Bird Watching: Osprey season 2011. Guess what we've got!, 1 by MargaretK

MargaretK wrote:
When I went to the nest yesterday, I watched for half an hour whilst Big Hook fed the chicks. The little one was between and behind its older siblings and was missing out. It was only when one of the two larger chicks was displaced sideways and upside down when the piece of fish it had in its beak was pulled by Big Hook, who didn't seem to realise that she still had hold of one end. The little one was then able to move forward and managed to get a small feed. The chick who was dislodged upside down righted itself within half a minute.

Needless to say, I was concerned that the youngest chick would be deprived of regular feeds and hobbled to the nest this afternoon to check things out. Big Hook was covering the chicks, but eventually got up and started eating the remnants of a fish. (See photo). The chicks all roused from slumber, but none showed any sign of being hungry, which would indicate that the little one had also had its fill.

Here's Big Hook swallowing the tail of a fish. She spat it out several times as it was proving to be a difficult customer, but her persistence paid off in the end.