June 2025 Trip - Rutland Water

July 2, 2025

Since our wet and windy visit to Ouse Fen on 28^th May, the weather has been almost unbroken hot and dry. But all things come to an end and the forecast for our trip to Rutland was for a cooler day and possibly a shower or two. However, eight of us were rewarded with a dry and not too hot day.

This has become an annual pilgrimage to see the resident pair of Osprey that have been returning to Rutland since 2015. In fact, the female has now raised 42 chicks since 2009, which is quite a record and a tribute to all those who have encouraged the return of Osprey to the UK.

Sure enough, the parent birds were on their perches and the four chicks, now all a good size, were in the nest. One in particular was bouncing up and down and exercising its wings and looking as though it would be fledging very soon.

We were delighted to see this energetic chick take off and do a few quite large circuits round the nest site to the applause of the volunteers and visitors watching. After disappearing behind a tree for a while it reappeared and returned to the nest. However, it took a couple of approaches before it got the hang of landing but all was well and its first flight was achieved successfully.

There are actually about 12 other Osprey nests on farmland near the lake. These are possibly descendants of the chicks raised here or other birds that have passed this way on migration. One pair of adolescent birds are taking an interest in another man made nest site on a lagoon at Rutland and although they haven’t bred so far it looks as though they might in the coming years.

While watching the Ospreys we saw Reed Buntings, Cormorants, Stock Doves, Grey Heron various Gulls and Common Teal.