Oh how I love this chick that won’t leave….
She is so beautiful and her Dad so devoted…these photos are from today! He is new at this nest this year….not a great nest builder but a great Dad. I just want to hang out here as much as possible….I am really struggling with empty nest syndrome this year.
I visited a lot of nests this weekend and was saddened to find so many empty nests. I know, I know….it’s time for them to go but life is less interesting without them. And for some reason this year their departure is bringing more grief than in past years. I did find these two chicks, and their Dads were around somewhere! I also ran into one of our great monitors , Marjorie, and it was such a pleasure to just spend some time chatting about our winged friends. I sometimes wish I had a recording of our conversations about all things osprey….how did we know the female at this nest was a new one this year? How were her behaviors different than the previous female? What makes a good volunteer monitor, how did the two chicks behaviors differ, why do we do what we do, what are the rewards, etc, etc. During the middle of the season I rarely have enough time to just relax and talk about the ospreys, as I need to get to 20 nests or more! It’s usually only at the end of the season when I have time to just share the osprey experience with a monitor when I run into them. It was so fun to hang out with Marjorie and have lunch together. She has been watching one nest for four years now and does a great job!( and has a full time job and the nest she loves and has chosen to monitor is clear across town from where she lives!) As you can see, she is a photographer as well, so is able to provide images to support the data! Her enthusiasm never wanes and she has been a great communicator. So a huge thank you to Marjorie!
This year I started taking some photos of the volunteers when I ran into them in the field, so I will be acknowledging them in upcoming posts. Of course there are many monitors who I didn’t run into, and didn’t get pictures of, but who have steadfastly sent their weekly reports. I am deeply grateful to each and every one of them!
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.
Still running around to see who is in town! It’s fun and a challenge! Sometimes I have to wait a long time or search a lot to locate some ospreys. I rarely find any of them on their nests or easily visible…..and I wait, I drive around, I stop and listen. It’s amazing how many I find and it’s oddly rewarding! even with temps close to 90 and a dewpoint of 75. Ugh. So here are a bunch of photos….all different chicks and dads….all seen in the past few days! Enjoy!
The ospreys gave me a little reward today for all my work watching over them. Last week we had a fairly dramatic change in the weather that brought some strong north winds, which seems to have carried away quite a few ospreys. But we still have many of them to watch over…..those late fledging chicks and some that had some difficulties in their journey so far. So I have been driving from one side of the metro to the other to check on some remaining juveniles and their Dads. I love this time of year….when some ospreys are gone, tho I am very sad to see some of them go, and I am left with some lingering questions. But my load has been lightened a bit in the past week, so I am able to just enjoy hanging out with some of my winged friends. Today I went to check on a chick who had some stressful encounters with fishing line earlier this summer…and she has been doing very well. I finally noticed that I could no longer see any remnants of the line caught on her talon. Her leg and foot showed no sign of any injury and that annoying loop of line we have seen for so long is gone! I did some research and learned that monofilament loses 20% of its tensile strength every 100 hours when exposed to UV rays! So the line becomes brittle and easier to break and we suspect she was finally able to preen it out of her talons. I have checked her as often as possible and her sibling is long gone, as is Mom. But dear old Dad is faithfully bringing her food quite often. Many females do just hang around the nest crying for food…and inevitably people from the public ask me if a chick has been left behind or if something is wrong with these lingering juveniles. After 32 years of watching them I have come to think that these homebodies, these chicks that seem to just want to eat all the time, may actually be the survivors. These are the ones who will go into their migration with plenty of fat on their bodies, money in the bank! It’s actually the chicks that disappear early that concern me. So I am happy to see these chicks, usually girls, with their full crops, and a fish in their talons, as they food beg for more! This insatiable hunger is called hyperphagia, and it serves them well in preparing for migration. But sometimes I wonder about the other skills that will be needed to survive. Have they practiced their water starts? Just going in to the water and getting lift off is a big skill! Before they even try to actually catch a fish, they must master this first step. It is something I usually get to see somewhere each year, because I watch them for long periods and I follow them, search for them, and as I said at the beginning….they do reward me! Today I got to see this young chick finally fly out over the lake, and I was running with my binoculars to keep her in view….she disappeared behind a tree, and then I saw her flying up from the water! Then I lost her again….and when I emerged from behind another tree I finally spotted her floating in the water. My heart started to race a bit….was she ok? And then she flapped those big wings a few times and took off out of the water….and there I was on the shore shouting out loud, in public, “great job! You go girl! I am so proud of you!” Boy someday they are gonna lock me up! Thank goodness there weren’t many people around. But I was so happy to see her successful water starts! Now I know she is a little more prepared for the journey ahead. It’s such a treat to watch these youngsters….and when I put the effort into finding them, patiently watching them, they always seem to give me these special gifts. I watched her for three hours today….saw Dad deliver two fish to her, and saw her grand efforts towards independence.
And this visit was supposed to be a quick stop on my way to some other nests….but sometimes I just get to enjoy the way the day unfolds. I hope I get to see her and her Dad again before they leave….I treasure these September days with the ospreys, and I know the sadness that is coming when the last one has departed. But meanwhile….nothing soothes the woes of the world like spending quiet time in nature, especially with the ospreys. That special juvenile osprey made my day
I was out again yesterday checking nests, trying to get final outcomes, read bands etc….and things have suddenly changed. The weather made a huge shift and all those exhausting days of hi temps and breathtaking humidity have become cool, breezy weather… with wind from the north. Oh my. So many ospreys were either gone or hard to find. Ospreys migrate when the weather is right for it….when the wind is strong and from the north, all they have to do is put their wings out….
It seems a little early, but some of the nests that hatched and fledged early, well over a month ago, may just be on their way. Probably not all of them, but I suspect some early ospreys may be taking advantage of the change. Clearly, a lot of the adult females are on their way. We still have some late fledges that we are watching carefully….I am really putting on the miles to check nests in opposite sides of the metro that I am either concerned about or just curious about. So many nests I want to get back to one more time….but it may be too late. I am sure we will have some lingering ospreys until late September. Chicks that just fledged, like the one in the previous post from last weekends drama, will hopefully be around for at least a few more weeks. I checked on that female fledgling yesterday and she is fine, eating a fish on her nest. We have some other late fledging chicks that I will be watching as well.
Burning the candle at both ends these days….its been one stressful situation after another. Some young ospreys fledge so gracefully, without incident….but some really struggle. For the past three days I have been watching over one of our latest fledges who really got herself into some trouble. When she first took off from her nest on a cell tower she made a very awkward landing in a tight spot. She sat there for a very long time trying to figure out what to do about her predicament. She was wedged between two metal bars…and every time she tried to put her wings out, they got caught. I watched her for many hours…looking around crouching as if she was ready to spring out but the wing would get caught each time. Then she finally hopped up and further IN to the cell tower. Oh dear , a worse spot. Of course this nest was very far from where I live so I had to leave and hope for the best. I got up the next morning at 4:30 to get myself back to her nest by dawn. It took me over an hour to even locate her. She was not where I left her. I listened, searched the ground worked my way around the tower to examine it from every angle….then I saw a wing stretch! She was in a totally different spot perched low on a big round cable. There were some bars in front of her and she repeatedly put her wings out but did not have enough room to extend them fully. She would have to jump out first and put her wings out after she was out of the cell tower. Nope she just couldn’t do it….so she stared backing up and fell off the cable she was perched on, suddenly her legs were dangling below that level of the cell tower and she was beating her wings on the surrounding wires and structures. Yes, some obscenities came bursting out of my mouth. My heart was racing. What would I do to help? And then after just a few minutes, she fell completely thru the cell tower structure and came out below flying! I have no idea how that happened without her injuring her wings! So she flew a few loops and she saw her dad perched on the very top of this tower so she headed for him, but she almost landed on top of him so he flew off and she was sort of thrown right into the center of the tower, down in lower than all the surrounding bars. Oy vey. I watched her there for several hours….she was barely visible, but I kept trying to document each weird spot she landed. I had to leave for a previous appointment….so I asked someone else to check on her. She spent an hour there but couldn’t see her at all. My heart sank. This morning I got up again at about 4 am to get over there early, but a big storm came thru so I waited for the front edge of that storm to pass thru and then went over, even tho it was still raining. The strong winds had passed. I found the chick in the exact same spot I had last seen her. Sad that she was still there and unfed, but happy she wasn’t in a worse spot or injured on the ground. I watched her for many hours….sometimes almost invisible and occasionally flapping her wings which made her obvious. Sometimes just her head popping up above the bars. She was looking around, trying to figure out how to get out of there. The rain let up a bit and suddenly she sort of hopped/flew to a bar that was further out and she struggled to stick that landing, almost falling backwards and into a mass of wires. I gasped…..but she held on tight and managed to stay on that bar. But the vertical bars on either side would prevent her from putting her wings out and jumping off. I knew she would have to be brave and jump out first and then put her wings out. It’s something that older ospreys can easily do but for a newly fledged chick, that takes some real courage. The rain picked up so she sat there for a long time thinking about it. Then the rain let up and she did a lot of preening and drying out. Lo and behold, Dad showed up with a fish and perched one level below her. She eyed him and tried to figure out how she would get to him. Dad just ate the fish and did not take it to the nest. The chick finally screwed her courage to the sticking point and jumped and circled a few times and finally actually stuck her landing on the very top of the cell tower on an outer vertical bar, a safe place….where the adults often perch. Whew. The first good landing in three days. But still….no food! She food begged. Dad finally took off after another visiting osprey. Shortly after he left, Mom showed up. The chick finally took off, did a few loops and landed back on the nest that she left three days earlier. I could finally exhale. She was quite hungry of course and did some food begging, flew another short loop and returned to the nest and finally decided to lay down. Whew. I am sure she is quite tired and quite hungry, as was I. So I asked another monitor to check on her and she reported that she did get fed by mom, like a baby, until her crop was full.
Another 12 hour day in the field….i have been so busy trying to watch over chicks that were potentially in trouble. Sometimes it takes an experienced eye to decide if a chick needs help or just time and observation. I woke up very early after not sleeping well and received an email about a chick that had been sitting on a ballfield fence during high human activity, ballgames since sometime around 5:30 yesterday. So I left home at 6:30 a.m. and headed first to that nest. I was expecting that the chick would be back in the nest by then. But I arrived to find a chick sitting on a fence, near a parking lot. A man pulled up in his car and told me he came to check on the chick as it had been there, unmoved, for 12 hours. He had reported it to The Raptor Center. I explained that newly fledged chicks can act pretty weird and perch in odd places, but this chick should be hungry! I was also concerned about where the other chick was since it was not on the nest or anywhere I could see. I watched the chick on the fence. It was too tall for me to grab the bird. Someone was walking its small dog and the dog stopped right below the chick and put his paws up on the fence and the chick gave an alarm call, but she did not move. Many people walked right near the chick, never even noticing it. I finally spotted the other chick flying in and it landed on a lightpole near the fence perching chick. Mom was on another lightpole. After at least an hour, the male came with a small fish and mom and the flying chick flew to the nest. The fence sitter didn’t move. Its crop was empty. At one point the sibling flew a short loop directly over the fence sitters head and back to the nest, almost as if she was encouraging her sister to return to the nest. I emailed the monitor who watches this nest and she came! Thanks Vicky! We talked and watched and chick….and finally since I wanted to determine if something was wrong with this chick or not, I decided to approach the chick to see if I could encourage it to fly….and it finally did! Just a low swoop across the field to the same fence on the other side. Hmmmm. Flew well and landed fine. So Vicky stayed to watch while I went to check other nests….hoping that dad would bring a whopper that might motivate this girl to get back to the nest. Vicky called me several hours later to say The Raptor Center had sent someone to check on the bird but they couldn’t reach it either and it flew….a good strong, high flight and she had videos. You can’t catch a flighted bird! So they left and the chick returned to the fence! That’s just where she wanted to be! After I finished my nest checks, I returned at about 3:30 to find the chick a few feet from where it had been at 7 am. Still with an empty crop. The mom and sibling were in various places, coming and going. After an hour or so, the chick took off and did some very low loops and then started climbing , gaining altitude slowly and finally made it back to the nest….and almost landed on its sibling. She didn’t appreciate that but no aggression occurred. The flight was strong, and the landing a bit awkward! Typical for a newly fledged osprey. After 32 years of watching them, I always say, flying is easy, landing is hard! They just sat there side by side, the fence sitter dozing a bit, finally safe at home….and then finally the dad arrived with a good size fish! Of course both chicks dove for it….you all probably know that momentary chaos as they fight for the fish! But the fence sitter got it! The other chick just walked away, to the opposite side of the nest. Our hungry girl inhaled the fish, having not eaten for at least 24 hours. It was such a huge relief. After some time, the other sibling walked a bit closer and watched the chick eating, not trying to snatch the fish, but just being nearby, in case there were leftovers. She was very respectful of her hungry sibling. Whew! I felt like we had a happy ending, which was what I expected, but it took longer than I thought it would! So I went to recheck our single mom and her fledgling! Mom was not there in the morning when I stopped by, and that chick was still alone with an empty crop at the end of the day. Oh dear…..and then suddenly this young male began crying….that whiney food begging call and I knew Mom was on the way! Yes! She delivered a whole fish for her chick! I visited a few more nests on my way home, found another newly fledged chick…after a brief search…with its mom on a nearby cell tower. And so I finally made it home 12 hours after I departed. That’s my life these days! Long days, cheer leading for these chicks we love so much. I was there to do a rescue if needed, but was so happy it wasn’t necessary! It started with a stomach in knots, worried, and ended with a glass of wine. Not all days end well tho as we have lost chicks in recent storms, and I have seen a couple dead chicks on nest edges today. Some nests were empty that shouldn’t be. But we celebrate the ones that do survive, and do get back to the nest. And all the hours I spend watching over these birds, are still learning. I watched a mom as her chick flew off to a nearby nest, that had not been active this year but had two adults on it today that were unrelated to the chick! The mom started vocalizing….switching between the chirping call they give to unknown ospreys and an alarm call…it was odd, but was clearly a response to her chick landing on someone else’s nest! So fun to just be out among these birds, watching, listening, noting their reactions and behaviors. I never tire of it. Thanks again to Vicky and to the person who emailed me about the chick on the fence, and the other people at the park who expressed their concerns. It’s lovely when people are aware and concerned. We can sleep better tonight!
Well it’s that exciting and tragic time of year….
Many of you may remember the situation I wrote about earlier with a female who had a “two timing” mate….and shortly after she laid eggs, he abandoned her for his other nest, and other female. She managed to incubate alone, leaving only briefly to get a fish for herself that she would wolf down on the edge of the nest, before resuming incubation. She actually managed it all alone and hatched two chicks! Sadly, one of them didn’t make it. But I am thrilled to announce that her remaining chick fledged successfully this weekend!!! Not many females can pull this off alone. We had another female in the same situation, but she gave up during incubation and abandoned her eggs. This female, that succeeded, was heroic in her efforts and her devotion. Her chick is a beautiful male. Me and the monitors watching over her are so happy. Photos below of this young male and his momma feeding him like a baby….even tho he can self feed!
The past week has been trying….we have found three chicks dead on the ground. The first two may have blown out in storms, and the most recent was reported to me by a person in the public who saw the chick fall out of the nest when an adult took off….perhaps accidentally knocking it out. I went to look for it and it even had some food in its crop. So terribly sad. It’s what I hate about this time of year….its when things can so easily go wrong. Chicks are too big to be sheltered under mom all the time and yet they cant fly yet. Tho fledging brings its own tragedies. I know it’s hard for people to face this aspect of osprey monitoring…it’s not all sweetness and rainbows. But we have to document these losses, by taking photos and trying to learn what has happened when we can.…watching how the adults respond to these losses. It takes a strong mind and a soft heart to balance our desire to document, learn, and to care about the chicks that have been lost. On the first two deaths, there were other chicks in the nest to care for, so for the adults, life goes on. On the tragedy that occurred yesterday, it was the only chick and the adults were nowhere to be found this morning. They probably have no idea what happened to their chick.
I appreciate the report from the person who witnessed the fall of the chick.
We are anxiously preparing for our first fledges…..the window is open for a few nests now. There is always a lot of breath holding and excitement. Our initial chick counts and current counts are holding steady at many nests, tho we have had some mortalities along the way.
So below are a few sad photos of 2 of the chicks that perished. And a big, crowded, happy family that is preparing for the first fledge!
And I want to extend a very deep, heartfelt thank you to the Raptor Resource Project for their generous donation to us. We could not keep up this level of monitoring without a lot of help and the financial support they have shown us over the years has made such a huge difference. It is hard to find the right words to appropriately express my gratitude. A MILLION thanks to John Howe and everyone at the RRP!
We had a wild night here in Minnesota, with a big storm going thru in the wee hours of the morning. I have been working so hard to get chicks counted on all nests and we have sadly lost some along the way. But after a night like last night, with a reported six tornados confirmed, I tried to hit as many nests today as is humanly possible, targeting the area where the tornados supposedly hit the hardest, on the western side. I made it to 28 nests! I am happy to report not a single chick was missing from those nests! I found one nest that was down one chick but the monitor confirmed that loss had occurred prior to this storm. There were trees down, branches down, but NO OSPREYS down!
News about the collapse of an osprey colony on the east coast of Virginia….very troubling. Osprey are an indicator species , at the top of the aquatic food chain, so the decline of their population reveals much to us about the health of our environment. It’s a huge red flag….please read….
The aftermath at the Arb cam osprey nest….mom continued to brood the deceased chick for many hours. But before midnight she gave up, and stayed off the body most of the night. At about 5 a.m. this morning ( if you roll back the video) she moves in to the nest cup at stares at the body. She is trying to come to grips with what has happened. Then she sits on the body again. The male brought a fish and she took it to the perch to eat ( a change in her behavior that tells us she understands there is no chick to feed) and then he stared in to the nest. The body is now covered by some nest material and harder to see.
I believe the Arb chick has perished. I just watched mom back up to the edge of the nest at just after 8 pm and the chick is motionless. She walked back in to the nest and steps on the chick and it doesn’t flinch.
From what I have seen the tiny Arb chick has gotten five bites of fish all day today. It’s a start. It’s been difficult to watch. The female almost seems afraid to feed the chick. But some progress was made today….its driven me to drink and I am having a cocktail now. My whole body tenses up as I watch. Whew. I hope more food gets in this evening….tho we are now under a tornado watch. Think good thoughts people….lots of good thoughts.
