Staff at WWT Caerlaverock are celebrating today after discovering the first ever recorded osprey egg in Dumfriesshire.
The proud parents-to-be are regular visitors to Caerlaverock, returning here from their wintering grounds in Senegel and Gambia for the past few years for the breeding season. The pair arrived earlier this month, settled back at the nest they built last year and were soon seen bringing fish back to the nest and mating.
Sadly, the osprey’s breeding attempts in previous years have all failed, but Caerlaverock’s Centre Manager, Richard Hesketh, was thrilled and excited to discover the newly laid egg this morning. He said: “I saw a rather bemused male bird standing on the right hand side with the egg sitting in the lower cup of the nest. The female soon arrived and the male duly settled down onto the egg.
“This is obviously a new experience for both birds as neither of them appears to be sure exactly what to do. All we can do now is watch and wait until, fingers crossed, the chick will hatch towards the end of May.”
In partnership with WWT, The Forestry Commission Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage, CCTV cameras beam live images from the osprey nest straight through to the fairtrade coffee shop in Caerlaverock’s visitor centre.
