|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted By:
Hal Brown
Date Posted:
May 21, 2013
Description:
The Osprey family living on our pier kindly posed for a photo today--and for the first time I see that there are three chicks in the nest. (Earlier I thought there were two eggs in a photo.)
That's Pasprey feeding them bits of fish, while Masprey watches from the other side of the nest.
This is a detail from a 720p video that the replacement IP camera is streaming now. The original camera died after less than 12 hours out there, and it took me a long time to figure out that it wasn't working right. It worked fine when connected by Ethernet cable, but I couldn't get it to connect again via wi-fi. Finally I convinced the manufacturer to send me a new one for free.
Date Taken:
May 21, 2013
Place Taken:
37.30500, -77.215000
Owner:
Don Maxwell
File Name:
Ospreys_THREE_BABIES__20130521_160638_sat_k.jpg - Photo HTML
Full size - <img src="/show.php?splash=SZIMR0000h">
Medium - <img src="/show.php?splash=SZIMR0000m">
Thumbnail - <img src="/show.php?splash=SZIMR0000s">
Category:
23, Max Pix
|
|
|
|
|
Click on photo to view the original size. |
| Viewers
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Read what others had to say:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
Don Maxwell - May 21,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
Frank A. Carr - May 21,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Very cool, Don.
| | |
|
Steve Kessinger - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
You should livestream that, Don.
| | |
|
Frank A. Carr - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Try this Steve: <a href="http://chesapeakeconservancy.org/osprey.html">http://chesapeakeconservancy.org/osprey.html</a>
| | |
|
Steve Kessinger - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Thanks, Frank. <br /><br />I was home a couple weeks ago and one flew over my car while I was a couple blocks from the airport, first time in 11 years I've been up here I've seen an Osprey.
| | |
|
Steve Kessinger - Jul 05,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
They're looking good, Frank. They runt of the litter ain't no runt anymore.
| | |
|
Frank A. Carr - Jul 06,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
That's for sure Steve. I only check them about once a week, <br />and their growth rate has <br />been amazing! I guess the 4th never made it but I've not <br />checked with my friends, the nest <br />owners.
| | Attachments:
Oysprey MD 7.6.13
| | |
|
Tim Jones - May 21,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
That is awesome Don!
| | |
|
Russ Garner - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
That's cool Don, because a front was passing over yesterday we had some strong wind blowing. Lou and I sat on the patio watching our Osprey hunting along the waters edge. They like to hunt when the wind is blowing and they can use their incredible eye sight along with ability to stay aloft with very little flapping their wings to catch their fish. We also watched a Baled Eagle that was not able hunt in the strong wind. The Baled Eagle prefers to swoop down on his prey and with his large sharp talons snatch his prey out of the water were the Osprey tends to dive down with their wings folded from some distance above the water and can go for their prey under the water if need be. The eagle lacks this ability and prefers to hunt when the wind is not blowing and the water is not so rough.
| | |
|
Frank A. Carr - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Russ, Don and other Osprey watchers: Have you ever witnessed a successful plunge? In 20 years of casual Osprey watching I've only seen two. Both in FL none in MD.<!-- >'"><br><font color=red size=6>' or > missing in user HTML. Please fix the HTML.</font> -->
| | |
|
Don Maxwell - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
We've seen several successful ones, Frank--and lots of misses. Our house is on a broad bay in the James River that has houses at one end and a heavily wooded swamp at the other, beginning about 100 yards from us. (A swamp is a marsh with trees.) The swamp is home to at least one pair of bald eagles, and in addition to 'our' ospreys, several other pairs nest in the area. The river is abut 1.5 miles wide here, and just beyond the swamp is a larger bay, about 2 miles across, so there's enough water to support lots of water birds.<br /><br />Once I watched a heron catch a fish so large that it was having trouble swallowing it--tried several times. A bald eagle was also watching from a nearby tree, and after a while it swooped down and snatched that fish away from the heron, as if to say, 'MY fish, you loser!'<br /><br />But the eagles usually defer to the ospreys, who though slightly smaller are better flyers.
| | |
|
Frank A. Carr - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Don, your heron-fish story reminds me, and I couldn't make this up: One morning on the Bay, a Great Blue in our back yard had a fish like yours--too large to handle and looking somewhat confused as to how to flip it 90 degrees to swallow; 2 hours later we were at the Easton Waterfowl Festival and we come across a large painting of a Great Blue Heron holding a fish--almost exactly as seen in our back yard. I purchased it, of course.<!-- >'"><br><font color=red size=6>' or > missing in user HTML. Please fix the HTML.</font> -->
| | |
|
Jerry Ratcliffe - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Same on our creek. Ospreys are successful, but avoiding the thieving bald eagles is as great a challenge. Once saw a bald eagle catch a carp that was so big it couldn't take off again. We watched in amazement as it did the breaststroke across the creek until it could drag the fish into the shallows. Damnest thing I've seen in ages. <p><p>Now at least I know that a carp puts an eagle over max gross weight.<!-- >'"><br><font color=red size=6>' or > missing in user HTML. Please fix the HTML.</font> -->
| | |
|
Eric Batterman - May 22,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Frank, Nesting pair of bald eagles lives on the pond adjacent to our lake (Poconos). They fish everyday on the lake - barely getting their talons wet. Some ospreys live nearby too, though don't know where they nest - and they are fun to watch. I've witnessed many successful plunges.
| | |
|
Gene Hammond - Jul 07,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Don, et al,<br /><br />Thanks for the Osprey info - we in the Chicago area, and maybe even not in OSH area get to see Ospreys - several eagles, though. The Mississipi river flows about 40 miles west of here and it is the flyway for eagles heading in either direction. A very favorite spot for eagle watchers!<br /><br />
| | |
|
Don Maxwell - Jul 07,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
Frank A. Carr - Jul 08,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Don, Looks like the origin of the accidental flight while taxiing. <p> I've been amazed at the growth rate of these chicks. And pretty soon they fly away. Kind of reminds me of an other species.<!-- >'"><br><font color=red size=6>' or > missing in user HTML. Please fix the HTML.</font> -->
| | |
|
Frank A. Carr - Jul 08,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Meanwhile, their cousins up in the Chesapeake are not nearly as <br />advanced.<a href="http://chesapeakeconservancy.org/osprey.html">http://chesapeakeconservancy.org/osprey.html</a>
| | |
|
Don Maxwell - Jul 08,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
They do grow fast, Frank, but not compared to smaller birds, like the robins that are raising their second brood this year in a tree in our front yard. The first group grew up and flew away, and the parents are sitting on a second batch of three new eggs right now. It took last year's osprey chick 3.5 months to grow from a new egg to its first flight, and another month or more after that to learn how to fish for a living.
| | |
|
Don Maxwell - Jul 07,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Why is the camera pointed so far down? Maybe this is why:<br /><br />But, no. Mom's not really perched on the camera. She's on the 2x4 that the camera is attached to. I think the cam just slipped on its own. The flagstaff is on another piling, about 6 feet beyond the camera 2x4.<br /><br />Mom has been trying to get the kids airborne for at least a week. She'll land on the nest, chat for a while, then fly to another piling or to a nearby tree--or just go flying. In this photo, she's talking to them, perhaps saying, 'Come on. Come ON. It's time to fly!'<br /><br />Last year's baby's first flight was on July 29. The parents began building the nest around April 4, and there was an egg by the 19th or earlier.<br /><br />We don't know when last year's egg hatched, but we could see the baby's head above the nest by May 19.<br /><br />This year the dates have been similar so far. On April 11 we first saw two eggs. On May 21 we were surprised to see that there were three chicks.<br /><br />Three seems to be almost one too many. At mealtime, all three chicks used to line up in a row, but mom could reach only two at a time, so Number 3 had to wait until the others were finished. Then Mom would finally get around to him or her. For a while we worried that Number 3 would perish, but it seems to be doing fine. By now it often doesn't even bother getting into the chow line--just waits its turn on the other side of the nest.<br /><br />The chicks have been doing their flapping practice regularly for a couple of weeks now. Today I saw one of them about a foot above the nest, and it seemed almost ready to fly.<br /><br />But will they be ready to fly this soon? Last year's kid didn't take off for another three weeks.
| | Attachments:
Ospreys Mom Kids 2013 07 06
| | |
|
Dennis Scearce - Jul 08,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Has this cramped the use of your boat dock?
| | |
|
Don Maxwell - Jul 08,2013
Viewers
| Reply
|
| |
Yep. When there were eggs in the nest, the mom would tolerate us within a few feet, although she scolded us a lot. It was the same when the chicks were small. But since the chicks have been flapping their wings (exercising their flight muscles) the mom hasn't wanted us anywhere near. If either of us comes within about 100 feet she gets really agitated and usually takes off and flies directly at the person, then breaks off and circles at about 20 or 30 feet, then flies away and repeats the threat once or twice before alighting in a nearby tree. So she clearly doesn't want humans near the nest. <br /><br />Small birds don't seem to bother her at all. A pair of mallards often rest on the pier, and swallows perch within 10 feet of the nest without seeming to bother the ospreys. But if another large bird--osprey, heron, eagle, vulture--flies within 1000 feet, or so, the mom will take off and chase it away.<br /><br />The father osprey is out fishing most of the time now. But if he happens to be at the nest when we approach, he always immediately flies away, screaming. We think that's his job--to get our attention and try to get us to follow him away from the nest.<br /><br />We've never seen physical contact between these different species of big birds, and the ospreys have never gotten within about 15 feet of us. Twenty feet seems to be about their own comfort range when they're mad at us. The closest I've been to the mom is about 10 feet once when she was flying past where I was sitting and many times when I approached the nest before the eggs hatched. Ten feet is as close as I can get without using a ladder.<br /><br />So in effect, we can't use the end of the pier for about 6 weeks without the risk of scaring the babies into fleeing before they're ready to fly. This winter we'll probably build them a new nest platform at a safe distance from the pier, yet close enough that it will still seem like home to them.
| | |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
- About Searey.us -
- Contact Searey.us -
|
- Privacy Statement -
- Terms of service -
|
Copyright © 2024 Searey.us & Brevard Web Pro, Inc. -
Copyrights may also be reserved
by posters and used by license on this site. See Terms of Service for more information.
|
| |
- Please visit our NEW
Chapter Place Website at: chapterplace.com or
Free Chapter Management Website at: ourchapter.org. Good for all chapters, groups or families. |
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
