What a season it’s been, with our harbour pair 022 and CJ7 fledging 4 hardy, healthy strong youngsters this summer, which as far as we know, all migrated away safely by the beginning of September. Since 2022, 022 and CJ7 have now fledged 9 young in total from the harbour nest which is a great result, and we look forward to seeing the safe return of some of these individuals over the next few years. Of course, this spring we did see our first wild-fledged youngster arrive back, with female 5H1 dropping in to the harbour briefly at the end of May before then moving off and being seen at several sites across the country including places in Wales, Rutland and Northamptonshire. For those that have been following our Osprey story since the very beginning will know that some of our female Ospreys which were released as part of the project are now breeding in Wales. If you add the number of young that have fledged from those nests too, then the total number of young Osprey that have fledged as a direct result of our Poole Harbour Translocation Project now stands at 25 individuals. This is fantastic news, as this is 25 more young Ospreys that can potentially enter the UK population which wouldn’t have had it not been for the project.

Of course, there’s still a long way to go, and still, with only one nest here in Dorset/Southern Britain the situation is fragile, because by no means does a single nest secure the bases of a population…..we need more!

Last spring another of our male Ospreys returned to Poole Harbour, a bird called 374. He did exactly what we’d expect a 2-year old male Osprey to do which was to return a bit later in the spring, explore the wider landscape before then showing an interest in some of our harbour nest platforms. During June, July and August of 2023, male 374 started showing real interest in setting up a new territory within Poole Harbour and was seen carrying sticks to various nests which is what we hoped he would do. He spent most of that time on his own, and other than engaging with a few migrant Osprey he failed to draw in a potential mate. He then left in late August 2023 and all our fingers were crossed for his safe return in spring 2024, where he had the potential to find a new mate.

As the long, cold winter came to an end and finally gave way to spring, we saw an incredibly early return of our breeding pair with 022 arriving on March 26^th and CJ7 arriving the following day on March 27^th. They both got straight down to business, re-building the nest, mating and eventually laying eggs. This was a great start, but what about 374? Was he going to return and could we see two nests potentially? March turned into April and each day we waited, hoping for a photo to come through from one of our Osprey nest trail cameras. It felt like an eternity, but finally on April 17^th we got a photo of a male, blue-ringed Osprey on one of our nests……YES!! It was 374. He was back.

Surely it was now just a waiting game, as we’d seen a dramatic increase in the number of wandering females who were now showing an interest in Poole Harbour because of the established nest. However, it didn’t quite go to plan. No sooner had he arrived, he then disappeared and wasn’t seen again for 4 weeks! Where had he gone? Why didn’t he stick around? It wasn’t until later in May we finally had some photos of him sent to us by a photographer who had seen him at Fishlake Meadows in Romsey. Phew! At least we knew he was Ok, but we’d rather he came ‘home’. Other than that brief encounter at Fishlake Meadows he soon disappeared again and wasn’t seen again for several weeks. That was until he then turned up back in Poole Harbour in July, however this time with a female in tow. As it transpired it was a blue-ringed female from Rutland Water called ‘1H1’. A perfect mate for him considering CJ7 also came from the Rutland population. Although by now it was too late in the season for 374 and 1H1 to try and breed, there was definitely enough time to build and develop a bond and search out suitable potential nest sites for next spring. It all started looking really exciting when the pair went back to his favourite nest platform in the harbour, where they were both adding sticks over a few days, with potential breeding for next year looking a very real possibility. That was until our local male 022 showed up and very quickly took a disliking to their presence and aggressively and vocally soon saw them off out of the area. Now we understand why 374 didn’t stick around much in the spring!

Male Osprey 374 and female 1H1 on Poole Harbour nest platform in mid-July before being ‘seen off’ by local male Osprey 022

It all went quiet again and we weren’t sure where the ‘new pair’ were until we received a tip off about a pair being seen at an undisclosed site just north of the harbour. So, our team went and staked out the location whilst liaising with our source of information and sure enough a male and female Osprey were active at the site and seemed to be interested in the area. We mobilised really quickly and spoke with a few local landowners about getting a nest platform built ASAP, as we know this can help and speed up the process of Ospreys setting up territories. We found a willing landowner and built the nest on July 30^th this summer which is on completely private and inaccessible land which is just what the Ospreys need.

Paul Morton and Tim Mackrill carrying out the ‘strength test’ of the new nest. Stand in the middle and see what happens! 

As always, we also installed one of our motion sensor 4G trail cameras to see if 374, 1H1 or any Ospreys took a liking to our new nest during the rest of the season. A couple of days went by and other than a few Stock Dove there had been no visits. Then, on August 3^rd….Touch Down! 374 landed on the nest and seemed to be impressed with the new real estate that had appeared in the landscape. He spent the next few days visiting several times a day, moving sticks around and genuinely taking an interest in the new nest.

Male Osprey 374 landing on new nest for the first time

This was a great sign. But even better was on August 5^th when he was then joined by female 1H1 who arrived eating a fish on the nest. No doubt caught and presented to her by 374 as part of their pair bonding. During the rest of August 374 and 1H1 visited the new nest every few days, adjusting sticks and seemingly making themselves at home. What a result. The last sighting of them on the nest was on August 26^th which is when we assume they left on migration.

This is obviously great news for the project and we truly hope we see their safe return next spring. It’s important to remember though, that although this is an encouraging development, there’s no guarantee that a) either or both will return next year, or that b) this is where they’ll choose to nest next year. They could easily end up back here in Poole Harbour, find a new site, or even build their own nest somewhere. It may be that 374 even finds a new mate should 1H1 return late? Who knows? But that’s the magic of Ospreys. It’s always the unknown that keeps us guessing and intrigued.

So, until next spring, here are a few photos of 374 and 1H1 on the nest together in August this year.

Male Osprey 374 and female 1H1 on the new nest for the first time together on Aug 5th

Male Osprey 374 mantling on new nest as 1H1 does nest preparations

We’re launching an exciting new project for young people in the Poole Harbour area. We’ll be holding free monthly events for 13-18 year olds to learn about birds, wildlife, conservation and more. This will be a fantastic opportunity to inspire the next generation, with in-person events and an engaging community to connect young people with nature.

The project has been very kindly supported by the Cameron Bespolka Trust who do a huge amount of work with young people and nature. They have provided funding to allow us to run the project, host the events and provide equipment and transport, and we are very grateful for their continued support. You can find out more about their work here.

We’ll be hosting a range of exciting free events aimed at giving young people the opportunity to learn and access nature in a welcoming manner. These will include:

• Bird Ringing Demonstrations
• Guided Bird ID Walks
• Conservation Talks
• Wildlife Cruises
• Much more!

We want the project to be as accessible and inclusive as possible so no prior experience or knowledge is required and everyone is welcome. Joining the club and all the events will be free and we will even be providing support for transport needs, including minibuses and the opportunity for funding support for local travel to events.

Our first introductory event will be a Bird Ringing Demonstration at Careys Secret Garden in October half term and then some guided Bird ID Walks in November and December.

If you are interested in joining the Young Birders Club please head to the webpage to sign up for a free membership and access to the events. The events will be held on a first come first serve basis, so please ensure you purchase free tickets to guarantee a place.

Please share this widely with anyone you think may be interested as we want to engage with as many young people as possible! Thank you!

A Black Vulture Conservation Foundation, Fundación Vida Silvestre Mediterránia (FVSM) and Birds of Poole Harbour Event

Ariant, Mallorca: Sept 11^th 2024

In the last century, global biodiversity loss has accelerated at an unprecedented level, driven by ever-increasing human demands on the natural world. Conservationists have the responsibility to not only monitor these declining populations but innovate ways of restoring and protecting our lost species and habitats, helping them to thrive once more, from large landscape-scale rewilding projects to species reintroductions.

Reintroduction programmes have played a critical role in the recovery of many lost species over the last 60 years, particularly for birds of prey that have historically been heavily persecuted and impacted by wide-scale use of pesticides. Through the pioneering of these projects, several iconic raptor species have now been returned to the skies of Western Europe, including the Black (Cinereous) Vulture and Western Osprey. Both of these species had experienced substantial declines and near extinction in several regions within their historic range in the last 200-300 years. However, as a result of several targeted reintroduction programmes of both species, they are now recovering and expanding their populations.

Multiple organisations that have been involved in pushing forward this crucial work including the Black Vulture Conservation Foundation, whose pioneering Black Vulture reintroduction on Mallorca during the 1980s and early 90s saw the population increase from a worryingly low of 20 individuals to an incredible 400 in just 40 years.

The Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation has been at the forefront of Osprey recovery in Western Europe, as key partners in pioneering the first Osprey reintroduction in Europe at Rutland Water in the 1990s, delivering important nest protection and population monitoring work, and in producing an action plan for the conservation of the species for the Council of Europe. Multiple projects have followed in the success of the Rutland reintroduction, with further reintroductions in Andalucía, The Basque Country, Valencia and Poole Harbour. Birds of Poole Harbour, a Dorset-based charity, partnered with the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation in 2017 seeking to reestablish a breeding population of Osprey on the south coast of the UK after an absence of 180 years. In 2022, the partnership saw its first success, with a pair establishing at Careys Secret Garden on the edge of Poole Harbour.

During the summer of 2024, Evelyn Tewes from the Fundación Vida Silvestre Mediterránia (FVSM) and Black Vulture Conservation Foundation visited our Birds of Poole Harbour team here in the UK to learn about our work on Ospreys and see how we’ve helped develop the narrative of species recovery within this landscape. It was an absolute pleasure hosting Evelyn, hearing about her incredible work in Mallorca over the last 40 years and hearing about the positive outcomes that have evolved as a direct result of Black Vulture being back over Mallorca skies.

As a result of Evelyn’s visit a special celebration to highlight the importance of species reintroductions, FVSM have kindly invited some of our BoPH team over to Mallorca so that our organisations can partner to host a one-off event at the incredible Ariant reserve in Mallorca, home of the FVSM. The event will present the opportunity to learn from the Black Vulture Conservation Foundation and Birds of Poole Harbour, hearing about the roles they play in restoring Black Vultures and Ospreys to Europe’s skies, within the beautiful setting of the Torre de Ariant (Tower of Ariant). This will be followed by an exclusive guided tour around the private Ariant biological reserve, enjoying views of the reestablished vultures, as well as seeking out autumn migrants that are passing through the reserve on their journey south. The walk will also focus on the regenerational work that’s being carried out by the  to restore and improve habitats within the mountain valley and Ariant reserve, with typical local lunch and refreshments also included.

This is a great opportunity to learn about and explore a hidden jewel in Mallorca’s crown, whilst hearing about species recovery directly from the people involved in making it happen.

Price: 80 Euro per person

To book a place email – info@procustodia.org

Time: 9am – 3:30pm

Meeting Location: Mediterranean Wildlife Conservation Centre (Fundacion Vida silvestre Mediterranea), close to 07310 Campanet, Mallorca. https://maps.app.goo.gl/pENe4syPhigTTYmFA 

What3Words: congratulations.bruisers.begin

Note: Birds of Poole Harbour have received funding support to cover the cost of this trip

For the last 11 years, Birds of Poole Harbour have been taking out school children from the local area around Poole Harbour to show them the fantastic birds that it is so important for. We do this at no charge to the schools, pupils or parents, to get kids out into their local environment who may not otherwise have access. For many of these children it is their first time being on a boat, seeing Brownsea Island or, if they’re lucky, a White-tailed Eagle!

The project has been funded very generously by Lush Cosmetics for the last 3 years to allow for these fantastic educational trips to continue. This season we framed the trips as citizen science projects. We gave the children ID sheets so that they were able to survey and count all the birds seen, contributing to the data that protects Poole Harbour as an SPA (Special Protection Area). Throughout the trips we give each child their own pair of binoculars, many of which have been kindly donated by Opticron to bring them closer to the birds. This gives the children the opportunity to ask questions, learn a huge amount about topics like identification, bird migration, habitats, threats and bird ecology, while seeing great wildlife. We put together a full checklist after the boat of the birds seen and share resources with them to complete in the classroom to reinforce the topics. We’ve been sent poetry, posters and plenty of photos from the trips!

Some of the comments we’ve had from this year have included: ‘It was the best trip ever!’, ‘I loved it’, ‘our class birdwatching kit was in high demand for the Easter holiday’ and ‘the children were all extremely inspired’. These are fantastic to hear and below is one of the posters the kids have designed after the trips. Many of the schools have gone on to watch the Birds of Poole Harbour Osprey Webcams during school time, another great learning tool for the kids and fantastic for them to follow a local conservation success story.

We’ve been lucky enough on some of our trips to show the children species like Spoonbill, Marsh Harrier, Seals, Avocet, Osprey and lots more! The most exciting part is we are now able to show children growing up on the south coast, wild White-tailed Eagles. This is an enormous achievement from the Isle of Wight translocation project by the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation and Forestry England.  Shifting baseline syndrome is often talked about in terms of what we think should be in the wild in the UK, based on our personal experience and how we’ve grown up. Now, a new generation is growing up on the south coast with a baseline of knowing that White-tailed Eagles, not only fit in, but thrive in this landscape and this is a fantastic achievement!

We took out nearly 1000 children this year from 12 different schools in the Poole Harbour vicinity with all the trips very kindly being run by Greenslades Pleasure Boats from Poole Quay. We’re currently in the planning stages for next winter’s School Bird Boat Project and can’t wait to do it all again to continue inspiring the next generation of young conservationists!

~ The BoPH Team!

Birds of Poole Harbour is a Dorset-based charity with a local community focus, committed to conserving and interpreting the important birdlife in the Poole Harbour area. We deliver a range of exciting events and projects, and are looking for an enthusiastic Events Assistant to support our team in delivering our public engagement offer through the Spring and Summer of 2024.

Position: Events Assistant

Hours: 32 hours per week, 15th April – 15th September 2024. Due to the nature of our events, regular weekend and occasional early morning/evening working hours are required.

Salary: £8053.76 (FTE: £23,795.20 per annum)

Location: Poole and Wareham-based, with travel to events around Poole Harbour

Annual Leave: 9.5 days, inclusive of bank holidays

Essential Criteria:

• Friendly and warm interpersonal style
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Ability to work effectively as part of a busy team
• Proactive and self-motivated attitude
• Excellent bird identification skills

Desirable Skills and Experience:

• Experience of working with volunteers
• Experience of delivering events
• Knowledge of local birding sites and conservation projects, including the Poole Harbour Osprey Reintroduction Project
• Full driving licence and access to a vehicle

What you’ll be working on:

You’ll be helping our team to deliver an ambitious events schedule through the spring and summer, including our Carey Osprey Tours led in partnership with Careys Secret Garden, as well as our guided walks and cruises. This role will be well-suited to an aspiring and enthusiastic ornithologist with excellent communication skills and a good knowledge of British birds.

Full training will be provided and more detail on our project work and events can be found here: www.birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk. Please note that this position will be offered subject to the successful return of the nesting pair of Osprey to Careys Secret Garden, and that we will be unable to fulfil the role if they do not return.

If you would like to apply, please email our Operations Manager Laura at laura@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk with a CV (2 pages maximum) and a PDF with answers to the following questions:

• What attracted you to apply for this position? (200 words max)
• Why do you believe you are well-suited for the role of Events Assistant at Birds of Poole Harbour? (500 words max)

Interviews commencing W/B 4th March with the option for online interviews available. Please note that the interview will involve a UK bird species identification test.

Closing date: 9am on 26th February 2024

If you have any questions or queries about the role or application process, please contact our Charity Manager Liv via liv@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk. Birds of Poole Harbour are an equal opportunities employer and are happy to provide additional information or accommodations within our hiring practices to support applicants.

Role Description

An exciting role assisting on the landmark Poole Harbour Osprey Translocation Project, led by Birds of Poole Harbour and the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation has come available. The role will include husbandry and monitoring of translocated chicks pre- and post-release. The position is ideally suited to an early career conservationist or student who is looking for a short-term role over the summer period.

Duties:

Assist with the translocation of Osprey chicks from mid-July to mid-September, including the following responsibilities:

• The collection and preparation of fish for daily feeds
• Monitoring the Osprey chicks via CCTV and recording data on food consumption, chick development, behaviour and movements 
• Support with the release and monitoring of the chicks using optics and radio tracking
• Equipment, site and resource maintenance, including cleaning the food preparation area and re-stocking supplies
• Supervise volunteers providing support for the project
• Support with hosting Osprey Project related public events, such as boat trips and tours

Duration: 2 month temporary contract, running from 10th July – 10th September 2023

Working Hours: Full-time (40 hours per week) including weekend, early morning and evening hours. Regular shifts typically run from 6am-2pm or 12-8pm on a rotating basis.

Pay: Living Wage salary equivalent to £10.42 per hour

Reports to: Osprey Project Manager, BoPH Manager, Operations Manager, Charity Trustees

Additional Information: This role requires a full, clean driving licence and access to a vehicle. Physical fitness is also important to this role due to the nature of the monitoring period. The position is based near Wareham, Dorset.

Person Specification

Full training will be provided for this role including food preparation, feeding, behavioural monitoring via CCTV and telemetry (yagi) and data recording.

Personal Attributes:

• Friendly and outgoing personality
• Attention to detail
• Dedicated and proactive attitude

Skills and Experience:

Essential:

• Ability to work effectively as part of a team
• Ability to collect and accurately record data
• Good knowledge of bird identification

Desirable:

• Experience of volunteer management or supervision
• Knowledge of animal husbandry or ecology

How to Apply

To apply please send your CV (max. 2 pages) to osprey@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk, along with supporting document providing short answers (<300 words each) to the following questions:

• What interests you about this role and working for Birds of Poole Harbour?
• What experience and skills do you have that makes you ideally suited to this role?

The deadline for applications is 9am on Monday 19th June with interviews being held on Monday 26th June.

Please note that this position will be offered subject to the translocation going ahead this year. In the unlikely event that the translocation is unable to go ahead, we will unfortunately no longer be able to fulfil this role.

Full-time position – Permanent 

Start Date: ASAP

Deadline: 15/04/2023

Salary:  £24,000 pa
Hours: Full-time (40 hours per week)

Job Base: Wareham, Dorset

Background: Dorset is without doubt one of the most important and pristine counties in the country when it comes to its birdlife. Nestled centrally on the south Dorset coast is Poole Harbour, a thriving landscape with a whole host of protections and designations attached to it. The harbour is both nationally and internationally important for a suit of species, and its surrounding landscapes provide a mouth-watering opportunity to see, experience and learn about birds right the way through the year.

Southern Britain and especially the Purbeck and Poole Harbour area is also fast becoming a recognised species and landscape recovery focal point, showcasing a range of high-profile nature restoration projects including the Poole Harbour Osprey translocation project and the Isle of Wight White-tailed Eagle translocation.

We’re seeking someone to join our small but driven team to help us continue building and developing our education and people engagement program throughout the year.

Job description: Our Birds of Poole Harbour charity is only 10 years old, but since it’s creation, we’ve worked hard at developing and delivering a range of high standard and high impact events and experiences for the public and local community to enjoy. The successful applicant will be a vital and busy member of the team, working hard to help us build our people engagement schedule as well as delivering and hosting many of the events themselves. This will include commentating on both our public and school bird boat programs, hosting and delivering guided walks and ID courses and supporting and coordinating customer bookings and enquiries. A big part of the role will be to inspire and ignite excitement in the public by showcasing birds such as wild Ospreys and White-tailed Eagles, whilst educating and explaining to people some of the big conservation issues that the charity holds dear to its heart.

The role and key duties:

1. Help develop and deliver our wide range of public engagement and educational events.
2. Lead events commentary for bird boat trips and guided events including our School Bird Boat program
3. Support on and deliver highest standards of customer service and public engagement
4. Provide additional support at bird ringing demos and ID courses.
5. Help maintaining website and social media presence
6. Promote and interpret our projects and key messages, including the Osprey Translocation Project
7. Undertake other duties to support on all aspects of the charity’s objectives

Additional information: Birds of Poole Harbour is a registered charity dedicated to boosting the profile of bird conservation, observation and education across the Poole Harbour area. As a charity we fundraise and invest in conservation projects ranging from the installation of public infrastructure and habitat creation, to hosting our popular School Bird Boat initiative and delivering the flagship Osprey project.

Reports to: BoPH Trustees

Person Specification: This is a perfect role for an aspiring and enthusiastic ornithologist with excellent communication skills and a good knowledge of British birds. We’re only a small team, so the successful applicant will need to be able to work as part of a busy team, but also use initiative to make things happen.

Full training will be provided, including event content and delivery structure, managing the booking systems, charity history, customer service and future plans. More detail on our project work can be found here: www.birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk

If you think you could help us build the charity with your enthusiasm interpreting Poole Harbour’s birdlife and local wildlife conservation efforts, please email Paul on info@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk with a CV and one-page cover letter explaining why you think you’re suitable for this role.

Although we don’t know the full extent of yesterday’s spill yet, the fact it’s happened right in the middle of such an environmentally important area is incredibly worrying. Poole Harbour hosts nationally and internationally important numbers of wetland birds each winter and equally important numbers of other species including Sandwich and Common Terns which nest on Brownsea each summer. Right now we’re in that important transition period where our winter birds are leaving, and our summer birds are arriving, many of which use the southern shore of the harbour for feeding, nesting and hunting. Each month we conduct Wetland Bird Surveys across the harbour to monitor populations of over-wintering birds. The last survey which was conducted on March 5th logged 5450 birds along the southern shore in the spill area.

The local community have an incredibly strong attachment to the harbour and it’s environment which was highlighted yesterday morning when our male Osprey arrived back safely from West Africa, exciting thousands of people as he landed on the nest seen via a camera we installed this winter. His mate is expected to arrive back in early April after they bred for the first time in 2022, becoming the first pair to do so following an absence of nearly 200 years. The elation of the male’s safe return home yesterday morning was soon dashed by late afternoon when news of the oil spill was announced. Ospreys exclusively eat fish, and our pair hunt in the harbour about 95% of the time during the spring and summer season feeding on Grey Mullet, Flounder and Bass.

Over the next few weeks both Sandwich and Common Tern will be arriving back from their wintering grounds to nest on Brownsea, and will be reliant on fishing in the harbour to feed their young. Breeding waders have just begun courtship with Oystercatcher and Redshank currently settling on the beaches of Poole Harbours islands and salt marsh. Right now huge numbers of birds are on the move, having over-wintered further south and will soon be using Poole Harbour as a service station to feed up before continuing north. When it comes to an issue like this there are several areas of concern. One is that any birds that come into physical contact with this substance can see their feathers damaged and become less water resistant. The substance will also encourage any effected birds to preen constantly, meaning they could ingest the hazardous liquid. The other unknown is how much of the oil will settle on the mud and harbour shorelines and what impact will that have on marine invertebrates. There are so many unanswered questions currently, although thankfully, as of yet there have been no confirmed reports of any birds showing signs of distress as a result of the incident, although it is still early days.

We will be in constant communication with local partners and the community over the coming days to ensure we’re able to support where we can. We ask that the public remain vigilant and report any birds that look in distress to a local wildlife rescue centres, which can be found through this directory. You can also keep us informed via email on info@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk to help us understand the scale of the impact and provide support when needed. We will also be coordinating the local WeBS (Wetland Bird Survey) volunteers in the meantime to arrange an additional survey of the harbour and assess any impacts to birdlife as soon as possible.

Thank you,

Team BoPH

The Big Poole Harbour Bird Count is a quarterly, harbour-wide, community-birding project that encourages everyone to get out and record the birdlife across the local area. With your help, we have surveyed every corner of the harbour during through the seasons and generated valuable community-science led data. This all helps us build a better understanding of the ecology and trends of Poole Harbour’s birdlide throughout the year. You can explore the results and data from our previous counts on our interactive webpage.

How to get involved

It’s simple, go birding in Poole Harbour on Sunday 29th January and record what you see! This could be a nearby park, urban space, nature reserve, or even your own back garden (please ensure you have permission to be there first). If you’re not sure where to go, why not head to our Go Birding webpage for inspiration? Once you’re out and about, make a note of the species you identify and the total number of individuals of each species you count. Please also document the name/s of those taking part (this information will not be shared), the location where you were birdwatching and what times you were there.

To make submitting your records as simple as possible we’ve created a species recording sheet, available to download below. Once completed, please email to sightings@birdsofpooleharbour.co.uk

Big Bird Count Recording Sheet – Winter 2023

Alternatively, you can submit your sightings via eBird or BirdTrack. Please note, any sensitive records (e.g. rare breeding birds) will not appear publicly in BirdTrack or eBird checklists, so please share any sensitive records with us directly by email. Our Big Bird Count data output will also restrict these sensitive records publicly to protect the species whilst helping to inform research and conservation efforts for the species.

When you head out we recommend bringing a pair of binoculars with you as this will help you spot and identify the birds you encounter. But don’t worry if not, or even if you only see a few birds: all sightings are valuable so please share them with us! January is a bustling month as the total number and abundance of overwintering species reaches its peak, so there should be plenty to spot.

Want to get involved but not sure where to start? Join the Birds of Poole Harbour team out in the field between 11AM and 1PM at various sites across the harbour. We’ll be covering as much of the harbour as possible with members of the team stationed for free pop-up watches at Jerry’s Point (Studland), Holes Bay Hide (Upton Country Park) and Rock Lea Viewpoint (Lytchett Bay).

A pair of wild Ospreys have hatched young at a secret nest site in Poole Harbour, which is the first to hatch in southern Britain for nearly 200 years. The successful hatching is a result of an Osprey reintroduction program that’s being carried out by Dorset based charity Birds of Poole Harbour and conservation organisation the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation.

The reintroduction which began in 2017 is aimed at restoring a population of Osprey to Southern Britain after it was historically eradicated across much of Western Europe. The large, fish eating bird of prey is a summer migrant that returns to the UK each spring having over-wintered in West Africa.

The adult pair of Poole Osprey known as female CJ7 and male 022 first met in Poole Harbour in May 2021 and instantly made a connection. CJ7 had already established a nest the previous year, but had no mate to try and breed with, meaning she spent the whole of 2020 on her own. Once met in 2021 their partnership grew in strength with continuous nest building and pair bonding over the summer, but breeding was never likely as the male was too young. With no breeding in 2021 the pair both left on migration in September that year.

The Osprey project team, as well as members of the public were on tenterhooks in the early spring of this year, eagerly awaiting the safe return of both CJ7 and 022 and after a long and agonising wait, the pair arrived back in early April and got straight down to business.

Paul Morton from the Birds of Poole Harbour charity explained:

“Words don’t even began to describe what this means to us, and of course Osprey conservation in Western Europe. We started our licence application in 2015, and the actual reintroduction in 2017, and the prospect of actually having wild hatched chicks in a nest always felt so far away. But here we are, with an official birthday of June 1^st 2022, and we now have the first wild Osprey chick for Southern Britain in 200 years, right here in Poole Harbour’

The Osprey pair had originally shown interest in a different nest in the harbour during 2020 and 2021, so when they decided to change sites to somewhere else in the harbour this spring it took the project team completely by surprise. Luckily, they had the foresight to put a makeshift webcam on the new nest a few weeks previously just in case, so all the action and this historic moment could be watched live. The pair have been thriving since their arrival back this spring, favouring species such as Grey Mullet and Flounder to feed on.

It’s thought that the pair laid three eggs in the nest during April, meaning the other two should hopefully hatch over the Bank Holiday Jubilee weekend. It’s predicted that once all three chicks have hatched safely, male 022 will become sole provider of fish until the chicks fledge after about 50 days. The chicks will stay low in the nest for the first few weeks, but by mid-June should be visible on the webcam as they grow and build in strength. Once fledged the chicks will stay for several more weeks, flying around and imprinting on the local area, learning that Poole Harbour is home, before instinct then kicks in and they’ll leave on migration. After two years, pending their safe migration down to West Africa and back the youngsters should then return to Dorset and begin thinking about starting families of their own, therefore seeing the beginnings of a new colony in Southern Britain.

‘Birds of Poole Harbour’ concluded:

‘The restoration of lost species and biodiversity takes time, and don’t forget, if humans hadn’t got rid of Ospreys in the first place, we wouldn’t have even needed to do a reintroduction. Now these birds are back, and successfully breeding, we hope that they can continue to build in strength as a population here on the south coast and be enjoyed by generations to come. It’s been a huge team effort getting to this point, and everyone within the project is ecstatic and the public response has been just superb. It feels great to actually have some positive news when it comes to raptor conservation here in Dorset”

CJ7 feeds chick for the first time