The Lake District Osprey Project has today (14 May 2008) issued the first photographs of the Lake District ospreys at their new nest near Bassenthwaite Lake.

The images by photographers Steve and Ann Toon have been released by the Lake District Osprey Project – a partnership between the Forestry Commission, the RSPB and the Lake District National Park Authority.  The photographs were taken from the new public viewpoint overlooking the nest at the Forestry Commission's Dodd Wood near Keswick.

This is the first time ever that the ospreys have been successfully captured on camera at their Lake District nest.  In previous years, the nest has been on the far side of Bassenthwaite Lake and too far away for successful photography.  However, this year the ospreys unexpectedly moved from the nest site that has been used since 2001 and relocated to the opposite side of the lake.

The nest move created a headache for the Project Team, but means that visitors to Dodd Wood will get their best-ever views of the nesting ospreys.

The original viewpoint at Dodd Wood remains open, with great opportunities to watch the ospreys fishing in the Lake, as well as to see red squirrels and watch woodland birds.

A second viewpoint has been set up about half a mile further on up the hill and is around 400 metres from the nest, giving visitors fantastic close-up views of the nest through binoculars and telescopes.  Visitors are advised to go to the original viewpoint first where staff from the Lake District Osprey Project can provide directions to the new site.

Osprey project staff set up telescopes for visitors to watch the action between 10am and 5pm daily at the lower viewpoint and between 10am and 4.30pm at the upper viewpoint.

The Lake District Osprey Project team also installed a new camera pointing at the nest, sending pictures to the giant videowall at Whinlatter Visitor Centre near Braithwaite where volunteers are on hand to answer questions about the birds.  For the latest updates on the ospreys and information on how to see the birds visit the LDOP website www.ospreywatch.co.uk.  Images from the camera can be viewed on the project website and at www.bbc.co.uk/cumbria.

Since ospreys first nested in 2001, more than half a million visitors have watched the birds nesting and rearing young from the viewpoints provided by the Lake District Osprey Project.  Ospreys returned to the Lakes without human intervention and colonised as part of a population expansion in Scotland.  The project team helped them by providing some ready-made nests, but otherwise these are entirely wild birds.

The LDOP and a team of dedicated volunteers carry out a round-the-clock guard on the nest to protect it from potential egg theft or disturbance.

It is now easier than ever before to visit Dodd Wood and Whinlatter thanks to a new Osprey Bus.  The liveried bus service named after the spectacular birds of prey operates around Bassenthwaite Lake at weekends, Bank Holidays and school holidays.  

The Lake District Osprey Project is a partnership between The Forestry Commission, the RSPB and the Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA).

www.forestry.gov.uk

www.rspb.org.uk

www.lake-district.gov.uk

ends

For further information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

David Hirst, Lake District Osprey Project on 07885 834889 or 0191 2334321

Graeme Prest, Lake District Osprey Project on 0774 7762916

Paul Gardner, Lake District Osprey Project on 015394-42436

Images:

Please credit Steve and Ann Toon/Lake District Osprey Project with any use of these images.  The photographs were taken at a distance of around 425m from the nest, and the conditions still posed a technical challenge even for professional wildlife photographers.  The Project Team hope to make closer photographs of the ospreys available later in the summer.

Additional notes:

Bassenthwaite Lake is a National Nature Reserve and a Special Area of Conservation owned and managed by the Lake District National Park Authority.
2.      The Bassenthwaite ospreys re-colonised England naturally in 2001 as part of a population expansion in Scotland, following the return of ospreys there in the 1950s after an absence of more than 50 years.  It was the first time that ospreys had nested in the Lake District for at least 150 years.

3.      The Lake District Osprey Viewpoint at the Forestry Commission’s Dodd Wood is located, 3 miles north of Keswick, off the A591 – follow signs to Mirehouse.  The Viewpoint is open all daylight hours with the osprey crew available from 10am-5pm, and is part of a UK-wide network of RSPB Aren’t Birds Brilliant! sites

4.      The RSPB has launched a campaign to stamp out the illegal killing of the UK’s birds of prey, which research shows are still being illegally killed in large numbers in parts of the UK despite receiving full legal protection.  For more information click on www.rspb.org.uk/birdsofprey

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