The latest chapter in the story of a wildlife phenomenon unfolded in Perthshire at the weekend.
To the relief of staff and volunteers at Loch of the Lowes, Lady the osprey returned to the reserve on Saturday for a 23rd year.
The story of the oldest breeding osprey in the UK has captured the imagination of birdwatchers around the world who have tracked her progress via the centre’s webcam.
After she left Scotland in August last year doubts were expressed she would ever be seen again. News of her return spread swiftly and people began arriving at Loch of the Lowes, near Dunkeld, to see 27-year-old Lady for themselves.
“Champagne corks have been popped and chocolate consumed,” said Emma Rawling of the Scottish Wildlife Trust.
“Any of our regular birds making it back is a cause for celebration, but this is extra special.Lady is a great ambassador for Loch of the Lowes she is back where she belongs.
“We had to be very cautious when things first kicked off on Saturday. What we have done overnight was to examine close-ups of the bird and compare them with archive footage.
“We are as certain as we can be with an unringed bird that this our veteran female. She landed on the nest just after 2.15pm on Saturday and saw off the other young female that had been around all week.
“The younger bird didn’t even put up a fight. She just scarpered. Lady then started digging the nest, taking out grass that had grown over the winter and rearranging sticks.
“She then took up her favourite perch on an angled stick at the edge of the nest and admired her surroundings. She looked 100% at home.
“The male arrived and was extremely comfortable. They wasted no time in mating three times in the afternoon.”
People began arriving in large numbers yesterday to see Lady for themselves. Lady has laid more than 60 eggs during her lifetime and has confounded experts as the average life span for an osprey in the wild is around eight years.
In 2010 Lady suffered a bout of ill health and it was feared she would die when she stopped eating. However, she recovered and last year successfully reared one chick.