A reward for my perseverance

 Our nests are clearing out, but I am still able to find a few ospreys around town and I thoroughly enjoy every moment with them. There is one nest that had a banded adult male and I have tried for two years to read his band. I would get parts of it, but still was missing a large part of the sequence. I saw him perched  somewhere so often and would get the scope on the tripod and sneak out, get myself positioned and just as I was focusing he would say, Nope, you can’t know who I am yet, and fly away. Argh. We repeated this pattern over and over. I am a patient person and I perservere, but not without frustration. So as this season has wound down I was watching him and his remaining chick. And finally in the middle of last week when we had a brief few hours of a north breeze, I was unable to find the chick anywhere. But I saw Dad in a tree. Of course I thought, he will never let me get close enough to read his band. But I will play the game again. Put the scope on the tripod and slowly approached him, set up the scope to focus……and he remained quiet and calm. Hmmmm I read part of the band but could not see the final part so I started moving around trying to find a better view. Branches were in my way. I thought surely any moment he is gonna take off. I got closer, I moved all around and he stayed put, tho he was watching me! My frustration mounted as I just could not find a spot to see those final numbers….and then he scratched his leg and spun the band around so the numbers I needed to see were right there in front of my face! Clear and easy to read! Call me crazy….but it almost felt like he did it on purpose, after testing me for two years! I thanked him. I thought that might be the last time I would see him….but I returned yesterday and he was still there, eating a goldfish. No chick around, he was finally relaxed and enjoying his meal alone. But that parting gift, of letting me know who he is, was another special moment in my life with the ospreys. It was late in the day with terrible fading light…but I snapped a few photos.