Roy Dennis dedicates his book to an earlier leader of Scottish bird conservation, George Waterston. Waterston was RSPB Scottish Director and set up the Fair Isle bird observatory. He was a massive influence on Dennis, introducing him to the ospreys at Loch Garten in 1960 - without Waterston, then, there would have been no book! This would have been a shame, since Roy Dennis has produced a hugely enjoyable and readable record, not only of the birds but of the people that have been involved, initially in their demise and more recently in their resurrection.

The book is semi-autobiographical - 'I looked through the drizzle across the forest bog and there - I can see it still - in the branches of an ancient Scots pine, was the male, peacefully preening his wet feathers ...' and it shines with the committment of a enthusiast - 'I fell under the spell, not only of these beautiful birds but also of Strathspey, its wildlife and its people.' It is fitting that this story is published, not by a major national publisher, who would have welcomed it, but by an independent Scottish house, Whittles Publishing, and printed in Scotland, too.

We are introduced to the osprey, its appearance, history (even its geology) and its literature. Dennis touches on his own involvement with the bird and the early days of its conservation - 'Those early days were so much fun.' Then the focus is on the early nests in Strathspey, soon robbed, and the answering attempts to secure the area for breeding. The 'visionary' decision of George Waterston to safeguard the nest, by inviting 14,000 members of the public to visit it, in many ways began the modern conservation movement in Britain. In spite of the enthusiasm of the amateur band of volunteers, the 24-hour watches and the razor wire, the nest was robbed regularly in the early days - eventually the tree was felled and the hide burnt down. Both the hide and the tree itself were rebuilt, with successful results. Tourist numbers rose to 60,000 a year, with corresponding benefits to the local economy. The return of the local birds is eagerly awaited each year and the birds' stories make world-wide news. Dennis outlines some of the sagas, and the personal connection felt by the many osprey admirers - 'Henry was back! Staff and visitors were ecstatic!'

The expansion of nesting throughout Scotland followed the establishment of the Loch Garten nest. Dennis explains how monitoring involves checking each nest to see whether repairs are needed, whether it is last year's birds that have returned, the number of eggs and, later, young, and ringing them, and checking departure dates. It all relies on the goodwill of 'a wonderful group of interested and interesting people.' Population growth led to recolonisation on Scotland and there are graphs illustrating breeding success, productivity, distance of new colonies, etc.

An interesting and, at times, controversial chapter traces the history of the osprey in Britain - a sad story of decline. It is obvious that, for the nineteenth century egg thieves, acquisition formed much the same sort of challenge that drives similar modern criminals. '... knowledge, stamina and downright determination, which might normally be admirable, yet channelled into pure destruction.' Ospreys last nested at Loch Arkaig in 1908 - officially. One of the most fascinating sections in the book suggests that there may have been occasional nests during the early twentieth century, before Desmond Nethersole-Thompson saw the Loch Garten pair in 1954. Dennis marshalls his evidence to build a convincing, if circumstantial, case. Pairs were seen at Loch Garten in the 1930's and at Loch Ness in the 1940's. The Loch Garten nest was occupied in the early 1950's and there was a nest on the bank of the River Nethy. Dennis feels that the Loch Garten nest was used from the early 1930's, even though it was not reported 'officially' until 1954. Breeding attempts were kept severely secret by the few people in the know.

Birds can be identified as individuals, by ringing and by markings. Thus it is possible to build up a picture of their lives. Dennis illustrates variations in breeding success between pairs, and sites, and tells the story of 'Red Z' and 'M99'. The ability to recognise, and personalise, ospreys makes the threats to them so much more real. Weather, predation, aggression by other ospreys and disease are all problems, but artificial causes are also to blame - chemicals, hunting, egg theft, over-exploitation of fish stocks and problems with nets at fish farms and with baler twine can all kill ospreys. Human disturbance may be an increasing problem as the birds spread, as may wind farms. Dennis emphasises the potential for ospreys to spread back throughout England and Wales, as well as Scotland, and explains how nests are protected and managed. His diary entries detail nest-robbing at Loch Garten - 'What a terrible day!' - and elsewhere. But we read of successes as well. Pine martens are now a greater threat than egg-collectors - an interesting problem for conservationists. The section concludes with detailed advice to those wanting to attract ospreys to nest in their areas.

Many of us still think of ospreys as Scottish birds, so the return of the birds to nest in England and Wales has been a noteworthy success. Dennis has been involved in the Rutland project from the beginning, and he talks us through the annual successes and failures, leading to the breeding success in 2001. Interestingly, his account gives priority to the Rutland project, although a naturally-established pair in the Lake District bred a year before. A pair returned to Wales, after about 200 years, and bred in 2004. The male had come from Rutland, an indication of the importance and success of that project. Then it's off around the globe, for a round-up of osprey breeding in Scandinavia, Germany, France, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands and Italy; to Africa of course, in The Gambia and the Cape Verde islands, and to the USA and Canada; and notes on Asia and Australia.

There's a whole chapter devoted to seeing ospreys in Britain - where and how, with detailed information such as admission charges. It's followed by an appendix - 'Osprey miscellany' - information which one might think could have been incorporated into the earlier chapters, followed by 'Recommended reading' - both books and websites. A book of this standing could usefully have been completed by an index, but this is missing.

Someone has had a lot of fun putting this book together. Dennis' text is enlivened by excellent colour photographs, sensitive drawings by Alessandro Troisi, graphs and charts, by contemporary illustrations and cuttings, and also by rewritten diary pages, which succeed in personalising the author's own tale. 'I still relish the challenge of trying to get ospreys back into their ancestral range throughout the British Isles' says Dennis. Any reader will relish his account of the story so far.