Introduction
Stan is a male osprey that was fitted with a satellite transmitter as a chick in 2012. To view further details about his movements and history click on his link on the left
September 14, 2012
No news
October 5, 2012
Stan’s transmitter should have sent data on 30th September but none was reecived and again on 4th October. There are no clues to what has happened although one worries that he set off over the ocean from the Cape Verde islands and failed to make landfall. Hope for further signals in case it is a transmitter blip.
Exploring the Cape Verdes
September 26, 2012
Stan has remained on the Cape Verdes but has started to move about and explore a little. On the 24th he left Sao Nicolau and flew to Sao Vicente. He stayed there for 7 hours and then flew through the night on to Santo Antao, where he has remained, moving up and down the SW coast. This is a mountainous island and the location at the south end near Tarrifal is a place I have visited and remember finding an opsrey nest high in a mountain gorge sveral thousnad feet above the sea. A most incredible nests.- can’t wait for the next set of transmissions to see if he remains here or heads off to mainland Africa.
sept 19-26
What would be very interesting would be if Stan decides that over ocean migrations are not for him and that he decides to settle in the Cape Verde . He could be a very usfelu genetic addition to this small population of ospreys
Settled in Cape Verde
September 24, 2012
Stan has moved around the island and visited various parts, and let’s hope he has been catching some fish and by now he has almost certainly met some of the local ospreys
Locations on Sao Nicolau to 22ooGMT on 21st Septembet
Stan has reached the Cape Verdes islands !!!!
September 20, 2012
Wow what an osprey – Amazingly Stan has managed to fly over 1560 km (967 miles) over the Atlantic Ocean to make safe landfall on the Cape Verdes. Last evening, while I was on a Cathay Pacific flight to Hong Kong, Stan was flapping the last stretch over the ocean to an island called Sao Nicolau (I’ve flown over it a couple of times on my way to Sao Vicente while studying the CV ospreys). He was resting close to the sea at a headland at 2000 – (2200GMT), and non GPS data for 0208GMT and 0406GMT this morning showed that he was alive. The Cape Verdes have a small population of breeding ospreys which I think could comprise some lost exhausted birds from Europe. It’s got good fishing so as long as he recovers from his flight he should catch fish. I wonder if he will stay there or fly back to Senegal – he might even stay and join the local breeders. I always wanted to satellite track ospreys on the Cape Verdes and now we have one. One previous Scottish osprey has been found in CV – a bird ringed by Roger Broad found dead on Fogo. Stan is an amazing osprey.
Flight to Cape Verdes
Northern Cape Verdes
Point on Sao Nicolau
Stan is chancing his luck
September 18, 2012
Tonight Stan is flying south from Gran Canaria over the Atlantic Ocean – some 200 km off the coast of Western Sahara. It is 375 km to the western corner of West Africa which is in his line if the wind is light northerly. Some forecasts say NE light winds – that might mean nearest land is Cape Verde islands 1000 km ahead. Pushed for time this evening to update new data just in so I attach the overall map. As I write he will be flying over the sea – bon voyage.
Stan’s massive migration via the Canary Islands – let’s hope he reaches West Africa
Stan’s the Navigator – incredible first migration
September 15, 2012
Stan did not stop in Cheshire at dusk – he just kept flying through the night and when the tranmitter started its morning schedule at 0600GMT Stan was on the south side of Brittany flying south past Quiberon after flying 365 miles. He set off strongly our over the Bay of Biscay flying just west of south and after a strong flight made landfall over Santander on the North coast of Spain at 1500 hrs. He did not stop but headed SSW into the Cantabrian mountains. At 1700hrs he was at 1240 metres altitude flying SSW at 49kph but at 1900 hrs finally settled to roost in a wood on the other side of the mountain near Villanuno de Valdaria.
This was an incredible 1057 mile (1700 km) first migration – successfully crossing the appraocahes to the English Channel and the whole of the Bay of Biscay. He started at 10.30 am (0930GMT) and finally stopped migrating after 1800 GMT on 13th September. What a great start to his migration.
Fantastic first day’s migration
September 12, 2012
Stan left his nest after 10.30am on 12th September, probably after a eating a fish caught by his father in Findhorn Bay. Strong NW winds helped him south and there was the calls of pink-footed geese in the air – arriving from Iceland. At midday he was flying through the Cairngorm mountain passes and at 1pm was east of Pitlochry flying due south at 40kph. At2pm he was approaching Loch Leven and then flew over the Forth road bridges headoing for the Scottoish Borders which he reached ar 4pm. At 5pm he was near Wigton and then flew over the Lake District.At 7pm he was at Preston flying S at 54kph and the last signal gave him still flying strongly south at Market Drayton. 328 miles in 9 hours – a really good start of his autumn migation. I wonder where he stopped to roost last night.
Stan’s first day of migration 12th September
Still at home
September 8, 2012
Stan is still at home – I saw him perched in the tree beside his nest at 3.35pm on 4th September – he looked very well facing into a fresh westerly breeze. The data to last evening 7th showed him still at home although making a few trips to fishing lochs of up to 5.5 miles.
