IMPORTANT: Messages from osprey experts

It LOOKS like it might be Uno eating with Gracie. Trey grabbed a couple mouthfuls and is now trying her best to be inconspicuous. Not easy for her; she is a brave soul who doesn’t submit easy !
?Dos, presumably. worked his way in between the two by Gracie. Looks like two Biggies are stepping back and Trey is getting fed. But she’s stepping back, too, and complaining. Could they be thru that fish already? It looked good sized to me.

As long as Trey keeps that light head, I can spot her thru the fog…and she was eating @ 5:20 or so. The sky’s clouding over, making it more difficult to see. There’s possible t-storms forecast till about 9-10p.m.

7-14-16 reply Bre- we are all good but thanks for the hug needed that have been feeling a little down lately.

George upstairs watching over them…alarm calls @10:35

I THINK George is doing the 9o’clock feeding.

That was amazing!! Thank you.

Thanks for sharing. Great outcome!

TOO CUTE!

I haven’t seen that. Just sticks. Oh, almost forgot-PLASTIC.

Pic of 7-13-16 Big fish 1st one of the day Gracie takes fr George bb in the nest

7-14-16 Kathleen, Gracie will not fish at all while she is with George it is very rare some females will only do if mate doesn’t come back or starvation. Once Gracie returns to build the nest and starts courtship with George she pretty much stops fishing for herself and George provides until they go their separate ways to migrate. At the beginning during courtship and mating George would come to nest and delivery fish to Gracie and they start their bonding with fish then if Gracie approves they start their bonding with building the nest together and then mating. George or the male is the sole provider especially once eggs have been laid. Even last year Gracie did not fish or we dont think she did we cant say for sure. The male osprey has a beak better for tearing tough parts on the head of fish they believe this is why most males eat the heads off for the females before delivering the fish to the nest. The female ospreys beak is a little different than the males.
But there are exceptions and our family is rare studied by the specialist since Gracie will take the whole fish even if Geo tries to eat head off she will do it herself this is not the case with most nest at all which makes Osprey Zone Ospreys Special.
In the past comments their have been many articles about this and even last year. I dont have time to look up all the info for you but Please take some time now would be good since lens is not clear and read some of the links and info that has been posted. I know I have posted in past along with Betsy and many many others about this.
HERE IS BRIEF INFO POSTED RECENTLY LOOK FOR *** IN REF TO YOUR ?

Osprey Pandion haliaetus

What do they look like?
Ospreys are large birds of prey (55 to 58 cm long), with a wingspan from 145 to 170 cm. Their long wings have are bent at the carpal (“wrist”) joints. They are bright white underneath, with dark brown patches at the carpal joints and a speckled dark brown necklace. They have a dark stripe through each eye, and a dark brown back. Ospreys have light blue-gray feet, yellow eyes and a black beak. Juvenile ospreys look a lot like adults, but their dark feathers have light colored tips that make them look speckled on their backs and wings. They also have orange eyes. Ospreys begin to look like adults when they are about 18 months old. (Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994; Snyder and Snyder, 1991)

Female ospreys are usually bigger than males. They have a bigger wingspan (5 to 10% longer than males) and are heavier. In North America, male ospreys weigh 1200 to 1600 g and females weigh 1600 to 2000 g. Female also usually have darker feathers than males. (Poole, 1994)

Ospreys in different regions of the world look a little different from one another. For example, ospreys that live in tropical regions are smaller than ospreys that breed farther north or south from the equator. There are four subspecies of ospreys. Each of these lives in a different region of the world and looks a little different. (Poole, 1994)

Ospreys have several adaptations for hunting fish. They have long legs for reaching into the water and dense, oily plumage that keeps them from getting waterlogged. They also have special valves that keep water out of their nostrils when they dive for fish. Osprey feet are specially adapted for holding on to slippery fish. They have spiny footpads called spicules, long, sharp claws, and a toe that can be turned backward to keep fish from escaping.. (Poole, 1994; Snyder and Snyder, 1991)

Other Physical Features endothermic homoiothermic bilateral symmetry
Sexual Dimorphism female larger sexes colored or patterned differently
Range mass
1200 to 2000 g
42.29 to 70.48 oz
Range length
55 to 58 cm
21.65 to 22.83 in
Range wingspan
145 to 170 cm
57.09 to 66.93 in
Where do they live?
Ospreys have a worldwide distribution. They live on every continent except Antarctica. Ospreys do not breed in South America or Indo-Malasia, but they sometimes live there in the winter. Large populations of ospreys are found in Scandinavia and the Chesapeake Bay region of the United States. There are four subspecies of ospreys, which are found in different regions of the world. (Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994; Poole, et al., 2002; Steidl, 1991)

Biogeographic Regions nearctic native palearctic native oriental native ethiopian native neotropical native australian native oceanic islands native
Other Geographic Terms holarctic cosmopolitan
What kind of habitat do they need?
Ospreys have a wide distribution because they are able to live almost anywhere that has safe nest sites and shallow water with lots of fish. Nests are usually found within 3 to 5 km of a water body such as a salt marsh, mangrove (Rhizophora) swamp, cypress (Taxodium) swamp, lake, bog, reservoir or river. (Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994)

Ospreys need structures that can support their big nests, and that are safe from climbing predators, like raccoons. In order to be safe from predators, ospreys usually build their nests in places that are difficult for predators to reach, like on the side of a cliff, or over water or on a small island. Over-water nests are built on structures like buoys, channel markers, dead trees and special platforms that people build for ospreys. Ospreys also nest on other man-made structures that are very high, like power poles, radio and TV towers, buildings and even billboards. (Ewins, 1996; Henny and Kaiser, 1996; Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994; Poole, et al., 2002)

These animals are found in the following types of habitat temperate tropical terrestrial saltwater or marine freshwater
Terrestrial Biomes forest rainforest mountains
Aquatic Biomes lakes and ponds rivers and streams coastal brackish water
Wetlands marsh swamp
Other Habitat Features suburban riparian estuarine
How do they reproduce?
Some ospreys live in the same place all year. These ospreys are called “residents” or “sedentary.” Resident ospreys usually start breeding between December and March. Other ospreys migrate between their breeding grounds and wintering grounds. These ospreys breed in areas where it is too cold to spend the winter. Migratory ospreys breed later during the year than residents. They start breeding in April or May. (Poole, 1989)

In migratory osprey populations, the male usually arrives at the nest site a few days before the female. When the male has chosen a nest site, he often performs a flashy aerial flight display near the nest site. Males probably perform this display to attract females and to scare off other males. The male and female build the nest together, using sticks for the outside and softer materials like seaweed, kelp, grasses or cardboard for the lining. They often also include trash that they find laying around, including fishing line, plastic bags and soda cans and bottles. Osprey pairs use the same nest year after year, so returning pairs do not need to build a nest. However, each spring they must spend some time repairing their nest and adding materials before they can lay eggs. (Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994)

KATHLEEN READ HERE FOR YOUR ?
*****Once a pair has built their nest, the male begins to deliver fish to the female. The male brings food to the female so that she will mate with him. The male continues to hunt all of the fish for the female and the chicks until the chicks have fledged. Once the chicks start flying, the female begins hunting too. (Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994)

Ospreys are normally monogamous. One male mates with one female, and mating pairs stay together until one of them dies. However, males occasionally have more than one mate. This is called polygyny. When this happens, it is usually in areas where nests are very close together, so that the male can defend and bring food to both nests. (Poole, 1994)

Mating System monogamous polygynous
Ospreys are able to breed when they are three years old. However, in areas where there are not enough nest sites, ospreys may not breed until they are five years old. Once they have begun breeding, ospreys breed once per year. (Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994)

Non-migratory ospreys breed in the winter and spring and lay their eggs between December and March. Migratory ospreys breed in the spring and summer and lay their eggs in April and May. The female lays one egg every day or every other day until she has laid two to four eggs. The male and female both incubate the eggs, which hatch after about 40 days. Because the eggs are laid one or two days apart, they also hatch one or two days apart. Chicks that hatch first are bigger than the other chicks and are usually dominant over the smaller chicks. If the parents cannot provide enough food for all of the chicks in the nest, the smallest chicks do not get enough food and sometimes die. This is called brood reduction. (Ehrlich, et al., 1988; Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994; Snyder and Snyder, 1991)

When osprey chicks hatch, they are covered in white down with brown streaks on the face, back, and wings. When the chicks are 10 days old, the white down is replaced by charcoal-colored down. Chicks begin to grow feathers when they are two weeks old. Osprey chicks begin to fly when they are 48 to 76 days old. Once they can fly, osprey chicks begin to hunt for themselves, though they usually also take food from their parents until they can catch enough fish to feed themselves. (Poole, 1989; Poole, 1994)

I submitted something else, but I guess we can’t peek at other submissions…boo-hoo