Male osprey returns to Foulshaw Moss and prepares nest

The bird arrived at Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve near Witherslack on Sunday, March 24 and is bang on time as the pair, White YW and Blue 35, usually return in late March.

The lovebirds have raised 27 chicks in total at the site, managed by Cumbria Wildlife Trust (CWT), after they first returned to Foulshaw Moss in 2013.

If Blue 35 (the female) returns, it will be their twelfth summer together, and if they breed this year, it will be for the eleventh year running, as they first bred in 2014. 

READ MORE: South Cumbria's sign spring has 'sprung' with the Ospreys' return

The pair usually have around three eggs however not all survive. Chicks died in the nest in 2016 and 2020, and in 2019 an egg failed to hatch 

According to the Foulshaw Ospreys Twitter account, White YW has been spotted on the live webcams digging an egg cup with his feet in an 'undignified but effective' manner.

This morning (March 27), he was also observed carefully rearranging a stick that 'didn't quite match' the nest - which eventually fell off.

Last year there were concerns that female Blue 35 would not return when White YW brought two unknown female ospreys to the reserve.

After some 'drama' over a period of a few days, Blue 35 finally returned.

Yesterday (March 26), White YW was spotted watching and waiting for her in the wind.

This is an exciting time of year for the nature reserve and the images are taken from the osprey webcams which have been set up to capture the action as it happens.

The photos are then placed onto the dedicated Twitter account managed by a CWT volunteer.

The live feed continues to grow in popularity and has been running for over a decade.

Particularly in lockdown, viewing rates skyrocketed with nearly 400,000 unique visits to the live feed page. 

There are now thousands of viewers all over the UK. 

It costs around £12,000 to get and keep these cameras running for the season.

Donations are greatly appreciated at the Cumbria Wildlife Trust website.