Historically the Osprey was widely distributed throughout England, particularly those areas like the fens which would have provided ideal feeding and breeding habitat. (Click here for more details.) However, intensive persecution by man (egg-collecting and taxidermy) during the last century, combined with prime habitat loss, led to its extinction as a breeding species in England in the 1840s. The last breeding record was in Somerset in 1847. Ospreys retained a tenuous hold in Scotland in remote areas until the last recorded breeding in 1916.
In 1954 a pioneering pair of Ospreys attempted to breed at Loch Garten in the eastern highlands of Scotland. With vigilant protection and a change in attitudes towards birds of prey, the Scottish population has grown slowly to over 150 pairs.
Click here for further details of the status of Ospreys in Scotland.
However, natural colonisation was slow, as young male Ospreys prefer to breed close to the sites where they first fledge. This behaviour led to the formation of loose nesting colonies with pairs competing for nest sites - up to five birds have been known to compete for a vacant site. There have been over 50 years since the first Scottish breeding success but the the majority of nests are still close to the original site. The population in Scotland, while currently expanding in size, does remain vulnerable to food shortages, disease and the vagaries of the weather. Bearing all this in mind it was estimated that it could take at least 150 years for Ospreys to naturally re-colonise the whole of the UK.
Ospreys at Rutland Water
The reservoir at Rutland Water was constructed 25 years ago and has become an internationally important sanctuary for wintering wildfowl. It is now a SSSI , SPA and Ramsar site. From early in the reserve's history, Ospreys had been observed using the reservoir as a convenient stopping-off point during the migration. Colour rings had been seen indicating that these migrants come from the Scottish population as well as occasional sightings of Swedish birds.
Click here for a link to the Rutland Water Nature Reserve home page.
In 1994 a young female remained at the Reserve throughout the summer but she did not re-appear the following year.
Also In 1994 a number of artificial nesting platforms were constructed under the guidance of Roy Dennis of the Highland Foundation for Wildlife. Roy is a world authority on Ospreys and other raptors and together with Reserve Manager, Tim Appleton, he began to form the idea of translocating Scottish Ospreys to Rutland Water.
An artifical eyrie was built at the very top of a tree by volunteer tree surgeon Linsay Brown.Click here for more details about nest building.
Project proposal
During the spring of 1995 the proposal to translocate Scottish Ospreys to Rutland Water was formulated. The project quickly received the backing of the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust who manage the Reserve. Crucially, Anglian Water who own the reserve, pledged financial support for the project for a minimum of five years, allowing long-term plans to be drawn up.
Before licences could be granted, it was necessary to consult with national and local organisations on the impact the project might have on landowners, fish farms, fishing clubs and conservation societies. There are international criteria concerning the translocation of species which had to be satisfied. In order to ensure that the Scottish Osprey population was sufficiently stable to allow removal of young without significant impact, an independent population analysis was carried out. A steering group was set up and a detailed proposal submitted to the licensing bodies.
In June 1996, following 18 months of negotiation, a licence was granted by Scottish Natural Heritage under section 16 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981, allowing up to twelve chicks to be removed from a choice of 35 nests in the eastern Highland region of Scotland. This licence had to be renewed every year of the project's duration. The approval of English Nature was also sought in order to hold young birds in temporary captivity at the reserve.
Click here for details about the first stage of the project: the collection of the birds from Scottish nests.
