Both osprey chicks at the Scottish Wildlife Trust’s Loch of the Lowes Visitor Centre & Wildlife Reserve successfully fledged within 24 hours of each other.

PT4 took his first flight at 13:53 on Sunday 7 July, less than a day after his sibling PT5, who took off on his own maiden flight on Saturday evening. Earlier on Sunday some over-enthusiastic flapping caused PT5 to crash out of the nest. Happily the young bird was unharmed and returned a few minutes later.

Sara Rasmussen, Perthshire Ranger, Scottish Wildlife Trust said: “We’re delighted that both chicks have fledged. This milestone makes the long hours our volunteers and staff spent watching over the nest earlier this year feel very worthwhile.

“The next challenge these young birds face is learning to catch their own fish. It’s a good time to come and visit Loch of the Lowes to see some fantastic aerial displays before the ospreys head south at the end of summer.”

This milestone makes the long hours our volunteers and staff spent watching over the nest earlier this year feel very worthwhile.

Sara Rasmussen, Perthshire Ranger

Loch of the Lowes Visitor Centre is open daily from 10:30am – 5pm with 24-hour access to the reserve hides. The Trust’s live osprey webcam ensures people from around the world can follow events as they happen.

Ospreys were extinct in Britain for much of the 20th century. They began to recover in the 1960s and today around 250 pairs breed in the UK each summer.

This recovery is thanks to the efforts of conservation charities including the Scottish Wildlife Trust, whose Osprey Protection Programme is supported by players of People’s Postcode Lottery.