Poole Harbour ospreys: South coast's only breeding pair lay egg

The only breeding pair of ospreys on England's south coast have laid their first egg of the year.

It is the third year the birds, which are part of a reintroduction scheme, have bred at Poole Harbour, Dorset.

Female osprey CJ7 was spotted laying the egg on a nest webcam at 15:40 GMT on Monday.

The birds became the first nesting pair on the south coast of England in 180 years in 2022, after being introduced in 2017.

Both CJ7 and male osprey 022 arrived back in Poole Harbour in late March, following their migration to West Africa.

Conservation charity Birds of Poole Harbour, who led the reintroduction project, said it typically takes between 10 and 14 days after the pair have returned for the female to lay their first eggs.

Liv Elwood, charity manager at Birds of Poole Harbour, said the event was "hugely significant", adding "as the only breeding pair on the south coast, this is the only egg that exists in the whole of the south."

She said: "The chicks that are hatched from these eggs will be some of a few that hopefully start a future population on the south coast."

Ms Elwood added that the female would "hopefully" lay "a few more eggs" in the coming days, with them due to hatch in late May.

Wildlife TV presenter and conservationist Megan McCubbin described the news as "egg-cellent".

Soon after laying the egg, the male was spotted bringing some fish back to the nest for the pair to eat.

In 2022, the pair raised two chicks - becoming the first known ospreys to breed in southern England since 1847.

The fish-eating birds of prey historically bred across the British Isles but populations drastically declined in the Middle Ages.

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