Osprey ruffles feathers after he returns to roost

Photographer’s amazing pictures show bird in aerial battle with heron at Balgavies Loch

A returning Angus osprey has flown straight into a row with another resident of their rural roost.

At the Scottish Wildlife Trust’s Balgavies Loch reserve near Forfar, enthusiasts have been waiting with bated breath for the expected return of a prolific pair which took the area into the history books five years ago.

Balgavies was the scene of the first recorded osprey chick hatching in 2012, and since then the birds have gone on to raise families on the island nest each summer – including a brood of four healthy birds last year.

The hide at the reserve, a few miles east of Forfar, has been packed with raptor fans in recent days as osprey arrivals were recorded at other locations, including Loch of the Lowes in Perthshire.

Their patience was rewarded when the male, believed to be bearing the Green BF ring, appeared in the skies above the picturesque loch – to the annoyance of a heron using the island as his roost.

An aerial tussle developed between the pair, captured by keen photographer and reserve regular Mike Fenton, and his collection of images on the Balgavies Loch Ospreys Facebook site has been given an enthusiastic response.

This season is not the first in which the returning pair have encountered squatter difficulties in their Angus summer home.

Geese and crows have proved a problem in the past for the ospreys, but they have always taken little time to reclaim their site at Balgavies, repair any winter damage to the nest and get down to the serious business of enhancing the area’s raptor population.

The location of the nest has made it difficult for experts to carry out any ringing or satellite-tagging operations, with only the first chick – known as Blue YD – fitted with a tracking device. It was initially tracked to Senegal. However, fears that it may have come to harm after the male bird’s signal was lost gave way to relief when it was positively identified back in Courier Country last year.

Pictures: Mike Fenton. Stunning snap shows the osprey in hot pursuit of the heron after they clashed at the reserve near Forfar.

But the retaliating osprey soon has it fleeing from the site.

The heron swoops in as its rival perches on a nearby tree.