The National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) has confirmed that a pair of ospreys has bred successfully in the midlands.
In August 2023, a breeding pair of ospreys and their chicks was discovered at a nesting site in Co. Fermanagh, the first sighting of naturally established breeding ospreys in over 200 years.
This latest success in Co. Leitrim is now the second record of a breeding pair on the island of Ireland in modern times.
NPWS
Ospreys are a medium-sized bird of prey with a distinctive brown eye-stripe that feed primarily on fish and need habitats close to rivers, lakes or coastal areas.
They are known to be monogamous, faithful to both their mate and their nest site.
The majority of ospreys in northwest Europe migrate to western Africa more than 3,000 miles away, before returning in the spring, as the population recovers from historic persecution.
The osprey is a protected species in Ireland along with all birds of prey.
Up to last year, the species had been extinct as a breeding bird in Ireland, but had continued to visit the island as part of their migratory pattern since their re-establishment as a breeding species in Scotland.
Last week, nine osprey chicks were released into the wild in Waterford by the Minister of State for Nature and Heritage, Malcolm Noonan and NPWS staff as part of the Osprey Reintroduction Programme, which is now in its second year.
The NPWS said that this pair in Co. Leitrim, which successfully fledged a single chick this year, are not related to chicks released through the programme.
They are a naturalised pair and it is possible that this is a first attempt at this location, as previous efforts remain unconfirmed.
The NPWS said that this latest confirmed breeding shows “encouraging signs of the quality of habitat in Ireland, and the positive impact of our biodiversity actions”.
The birds in Leitrim were first reported to the NPWS in May and staff have been monitoring their progress and welfare ever since.
Managing the return of this vulnerable species is highly dependent on respecting their need to be left undisturbed during their breeding cycle and fledging stages of their young.
In the event of unintentional disturbance, an incubating osprey will flush off the nest, leaving its eggs exposed to both predation and the weather.
The NPWS acknowledged the support and cooperation of the landowner, Inland Fisheries Ireland and local and angling communities, which have all contributed to the successful breeding of the ospreys.