(C) Roger Jones

Rogers Photograph so reminds us of the situation regarding Information about the Uk Osprey Population.

Some of it is in the open, for all to share, learn from and engage with.

Some is hidden, out of sight, shared with just a few.

UKOI and the Joy of Sharing

One of the things we in the UK Osprey Information team are clear on, and which very much is the bedrock of our ethos, is that we believe strongly in the open sharing of information about UK ringed ospreys where possible.

Why?

For us, we cannot think of any greater joy in following ospreys for anyone involved with them than hearing about news or a sighting of a bird they have been involved with, whether officially as part of a project or just having watched the bird on a live stream, on migration, in their wintering grounds or back in the UK and maybe even breeding. 

That does not mean we at UKOI are willing to share information in all circumstances. There are, of course, some caveats. 

It is right to keep confidential any information that would put the birds in danger of disturbance or harm, in particular the locations of nests that are not in the public domain and/or are not expressly protected with cameras, security systems or close daily monitoring. There have been, very sadly, several cases in recent seasons where unnecessary human disturbance to the birds was noted and their breeding seasons were disrupted – thankfully in most cases the birds were unharmed and the breeding season was still successful but the chainsaw attack on the nest at Llyn Brenig in 2021 was a notable and horrific exception and in another case reported by Llangorse ringing group, chicks were forced into fledging which could have easily caused their injury or loss. 

Landowners too, have the right not to be disturbed, their privacy compromised and land trespassed upon by people, whether well meaning or not, trying to find a nest they have heard about for whatever personal reason. For this reason, some landowners prefer not to make public much or indeed any information about nests on their land. These views too should be respected and the landowners’ wishes and rights honoured.

This sort of human disturbance of a rare and legally protected bird is simply unacceptable, and we reiterate one of our core group rules: please do not disclose the location of any nests you know about that are on private land or not in the public domain, and please ensure you do not disturb the birds and have all relevant permissions if you take photographs of the birds near the nest and share them, or any other information about the birds, in this group or anywhere else.

Nest site information/Location, SHOULD NOT be shared openly with anyone who doesn’t need to know. It is suffice to say that a nest is an area, For Instance, Kielder Forest or The Tweed Valley, Rutland Water or as for a recent new nest West Midlands. That is all we need.

Occupants, Ring Numbers and non specific information can be safely shared, it does not increase risk, in point of fact it is likely to reduce risk (George Waterston Principle) by engaging many watchers. This type of information engages people, draws them in and in doing so creates species ambassadors and protectors.

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GOOD PRACTICE EXAMPLE

We would like to look at Kielder Forest Osprey Project, How they manage their Project and share information, we believe is an example others should aspire to.

(They are not the only excellent project in our opinion, just the example we have chosen to Highlight)

So what do they do that makes them stand out:-

Regular written updates, that shares what they want shared and protects what should be protected.

Timely publication of information, sensitive information only shared when it is safe to.

Publication at the end of each season of Statistics, Covering just about every aspect of each nest,including, Occupants, arrivals, egg info, hatching and fledging info, Ring Numbers plus other information. All of which is perminantly available on their website.

An Annual publication of intruders, including where it intruded, hatching details, year, location and current status.

The Kielder Team is also reactive to contact, ready to reply, being generous with both time and knowledge.

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For us at UKOI, there is no greater pleasure than in sharing information with, and seeing the joyful and positive reactions of, ALL who are involved with that bird or nest – whether that is a ringer, someone who works for or is involved with monitoring, advising or co-ordinating osprey conservation (e.g. RDWF), a staff member or volunteer for an osprey project, a landowner with a nest on their land, or, last but not least, one of us, a member of the public who follows nests and individual birds, irrespective of our role or nature of our interest in the bird – and  that there is no greater happiness than in recognising that our own personal observations of the bird, or the hard work we have done to find and collate others’ observations, have brought the same joy and pleasure to all those other people.

This is the ethos of UKOI, and we are determined to promote it in everything we do. 

Finally, We would ask all parties involved with Ospreys in whatever capacity, either Active or Passive involvement acknowledge that we all bring something to the table, and that all of us have the interests of these birds front and centre in our thoughts, and that we treat each other with respect.

References – Llangorse ringing blog, https://llangorseringing.blogspot.com/2026/07/osprey-ringing-2026.html?fbclid=IwY2xjawU4rDhleHRuA2FlbQIxMABwZG9mBWJyaWQRMHVDRlNsaW0zQ0NRRnFNN0RzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEe5N7X2uG2Ka689HXMMGR1rbO8ROOJrwe0qmGCVQC7RBU3_rv_fydyVX0GpQo_aem_I3zN-BN3nyiG5mSKzgD6WQ

West Midlands ringing blog,

Llyn Brenig chainsaw attack

UKOI TEAM