Do set
Osp ey.
C edit:
Bi ds
of
Poole
Ha bou
I
2017,
co se vatio ists
bega
movi g
you g
osp eys
f om
Scotla d
to
Do set.
Five
yea s
late ,
the
bi ds
b ed
i
southe
E gla d
fo
the
fi st
time
si ce
1847.
A
lo g-te m
study
led
by
Bou emouth
U ive sity
(BU)
has
ow
show
why
the
p oject
wo ked
a d
how
simila
methods
could
help
bi ds
of
p ey
ecove
mo e
quickly.
Published
i
the
Jou al
of
A imal
Ecology,
the
study
fou d
that
fast
populatio
g owth
depe ds
heavily
o
a
small
umbe
of
“pio ee i g
pai s.”
These
bi ds
choose
to
est
fa
f om
established
b eedi g
colo ies,
helpi g
the
species
sp ead
i to
ew
a eas.Resea che s
studied
54
yea s
of
osp ey
ecolo isatio
data
f om
o the
Scotla d.
The
eco ds
showed
how
est
locatio s
a d
settleme t
patte s
affect
the
sp ead
of
the
species.
The
data,
collected
ove
ma y
decades
by
the
Roy
De is
Wildlife
Fou datio ,
p ovides
a e
i fo matio
about
how
ecove i g
species
atu ally
etu
to
a eas
they
o ce
occupied.
U de sta di g
what
slows
atu al
ecove y
Osp eys
we e
o ce
commo
ac oss
G eat
B itai .
Seve e
pe secutio ,
egg
collecti g,
a d
hu ti g
eve tually
caused
them
to
disappea
as
a
b eedi g
species
by
1916.Natu al
ecove y
bega
i
1954,
whe
a
b eedi g
pai
etu ed
to
Loch
Ga te
i
the
Scottish
Highla ds.
Howeve ,
the
species
has
sp ead
ac oss
B itai
ve y
slowly.Lead
autho
B itta y
Maxted,
a
docto al
esea che
at
Bou emouth
U ive sity,
explai ed
that
osp eys
usually
p efe
to
est
ea
othe
osp eys.
This
behavio
is
k ow
as
co specific
att actio .
Most
males
also
show
atal
philopat y,
mea i g
they
te d
to
b eed
close
to
whe e
they
we e
bo .Togethe ,
these
behavio s
make
it
difficult
fo
the
species
to
sp ead
ove
la ge
dista ces.
Pio ee i g
pai s
help
the
species
sp ead
The
study
fou d
that
most
osp eys
settle
ea
existi g
ests.
But
a
small
umbe
behave
diffe e tly.
These
bi ds
t avel
mo e
tha
20
kilomet es
(12
miles)
f om
othe
osp eys
a d
settle
i
empty
a eas.Maxted
a d
he
colleagues
call
these
bi ds
“pio ee i g
pai s.”
By
movi g
i to
ew
a eas,
they
c eate
sepa ate
b eedi g
g oups
a d
help
the
populatio
expa d
faste .This
patte
is
simila
to
the
way
some
i vasive
species
sp ead.
Resea che s
believe
that
mathematical
models
used
to
study
i vasive
species
could
also
help
co se vatio ists
pla
wildlife
ecove y.D
Tim
Mack ill,
lead
o ithologist
at
the
Roy
De is
Wildlife
Fou datio
a d
a
co-autho
of
the
study,
said
the
ecove y
of
osp eys
depe ds
g eatly
o
these
a e
lo g-dista ce
moveme ts.He
explai ed
that
co se vatio ists
could
speed
up
atu al
ecove y
by
e cou agi g
o
c eati g
pio ee i g
moveme ts.
They
ca
do
this
by
buildi g
a tificial
ests
i
ew
a eas
o
by
movi g
bi ds
the e
th ough
t a slocatio .D
Roy
De is
OBE,
fou de
of
the
Roy
De is
Wildlife
Fou datio ,
has
mo ito ed
Scottish
osp eys
si ce
the
1960s.
He
said
the
lo g- u i g
dataset
co ti ues
to
eveal
ew
i fo matio
about
the
bi ds
a d
suppo ts
the
use
of
these
methods
to
esto e
osp eys
ac oss
the
UK
a d
Eu ope.
T a slocatio
ca
save
decades
of
waiti g
The
Do set
p oject
showed
how
c eati g
a tificial
pio ee s
ca
help
establish
a
ew
populatio .Betwee
2017
a d
2021,
co se vatio ists
moved
healthy
seve -week-old
Scottish
osp ey
chicks
to
Do set
th ough
a
joi t
p oject
i volvi g
the
Roy
De is
Wildlife
Fou datio
a d
Bi ds
of
Poole
Ha bou .The
you g
bi ds
we e
kept
tempo a ily
i
special
cages
at
Poole
Ha bou
u til
they
could
fly.
This
helped
them
lea
to
t eat
the
southe
la dscape
as
thei
home
te ito y.Maxted
explai ed
that
t a slocatio
ca
effectively
c eate
pio ee i g
bi ds
to
sta t
a
ew
populatio .The
fi st
b eedi g
pai
at
Poole
Ha bou
i cluded
a
male
called
022,
which
had
bee
moved
f om
Scotla d,
a d
a
female
called
CJ7.
She
had
t avelled
f om
a
populatio
200
km
(124
miles)
away
a d
was
att acted
to
the
a ea
by
the
p ese ce
of
the
t a slocated
chicks.I
2022,
the
pai
p oduced
two
chicks.
They
became
the
fi st
osp eys
to
b eed
i
southe
E gla d
si ce
1847.Without
the
t a slocatio
p oject,
Maxted
said,
Do set
might
have
had
to
wait
a othe
60
yea s
fo
b eedi g
osp eys
to
etu
atu ally.
New
populatio s
a e
begi i g
to
sp ead
The
Poole
Ha bou
p oject
has
co ti ued
to
show
positive
esults.
The
o igi al
b eedi g
pai
etu ed
to
the
same
est
each
yea
a d
successfully
p oduced
fou
chicks
a ually
fo
th ee
co secutive
yea s.The
you g
bi ds
emai
i
Do set
du i g
the
summe ,
elyi g
o
thei
pa e ts
to
p ovide
fish
befo e
mig ati g
south
i
ea ly
Septembe .Othe
pio ee i g
moveme ts
a e
ow
begi i g
to
appea .
A
seco d
pai
has
sta ted
b eedi g
away
f om
Poole
Ha bou .
I
additio ,
the
fi st
osp ey
bo
i
Do set
i
the
wild
has
built
a
est
i
the
East
Midla ds,
helpi g
co ect
the
southe
populatio
with
the
populatio
at
Rutla d
Wate .Maxted
said
t a slocatio
is
a
powe ful
co se vatio
tool,
although
it
ca
take
ma y
yea s
to
p oduce
esults.
Do set
is
still
i
the
ea ly
stages
of
ecove y,
but
some
wild-bo
chicks
a e
al eady
etu i g.Fou
you g
males
that
a e
old
e ough
to
b eed
a e
cu e tly
explo i g
possible
esti g
sites
a d
sea chi g
fo
mates.
Co se vatio ists
hope
some
of
these
bi ds
will
become
pio ee s
themselves
a d
help
the
populatio
sp ead
alo g
E gla d’s
south
coast.A tificial
ests
have
al eady
bee
built
i
ea by
cou ties
such
as
Devo
a d
Hampshi e.
Based
o
the
study’s
fi di gs,
co se vatio ists
pla
to
build
mo e
ests
to
e cou age
the
osp eys
to
establish
ew
b eedi g
a eas.