This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: A new study by Bournemouth University (BU) has found that faster recovery of osprey populations relies on a small number of ospreys that, unlike most, prefer to nest away from others of the same species. These birds have been referred to as "pioneering pairs" and could be key to helping conservationists increase their population spread.
The study looked at a rare long-term data set covering 54 years of osprey recolonization in northern Scotland. It investigated the distribution and density of nests and the resulting patterns of settlement to understand how populations spread and what drives spatial recovery. The study was led by BU doctoral researcher Brittany Maxted in collaboration with Dorset charity Birds of Poole Harbour and The Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation, which monitor ospreys in parts of northern Scotland.
Maxted said, "Ospreys usually like to nest in areas where there are already other ospreys, which we refer to as conspecific attraction. Most males also exhibit natal philopatry, which means they tend to breed close to their own birthplace. Together, these factors lead to very slow population spread for such a large bird.
"However, in Scotland we noticed that a small number of pairs were choosing to settle more than 20 km (12 miles) away from all the others, in areas with no competition. We call these 'pioneering pairs' as they recolonize new areas, and in doing so create separate subpopulations and increase the speed of recovery for the species." Restoring lost species is a key goal for conservationists, but little is known about the process of recolonization. This study found that the patterns seen in ospreys are very similar to other types of population expansion that have been much better studied, like invasive species.
The tools scientists use to investigate these species could therefore also be used to better understand and help recovering species. The paper's findings also point to other potential solutions to speed the recovery of osprey populations. Tim Mackrill, lead ornithologist at the Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation and co-author of the paper, said, "This study highlights how much the spatial expansion of ospreys relies on the long-distance dispersal of these rare pioneering individuals.
It suggests that the best way to accelerate natural recovery rates is for conservationists to encourage or even replicate these pioneering movements. We can do this by building artificial nests to help entice ospreys into new areas or by physically moving individuals via translocation." Ospreys once bred across much of Britain, but by 1916 they had disappeared because of hunting and egg collecting. However, after a pair naturally returned to a nest site at Loch Garten in Scotland in 1954, a conservation movement began to protect nesting pairs and help the species recover.
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