Lady luck

The recent ferocious weather in France and Spain has held up most of the returning ospreys this spring, as well as other migrating birds, so there’s every chance that the legendary “Lady” will return.

I must also point out that the sticks which the male osprey brings in are not “tokens of  affection”.

They serve the very practical purpose of building up the nest in anticipation of chicks, and he’s been bringing them in since the moment he returned on 21 March.

A female osprey would much prefer a juicy fish as an enticement to pair-bonding. The male has been most obliging in this respect.

The spokesman who mentioned the “frustration nest” as a potential, if not guaranteed, second breeding nest for the male underestimates the tolerance levels of Lady – or of any female osprey for that matter.

It’s situated only a few wing flaps away from the established nest, so any attempts to set up a cosy love nest would be  swiftly and ferociously ended by the furious matriarch of the Lowes.

This is precisely what happened last year, when she returned to find her mate with a female on the new nest.

As Scottish Wildlife Trust ranger Charlotte Fleming said, there will be high drama if Lady returns to find a usurper on her nest.

Carolyn Taylor

Broughty Ferry

Dundee