OSPREY CHICK PROJECT
Eight Osprey chicks have arrived in Poole Harbour as part of a fiveyear translocation project, aimed at re-establishing the bird of prey to its former breeding grounds on the south coast. The chicks, which were collected from healthy, sustainable populations in northern Scotland were transported down in mid-july. The project, run by local charity Birds of Poole Harbour, Scottish charity The Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation and local wildlife technology company Wildlife Windows, was given the go-ahead this spring. Once the chicks look ready and strong enough to fly, the Osprey monitoring team will open the pens, allowing the chicks to take to the wing for the first time and explore their new area. It is expected that the young Ospreys will begin their long migration to West Africa in the autumn. The released Ospreys will then remain there during the summer and winter of 2018 and won’t think about flying north to the UK until late spring 2019. It’s hoped that the first breeding will take place around 2021.