Biodiversity Northern Ireland

Osprey at Oxford Island

There is a new visitor to Oxford Island this summer. A young osprey, a spectacular bird of prey that feeds on fish, has taken up temporary residence and can be seen most days from the Closet hide.

And given that the shooting season starts on Tuesday 1^st September Craigavon Borough Council has contacted local shooting clubs to remind them that the bird is fully protected.

Ospreys feed exclusively on fish. It catches them in a spectacular feet first dive; often after hovering high overhead. The abundant supply of fish in the Lough has attracted this young bird who is feeding up before it shortly begins the long passage back to its winter feeding grounds. It is not unusual to see ospreys stopping off on Lough Neagh on their migration route in spring or autumn. However, this bird has been present now for aver a month to the delight of the many people who have come down to Oxford Island especially to see it.

A summer visitor from West Africa, the osprey was exterminated in the last century from Britain and Ireland, but now breeds in Scotland and has been recently been reintroduced to England. As numbers increase more birds are arriving at Lough Neagh on their migration route.

Michael Hayes, the Conservation Ranger at Oxford Island, was one of the first to see the bird and has been monitoring it ever since. “I would love to see this osprey return next year and start a nest”, reports Michael, “and with the start of the shooting season on Tuesday I want to make sure that all responsible people knew about the osprey and keep a sharp lookout for it”.

The frequency of the osprey sightings around the Lough over the last few years and the increase in the numbers nesting in Scotland has given rise to hopes that this magnificent bird may eventually return to these shores to breed and provide a stunning attraction throughout the summer months.