Osprey
The Osprey is a large diurnal fish-eating bird of prey. The upperparts are a deep, glossy brown whilst the breast is white and sometimes streaked with brown and the underparts are pure white. The head is white with a dark mask across the eyes reaching to the sides of the neck. A short tail and long, narrow wings with 4 long, finger-like feathers and a shorter 5th give it a very distinctive appearance. The sexes appear fairly similar but the adult male can be distinguished from the female by its slimmer body and narrower wings.
Fish make up 99% of the Osprey's diet and it typically takes fish weighing 5 to 10 ounces and about 10 to 14 inches in length. Virtually any type of fish in that weight and size range are taken. The Osprey possesses specialised physical characteristics and exhibits unique behaviour to assist in hunting and catching prey. Ospreys have vision that is well adapted to detecting underwater objects from the air. Prey is first sighted when the Osprey is 30 to 130 feet above the water, after which the bird hovers momentarily then plunges feet first into the water. Occasionally the Osprey may prey on rodents, rabbits, hares, amphibians, other birds and small reptiles.
The Osprey is a summer visitor to the UK and birds arrive back from Africa in late March and April and leave again in August and September. They can also be seen at almost any large body of freshwater during spring and autumn migration.
The Osprey’s main UK stronghold is in Scotland where you can visit many nest sites with public viewing facilities, including the RSPB reserve at Loch Garten (Highland) and the SWT reserve at Loch of the Lowes (Perthshire). In addition, Ospreys have begun breeding at a small number of locations in England and Wales.
In 2012 an Osprey thought to be the UK's oldest breeding female returned to its nest at the Loch of the Lowes in Perthshire.The bird, known affectionately as “Lady” has nested at this site near Dunkeld for 22 consecutive years. Ospreys live on average for 10-15 years in the wild. In 2010 “Lady” fell ill and experts feared the bird would die after she stopped eating. However, thousands of people watching via webcam witnessed the Osprey's sudden recovery days later. In 2011 “Lady” returned to her nest but her eggs failed to hatch.
Ospreys would once have been widespread throughout most of the UK. During the middle ages almost every big house and monastic establishment had a fishpond. These fishponds, as they do now, attracted this magnificent fish-eating bird of prey leading to many of them being hunted and killed. Later on in the 18th and 19th centuries, the remaining pairs of UK Ospreys were severely persecuted by gamekeepers, egg collectors and trophy hunters. With the additional pressures of habitat loss during this time, by 1916 they had become totally extinct as a breeding species in the UK. The last known pair of Ospreys nested in 1916 on an island on Loch Loyne.
In 1954 an Osprey pair was reported to have nested at Loch Garten in the Scottish Highlands. They are believed to have successfully raised 2 chicks that year. They returned to their eyrie in 1955 but persecution by egg collectors proved to be a big problem still. A small group of RSPB staff and volunteers attempted to protect the nest but despite their valiant efforts it was not until 1959 that young Ospreys were raised in the area once more. Since those early days, numbers have slowly increased and there are now over 200 breeding pairs of Osprey in Scotland.
During the 1980's and 1990's migrating Ospreys were regularly seen stopping off at Rutland Water in the East Midlands. In an aim to encourage the spread of Ospreys throughout the UK, the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust in collaboration with Anglian Water began a translocation project at Rutland Water Nature Reserve in 1996. During each year between 1996 and 2001 up to 12 Scottish Osprey chicks were taken from nests containing 3 young. These youngsters were then released from pens to fledge at Rutland Water. Out of 64 birds released in the original programme, at least 13 are known to have returned to the UK, 10 of these to Rutland Water. The translocation project has subsequently proved critical to the establishment of the Welsh Osprey breeding population.
Date: 18th June 2016
Location: Loch of the Lowes SWT reserve, Perthshire
Fish make up 99% of the Osprey's diet and it typically takes fish weighing 5 to 10 ounces and about 10 to 14 inches in length. Virtually any type of fish in that weight and size range are taken. The Osprey possesses specialised physical characteristics and exhibits unique behaviour to assist in hunting and catching prey. Ospreys have vision that is well adapted to detecting underwater objects from the air. Prey is first sighted when the Osprey is 30 to 130 feet above the water, after which the bird hovers momentarily then plunges feet first into the water. Occasionally the Osprey may prey on rodents, rabbits, hares, amphibians, other birds and small reptiles.
The Osprey is a summer visitor to the UK and birds arrive back from Africa in late March and April and leave again in August and September. They can also be seen at almost any large body of freshwater during spring and autumn migration.
The Osprey’s main UK stronghold is in Scotland where you can visit many nest sites with public viewing facilities, including the RSPB reserve at Loch Garten (Highland) and the SWT reserve at Loch of the Lowes (Perthshire). In addition, Ospreys have begun breeding at a small number of locations in England and Wales.
In 2012 an Osprey thought to be the UK's oldest breeding female returned to its nest at the Loch of the Lowes in Perthshire.The bird, known affectionately as “Lady” has nested at this site near Dunkeld for 22 consecutive years. Ospreys live on average for 10-15 years in the wild. In 2010 “Lady” fell ill and experts feared the bird would die after she stopped eating. However, thousands of people watching via webcam witnessed the Osprey's sudden recovery days later. In 2011 “Lady” returned to her nest but her eggs failed to hatch.
Ospreys would once have been widespread throughout most of the UK. During the middle ages almost every big house and monastic establishment had a fishpond. These fishponds, as they do now, attracted this magnificent fish-eating bird of prey leading to many of them being hunted and killed. Later on in the 18th and 19th centuries, the remaining pairs of UK Ospreys were severely persecuted by gamekeepers, egg collectors and trophy hunters. With the additional pressures of habitat loss during this time, by 1916 they had become totally extinct as a breeding species in the UK. The last known pair of Ospreys nested in 1916 on an island on Loch Loyne.
In 1954 an Osprey pair was reported to have nested at Loch Garten in the Scottish Highlands. They are believed to have successfully raised 2 chicks that year. They returned to their eyrie in 1955 but persecution by egg collectors proved to be a big problem still. A small group of RSPB staff and volunteers attempted to protect the nest but despite their valiant efforts it was not until 1959 that young Ospreys were raised in the area once more. Since those early days, numbers have slowly increased and there are now over 200 breeding pairs of Osprey in Scotland.
During the 1980's and 1990's migrating Ospreys were regularly seen stopping off at Rutland Water in the East Midlands. In an aim to encourage the spread of Ospreys throughout the UK, the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust in collaboration with Anglian Water began a translocation project at Rutland Water Nature Reserve in 1996. During each year between 1996 and 2001 up to 12 Scottish Osprey chicks were taken from nests containing 3 young. These youngsters were then released from pens to fledge at Rutland Water. Out of 64 birds released in the original programme, at least 13 are known to have returned to the UK, 10 of these to Rutland Water. The translocation project has subsequently proved critical to the establishment of the Welsh Osprey breeding population.
Date: 18th June 2016
Location: Loch of the Lowes SWT reserve, Perthshire
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Also in: Birds of prey
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