Where to See Ospreys In England, Scotland and Wales
Ospreys are magnificent hunters. Predominantly fish-eaters, they take their prey from the sea and lochs with deep swooping dives, emerging with fish clutched in their talons.
Considered to be an endangered species, they are relatively rare in the United Kingdom, although there are many birdwatching sites, both in reserves and in the wild, where they can be seen in the summer months (between April and August).
Ospreys in the UK – a Success Story
Although there are relatively few breeding pairs of in the UK (the estimates suggest fewer than 150) their very presence and expansion represents a considerable achievement. Hunted as vermin and with their eggs taken by collectors (like many other birds of prey) the birds became extinct in Britain in the early part of the twentieth century.
Yet the extinction was temporary. Unlike birds such as and , which had also become extinct, the ospreys needed no reintroduction programmes to re-establish themselves in the UK, returning to Scotland in 1959. With volunteers guarding their nests, and with nest sites provided to encourage them, the birds have since spread to the north of England and to Wales – and some have subsequently been reintroduced to the Midlands.
Where to See Ospreys in Scotland
Scotland is the stronghold of Britain’s osprey population and it is where the birds are most frequently seen and most easily observed. When the first pair returned to Scotland in 1959, they nested in the tall trees of the ancient Caledonian pine forest around Loch Garten in the Cairngorm Mountains.
The forest is now part of the RSPB’s Loch Garten reserve with visitor facilities to improve the chances of birdwatchers spotting an osprey. The visitor centre (open daily from 10-6 between April and August, adult admission £3) includes CCTV cameras for close-up observations. A summer programme of guided walks offers the opportunity to see not just the Loch Garten ospreys but other wildlife, such as red squirrels and woodland birds.
A second nature reserve, at the in Perthshire, is operated by the Scottish Wildlife Trust and, like Loch Garten, offers bird hides with telescopes, CCTV and guided osprey walks. The visitor centre is open all year from 10-5 (standard adult admission charge £4) and the bird hides are open 24 hours a day.
The Perthshire ospreys made the news in June 2010 as an elderly female was observed by thousands of
At Aberfoyle, the Forestry Commission runs the David Marshall Lodge visitor centre (open all year, 10-5 pm, admission free) where CCTV cameras are trained on ospreys and other species. The Lodge is part of the Trossachs Birds of Prey trail, which links locations where visitors can hope to see hen harriers, buzzards and red kites.
Apart from these organised sites, there is a good chance of spotting ospreys at many other locations in Scotland – for example, near some of the lochs of the central highlands. In the south of Scotland they can be seen in the Tweed Valley and at Loch Ken and Threave in Dumfries and Galloway. In there is a visitor centre with CCTV showing the birds.
Where to See Ospreys in England and Wales
There are many fewer ospreys in England and Wales than in Scotland. The best viewing opportunities are in the north of England, at Whinlatter Visitor Centre and . Kielder became the most recent nesting place for the birds, who produced chicks for the first time in 2009. There is a range of visitor facilities and regular osprey-watching events are run through the year.
Whinlatter Forest, in the Lake District, is home to the Forestry Commission’s year-round visitor centre (admission free) hosts an osprey exhibition and giant screen, (supported by project staff to answer questions) when the birds are nesting and there is a viewpoint at nearby Dodd Wood.
In Wales, the RSPB’s Glaslyn Osprey Project is located in the mountains of the Snowdonia National Park. There is no visitor centre, but a hide equipped with telescopes and binoculars allows visitors to see what is at present Wales’ only pair of breeding ospreys (RSPB).
