THEY'VE been a characteristic sign of spring in Cumbria for 16 years now, alongside the daffodils. The ospreys are back.

A pair of the large, rare birds of prey have arrived at a nesting site near Bassenthwaite Lake and researchers from the Lake District Osprey Project (LDOP) believe they are the same pair that came here to breed last spring.

The female bird, named KL, had previously been ringed for identification, so they can be sure she is the same one. 

The male that arrived a few days later hadn’t been ringed – but the researchers believe he is the same male that has been coming for the last three years.

The pair have been rebuilding their nest and mating. So osprey chicks are expected before the summer is out.

OSPREY FACT: Although many osprey chicks have hatched in Bassenthwaite over the years, many die on the 3,000 mile journey. Up to 70 per cent are though to perish in the Sahara Desert or are blown out to sea. 

“We’re certainly looking forward to another successful season,” says Nathan Fox of the Forestry Commission, one of the LDOP partners.

The ospreys spend the winter in western Africa and there is no guarantee they will return to the same nesting sites, so he adds: “To think that having spent the winter apart, they arrive at the nest within a few days of each other is remarkable.”

Ospreys began coming back to Cumbria naturally but they were given a helping hand by the building of artificial nest platforms.

“They take to these readily,” explains Jon Carter of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, another of the LDOP partners. “The provision of them in suitable areas may help the spread and future success of the bird.”

Though there is unlikely to be more than one pair in north Cumbria. “They are quite territorial,” he adds.

Many birds of prey are killed illegally, and it was human persecution that led to their demise in the 1800s, but Jon reckons they’re safer here now.

“Illegal persecution of birds of prey is an ongoing concern for the RSPB. But as fish-eaters, ospreys are rarely targeted – they do not conflict with other game interests.

And they matter for various reasons.

“Top level predators are a sign of a decent environment,” he says. “If they can survive here it shows that there’s a relatively healthy ecosystem, the water quality is good, the fish stock are good, the habitat and the protection are good.

“As long as they keep coming back it’s a good sign.”

There’s also cold, hard cash. “They generate significant income for the region,” he adds. 

“Ecotourism is growing and the provision of viewing areas and the like bring people in.”

OSPREY FACT: An estimated 90,000 people come every year to see the ospreys, spending £1.5 million to £2m in the local economy. 

And they are a good introduction to a general interest in nature.

“They are really good to see, They are a big bird, they are rare and they have a dramatic story attached, with their 3,000-mile journey from Africa.

“Trying to get people excited about a rare woodlouse is more difficult.

“During the first few days when the viewing points are open it is the keen birdwatchers who come.

“But there a lot of others later in the summer who are passing and hear about them. They come and they are blown away by them.”

There are plenty of opportunities to see them before their return to Africa. 

Staff and volunteers will be at the viewing points in Dodd Wood above Bassenthwaite Lake every day between 10am and 5pm until the end of August. 

And at Whinlatter Visitor Centre, live images from inside the nest will be beamed onto a flat screen TV.

It is also possible to follow their progress via the LDOP website at www.ospreywatch.co.uk

If the ospreys are thriving here, why couldn’t other birds of prey? This is what zoologist Dr Roy Armstrong is asking. 

In 2009 a very large and unusual bird was spotted flying near Bowness-on-Solway and Roy, who is team leader of zoology at the University of Cumbria, identified it as a sea eagle.

They died out in England more than 100 years ago – persecuted to extinction by farmers and gamekeepers – but they’ve been successfully re-introduced in Scotland. 


Roy Armstrong He sees no reason why they can’t be re-introduced on this side of the border. 

“We have a duty to restore those species that have been removed by the actions of man,” he argues. “There’s a moral and aesthetic case.”

There’s also a compelling economic case. They could prove a much bigger money-spinner than the ospreys.

“Ospreys are special – but not that special. You can see them in north Wales or Rutland Water.

“And they are migratory. They are only in the Lake District three months a year, whereas the sea eagles would be here all year round. They would be here at the times when hotel room occupancy is relatively low.”

OSPREY FACT: Ospreys were extinct in England for 150 years. They were shot for their skins and their eggs were stolen by collectors and the last breeding pair in Cumbria had been seen at Corby Castle in 1831.
But in 2001 they returned and have been coming to Bassenthwaite every spring since.
They spend the winter months in western Africa, principally in Senegal, the Gambia or Mauritania, and fly the 3,000 miles back to the Lake District in late March or April to mate. They stay until late August or September. 

They are bigger birds too, with a wingspan of almost eight feet. “That’s the height of most people’s ceiling.”

Bait could be left out for sea eagles at set times so the birds get to know when they will be fed – and people will know when to spot them.

Sea eagles will sometimes target young seagulls. “They could help tackle the problem of urban nesting gulls.”

Large birds of prey are also known to pick up lambs but Roy claims: “The only lambs they would take are lambs that are in poor condition and probably wouldn’t survive, or ones that are already dead.

“By measuring the bones we find in nests we know the lambs taken are usually runts.”

In any case there could be a payment scheme for farmer who lose livestock. “The Ministry of Defence compensates farmers whose animals get killed on their firing ranges.”

And he’s convinced sea eagles would bring in far more money than would have to be forked out in compensation. “In Mull they’re a huge part of the economy.”

To re-introduce any species a Government licence is needed, and various conditions have to be met before applying. The first is to assess public opinion and he says: “The public were 99 per cent in favour. That shows there’s strong demand.”

OSPREY FACT:  The ospreys have a wingspan of 1.7 metres (5ft 6in), making them one of our largest birds of prey. 

They almost always nest near water as they eat only fish, particularly pike, perch, trout and eel.