Ospreys have returned toa South Cumbrian nature reserve.
Cumbria Wildlife Trust said male White YW arrived at Foulshaw Moss, its wetland nature reserve near Witherslack on March 28.
There was no sign of his long-standing mate Blue 35.
The trust said: “Keen osprey-watchers were on tenterhooks waiting for over a week for the return of the female, Blue 35, wondering whether she’d come back this year.
“At 18 years old, it’s possible the pair are approaching the end of their breeding life, and each long migration can be treacherous.”
However, she arrived yesterday, Monday April 6, seeing off younger female interloper Blue 717, who had temporarily taken up home on the nest.
Blue 717 has, however, appears to be settling on the second nest at Foulshaw, possibly with Blue 474, a five-year-old male who has also been spotted on the osprey cam.
Keziah Taylor, assistant reserves officer for Cumbria Wildlife Trust said: “It’s great to welcome back the ospreys at Foulshaw Moss. It’s always a nail-biting time for us until they get here and we’re obviously delighted that our long-standing breeding pair are once again reunited on the nest.
“We’ve also been intrigued to watch other younger ospreys on the second nest and look forward to seeing how this season will unfold.
“This year we’re excited to announce that we’ll have live osprey cams on both nests, so whatever’s in store, you can keep up-to-date with it all.
“Last year, we went from one drama to the next, with the experienced pair being joined for the first time by young newcomers who became first-time parents; the excitement of eggs on both nests and the sadness of losing two chicks, though four in total survived.
“And to cap it all, at the end of the summer, a young intruder appeared on the first nest and, unusually, was fed by the veteran White YW – it was fascinating behaviour to watch. There was never a dull moment!”
Blue 35 and White YW first came to Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve in 2013 after it was transformed by a large-scale habitat restoration programme.
Over a decade or so, the 900-acre site, which had been drained and used for commercial forestry, was returned to wetland.
Blue 35 and White YW have bred every year at Foulshaw Moss since 2014.
Blue 476 and Blue 717, first arrived at the nature reserve in 2025 and bred in the same year.
The second osprey nest is quite close to the boardwalk and is vulnerable to disturbance, so visitors are asked to be aware of this when they visit.
Cumbria Wildlife Trust has built a hide nearby to view the new nest from and asks everyone to use this hide respectfully, taking other visitors’ experiences into account.
The car park at Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve is quite small and gets full quickly.
People are asked to access it via public transport if they can. For more information, visit https://www.cumbriawildlifetrust.org.uk/nature-reserves/foulshaw-moss.
If people do arrive in a car and find that the car park is full, they are asked to return at a later time or date. The access road to the nature reserve is narrow and doesn’t have passing places.
Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve is free and open daily. It is off the A590 near Witherslack.
To view the ospreys close up, watch the 24-hour live streaming osprey cams at https://www.cumbriawildlifetrust.org.uk/osprey-cam.
