Osprey season 2010. Towards fledging.

Wonderful pic's Margaret. I think Dad wishes the "paparazzi" would give him some privacy!! Too cute!

Amazing pic's, Margaret! Love the sequence of the "digestive moment", LOL ... reminds me of my cats when they throw up "hair/fur balls", but I never realized that Osprey's (or other birds) throw up "feather balls"! The last shot is truly beautiful ... looks like Whopper posed on cue for that photo!

Beautiful set of the digestive moment Margaret! lol That last shot is stunning! his expression you hit right on! lol

Amazing photos Margaret! Whopper and the parents look great. Thanks so much for sharing all this with us. It's a real joy to see the story from beginning to end.

Wow! For Whopper to be so big, he/she can lift of the nest well ;o) Great pix, Marggie!

Guess who got a Canon 500mm lens for her birthday! Stupidly, the birthday girl forgot to check that the tripod mount plate was compatible with the new lens (it may be but the mount for the 400 was keyed to the plate and I didn't have the allen key with me at the nest), so these shots are hand held.

OH you lucky girl new lens,Happy Birthday to you !!! The last shot was fantastic.I did like the last shot of dad also too funny ,like geeze give me a break !!! Hard to think Whopper was a chick just a short time ago,crazy....

Tamara, I couldn't be happier. What I like about the shot of the three of them there on the nest together is the light is in the eyes of each one and shows the different colours.

Here, Big Hook politely asks Dad, who is eating a fish on a branch below the nest, to make a delivery.

Funny you mentioned that ,that was the first thing I looked at ...Yes Iam up very early its now 4:30 am,been up an hour now ... sleeplessness arggg !!! LOL I will have a good start on the day.

Last one for now. I need to go figure out if the plate fits this lens.

Congratulations on the new lens Margaret!

Wonderful shots!

Margaret, Congratulations on your new camera lens, and hope it all fits together okay. Loved that last picture of all three of osprey family

Donna

Congrats on the new lens, Mags! I hope to get one someday ;o) You are going to take even more spectacular pix...I did not think that was possible, since yours are already GREAT!

Wonderful pictures Margaret.

The capture of the "digestive moment" earned you the look Dad gave you! LOL

The shot of the three of them together is a great family portrait.

Congrats. on the new lens!

Thanks for the congratulations on the new lens. Pete can now rest easy on the embankment.

From receiving the lens to being at the nest was less than an hour and considering I didn't have a tripod, I'm pretty pleased with the results. I will have to get a new plate, but that's no big deal. I should have it within 4 or 5 days. We're expecting some cloudy days, so it won't be too hard to be patient.

That family shot is wonderful ... really interesting to compare parents and chick together and great seeing the difference in eye color!

Love the shot of Whopper spreading her wings. I have a feeling it won't be long before she leaves the nest, the shot a few days ago of her lifting 3' off the nest is proof that she's almost ready to soar!

Congratulations on the new 500mm lens, Margaret. I'm impressed that you were out there without a tripod. It can get a little heavy. The one thing that you might want to consider, if you haven't already, is insurance. I'd hate to see it slide down the bank to the river below. I carry mine around attached to the tripod (on my shoulder) and am always conscious of a possible misstep.

I'm sure you will try the 1.4x teleconverter, also. You have such a great vantage point to the Osprey nest. Someone told me to rest my one hand on the lens because when the shutter goes off, it sends a vibration up the lens ? Everyone talks about technique beyond the camera/lens capability so I'm trying to improve my technique, also.

I like that next to last photo, in particular. Best wishes with the new gear.

Margaret... congrats on the new lens! Those last shots are fabulous being hand held! I know you are going to have lots of fun with it!

Speaking for myself I love the moments you capture that give us a true look at their behaviors. That is what is so fantastic about your Osprey series.

The family shot with your new lens is spectacular!!

Wow, congratulations on the wonderful new lens Margaret!!

Your photos are already exceptional and with the new lens they'll get you closer yet. Enjoy your new toy.

I loved the chocked series, but that last closefup of dad is the best ever!

Now that's one heck of a birthday present!

I agree,you already take such beautiful photos... Looking forward to new lens photos = }

Thank you all for sharing my enthusiasm about the new lens. It is the most fantastic gift. I am really pleased with the results so far and will be able to give it a real workout when I get the plate for the tripod. I can't believe I didn't think of that for even a second. Linth, when I say "hand-held", I may have been a little misleading. I actually steadied it on the back of a sturdy chair. There's no way on earth I could hand hold that behemoth. And don't worry, insurance cover was updated. Thanks for your concern. I already have the Canon 1.4 and 2x converters. Nanny, I'm glad you're enjoying their behaviours. It's fascinating observing new stuff.

Now the really big news. Madame X has seen Whopper out on the branch this afternoon. She hasn't seen it fly, but it was preening itself and completely at ease out on a limb. I haven't been to the nest the past two days, but will be able to tomorrow.

Gosh next photo could be 1 in flight..Wow

Margaret,
Congrats - you will need a different plate to the 400 to be safe! Linth, my suggestion is to consider a shutter release cable - I've found it greatly increases my ability for 'sharpness' especially at the higher focal length. I do also sometimes place hand on the lens for stationary shots - this in combination with shutter release cable is best for me so far. Exciting news about the Whopper - that's very early!
Pete

Hi Pete. We won't mention the cricket, will we? (Cringe). You would have baked in Adelaide. I've just ordered the lens plate, so it should arrive within 4-5 days. Linth and Pete, I have been doing that with the lens - resting my arm across the barrel of the lens to reduce shake. It makes sense. I have a wireless remote and will use it when I get the plate.

Tamara, I don't know about flight shots, but you never know. The new lens is fairly static resting on the back of the chair, so flight shots will be awkward until I get the new plate.

well if not today ,it wont be long.Just amazing Whopper just hatched yesterday ,seems like.

I do hope that plate arrives soon. Think I'm as anxious as you are to see more photos.

Margaret, I'm surprised B&H didn't ask you about needing a plate. Oh well. You'll have plenty of time to enjoy it.
Pete, hope all is well with you. And, thank you for the recommendation(s). I was using a remote but I left it attached to the camera and the wires apparently broke because I have lost the connection. I plan to get another but will probably go with a generic brand. I might as well go generic because I can probably buy 3-4 for the price of one original. I've done that with batteries and it seems to work out.

Margaret, I was going to ask you if you were experiencing any problems with the locusts. I was reading about them in Victoria. The birds should not be lacking for food in those areas. We are experiencing something similar here in the Mid-Atlantic states. Damage to fruit and vegetable crops from stink bugs has reached critical levels. And, there doesn't seem to be a good solution. They arrived here in the states from Asia in 1998. In Asia, a parasitic wasp helps control stink bug populations by attacking their eggs. But it would take years to effectively introduce the wasp here.

Hopefully, you will get a few shots of "Whopper" and the parents with your new lens before they abandon the nest.

So wonderful about your new lens, those Ospreys are going to be even more gorgeous. Can't wait to see the result of both the plate and lens. Congratulation. Yay for Whooper and his progress.

"She's HUGE!" were Madame X's opening words in a phone call to me this morning. The well-named Whopper had been flying around and appeared to Madame to be about the same size as an adult. It was only when it landed in the top of the trees outside her house that it was obvious that it was a young bird, very much learning the art of a graceful landing. I wonder if, considering this young bird's size, we can safely assume it is a female. We have both noticed that it is also far less vocal than Aussie and Harmony (and we all know that the female of all species is much quieter than the male).

Just a couple of shots from this afternoon. Big Hook is at the left of the picture. I'm looking forward to seeing Whopper side-by-side with Dad for another size comparison.

The plate is en route. If the service is as good as it has been on previous occasions, I should have it by next Monday at the very latest.

Linth, the locust problem is in the eastern states and to my knowledge there isn't a locust problem here in the west. It's not likely there would be a problem here - we're in drought conditions and there's very little they could feast on anyway. I would imagine (or hope) that the authorities would be very cautious about introducing a predator species to combat an introduced pest. Here in Australia we have a huge problem with Cane Toads which were purposefully introduces to combat what in hindsight was a minor problem. However, the Cane Toads have proliferated are decimating native species and have marched all the way from Queensland over "The top" and are now in Western Australia. One was found in a Perth metropolitan backyard only two weeks ago. Scary stuff.

Just about to kind of fly - kind of walk onto the right hand branch.

The male Osprey from the other side of the bay may be well enough to be released at the end of this week.

Margaret: Your photo's are really wonderful. Whopper is a big girl for sure, a beautiful Osprey! She almost looks bigger than Big Hook. It will be interesting to see the comparison of her and Dad side by side and I really look forward to seeing pic's of Whopper in flight!

I hope you know how educational your narration and photo's are and how much we all truly appreciate your efforts in sharing with us. I know your photograph's would make for a wonderful book!

Glad to hear the Osprey on the other side of the bay has been rehabilitated and can be released soon ... great news!

Congratulations on the successful first flights of Whopper. That's good news.

Great shots !!!

they grow up so fast.....

Yahoo, good for Whopper!! She's just beautiful!! Glad to hear the male may be well enough to release too.

Look at that little Whopper go! Proud of you!

Mags, I saw a program on the Cane Toad problem one day this month. Horrible! I guess there is a team of folks catching and freezing them. I cannot remember what they do with them after frozen. I was glad they just go to sleep and never awake...I am such a softy when it comes to animals, even the not so desired ones! ;o))

duckmother: LOL, we have the Cuban Tree Frogs that have invaded Florida ... eating our little native tree frogs and lizards etc. When I found my first one a few years ago I began googling and found something at the University of Florida telling how to humanely euthanize the critters ... freezing them puts them in a tupor like state, they just sorta shut down and go to sleep and freeze to death. You can also put a dab of benzocaine or Ora Gel on them which renders them unconcious and then you can put them in the freezer to finalize the process! I haven't seen any of those critters this year ... maybe our record breaking cold winter last year did them all in! http://ufwildlife.ifas.ufl.edu/cuban_treefrog_inFL.shtml

I have not seen frogs of any kind here since last years' freezes.