Chicks as big as adults!

 A super busy weekend of checking nests….chicks are fledging all over the place now. I got this photo of a mother and chick and thought it might help people who are having some difficulty differentiating between adult and juvenile when the young ones are as big as adults! You can easily discern the difference in their plumage here….with adults having solid dark feathers on their backs and wings, and the juveniles have a white tip on every dark feather which serves as camouflage in the nest. They have an easily observed mottled appearance. As they age, these white tips begin to wear away and are less noticeable as they approach migration. You can also see here the difference in color of the eyes. Adults have a bright yellow eye, and the youngsters have a rusty red, or orange eye that begins to fade to a rosy gold color. Hope that helps some people to discern the differences!

First fledge!

 We had our first successful fledge today! This was at the first nest to return this spring, the first pair to lay eggs and the first nest to hatch. So now the window opens for the others to follow. When I arrived this morning there were only two chicks on the nest and as I watched and listened, the monitor for this nest showed up too. So Debbie and I finally spotted the chick perched just above and behind my car, on a power pole. Then he flew to a more precarious spot, on a powerline that hung rather low over the road. There is a lot of construction going on near this area, so many large trucks were passing just below the chick. We held our breath, worrying that the chick might jump and get hit by a vehicle…..a few cars did see the chick and stopped to take photos. We waited and watched and he finally went to a higher perch on a power line and I stayed to watch over this fella until he finally rejoined his siblings on the nest. Whew! Thanks Debbie for holding your breath with me!

7

After the storm….July 14, 2024

 I checked many nests today….300 miles and 42 nests checked this weekend! So far the worst of the storm damage was in my neck of the woods…..but I have many more nests to visit, I appreciate those volunteers that did check nests today! Very helpful.

We are seeing a common complaint /concern all over the metro this year. Many males are very scarce…..we think they might be dead and then they show up. What’s going on? I am not sure, but suspect that fishing is hard this year. Even the females who leave to get fish are sometimes gone quite a long time. There has been a lot of rain, which may cause high, muddy waters. Also, all the rain is washing a lot of lawn chemicals into the lakes, which can cause algae growth which can make fish hard to see. Fish may be going deeper if water temps are high. Just a lot of theories but because these behaviors and concerns are seen on so many nests I know it’s not just one males problem. Sadly I am seeing growing chick mortalities, and failed nests this year. Of course some ups and downs in reproductive success are normal. Ospreys are an indicator species, at the top of the aquatic food chain, so they reveal much about the health of our environment. That is why we feel this ongoing research is so valuable. We need to know if a bad year or two is a blip or a trend. 

I am driving many miles and working very hard to try to keep tabs on all nests and donations have been down this year. If anyone wishes to offer some financial support you can go to the Go Fund Me page , link below,  or send donations directly to me ( email me at osprey.mn@gmail.com for mailing address)

https://www.gofundme.com/f/d2zza-twin-cities-metro-osprey-watch?qid=f1a3aaf10fb689f051897c0a4ac3da70

Rescue…

 I know how much you all love to hear happy stories but I am trying to give you an honest peek into my life and the life struggles of our Osprey friends. It’s been a tough few days. I posted earlier about a nest where we found a dead male, and two chicks missing from the nest. One chick and the mom remained. I checked in on her many times that first week and always found her there and the chick had food in its crop so I thought things were going smoothly. So I didn’t check back as often. After a week or so I returned to check that nest earlier this week. At first sight I thought wow, the chick has grown so much , she looks really good! Mom wasnt there. Then I saw that the chick had an empty crop. But maybe mom was gone fishing , so I waited…..for almost four hours and no adult came to the nest. I had to go home and thought I would return early the next day to recheck, hoping that mom would be there or the chick would have food in its crop. I got there early because I had some personal medical appmts that day. The chick was still all alone with a very empty crop. I felt sick. The laws in this state do not allow us to take a chick off a nest without permits from both the DNR and the USFWS. They usually won’t issue such permits to rescue one chick that is an abundant species. My hands were tied. I went to my doc appmts and then came back. The chick looked awful….so thin, its keel sticking out, its crop totally sunken, salt around the nares. I watched again for several hours and then just couldn’t take it, too hard to watch this chick suffering alone. What happened to the Mom? A male came to the nest with a fish, and he initially gave the chick a couple bites of food, and then he just dropped the fish and walked around the nest. “ it’s not my job”. Then he picked up the fish and ate some himself…and then he apparently dropped the fish off the edge of the nest and departed. Ahhhhh. 

I had a sleepless night, feeling helpless and knowing there just wasn’t much I could do. I knew if I went back out there I might find the chick dead or still suffering. But I did go back to the nest and found it empty. This is a very bare nest and I have always been able to easily see the chick. But there was nothing in the nest. I assumed the chick might have been predated overnight. I shed a few tears and was about to leave when an adult came flying over my car, with a fish! It was the Mom!!!!! WTF? She looked very thin herself, with an empty crop, and as she ate I thought I could hear some very faint food begging. There is another nest nearby on  a cell tower and it was difficult to discern where the soft food begging was coming from….so I moved closer to the nest. Then it stopped. But I grabbed a box and went searching near the nest. The mom gave an alarm call and flew away. I quickly spotted the chick on the ground. Emaciated. But this little one is a fighter, and she tried to fight me as I scooped her up and put her in a box and quickly got her to the car, moved the car to the shade and turned on the AC full blast as I called the Raptor Center. I let them know what I had and when I would be there. I delivered the chick to their back door and now I am waiting to hear what the medical prognosis is. I don’t know if she was injured in the fall or if she just needs food and hydration. But any of you living in Minnesota know we are in for a super hot, super muggy weekend…and I am relieved that this little one will be in an air conditioned space with food/ hydration. I have done the best I can for this osprey chick. 

Now if this youngster is able to be returned to the wild, it may not be smart to place it in its natal nest, with a single parent that seems unable to provide for it. I can’t explain the Moms absence for the last few days….but  if her parental instincts turned off and she went into survival mode, she can’t be counted on to care for this chick. I will spend some time looking for some nests that might be good alternatives, perhaps with only one chick and two good parents, and a nest that would be accessible. It’s not easy to foster a chick at this later stage of development. I have seen siblings attack a chick after it spent a week in rehab and was returned to its natal nest. It’s a difficult time for a chick to end up in rehab. But for the moment that chick is in the best place for it to get the care it needs and I am relieved that I was able to do something to help. I feel lucky that I was there at just the right moment to hear the chick softly food begging, and that I was able to find it quickly. 

It’s early afternoon and I am pooped! I marvel at how doctors and even these wildlife rehabbers can handle the stress. My heart started racing and the adrenaline was pumping, as I rescued this chick….I care so much and it’s hard to see a chick in distress. So now, having a drink and planning the rest of the afternoon to relax…..maybe go for a little walk to work off some of the built up angst. I did my best for this little one.  I think I need some ice cream. 

MEDICAL UPDATE! I just heard from the Vet at the Raptor Center and here is what she said….”The baby osprey was thin, and we shockingly found a small fish bone lodged in its mouth at the opening of its airway, which I have not seen before, and a few ulcerations on the roof of the mouth which appeared to be from the end of the fish bone rubbing there. We removed it and I’m hoping there won’t be permanent damage. There was some mild asymmetry of the pelvis on the x-rays, but everything was stable so I don’t think there were any major fractures. We’ll keep the chick for monitoring, provide pain medications, and get its weight up. I would consider its prognosis to be guarded for now, but we’ll see how it does over the first few days, which should give us some more info.”. When that unrelated male came to the nest, and he was eating the fish, he was dropping some big bones and the chick was so desperate for food I think he was eating what was dropped….that may be how it got a fish bone lodged in its mouth. Usually a mom will not feed big bones to a chick. Think good thoughts for this youngster….

Early July….

 I have been spending a lot of time in the field lately, and writing posts here always suffers. We are seeing  so many nests full of weeds and greenery, as a result  of all the rain! This  photo is one of the least dense! Some nests are so thick, I have not been able to count chicks! And I seriously don’t know how chicks will fledge out of a jungle. Some of these nests have already failed. Some at least have an open part of the nest so the weeds provide some shade, but they have room to move and flap. 

It appears that we have a handful of nests where something has happened to the male and there appears to be just a single female caring for chicks alone. I am still spending long periods at some nests to determine what’s going on. In the last few days I have spent up to three hours at a nest where the chicks and Mom had very empty crops to see if she was leaving to feed chicks or if there was a male bringing food. Sometimes I just have to stay until I get a definite answer, no matter how long it takes. At another nest I witnessed some very odd behaviors. The monitor reported the possible loss of a chick so I went to watch for a while. A female and one chick were visible. This chick was not very old, still very downy, approximately 3-4 weeks old.  The male brought a fish and the little chick stood up very tall, extended its neck, pushed its breast out in a threatening way as if to try to push the male off the nest! Wow. The female grabbed the fish from the male and then the chick did the same thing to the female! She responded aggressively, pecking and bonking the chick. It was a little frightening to witness. But it quickly calmed down and the mom started feeding the chick. This is very unusual behavior for a chick and a mom. I wondered if the missing chick might have been a victim of siblicide. These behaviors speak to a lack of food. I returned today to recheck this nest and the adult female was there with the chick in her shade. An adult male was perched lower on this cell tower. About ten minutes after I arrived, the adult female left the nest. About 20-30 minutes later the male left also. This young chick was alone for almost two hours. I searched all around for an adult watching from a distance but found none. After all that time alone, the female returned with a fish. Her crop was full. She stared at the chick for a while and then began feeding it. Apparently the chick was behaving and sending the right signals so Mom would feed it. It’s unusual for a female to leave such a young chick alone for so long. It’s hard to add all the pieces up here. Lots of odd behaviors and I will try to keep a closer eye on things. But we have so many nests with single parents and situations that I feel I need to watch. I am stretched pretty thin and driving a lot, but I must evaluate behaviors and keep an accurate chick count. 

On the positive side, I have some new nest monitors that make me feel like I have hit the jackpot! I have enjoyed spending some time in the field with some of those in recent weeks. They are experienced, have good equipment and most importantly they are curious and enthusiastic! I am already so impressed! There is still a huge learning curve the first year, so much to be observed and understood. It’s like learning a new language, but I am certain they will  be successful! It’s been exciting for me to share my stories with people who are so keenly interested! My deepest gratitude to all the nest monitors, new and old, who are so critical to the success of this project. I suspect that some of these people may end up being more than just important participants in this research, they will become friends. 

It won’t be long before our very earliest chicks to hatch will take their first flight and that will keep us all VERY busy, looking for chicks, and documenting successful fledges. 

Another story from today’s adventures….

 I have one more little story from today’s adventures…I had a nest that laid eggs quite late and I kept wondering IF they would hatch. I wondered if one of these ospreys were new this year and that’s what the delay was about. We have very few banded birds now, and in the early days of this project I always did drawings of the markings on unbanded birds so I would know from year to year if it was the same birds or new ones. Now we have far too many unbanded birds for me to do that.

Anyway, they finally did hatch about ten days ago. So I stopped back to see how things were going. This female was doing what I call high brooding….not fully standing up, but not sitting down either…part way up, sort of hunched over the chicks. She was just staring in to the nest. I watched for about 30 minutes and all she did was stare into the nest. She only has eyes for her littles. I dont know if she is a first time mom but it was so endearing how entranced she was! One of the littles did get up so I could see its little downy head, and he wobbled as he lifted his tiny butt and shot the poop…a tiny poop squirt. So sweet. It was hard for me to leave because watching her watch her chicks was so touching. If you really take the time to observe these birds, even when it might appear that not much is happening ….you can’t help but be touched by their devotion. Once again I have to say, I feel so lucky to witness these small, subtle behaviors. I notice everything. I work very hard.…and I am richly rewarded.

Hard work….

 I wonder if any of you know how hard I work to gather all this data and check all these nests! Today I tackled a handful of nests I have to hike in to view…..some thru weeds up to my arm pits! ( next duty: woodtick check) The mosquitoes are unbearable in some places after all the rain we have had. Lordy, even long pants, long sleeves and a headnet are not enough! Note to self….wear gloves!!!!! 

And of course I have to remain hidden so the female won’t see me, give an alarm call, causing the chicks to pancake so I can’t count them!  And hauling a scope and tripod that weigh a lot makes it more difficult. But still, there are rewards! Being alone  in natural places, so peaceful. Being able to quiet my mind and just listen. And to have the ospreys reveal their secrets to me. Now, after such a difficult time in my personal life that kept me away from the ospreys for too long….I have finally visited every nest at least once…..some several times and some many times. I am filling in the holes on my working charts. Still a lot of  work to do, bands to read, chicks to count. And another huge task is those nests that used to be active, and where at least one osprey was seen this spring…but are now empty. Where did they go? Of course this is a needle in a haystack kind of thing….but I try to find them. Some have had their nests removed and I want to know what happened to them. It’s that damn curiousity thing. I have been traveling over 100 miles a day for quite a while now, trying to catch up. It drains my bank account quickly. 

A few updates….we now appear to have three single females….and two of those, whose mate died, have attracted a new male that is bringing fish! This is not something I used to see, but now perhaps with an increased population and more males looking for a good territory and mate…its is happening. They do not ever directly feed the chicks, but they drop a fish for the female (courtship) and they do defend the territory from other males….at least partially. One of the single females seems to just be alone….but we will keep watching and see what evolves. It’s interesting stuff. 

There have been some losses….nests failed, chicks gone. But the numbers do not seem unusually high. Still, it’s always sad. And we have a couple of nests that appear to still be incubating….which at this late date, probably means they are sitting on eggs that are not viable. They have a hard time giving up sometimes. And so do I….on lots of things. 

I know I am way behind on answering emails….bear with me. Gotta get the data, that’s the most important thing to me….and write a post here occasionally….and I will get around to emails on a rainy day!