Parental care….

 I have been SO busy that I have been saving up a bunch of posts that I wanted to share with you all. These days, when chicks are fledging, are among the most important and I have to devote myself to watching them and gathering the data before we run out of time. So answering emails and writing posts have sort of taken a back seat….and I am working long hours during super hot weather….and well, one person can only do so much. So my focus has been on fieldwork, collecting the data.

Anyway….as chicks fledge I keep observing these behaviors from the adults that really touch my heart and show how deeply they care about the welfare of their offspring. A recent newspaper article here in MN claimed that osprey adults swoop down on the chicks and try to get them to fledge, to leave the nest. This is completely untrue. Osprey chicks fledge when they are physiologically able to. It is related to when the blood recedes in the feather shaft, causing the feathers to stiffen and become capable of sustaining flight. Osprey parents would never try to force their chicks to fledge before they are ready. They fly, with no encouragement or stimulation from the parents, when they are ready. One of the endearing things I have seen at many nests recently is how, when the chicks first fledge, and often land awkwardly somewhere, I see an adult go and perch very near them. There is nothing they can do to help the youngsters, but they can offer some protection from a predator….and it seems like moral support! I was at one nest, over a week ago now, where there had been two chicks on the nest and when I stopped to check….nest was totally empty. This is a nest on ballfield lights. No adults were seen and no chicks were perching on other lightpoles. I was concerned, so I drove all around the area….went down a road that goes behind this ballfield…..looking on the ground, and in the trees…..no chicks seen. I got to the end of this road and turned around….and quickly spotted two ospreys sitting side by side on a fence. I put up the scope on the car window….mom and chick. Side by side. So sweet. Then I thought, I drove right past them coming in but now they know I am looking at them…..how do I get out without disturbing them? Hmmm. Well, I will drive as far to the other side as I can and go quickly without looking at them. It didn’t work….mom flew. But chick stayed put. There was another chick missing too, so I thought I will go check some other nests….but as I drove away I thought….nope can’t do it. Gotta go back. So I watched that chick on the fence from a distance. Then I looked up and saw that dad was perched on a lightpole directly above the chick. Suddenly a lot of commotion, food begging, erupted and I saw the other missing chick return to the nest and mom met him there. When the fence sitter heard all this, she started to think she was missing something….and she walked back and forth on the fence and then finally jumped off and started circling to gain the altitude needed to get back to the nest….it was a bit windy that day and when she finally got up higher she decided to just land on the lightpole next to the one where the nest was. And within a minute, the male came over and perched right next to the chick! This is what they do! They stay close. After the chicks have been successful, this kind of care and attention will lessen. But I have seen it so much this year. At the nest with our two oldest parents, both 19 years old….when their chicks first fledged, and landed in some odd spots…..the tippy top of a pine tree….an adult would show up on the next pine tree over. Staying close. And today I was watching a nest in a gravel pit. They had one chick and the nest had no chick in it….but an adult was on the nest edge. So I closely studied the whole area, looking for the chick, and spotted him on some equipment on the far side of the quarry….and dad was perched right near him. I see this so often, and see the deep concern and support they show to these newly fledged chicks. This is a side of osprey behavior, that many may not be aware of, just warms my heart so much and makes me love them even more. What spectacular parents they are.

Fledge at the Arb!

 The first Arb chick fledged today! At a little after 8 am she took off….first photo….and she returned at about 10:47….i think at first she tried to land on the camera cause mom and the remaining chick were looking up and the whole camera shook. But then she tried again and landed in the middle of the nest between the other chick and mom. Boom! Successful fledge! Thanks to Meg for alerting me as I was out in the field….but I had been seeing the signs of imminent fledging for a few days so had her alerted. I cant sit in front of a screen that much…and I watched all morning before I had to hit to road to check many other nests….so there ya go folks…..one more to go! Any day now! But now we have to tell them apart…..

It’s quite a milestone from those early days when we were worried about whether Mom would even feed them….but she grew into a terrific parent and now she is a successful parent!

All present and accounted for!

 I was out the door again before 6 am….and checked some different nests on my way back to the one where two chicks fledged and disappeared yesterday. When I first arrived

I saw two chicks and felt dismayed that the third one had not returned. One chick was on the perch, the other was laying down. When the one laying down got up to stretch his wings….up popped a third head! All three chicks were there, so the third one who had not returned when I left at 5 pm yesterday, had found his way back home! I was so relieved! Mom was there too and I noticed that all had very empty crops. It was early….7:30 ish….so I stayed to see them all get fed. The two flighted chicks each did short loops and back to the nest. The third chick has not fledged yet. The hours went by and there was no sign of Dad. Mom was perched on the upper perch and the chicks were looking up at her and food begging. Finally after hours of this, she took off to get food…and my anxiety increased. But finally the male arrived with a fish, which caused a bit of a fight. These chicks are all self feeding now so he needs to get THREE fish! Mom was still gone and I decided to move on….this weather wears me out and I had many other nests to check. But all is well there. Whew! We are seeing many adults that are gone a lot, and I believe it’s a result of difficult fishing. The heat increases algae and lily pads making it hard to see fish, and fish go deeper. Anyway I visited many other nests that had fledged….and I was able to locate all chicks on those nests. Then I did stop at the single females nest….boy that chick is a real beauty. And mom and daughter had full crops….tho I did not see that new male, so we don’t think he is around. But it still knocks my sox off to see what this single parent has achieved, again.

I made it home early, for me….2:30 and laid down and fell asleep for several hours.

Today’s photos show all three chicks at the nest with all the misadventures yesterday….shooting into the sun is difficult, but those are all chicks….

And then just a portrait of the single mom’s chick….

Trials and tribulations….

 Another 12 hour day in the field. I left home at 5:45 to check a bunch of nests for fledging before it got too hot. That was the plan anyway. I had heard from one of the monitors that her nest had a chick doing a lot of flapping and getting some loft. I know that usually means they might fledge in a day or two. She was unable to revisit today, so I went to check on those chicks. I stopped at a few other nests along the way.

When I got there, three chicks were still there….two in the nest and one on the horizontal perch. I wondered if he flew out there or inched his way out. After watching for a while he started inching his way back towards the nest, so that answered that! while I was watching him tho, another chick jumped up and flew off! It was 8:15. I watched him carefully as he flew loops around the area….flapping too much as they often do at first. He gained a lot of altitude and it seemed like he could not figure out how to lower himself to land on the nest…..so he flew higher and higher and further off until I lost him behind some trees…..and then suddenly another chick jumped and started flying loops. This one seemed headed towards the dead branch in some trees where Dad likes to perch. But he could not stick his landing on the dead branch so he landed right in a bunch of leafed out branches…sort of spread eagle. He flapped a lot to stabilize himself and he looked awkward there….and he finally got going again and flew back around those trees and I lost him. I kept waiting for him to reappear. In fact I waited, watched, listened for three hours and neither of the fledglings reappeared. The single remaining chick and mom were on the nest.

I had a bunch of other nests to check so I decided to swing past a lot of them and then return….hoping they would find their way back home by then. So I did that….discovered other nests fledged and a chick missing at one of them. I searched for a while there….and finally decided after a few hours to head back to the nest with two missing chicks. I drove back and as I came around the corner was dismayed that the nest still was occupied by one chick and mom.

I watched some more….and as they hollered for food, I kept thinking that I could hear an occasional peep from an osprey that was coming from a different direction. After all these years, I am very attuned to the sound of ospreys and their voices rise above all other noise. I walked around looking and listening….occasionally hearing the definite sound of an osprey. I am pretty good at triangulating on where it’s coming from and it didn’t sound like it was on the ground….it sounded high. Some hikers walked past and I asked if they heard that peeping and they said no. Really? You cant hear that? I walked towards a pine tree and heard the sound of flapping wings. Oh dear he is here somewhere but I couldn’t see him in this dense tree.

I went to the park office and explained the issue and asked if I could park on that service road while I searched, and asked if they had anyone to help me. They did send one of the park managers to meet me. I finally walked right in under the pine tree and looked straight up and there he was….laying so still, we wondered if he was still alive. But he did move. We took photos…it was still hard to decipher how he was stuck in there all day.

So they called The Raptor Center to see if they had a climber. While we were waiting for TRC to consult with their staff, they others went back to their business and I waited near the nest and the tree….watching listening. Then I got a text that TRC needed more info…..and as I was answering that I heard a commotion of whining, desperate juvenile food begging and a chick came flying towards the nest! I watched it try to land near mom but ended up sort of on her back so she started chasing him…it was seen as an aggressive behavior instead of a chick that could not control his landings.

I ran back to the tree to see if it was that chick….and there was no longer a chick in the pine tree. So he had finally rescued himself. He got back to the nest and kept hollering desperately for food….so hunger was probably the motivating factor that allowed him to get himself out of that mess. And Dad heard the orders and took off for some dinner.

The other chick did not return.

But the chick that stayed home all day was doing a fair amount of flapping, cause it looked like fun to her! So I guess I have to go back tomorrow and check on them and see if the third chick found his way home. It’s beastly hot here this weekend and I was hoping to take a day or two off….but I guess not during fledging season!

I will recheck them and look for the other missing chick down the road, and then return to another nest quite a ways away that had two hopping and flapping chicks yesterday….I know they will fly soon.

None of these nests are anywhere near where I live….so a lot of miles and a lot of time. But I care about each of these beautiful chicks, and if I can be there to help if it’s needed, I will. And if I can’t help, I can learn and I can document . I have seen so many ways they get in trouble. But at least today we had one happy ending….and I am hoping the other chick may be allright too. Photos below of some of today’s misadventures.

An important fledge!

 So much has happened this week….I think I will start with today tho…..SO much fledging going on. I went to check on the single mom and her chick yesterday. It’s a female chick and she has been laying low a lot , but yesterday while I was talking to someone she got up and hovered above the nest!!!! Mom came flying back to the nest and the chick settled down. So I headed straight over there this morning and yes our little darling fledged…..flying some beautiful loops, solid landings, always returning to the nest. Mom was perched outside the nest to give her plenty of room for takes offs and landings. So once again this amazing female has pulled off fledging a chick all alone. The sad part is that that magnificent male that I watched bring a huge fish, and hang out on the nest the entire time mom was feeding the chick….has not returned. I have been there several times and so has the monitor, Vicky, and we have not seen him. I will keep hoping for her to attract a great mate who will take good care of her in the future. Maybe that gentleman has his foot in the door….

Meanwhile, this chick has made it to an important milestone and I am gonna celebrate tonight!

New male????

 Well, each day is more interesting than the last! This morning I headed out to check on the single female who is raising the chick alone….with the polygynous banded male only showing up occasionally. I first stopped at his main nest, where there is a female and one chick. As I arrived in the area, I saw an osprey fishing in the lake and I stopped and grabbed my binos to look and it was the female! Hmmmmm. I went to the nest and the chick was alone, and the female arrived very quickly with a large bullhead. Where is the male? So I ran down the road to the other nest and found the female with her chick. I was taking some photos when she started food begging. A male flew in and dropped the tail end of a small fish….hardly a meal….and immediately flew off. Was that the banded polygynous male? I dont know. Mom ate a few bites and then let the chick have it to finish. It was gone in no time. Everything was quiet for a while….and then mom started food begging again, much louder and more insistent. I looked around and saw a male with a BIG fish eating on a light pole a short distance away so I zeroed in on him with my scope….oh my….it was an unbanded male! NOT the polygynous banded male. The female kept hollering and he just kept eating….but he would stop and look over the the female and chick. And then he pooped and that often signals an osprey about to take flight so I got the scope back on the nest, got my phone up to the scope and he came and delivered the fish!!!! Mom grabbed it aggressively and immediately turned her back and mantled over the fish….defensive, and with her back turned to the male she fed the chick…..for a LONG time. And the male remained on the nest the whole time. She did not shoo him away. I took a lot of pictures so I could document his dorsal feather pattern for future identification. When the fish was gone….the chick turned and started to walk over towards him and he flew off. Didn’t want to have anything to do with the chick….he knows it’s not his. But he may have decided to help this damsel in distress as a way to secure this territory for next year. He is a handsome fella. And a generous osprey….and I will also say, a smart osprey. So I had seen a male perched very far away on a water tower a few weeks ago, and that may have been him….and somehow he has worked his way in to her life. Me and the other monitor on this nest have not seen anything like this before tho….and I don’t know if the first male who dropped the tiny fish was him or the banded male. Aint osprey life interesting? I just want to be there all the time now, watching to see how often he is there. Did something happen to the other male to allow this opening? The other female was fishing for her chick today. I have so many questions….but it’s definitely a positive development! Here are a bunch of photos!

My reward….and a thanks

 I had a fun morning…..this past ten days have been a struggle with the heat, smoke and so many nests….and today was my reward. The ospreys always do reward people who watch them a lot. I got up at 4:30 am to head out to check nests before it becomes too unpleasant….I had a long drive this morning but got to the first nest about 6:30 am. I hiked out to the nest in a beautiful park….no other people around. So quiet and peaceful. I got to the nest and immediately saw two chicks standing up, and Mom on the upper perch. I set up the scope and could see the third chick laying low in the nest. One chick began hopping and flapping…..and I thought, oh, this one might fledge this weekend. As I continued to watch and this chick was really working hard, flying from one side of the nest to the other. The other chick layed down too to stay out of the way….and I thought, I can’t leave, this one may fledge any minute! Then he stopped and stood on the edge of the nest for a while looking around, thinking….and then off he went! Flying loops all around the area. Of course I didn’t have my phone up to the scope when he did take off and I first I just kept my eyes on him. As I teach  the monitors..if they fledge don’t take your eyes off the chick until it lands somewhere! And I keep watching, my heart racing….and as he headed back to the nest I quickly got my phone up as the other two chicks stood up to watch….and I got his landing! I was jumping up and down and yelling woo hoo! There wasn’t anyone around to tell! 

It was so much fun to watch and for him to make it back to the nest made it a successful fledge. This is a very fun nest to watch and I have to also acknowledge one of the people who made this possible. This nest is a very old pole that was put up way back in the early days of the reintroduction…but it was never used. So after some discussions about why, Larry, a seasonal employee at this park, cleared away all the trees that had grown up around the Nestpole and he filled the nestbox with sticks, added a big perch for the adults…and then voila, we had ospreys there! The first year it was a male with a silver banded female who turned out to be too young to breed, so they were just housekeepers the first year. The following year she returned but she was displaced by another female. So…..that silver banded female moved and she is the one you all have heard about who is the single mom raising a chick alone after mating with a polygynous male. Anyway, these two unbanded ospreys have now been there for six years and have successfully fledged three chicks every year!!! SO thanks to Larry for all his efforts!