Ospreys hatch fourth and final egg of the season

The only pair of breeding ospreys in the south of England have successfully hatched their fourth and final egg of the season.

Female CJ7 and male 022 laid four eggs at their nest site near Poole Harbour, Dorset, in April for the third year in a row.

The birds took up residence in the area following a reintroduction programme led by Birds of Poole Harbour.

All four chicks could be seen on the charity's webcams on Friday morning as their mother fed them with fish.

Birds of Poole Harbour said laying four eggs was "quite a rare occurrence in ospreys".

CJ7 and 022 have already successfully bred at the nest site at Careys Secret Garden for three consecutive years, rearing three young in 2023, four in 2024 and a further four in 2025.

They were the first ospreys to breed on England's south coast in 180 years.

Birds of Poole Harbour and Roy Dennis Wildlife Foundation began the reintroduction programme in 2017 with the aim of establishing a breeding population on the south coast.

Up to 14 osprey chicks were relocated from Scotland and released in the Poole Harbour area each year until 2021.

The juveniles usually leave between August and September, travelling to West Africa where they remain for a few years, before returning to Dorset when they are ready to breed.