Telyn

Thank you to everybody that voted on whether we should name Rutland's Blue 3J or not. Over 4,000 people voted, incredible.

The Dyfi Osprey Project is funded 100% by donations from yourselves and visitors to the project, so we think it is important that you have a say in what we do. Between email messages, a Facebook poll and visitor centre voting, almost 90% of you voted in favour of giving Monty's new mate a name.

Telyn

Telyn is the Welsh word for harp.

Over the winter we had been busy planning a DOP benefit concert which took place last week at the 360 Observatory. Catrin Finch, a world-renowned Welsh harpist and Seckou Keita, an eminent Senegalese harpist (harp is called 'Kora' in Senegal) launched their new album "SOAR" on the same day.

SOAR is based on osprey migration between Wales and Senegal, the flights our birds take twice a year, free from country borders, immigration, visas, passports and all the other obstacles our species have put in place to restrict travel between one place to another.

Catrin and Seckou's music bring Welsh and West African cultures together, infusing music and traditions in a truly unique way. Just like the ospreys experience two very different cultures during the course of one year, this incredible album does the same thing, only with music.

Catrin Finch playing in the 360 Observatory last week

Seckou Keita playing the West African Kora with the Dyfi osprey nest behind him

Why Telyn?

Blue 3J is an English bird with Scottish ancestry breeding in Wales. She probably migrates to west Africa every winter, Senegal or Gambia.

Just as she was laying her clutch of eggs last week, Blue 3J would have heard the beautiful harp music emanating from the 360 Observatory on the still Friday evening breeze. Music that transcends borders and cultures, continents and heritage, music that brings people and ospreys together in one place.

Harp and Kora music resonates down the Dyfi Estuary as Telyn incubates, hours before laying her third egg

Telyn knows no boundaries, no borders, no constraints and no nationality. She is a free spirit that travels where she wants, when she wants, just like Catrin and Seckou's music. No labels, no tags.

What Was the Process?

Many people said that we should pick an English name, and indeed we thought long and hard about "Edith" - a village close to where Blue 3J was born - Edith Weston. However, when we counted them up, slightly more people said that they preferred a Welsh name.

Sadly, we can't please everybody, but we hope that you can see that we've followed the line of strongest democracy.

Here are some of the more prolific names suggested, together with the reasons we felt that we had to choose otherwise:

• Blue Jay - is a crow species in North America, too confusing
• ThreeJay - would have been abbreviated to 3J, negating the need for a name
• Blue - all UK ospreys for the last eight years have blue rings
• A person's name - we don't name any of our birds after specific people
• Seren - been used for a previous Welsh osprey
• Rivers/lakes - used for chicks

Telyn is pronounced 'Tell-In'.

World Music

It's hard to put into words the emotions and feelings the 45 lucky people felt when they listened to Catrin and Seckou last week at Cors Dyfi Reserve. Inspirational and magical is the best I can do. You really had to be there to feel it.

The concert raised £2,000 specifically for our Dyfi Wildlife Centre project, our vision for a great new centre at Cors Dyfi. More about this in the summer.

SOAR is currently No 2 in the World Album Charts and is available in the DOP shop and on our online shop from September. All profits go to the Dyfi Wildlife Centre project.

Catrin and Seckou have just started their UK tour.

With kind permission from Theatr Mwldan, here is the first piece of music that these two great musicians played in the 360 Observatory last Friday, a tribute to a very special osprey.

It's called Clarach.