3:00p.m. We drive by the tower after our bike ride in this area. I don't see any of the osprey family on the nest or perched on the tower. I am estimating that the chicks fledged on 8/10 since they looked ready on 8/5!
1:10-1:20p.m. I am doing very quick checks of as many nests as I can after yesterday's tropical storm Isaias. The severely high winds took down many trees and could have blown nests and chicks down. I am happy to find this nest safe and intact. Three big chicks are safe also. As soon as I get my equipment set up, an adult flies in. I can't tell what it has in its talons, but from the amount of excitement it creates among the 3 chicks, I suspect it is prey. There is a flurry of wings and mantling and finally the adult leaves, and the three are left to deal with whatever was delivered!
11:30 a.m. Two of the chicks were "branching" and the third was sitting in the nest. I didn't see the adults who were probably both off hunting. These chicks will fledge very soon.
3:05 p.m. I saw 3 big chicks on the nest when I arrived. One on the left was eating, one in the center was preening, and the chick on the right was just standing there! All three were standing up in the nest.
At 3:18 p.m. a parent flew into the nest. Its arrival was announced by loud vocals from the chicks, and the parent apparently brought in prey because all the chicks appeared to self feed after that. I saw a lot of wing-flapping. These nestlings are close to fledging. The parent was standing behind the 3 large off-spring, and not very visible most of the time.
4:40p.m. I arrived just after Dad brought in a fish for dinner. The entire family was on the nest: Mom, Dad, and 3 chicks. Dad didn't stay long in this crowded nest, but flew to a pillar of the tower overlooking the nest, and eventually flew off. Mom was busy feeding the chicks the entire time I was watching. One to the far left seemed to get most of the meal while the other two, perhaps fed earlier, didn't seem to fight over bites. Both the chick on the far right, sitting up tall, and the chick in the middle, toward the back, were both seen wing flapping (photos). When I left after about 30 minutes, the female was still feeding and nothing much had changed.
2:00p.m. Because of the rain, the light is not great. I have not observed this pair for almost 4 weeks. Today both adults were sitting tall on the side of the nest closest to me. One (the female I believe) was eating the entire time. The mate sat still beside her. In the background I could see movement of more than one eyas, but the parents blocked the view! I will have to return soon and try to catch meal time to see if I can get an accurate count of chicks.
2:30 p.m. I noticed that no one was "following" this nest so I decided to see if I could locate it and determine the status. I met a few walkers from the neighborhood who told me this nest always has "a couple" chicks. Apparently they don't know about Osprey Watch. The male was perched on the tower near the female, who was sitting on the nest. I assume she is probably incubating eggs. I will try to check again to see if there are hatchlings.
Past Seasons
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Nesting Diaries