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Three Osprey chicks have made their maiden flights at Rutland Water, just a few weeks before they embark upon an epic 3000 mile migration to West Africa.
The birds have been reared at a nest on the Lyndon Nature Reserve at the Anglian Water reservoir.
Project Officer Tim Mackrill said, “It is a real thrill to see the chicks leave the nest for the first time. They are understandably a little uneasy on the wing at first, but grow in confidence amazingly quickly.”
The chicks will remain around the nest until late August, when they will set off on the long migration to West Africa. The eight week-old Ospreys made their first flights within sight of two specially constructed bird watching hides, allowing hundreds of people to watch them take flight for the first time.
Project Information Officer, Paul Stammers, said, “More than 22,000 people from all over the country have visited the reserve to see the Ospreys so far this year. The reserve has been buzzing with excitement over the past week or so as we have watched the chicks make their first flights.”
People have also been watching the exploits of the chicks from as far afield as Australia, thanks to a webcam which streams live images from the nest to the project’s website. Diana Spencer, who runs the site, said, “As soon as the final chick had flown the nest we started to receive phone calls from people who had been watching online – they just wanted to make sure that the chicks were okay!”
The fledging of the chicks is the latest milestone in an exciting project that aims to restore the spectacular bird of prey to central England after an absence of 150 years. 64 Osprey chicks were released at the reservoir between 1996 and 2001 in a partnership between Anglian Water and the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
The birds have been nesting in the area since 2001, but this is the first time that a breeding pair has not consisted of at least one translocated bird. The male hatched at a nest in Rutland in 2004, and his mate is unringed, but almost certainly from Scotland. Tim Mackrill said, “This year’s success shows that the project is working well. We are well on the way to establishing a self-sustaining population at Rutland Water. This will then enable the birds to spread to other parts of southern Britain.”
Chicks have also fledged from two other nests close to Rutland Water in the past week. They too are now honing their flying skills as they prepare for the long journey that lies in wait.
For more information on the Rutland Osprey Project visit http://www.ospreys.org.uk/