One of the young Cumbrian ospreys that hatched at Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve in May has been spotted learning to fish in Portugal.

Volunteers at Cumbria Wildlife Trust, who manage the site, say they did not expect to see the bird so soon after flying the nest last month. 

Every year mum Osprey Blue 35 and dad White YW return to the nature reserve in South Cumbria from West Africa, successfully breeding at the site since 2013.

The chicks from this year were tagged with ID rings OC5 and OC6 to help conservationists track the birds’ movements and understand their life history.

Paul Waterhouse, reserve officer for Cumbria Wildlife Trust said: "We certainly didn’t expect to see 0C5 again so soon after he left Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve.

0C5 arrived Lagoa de Óbidos, Portugal last week (Image: Giles Elliott 2024) "It’s great to know he’s safely reached Portugal, maybe before crossing the Gibraltar straits and reaching his wintering grounds in West Africa. Huge thanks to Giles Elliott for reporting this sighting.

"Migration is a risky business for young ospreys so we’re always delighted to hear about sightings like this. You can clearly see his leg ring in the photos – all our osprey chicks are given two leg rings.

"One is a BTO (British Trust for Ornithology) ID ring, with its unique number to identify the bird and a contact address to report it if it’s found. The other ring is bigger and made of coloured plastic with large letters or numbers on it, which can be read with a telescope or camera and allows us to recognise the birds from a distance. This sighting reinforces how important colour ringing of ospreys is.

"We have learnt so much about ospreys and their life history from this technique. It will allow us to hopefully recognise 0C5 again in the future – maybe we’ll welcome him back to Cumbria!"

0C5 skims the lagoon waters (Image: Giles Elliott 2024) Photographer Giles Elliott, who spends half his time in Portugal and half his time in the UK, has captured 0C5 learning to fish over the last week at a lagoon in Lagoa de Óbidos.

He's got better in this short time frame as Giles managed to capture him with a giant fish in his talons.

"I have had a home next to Obidos Lagoon for 15 years. The lagoon is on the Silver Coast of Portugal and has a great variety of birds," he said.

"My highlight of the birding year is always the arrival of the ospreys. A small number of ospreys typically make their winter stop here.

"Each year I try and note any bird rings that will tell me where an individual bird is from, and how old it is - this really adds to a sense of knowing the individual bird.

0C5 was recognisable by the ring on his foot (Image: Giles Elliott 2024) "Last week I was able to get photos of a newly arrived bird that turned out to be ‘0C5’ - a bird from Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s Foulshaw Moss reserve. 

"He has chosen a great place to over winter. He has been here at least a week now, and his fishing skills are improving, so hopefully he’ll stay here until time comes to head back to Cumbria next Spring."