July 2

I checked in on the Arb cam this morning...male still on the nest. Their 39th day of incubation, the usual length in this area, was June 23. They are now way overdue and it is clear that the egg is not viable. It was either infertile or died along the way for any number of reasons. Now we are observing how ospreys behave when their egg does not hatch. This, too, is interesting. Usually the male is the last one to give up, and some males are more determined to make an egg hatch than others, as is 79. Sometimes they give up slowly, taking longer and longer breaks off the egg. Sometimes they even work on the nest by bringing sticks to cover the egg. All osprey behaviors are interesting to me, even nest failures and the reasons for them.