What a fantastic week it has been for the Manton Bay pair, Maya and 33(11).

In last week’s blog entry, we mentioned we were expecting the first chick to emerge imminently. Well, we didn’t have to wait long. It was Wednesday (6^th May) and we had been watching, rewinding and checking again the webcam footage, trying to find any signs of a chick. Patience paid off and we soon had our first indication that an egg had hatched. Early afternoon, Maya shifted a segment of eggshell to the side of the nest, and it wasn’t long before we caught a glimpse of that small, newly hatched chick. But the icing on the cake for me, was being treated to a fantastic view of Maya feeding the chick for the very first time - 33 was spot on with the timing of that fish delivery!

Osprey eggs will usually hatch in the order they were laid, and it was only two days later that the second chick made its appearance early Friday morning (8^th May). With 33 being an excellent parent, he soon brought in another fish for the growing, hungry family, Maya included.

On Sunday (10^th May) afternoon the two chicks were soone joined by the third, which is brilliant news! We are all keeping our fingers crossed for the fourth, and final chick to hatch over the next couple of days.

Maya and 33, are such wonderful and experienced parents and we are all incredibly excited to watch the chicks grow over the coming weeks. And they will grow very quickly indeed…

Here are some of the highlights from the past week, featuring the three very cute bobbleheads (a fond term we have for the chicks at this stage).

Osprey Home School

As schools are still shut, the Osprey Education Team are continuing to produce some fantastic resources for all the family to get stuck in with from home. Follow the link below to find out more.

Osprey Home School