Ospreys have returned to the south of England to Poole harbour thanks to the collaborative work of Birds of Poole harbour and The Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation.
Once the second most wide spread bird of pray after the Peregrine Falcon, Osprays became extinct in England in around 1847. The birds were targeted because of the belief they were a threat to livestock.
Ospreys are migratory birds, often choosing the warmer climates of west Africa during the winter. Whilst breeding in Scotland they would pass through Poole Harbour on their return to the North.
Attempts had been made to encourage them to stop and settle in the harbour by erecting nesting areas. Despite an increase in numbers coming to the area, none settled.
In 2017 and with the permission of Natural England, The Poole Harbour Osprey project was launched. 60 juvenile Osprey were relocated to Poole for Scotland. The idea was to create a bond between the birds and the area before they headed off to their wintering grounds, with the hope that they would return to Poole Harbour as a nesting site.
In 2019 the first male from the project returned to the site and met with a female who had been summering in the harbour. Initial hopes that the pair would breed were not realised and the male did not return to the site in 2020.
The female bird known as CJ7 continued to return and in 2021 met up with another male from the translocation initiative.
In 2022, the project has seen the first successful breeding pair of Ospreys on the south coast in nearly 200 years.
