Tuesday, 28 September 2021
Lichen are important organisms for tackling climate change and increasing biodiversity. However, recent monitoring work had shown some older coastal woodlands have taken over lichen habitat. We can help fix this with modern conservation efforts as we continue to find better ways for nature and forestry to exist together. Planting in Culbin began in the 1920s to stabilise dunes. This created habit...
Wednesday, 22 September 2021
With autumn on the horizon and the weather turning, it's the perfect time to remember all the amazing scenes that arrive in the latter part of the year: glorious colours, crisp & frosty mornings, a crunch underfoot and the comfort of a beanie hat! Here's a collection of autumn articles to get you inspired for the season ahead. Awesome autumn leaves Why do leaves change colour? And why red...
Thursday, 16 September 2021
Ospreys are one of Scotland’s greatest wildlife revival stories. Considered extinct as a breeding bird in the British Isles in 1916, there are now about 250 pairs across the country. Around August and September is when they begin the long flight south to warmer climes for winter. For newly fledged ospreys, this is the start of a treacherous journey. Raising chicks During the Scot...
Tuesday, 14 September 2021
The news is not very promising this week, unfortunately, because one of the two satellite tracked osprey juveniles, Talla, has not relayed any updated signal since 1 September. The last time Talla was tracked, was near Portimao in Portugal, flying strongly towards the south coast. It could be that she flew out to sea and has been lost, or could have made it to Africa and is in a remote area where ...
Tuesday, 07 September 2021
Autumn migration is well under way now and most ospreys have left the UK or are about to. Talla (671), one of the two satellite tracked ospreys from the main Tweed Valley osprey nest, left the UK on 26 August and travelled to Portugal. Her journey, as reported last week, ended on 30 August, roosting near an internationally important wetland area. She never stayed though and on 31 August pressed on...
Wednesday, 01 September 2021
The Year of Coasts & Waters has been extended throughout 2021, showcasing some of Scotland’s most beautiful landscapes. However, our amazing coastline isn’t all about beaches or cliffs, and it comes in lots of different shapes and sizes. Here, we’ve picked our favourite coastal forests to inspire you to explore and learn more about Scotland’s incredible coastal landscape...
Tuesday, 31 August 2021
This is a very exciting time for the Tweed Valley osprey project because one of the young satellite tagged ospreys has migrated. Talla (Darvic ring blue 671) from the main nest has left Tweed Valley and set off on the first migration of his or her life. Having previously ventured no further than over the hills beside the forest and as far as the next valley, this young bird just took off on the m...
Tuesday, 24 August 2021
There are periods of quiet at the main Tweed Valley osprey nest now. The birds are moving further afield and only returning to the nest to hang around waiting for their dad PW3 to return with fish. He is still doing a great job and on 18 August there were two fish on the nest, with a juvenile sitting below on a branch. Uneaten fish on the nest suggests that the birds are full and food is plentiful...
Tuesday, 17 August 2021
It's looking increasingly likely that the female osprey, Mrs O, has left Peeblesshire to begin her migration. The last sighting of her was on 8 August and she has not been seen at the nest area since or near her offspring. The osprey season will soon be drawing to a close once more for the year as birds begin to leave us. The first to go are usually the non-breeders and females who have finished r...
Tuesday, 10 August 2021
The osprey family are often away from the nest now that the juveniles have fledged, but they are returning to feed when parents deliver fish. The young birds fly back from their watchful perches atop pine trees with high excitement and much calling at the sight of food. They no longer require assistance and can feed themselves, so the adult birds are operating a delivery service only. Perhaps Meg...
Friday, 06 August 2021
Seasonal rangers make up a crucial part of our workforce every year. From helping other staff with their ongoing work to chatting with visitors to our forests, it's a varied and interesting role. We caught up with one such ranger, Carola, to see how she was getting on. What made you want to become a seasonal ranger with FLS? I love the outdoors and feel passionate about how it can benefit us all...
Tuesday, 03 August 2021
The main Tweed Valley osprey nest is often empty now that the juvenile ospreys have fledged but they are never too far away from home. Megget (670) and Talla (671) have been fairly adventurous trying out their wings on flights around the forest but we can see from the tracking data that neither of them has ventured further yet. The greatest distance travelled so far has been by the bolder of the t...
Tuesday, 27 July 2021
This week, many ospreys across the region will have taken their first flights and have started their final journeys towards reaching full adulthood. Here in Tweed Valley, it was young Megget that was the first to leave the main nest on 18 July. Her first trip was an impressive 240 metres. This was in the evening and the tracker relayed data to show that she was still there in the early hours of ...
Tuesday, 20 July 2021
On 19 July, in the main nest, osprey chicks Megget and Talla were 54 days old and one of them fledged. The other osprey youngster was sat low down in the nest and we could not see the ring number, so we couldn’t say whether it was Megget or Talla that made the first brave flight. She probably didn’t venture far, most likely a wing lifted jump into a close-by pine. Mrs O was relaxed, sitting ab...