flora reared three healthy chicks – named Rowan, Holly and Bonnie – who all successfully took flight from the nest to make the long journey south for the winter in September.
The Alyth substation team are hopeful of more chicks this year, which will take the number of osprey chicks successfully reared from the new platform to 17 since it was built in 2014.
As with previous years, the birds are carefully monitored by an on-site ornithologist throughout the nesting season to ensure any construction work doesn’t cause any disturbance to the ospreys.
School pupils did ‘terrific job’
In 2014 the ospreys were spotted nesting at the top of one of SSEN Transmission’s 48-metre-high electricity towers which was scheduled for maintenance as part of upgrade work to the transmission East Coast network.
So a nesting platform was created as an alternative home for the birds.
SSEN Transmission consents and environment manager Ewan Jelly said: “Already we’re closely monitoring the birds as they prepare the nest for this year’s breeding season.
“They are firm favourites with the teams here working on the Alyth substation project, and it’s a real joy seeing them return to the nest and take to the skies as they hunt for fish in the nearby rivers and lochs.
“The live camera link means we can continue to keep a close eye on the much-loved ospreys, and share them with a wider audience including the local community and ospreys enthusiasts alike.
“The pupils at Meigle Primary School did a terrific job in coming up with names for Harry and Flora as well as their three chicks last year, and I know they’ll be excited to hear that their favourite birds are back from their migration.”
Birds should stay all summer
The chicks should learn to fly by the end of July but will continue to be fed by the adults until they leave, which will be anytime in the first two weeks of September.
Ospreys are migratory and they will head to West Africa in early September before returning to the UK in early April.
The camera will be left in the same location over the winter but streaming will cease from the middle to end of October.
The camera system is completely autonomous. It is powered by solar panels and is live-streamed by 4G using the sun’s energy to power infra-red cameras.
How rare are ospreys?
Ospreys formerly inhabited much of Britain but heavy persecution, mainly by Victorian egg and skin collectors, led to their extinctions in England in 1840 and largely in Scotland from 1916 to 1954.
They then colonised naturally in the late 1950s in Lake Garten and their numbers have been building ever since.
There are currently an estimated 300 pairs in the UK, with most in Scotland.
How to watch the live feed
The YouTube URL may change if there are technical issues so this is the fail-safe master link.
Conversation