Fears are growing for an osprey called Mrs G, which has played an incomparable role in repopulating Britain with the magnificent birds of prey, and has gone missing. In nearly two decades of returning to Snowdonia every spring, the bird has hatched 52 eggs and become a "grandmother" to at least 130 chicks.
The white and brown bird is thought to spend the winter in west Africa before returning to the Glaslyn nesting site near Porthmadog in the spring to breed. It was known for being one of the first ospreys to return each year but as yet there is no sign of Mrs G.
Before this year, the latest the osprey had arrived was April 1. In 2015, it returned on March 19 and was usually on the nest by March 26. Mrs G has a regular mate, called Aran, which usually returns shortly after the bird. But Aran arrived on Monday, April 3, and so far has been alone.
