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Bald Eagles Visit Nest
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OspreyZone Yankee
March 18, 2016 Timelapse
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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
Is it true that this current Gracie is not the Gracie that layed these eggs? How could there have been a switch? And when?
There are some who think that. I personally do not but that’s my opinion.
I don’t believe that.
Never heard that. Still looks like our Gracie.
I read a comment I think it was a couple of days ago to that effect. I have no idea. I’ve never been able to tell any of them apart. And usually when I log on I think I’ve seen Gracie, hardly ever see George. Once I saw the four all in the nest but that was a while back. At any rate, I enjoy watching the family almost on a daily basis.
Gracie chases off an Intruder??
We should not be worried if we do not see them eat. Ronnie and Sandy are old enough to where they are eating out and about. It is part of growing up and learning they do not need the nest. I also found this on an Osprey research page: This reply came from Tricia Galpin, the Assistant Project Officer.
“There is not a simple answer to this question as it depends on the part of the world in which the birds live, on the temperature and on the sort of fish available as prey.
In cold countries, if larger fish are available, an Osprey will catch once a day and will carry the fish around, picking at it from time to time – snacking. In hot countries where fish will go off soon after it is caught , they are more quickly consumed and the remains dropped.
The amount of fish an Osprey needs depends on how far it needs to fly to catch the fish. The further the bird flies the more energy it uses and the more fish it needs.
When the young Rutland Ospreys were released we observed that they fed in the early morning, just after dawn and also in the late afternoon.”
They do not need to eat all day long. Fish are plentiful and close. They will be flying 3k miles. Their croups are pretty full most of the time.
Soon they will part ways and Ronnie will not be able to steal anyone’s fish. And most fortunate is: they will not let themselves starve.
Thank for your reply Holly, it gives me comfort to hear that there’s someone out there that does not think Sandy is starving. Her pleas for food, even to the point of voice problems, makes me always wonder.
Also, I see Osprey eating fish on top of poles all the time on my way home from work on Ocean Parkway, LI. They definitely do not always eat in the nest.
Thanks for that information Holly. A lot of us are worried about the kids eating enough.
At 9:15 a.m., a parent delivered a big fish to one of the chicks, who eventually flew off with it. I think it may have been Sandy — unsure. Around 10:20 a.m. a parent (looks like Gracie) came to the nest with half a fish but no one else was there. She hung around about a half hour and then left with the fish. Returned about 10:55 a.m. with the same fish, and one of the chicks (think it was Ronnie) flew down from the perch to take it. Definitely wanted parent to leave; made it quite obvious. However, Gracie felt this was her home; she’s staying as long as she wants. Eventually Ronnie(?) left with the fish and Gracie took off, too, followed by a relative who was on the high perch. Sure is windy up there today — down on the ground, too.
About 10:55amEDT Gracie dropped back to nest as kid came screaming in to claim leftovers. Wanted Mom to go but she’s hangin’ (prob leave as I type if true to form!) The sun is trying to make an appearance and sparkly on the water
Nope, Mom’s still in sight as I hit post
Kid decided to leave instead.
About 11:09am Gracie did some softer chirping and did a fly off where she seemed to do a duet with another bird.(.George?.)
I envy all you people with you’re screen shots, speed adjusting and other tech abilities which I SO lack. Tried adjusting speed but the only adjustment I can find is screen resolution ( I think) Tried photographing comp screen with my phone…horrible! Maybe this will be incentive to spend some alone time with my phone and computer to find out what those apps and whatever are for! Lately it seems my computer is possessed so I guess a visit to a medium…I mean geeksquad..is overdue.
Has Gracie left?? 🙁
Saw her today Leanne, but its a day to day thing I believe, at this point.
Oh good. I’m glad she’s still around. I want to try and see her one last time just so I can say good-bye and wish her well. I’m gonna miss her. 🙁
About 10:18amEDT Gracie brings in a partial fish and no one’s home. She is sooooo beautiful, especially with the wind messing with her feathers! My eyes are getting teary missing her already!
And she’s still waiting @ 10:43. Patient ….that wind is so strong…white caps on the bay…rough across the mike making listening difficult…and just for us, Gamma, the constant rustle of that plastic!
And as I typed the above she disappeared…didn’t fly off, just rose gracefully out of frame, with fish in claw and some of George’s precious seaweed…..
Probably went on perch.
The sound of that plastic rattling in the wind might be considered as a form of torture. Definitely not white noise!!!!!!!
Scrolling back…..from about 8:10am for 15-20 mins 1 chick was hanging out at the nest and, within the nest, chose to “perch” on sticks instead of flat footed on the nest.
Lots of fly-bys over the water. Wonder if our kids are buzzing other nests,,,,hard to imagine our babies as threats to someone else! typical parental attitude!
That 9:10am delivery was literally a fish drop! {and I hate the way ‘literally’ is over used so I rarely use it!} That parent didn’t even touch down!
About 9:30 George made a delivery of his all-important seaweed, followed rapidly by several more drops of stuff.
10:18 am – Gracie flies into the nest with a headless fish. No kids in sight at the moment. She has that perplexed look and is surveying the domain.
Sandy got almost blown off the Nest,but hey she got a Fish from Dad!
9:15 am – George dropped a head-on dead fish into the nest for Sandy. Figuring how her food disappears with any arrivals of Ronnie, she flew off with it into the unknown, to eat in protective peace. Glad to know she got a meal today.
HURRAY FOR SANDY! She should do that more often, if she can. Right now Gracie or George is all alone at the nest with a fish.
which parent dropped off fish at 9:10 this AM? after delivery not sure who left nest.
9:11amEDT Logged in to see a beautiful shot of an osprey guarding it’s fish….but it almost looked like a bird in flight…the wind was ruffling feathers and the wings were waggling slightly as if riding the air. Gorgeous!
The kids flying in and out of the nest for the past 2 hrs( I rewound the feed to see if there was any breakfast). Didn’t see anyone eating. Does anyone know if there was any fish this morning?
I don’t think any fish deliveries were made this afternoon or this evening. Hope the babies did their own fishing. One of them was in the nest, waiting for dinner. I think the other was on the camera perch. Eventually, they both flew away but I didn’t see them eat. Hopefully, they caught their own. Or they will be going to bed hungry.
Paul, Can you clear something up. When you picked the names for the chicks , Ronnie, Sandra and PeeWee , was this to indicate birth order, that is 1,2 and 3 ?
Yes
ID Sandy – 6:50 Bird of the LEFT is definitely Sandy! I know because of her posture and begging habits (also the inside of her mouth while begging).
5:55 p.m. – Family of SWANS cruise by in the bay, for your viewing pleasure. : )
We took a ride out east today and saw one of our ospreys flying. I was so excited. It was very hazy over the water. There are many nests out there and did see one osprey in another nest. Love this site and will miss the ospreys once they move on for the winter. I have many screen shots of them ,so I can see them anytime I want!! Thanks to all who decided that this was a great idea for all of us to see and learn.
Candi –
Can I buy some of these shots from you? Helen
George brought huge alive fish at 4ish to a screaming Sandy. I am sure it was George because he landed so I could see his extended wing and there was no spot there as Gracie has. He stayed a few minutes Sandy made no attempt to approach him to get the fish and he left with it. I am reading that others have seen Gracie in the last few days but I thought as others did that she was gone. I hope she is still here but it is really now up to George to make sure that the kids have honed their fishing skills and are ready for their journey. I do worry about Sandy I don’t think she is as advanced in her skills as she should be at this time. But I don’t think from what I have read that George will leave Sandy till she is ready. Ronnie is definitely ready to be on his own. I thought that a mid-September timeframe was when all should be gone. That is only about 2 weeks away. So sad to think about a truly empty nest.
5:05 p.m. Sandy pitifully pleading for some fish. I feel sooooooo sorry for her (sniff).
@Ann H>Sandy’s Fishing is fine>no one’s starving:))
I kept scrolling back to 9;15 to watch Sandy fishing over and over. You can clearly see her flying over the water fishing for her food then flying to nest with itl So awesome to watch. To me, it was Sandy with the tall slimmer legs.
Sandy, I know you won’t get this in time to watch the event you mentioned but for the next time you see something interesting try setting your speed at it’s lowest for slow motion. It gives you a different perspective . I did this yesterday when there was such a fight going on over a fish Mom had brought and what you saw makes you wonder how any of them came out unharmed. Just an idea :))))
.
These ospreys are not very good killers. I notice that the fish is still alive as its head is being eaten. How awful for the fish. I hope it has to do with some really bad karma. Otherwise it’s just too sad.
Unfortunately this is quite common in nature; the animals don’t know anything different. They only know they need to eat to survive.
Birds of prey have eaten their catch alive until dead for millions of years. Most do not kill they prey at time of the catch. Just nature in its purest form
Roberta, It is kind of sad to watch but it’s all part of nature. Everything eat’s something. It just happens that Osprey can’t really kill the prey before they start eating, unless they stand around waiting for it to die.
Do you know if fish would normally be dead. I have seen parents also come in with fish still alive – that’s when I stop watching. Yes uncomfortable to watch but I think that’s the way it is. I don’t think they are aware of Karma.
Yea it is a Nasty way to go I agree.
Roberta – it is sad, but that’s nature, cruel and harsh. I think it takes fish a few minutes to die so they’re still alive when they’re brought to the nest. I remember a few weeks ago when my nephew and I were watching and we could see the fish’s eye wide open staring but his tail was still flapping. My nephew said, “oh, God, can you imagine watching as your body is being torn apart by someone?” Poor fish but, hey, the ospreys have to eat. And that’s all they eat. Not easy to watch, though, sometimes. 🙁
I have seen fishermen who start scaling their catch while the fish is still alive. This to me is cruelty. As humans we have the ability to dispatch that life before we process it.
I think Sandy is starving. She better learn to fish better real soon.
I wholeheartedly agree with you Ann H. Sandy is currently starving. Sandy needs to get her own food, because the clock is ticking. Perhaps this is the reason she’s being ignored so that her hunger instincts really kick in. I don’t agree with those that feel that Sandy is flying around fishing and bringing the catch to the nest. She is very dependent on Mom and Dad and unless fish is given to her, she’s going to be HUNGRY. The bird that brings fish is Ronnie and “IF” a fish is brought to the nest by parents, Ronnie will win any tug of war or fight. Sandy is just the “developmentally challenged” bird in this family and needs more time. I HOPE George can give it to her before he takes off. Gracie has packed her bags and is “outta here” any day. I can definitely see the attitude shift over the days. Gracie just doesn’t really give a fig at this point, she’s done her job and should be commended for a first time parent. Hope her journey is drama free and she returns to us next spring! You GO Gracie!!!!!!
Thanks, Lyn…well summed up. I think some people forget or don’t recognize what a great job this couple has done as first time nesters! As much as we want to see “our” kids succeed, it’s up to them now and we, sadly, will never know. Brings to mind, with a tweek, an Irish prayer….May the sun fall soft upon your face, May the wind be always under your wings and may God hold you in the palm of His hand….
CarolV – Your Irish prayer is just what we all wish for these gals/guy. It brings tears to my eyes; not only for the sentiment, but the fact that we’ll be “losing” these kids anyway, for ……maybe forever. (boo)
They juvies could be fishing out of camera view and eating the fish elsewhere, we will never know though.
I scrolled back and saw one of the babies bring in the fish it caught, around 9:30 a.m. However, I, too, can’t tell them apart. It’s just getting more difficult the older they get. Around 10:30 a.m., it took off with the fish in its mouth. I would like to think it’s Sandy, because an hour later it still had half a fish left to eat. I know she’s a slow eater, like my grandson. Ha-ha.
I am pretty sure that Sandy already had a but more brown on her chest. It’s tough to tell unless she turns herself the right way, of course!
Sandy leaves with leftover>nice!
At about 8:20 CST Sandy came in with her own fish! Or was it Ronnie? Either way, he/she ate 🙂
around 9:15-917 you can see Ronnie in background bringing in fish..so cool
Sandy with a big Catch,wow!
Around 8:30 Eastern the chicks were in the nest and in the background you could see two osprey flying back and forth. Couldn’t tell if they were adults or young ones, but one was definitely trying to bring down the other one.
Scrolling back this morning, I saw an empty nest until sometime after dawn. Both babies landed,and Sandy was doing a protective dance over the nest. They both were yelling, and in the distance you can see what looks like dad or mom chasing down another Osprey. I think they’re a little tired of the visitor! Good practice for all parties, though. All seems OK now.
Both kids in the nest looking around and crying rather plaintively.
Yesterday my granddaughter, grandson and I were the very lucky and surprised recipients of Osprey Zone tee-shirts. Can’t say how happy all 3 of us are. Nice quality and the sizing is right on. Kids couldnt wait to put them on and once they did, they walked around proud as peacocks. My 4 year old grandson looked at the front of his shirt, ran to the computer and put “the birds” on and immediately pointed to the design on the top left of screen. He said “It’s our birds, grandma.” Was a very nice surprise, sent from a relative, for all three of us. Love them 🙂
What a nice surprise for you and your grandchildren. How lucky that you got to share this Osprey experience with them.
I dont usually post pics so I hope this turns out. If it doesnt, I apologize:
11988666_973585662683423_1584055518107751825_n
Oh well, I tried. lol
Hi Leanne,
If you are on a computer try sourcing it to get coding. It will start http:// and probably end jpg or gif.
Hopefully this will work for you, good luck.
Seems very strange and unsettling to me when I tuned in @ 11PM eastern.
Could not see any bird in nest (might have been) but for a very short while, a bird was calling either from nest or perch. Very sad scene since no other bird answered.
I just scrolled back and around 6:45 p.m. Gracie (bless her) flew in with a headless fish. The kids had such a tug of war over this fish — never saw them fighting to this extent. I’m not sure how much they ate today. All I could see were wings, wings, and more wings. Gracie’s expression said it all — what happened to my kids! I think that Sandy ended up with the fish and flew away with it. She must’ve really been starving, to have put up such a fierce fight. However, now I’m having second thoughts about the winner being Sandy. The remaining chick seems to be acting like Sandy — going out on the perch, staying in the nest. I hope that some other Ospreyites saw this and can identify who got the fish. At 10:50 p.m., no one is in the nest. Still don’t understand why they wait for a parent to bring their dinner, but there sure is one hungry babe out there.
Marlene – I caught the fight between the ‘kids.’ Since I’ve never been able to tell them apart, I just assumed it was Ronnie who got the fish. I too had never seen them fight so much over a fish. Other viewers have said that the ‘kids’ have caught fish; I have yet to see that, honestly. But, I’m not always logged on. And when I do, I usually miss things because I scroll back looking for ‘events.’ Oh well, still enjoy watching this family. I haven’t seen George in a while. Assuming he’s always on the perch that we can’t see. 🙂
Around 6:40pmEDT ..Was happy to see Gracie is still here and delivered a fish to the two kids, who had a knock down, drag-out tug-of-war that ended in one chick taking off with the fIsh.
Helpful George brought in seaweed about 7:35. Hungry kid in and out but didn’t see anymore fish.
At the nest that I watch at work….that chick (only 1) spends a lot of time yelling at its’ dad who is sitting across field on his post. I haven’t seen female lately. I did see the fledgling practicing flying as I was leaving today It flew over the empty field then across the highway over the vineyards.. It’s a different situation as this Verizon tower that holds the nest is not close to water like ospreyzone nest. No jumping out and swooping down to the water. There is water both north and south but as the osprey flies I’m not sure how far. I would guess 1/2 to 1 mile minimum. This presents a whole new set of logistics for this chick to learn. This afternoon’s comments haven’t posted yet but there didn’t seem to be a lot of fish deliveries yesterday or this morning. I know I saw Ronnie bring in a fish the other day but I wonder about Sandy. I think it was Ronnie who grabbed the 6:40 fish from Gracie.
at about 6 45 the kiddies were calling for something to eat. An adult brings a fish to the next. An all out brawl ensues with a huge tug of war. The winner flew off the nest with the fish
Oh no, I hope my worst fear isn’t coming to fruition. I think perhaps Sandy has MORE FISHING LINE tangled in her feet mixed with seaweed and is trying to get it off!
Did you see that big fight & tug of war over a fish that was delivered to the nest this evening? It was fierce. The winner, Ronnie I’m guessing took it & flew away with it, leaving Sandy alone crying pitifully. I haven’t seen any fish delivered all day, except for this one.
How rude!!! The siblings were fighting over a fish that Mom brought. Not sure who finally won; I still can’t tell the difference. But, I’m assuming it was Ronnie who took off with the fish in his talons. How rude!! LOL!! There definitely isn’t any sharing between these chicks. lol
I think it is Sandy that lost on the fish fight.
6:40P.M. edt – Parent delivers fish to the nest……MAJOR tug of war betweeen the kids. Ronnie wins and takes off with it.
What a battle over the fish. Either George or Gracie brought fish to the nest, then Sandy and Ronnie fought a battle over who was going to get the fish. One of the chicks, probably Ronnie flew off with the fish, leaving the other chck to sulk..
At 5:50pm Sandy came into the nest and did a “jig” – so funny.
I don’t think she ate anything today.
My sister was out today and sent me a cute photo of two Osprey(Ronnie and Sandy) sitting on top of their camera. She’s an artist and was out getting some shots for paintings and remembered me telling her about them. She sent the local paper’s article on them too. Awesome. That tower is super tall. Love watching, thank you so much.
From around 4:15 to 4:45 looked like these 2 were having a conversation …
Are both youngsters catching fish or just one? Seems as though the one folks call Sandy isn’t that successful whereas the other one is a fishing machine. Please the;; me I am wrong about this.
Ronnie was the one to catch a fish first, but it has been Sandy ever since, and she is getting much better at dealing with a live fish.
However, it seems to me that catching one fish a day is the limit. More are supplied by a parent.
I have seen Ronnie bring in a fish not Sandy…has anyone see her bring in a fiish..if so when’…
EST:
They both are catching fish but still want to be fed like their daddy did from original Gracie. Ronnie is aggressive and has it down pretty darn good. Sandy seems to know as most of us ladies do, the slower you eat the fuller you get and less likely to get fat the older she gets, lol
Bonnie, as I and others have pointed out, there has not been an “original” and a new Gracie this season. This is the same female that layed, incubated, brooded and raised the chicks.
If a female died, a new one would never move in and resume her duties.
The female from last season shown in the highlight video has different markings than this Gracie and is almost certainly a different bird.
All I’m going to say is original Gracie died around June 21st and replaced with a spitter. I watched and listened in the dark as a woman said “she died”. Until the last 2 wks I have watched this live feed up to 20 hrs 95% of the time. In the early days their filters were not as good as now. Gracie was sick from birthing, pneumonia, (3 days and nights in rain and sneezing alot ), bug infested nest and torn up legs from fishing when George would not.
Please do not post to me again on this as we both have our opinions.
Bonnie…..I’m going to file this under an El Chupacabra sighting. I’m sorry but this claim is so far off the charts that is as believable as BigFoot or El Chupacabra.
I’m not doubting what you HEARD….but perhaps it was related to PeeWee’s demise. Perhaps the woman who you heard was commenting about Pee Wee. I too viewed this site almost nonstop and remember Gracie sneezing at that time. Unless you actually SAW a dead “original Gracie” who was diagnosed with pneumonia, insect infestation and other illnesses, verified by a VET, how would you know this to be true? You, as everyone else saw the impossibly difficult time it took to get the rescue accomplished..how could a dead Gracie be removed under the shroud of night?….how could a replacement Gracie be found, that looks like her, acts like her and would just slip in as a surrogate mother, seamlessly? This nest is 85 feet in the air!!!!!! All these impossibly difficult substitutions and complicit actions that I’m assuming you are attributing to whom? Paul, Tommy, or whom? Forming conclusions that cannot be substantiated, is just….wrong.
Lyn,
Thank you for your reply! I was beginning to think I was the only person who felt this absurd story should not be allowed to stand. It’s not one person’s opinion – it’s fact vs. fantasy. All anyone needs to do is look at the highlights from earlier this year to see this is the same female.
There were 2 reasons I felt it necessary to respond: 1. Because others read these posts and take the statements as fact, and 2. As you said, Paul, Tommy or someone is being implicated in a bizarre cover up.
Osprey-gate?
Robert – both of the chicks are catching fish. Sandy is just more timid and still would prefer mom or dad supply the fish. She is also a very slow eater and will catch a fish only to have Ronnie take it away from her. Ronnie is bold and daring. He has no trouble catching his own food, but he also would prefer that mom and dad bring home the fish.
Ronnie caught a big Fish this morning:))
I like the camera angle because we can see the horizon, the sun rise and the moon rise…all beautiful views…and all the boats…
I only want the camera moved to the right not up or down. Don’t want to lose the horizon views but would like to see the right edge of the nest since the Osprey use it
quite a bit but all you can see is their sides.
I agree – I never want to lose those beautiful horizon views. It still takes my breath away when they soar off the nest.
I agree. If the nest is lowered, I wonder at the possibility (and cost) of keeping the higher camera too. Poor Paul & co…….we have so many suggestions!
Yes, that was Gracie in the nest! So glad she is still here to help out. One of the babes (I think Sandy) caught a fish, and Gracie showed up with one for the other chick. However, Ronnie never showed up so she finally ate it. It was nice to see mother and daughter sharing lunch.
Paul, do you think that when you lower the tower height after our family heads south could the camera be set to have the nest centered in it’s aim? It would be great to
see what the birds are doing on the right side of the nest.
Gracie was on the nest this morning with one of the chicks.
I was really sure Gracie had taken off but at @11:05 there she is! Joined the chick who has been on the nest for a while.
11:10 am… I think this is Grace in the nest with the nest sitter…. Look at the dark splotches on her chest…….???????
Early this morning as the sun was breaking in and out of the clouds, I noticed a small black speck in the water to the left of the nest. I kept watching it for several minutes and I’ll be darned, it was an osprey working hard to lift out of the water. It finally did lift out and flew to the right carrying a fish. Must’ve been a heavy fish! These birds are amazing! 🙂
Sunrise was eerie and beautiful this morning….didn’t hurt to have an osprey in the picture as well!
Sandy spent the night on the perch. She left about 5:30 and from then till now it has been one or both have been coming and going. It is very foggy this morning and that is probably making fishing difficult. I think I hear George on the camera perch. The fog seems to be lifting so hopefully they will be get breakfast soon. Just checked and both are still gone and it looks much clearer now.
What a beautiful sight with the sun rising through the fog.
I hope Gracie hasnt left yet. I havent said my goodbyes and wished her well. I’m going to miss her the most. 🙁
Regarding Gracie leaving, just for reference, the females are all still present on the nests around here, which is east of where “our” nest is.
I do love when the chicks come back to the nest all wet. They have been having fun and hopefully learning!
Just took my dog, Harry, for a quick walk under a sky full of stars and saw a shooting star! Wished for good fortune for our ospreys and, for all of us, a short winter till osprey season begins again!
Amen to that, Carol.
8:15 p.m. EDT – Sandy on stick perch surveying her world. I wonder what she’s thinking? or feeling? Beautiful scene. Whenever she takes off for the journey of her life, I hope that the wind is in her sails. God Bless.
I don’t think there’s been even one fish brought or delivered to the nest today. Am I wrong? I’ve watched and scrolled back when I couldn’t.
“SHARING” is not in the kid’s vocabulary…
If anyone is interested , Rob Bierregaard answered questions on Ospreys a year ago and you can watch the Q & A on You Tube. Just search his name . It was dated 7/24/2014. It answered a lot of questions. He has also posted a few times here.
Gamma – thanks so much for the info you provided. I just viewed the entire video. Very informative!! It made me want to learn more and more about ospreys. I am so obsessed!! 🙂
Monica, I know what you mean about being obsessed. Ospreys are an interesting bird. I found the Q & A to be very helpful in understanding these birds and why they do things we don’t understand. It was also good to hear things from an expert. I’m glad you enjoyed it :))))
Thank you so very much, Gamma, for Rob Bieeregaard You Tube Q&A site. I would highly recommend it to all of our Osprey Family Group!
I think all OA members should watch..I ordered on line book he recommended … Little costly….I am sure it will be worth it..
In case anyone missed it, there is a second video dated August 15, 2014 in which he addresses migration. Great information about such a mysterious process.
Gracie has taken off with Ronnie,
Sandy & George still having fun!
Both chicks were in the nest on 9/1 at 3 p.m. How did you determine that Gracie and Ronnie “took off” only 12 minutes after?
3:00 p.m. EDT – Both kids in the nest squawking for food. They STILL want personal service.
I’ve been away for a while and amazed at what has transpired in that time, Can you tell me if George has taught the ‘kids’ to fish yet ?
Can I assume if he did………do THEY bring the catch back to the nest ? Do they share ?
Young ospreys aren’t taught to fish – it’s all down to instinct. George’s job it to continue bringing fish to them while they are honing their fishing skills.
It’s so hard to tell the difference, but it does seem like both kids have brought in their own fish. There is, however, no such thing as sharing – it’s all for one.
George seems to be doing odd things arranging the nest today. I’m beginning to think Gracie may have left yesterday.
Close to migration, George will be less and less interested in his two kids and bring less and less fish as dr b has said, they will have had enough practice to catch fish on their own.
1:45pm-Is that Gracie in the nest?
Earlier George brought in a few large sticks and some seaweed or moss and started rearranging the nest. He was so cute placing everything just so.
Gamma, thank you for that bird identification site. i am going to check it out since i am somewhat of a bird watcher (not just ospreys)
For ex. i followed a puffin site earlier this summer; now looking at a site at Katmai Nat’l Park in Alaska where the hooded mergansers have been very entertaining while we await the bears! These sites are on explore.org
Earlier this yr, when the situation in our nest was getting very very violent, another blogger mentioned the puffin site as a calm, adorable no stress site, so i have her/him to thank.
Again, thanks for the info. I have found people on this site to be the NICEST!!!
12:15 p.m. EDT – Is the adult in the nest right now Gracie?
Here’s a great image of a female and male side by side. You can see the necklace on the female and the difference in size.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/53066200@N02/17421863094/
Last night I watched the YouTube video that Gamma suggested (Q&A with Rob Bierregaard). He said that sometimes males have that ‘necklace’ on their chests. At any rate, I have never been able to tell which is Sandy or which is Ronnie. I never will, I guess. But, have been enjoying the ongoing saga of this beautiful osprey family. I’m going to miss them as I’m sure all of us will. 🙁
At noon time this looks like George to me? Has anyone seen Gracie today?