Free osprey walk at Loch Leven

On Thursday, 17 August from 6pm to 8pm, visitors can learn about one of Scotland’s most charismatic summer visitors, the osprey. Having recently fledged, the youngsters spend most of August learning how to fish from their parents, so this is an excellent chance to watch ospreys fishing the loch before they make their way down to Africa to spend the winter.

Jeremy Squire, SNH Loch Leven reserve officer, said:

“Loch Leven has plenty of splendid fishing raptors visiting at this time of year, and we hope to see good numbers of them fishing on Thursday. On last year’s walk, we saw over 20 birds – with one putting on a magnificent performance with multiple dives before it eventually caught a small perch.”

For more info or to book a place, please contact the reserve office on 01577 864439. The group will meet in the car park and make the short walk down to the shoreline to observe the birds.

Loch Leven is Scotland’s largest lowland loch and one of the most important sites for waterfowl in Britain. Its unique environment attracts not only the largest concentration of breeding ducks anywhere in the UK, but also many thousands of migratory ducks, geese and swans every autumn and winter, as well as boasting an interesting variety of wildlife, plants and trees.

Events like this are part of SNH’s work to help more people experience and enjoy nature, one of the priorities of the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy.

ENDS

Media queries

Contact SNH media officer, Vicki Mowat, on 0131 316 2659 or vicki.mowat@snh.gov.uk (Tues-Fri) or the SNH main press office on 01463 725 022 (Mondays).