SCOTTISH wildlife reserve Loch of the Lowes has seen both of their osprey chicks finally fledge from their nest in Dunkeld.
Young female osprey PF4 took to the skies for her first maiden flight around the Perthshire Loch on Sunday 9 July at 10:07am.
Taking a courageous leap from her large nest, she landed back safely on it a few minutes later.
The second chick PF5 spent a great deal of time squealing, flapping, helicoptering and jumping about from the nest to a perch and back again
PF5 finally flew off at 9:47am on Thursday 13 July.
Perthshire Ranger Sara Rasmussen said: “This is a great time to come and view these majestic birds taking short flights around their nest and the loch where you can hear them shouting out for fish.
“The youngsters will be fed constantly by their parents, to build up their energy and fat reserves before their long migration in late August.
“Initially, they will spend time building up their strength, confidence and control with short flights around the nest.
“After a week they may start to venture further, building up to flights that last a few hours.”
It is usual for the female to depart first, leaving her mate to provide food for the young ospreys, until they too begin their first migration journey.
By late August they will depart on their lengthy journey south, with the male also leaving around this time.
Both parent birds, female NC0 and male LM12, returned to the nest on 17 March within six hours of each other.
Three eggs were laid in April with only two eggs hatching on 13 and 16 May respectively. This is the earliest recorded hatching date on this nest.
The Scottish Wildlife Trust’s live osprey webcam ensures people from around the world can follow events as they happen.
Loch of the Lowes Visitor Centre is currently open seven days a week from 10:30am to 5pm.
The Osprey Protection Programme at Loch of the Lowes Wildlife Reserve is supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, with funds awarded by Postcode Planet Trust.
Ospreys were extinct in Britain for much of the 20th Century. They began to recover in the 1960s and an estimated 300 pairs of ospreys now breed in the UK each summer. Most of these birds migrate to West Africa but some winter in Spain and Portugal.
