A rare Osprey has been spotted at the Spinnies Nature Reserve at Aberogwen, near Bangor.
The magnificent birds of prey, with a wingspan of more than 1.5 metres, usually spend the winter in West Africa and return to the UK each spring to refurbish their large stick nests and breed.
Extinction in the UK
Ospreys were persecuted into extinction in the UK during the 1800s. They were shot for taxidermy and collectors took their eggs. The last recorded breeding took place in Scotland in 1916 and ospreys also disappeared across much of Europe – reaching a low in the 1920s and ‘30s. It was a combination of good luck and legislation to protect these birds which enabled the osprey population to recov
The osprey returns
The return of the osprey is shrouded in some mystery but in the 1950s birds migrating to Scandinavia began to turn up in Scotland, and the first confirmed breeding was in 1954. The RSPB was involved at the outset trying to protect breeding birds.
In 1958, the birds began breeding at the now famous Loch Garten site in Strathspey, where the RSPB set up Operation Osprey, a 24-hour protection watch. The first attempt failed, but ospreys have returned and bred successfully at this site nearly every year since.
The RSPB bought the Loch Garten site specifically for the conservation of the ospreys and has since acquired the surrounding pinewood, of vital importance for capercaillie and many other UK Biodiversity Action Plan priority species. More than two million people have visited the reserve to see these magnificent birds.
Numbers increased, albeit very slowly, and there are now around 300 nesting pairs in Britain. Since the turn of this century, ospreys have spread south and now breed in England and Wales where the RSPB is involved in projects to protect the birds and enable thousands of visitors to see them. A project by Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust and Anglian Water to re-introduce ospreys at Rutland Water has also established breeding in central England.
The Spinnies
The Spinnies Nature Reserve hosts a series of lagoons and surrounding habitat providing shelter and food for wildfowl, waders and smaller birds, especially during the autumn and spring migrations.
The reserve is next to the estuary of the River Ogwen and the tidal mudflats known as Traeth Lafan, and the constant ebb and flow of the tides attract some amazing species – including, on rare occasions, osprey. Tall, graceful stands of common reed provide sheltered nest sites for moorhen as well as an excellent place to watch grey heron and little egret hunting!
For much of the year, the brightly coloured kingfisher is a familiar and well-loved sight as it perches around the reserve and dives into the water in search of prey. Bird hides and feeders provide fantastic
All Photos Ⓒ Chris Owen
