Bumper crop of 19 osprey eggs at Northumberland site

The birds have had to contend with weeks of wet weather as they incubate their eggs - a far cry from the high temperatures most will be used to.

For the third season in a row, there are four eggs in Nest 1A, which is unusual and will need good weather at hatching time for four chicks to hatch and survive.

Nest 7’s third egg arrived, as expected, on April 27. In 2020 the pair bred together for the first time, and one egg of the three failed to hatch.

From Friday, May 28, visitors enjoying the grounds of Kielder Castle will be able to watch all the live action from Nest 7 from a screen at The Sea Diner catering unit.

Northumberland Wildlife Trust’s Living Landscape project manager, Katy Barke, said: “We’re thrilled to welcome back the ospreys and watch the population at Kielder go from

strength to strength, let’s hope for another successful year for these beautiful birds.”

Breeding pairs of ospreys have nested in Kielder between March and September since 2009, with activity on the nests tending to be mainly throughout May to August as the chicks hatch, are fed and then learn to fly and practice hunting.

Following the decision in 2017 to start an alphabetised naming scheme for ospreys that hatch at Kielder, the 2021 chicks will all be named after parts of Northumberland beginning with the letter E.

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