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osprey 07/11/15 squirt
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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
Suggested names for the chicks:
Joe Pesci
Laurence Fishburne
I second these name suggestions. Perfect!
You need a third name for PeeWee.
7:40pmEDT George comes through! Dramatic landing right in front of camera. When the wings cleared it looked like a good sized fish, so kids should go to “bed” with full tummies!
The extra schmutz on the lens doesn’t help
I haven’t heard the sparrows lately. I guess their babies are out of the nest.
Regarding the sex of the chicks…the only true determination of an osprey’s sex is a blood test. There are some “usual” things that you can use to guess. The females are usually larger than the males. The necklace is maybe more predominate in the female but is not a true indicator. As you can see, Gracie does not have a necklace. 🙂
t looks like the babes have shot at the camera lens again. It seemed much clearer earlier.
What is George’s problem? Why does Gracie have to beg herself hoarse and weary every day. Surely with all that water there must be fish.
Well, I saw that one…..definitely need to re-position the camera next year!! LOL
Hey maybe it will rain and wash of the camera. (joking I know it really does not rain there.)
5:54 PM EST, 4:54 PM CST. One of the kids used his super-soaker to squirt the up-until-now clearing side of the camera. Little brat.
😉
George just made a fast pass through, but no food.
Small headless fish delivery at around !:35 CST
It’s great to be able to see all the sailboats in the background.
What a lovely little picture @ 1:45PM eastern Sat. July 25th. the two chicks lying close together, both look out over the water. Maybe they’re saying, “Do you want to try to fly today?”
“Should i go first?’ “No,you go first!” ETC.
I join a previous blogger and thank everyone involved with this nest and camera and web site.
It is a privilege to watch “our” birds grow up.
Where exactly is this nest? It appears to be on the GPO shoreline, looking towards S.I.?
It’s in East Marion on the North Fork of Long Island.
Approximately 11:40 CST. Did anyone else see that baby eat that tiny fish in one big bite? Swallowed it whole!
It looks like it’s a matter of time that the chicks are going to be flying
WOW! One of the babies just fed himself and swallowed a big piece of fish without being fed by Gracie. I want to thank Paul for the opportunity for us to view the George and Gracie family, and to watch the babies grow into healthy teens. It seems that every osprey family is different in the way the babies are cared for, and for the appearance of the nests. I cannot wait until next year when the osprey adults return to rebuild their nest and start a new family. Thank you again Paul.
9:35 George brought in half a fish early this morning. at 9:35 he brought in a very live (but extremely tiny) fish for Gracie and the kids. Let’s hope he continues to bring in fish today as he did yesterday.
Just can’t believe how big and beautiful the chicks look. Their wings are huge! George has such a sweet chirp. Gracie sounds like a real nag, ha-ha!! Can’t wait to see the babies fly. I’m really enjoying this website. Thanks so much, Paul. It’s so nice to be able to get a close up glimpse of nature.
I am asking someone who really knows:
HOW and WHEN will you know the sexes of these two chicks??????
Paul ….. you probably know.
Thanks for your answer. Others might also like to know. R.H.
Wish I knew
I thought I saw some brown specks on one of the chick’s chests… could that mean she is a female?
From watching the Hellgate nest, the female has what it appears is a necklace of dark feathers on her chest and the male thas a plain white chest of feathers with a few dark ones. Not sure if this holds true always, but, it seems, as if this is what happens. I am not sure of the “when” part of the question.
We won’t know. If they were being banded or handled for some other reason, they would be weighed and bone measurements takentaken, then an educated guess would be made. Only a DNA test can tell for sure. Other than that, you have to wait till the bird’s adult feathers are in at around 18 months. Even that would still be a guess I think. Basically, females are larger and usually have more color on their chests.
Every expert I’ve read says you can’t tell the sex easily as a youth. That seems to be confirmed in this scholarly article about ageing and sexing
http://www.researchgate.net/publication/256475693_Ageing_sexing_and_subspecific_identification_of_Osprey_and_two_WP_records_of_American_Osprey
We may never know. Even the birds that were banded in the CC nest were only thought to be male and female. And they were handled. That’s why they are usually given gender neutral names. I don’t think they get the adult plumage this year, which is how they can be designated as to sex.
Some serious wing flapping from the babies. It is as if they are just discovering them and thinking, “I wonder what these do?”
6:00 p.m. EDT – 7/25 – Right side of screen fouled by #2 with a squirt. No rain in sight, so we’ll have to look through the haze. There has been literally MINOWS delivered today and even
Gracie went hunting with no results. Everyone is hungry and sure hoping that George can pull up a big one to end the day. Lots of wingersizing going
on despite their hunger, and I’m pretty sure another week in the nest will be the blessed event.
Poor Gracie she’s so exhausted Gracie keeps falling asleep while she’s crying. George just came to the nest with some seaweed everyone’s disappointed they were hoping it was a fish 8:05 PM Friday George is looking really thin also I don’t think he’s getting enough to eat as well. The babies look healthier than anyone.
Paul haven’t heard from you lately
Can you believe how big the babies are getting ? Hope the landlords,the whole team, and you are all enjoying this as much as all of us and we can’t thank you enough for allowing us to view these precious moments and to be able to comment to each other about it . I am so happy that I found Osprey zone with you and the team and the landlords. After watching other ospreys including in my own backyard in Florida I really do enjoy our little family with George and Gracie and of course the babies . I’ve noticed even though they know a lot about ospreys every Osprey family seems to operate different .I know a lot of this is due to them gaining experience in time and what works for them in their environment. it’s so exciting to watch. Even though we all have thanked you again and again I just thought you were due for another thank you and keep up the good work.
5:45 Roughly around this time George brings in a large headless fish. Gracie was thrilled as were the kids. If George could do this everyday we would have a happy nest.
5:50 and another big headless fish delivery. They’ve had quite a bit today but Gracie still goes crazy upon arrival and immediately mantles the fish while screaming at George to leave.
I don’t understand why the amount of fish varies so much from day to day. I know nothing about the fishing in that area so I can’t guess what might affect it. Seems if George was just lazy he’d be lazy every day.
Well someone on here commented who lives in that area and said they saw George hovering over a field with other ospreys playing i guess, if he’s a young male, he should be much better next year at fishing.
Fishing can be effected by weather and tides. Since ospreys are shallow water fishers or surface fishers it may be tides changing water depth that change his luck. My son fishes and can go to the same spot and have varying luck each time. And he tries to time his fishing to the changing tides in what ever area he fishes. Still always a crap shoot as to what he catches.
I second your sentiment – none of us would have this wonderful opportunity to look in the nest of a wild bird family. I enjoy it so much!
I thank everyone involved in this effort, especially Paul, who is doing a great job moderating the website.
5:48pmedt This fish is so big that Gracie couldn’t get her claw around it. At least George got the head on this one, I was beginning to wonder if he was eating. Most of the fish today have been whole.
Ooops! George didn’t like where Jr. put that last stick! He plunked it right in the middle of the nest!
5;18 I see a shadow could it be George is sitting on his throne overlooking his kingdom. Has he ever done that before?
A lot. You can usually see the chicks or Gracie looking up there. She also may increase her chirping. And she may be up there when he’s not around.
4:13 George brings in another good sized fish. Maybe he’s realized that his family is growing and he needs to be bring in more. Let’s hope so.
So far they’ve been fed well.
4:13pmEDT George and a big fish arrive! No idea what this one is! LONG and dark
After Gracie opened the fish, one chick grabbed his own chunk, probably entrails, which he tried eating on his own. It was fun watching him try to figure out how to grip and rip til he just gulped the whole thing, In the meantime, chick 2 was eating away with Mom.
George in again with a stick at 4:22. Guess he’s realizing they will need platforms for those kids to practice on!
Chick 1 added Dad’s newest stick to his favorite seat. Rearranged to his satisfaction…
They are more beautiful every day! With the feathers filling in on their legs, their feet don’t look so big anymore. And their crowns ruffle in the breeze like G & G. Our little chicks are growing up!
Nice big fish George brought in about2:10pmEDT Are the big fish he brings in bluefish? Gracie practically plastic wrapped the whole thing! She was still struggling with it when George popped back in with a big stick 5mins later! Busy boy today!
This fish was big enough to get everyone filled up. Chick 2 very patient . Chick 1 smiling for the camera again.
Please say that wasn’t more plastic Gracie brought in at 3:10!
I am a New Yorker, so don’t get mad at me, but this is the messiest nest I ever saw. It’s like a New York street. LOL
2:10 George is hanging out after delivering a nice size fish to Gracie. Although Gracie couldn’t get that fish away from George fast enough, she gave him an earful.
Why does she wait for George to get of the nest before she starts feeding?
George brought a nice sized fish at 2:10…. Gracie’s screaming at him to leave.. poor guy, looks anorexic…maybe he should keep one for himself before he comes home!
Go George! Nice sized fish at 2:13p EST.
Gracie has certainly taught her children well – they’re almost as noisy as she is.
2:10 – Sashimi Delivery Service brings a fresh flapping fish to the nest. Gracie was so excited she actually did a little dance on the fish, perhaps helping
it die. Very funny segment. Then she used the infamous plastic to slide the fish to the other side of the nest, where she’s feeding the chicks. Glad that
plastic had SOME purpose other than to be annoying.
Very good news about the rescued chick from Woods Hole:
“The rehabber just reported: C1 is doing “real well” flying around his yard in short bursts eating, etc. He seemed very pleased.”
That’s great news.
That IS good news! Thanks for sharing!
Hi Karen, thank you for the update about C!…such good news to hear!
So what are they going to do with him? Can they release him? Who will teach him how to fish? I thought someone like his father needs to do that?
I doubt that anyone knows but, hopefully, fostering might be an option. This was just posted a couple of days ago on the Chesapeake Conservancy FB page: https://www.facebook.com/tristatebirdrescue/photos/a.220780611280312.62617.219050941453279/1072512489440449/?type=1&theater
That’s exactly what has happened naturally on the CC nest in this last week and it’s working out great.
Cool Thanks!
These are some great videos of the 3 chicks in Wales all fledging on the same day, July 22. Shows what’s to come here and at the bottom is a chart of the different ages of their chicks when they fledged. Seems like 52 days is fairly normal for them so that’s another 10 days for our #1 who is 6 weeks today.
http://dyfiospreyproject.com/blog/2015/07/three-fledge-in-one-morning
As far as the talk about repositioning the camera, I kind of like that we can see what is going on around the nest. Just had a nice shot of George taking off over Gracie’s head. We get to see when the birds come in across the water sometimes and, even tho I missed it, the story about Gracie and the seamonster sounded well worth watching! It probably wouldn’t have been captured as fully if the camera was just trained in the nest. If the poop-shoot problem could be solved, all would be good.
Approximately 10:35 CST George brings in a headless fish. Gracie covers it and isnt happy he sticks around. She starts to feed the chicks and George flew away.
11:30 Looks like George brought in half a fish. Much better start to this day.
Decent sized headless fish at 10:35amEDT. Thank you, Dad!
George hung around and sat behind Gracie. She was doing a half-hearted go-away dance and he didn’t move, She half turned to him and looked as if to say”I’m flapping! Can’t you see?” When he didn’t move she just turned back and started feeding kids.
One chick was getting most of the food. The second one walked in and must have gotten a dirty look because he went prone. He managed to get a few mouthfuls but wound up backing away. When chick1 walked away, 2 went back and got fed. He wound up stealing the tailfin, picking at it and choking it down.
Gracie brought in some seaweed. George must be on the perch. I thought I saw him fly-in a bit ago. The kids keep staring up there and Gracie is chatting. I think I just heard him. I wonder if the perch will be one of the first goals for the flight attempts?
The nest I watch in Cutchogue, on the Verizon tower, is on a big drum attached to a wide flat topped post. The chick there made the jump out on to that flat top. It’s a few feet out and slightly lower than the nest. I saw the chick on the post and was afraid it was stuck, but after a few minutes of enjoying its’ new view, it flapped like 3 times up into the nest.
Here is a quote from the CC ospreycamera blog :
For those of you concerned about man-made materials in the nest – don’t be! Again, from Dr. Spitzer, “Ospreys often line their nest with a plastic bag, which suggests they have figured out the insulating and moisture-conserving value of sheet plastic. How did that happen?: Ospreys’ annual mortality rate is low, about 15%, and the survivor recruits a new mate. Thus all kinds of accumulated learning gets transferred to the newcomer: This is “Osprey Culture”, and the traditional annual nest site is the focus for this remarkable learning process.”
Thank you for that info. I’m glad they have a reason. I just find it annoying when it blows around. But, then, I’ sure Gracie isn’t looking for our approval!
This spring we had robins build a nest on top of the wreath on our front door. While didn’t have a camera we were able to watch them as they grew. There were 3 chicks. One thing I noticed was they were all hatched with white baby hair. Then feathers started to grow. While they always pecked away at their breasts, it really intensified just before they fledged. I see the same thing happening here. While the chicks have always pecked away it seems to have really intensified in the last week or so and you could see bits of white fluff blowing away in the wind. That along with the exercising of the wings lead me to believe that they are getting close to fledging.
George brings in another fish. It was so small Gracie couldn’t hold onto it.
10:10amEDT The kids were preening for the camera when Gracie spotted George heading their way. They joined in the chorus as George arrived with a small whole flipping fish..not cursing, it was flipping around in nest..Not much there to share. Looked like one chick got most of it while the other grabbed the tail. Not much more than a snack.
George brought in a big branch about 8:45amEDT. and politely asked Gracie to move her tail so he could place it. Gracie must be full from this morning’s big fish as she wasn’t yelling at him.
good size fish today at 7:00am, little ones look so cute stretching and jumping,should be saying “Look at me, look what I can do”, so funny
Thank you and the other commenters for posting when and how much they get to eat. I only look in briefly once or twice a day, and usually don’t catch when they’re feeding. I quickly look at your postings to make sure all is well!
The chicks were up early..about 5:30amEdt…One got some Facetime and wing flexing for the camera, always a cute way to start our day…
About 6:55 George brought in a large whole fish…Gracie did her “Thank you now get out” song & dance. The chicks seem to be taking turns and all is peaceful. Good start to the day.
As to the condition of the nest, I don’t think it reflects on Gracie so much as the conditions of our beaches, sadly. Even the nice CC nest has some kind of orange tape woven in to it. Gracie is just recycling.
7:28 George just flew in to the perch…Gracie has a few words to say but there’s still fish and she’s still feeding.
I just read about another osprey nest where trash was used, including beer cans. At least Gracie isn’t a drinker.
Crazy Osprey Man, Com, puts out piles of branches for the ospreys to use since he knocks down the nest each year. He ties occasional strips of red fabric (I’m not sure what it is) around the branches to call attention to them.
Here is a link to a very interesting blog post by the CC nest owner, Mrs Com. It details all of the 2014 season with wonderful photos. https://ospreycamerablog.wordpress.com/2014/12/
great feeding at 7:27 am Eastern time. both feeding well too
Breakfast arrived fresh and flapping. There was a lot of squawking going on until George left to go get seconds!
HAPPY SIX-WEEK OLD BIRTHDAY—Number one chick!
Today at 11amEST I watched Gracie. She was perched on the nest and was watching something (obviously) because of the way she was moving her head. And then..all of a sudden…she takes flight, heading straight for the water, on the left side of the frame! I watch her fly into the water (getting smaller and smaller in size)…I am thinking to myself “am I going to see her splash into the water?” And sure enough, I saw the splash!! She got a fish! It was so amazing to witness this particular moment. There are so many wonderful sightings to be had here. I want to thank you again for building the platform! God bless. 🙂
I would have loved to have seen that!!
8:20ish PM another meal done and both babies were satisfied….. mom is finishing the last bit left…… I can’t tell the chicks apart any more except the baby who waits patiently for his turn is most likely the second one…… they will be flying soon!
It’s getting much harder to tell them apart. I tell them apart by a few things but it’s getting harder as the days go on. Number 1 seems to have a larger head and neck. She/he also seems to have more brown on the back of her neck and more markings on her chest. Is usually first in line to eat too. I watched them closely this morning and I kept wondering if I had maybe gotten them mixed up, out of order, but its how I’ve done it since they were babies and so I’m gonna continue to do it that way. I just hope I have it right. Maybe someone else has a few ways they tell them apart and can help us both out??? I’ve never before watched a live cam of any sort so this is a learning experience for me too. 🙂 Oh and Number 1 seems to love the camera. Number 2 seems to be a more laid back, mellow bird. 🙂
Love watching the 8;10pm edt feeding.Both babes are getting their evening fill! Just seems to me, lol, not wanting to sound sexist, but our Gracie has been so very excellent taking wonderful care of the brood! Don’t understand George’s inconsistancy, sorry spell, hopefully when Gracie leaves the job to him George will step up to the plate and teach the kiddies how to fend for themselves. It’s coming soon!
Happy to see another good size headless fish delivery from George at about 8:10 PM. Gracie really doesn’t want him staying on the nest after he drops it off. She’s not taking any chances with him wanting some.
Headless fish delivery at approximately 7:10 CST. Gracie couldnt grab it fast enough!! Chicks are both currently being fed while George sharpens his beak (I think) Hmmm Grace just quit feeding and is covering the fish while squawking. I dont think she likes it when Geo is there during feeding time. George flew off and Gracie started to feed the babes again. Maybe she’s afraid he’s gonna steal the fish but he was on the other side of the nest. OR maybe she was just letting him have it for being a no show for so long. I bet thats what it was. 🙂 🙂 🙂
OOOO goodie; Gracie brought a nice big fish at 8;15 EST. I am in Oregon and have been watching since the beginning. I just LOVE this.
At 8:10pmEDT George brought in a huge headless fish! Glad to see he’s on the job! Should keep Gracie busy for awhile feeding the kids!
Gracie started feeding chicks until she suddenly realized George was still hangin’ around. She went in to her squawking, hunched over routine until he left. Guess she’s making sure he isn’t looking for a share.
I’m not crazy about that loop of orange rope that was sticking up right where chicks were eating. Is that new or just re-positioned?
I’m not fond of it either. Not sure what it is but I think it’s been there awhile. Looks like an old shoelace or something. Just hope babes dont try to eat it.
It seems to have more body than a shoelace. I wonder if there will be an examination of the nest after the gang goes South?
I dont know whats up with George lately. He use to come lickety split when he heard Grace calling for him. She’s been squawking her fool head off for what seems like hours and he hasnt shown up at all. I hope Gracie gives it to him when he does finally show!!
Did anyone ever go to grandriver.ca and see how nice and neat their nest is with two babies in it I think they are just about a week or two older than Gracie and George’s . A while back I posted because there were so many comments on how messy the nest of George and Gracie’s is but no one commented back checking to see if anyone ever checked it out. The 2 ospreys are tagged but they are really flopping up in the air from one side of the nest to the other this is what our little babies will be doing soon . Of course Gracie and George’s nest doesn’t really have room to walk and fly around in .
Got home and scrolled back to the 2:25pmEDT feeding to see Gracie passing out a decent sized headless fish in record time…no need for little pieces anymore. This is the first time I noticed chicks cleaning their beaks afterward.
About 5:45 George arrived with a good sized whole fish. There was much conversation about George staying in the nest, with the chicks joining in. When he left, Gracie got to work. Looks like everyone getting a share.
At approximately 4:45 CST George delivered a very lively fish which Gracie had a hard time hanging on to but she did. She sat on the side of the nest with it, squawking away and I can only assume she was telling the chicks to calm down. As of right now, she’s busy feeding them their dinner.
She was mantling which means she wants George to leave, she might be upset that he hasn’t been fishing good or has been slacking off.
Thanks, Jon. I didnt know there was an actual name for it but I did realize she was doing it on purpose after watching the later feeding. She wasnt happy George was in the nest at all and she let him know it. I’m learning all kinds of new stuff about these birds and am enjoying every minute of it. 🙂
5:45 Finally George shows up with a fish. Darn he should be bringing in a heck of a lot more.
Is it my imagination or is George bringing in less food now that the chicks are older then he did initially??????
I agree. There were some days where he was bringing in 5 or 6.
It breaks my heart the way Gracie spends her day calling George. If I lived in the area I think I would find a way to leave fresh fish below for her.
I know we’re not supposed to interfere, but we’ve been given the opportunity to watch live how cruel nature can be and we have it in our power to help.
The cam is so much clearer, beautiful site to see the har har, “little ones”” this evening.I have been so very addicted to this site and this Osprey family; have actually altered my life routines to be able to watch as much as possible! And very soon, I think, it will get more exciting to be able to watch the fledging routine, sorry for spell, but this is our routine TV highlight since it started. Thank you all again!!
I’m glad to see someone is as addicted as I am. I have had this on my comp, almost continually, since 5 days before the first chick hatched. From about 4 am until after dark, this is whats on. SO much better than TV! I have learned so much and have been able to share it with 2 of my grand kids. My granddaughter actually came up with her own name for number 2 chick, which she calls Izzy. 🙂
Fledging
At seven to eight weeks of age the young osprey will take their first flight. They spend days practicing flying and perching, near the male’s feeding perch calling when the male returns with food. Two weeks after fledging, the young will start to follow the male on hunting trips. Four to eight weeks after fledging the young Osprey will begin to emulate their parents and hunt fish on their own.
http://newyorkwild.org/osprey_show/osprey_info.htm
12:53 babies watch Momma take open wings and take off. Baby (who has been looking at self in camera) then mimics opening wings and flapping them, catching the breeze. I held my breath not knowing if he/she was going to try to fly! (probably too early, but looked like he was going to try!)
George drops off half a fish around 2:25. Gracie couldn’t take it off his hands fast enough. Good mom that she is, she went straight to feeding her babies.
At approximately 1:25 CST George delivered a headless fish. Gracie immediately grabbed it from him and is now feeding the chicks. 🙂
Is George MIA?
I see people talking about George’s “other nest”. I thought ospreys mate for life, like eagles.
They are usually monogamous but will “divorce” for various reasons such as a failed nest. They are also sometimes polygamous but it’s very difficult to support to families.
A woman who has studied ospreys for 20 years wrote a blog post the other day about a polygamous male who she’s been watching for several years.
http://ospreywatch.blogspot.com/2015/07/polygyny.html
That’s very interesting, Karen. Personally I think George is cheating on Gracie. He must have another nest. There can’t be that much of a shortage of fish. I just turned on the cam and they are eating at 8:15 p.m. !!! Gracie has been screaming her head off for him for hours.
I wonder if there is something flying above. She keeps looking up?
Mom brings another fish. George is out of the picture. lol
I don’t think George brought a single fish to the nest and its 12:18 p.m. – Grace had to go fishing today and brought 2 bunker.
I really don’t have a clue what George’s problem is! Either he isn’t up to the job or doesn’t care. I hope this trend stops, as
Grace is going to wear herself out before too long.
Gracie IS worn out. She is falling asleep even as she is calling for George to bring food. He is sitting up on the perch listening.
I can’t understand how she can squawk for so long and George just tunes her out. Hmmm, kind of reminds me of some of the human male ilk.
He is REALLY slacking and it”s not due to lack of fishing opportunities. I saw him Coleen, as his shadow from above the cam illuminated him so
very nicely, doing NOTHING as Gracie is squawking her lungs out! Next year I hope she either gives him an audition before mating with him or gets
another mate.
George is around and brought a fish for the family an hour or two ago. The kids will begin flying and learning to fish in the next 7-14 days, and watching how dad does it.
It’s 3:02 CST, and 4:00 Yankee New Yorker time. Use that time as your benchmark and back up the video about 1-hour 35-min to 1-hour 40-min from there to see George delivering.
At about 1130 EDT just saw Gracie bring back a fish. Good mom . Since George hasn’t been able to keep up with demand!
11:39 Looks like Gracie just flew in with a fish. Not sure if the head was missing I couldn’t tell. But, at least they have more to eat.