The importance of Dakhla (Western Sahara) as a wintering site for Ospreys Pandion haliaetus: first systematic census

Abstract

The Osprey Pandion haliaetus is a large piscivorous raptor with a world-wide distribution. European populations are often long-distance migrators, overwintering in different regions of Africa and the Mediterranean basin. Until now, citizen science and occasional reports suggested that the Dahkla Peninsula (Western Sahara) could be an important migratory stopover and a wintering quarter for European Ospreys, but systematic surveys had not been performed until now. We carried out intensive censuses across three days (10–12 December 2024) during the core wintering period of the species in Africa, and compiled historical and citizen science records from the Dahkla Peninsula. We counted 27 Ospreys within the Dahkla area, mainly in intertidal zones. These higher-than-expected densities highlight the importance of the region as a wintering quarter for the Osprey, particularly in the ecological context of a trophic resource-poor environment, the Western Sahara.