Osprey chicks hatch at Rutland Water
Thursday 3rd June 2010
England’s only osprey reintroduction scheme chalks up another milestone
After a five and a half week incubation period, two eggs in the osprey nest at Rutland Water Nature Reserve have hatched, sparking delight among nature reserve staff, volunteers and visitors alike.
A tiny camera, positioned close to the nest showed the chick breaking out of the shell at around 4.00am on Bank Holiday Monday morning. Soon afterwards it was fed its first morsels of fish by its mother. A second chick followed 24 hours later.
The hatching of the chick is the latest milestone in a project that stretches back to 1996, when Anglian Water and the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust got together to bring ospreys back to England after an absence of 150 years.
Osprey Project Officer at the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, Tim Mackrill said, “This is the first time we've had a camera looking directly into a nest. It was incredibly exciting watching events unfold. The camera is giving us a unique and very intimate insight into the first hours of a young Osprey's life.”
Live images from the camera are shown in the Lyndon Visitor Centre at Rutland Water. They have generated quite a stir among visitors. Osprey Information Officer, Liz Jameson said, “The centre has been buzzing with excitement since the first chick hatched. People have been glued to the screen, trying to catch a glimpse of the new arrivals.”
In another first for the project, live streaming has enabled people all over the world to enjoy the spectacular images. Diana Spencer who runs the project’s website, said, ”We know that people from as far a field as California and Australia have been watching via the internet over the past couple of weeks . I suspect they won’t be far from their computers over the coming days!”
Away from the nature reserve, chicks have also hatched in recent days at two osprey nests on private land, making the loose Rutland colony the largest and most productive in England. The nests have been monitored around the clock during the incubation period by a team of 150 volunteers.
Tim Mackrill said, “The long term aim of the partnership project is to re-establish Ospreys in central England. They’ve been gone for 150 years after habitat loss and persecution drove them away from our shores. It’s thrilling to see them back, and this year’s events show that the project really is working.”
The Lyndon Visitor Centre is open 9am-5pm each day, and Osprey project staff and volunteers are constantly on hand. You can watch live streaming on the project’s website www.ospreys.org.uk.
Story by Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust