A young osprey has been around the last couple of days and has been seen fishing on Tindale Tarn. As it flew over the hide screen today it set a water rail alarm calling, presumably on its nest.
Lapwings have had a poor season until now with no chicks seen so far. Following the torrential downpour on 18th May many lapwings are displaying again and trying for another nesting attempt. Redshank numbers also seem to have picked up this last week. Both ring ouzels and whinchats have been found nesting at lower altitudes this year, suggesting food is scarce higher on the fell. 11 adult male whinchats have been ringed so far with two being re-traps, one from 2012 and the other originally ringed from 2011. It’s great to see this wonderful bird surviving their African migration and doing so well on the reserve.