The woman dubbed a "human swan" after embarking on a mammoth paramotor flight to follow the bird's migration route is taking off again.
ADVERTISEMENTThe woman dubbed a "human swan" after embarking on a mammoth paramotor flight to follow the bird's migration route is taking off again.
This time, Sarah Dench will be following ospreys as they move south, beginning in Scotland and ending in West Africa.
She hopes to find out why so many of the birds don't survive the migration and make it back to the UK to breed.
"If there's healthy water, if there's a good fish population and if there are trees to breed in we should have ospreys, but they're not coming back," said Dench, the co-founder of Conservation Without Borders. "So what is it, is it something in the UK, or could it be something all along their migration route.
"So the whole point of this trip is to follow them, on their journey from northern Scotland, all the way down to West Africa and see the world as they do. Figure out what it could be, what could be going wrong.
"We know for example that between 50 and 60% of birds that are born in the UK don't make it back to the UK to breed.
"So why is that and where is that happening, and so that is the whole point of this trip is to work with partners all along the flyway and figure out why."
Seen as a threat to fishing stocks, ospreys were hunted frequently in the Victorian period. In 1916, the bird was declared extinct in Scotland.
Since the 1950s, ospreys have begun to return to the United Kingdom, arriving in March or April and leaving for warmer climates as winter approaches.
"Migration of ospreys is one of life's great mysteries. It is absolutely fascinating to look into," added Dench.
The conservationist will begin her journey in August next year, flying at similar speeds and heights of the birds.
The migration will take approximately four and a half months to complete.