The Fledgling Files – Good News from Gosforth Nature Reserve

Sit back, relax, and enjoy three feel-good stories from Gosforth Nature Reserve this summer – each one highlighting the value of this urban oasis for some of Newcastle’s most eye-catching birds.

Little Egrets on the Rise

A rare success story, these beautiful, pearly white herons are a relatively new arrival to the UK and are spreading north rapidly. A firm favourite among reserve visitors, it was with great excitement that, in 2024, NHSN volunteers confirmed that Little Egrets had bred at Gosforth Nature Reserve for the very first time.

Little Egrets have an interesting habit of recycling empty Grey Heron nests to rear their chicks, which can make monitoring their progress quite challenging. Herons typically nest high up in areas that are difficult to access. Despite this, NHSN volunteers, while carrying out vital monitoring work as part of the British Trust for Ornithology’s Heronries Census, confirmed the presence of two active nests on site this summer. Fantastic news!

While it’s still too early to say how many chicks will successfully fledge this season, this development is hugely encouraging and could signal the beginning of a regular, thriving colony in the years ahead. Only time will tell…

Tern Triumph

Gosforth Nature Reserve’s Common Terns have faced a challenging few years, largely due to avian flu, which has significantly reduced their numbers over the past two seasons. As a result, the terns had not successfully bred at the reserve for nearly two years.

In 2023–24, dedicated volunteers, supported by a generous donation from the Tony Tynan family, lovingly built a new, larger tern platform to encourage the return of these energetic migrants. Their efforts were rewarded earlier this year when two pairs of terns returned to the platform. Although they began nesting later than at other sites across the North East, there was a strong sense of optimism about what this could mean for the future of this small but important colony.

A few weeks later, that optimism paid off with the successful fledging of three healthy tern chicks from the platform.

As you can see from the video above, shared by Volunteer Ranger, Elaine Wittert, the chicks thrived on a steady diet of fish brought in by their parents. As of this week, they have left the platform.

The good news is that all three chicks are now being fed on a small island not far from the Beck Hide and appear to be doing well. Two of the three have also been ringed, allowing ornithologists to track their movements in future years.

Could this be the beginning of a new, thriving colony at the reserve? Only time will tell, but all signs suggest a promising return for these remarkable avian travellers.

A Bumper Year for Barn Owls

As many of you know, 2020 marked the return of Barn Owls to Gosforth Nature Reserve for the first time since the 1970s. Since then, a pair of owls has made the reserve their home, successfully raising chicks and, on occasion, delighting visitors with fleeting appearances from the hides.

With this in mind, it was a welcome surprise to volunteers when, in 2025, not one but two pairs of Barn Owls took up residence at the reserve – a rare occurrence for a small site so close to the city. Supported by a steady supply of small mammals, we’re pleased to confirm that both urban owl nests have been successful. Between them, the pairs have raised a total of six healthy chicks, all of which have now left the nest and are ready to make their way in the wider world.

This is the first time we’ve had two pairs of Barn Owls successfully breed at the reserve. In time, these pioneering youngsters may find their way to new sites along Newcastle’s nature corridors, helping to boost the population of these iconic birds across urban Tyneside.