Nesting Diaries
similar story to many nests this season, where was the fish?
male on downed snag near road, female on nest
one deep in nest, appears to be brooding or incubating
concern that nest has failed
a fisherman so very close to the nest today but one stayed deep in the nest
incubating, other on 2x4 near nest, eating fish, then flew off towards Bayshore
one deep in the nest today, did not see mate
nest built up, pair getting flushed off with people walking the bay beach, just one stayed at nest today
no ospreys seen today in 82 heat with south wind gusts over 20 mph
one fledgling from nest skimming talons across the water this morning, then it plopped in for a brief float then up and back to the nest-learning how to power out of the water!
fledgling from nearby Anne's nest DEFW#82, joined this pair about a week ago and today with 3 on the nest, and suddenly 2 taking off as I drove up in my car, I knew at least one had fledged, perhaps having an older fledgling join the group helped hasten fledging?
2 chick s visible again today
no chicks visible this evening but male on satellite perch and female on nest
2 chicks visible at noon today.
definitely incubating today. mate on platform perch but unfortunately 2 clammers walking the marsh at nest and flushing the female off eggs
just female on platform t perch today, i think the mate has left the area
still just seeing the female, might just be my timing is off, today she was in the nest
female on downed snag she once nested on, no signs of her mate today, no signs this pair is even settled
2 on nest today , no eggs
1 at nest today following yesterdays bad storm, no sign of egg laying yet
Memorial plaque placed on nest in memory of Irene and Bill McLaughlin by their daughter Jodi who built the nest platform.
3 large chicks/fledgling all line up on nest at sunset and getting fed equally by momma osprey.
2 chicks wingercising like crazy today, at sunset all 3 still in nest, i expect fledging tmr
pair is doing very well with 3 chicks and this being, as far as i know, their first successful nesting, i am very pleased to have given them a proper platform
both adults fending off an osprey intruder over nest today, after about 5 minutes female returned to the nest and male settled on sign post.
one still deep in nest appears to be incubating
both osprey off nest as a man walked into marsh to get minnows from the pond close to platform, back on nest and resume inc after about 6 minutes
one incubating today, mate was not on his fave perch today but recently he has spent much time on the original downed snag where they built their first nest, he still likes to perch on the upturned root.
took some time to see one very deep in nest incubating in high winds (30 mph) and heavy rain past 2 days
one incubating today did not see second
incubating but the nest is not deep so she is exposed to the high wind we have regularly
one on t perch this afternoon, lots of activity along the mobile home park rd near nest for this weekend, may take this pair sometime to settle, perhaps even another year, lets see how they do next week or so.
the pair is now consistently on the new nest platform, they seem bothered by high wind but hunker down together on the nest. the nest material looks much higher.
2 at nest yesterday morning and again today
since late yesterday 2 osprey consistently at nest, bringing nest material
9 am this morning there was one osprey squatting on nest with at least 3 others fighting over the immediate airspace and taking nest material to ground nest!!! US FW permission to remove ground nest as it is too close to the road and new platform. platform is approx 100 ft from ground nest. squatter may have been from a nearby established James Farm nest as there was little activity at the new platform later in the day but other nearby nests full of adults. may take a week or so to see who ends up where
male osprey been hanging around the area for 2 days and today it was on the platform, hunched down in the rain and wind
13 ft osprey platform placed today, it is further out in marsh but still just at end of Squirrel Rd in the park.We left the original low snag nest to attract the pair.
adult male back on the " new" falling nest on the last marina light pole
adult male still perching on the no clamming sign at waters edge near nest
one adult eating a fish on the no clamming sign, a favorite perch of the adult male
light pole nest destroyed in high winds a few days ago. the adult pair still hangs around the low nest area.
light pole nest is now quite large. landowner says the light no longer works. we are discussing placing a tall nesting platform nearby.
pair is building a frustration nest of sorts on the light pole at entrance to marina. they are now rarely at the low snag nest area possibly due to increase in human activity at the mobile home park.
the female will sit on the nest on occasion and the male is attempting unsuccessfully to build a frustration nest on top of the first lightpole entering the marina.
both are spending most of their time in the pine trees across the marina from the low nest but today i watched one making a few trips over to the james farm treeline to get nest material, once it placed the nest material on top of the campground light pole, then the second time it took a branch to the nest. i hope this pair does not attempt a re-nest.
female perched on the root of the downed snag nest today
6 pm today the nest was empty with both osprey perched in the tall loblolly pine grove across the marina.
early morning following a violent all night storm the nest was empty, no osprey seen. later the nest was checked and there were no eggs in the nest bowl. a resident said he saw numerous crows hanging around the nest.in the evening both osprey flew over the nest and then went to the pine trees at the nearby camp ground.this is actually a blessing as the nest is basiclly on the ground in area full of ground predators, fox, snakes and raccoons in particular
5-5-18, approx 9:30 am I was monitoring a few other nest platforms on the marsh so from that different vantage point I saw the same 2 men back in the marsh near the downed snag nest and both osprey flying overhead. About 6 pn I placed a stay back sign near the nest and hope this keeps people a safe distance but won't count on it.Today at 5:30 pm with dense fog I observed the female on the nest and no mate in sight. She sits slightly high in the small circumference of the nest bowl so she is quite visible to passersby.
At sunset I happened to be walking my dog along the bay and across the Bayshore cove I saw 2 people deep in the marsh of James Farm, they then walked to the osprey nest and the osprey were circling their heads. about 10 minutes of that and 2 more people and a kid on a bike walked up and they also walked into the marsh up to the nest! The nest is about 4 feet off the ground so it is obviously attracting too many people to approach at an unsafe distance. Oh boy, if the raccoons don't get the eggs people just might. nearby were 2 kids with 4 drones... This poor osprey pair did not choose a good locale to raise a family.
pair began incubating behavior on 4-26-18, the male usually perches on the up turned snag branch next to the road. The females body seems too large for the nest size but she is very deep in the nest, as deep as she can be.
female sitting in the nest and digging in the nest bowl today with no male seen
both osprey perched on the downed snags branches today following a heavy 24 hr storm.
driving rain and high ESE winds today, both osprey hunkered down in the marsh near the nest. they have no trees nearby to protect from the elements.
Most likely the pair was here earlier than today but because there are 4 other nest sites close by here at James farm the ospreys have been flushing one another off nests. Both were at the nest today bringing nest material. This nest was built up in 2017 when a loose snag floated into the marsh after a storm. This pair had been hanging around the treeline and built this nest that is basically a ground nest. It sits on the root system of the overturned snag. Last season they just played house. I hope they do not incubate this season but most likely they will. The nest is very vulnerable to ground predators as well as it is about 25 feet from the roadway of the mobile home park and numerous cars park next to the nest to watch the osprey. People can walk directly up to the nest. We hope to place stay back signs in the next week and after this nesting season consider placing a platform a safer distance from people but also far enough away from the established neighboring osprey pairs.