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The Summer of 2015 by GinaM
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osprey 07/11/15 squirt
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George and Gracie's First Baby
Eggs Over Easy
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Upgrading
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First Love
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Hard to Get
Little Brother
Intruder
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OspreyZone Highlights: George Returns
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Belle’s Journey
Written by Dr. Rob Bierregaard & Illustrated by Kate Garchinsky
Take flight with Belle, an osprey born on Martha’s Vineyard as she learns to fly and migrates for the first time to Brazil and back–a journey of more than 8,000 miles.
IMPORTANT: Messages from osprey experts
I haven’t seen the little guy yet this morning, but I would be very surprised if he survived the night. That sure was tough to watch yesterday, but that whole process is as much a part of the essence of being an Osprey as is eating a fish. It’s part of the life of Ospreys that was rarely seen before we started putting cameras in nests. As hard as it is, we should not label the behavior as mean or cruel. Being mean or cruel implies that there is intent to do harm just for harm’s sake. Those young were responding to a set of stimuli (very little food being delivered to the nest and the presence of a very small young) in a way that evolution has hard-wired into them. It helps ensure their survival. Nature is not cruel. It is harsh, unforgiving, and often random (had the little guy been born 1st, he would have been just as aggressive as was his sibling), but not cruel or mean.
Paul Henry ospreyzone July 1, 2015 at 8:17 am
Thanks Rob for bringing your knowledge and experience to help us all gain perspective here. We are all saddened by the events that unfolded before our eyes and it’s only natural for all of us to feel and express our emotions appropriately. There have been many issues pertaining to intervention which have been discussed amongst us all. There is no doubt in my mind that the right decision was made, to let nature take it’s course. By the way, that doesn’t equate to heartless, on the contrary, nobody feels worse about this then the apparent decision makers. I say apparent, because when all was said and done, and all the issues were properly weighed, there really weren’t any other options. It was clearly pointed out, by experts, that intervening at this stage could have spooked the whole nest to the point of losing all the young. If the little one was saved, and nursed back to health, what kind of a life would it have had, perhaps caged up in a zoo. I remember when I was younger I saw a golden eagle in captivity, caged behind a wire mesh. I could practically see it’s tears. As far as placing the little one in another nest, such a low probability of success would never have justified the possibility of spooking the nest. There’s a piece of me, however heavy hearted, that believes that perhaps it is better to be born free and die free. We mourn for the little one as we marvel at the wonders of nature.
Hello Paul,
Thanks for your query, and you have my admiration for persevering. We know very well how tough your job is, including dealing with an anxious public.
Our policy with our Bird Cams project is essentially “just say no” to pleas for interference. The behavior you are witnessing – while seemingly cruel and heartless to us – is natural for many kinds of birds, especially those that feed on variable, unpredictable food supplies. The little nestling does have a chance to survive, but if it does not then that result was “meant to be” by the nature of Osprey breeding strategy. The wonderful things about these nest cameras also sometimes yield the difficult things for us to watch. As you might know, we actually post a “siblicide alert” on some of our cams where we suspect the possibility exists.
I’m copying your note to Charles Eldermire, project leader for our Bird Cams. He may have some additional comments, and he would be the one to ask if we might be able to use your stored files for biological analysis.
Best wishes, and good luck,
John W. Fitzpatrick
Director, Cornell Lab of Ornithology
It’s also important to acknowledge that intervening can also cause problems of its own—depending on the ages of the birds in the nest, disturbing them can trigger an early fledge. We have restricted the scenarios in which we would even consider intervening to injuries or dangers that are explicitly human-derived. For example, 3 or 4 years ago we were alerted by viewers that one of the osprey chicks at the Hellgate Osprey nest was entangled in monofilament line. We consulted with our partners there (wildlife biologists, raptor researchers, raptor rehabbers) to determine if the monofilament was an issue, and if intervening was both likely to solve the issue AND not have bad effects on the other nestlings. In the end, a quick trip to the nest was scheduled via a bucket truck, the monofilament was removed, and the nestlings all eventually fledged. In that case, all of the permits were already in hand to be studying the ospreys, and we had already discussed how to approach issues in the nest.
Good luck to the young one—hope it all turns out well.
charles.
*******************
Charles Eldermire
Bird Cams Project Leader
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
I’ve been to your site—great cam! And I noticed the runt in the nest. This is just normal Osprey reproduction. It happens all the time and you should not intervene. It’s tough to watch, but it’s how nature works. Ospreys almost always lay 3 eggs and on average fledge between 1 and 1.5 young each year. They stagger the hatch so there is a spread of ages in the young. That way, if food is short, the first-hatched (and therefore largest) will get enough food to survive while the smaller nest mates do not. If all three young were the same size and there was only enough food for 1 young, none of the young would get enough food and they would all die. If there’s lots of food, the smallest will eventually get fed and can survive. These nest cams can show some gut-wrenching scenes. The most infamous perhaps was one of the very first Osprey cams (on Long Island somewhere), where the smallest young died. One of the adults carried it out of the nest and after several minutes flew back into the nest and fed it to the other young. Waste-not-want-not at its goriest. At Hog Island up in Maine just last week a Bald Eagle came in and took the young out of the nest. Last year at another nest, cameras documented a Great-horned Owl taking young Ospreys out of a nest in NJ or MD. All of these things have been going on for millions of years and Ospreys are doing fine.
Rob Bierregaard
Academy of Natural Sciences
Drexel University
http://www.ospreytrax.com
5:30am-7/4- YYYYAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!! They are back!!!!
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!!!!!!
@5:14a.m.- George was in with a whole fish. Gracie was out. George went to the no-see corner and now Gracie has joined him there.
We had idiots doing fireworks salvos @11:30 last night and mini-cannons @2and2:30a,m,
I think George went to the perch. Kids aren’t up and didn’t seem interested.
Betsy…I have pictures of that squirt…the ricochet looks like a comet falling!
Kudos for the intruder video..I gave up after I managed to get a quick shot of a fish arrival @6:05pm and then 1/2 the screen dissolved, in addition to the general dark pall over the screen. And eye strain set in…
CarolV: Play the video stream at 2x speed!! 😀 Then when you hit something that isn’t all turquoise or black, pause it to see if it’s anything good!! 😀
Talking Greek again. Don’t know how’
CarolV: You’re lucky … 3:30 to 4 in the morning near me!!
Sorry..I meant my neighborhood
Just making this worse…my neighborhood with the cannons and fireworks. Not ospreyland. And now I see Betsy understood me. …Going now…..
You’ll all be happy to know that the little one was fed at least 3 times that I could tell between 5:30-ish pm and 8:15-ish timeframe by either George or Gracie and had a very bulging crop and in the bits and pieces of the video stream that were viewable, there seemed to be peace, without the little one cowering somewhere. I know the sunset in Nassau made the sky a glorious red and it must have been the same in Suffolk, because in the 20:40’s timeframe George was standing at the left front of the nest facing toward the back, his white feathers painted a beautiful red by the reflection off the clouds by the last light of the sun. An intruder landed on the front of the nest at 21:00:28 all in a tizzy when fireworks went off around that time, barely landing before taking off again (landing on top of chick #3!), chick #1 the only one to react – even as the intruder was coming in (yeah, chick #3 reacted, but s/he was stepped on!!) and it sounded like Gracie up on the perch screaming at it to shoo it away. And, the chicks, for the most part, didn’t look perturbed by the fireworks.
https://youtu.be/r6hMW-tTT6M
Okay, here’s a new one: ricochet squirt … the little one did a squirt and it apparently hit the camera housing, with the splash coming down a few seconds later!!
https://youtu.be/GrcozF6tUKs
When will the feed be fixed…it has been down all day…buffering and going offline….:(
Note to GinaM: I have not posted in a couple of days, because I have been upset with #1’s treatment of #3. I had stated it is difficult to watch, and I’m worried about the outcome. I have read some of the posts, to see what’s happening, and I did watch a little yesterday. I was happy to see #3’s crop was full. I want to say that your note which you posted today at 6:01 p.m. is right on target. I have become emotionally attached to #3, and last year and this year Rob Bierregard explained why humans should not interfere when what is happening is caused by nature. Unhappy things happen all the time in nests, which we do not have the privilege of watching. We should only get involved when the problem is man-caused, such as last year’s fishing line wrapped around the babies’ feet. As he explained and you also mentioned, these ospreys need to make that dangerous trip thousands of miles to South America in September, and only the strongest and healthiest will survive. It is the fittest of the species that keeps these birds of prey healthy. Thank you for reminding me of that, and thanks to Rob, also. That’s not to say that it makes it easier, but more able to digest. It was truly wonderful last year to see Sandy and Ronnie fledge, thrive, and eventually make the trip south — which most of us would like to do in the cold weather (and which I do, luckily). Happy 4th to all our viewers tomorrow. And, as I always say, thanks so much to Paul and Tommy (and Aidan), for making all of this possible. We are so fortunate to be able to view our favorite feathered couple — especially us Long Islanders — a real treat!!
Another really good article about why we feel the way we feel when witnessing harsh things on these cams…..
https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/scicurious
Kathy: Rob Bierregaard posted the link to that article on June 30th, but it never hurts to re-read it!!
@19:39- George is in with another fish and Trey is there while the other two are comatose. Nope.someone else is up..can’t tell who. Lost 1/2 the horrible picture
Imagine when there are 25 to 32 feet of wings in the nest!! 😀
https://youtu.be/JgM0RpPD6k8
Okay, CarolV and everyone, here’s the storm video. I had skimmed over the comments Friday at about 8 pm and then I saw a lot of people talking about the storm. I wasn’t sure when the storm started, but I was close to the end of the (2-hour!) window so I started taping. The original tape that I got was almost 112 minutes long, starting at 16:40 hrs when Gracie first went over to the chicks and ending at 17:45 hrs when the storm was over, which is only 65 minutes, but after I was well into taping, my kitties decided it was play time and there were all sorts of thumping noises from their running around and me trying to shush them, so I paused the video recorder, went into another room, closed the door, and started over with just minutes then to spare, still thinking the storm started at 6:45-ish pm! I guess because the taping was so long by the end of it the video and the audio didn’t match up, so by the last part of the tape, which I discovered was when the storm really hit and with the intruder and the little one getting fed, it looked as if George and Gracie had laryngitis when the intruder came and about 50 seconds later it looked as if they were ventriloquists!! It’s fixed now with beaks moving and sound coming out at the right time!! (P.S. The tape is long, around 30 minutes, so if you want to jump to the best part, go to 17:28 hrs!!)
https://youtu.be/KTiXx9AJi0o
That s/b “go to 1928 hrs!!
7:20pm -Well–thru the darkness, I could see that after the fish at 6:09 and Trey eating then…I saw glimpses of Biggies eating and around 7 or so, Trey was up front and there was fish..No idea if same fish or how much anyone ate….but eating seemed popular. I was checking clock to make sure video wasn’t looping (just loopy) and last time I saw was around 19:15
YYAAAYYYY>>>comments fill in…..
At 4:50 pm, I decided to check OZ … I see that the video stream must have been doing funny things all day because the start of the video stream was at 12:28 pm; George was feeding the little one at the front of the nest and then a bit later George flew away and then the little one went under Gracie. It looks as if the little one was able to move around the nest today pretty much without getting pummeled by chick #1. (Oh, and CarolV, I noticed the 3-masted sailboat at the 13:32 and in between the freezing parts and the boat on the right with people close to the shore on the right at 13:40 and the inflatable boat before that 😀 ) At 14:16+ George came with a partial fish and he staccato-ed a warning to it!! Gracie popped in and took the fish and then, poof, George was gone. Gracie fed the big chicks at the front of the nest while the little stayed at the back of the nest. And then chick #1 came back and pecked the little one at 14:25:27 before going back to continue getting fed and the little one was back up right away! 14:46 there goes the tail swallowed by Gracie!! Then she was, poof, gone at 14:50 returning at 14:59 with a clump of seaweed. George popped back in at 15:30 hrs. And then did a double take off at 15:34:26 when the video stream repeated itself twice!! And then he dropped in at 15:35:12 and popped out at 15:42:42. I thought chick #1 gave chick #3 a peck at 15:49:45 but s/he seemed to be just doing a bent over hammy-and-wing stretch, the video skipping back to reinforce that!! And the little one was over by Gracie at the right front of the nest at 15:52:56 looking fine and dandy with a great big crop, preening, and playing with things in the nest!! and, sleeping. Then Gracie took off at 16:12:10 a minute or 2 later with a big clump of seaweed. And, Gracie and her mini-me were calling for George for a fish. Gracie popped out again at 16:30:24. The tape froze for the longest time at 16:37:06 and then Gracie was suddenly there in front of the camera at 16:38:19 and wove her way to the front of the nest, going around obstacles in her way such as sticks and chicks. Chick #1, who had been sleeping at the back of the nest, woke and then a few minutes later made his/her way to stand behind the little one, but the tape was all choppy and then chick #1 was in the back of the nest, so who knows if there was a peck at the little one in between. George was suddenly back in the nest at 16:08:56, looking as if he came empty-footed and then tidied … alternating between hopping from here to there and in slow motion!! And Gracie and her mini-me were still telling George to get a fish. 17:03:39 George just, poof, gone. And then the video stream was really really really really bad again!!
Oh, and I see comments are up!! Going to read them now!!
P.S. I should have put a 😀 at the end of my comment … as people who know my posts, they know I sometimes joke around about the video stream!! 😀
Reply- CarolIV I thought this was cute too… almost Gracie yelling ok children call out your numbers 1,2,3 thats right George honey we have 3 babies that need feed not to mention you know its been awhile since I had a fish to myself just in case you want to impress me.
CarolV July 3, 2016 at 5:01 pm
5pm..George just dropped in….I think Gracie is reminding him how many kids they have..”Responsibility. Dear..”
Reply- love the hearts and the 3 ifeel the same Bre!
Bre July 3, 2016 at 1:50 pm – Reply
I wish i could hold & hug #3 s/he is sooooooooo adorable i am in LOVE..,<3 <3 <3 aww look my hearts have the number 3 in them lol
Reply- Gina M
You couldnt have said it any better, I agree completely it took us all awhile to get over Peewee but finally we fell in love with Ronnie and Sandy our nester!! I know I miss them and cant wait to see if theses babies look like them when they are ready to fledged.
I admit it. I am in love with Rocky (#3). I love his strength, craftiness, spunk and sheer will to live. When I log on to OZ now it is with trepidation. I am afraid I will see something that will break my heart.
Seeing PeeWee’s lifeless body lying in the middle of the nest was unbearable at the time. Eventually, we embraced Ronnie and Sandy and concentrated on their amazing growth and were thrilled the day they first “hovered” over the nest, discovering what their wings could do.
When I find myself cursing at #1 (thank heavens you can’t hear me) when he is attacking #3, I think about George and Gracie. Did they do that to the youngest in their nest when they were born? Is that why they are so strong and resilient now? Is this nature’s plan?
I think this is a good read from the Washington Post. It is basically about us: people who watch osprey cams and get attached to the birds and how sometimes Mother Nature is not the easiest thing to witness.
Here is the link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/animalia/wp/2016/05/19/when-nest-cams-get-gruesome-some-viewers-cant-take-it/
I admit it. I am in love with Rocky (#3). I love his strength, craftiness, spunk and sheer will to live. When I log on to OZ now it is with trepidation. I am afraid I will see something that will break my heart.
Seeing PeeWee’s lifeless body lying in the middle of the nest was unbearable at the time. Eventually, we embraced Ronnie and Sandy and concentrated on their amazing growth and were thrilled the day they first “hovered” over the nest, discovering what their wings could do.
When I find myself cursing at #1 (thank heavens you can’t hear me) when he is attacking #3, I think about George and Gracie. Did they do that to the youngest in their nest when they were born? Is that why they are so strong and resilient now? Is this nature’s plan?
We cannot interfere. We cannot judge, either. What these two older chicks are doing is the very same instinct that guides them to fly to the Amazon and return back to the same nest every year.
We can hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. And let’s not think that #1 and #2 are some sort of evil, playground bullies. They are birds of prey. What they are doing is not their CHOICE, it is ingrained in them.
There is a big part of me that believes #3 will survive this. One thing I do know- that little baby is loved, not just by Gracie and George, but by us all.
Thanks Gina, a great article, especially for anyone who is having difficulty watching the harsh realities of nature.
for GinaM: That is wonderfully said. I, too, love #3.
Or could one of them been the cradty, spunky youngest that did survive that year s/he was in the nest.
Deborah: How absolutely true … perhaps one or the other — or even both George and Gracie — was the last to hatch in their respective nest — and was the crafty, spunky and feisty youngest that fought to survive.
GinaM thank you! What a perfect read. It will help me and others who watch Mother Nature. It is all part of the BIG plan. God bless!
Amen, Sister! Although I sometimes say things about the Biggies..like calling Uno a wolf, it is just a quick anger. I know it is a drama playing out in front of us and we need to be strong enough to witness each life. And we can love Trey-and ,yes, the Biggies, because that is in OUR natures. I would never want to be cold and dispassionate, constantly waiting for something awful to happen, because that “is to be expected”. I choose to side with all the well-wishers and cheer Uno-Rocky-lil”bit-Shortstack-whatever–for every bite she takes and every feather she grows! And watch Uno and Dos as the grow and change into the beautiful birds they will be!
Well said Gina. We try to human-ize wild animals all the time. That is why people get killed by thinking they are a “pet” by large animals that hunt. I too love #3 and hold onto hope that he will make it. He is very smart because he tucks his head down and under very fast. It’s so hard to see, it really shook me up last night. Then I unfortunately “human-ize” it – and remember how my older brother picked on my younger brother and I non stop! So Kudos to #3 – one tough baby bird.
I agree whole heartedly Gina. It’s hard sometimes to not put our human emotions on these birds. Watch, learn, enjoy and pray for the best !
Right on Gina! Have safe and happy Independence Day.
Very beautifully put, GinaM. Thanks for the link; it must have been a very difficult decision for the cam operators to know that they were sharing something special with viewers only to get such hateful and ugly responses when things didn’t go according to some viewers’ delusions and/or expectations. I, too, love all of the things about the little one, and also get a little nervous before I visit OZ. I was fortunate not to witness the early part at the nest last year with the trauma of Pee Wee, but I did watch OZ after the second time the site was published in Newsday, as Ronnie and Sandy were starting to hover, and it was breathtaking to watch the first time Ronnie and then Sandy flew. I don’t get mad at chick #1 when s/he attacks chick #3 but more at George!! (Come on, George … where are you … bring a fish NOW!!) Yes, we can hope for the best, but prepare for the worst and know that even if something does happen to chick #3, at least it wasn’t for lack of putting up the good fight. And, I strongly feel, as you do, that chick #3 will survive and that s/he is loved by, I won’t say us all, but by the vast majority.
Well said, and a super article that really sums up how emotions can play into all this “nature” watching. Even though last year was my first year watching an Osprey nest, I could see how the “Pee Wee” thing was going to play out. Oh god, I (like everyone else) rooted for that little guy, but I knew, there was not going to be a happy ending, and so…I stopped watching. I eventually came back to a nest with two “chicks”, and enjoyed watching them flourish, and eventually leave the nest in late September. Sadly, I think most 3rd “chicks’ don’t make it, but once again, I find myself rooting for #3 this year. I’ll hope for the happy ending, but, if the handwriting is on the wall, then I have to do what I have to do, and that is to stop watching for a while. Thanks again for posting the article “link”, it was great!
GinaM – thanks much for the article and for your words so eloquently put. Although last year I was heartbroken when PeeWee died, still this year I decided I wanted to continue watching ‘our’ ospreys. It is difficult at times no matter how prepared we think we are for it. But, we have to let Nature take its course, heart wrenching as it is. I think this year’s little guy is going to survive. Already he’s a lot bigger and stronger and ‘smarter’ than PeeWee. lol Well, I hold a grudge; I can’t help it. I hate #1 for always pecking at the little guy. But, once they all fledge, I forget about it. It’s just in the moment that I’ll go on ‘hating’ #1. I know it’s crazy to feel like this, but I do. I’ll get over it, though. Especially if #3 survives this year. 🙂
Well said!
Trying to remember…..wasn’t last year’s #3 younger when he met his fate than this year’s has gotten to be ? 2016 seems feistier….I’m betting on him/her to make it !
Yes Nancy I believe you are right. It will be interesting to see what transpires.
BETSY..re:plastic ..I was lucky enough to get pictures, one of Gracie flying and one as she came in. TOO FUNNY! And of course, I saw the kayak-er, who made a turn over on the right, as if watching the flying circus…I hope they did see it!
5pm..George just dropped in….I think Gracie is reminding him how many kids they have..”Responsibility. Dear..”
CarolV: I did, too, like 14!! Not as funny as a video … oh, maybe I could try!! Like the old-time stereopticon!! (I think that’s what it would be like!!)
fishing has to be slightly off with all that boat traffic and jet skis zipping around, hope dad brings in a really big fish soon so all can get stuffed including our l’l bits
3:00pm- Gracie brought in some green seaweed earlier. George stopped by about 3. The kids are up and down. Trey is out and by Gracie. That chile’ ain’t starving!!!!! that’s for sure! Makes Buddha look anorexic!
Everything happening in kind of stop motion. Sometimes makes for interesting sequences…..
Seems like Big Baby #1 is much less active today – and baby #3 much less stressed – hopefully allowing it to heal, gain strength and grow.
Hi, I realize there are problems with the feed and just wanted to say that when I do get a picture it’s out of focus, even the writing along the bottom.
Hope it will be repaired soon. Thanks!
About 2:18pm- George brings in headless fish. Gracie drops in and takes it.Uno? heads toward her, then turns to no-see-um corner and appears to have a scuffle with ?Dos, because Trey is in sight to the left of Dos.But somehow, Trey winds up getting trounced anyway. Stream very fragmented and hard to follow sequence. Doesn’t last long as Big Guy heads back to Gracie and fish.
2:46pm…looks like Gracie was choking down the tail, so that’s it for that feeding. Uno is parked behind both chicks.If we’re lucky, George will show with seconds while Uno is in coma-time.
I wish i could hold & hug #3 s/he is sooooooooo adorable i am in LOVE..,<3 <3 <3 aww look my hearts have the number 3 in them lol
Don’t think the little guy is doing so well as he is picked apart by the older siblings. Not too surprised that Gracie takes little interest in such things. Osprey parents just try to feed whichever youngster can get to the food the most. I realize many of you seem to think she is a concerned mother but I beg to disagree. To the victor goes the spoils and the little guy is just getting his head beat in. Whether he or she survives is certainly still up in the air (no pun intended). Happy 4th to all.
For Gordon- ALMOST everyone likes to root for the UNDERBIRD !
And even having viable eggs in their first season as a nesting pair was ahead of the odds. This is a successful pair, despite the challenges. We prefer to think #3-Trey-Rocky-Lil’bit-etc. has some of that Fighting Irish O’Sprey luck! And will continue to cheer and be sentimental for the Kid..
11:09-George brings in a BIG fish. I swear it looks like a sand(dog) shark! I know I’m probably not right, but….just sayin’……
Trey was kept out for about 25 mins, but got in there for a good feed. Video still jumpy and pausing.
Hi All,
I know the feed is jumpy today but yesterday it was great and I noticed something that I found strange. The aggression gets much worse later in the day. #2 was even getting involved in the late afternoon. I saw one time #2 was going at #3 and got a look from #1 and backed off immediately. I think #1 wants the bullying all to himself and he does it very well. But #2 gets his licks in as well. Lil Bit tries very hard to get in there and get fed but you watch by this evening he’ll be going hungry again and if he gets anything at all it will be what Gracie can manage to give him from the tail. I just really worry about that because he has to have food to try to survive the attacks. I also worry about him not being able to move around the nest and work his wings very much. He pretty much has to stay in a ball all day..
Don’t you think the little one is too big to be starved? Yes he is up against his larger siblings,and it is very normal to have sibling rivalry, and I think if he is denied some food, he will make it up at some point. I’ve seen him eat plenty, and most of the time it is after the others are satiated. The little one can be aggressive too, and we probably don’t have to worry too much at this point.
Hope you are right but I don’t have the same confidence as you as to the little one’s survival. As I said, I hope you are right and I am wrong.
Cam is buffering and not moving…must be technical problems… 🙁
Sorry about the funny stuff going on right now, seems to be an intermittent problem with communications somewhere between my computers and the nest. We are working on it.
Paul
No problem – we understand
It looks like the projection is a minute and 47 seconds out of sync with my computer time. that could effect the broadcast.
A delay is normal, it seems to vary based on how busy youtube is. I’m leaning towards a Cablevision bandwidth problem between my server and the camera, which usually resolves itself, eventually.
Not Cablevision anymore. Now owned by Altice since June 21st.
Cablevision… say no more. Have trouble with them all the time.
I do, too, all of the time!! And YouTube today when I tried to upload 2 videos which hung at processing for over 2 hours before I tried again, one at a time!! (Why do they ask if you wand to upload more videos while the first one is still processing??!!) 😀
Thanks for the update Paul!
Thanks, remember……it’s a holiday weekend, ENJOY it PLEASE
Hi, so now the stream is offline and I still see only a couple of post after 7-1-16. Are the technical difficulties continuing?
To all: I didn’t really get a chance to watch the video yesterday until about 7:30 pm when I scrolled back to 5:30 pm. I saw the back of the little one’s head was bleeding and pretty roughed up looking. Looked as if s/he had a pretty tough day. This morning I gave up watching because the video was really choppy and then offline, but I saw the little one around the time Gracie landed with her plastic at 9:16 am and s/he had a huge crop, so I’m guessing s/he wasn’t so picked on today (yet … I’m hoping all of that passes). At least s/he isn’t getting the attacks from both of the older chicks, which, as bad as it is with one, would be worse with two).
I went back through the video — 8:55 am and the little one got fed by Gracie in peace while the two bigger chicks were in the right back corner; then, apparently full, s/he moved to the (our) right side of the nest next to and to the left of chick #2, then chick #2 got up and got fed from the fish tail stub.George flew in at 9:11 am, Gracie popped(!) out at 9:14 am, George made his way over the the little piece of fish that Gracie had left with the little one tagging along, and George fed her/him a little more, Gracie flew in with her plastic, and then George fed the little one a little more before finishing off the rest of the fish and swallowing the tail, the little one had gone to sleep after apparently getting full, and then George popped(!) out at 9:24 am. After chick #2 had had its fill, s/he went back to the right corner just at 9:14 am and stayed there with chick #1.
The little one even toddled passed chick #1 in peace at 9:46 am to lie under Gracie’s mombrella after she had moved from the left side of the nest to the right. Couldn’t really tell what or if any pecking happened at 9:47/9:48/9:49 am when chick #1 got up to move behind the little one because the video stream was very jumpy, but it didn’t look like chick #1 pecked or leaned on the little one and the little one wasn’t lying prone in a submissive position, so I doubt anything happened before chick #1 was suddenly Criss Angeled to the right of the little one at 9:49:57 am.
Then there were major major technical issues from about 9:55:11 to at least 11:46:06 am with the video stream alternately jumping, freezing, going back in time and showing Axis Communications screen. But I did see chick #1 go after and peck the little one at 11:03 am but s/he was right back up within a minute or two and then made its way over to lie next to chick #1. George brought a whole fish just before 11:09 am and the little one was first in line at the right front corner where Gracie brought the fish and ate before chick #2 made its way over at about 11:14 am. Chick #1 came over at about 11:18:29 am and was on the right side of the little one, but it looked as if s/he was only preening, and then suddenly was in the right back corner! Then chick #2 was done eating and skipped away at 11:30 am. The little one was under Gracie’s mombrella and it looked as if s/he alternately napped and got fed by Gracie. And even watching the video stream on FF, I was done at 11:46:06 am … the stream is really really really really really bad today!!
Betsy – excuse my ignorance, but what does “s/he had a huge crop” mean? I gather that means the little guy ate a lot but how can one tell that’s the case? btw, I think I saw #2 peck at the little guy; I’m pretty sure it was #2 yesterday early evening when he pecked at #3. But, I think at this point #3 is a lot bigger than last year’s peeWee. I think he’ll survive. I pray he survives. 🙂
Monica: This is better than I can explain: “a crop, which is a swelling at the base of the esophagus that forms a storage area where food can be held for later digestion. When the chick’s crop develops over the next couple weeks, it will look like a small bulging protrusion on the chick’s chest”
http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/osprey_cam_blog/archives/2004/05/25/
There’s also more at: https://nutritionofosprey.wordpress.com/digestive-anatomy-and-physiology/
In other words, it acts like a bird form of a doggy bag!! You can also see really filled crops on “our” chicks in my video “George Soaring” in my June 26, 2016 at 5:57 am comment – way down near the bottom of the page (link to the page: http://ospreyzone.com/comment-page-38/#comment) (The “Fish Tales” video is really too fast to see much of anything except that they were getting fed!!)
Hope that helps.
P.S. I really want chick #3 to survive, too. (And, Gordon, I don’t think a lot of us are overlooking the development of the two older chicks … I agree with CarolV when she wrote: “ALMOST everyone likes to root for the UNDERBIRD”
Betsy – thanks so very much for all the info you provided! What would I do without you?! I love the ospreys but didn’t know all the ‘scientific’ facts. I became obsessed with them last year. My sister keeps telling me to “stay away from your laptop and those ospreys!!” lol
I hope everyone is having a wonderful 4th of July!!
Monica: Better than being told “I think you should be committed”! 😀
Betsy – my sister thinks I’m nuts. I don’t care. I love my ospreys. LOL!!
HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Enjoy your weekends…..
I see Gracie couldn’t pass up bringing to the nest a HUGE scrap sheet of plastic!! You can see her flying in front of the nest over the water with it at 9:16:38, then the video freezes until about 9:16:46 when she came flying up from the left to the nest with it!
P.S. Paul and/or Aidan: If your project includes funny Gracie things, this is one that definitely should be included!! (The video was freezing and very jumpy, or I would have gotten a video of it to post!!)
about 8:55ish a.m. Video back up and showing Trey so stuffed she may explode! And still eating ! Pack it in, little one, while the wolf sleeps!
@9:16am…Gracie flies in with plastic…it was a good show as she flew right to left before turning in to nest with a flourish…wonder if the kayak-er caught that overhead view!
Some peace ensues as comas abound and Momma-bird surveys her happy family
Fantastic
The feed was down this morning. When it finally started working again we were greeted with the two bigger chicks passed out on the right of the nest and George feeding his little baby as the sun rose higher in the Sunday morning sky.
He has a nice full crop. Let’s hope it is a good day for all.
I see we’re having problems with the live cam or is it just me.? 🙁
Hi All,
OK, so all day yesterday I couldn’t find any posts after early morning and nothing at all today and now the stream is down. I’m thinking there might be a serious problem. I hope not and things can be fixed quickly.
Thanks
7:27am Poor Trey is right on top of Gracie’s leftover fish. She was halted in her move toward George and put on pause…as is the video….
Video was back a little after 8:30- THANK YOU,THANK YOU
Sorry, 8 fifty-five…there’s a reason to wear those glasses, Carol
7-3-16 am Good morning everyone just wanted to say I hope everyone has a safe and memorable 4th of July. I remember last year we were all concerned about the fireworks scaring the babies,George and Gracie. It appeared they were enjoying the show but probably didnt like the loud noise.
I see bb3 is getting feed, big and strong. This is sooooo good, so happy he has managed to play every trick to get to the food and seems to have learned to be submissive. He looks like he has learned the pecking order but still I see BB1 (I think) is pecking at him for no reason. It will be interesting to see what Robs intern finds out or has to say about that behavior.
I miss everyone and hope the weather is good for all.
Love our Osprey family, love our osprey followers!
Video going haywire ! Sunday 6am.
With all the sentimental hysteria about # 3, it’s easy to overlook the development taking place in the other two. They are making tentative attempts to stand on their legs and # 1 has started to self-feed.
To have one chick successfully fledge would give the pair a rate of 1.5 fledglings over the last two years. To have two again would be fantastic. Three may be a stretch too far. #3 would have to be ready to fledge by the time the parents leave the nest which seems questionable. Let’s concentrate on what would be true success and hope that at least one chick successfully fledges.
4:58amEDT The gang is stirring..Look at Trey ! His feathers are filling in and wing feathers are popping. He looks more like the Biggies everyday..Uno gave him the stink-eye already, but didn’t jump on him…I’m thinking Trey is female and will start saying her. Tired of always typing him anyway.
5:30am…George brings in a large whole fish.
6:08am The Biggies are so handsome with all their pretty feathers!
Trey was frozen out, of course. She was making her way around the back of Gracie, but Uno made it his business to go over and put her in line.
The video stream is very choppy.
6:22- Biggies were down for the moment and Trey was moving in behind Gracie, when she decided to drag the fish forward by Uno? and let the chick start sampling for himself.
6:50- George is in with a second fish. He has had his share. Gracie is standing by camera, so it’s hard to tell who she is feeding
7:00am I think Trey was getting fed, til I saw Uno’s head behind Gracie; then, she started feeding herself..no one showing interest in George.
OK @7:18- Gracie turned around, facing in to nest. I can see tow Biggies to her right. So she must be feeding Sleep, Uno, sleepppp,sleeeepppppp. Nope..awake..but focusing on George….
video still jerky and pausing
That was —So she must be feeding TREY.period.
Hi, no matter how many times I refresh this page the number of comments doesn’t change. It did before so am I not doing something correctly?
Sometimes Aidan has to take a day off.
Jul 2, 10:23pm Scrolled back to @ 9:25pm and Grace had the little ones all tucked in. But a fireworks display was going off nearby…you could see flashes of color illuminating the nest. Anyway, to her credit, Grace stayed calm.
Despite all the noise, I remember last year’s as being much closer to the nest. Hopefully, this year’s events will all be farther away
9:10pm…fireworks are starting around here…I think some people have mini-cannons…my poor cat will be behind the TV again..he missed dinner last night because of the rain and thunder.
@21:13:11- there is a blaze of light across the bay..followed by loud rumble. Gracie flew in to nest from perch…
And the blaze is on the jetty again
You can hear many voices and a dog barking from below. and firecrackers…chicks are chirping…and some flashes refecting upward
Just for you
, Betsy..@21:49..a line of boats passing, prob out watching all the fireworks.
I’m just seeing this now (drats) and I wasn’t around yesterday to watch OZ (drats)!! Thanks, anyway, Carol!! 😀
GinaM. I agree that Gracie has made some efforts to distract #1 when he goes after #3..offering food when possible. She seems more relaxed as a parent. But then, life is not as difficult this year.Definitely,easier to watch! Even with the dominance issues
DarDar…saw that beautiful moment of mutual support..we’re all in this together moment. Got a nice picture of it.
Betsy…looking forward to your storm video…when do you sleep? My niece posted on facebook a photo of lightning over Southampton(next town over from me on South Fork).Taken from Mattituck(on the North Fork) Google: J.G.Photography…he’s got several good photos concerning the storm…think you’ll like them…and maybe relax a little?
CarolV: The sound track was all off on the video!!!!! George was doing silent calls at the intruder until about a minute later when his beak was closed and there was all his calling!! 😀 Going to try to fix it somehow (I hope!!).
I watched this site last year & it was very difficult to the the last born not make it. I know this lil one is so much stronger & gets a good deal of food most of the time. But the pecking of the bigger chick is so often, will he/she be able to survive? When its time to leave the nest, will he/she be strong enough, grown enough to spread those beautiful wings?
OMG its 8:55 pm, went back two hours to see the lit one eating by him/herself. You go lil one!
Are Ospreys similar to Eagles and have a feeding schedule according to the oldest? The little one needs to eat more frequently than the older ones, but the older ones need to eat more per feeding.
Kalar, they eat when food is found and brought and usually the oldest gets it first, but not always. Eagles are the same. If you are new to this site, WELCOME.
Was very happy to see that about 6:50pm, Uno backed off Trey and he got to eat very well! Grace handed him a huge piece of skin and he downed it; then ate more!
Comments aren’t up for today, so the last feedings I’ve seen, last night and early a.m., were not good for Trey. Uno was a big looming presence preventing him from eating. There was some pecking, but mostly food denial. I’ll be anxious to hear how the day went.
Is something wrong with the comments section? I see nothing from today at all. Thanks
Just put away a huge piece of fish – he struggled a bit but he got it!!
Little Guy getting fed by himself. Good too see it.
Lil one finally got up and went over to mom while the Godzillas were zonked out in a food coma…hopefully they leave him alone…please God!!!
For all you people that want to view aggression at it’s worse scroll back to 10 mins ago and watch the lil one being beat down at the edge so he could not go eat after the glutton was finished and the other glutton sat on him while he was getting fed so lil one could not get up to go get food. If you enjoy this kind of nature behavior then go right ahead and look..it’s horrendous.
16:41 July 2, a real beating, mouth wide open and I swear he had a tiny feather in his mouth when he was done. That’s enough for me. Good night and good luck folks!
July 2 @4:45 P.M. (E.S.T) At 3:02 Rocky (Baby #3) got attacked by Baby ! for no reason. It looked like Rocky sensed the attack was coming because he tried to get under Gracie but she flew off and he got it. Did not last long thankfully. He laid low till 3:35 then moved over to lay nest to Baby 2 who isn’t as aggressive as baby 1.It was peaceful in the nest till George brought in a nice size whole fish. Gracie began feeding but I couldn’t see Rocky he was too far over on the right. But I think he got attacked again during this feeding because Gracie moved the fish to upper part of the nest and Rocky was curled up like he does when attacked and was not attempting to get fed. Oh no he did attempt to go and get fed and was again attacked this time quite viciously. I don’t think he got any food at this feeding. It is so sad that this behavior is what osprey do. Keep praying that the other two get to full size and Rocky can grow up to at least be big enough to stand up for himself. There will be more fish delivered today and hope one arrives soon so maybe the other two who are right now full will allow Rocky to get fed because they are in food coma now.
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Scrolled back to the feeding at about 4:40 and the baby, baby was feeding himself from a left over stash. H/she can’t wait till the big ones are done h/she’s hungry now! Very enterprising.
One other observation is that the Rachel and Steve 3 chick nest on Hog Island is the only one I have seen so far that is well disciplined…there is no aggression…all 3 line up in a row for their food and everyone is fed equally every time…it’s such a peaceful site….all other 3 chick nests are like this one ..loads of aggression …even when there is plenty of food the other 2 beat down the baby for no reason……sigh…..
7/2 around 4:40, looks like the lil one didn’t get to eat. Was pecked by old sibling & never went back to try again. 🙁
That was downright cruel….one of the big bullies for no reason after he ate…bonked the baby so hard I thought he was going to kill him …I will not watch anymore 3 chick nests again…it’s obvious the 3rd one is not meant to survive and if they do…they are just lucky….the aggression is too harsh and why the parents protect them from predators and violent storms but not protect any of them from each other is beyond me….I know it’s survival of the fittest blah blah blah but every life human or not has a right to live but watching this violent behavior being a human is not enjoyable to me…I thought when I started watching this year for the first time I would enjoy it but the harshness of these birds behavior is too much for this human to tolerate.
Interesting viewing from about 4:40pm Saturday. # 1 and # 2 don’t appear to be in a sharing mood.
The faces on all of them after the Poop-O-Rinse stops is priceless. I think #1 and #2 enjoyed the cool water.
GinaM: Poop-O-Rinse … I love it!! 😀 (P.S. Tommy, that would be a great name for it for when you go on Shark Tank 😉 )
You rock Tommy, I love the lens cleaner..Thanks
Thank you for the cam cleaning….yayyyy 🙂
Is the lens cleaner working? Thank you.
Time to clean the cam screen with the magical waterworks again. 🙂
What a great meal lil one had with mom one on one….the other 2 Godzillas were in food comas for the most part and lil one got his fair share…so pleasant to watch 🙂
GinaM – you stated that you’ve seen the Parents protect #3. Can you give me any details?
Watching the other two overeat while #3 is the one who really needs to eat – takes all the joy out of watching.
That number 1 was beating down 3 at the edge of the nest….Lord please don’t let him fall out of the nest….let him survive these beatings…his neck feathers have already been pulled yet by the severe aggression he is receiving,,,,it’s so painful to watch the lil guy get beat for no reason half the time. 🙁
Will it ever get easier for #3? Is there a milestone he needs to pass where he might be accepted?
Glad to see we are up again. Little one is being fed all by its’ self. I noticed that the replay only goes back an hour instead of the 4 we are use to. What happened?
I’m not sure what’s going on with the camera. At 7:30 am, there was a clean lens and I saw #3 get fed the last quarter of a fish (after a bit of pecking). At 9:30, the screen was blurry and when I backed up 2 hours, it was also blurry/dirty. Anyway, at 9:50 am, #3 got fed without interference from #1. So that was good. I wonder one of these was a re-run…puzzling!
Meg: Sh*t happens!! 😀
It looks like one of the kids squirted on the lens again. It seems like it is time for the lens washer again.