A PARROT has begun calling like an osprey after its owners became addicted to online footage from a nest in the Scottish Highlands.

Sailor is a 24-year-old African grey parrot who lives with Stuart and Sue Brannen in Seamer just outside Scarborough, North Yorkshire.

She has been mimicking the hunger call of Aila, a female osprey whose nest is fitted with a camera that can be viewed live online.

The nest is at Loch Arkaig Forest near Spean Bridge in Lochaber, recently purchased by Woodland Trust Scotland in partnership with local group Arkaig Community Forest. The nest camera, supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery is solar powered and will beam out live footage throughout the summer. The osprey pair have been named Louis and Aila.

The Brannens have been glued to the drama.

“We both have tablets and it has been riveting to watch Louis and Aila the osprey pair in Scotland,” said Stuart, 70, who is a retired merchant seaman.

“We have had the website on so much Sailor has started to mimic the pleading cry Aila makes when she wants Louis to feed her. It is remarkable! If you are in the other room you can’t tell if it is the osprey or the parrot making the noise.”

George Anderson of Woodland Trust Scotland said: "It seems our nest cam has brought a real call of the wild into people's homes. Aside from Sailor we have heard there is a budgie somewhere which also thinks its an osprey now! So long as they don't leave off the cuttlefish and develop a taste for fresh trout."

"Ospreys are very unconcerned by cameras so there are quite a few pairs people can watch. Some fans keep tabs on lots of different nests. We get comments below our live feed where visitors compare and contrast how birds are doing around the country. Its clearly quite addictive. Some people are glued to the tennis or cricket while others are glued to the ospreys."

"We were able to buy this amazing forest thanks to people all over the UK and beyond contributing to the appeal, including players of People's Postcode Lottery. It is a wild and remote place so not everyone will be able to visit. We thought this nest camera would be a nice way to give everyone a flavour wherever they may be."

It has been a dramatic week at the nest. Two chicks hatched over the weekend but one did not survive. Then the third and final egg hatched but again the chick died. The remaining chick is doing well however.

The male bird had a three week wait at the nest site before attracting a mate earlier in the Spring - leading staff to nickname him Lonesome Louis. The female was named Aila which means "from the strong place" in Gaelic.

British Commandos and Allied Special Forces including the Free French trained at Loch Arkaig during WWII. During exercises with live ammunition forest fire raged across the hillside. Scots pines cooked in their own resin were preserved and still stand like ghost trees across the hillside.

Loch Arkaig was the location for a sequence in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Harry, Hermione and Ron cling to a dragon as it flies above the forest before jumping off into the loch below. Filming on the shore is thought to have been cut short because the midges were too fierce!

The forest is home to wild boar, sea eagles, golden eagles, ospreys, pine martens and deer amongst many other species. Steeped in history, the area is the ancestral home of Clan Cameron. A consignment of gold sent from France to help fund the escape of Bonnie Prince Charlie is said to be hidden in the forest.