Wildlife lovers hail ‘perfect’ pair of ospreys

Conservationists have hailed the incredible success of an osprey love match which has boosted numbers of the endangered birds of prey.

Forestry England experts visited the nest of the prolific pair in Kielder, Northumberland, to ring four more of their chicks.

The duo – known as Mr and Mrs YA from their tags – began breeding in 2013 when they had their first offspring on a specially built platform in Kielder Forest, close to one of Europe’s largest man-made lakes.

Since then 22 of their chicks have successfully fledged, with the current brood soon to leave the nest and boost numbers further.

With plenty of prey nearby, Mr YA is known to be an excellent provider while his partner is an equally nurturing and attentive mother.

Joanna Dailey, from the Kielder Osprey project, said: “Their impact on our growing osprey population has been tremendous.

“Ospreys are pretty faithful to each other and these two are the perfect match.

“He’s an excellent hunter and brings back plenty of fish to feed the family.

“She is just as effective as a mother, making sure each chick gets a share and keeping them warm.

“They are always one of the earliest couples back from their wintering grounds in Africa.

“Not surprisingly we’ve become very attached to them.”

 Provided by Indy 100One of Mr and Mrs YA’s four latest chicks (Forestry England/PA) ()

Ospreys were extinct in England in the 20th century and when they returned to Kielder in 2009 it was the first time chicks were born in Northumberland for at least 200 years.

Re-colonisation has steadily happened since, thanks in no small part to Mr and Mrs YA.

Kevin May, Forestry England forest management director, north district, said: “The success of this nest and others has made Kielder Forest one of the bird’s English strongholds.

“Plus it has significantly increased the likelihood that this iconic species will spread throughout the rest of the country.

“That’s nature recovery in action in England’s largest working forest.

“By working with our partners we have been able to produce a wonderful habitat of woodland and water.”

Ringing chicks is vital to help experts keep tabs on the osprey population.

The youngsters were gently lowered from their nest and fitted with a unique identifying ring which will stay on for the rest of their lives, before they were returned unharmed.

The chicks will soon learn to hunt before making the long journey south, spending winter as far away as sub-Saharan Africa.

Reference: Indy 100: Tom Wilkinson

Giant anteater diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at zoo

Agiant anteater at Edinburgh Zoo is being treated for diabetes, with keepers relying on a device more usually used in humans to monitor her condition.

In the first reported case of its kind, anteater Nala has been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.

Keepers have trained her to have daily insulin injections, while a donated glucose monitor is being used to ensure she gets the right dose.

Dr Stephanie Mota, resident veterinary surgeon at the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, said Nala was diagnosed after exhibiting symptoms similar to those seen in humans with diabetes.

Dr Mota said: “Keepers first discovered something was wrong when Nala was losing weight despite eating the same amount, or sometimes even more than usual.

“We carried out a full health check under general anaesthetic, running lots of tests, and found that Nala has type 1 diabetes.”

While the condition is known to occur in domestic cats and dogs and in tamandua – a type of anteater – in the wild, no other cases have been reported in giant anteaters.

Dr Mota continued: “Our keepers did an amazing job quickly training Nala to take an insulin injection every day, but the challenge for us was how to continuously monitor her blood glucose levels to ensure she was receiving the perfect dose.

“Taking bloods daily was not an option, and we did initially start monitoring the levels through urine samples but we decided to contact some companies who produced human glucose monitors to try and streamline the process, and find a way which would be the least invasive for Nala.

“Dexcom, leading providers of this technology, kindly donated the monitor to our charity and we were able to apply it during one of her training sessions, which now allows us to check her blood glucose levels through an app remotely.

“Due to her lovely personality, Nala is the ideal candidate for this technology which helps us, and her amazing team of keepers, manage her condition in the best possible way.” 

Reference: Evening Standard: Katrine Bussey 

Group of children amazed to see beaver's 'super powers' during wild adventure

A group of children aged 8-12 were amazed to find out about beavers' 'super powers' following their wild adventure. The Idle Valley Wildlife Group had a 30 Days Wild treat when they were taken to a beaver enclosure to find out all about the animal.

Derby Telegraph The children got to learn all about the beavers living in the Idle Valley Nature Reserve

Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust took the young group to explore the vast enclosure at the Idle Valley Nature Reserve. Wildlife Trust staff Charleen Case and Laura Bacon gave the children a closer look at the animals as part of their month-long nature challenge.

The young group said: “We heard about a beaver's super-powers - our favourite was the beaver 'goggles', the extra eyelid that covers their eyes underwater. We learnt that they don't eat fish - or pizza! But beavers love their veggies.”

hey added: "It was very exciting to search for signs of beavers. We found branches they had chewed, trees they had felled and a slide they used to slip into the water. Another highlight was the tiny froglets we found around one of the ponds.”

Ros, Watch leader, said: "This was a lovely opportunity for the children to experience a wild part of the reserve and to begin to understand the role of beavers in the ecosystem. Many thanks to Charleen and Laura!"

The beavers are just one part of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust's Conservation Grazing Programme, along with the cattle and sheep that help to graze nature reserves, cutting back scrub, young trees and creating great habitat for wildlife such as dragonflies, wildflowers and amphibians. 

Reference: Nottinghamshire Live: Mia O'Hare