30/09/2026
RUTLAND OSPREYS FULL 2026 SEASON REPORT:
On Monday 2nd March, we reopened the Lyndon Visitor Centre for the 2026 season, meaning that the return of the Ospreys was nearly upon us. The first Osprey to return in 2025 arrived on 13th March, so all eyes were turned to the skies and, of course, our world-famous webcams.
With many of the birds delaying their migratory return, due to the storms off the coast of West Africa and over the south of the Iberian Peninsula, things got off to a slow start. But that all changed on 15th March. For the fourth year running, it was female 25(10) who got the 2026 Osprey season well and truly underway, if only for just a few minutes on Mother’s Day. She returned to the Manton Bay nest for longer periods two days later. Her own nest is just a short distance away, also in Rutland at Site C, and her breeding partner, 11(10), returned shortly after her, so they quickly settled down at their regular site.
A week after 25(10)’s arrival, another local osprey spent some time at Manton Bay on 22nd March before going off to her usual nest. The Argyll BTO-ringed female (missing her Darvic ring), resident at Site N for the past three seasons, was identified thanks to the power of our new high-resolution camera, as we could zoom in to see the BTO ring and read its number.
Then, on 24th March, thanks to strong and favourable south-westerly winds, an action-packed day began to unfold just after dawn. An unringed female landed on the nest at 06:28. Could this be Maya? We quickly ascertained that it wasn’t but then, to add to the day’s excitement, 33(11) landed at 07:17. The first of our regular Manton Bay residents was back!
Just a handful of hours later, at 14:30, Maya arrived back from migration, proudly carrying a large trout to the nest. 33(11) was straight onto the nest to greet her, but the unringed female was still around and tried to muscle in on the action. Maya was having none of it and literally bumped her off the nest, twice (just a few minutes apart). Maya and 33(11) soon began mating and continued building up the nest, ready for what we hoped would turn out to be another incredible season at Manton Bay.
A special visitor to Manton Bay, on Sunday 29th March, was 5H1(22). She fledged from Poole Harbour in 2022, the first osprey to do so in Southern England for about 180 years! She made local Site Z her home here last year and hatched three chicks with 3AY(19) in 2025. In addition to her residency in the Rutland area, her female parent, CJ7(15), has Rutland heritage too, having hatched in the area (Site K) in 2015. One of 5H1(22)'s 2025 chicks, 8R3(25), was seen in February at two separate locations in The Gambia and Senegal, about 300km apart. It was noted at the time of ringing that 8R3(25) was the smallest of the brood, so it is wonderful news to know that he has survived his first migration and reached an excellent wintering area. Given that males tend to return, after two years, to areas close to their point of origin, could we see him here in 2027?
Meanwhile, over on Lagoon 4, our newer nest platform had been fitted with cameras in anticipation of the return of a pair that showed interest in the nest last year. Rutland-hatched male 359(21) and Rutland-hatched female 3H9(23) got together late in the season last year, so we had high hopes for their return and 359(21) came back to the nest late on Sunday 29th March. Seven days later, on 5th April, 3H9(23) returned, but 359(21) had already moved to the nest at Site B, pairing with HJ8(14) - as her long-term partner, 30(10), had failed to return. After visiting various nests, 3H9 eventually moved to Site W and paired with 1H7(22), who this year turned out to be one of the most frequent visitors to the Horn Mill trout farm, near Exton. Interestingly, 359(21) is one of the Argyll BTO-ringed female’s chicks and 3H9(23)’s parents are 25(10) and 11(10), all mentioned above! Both 359(21) and 3H9(23) would go on to have two chicks each this year with their respective new partners.
It was surely only a matter of time before we would see some eggs on the Manton Bay nest. Having firmly established themselves as a prolific pair of ospreys, breeding together since 2015, the first egg duly arrived on 5th April, with a further three neatly following at 3-day intervals. Taking into account averages over recent years, we expected the first one to hatch around the 12th May. The second egg, in particular, was of great interest as it was almost pure white, with no speckling at all. This raised a whole set of questions. Is Maya okay? Will the chick be okay? What could have caused this? Will any other eggs follow suit?
No two Osprey eggs are ever the same. The beautiful reddish-brown colouration of Osprey eggs is primarily formed by a pigment called protoporphyrin in the shell gland. This pigment is deposited onto the eggshell in the final hours before the egg is laid. Even in the same clutch, each egg will be pigmented somewhat differently - if the egg rotates at the stage of pigmentation, it creates squiggly lines, if it stays still, it results in spots. Paler-than-normal coloured eggs may be the by-product of a bird’s poor diet or reduction in pigment as the latter eggs in the clutch are laid. Rarely, external factors or hormonal shifts can cause striking differences, such as an almost pure white egg (as in this case) compared to the normally reddish-brown speckles. The fact that the third egg was even more well marked than the first, and the fourth egg appeared normal too, suggests that it was nothing to be unduly concerned about. All would be revealed in due course.
As the season went on, several younger Ospreys returned. Sightings of note included male 4H6(23), having migrated from Site K in 2023 - he was spotted at Site R on 11th April. On 25th April, there were sightings of both Manton Bay-hatched 3H4(23) and Site S-hatched 2H3(22), which brought the total number of Ospreys that had returned from migration in the area to 31, equalling the record set in 2025. With any 2024-hatched first-time returners possibly still to arrive, this would hopefully be yet another record-breaking year for the project. This was duly achieved on 12th May when male 3R2(24) was photographed intruding at Manton Bay, taking this season's tally to 32 and setting a new benchmark for future years.
Back to the Manton Bay nest, the first egg began to pip during the afternoon on 12th May, bang on our predicted schedule. Hatching occurred just before 10pm that night. The darkness thwarted our plans to zoom in and capture the moment up close with our new high-resolution camera. The same was true of the second egg's hatching, two nights later, on the 14th May. Remember that the second egg was the white one, so we had been particularly keen to observe this one hatching at close quarters. But morning light revealed that all seemed to be fine and the chick was suffering no ill effects that the egg's lack of coloured markings might have implied.
But 15th May proved to be dramatic for different reasons. Male 33(11) had returned to the nest early in the morning with a fish, but it had a fishing lure and around two metres of line still attached. With the second chick having hatched just hours earlier (and two more eggs still to go), the risk of entanglement to both adults and chicks was simply too great to ignore. After careful consideration, and given that it was a human-made problem, conservation staff took the decision to intervene.
The team accessed the nest using a ladder and safely removed the lure and line. The operation was carried out as quickly and carefully as possible to minimise disturbance. Reassuringly, Maya returned to the nest within minutes of the team leaving, settling back down to brood the two chicks and continued to incubate the remaining pair of eggs.
After all that drama, egg #3 hatched on 17th May and, this time, it was during daylight, so we were able to utilise the new camera's powers to full effect. It was wonderful to be able to witness the new chick working its way out of the shell close up, stopping to rest and pant before each effort. The fourth egg continued to be incubated and turned but, as the days and weeks wore on, it was clear that it was not going to hatch.
The three chicks all continued to grow very fast, with 33(11) providing ample fish deliveries to keep them all happy. With fledging fast approaching, the chicks were weighed, measured and ringed on 23rd June, early in the morning.
All three were assessed and deemed to be in good health with, in the order of hatching, a male (ringed as 8R5), a female (8R6) and another male (8R7). The unhatched fourth egg was retrieved from the nest for inspection and it was found that it was unfertilised, so that was a popular question, often asked in the visitor centre, the hides and online, definitively answered.
During June, reports came in of a 2024 Rutland-hatched chick that had been seen back for the first time. Not in the UK, though, but in The Netherlands. 1R1(24) had hatched at Site C, with 25(10) and 11(10) as parents. He continued to be seen in The Netherlands throughout the summer, clearly having established this as his future home.
July began at Manton Bay with all three Osprey chicks getting very ‘bouncy’ on the nest and helicoptering to varying degrees. On the 2nd July, the oldest of the three chicks, 8R5(26), officially fledged at 18:51, leaving the nest aged 51 days. His two younger siblings were not going to be too much longer and, sure enough, 8R7(26) took off on 7th July at 08:24 (51 days) and then 8R6(26) completed the hat-trick of fledgings just a couple of hours later, at 10:46, aged 54 days.
All three chicks swiftly learnt to really use their wings and were regularly seen flying around Manton Bay, searching out new places to rest, such as the T-perches, the fallen poplar branch or the poplars themselves. Even the fishing limit signs on the stone bund became favourite perches for 8R6(26) and 8R7(26). But, when it was time to eat, they were all quick to return to the nest and fight over the latest fish delivery, sometimes with hugely comedic results, such as when 8R5(26) was so desperate to get a fish delivery that he grabbed his dad’s talon and got dragged off the nest as 33(11) flew away! His younger brother, 8R7(26), got that fish, but 8R5(26) got his revenge a few days later by pecking 8R7(26)’s head during an attempt to grab a fish.
As all three got more confident, 8R7(26) caused a bit of concern on 22nd July. Seen leaving the nest just after 6am, he was absent for a large portion of the day, but returned to the nest just after 4pm, having not been seen at any of his usual spots during that time at all.
It was then 8R5(26)’s turn to disappear, spending extended periods off the nest and then, on 31st July, we saw him for the final time this year, flying off the poplar branch after a large breakfast, off round the back of the poplar trees and away. At the time, he was 80 days old, so rather young for migration, but he had proven to be a strong chick during his 29 days since fledging. Hopefully, we’ll see him again in two years.
Seemingly inspired by her male siblings, 8R6(26) then had a period of disappearing from the nest for more than a day at a time but, after a week of this, then stayed around the nest. However, on the morning of Friday 21st August, both 8R6(26) (99 days old) and 8R7(26) (96 days) were seen spiralling up on thermals over Manton Bay, led by 33(11), a short while after 10:15am. Neither of the chicks were then seen on or near the nest, so had obviously started to make their way south. It's interesting that they chose to go together. The winds were favourable that day, blowing from the north west, so we hope they both made swift, and safe, progress.
Meanwhile, over on our previously unoccupied nest this season, at Lagoon 4 on the reserve at Egleton, we suddenly had a regular visitor. We were able to see this close up thanks to the two cameras now installed at the nest. Identified as 9R0(26), one of the chicks from Site B, she was being visited by her male parent, 359(21), who would bring fish and sticks. This went on for a few weeks.
The sharp-eyed of you might remember the number 359(21) as he was one of the pair that spent a lot of time at Lagoon 4 last year, but he and 3H9(23) went their separate ways when they returned this year, taking up spaces on nests where experienced parents didn’t return. 359(21) took over from 30(10) at Site B, pairing with HJ8(14), and they had two chicks – 8R9(26) and 9R0(26). According to Tim Mackrill, HJ8(14) looked like she had already migrated and 359(21) was left feeding the two chicks, with 8R9(26) staying at Site B and 9R0(26) moving to Lagoon 4. Interesting behaviour and possibly shedding some light on the off-nest time of our Manton Bay chicks. Last year, 3R7(25) had a couple of extended periods away from the nest, so perhaps 33(11) has also developed a technique of separating the chicks as part of their training, or maybe even to alleviate any potential conflict between growing siblings.
In terms of the other nests in the surrounding area that Tim Mackrill monitors, he has confirmed that we have had an amazing total of 24 chicks this year across 12 nests. Also, in addition to the unfertilised egg on the Manton Bay nest, Tim told us that there were a few other nests where unhatched eggs were discovered during the ringing visits. This could have partly been down to either the weather conditions or some inexperienced parenting, or a bit of both.
With all three Manton Bay chicks having migrated by the 21st August, that just left Maya and 33(11) at Manton Bay, weathering the atrociously wet conditions at the end of August, which made for such a contrast to the prolonged hot and dry summer that they had experienced to that point. Maya was last seen flying away from Manton Bay at 10:15 on 1st September and 33 stayed for two more days, spiralling up and heading off in a southerly direction just after midday on the 3rd.
Over on Lagoon 4, 9R0(26) stayed until 5th September, but 359(21) was around for several more days before migrating and was last seen on the perch behind the nest on 20th September, making him probably the last Osprey to leave the area this year.
So that's another exciting and successful season in the books, although we never did get any sightings of the return of 1R0(24), the solitary Manton Bay chick from 2024. But perhaps we might see him next season and we might get to see or hear of our 2025 youngsters, 3R5(25), 3R7(25) and 3R8(25). Keep your eyes to the skies from March 2027 onwards and we'll find out!
