Eurasian Ospreys appear locally

Famously, there are nesting Ospreys at Rutland Water, which is probably the nearest spot we’d expect to see these breeding summer visitors. However, migrating birds on passage can turn up anywhere there’s water and fish if they sense a safe place to refuel on their journey to sub-Saharan Africa.

We have lots of gravel pits in this area of Cambridgeshire that have been repurposed as nature reserves and parks. One of them, Milton Country Park has seen lots of interesting birdlife over the last few years. You’re almost always going to see Kingfisher, Cormorants and various ducks and waders there as well as woodland birds and even exotic warblers. Back in late April 2014, a Eurasian Osprey turned up. This was presumably a migrant heading north. The previous year one was present in September.

As far as I know, there hasn’t been another Osprey at Milton CP until this last week (6th September onwards) or so when a juvenile turned up and an adult was seen on the nearby stretch of the River Cam at Bait’s Bite Lock. Also sightings in Chesterton and at Dernford Reservoir). Mrs Sciencebase and I took a stroll around the site on the morning of 14th September, and while we saw Kingfisher, there was no sign of any Ospreys. We had another try on the afternoon of the 15th and spotted one flying over one of the lakes. It was airborne for a few minutes before heading to a roosting point high in an oak tree. We had great views of it in the air and then at its roost.

As we were leaving the park, we took one more look from a viewing jetty and saw another (adult) Osprey that had flown in from the direction of the Cam. It had apparently fished briefly just before we saw it in the air and then it quickly disappeared back towards the river. The juvenile had a nick from one of its wings whereas the second bird definitely didn’t.