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The Story of DDT
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Bald Eagles Visit Nest
Ospreyzone Highlights: May 21-29, 2020
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OspreyZone Yankee
March 18, 2016 Timelapse
The Summer of 2015 by GinaM
Osprey Rescue Extended - July 30, 2015
Osprey Zone Highlights - June 28, 2015
Osprey Zone Highlights - June 19, 2015
osprey 07/11/15 squirt
First Sighting
George and Gracie's First Baby
Eggs Over Easy
Changing of the Guard
Breakfast is Served
Upgrading
Feeding Time
First Love
Let's Hang Out
Hard to Get
Little Brother
Intruder
Dinner is Served
OspreyZone Montage
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
And, I see the video stream is back up. Thank you!
I was scouting around a couple of other osprey cams while the OZ video stream is down. First I tried the Boulder, Colorado, cam, but it is down due to technical difficulties. So, I tried the Hog Island osprey cam. They are on pip watch there. They had a posting about what happens during hatching and a linked video on chick embryo development (https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=6&v=PedajVADLGw), which is just fascinating to watch. Viewers here at the OZ site have always tried to find and post relevant information throughout the breeding season to correspond to the stage(s) that George and Gracie (and now George’s new mate) and then the chicks were at, from courtship and mating, and, this year, when a mate doesn’t return, to egg formation, hatching, and weekly timeline from hatchling to nestling to fledgling development (whew, that was close! The wonderful link that I had posted in 2016 “From eggs to Flight” from the cumauriceriver.org site was no longer active, but they still have the slideshow, now at this link: https://www.cumauriceriver.org/conservation-wildlife/avian/osprey/osprey-eggs-to-flight-slideshow/). We are not at the pipping stage yet, and time will only tell if the eggs will hatch, but I found the information so interesting:
“So, what happens inside the egg during hatch?
Courtesy of Cornell/U of Montana/Montana Osprey Project:
During “pipping” the parent sits assiduously but lightly on the eggs at this time and is very attentive. This reduces the chances of the egg membranes drying up and yet guards against crushing the eggs. If the hatching egg is turned hole downwards, the chick will start cheeping in distress. This call stimulates the parent to poke the eggs around until the egg rolls back upright, otherwise the chick risks suffocation. About 72 hours before hatching, the egg starts an ordered sequence of events which are critical. The chick must progress from allantoic respiration to lung breathing, retract its yolk sac and hatch. [The allantois is part of the membrane surrounding the embryo–it is the mechanism of the exchange of oxygen in and carbon dioxide out until the chick’s lungs begin to function just before hatch, and it collects metabolic wastes that are discarded after hatch.] At the time when the air cell is beginning the ‘draw down’ or enlarge, the hatching muscle at the nape of the chick’s neck becomes swollen with lymph and twitches spasmodically. The twitching movement extends throughout the whole body of the chick causing it to straighten briefly. These unbending movements press the chick tight against the eggshell and force the beak upwards. On the upper ridge of the beak is the small egg tooth made of a small bit of keratin which eventually penetrates the inner shell membrane into the air cell. Once the beak is into the air cell, the chick is able to start breathing air although it is still dependent on allantoic gas exchange. With its lungs in operation it is able to cheep and this is a sure sign that breathing has started. With continuous rebreathing, the air in the air cell becomes high in carbon dioxide & stimulates the hatching muscle to further activity. With more faint tapping & pressure from the chick, the shell wall gives way and a slight lifting of a fragment of shell becomes visible. This is called ‘starring.’ This allows a small amount of fresh air into the air space and the chick usually becomes quiet for some hours. Note: It is usually quite difficult to see this starring on many nest cams unless there is high-quality zooming on the egg and egg is positioned just right. Usually the first thing we see is an actual hole in the shell. Working sporadically, the chick begins to break up an area around the pip and also splits the air cell membrane much further so it is much looser inside the shell. Gradually the chick enlarges an opening and the beak and egg tooth come into view. The chick may rest at this point for a further twenty-four hours. During this time the lungs & airsac system are becoming fully functional and gradually take over total responsibility for gas exchange. The blood circulation in the allantois slowly shuts down. Once the allantois has shut down, the chick starts to rotate inside the shell. Within about fifteen minutes the chick circles about half to two-thirds around the egg, industriously cutting out the shell as it goes. Soon it is able to push up the cap with its shoulders& kick itself free of shell, leaving the membranes & excreted uric acid waste behind The yolk sac is completely reabsorbed at hatching. It has enough nutritive material to adequately maintain the chick for up to 2 days. The allantoic blood vessels quickly fall away from the navel. (from https://explore.org/livecams/birds/osprey-nest)
This is great info Betsy…thanks for sharing. I use this video a lot – it’s one of the best out there.
For those on Facebook I have a lot of information in the files section.
Admin Shelli: I’ll have to check it out!!
BETSY…..that was really interesting!! Thanks 🙏🏽!
And btw. “Mama Mia”/Abba has been added to the daily rotation of our muzak. Did you do that????
And thanks for the tip on checking that box but I do that. Thought it might be the reason but no.
That is really interesting – thanks, Betsy!
ChrisH: You’re welcome
Foggy Nest From Yesterday-5/30/2018
I Have watched daily for 2 years. I love the birds and watching their lives. Will stay posted.Thanks to all for continuing. SCHOTZY
2nd shot to compression series……..midday.
Third shot at end of video……………….
ADMIN SHELLI: I’m still having problems with the first comments not showing up as pending. Posted 2 comments today before either showed up until I posted the 3rd. Makes it difficult to post a series.
Hmmmm….I don’t know what could be causing this. I have reported this to Aiden. Perhaps it’s with WordPress, which is the chat host. Sorry we’ve been having such difficulties 😑 ugh
Shelli and Carol, I have had the same problem. The posts used to show up as waiting for moderator. Now they don’t. They do show up when Shelli reads them. So I guess they do get through. Not just the way they did before. THanks Shelli for keeping up with the posts every day. That can be a hard task and there have been a lot of other issues with the live camera. I appreciate all you do!!!!!!!!!
Thanks nfc…and we are looking into the comment posting issue.
CarolV: Are you checking the little box at the bottom of the “Leave a Comment” field that says “Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.”? I find that if I forget to check the box my comments don’t show as pending, but when I’ve checked the box, I’ve never had my pending comments not show up (knock on wood!! 😀 )
Interesting compression on the stalled video! Usually you get the last 4 hours before the shut down…..
Starts about 9:30 a.m.
When I first started watching OZ late in the season of 2015 and people talked about taking pictures I thought, Really?? Are these people nuts??!! Now I have like a gazillion of my own!! 😀 😀
Picture of George
Called obsessed, Betsy! Got a bit myself! Could be worse addictions !!! At least it is legal!!
See if you can guess who’s still on the nest at this hour!!
Oops! I had hit “LIVE” on the video stream not noticing the time on the time stamp when I got my screen grab and posted the picture … video stream is down again!! So, I guess I should revise my comment to “See if you can guess who was still on the nest at 21:14:09 hrs!!”
Admin Shelli: Video stream is down at present.
Thanks Bestsy, I will notify Aidan.
Admin Shelli: Thank you.
George brought Missy a nice, big partial fish. Off she flew carrying the fish with her beak. Looked precarious to me, but I guess she didn’t drop since she wasn’t back right away!
The name Hope was mentioned, I think it is a beautiful name!
Poor Missy! First, she had a feather stuck on the end of her beak that she kept trying to shake off. Then … while she was playing with a piece of wood, the end of her beak got wedged in it and she couldn’t figure out at first how to get it off!!
So funny. Poor thing!
I’ll say it again,Lucille ball! “Lucy,I’m home “!
It was a feather on beak day! I got a shot of George with the same problem!! What are they putting on those feathers?
CarolV: Crazy glue for a crazy nest!! 😀
Maybe they’re putting on fascinators for the royal wedding! Too late!
Isabella: That’s funny!!
What a view!
Leanne: Nice!!
As the sun sinks softly ……….. George has been there for awhile……….
CarolV: Serene!
Looking very distinguished in a beard………..
REDKAYAK…Thanks for the comp on the moonrise shots…I had logged in late in the sequence and it looked like someone was spot-lighting the nest, like from a helicopter! So I scrolled back and enjoyed the show. Was too tired to stay up for the rest…….
BETSY…….. The music was perfect! Except after I listened to it, my pointer turned into the blue death spiral and wouldn’t clear! Had to sign out of OZ to make it go away! Coincidence???? {;*))
CarolV: Oh, no! Really?? That’s funny!!
How about naming our new girl hope because that’s what she gave to us all. After a disappointing start to the season
I am watching the cam and George flew in to take over brooding duty. “My Girl” came on the radio. Our beautiful girl was and is George’s sunshine on a cloudy day. … he is back at his nest and he found a beautiful girl so his family lives on.
I love Our Girl.
Now all he needs to find is a windshield wiper blade for this season’s nest and it will be perfect.
Very funny!! But do you think he needs to continue the tradition or begin a new one? Wonder if this female will have a fondness for plastic? But not meaning to compare………
Windshield wiper is true…also a big black bag and a pair of goggles……..
GinaM: She is a beautiful osprey. I pray that Gracie is safe somewhere … but, that would sure put us in a quandary if she made her way back home.
Just not the same without our Gracie.. I think we all bonded with her over events in her life, good and bad. Days I couldn’t watch, days I could, then couldn’t again because it was too sad or scary. Wishing our new girl a successful clutch. 🙂
It’s been a pretty quiet day so far (through 1:15 pm), no drama. Fancy feathers has been on the nest for almost 3 hrs straight now.
I think this is a soap opera of sorts and should be named “As The Nest Turns” or something like that-a suggestion for a soap opera name for this nest. It gets more interesting as time goes on.
Ok Elaine, you got me thinking and having some fun! “The bold and the feathered “, “the feathered nest “, “osprey lane” stayed tuned for highlights of tomorrow’s episode!
It is getting better n better…
Isabella: Very clever!
Elaine, That is so funny that you said this nest is a soap opera. I was explaining this nest and the Decorah eagle nest and what happened with the male there disappearing and a new male showing up. She said to me—” Boy these nests sound like soap operas”. So your comment hit the mark on what my friend said.
I love it…
General Ospreyhood..
or……All My Osplets
Good one carolv!
Never mind- NOW it shows up. (FACEPALM!)
ADMIN- Is there a reason why my comments no longer are being posted on here? To my knowledge, I have not said nor done anything that would have gotten me banned from here?
Sue, not at all….I don’t know what u mean? I’m not here 24/7 and sometimes I’m away for an hour or more but I do try to post as quickly as I can.
Have we decided on a name for the new lady yet?
Not yet…we’ve asked the cam owners if they’d like the honor of naming her if not we will have a naming contest soon.
When the video stream came back up this morning, a little before 9:30 am, Miss Fancy Feathers was egg-sitting. George brought her a partial fish at around 9:35 am and she flew off with it, leaving George to egg sit. Twenty minutes later George took off and Miss Fancy Feathers jumped down from the perch to egg sit. Look how foggy it got between the time George flew off and 40 minutes later while Missy was on the nest!!
Thought this information might be interesting to us when we think about why Gracie is not around. On one hand I am holding out hope to see her lovely self again. On the other, my heart goes out to this new female who thinks she has found the perfect mate and might learn she is only the mistress!
I found this on http://www.jamaicabayosprey.org/faq-about-ospreys:
What happens when one mate migrates back to the nest before the other?
The longer the time interval between mates arrival at the breeding site, the more likely it is that the first to arrive will attract or be attracted to a new mate. Yes, Ospreys do mate for life as far as we know, but that bond needs to be reinforced each spring by the arrival of the second mate. If too much time elapses, a bird will accept another mate since the instinct to breed is far greater – and more important – than the instinct to wait for a mate that may have perished over the winter.
What happens if an Osprey returns to find his or her partner with a new mate?
In most cases, the late returning bird will drive off the new bird as the bond between the old mates will be stronger than the newly formed bond between the old and new mates, especially if the new mate is a young bird. We often see three Ospreys on a nest and conflicts between two of them early in the nesting season. These conflicts are usually short in duration and no one gets hurt in the process. However, once I found an adult Osprey dead in the nest while two adults went about their business of egg laying and rearing young. I do not know if the dead bird was a former mate or an intruder.
Alissa: Thank you for sharing — that’s good information to know! It’s such a tough life for these special birds. Like you, and many others, I would love to see beautiful Gracie again, and I can only pray that she is just injured, and as SmokyMtnCreatureFan previously posted, “… if she is wounded, may she be found by someone and rescued … If she is off healing somewhere, then may she return here, surprising everyone.” But, I am adjusting to the new female and learning to appreciate the unique traits and quirks she brings to the nest. Really, what other choice do we have but to accept, as painful as it is, the circle of life.
Stephanie’s picture of Gracie at sunrise (06-16-2016) (Framed)
love the photo of Gracie… Betsy thanks for posting it.
margaretr: Thank you.
I see the video stream is back up. Thank you!
Looks mystical! (Pic is of fancy feathers egg sitting.)
Yesterday I had a chance to email Rjoneal to see how she was doing. Gracie was very special to her and although she knows things can happen in nature, her heart is still heavy about Gracie not returning to the nest and she’s unable to watch the nest this year. She said to wish everyone well and that she hopes the eggs hatch and the chicks do well.
Betsy, Thanks for this info about Rjoneal. I was wondering where she was and if she was devastated by the what is going on. I had a feeling that she might have been upset. She has been one of the main people at this site who kept it moving smoothly. I will miss her, but I understand why she isn’t here. Send regards to her.
nfc: Thank you. I will let her know.
nfc: Rjoneal says thank you for being so being so kind and remembering her.
OK 👌 Gracie! We miss you! We’ve said how much we miss you! Could you please stop messing with the video????
Apparently the camera the video stream went down during the wee morning hours. This is what it shows this am:
At 23:01:20 hrs, George got up and then flew away. Miss fancy feathers took off from the perch to fly around to the front of the nest and then sat on the eggs, where she presently remains. I guess George better get used to sleeping in the nest late into the night!! Literature does state that the female normally does the incubating at night, and males do so occasionally.
Betsy,love you calling her miss fancy feathers! Lol ,should add it to the name list!
Isabella: 😀 😀
And call her Effy?
Saw post about rjoneal and glad you said her hellos. I had chatted with her and my excellent memory didn’t pass on her message! Miss her….
CarolV: Effy — that would work!! — and tie in with the name I thought would be good when the subject of names for Her came up: Effie – Anglicized form of Oighrig, which means “new speckled one” in Scottish Gaelic 😀 😀
Well, this is interesting. Last evening George was still on the nest at 21:08:24 hrs when the video stream went down. Little missy jumped up to the perch tonight at 20:18:17 hrs and George jumped down from the perch at 20:18:47 to egg sit. It’s now 22:30:00 hrs and the poor guy is still doing egg duty!!
Last pic is just because that face is SO, SO cute!!
Who’s on the eggs? Hard to see with a grainy pic and facing away from the camera. If it’s George, I’ve never seen a male do night shift!
Isabella: Bottom picture is George. He egg sat until 23:01 hrs!!
BTW, you can click on the pictures and they open to a larger picture on this website page. And, if you right click on a picture, a menu window opens, where you have the option to open an image in a new tab and in that new tab you can usually enlarge the picture even further! 🙂
Actually, if you’re going to open a picture in a new tab, you’re better off using the “Open LINK in new tab” option in the menu as opposed to “Open IMAGE in new tab” option. After experimenting just now on a few pictures (normally, I just click on the picture to open it on this page to view it), I discovered that a picture opened via “Open image in new tab” does not open always open as a large picture, but when I used the “Open link in new tab,” the same picture was much bigger. I guess it depends on the size the picture was originally when it was uploaded to OZ 😀
Oops! Sorry Betsy, I was referring to what I was seeing on the live cam.not your wonderful pics! This should have posted under your post about the stream being down in the wee hours
Isabella: Got it! I agree it’s hard to tell who’s who at night!!
Are the aliens landing???
closer……………
.and…………..
……….closer………….
Quite an effect…………moonrise thru the fog off the water…………
and……
wow. great moon shots. thanks
But she forgot the music!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_G6YAzsMog
With this nest anything could be possible!!!!!
@29:18……..after a relatively short time in the nest, Her was cheeping quietly and then jumped to the perch……..George was right in and took over.
Sorry —20:18
After being out for about an hour, Her drops back in…………..
George – over and out……………….
Back in place and checking out the foggy view……….
Temp around 68 now as the sun sets. Cooling about 10 degs. by dawn. For the next week or so, temps hovering mid 60s with 50s overnight. Looks on the cloudy side most days…….
Has anyone seen this poor girl eat? I haven’t seen George bring her a fish!
Saw post on facebook that George brought her a fish about 3:30pm…………
Laura P: Yes, George brought her a partial fish at 15:35 hrs. It was the only fish I saw all day.
Delivery
Name should be Betsy Johnson as she makes great necklaces as “Her’ has.
LOL, For the first few days, I thought her name should be Princess based upon her behavior, but she’s since changed my mind. Our smaller cat (and BIGGER, polar opp.) came from a place that named the little one Betsy Johnson during their designer phase. She’s SUCH a sweet yet scaredy cat and even predicts storms I haven’t seen coming (I watch out for them for garden, etc…). Now “Smooch” (for her kiss mark on white upper breast) will run under hub’s chair and whine alerting us all of a pending storm…otherwise runs away from him and all things moving (or not)…Sure we all have people in the past that may have ruined choice of baby names and what have you, I personally can’t imagine calling her BJ (shorthand folks) since I’d associate it with timid and “Her” is absolutely not. Looking at this pretty, young O who has surprised the heck out of us – late cam, late eggs, late but fast learner, and FEISTY as can be…my vote is for…something great I’ll never think of fast enough. Like some others that have posted, I too thought it might be prior offspring of G&G. Brutus, if she is Brutus, now THAT’S tough…
KathleenB: If people thought she behaved like a princess before, wait until they read this!! She jumped up to the perch at 20:18:17 and George took over egg duty 30 seconds later. He’s STILL on the nest at this late hour of 22:43 hrs!! Looks like he’s going to pull an all-nighter!! Either she has no sense of time or is really into women’s lib!! 😀 😀 Poor George!
Just call George Mr. Mom – seemed he too was learning the ropes as a younger O when we had that unfortunate fish die-off out east..and lost Pee Wee. Now G is the teacher, or so it may seem…is it her instincts kicking in or his teaching or a bit of both…? Haven’t seen her leave or dance on or close to eggs recently. For a while I thought the best we could hope for was scrambled, hard boiled or stolen. In all seriousness, the last egg seems to have gotten the best care whereas the other two were left out for some time in cool weather…does anyone have anything to offer about what their chances are? Given the past, I find it ironic that egg 3 may stand the best chance. Of course my hope is that all survive and thrive.
Wow! Three eggs! Had a feeling when I was watching her this morning, she seemed different.what a turnaround for this nest! Can’t wait to name her. So many great ones. .It will be hard to choose!
The lonesome one on the nest appears anxiously waiting – calling for food. And to get some fluids whether from food, or relief so can go fly.
‘LUV everyone’s pix! Shout out to Betsy – How do you post multiple pictures here in ONE post? I see you do that and have no idea HOW. Please, do tell? =D
~We have a “changing of the guard” – the new Missus gets a nestbreak and George gets his coveted eggiesitting time. The Missus is up there, just chatting away to George. =)
Then, intruders flying TOO close to their airspace around the nest… the female returns to nest and George takes off to tend to the matter…
=)♥
=)♥
SmokyMtnCreatureFan: First, save the pictures you want to post together in the same folder — for example I have OZ pics separated by year in different subfolders (i.e. a 2016 OZ pics folder and a 2017 OZ pics folder) in the main picture folder, so, if I wanted to post a pic from, say, 2016 and another from 2017, I copy them to a new folder because the setup doesn’t allow you to pick a pic (hee hee) from one folder and a pic from another. Then, just like you do when you’re posting a single pic, click on the “Choose Files” tab; when the window opens, click on the folder where you saved/copied the pics that you want to post. Click on one of the pics, then, holding the “ctrl” tab on the keyboard, click on another. The multiple picture setup allows you to post up to 5 pics together — but be aware, the system doesn’t post them in the order you pick them, it posts them by file name, sequentially in numerical or alphabetical order. What I mean is, say you titled one picture “There ya go humans, peek …” which you wanted to be the 1st picture in the line-up and the next picture you wanted to follow you titled “Boo-boo?” (could be!), unless you put #1 and #2 respectively before the title, “Boo-boo?” will be at the top and then “There ya go …” would be the next pic. I usually just title the pics I want to post in a “to post” folder as 1, 2, 3, 4, etc. or by date and time (and then who’s who or what’s what) and then describe what’s going on in my post!!
Thanks Betsy for infor…on making photo files…will try it someday…
June c: You’re welcome!
Betsy! Give yourself a great big hug from me please, will you? Thank you so very much for taking the time to explain all of that! I cracked up over your “pick a pic” where you chuckled – you’re fun Betsy! Your explanation was clear, thorough and super easy to follow! After reading that, I’ve got it down in me pea brain and now feel I could do that multiple pic in one post procedure with no problem. And, as we can see, it helps others learn this as well! Thanks again and Happy Wednesday! =)
I cannot remember if I had shared the following pic with you all or not…. It’s one of my fave pics of some newbies at another nest. I cracked myself up when the caption idea popped into my head, hope it cracks ya’ll up too! And if I did share it already in the recent past, forgive me my brain cramp! =D So consider this pic as – hopefully! – previews of coming attractions! hehe
SmokyMtnCreatureFan: You’re welcome!! I’m glad I could help!
And, yes, you did already post this picture a few days ago, but the little chick is just so adorable with its little wings opened out (perfect caption) that I don’t think anyone will mind seeing it again and people who may have missed it the first time around will now get to enjoy it!!
LOL – perfect caption!!
=)♥
Wow, she ‘slightly’ stepped on the dark right egg, hope it is ok. I am amazed at the size of some of those ‘logs’ they put there this year!
I think George has visions of a cabin atmosphere…………..
Well our new girl is getting the hang of it, 3 eggs now. Hope they are all viable. I am concerned about the first egg because it seemed to take her some time to figure out what to do. It looked as if it may have baked in the hot sun too long. High heat is bad! However, the other 2 have been cared for consistently so hoping for some little ones come the last week of June and first week of July! Oh, and how about George and Martha?!
Hi Shelli, is there still time to submit names? I didn’t have a chance to check on the site over the weekend until now. If so, I would like to suggest Juliet (variation of Jewel, which I had been thinking of too, but see has already been suggested).
I agree that Tommy should have the honor of naming our new girl. I don’t know if the plan was to have him pick from our suggestions or come up with one of his own.
Well, if Tommy wants to name it he can, but many of the group want to be a part of the naming process and I don’t think he’d mind. He will probably be happy to suggest a couple names and we can all vote on the one we like best.
We have not started the name contest yet…I’m still working out the details and talking with the cam owners. So hang on to your name and I’ll let u know when we start. 💕
SHELLI …………. Consider this …………..Invite Tommy and his wife (Christine – I think) to name this new female. THEY ARE THE GOD-PARENTS – they should be honored . It would please many off us if everyone agreed to let him do the naming , just this time. We still have all the fun naming the babies.And …… it would also eliminate disappointment for those whose’s names are not considered. Peaceful solution with great anticipation of Tommy’s choice. I rest my case.
June C. and I met briefly today. Yeah, ITS ALL IN THE FAMILY.
Hi Rodee! I have sent a message asking Tommy and Christine if they’d like the honor of naming our new gal or if they’d prefer the group to do it. I will let u all know as soon I hear back.
SHELLI …. I meant to write INVITE Tommy with capital letters, because he is a humble, laid-back and kind person. I don’t think he would ever on his own take matters in his own hands.
It does not hurt to ask, make him feel HONORED and there is no better word. Me…… just thinking aloud. Rodee
Yea! Momma Mia’s sitting on the eggs! She is very alert and on guard! Don’t think we have to worry anymore. I think she will be a good mom. God help anyone who messes with this nest!
She is one feisty broad !!
Well, sometime between when the camera went down last evening at 21:08:24 hrs and when it came back online this morning at 09:38:55 hrs, missy laid a 3rd egg!!
Yay!! We are back live – thanks Aidan 💕
Good morning everybody! I have let the cam owners know about the live stream. Thanks for your patience.
Hiya Shelli – ‘LOVE everything about your new avatar pic! Bravo! =)
Thank u! It represents me well 💕
~GM and Happy Tuesday to everyone. This is egg possibility day, lol. IF another egg is coming, today is the day… ‘Can’t access live feed presently – I keep trying both here and in YouTube to no avail. Anyone else? Let’s hope it is up and running right, soon! Hope you are all enjoying a lovely day or night!
There are 3 eggs
Wheeeeeeeeeeeee people!! THREE EGGS! Good job Karen – yours is, I believe, first pic of THREE eggs! Beautiful picture! Congrats to George and his mate, to everyone at OZ and to all who love these birds!
Lol I haven’t been on for a few days and when I came on this morning, she was laying down, a few minutes later she stood up and WHALLA there it was!
Lol, lovely! And right on schedule. =D
She stood up and WHALLA there were 3!
Congratulations to our osprey family! I am still going with the name “Luna” for the new lady. She is quite a gal. She may be a good mother after all.
WOW!!!!
George had barely settled in for egg sitting while Dottie was on a break when he started alarming, getting up so he could better warn off the intruder. Dottie came racing back to the nest to join him in defending it. As George flew off the nest to the right, Dottie flew off from the front, doing aerial stunts in front of the nest. Then they each tore off after the intruder. Within a minute it was over and Dottie came back to the nest, staying only a short while before taking off. George then came back to resume egg duty, settling on the eggs and patiently waiting for Dottie to come back.
pics cont’d
pics cont’d.
Great pics Betsy! More and more she makes me think of Lucille ball,or carol Burnett! P.s. looking forward to your videos!
Isabella: Thank you. Yes, sometimes a lot of comedy with the osprey!! I’m not sure about how much video I’ll get for this year, my laptop is almost jammed full from the past 2 years, so I’m probably going to stick to mostly pictures!
And, George was still egg sitting at 21:08:23, in the dark, but the cam went down …
Missing all the excitement! And another egg 🥚! Darn job!
Dont u just hate it when life gets in the way of us watching the O’s??
Portrait
FOR BETSY……. Who was it in previous years that made sound recordings of several birds.??????? If we had one of Brutus, and do one of the new bird, that would show the truth, no?
One thing I noticed about Brutus was his flat head …. this new one has a flat head. That would be eerie.
rodee hansen: June c made the recording in 2016. I posted it on my YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnyjKPaOHDY
Betsy….This is watch i was watching when i made my comment…..Beautiful
June c: Thank you!
Betsy, Thanks for the good portrait. I will print it and put it in my book of ospreys and eagles that I have collected for three years.
nfc: Thank you. I’m glad you liked it! How thick is your book?? LOL
Betsy— it is a two inch binder and filled with pictures from here, SWFEC, and some I get from Newsday.
nfc: That’s a lot of pages!!
This evening, when I was watching Dottie in the 17:00 time frame, I had the eeriest sensation that I’d seen this bird before!! The shape of the head, how the eyes were set, how her head moved when she looked around and the tilt of her head when she was watching something — Brutus jumped into my mind!!
Betsy – I had the same feeling – am going to check pictures. Helen
helen: Hi, Helen!! That would be great!! I never finished re-doing my pictures from 2016 after my laptop crashed!! BTW, still sorting out the uncle mess!!
Betsy. I believe that is my missing shot that I reposted. Your comment wasn’t showing at the time or I would assume I put it there! Too funny 😁. At least it showed up!
Very close in any case Time slightly different
THANK YOU BETSY!!!! I have been thinking the exact same thing!
The timing would be right and they return to their birth nest location. She also has Gracie’s “voice”
GinaM: Hi, GinaM!! I don’t know what to think!! I know the chicks change as they mature into adulthood (the markings), but I don’t know how much they change!! It’s more that the mannerisms sometimes just remind me so much of Brutus!!
ADMIN SHELLI: Today, posting has been strange. Posts usually show with the “Pending” statement and can be seen. Several times, comments just disappear, usually the first in a series. I had to make comments on other peoples’ posts and then maybe the disappearing post would show up as pending. There is also a comment I made that I have tried to add a picture twice and even a comment about that-all are missing. I even considered that we might be changing pages,
And on the “save my name” comment- I have checked it repeatedly and it keeps getting erased. I don’t know if it’s my computer or if others are experiencing this…… Thanks for your help.
And of course as I sent this to you, the missing picture and comment are now showing as pending………….tis a mystery………..
Hmmmmm….I don’t know why that’s happening Carol. Sorry. In case it’s on your end have u tried to clean up your pc, cookies etc…?
Probably ate the cookies
Hahahahaaaa!
Tee hee!
Same for me. I post,don’t see it.then appears later. Also have to redo,save my name
As i was watching this evening…she was facing right into cam…..She is really a beautiful Mom….Hope name will be selected soon, she deserve it….
June c: Adding pics to match your comment!!
Thank you Betsy…..
George bringing in some nice seaweed and to spell Her for a bit
Checking her surroundings and cooling off a little………….
Turned in to a bright, sunshiny day……..
oopsie again
I’ve tried posting pic for this 2x…………………… m.i.a………..maybe it’ll pop in………
Betsy- just listened to that ABBA song and it rings a distant bell……some of their other titles were more familiar. And now I am officially mama mia’d out!
Left answer under your lyrics, too. TY!
CarolV: I’m ABBA’d out after continuing to play the ABBA videos that came after I posted the Mamma Mia link!! 😀 😀
HA!
Well, I guess we should be thinking about 2018 STATS
Egg #1 laid on 05/23/2018 @ 12:04:41 hrs
Egg #2 laid on 05/26/2018 @ 07:11:23 hrs
Gracie:
Not seen at nest since camera came back online on 05/22/2018; fate unknown
George:
First seen 👀 at nest: 05/22/2018 when camera came back online
Female (name to be determined):
First seen 👀 at nest: 05/22/2018 when camera came back online
…………………………………………………………… WHAT ???????? ……………………………………….
Interesting……….
I think of Her as SPECKLES…. or George & MARTHA…
Very cute name…Speckles
My little Memorial to Gracie………….
6-3-17…………..Showing off her “tattoo”
5-12-16………..FANDANCE
5-7-16……………….Gracie doing interpretation of Irkel…. “Did I do thaaattt?”
6-19-16—–the Loving Couple
From ” The Summer of ’15” video by GinaM
cried all the way thru it! %#*& YOU, GinaM, for doing such a good job! !!!!!
Just in case………..That remark to GinaM was a joke………………….. recommend this video and any of the videos listed above……………..
They promised sunshine after 2…….I see shadows!
It hasn’t quite reached my house on the South Fork..It was a gloomy, cool morning after a miserable day yesterday….. sun is welcome!
Good thing those eggs have strong shells!!!! At one point, she was so intent on watching something, she put pressure on it……………..
Maybe we should name her Lucille ball,or carol Burnett.both known for physical comedy! Lol
George brought in a stick @13:09, displacing Her……….
She had a few words for him…………
…..before elevating upstairs………
George rooted around the eggies, then demonstrated a thorough chest push to the egg cup.
Off he goes………..
Looks like an old Jackie Gleason move………………..”.And away we gooooooo!”
And I don’t want to hear from the youngsters who say “WHO?”
And Her drops back down. She is trying the beak-hook-snuggle-in maneuver but seems to run into the hardwood flooring each time! But she’s learning!
oopss…………..picture for above…too quick on the trigger………….
Funny!
This was supposed to be under carolv pic, she had a few words for him
Hope everyones weekend has been Great…
I think Cookie is a good name for…She is one tough cookie..especially the way she chases the intruders..and she does it her way…
Oh, wow!!! I haven’t logged on in ages!!! Last ‘season’ I started viewing and then didn’t.
So, what’s new?! George has a new ‘wife’? How is that possible?! Thought ospreys mated for life.
And, how many eggs were laid by the new lady?!
I’m hoping someone will catch me up so that I don’t have to read all these posts. Thank you!!
Hi Monica! Ospreys do keep the same mate for a very long time, usually until one dies or can no longer provide food or no longer lay eggs etc…
We have learned through the years and through Dr. B that an Osprey is more attached/bonded to a particular nest than to a mate – so if a new female shows up to that nest it is not uncommon for them to switch mates. However, as long as the same two return to the same nest each year and can still provide and is fertile they will remain a mated/bonded pair.
Howdy Everyone! Look at that mama bird being so dutiful with her eggsitting now! Good girl! =)♥
~Eggie1 arrived Wed 5-23-18 at approx 12:04p
~Eggie2 arrived Sat 5-26-18 at approx 7:11a
And that MAY be it… However, it would follow that, IF another egg is forthcoming, then odds are she will lay one more tomorrow. …We will see… =)
Shift change: Dottie landing on nest and George flying off
oK Betsy- don’t laugh toooo hard— had another picture stuck in my browser and couldn’t get it out. So hopefully replaced with picture that fits in your theme………
CarolV: I like this pic!
Love the picture.
I also think it’s a great idea to have Tommy name the new lady.
I think Tommy should name the new female. He named George and Gracie and it is his property that he graciously shares with us. It is the least we can do.
That is a valid point…………..
IN RESPONSE TO GinaM…………………. Yeah. that is actually a no-brainer. Let Tommy name the new female.
Your idea is perfect…. I hope people will see the special honor given to Tom and his wife in doing so. All who agree, raise your hands. Thanks Gina, for this fine idea.
That’s how I got tommy girl
Btw,thx to everyone for pics and captions! They fill in some things I miss, and most are funny!
Watched til 430am.Still sitting on the eggs! Came on about 930am.still on eggs. Was thinking no worries now,she’s got it. Then she stood up and it looked like she was stepping on an egg! Mama Mia,don’t step on the eggs!! P.s. Mama Mia is what I am calling her now,til she is named.
Poor missy took a header this morning
I was trying to find information on the internet about success rate of osprey eggs being laid so late in the season and, if they do hatch, the success rate of the chicks when I came across the article “Late arrivals as osprey pair become parents” from Monday 1st July 2013 (https://www.montwt.co.uk/news/2014/01/16/late-arrivals-osprey-pair-become-parents).
After reading the article, I see that there is potential for chicks to hatch. However, my concern is if chicks normally hatch at the end of May/beginning of June and fledge by the end of July/beginning of August, how would these late chicks fare being 3 or 4 weeks behind in learning all they need to and building up strength before they have to migrate?
It will close for sure…but George is an older experienced male so he will most likely stay longer to ensure his offspring is taken care of and ready to migrate. Many northern Osprey don’t leave until mid September.
Admin Shelli: George was last seen at the nest in 2016 on 9/21 and on 9/27 in 2017 (I didn’t really watch in 2015); but the chicks those years hatched in early June (the latest to hatch being Rocky in 2016 on June 8th). These chicks of 2018, if they hatch and if they hatch after the average of 38 days incubation, won’t be hatching until around June 30 (egg #1) or early July!! So, if George stays to give them about the same amount of Daddy care time, that would mean he wouldn’t leave until mid October!! Although, someone still seemed to be hanging around in the vicinity of the nest (may have been one of “ours,” may not have been) as of October 9th, 2017.
Betsy thanks for the dates – He may or may not stay into October, only time will tell.
If they hatch the first week in July that still gives them a good 90+ days. If they fledge between 50-60 days they’ll have a month or more for daddy time 💕
This nest will very interesting to watch this season….we are learning so much each year thru the wildlife cams!
It’s gonna be a talon biter, for sure!
Her was ready to go when George came in this morning……..she was out maybe 40 mins.
10:42 PM and she is dutifully in the nest, alert and awake. A night ago, before the arrival of egg #2, the nest was unattended for long periods of time. She is doing sooo good now. I am proud of her. 🙂
1. Off she goes.
2. Up, up from below to the nest!