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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
7:04 Grece seems to get off the eggs and looked like she rotated them slightly cool
Its’ just too dangerous to leave them outside! I think we should put them in a wildlife refuge. I never let my kids outside without proper weather attire! #supermom
Is anybody else worried about this weather? An egg could easily blow out of the nest 🙁
praying for George and Gracie this year
This is for CarolV – – – – You write “3:17ish pm EDT. Gracie is loudly chirping and the now can hear etc etc ……Suddenly Gracie SEES there is a fish UPSTAIRS and she gets up TO DO HER FISH DANCE and yells demands. George could”t let go fast enough …. smallish…. etc
Please explain: Do you really see that ???? or do you assume that?
And what is the difference between leaving a REPLY or COMMENT?
I still have not mastered the whole system. Thanks for answer. Rodee H.
I sorry, but I have to add my 2¢’s worth … Really??!! How pedestrian it would be to read comments written as: “At exactly 3:17 pm, the female osprey could be heard making increasingly frenzied cheereek and kyew calls and was observed to be moving backward in the nest in an excited manner while looking upward. Within minutes, the male osprey came to the nest with a …”
The difference between a reply or acomment is:
What I posted, was, in fact, a REPLY
What you posted, was, in fact, a COMMENT
Now, I just hit the REPLY button to clarify: The “I” was supposed to be “I’m”.
It would look silly if I posted just a COMMENT with that statement!
@5:33pmEDT George brought in a full, uncleaned fish for Gracie..if this is a duplicate.sorry, computer said I posted twice on previous comment but of course, it disappeared..
#%*+@>?+ computer know-it-all !!!
I wonder what happened to the picture I tried to post…some alien in the far reaches of the universe will receive an image of an osprey with squashed plastic tubing balanced on its back and think the inhabitants of this planet are truly talented…………………. fade in a Rod Serling voice over……….
5:33PMedt The fish is in !! George delivers a full fish and makes Grace happy for Mom’s Day….
3:17ish pmEDT Gracie is loudly chirping and then you can hear calling from a distance..then, George’s shadow shows as he lands on perch…major chip&call fest as they announce their possession..
Suddenly, Gracie sees there is a fish upstairs and she gets up to do her fish dance and yells demands..George couldn’t let go fast enough..smallish headless fish..and Gracie is off…
It’s gotten very windy again..almost took my backdoor off just now…at least it’s warm and DRY !!!!
3:43ish While George is bird-napping, the neighbors were bouncing around, trying to steal..one had a nice long piece of something, but it was nailed down,,George even thought about going after one, but settled back in..those sparrows are pretty comfortable around the big birds…
Nice to see blue in the water…enough with fifty shades of grey !!!
about 4:09pm Gracie is back..dramatic arrival as the film jumps..now she’s flying..now she’s not..Chris Angel moment…
May 08- I wish I had seen that. Would have made a great little video. 🙂
2:57pm…comments to catch up on..YAY!..But not complaining,,,hard job for whomever does it…
Leanne..I panicked during the disappearing egg trick too !! especially since one egg has a big blotch that almost looks like a hole if you catch it at the wrong angle..we are a bunch of worriers, aren’t we? And sorry about the insomnia..was wondering why you were watching birds in the dark !!
May 08- That bird trick they pulled…not a fan! Like you said in a post above this, A Chris Angel move. Now ya see it, now ya dont or do you?? 🙂
Hatch ?
Update as 5-8-16 pm
more osprey viewers added
Tucker
June 5th 7am
Mary Y
May 30
Marlene
June 2 in the morning
Isobel
2nd of June between 3 and 5pm
Lyn D
June 8th between 6 a m. and 2 p. m.
—————–
Margaret
6/5 between 7:00 am to 3:00 pm
Leanne
June 01- early early morning
Kathy B
May 31st. 11:13 am
Lucie Pecor
June 2nd 2am
Rodee Hansen
June 3rd – Friday – between 9 am and 3 pm.
Jara
June 4 at 12:01 am
Bobbie
Tues, May 31st, between noon and 5pm
Redkayak
June 5th morning
Bre
May 30th, Monday morning around 9am-ish..
Patty
June 2nd afternoon
Rjoneal
June 3 am-12noon
June C
June 2 AM
Carol IV
June 4,between 5am and 11am for first hatch…
Betsy
Jun 4th at 1 pm for first hatch.
Rjoneal…I hope you have some kind of system where you don’t need to retype this everytime!!!! My fingers twitch just thinking about(the three I use for typing)..
Hatch ?
Update as 5-7-16 AM
more osprey viewers added
Tucker
June 5th 7am
Mary Y
May 30
Marlene
June 2 in the morning
Isobel
2nd of June between 3 and 5pm
Lyn D
June 8th between 6 a m. and 2 p. m.
—————–
Margaret
6/5 between 7:00 am to 3:00 pm
Leanne
June 01- early early morning
Kathy B
May 31st. 11:13 am
Lucie Pecor
June 2nd 2am
Rodee Hansen
June 3rd – Friday – between 9 am and 3 pm.
Jara
June 4 at 12:01 am
Bobbie
Tues, May 31st, between noon and 5pm
Redkayak
June 5th morning
Bre
May 30th, Monday morning around 9am-ish..
Patty
June 2nd afternoon
Rjoneal
June 3 am-12noon
June C
June 2 AM
Carol IV
June 4,between 5am and 11am for first hatch…
Betsy
Jun 4th at 1 pm for first hatch.
CarolV: A short while ago, I saw that the comments had gotten posted … I had to laugh – our observations are always so similar! I wonder if I have a long lost twin my mother didn’t tell me about! 🙂 Great minds think alike!
Betsy..I’ve noticed that too..Wonder if people are getting tired of hearing things twice !! I depend on you and everyone to keep me filled in during the week..just had 4 days off..my car smells like a greenhouse from thre tomatoes and annuals “wintering” in there. Good thing it’s warming up enough to leave them home..they don’t need the ride….
Apparently, some don’t even like hearing it once!! 🙂
Grain of salt, remember, …and behave…
Yes, ma’am!
George took over from Gracie at 10:50 am for a half hour. At 11:45-ish am George came back with a mass of grass and a few thin branches – the nest bowl is slowly becoming a nest saucepan – staying with Gracie for a few minutes and doing some light housekeeping before flying off. Gracie arranged some of what he had brought around herself then returned to humdrum of alternately dozing and keeping a watchful eye, interrupted only by several visits from the sparrow neighbors. And, although she was bedraggled and the nest was sodden, at least it was no longer raining. At 12:30-ish, Gracie watched as George did spectacular aerial swoops and dives (I’m sure more spectacular in person than through the camera!!) to pick up more branches and grass for the nest, staying for a couple of minutes after bringing them before dashing away. George returned 10 minutes later with more grass and now it was Gracie’s time for a break. George has been spending most of this watch dozing and he, too, was visited a few times by the sparrows, snapping his beak at them on a couple of their visits! … The sun is out now and the wind is picking up and George is presently awaiting Gracie’s return…
Happy Mother’s Day to all the OZ mothers … and to our Gracie, mama to be! 🙂
1:46pmEDT Gracie has been out for a nice long break,,Mother’s Day Luncheon….,and it’s finallystopped raining ! Hopefully for a few days
Today started out much the same as all of the other recent days …. cloudy, but at least without the rain, and adding fog to the mix. George flew in at 5:20 am, sans fish, to relieve Gracie of her overnight incubating shift. Within 45 minutes, Gracie was back, landing on the branches along the rim of the nest bowl before making her way down to the eggs. George left, returning about a half hour later to take over for Gracie, bringing along a piece of rotted wood which he proceeded to drop on top of her. As she stood up to leave, the wood fell off and into place at the edge of the top of the nest bowl. (You’ll see why this is important in a bit!) George was his not his usual antsy self, but did play with the piece of plastic on his left side, arranging it in front of himself, and then deciding after 15 minutes that he didn’t like it there after all and so, moved it back to its original spot next to him. George and Gracie did a couple more switch-and-sits, before George brought Gracie a good-size headless fish around 8:35 am. After having partially eaten her fish, Gracie returned a 9 am, landing on the rim of the nest bowl. She had trouble releasing the fish from her talons and it ended up falling over the side of the rim to land on the branches on the edge of the base of the nest. After George moved aside and Gracie sat on the eggs, George looked around to see where the fish had fallen. Upon spotting it, George went to retrieve the fish, but he was having great difficulty trying to reach it, standing on the dead wood that had fallen off of Gracie’s back earlier, trying to keep his balance while the wood rocked back and forth like a seesaw, the vibrations causing the piece of fish to move ever closer to falling over the edge … but he was determined … waste not want not … and so he persisted … but, alas, after several minutes of trying, he was not able to get to it, so he flew away! … Gracie is still on the nest, in the rain …par for the course of recent days … which started just after she returned to the nest.
Happy Mother’s day to Gracie and all the other Moms out there!!
About 5:20amEDT 5/8..George shows up to send Gracie on her morning run…While she was out, one of the neighbors dropped in to say “hi”..She was out about 45 mins.
About 6:40ish..George brought in a clump of weeds and, possibly, bark, draping it on Gracie and the right side of nest. Gracie decided to leave again..Geo does some fidgeting, rolling eggs a couple of times, pulling plastic around himself, wiggling and fussing..@7:14 Gra returns..in the exchange, it almost looked like some rays of sunshine making Geo glow.. a moment of promise against the fog on the bay….”The sun’ll come out tomorrow” or maybe later today {there’s a song for every situation, isn’t there?}. There is a chance of showers late morning, but clear skies for days after,,,YAYYY!!!!
8:38am George brings in breakfast…I thought I saw him fly across the background a little before 8,,Gracie has been chirping and looking intently, so perhaps he was nearby, eating his share…
Finally found and rewatched that incident before 8 and it was more likely a stranger that Gracie was alarming about. Had missed the 2nd bird i the fly-by…
Gracie was back about 9..she brought a good sized chunk of fish back, but when she shook it loose from her talon, it went overboard and onto some sticks just off the side. She looked and said “You try,honey” and took over egg duty. George has studied and tried and even is doing his version of surfing on the unstable bark edge.He finally gave up after 10 mins…the fish may have fallen…And it’s raining…..
Yep…rewatched and saw it go…
May 08- 2:08 am -Just checking in on our girl as I can’t sleep (insomnia is no fun)
She is moving around just a little bit. Trying to get comfy I expect.
Hope the weather is better for her today/
Happy Mother’s Day 🙂
May 08- Happy Mother’s Day, Gracie <3
Happy Mother's Day To All The OZ Moms.
The rest of the afternoon was pretty uneventful … After George left a little before 2 pm, Gracie resumed playing with the plastic strip, still making it whip around, until it was caught by the wind and blown to the edge of the nest near the wooden slat, where it remains, anchored there by a curved twig. (The wooden slat is another Gracie find from 2 days ago – a story in and of itself!) … George incubated the eggs from about 4 pm to 5 pm, until Gracie took over – do you know, George, being his fidgety self, re-positioned himself and turned those eggs 7 times in that 1 hour!! … Finally, shortly before 5:45 pm, George brought Gracie a large headless fish – she must have been starving by that time, not having gotten anything to eat since the small piece of fish she’d had in the early AM; maybe, with the weather, George was not successful with fishing – hopefully, tomorrow will be a better day! … Gracie returned 25 minutes later, bringing the last bit of remaining fish from her dinner for George. George maneuvered himself around Gracie to get to the fish, flying off to eat part of it, then returning a few minutes later to keep Gracie company while he polished off the rest. He left shortly afterward and Gracie started her night shift.
7:40pmEDT 5/7 Sounds like George is somewhere nearby, chirping to protect his realm…
I want to wish all the mothers on Ospreyzone.. & of course our (Gracie!!) A Happy Mother’s Day! Hope everyone enjoys the day with your families & friends 😉
5:43pmEDT 5/7 Dinner arrives! Fat fish body..Gracie made sure she had a clawhold on it…
6:02pm Brave paddleboarder in the background
6:07pmGracie’s back, with fishtail stub..guess she saves it for a thank you..George tiptoed around edge of nest and took his tail with him,,noticed he’s losing a wing feather,,
Forecast is for possible showers tomorrow..Atleast it’s supposed to crack 60′..I can finally take the tomatoes and annuals out of the car! Nights still in 40s.
Happy Mother’s day to all..
George came back with his fishtail and keeping Gracie company…It is amazing watching him swallow that tail! He kept trying it, only to find it was too big..picked away, tried,until it finally went down..Good to the last scale !.Go,wipe your face, Georgie..and he’s off……
3:57pmEDT George is in and Gracie makes a quick exit..she has had a long spell on the nest….
May 30 first egg hatching
2:38 pm – George came at 2:28 pm with, with … green stringy … sea grass(?) and then a minute later returned with a small thick branch … Gracie is hollering – she’s hungry and would much rather have a fish, not new nest materials! George did some tidying and then took off, hopefully to, this time, find a fish for Gracie.
Around 2:30pmEDT George has made several trips in and out with nesting supplies…seaweed, reeds, sticks…working double time!!!!
George hasn’t topped Gracie yet: 12:40-ish pm – He brought just a small branch. 12:48-ish pm – George came in with a long, thin strip of wood that was almost broken in half, nearly spearing Gracie in the process; then he slapped her in the head with one end of the wood strip while trying to position it (slapstick comedy!! 🙂 ) … 12:55 pm – Something safe! A daffodil or tulip leaf … well, some kind of thin leaf. And away George went, taking the leaf with him … Gracie continued to sit on the eggs over the next hour, occasionally turning them and stretching her wings … and moving the black plastic bag scrap that had been near her away … 1:57 pm – Gracie had been calling for George for a little while … he came back with a wad of seaweed, not the fish I think she was hoping for, then away he went … leaving Gracie to whip around her earlier find, the plastic strip … and that’s where we are now
1:40pm EDT about 15 mins. ago, Gracie was making woodchips of an old branch..good nest liner..I think George was working on the same wood earlier..Gracie sounds like she is getting impatient..Geo was in and out several times, with various materials, til about 1ish..haven’t seen him lately..Gra has been shifting and fidgeting and chirping…
1:56pmEDT On cue to my hitting send, George came in with seaweed..Gracie chirped quietly, George replied, Gracie raised her tone….after getting his orders, George went out..I can hear Gracie chomping away on her tubing as I type..good stress reliever, I guess….
Just noticed misspelled name…I, too, have cat helping me type,sometimes…
1:29pmEDT 5/7 My Mom always said when the lilacs bloom, the weakfish are running..any of our fishermen have opinions on type of fish being caught by George? My lilacs are opening, so it must be spring??? I’m afraid the heat is gonna come down like a hammer and we will skip our beautiful LI springtime altogether…
I attempted to send a picture…we will all be surprised if it comes thru!!!! I tried a couple of times with various addresses and it went SOMEWHERE…out to the cloud of lost e-mails, probably…
Well, I saw mention, once, of a blue fish on April 30th!! I couldn’t tell ya otherwise … just small, large, headless, or partial!!
rjoneal: How about June 2 in the morning for the first chick? Tx!
11:21 Gracie took off and less than a minute later George flew down from perch to cover for her (pun intended). A few minutes later she was back with a piece of plastic, to replace what was lost over the last 3 days. … Those sparrows sure can be noisy – sounds as if they’re arguing at times! … George came back at 11:59 am with a clump of seaweed, then practically knocked Gracie out of the way in his eagerness for his turn to keep the eggs warm. … 12:05 pm, Gracie returned with a longish strip of plastic edging or something; as she was moving it, George stood up and the strip ended up lengthwise down his back, from head to tail (feathers) … staying balanced there even after he re-positioned himself on the eggs … and finally falling off when he re-positioned himself again (one for the highlights!!). He then flew away so Gracie could sit … now she’s playing with the plastic strip, making the end whip back and forth, while figuring out what to do with it: how to break it into smaller pieces or where to position it! George came back for a minute to look around – probably to see what he could find to top Gracie!! Then he took off, leaving Gracie to continue to wrestle with the plastic strip!!
About 11:57amEDT 5/7 George comes in to spell Gracie. She was back in minutes, with a flattened plastic tube, which in her usual style, she placed on George..it got balanced on him so well, he tried to get up and it wouldn’t fall off..so he settled in again and sat there. he tried again and it finally shifted off..too funny !!!! a rewatchable moment..
The neighbors downstairs were very noisy about 11:50ish..I don’t know if it’s possible for chicks for them yet, so I have to check…
It looked like George wanted to stay in nest..Gracie practically pushed him out, settled in, and proceeded to mangle her new flat tube. George came back and looked around, kind of at a loss…
3:11pm Sparrows incubate 10-14 days and are nestlings 10-14 days..up to 4 clutches per year…assembly line!!!!
May 07- I think what happened to cause me such concern for the eggs was that they were pushed so close to the side of the “bowl” that I just couldnt see them. I knew they were there, somewhere, I just didnt know where. 🙂
George had swapped with Gracie for egg duty at 10:19 am. Nine minutes later Gracie was back, bringing a piece of wood with her and landing with it clutched in her feet on George’s back end, then tripping and whacking George in the head, when she moved it! We have our own comedy duo. Yup, Tommy, you sure did give George and Gracie the perfect names!
10:27am 5/7 Gracie comes back from her break with a piece of bark, lands on George’s tail, drags bark across him and whacks him in head…”Honey, I’m hooomme”
11:27am EDT George came in about 5 mins. ago, giving Gracie her turn out..It was clear to see how deep the egg cup has become as the birds pull material in around them as they’ve been brooding..Nice cozy pocket now, with a parent lid to keep the eggs warm…
Is anyone else getting e-mails? Did I somehow unsubscribe myself?
Gracie was back within minutes..short walk around the block..George was looking at her like” ALREADY???”
Yes, Carol, you mentioned you were unsubscribing on April 23rd … when tons of comments came in a jumble after they were delayed and eventually posted … it’s what happens when we get old(er) … our memory goes and we become … birdbrains!! 😉 😀
Did anyone else see George feed Gracie around 8-8:15 PM May 6 while it was raining? The camera was wet and blurry; she had been on the nest a long time, and he brought a partial fish and fed her repeatedly just as she fed the babies last year. He left the fish in the nest, which she did not continue to eat on her own for the next period until it got too dark to see. A truly amazing sight.
Susan
May 07- In addition to my post about the weird egg disappearances, I took videos. If you want to watch just go to youtube and search Gracie and George Egg Question. 🙂
I just happened to be viewing your videos this morning, as a matter of fact, and I was wondering about the “Gracie and George-Egg Question #s-Morning of May 07” videos … then it dawned on me what you were saying … they didn’t really disappear, they were hidden by the stuff in the nest bowl. That would be good, though, in between their comedy skits, George and Gracie could do egg magic tricks!! 😀
May 08- I thought I had lost my mind. I knew they had to be there but where? lol. Little tricksters know they have an audience! 🙂
Scrolling back to see what I missed while I was writing my monologue … at the -2:17 mark (so at around 6:38 am) Gracie squawked at someone trying to land on the nest … who??
At 8:20-ish am: A stretch of her wings and legs … and then a quick minute away up on the perch … and then back on the eggs. Does anyone know, can birds get blood clots?
Sorry, s/b 7:40-ish am
May 07- 8:39 am- HOLY COW. I thought my eyes had finally given out. I scrolled back to watch the video and scrolled back just in time to see 1 egg in nest. Panicked I scrolled back to see three. Puzzled, I scrolled ahead to see 2. Apparently she has really shielded them from the rain and wind because I still haven’t seen the third egg yet it must be there. Possibly under the plastic? Magicians they are!
8:15amEDT 5/7 It’s pouring right now on the South Fork, comimg thru in waves, but the nest nest area doesn’t look as bad.. George just tapped in for Gracie and brought a nice chunk of fish
George was first in about 5:35am with the first fish..Gracie was only gone about 12-13 mins…And about 20 mins after that, George brought in a great big clump of seaweed….
About 6:35…George mugged for the camera…
About 8, it looked like Geo was trying to take over the eggs, but Gra said “no, someone needs to run to the market…I’m fine here,,”
8:55 Just listened to channel 12 news…Says police still looking for suspects in the nest burning and there is a $2000 reward…On the good news, weather clearing, maybe some breaks of sun in p.m., temps high 50s
9:12ish Shower comes thru..almost looks like sleet..George covered with little white-ish spots
Gracie came in about 9:15..had a good break..had time to go to yoga this a.m.
8:18 am: Fish time for Gracie, sit time for George, the rain off and on, and the wind never letting up.
Poor Gracie, looked like she was pelted with not just rain but rain mixed with sleet … George should have brought her a Moby Dick-size ( 😉 Jo-Ann April 28th) piece of fish for all of the misery she has endured this morning!
This morning when there was a changing of the guards, I saw only 2 eggs in the nest. Perhaps one of them is not in view ? or did something happen to one of the eggs
Cant resist having a guess at time of first hatch 2nd of June between 3 and 5pm. Hope your weather improves soon.Poor Gracie.As I write this I can hear rain hitting the nest.Hate to say this but its a warm sunny day here in the UK. Hope it is for you soon.
robin you think that was amazing wait till the babies are born sometimes Gracie and Geo double team and they will each feed a baby. I love it when I see that.
Leanne sorry about the mix up we got you back at June 1 early morning
May 08- Thanks so much. Its appreciated 🙂
Margaret I got it 6/5/16 7-3 pm and glad to see you are awaiting our babies 1st hatch as all of us cant wait.
Hatch ?
Update as 5-7-16 AM
more osprey viewers added
Margaret
6/5 between 7:00 am to 3:00 pm
Leanne
June 01- early morning
————–
Kathy B
May 31st. 11:13 am
Lucie Pecor
June 2nd 2am
Rodee Hansen
June 3rd – Friday – between 9 am and 3 pm.
Jara
June 4 at 12:01 am
Bobbie
Tues, May 31st, between noon and 5pm
Redkayak
June 5th morning
Bre
May 30th, Monday morning around 9am-ish..
Patty
June 2nd afternoon
Rjoneal
June 3 am-12noon
June C
June 2 AM
Carol IV
June 4,between 5am and 11am for first hatch…
Betsy
Jun 4th at 1 pm for first hatch.
At 5:35 am, George stopped in to pick up the fish that he had left on the nest last evening, returning a couple of minutes later with it … a little smaller (maybe he was testing that it was still good – it hadn’t been refrigerated all night! 🙂 ). After Gracie left, George took his seat on the eggs … but instead of slipping and sliding down the incline of the nest bowl from where he was to the eggs, he spread his wings to glide up and over on the wind to them. Gracie was back in almost no time and had to coax George off the nest with quiet little chirps. George circled around to land back in the nest to see what was needed and to figure out what he was going to do next. He brought back a clump of seaweed(?) about 20 minutes later that he placed in front of Gracie so she could arrange it how she wanted it. Then he was back about 25 minutes later to stand on the edge of the nest directly in front of the camera for a minute or so for us to get a better view of him (George is a handsome fellow!), then off again. George popped in just now for a brief moment to check on Gracie and survey the nest ….
Around 5:30 AM George brought in breakfast…Gracie took off..she was only gone about 10 minutes when she returned..
May 07- 1:03 am- I’m just checking in on Gracie even though its very hard to see her. I can see her head which is almost in the center of the screen so I know she’s still there. I just feel bad that she is all alone in such bad weather. I hope later today is better for her as far as the weather is concerned.
May 07-1:09 am- She’s moving around a bit. Adjusting herself and the eggs. Glad to see she’s ok. I worry! 🙂
On my Dark Sky app. it says for the day Cloudy, temps between 49-54, and low winds..wont be a beautiful day just a better day..
Gracie was shiveri,g somewhere around 3pm.
I noticed Gracie shivering today. I have not seen that before. Is that worrisome in an osprey? It has been unseasonably cold. Are they equipped for this kind of sustained cold?
Deborah: I saw Gracie really (as in almost violently) shivering on May 2nd and I was concerned, also, at that time. Birds shiver just like we shiver – to increase heat production to keep warm. I honestly didn’t notice if she was shivering yesterday, between the wind blowing her feathers and rocking the nest tower (and in turn making both her and George rock). But, I’m sure she’s fine.
Hi All..5/7 – 9:45 p.m. Just rolled back the tape and saw George come in with half a fish and he was feeding Gracie!! Its so adorable!!! Hope this weather gets better for our Osprey family!! It sure has been miserable!!
Gina M don’t you want to guess a date? Love to read your posts and enjoyed having you last year and so glad you are here this year. Let’s not forget your wonderful video of our osprey family it really touched everyone’s hearts !
Rjoneal, thanks for the invite, my guess is June 5th 7am
Betsy thank you for giving me heads up tonight around 7:15 PM on Friday 5-6-16 geo was feeding Gracie in the nest while it was raining Gracie laid on the three eggs I’ve been waiting to see him or her feed each other this season so glad I was able to rewind thanks to ospreys zone and get some good pics. Not to mention be able to rewind it and watch it a couple of times it’s so touching. Gracie and Geo feed each other last year once the babies were born. They say this is a way of bonding along with the beak kisses I just hope it’s not because Gracie is not feeling up to par being in the rain in the nest all day today. I choose to believe she was lonely for company and they decided to dine in together.
Redkayak I got it thanks for joining in. We are going to have so many people watching as it gets close unfortunately that will mean a lot of work for a moderators.
He was actually feeding her the fish…how amazing!!!
Bobbie I got your dates and times and you’re welcome. This is going to make it even more exciting as it gets closer.
Leann I got your switch date did some recalculating or second-guessing yourself either way good luck.Isn’t this fun ! As the dates approach near were all going to be sitting on pins and needles can’t wait.
Thanks for switching me back to June 01, early morning. I actually didn’t or wasn’t second guessing myself. The post where you had thought I switched my date was a post I made in reference to Gracie and George switching places in the nest.
Leanne May 6, 2016 at 12:45 pm – Reply
May 06- 12:44- Switch. ?
Next time I post I will make sure to clarify as I can see how it was mistakenly read. Just glad to be part of the fun and can’t wait to see the chicks, whenever they decide to make their appearance. 🙂
I started to use switch-and-sit (or how about swap-and-sit?) in my posts! 🙂 I know what CarolV is first going to read it as: Swish and spit!! … Boy George did a swish and spit! 😀
At 6:20 pm, George brought a headless fish to the nest and fed Gracie!!!… with the cloudiness of the camera lens, it looked like a dream sequence in a movie!
And, here I thought he was being so “romantic” (sorry Bob 🙂 ) … but I jumped the gun … George only fed Gracie a little and then flew off, leaving the fish laying next to her … just like the other evening … maybe to save himself a fishing trip in the morning!!
Actually, I need to correct the George feeding Gracie “only a little” — after I did a video grab, I realized he fed her for about 7 to 8 minutes!! Pretty long in bird time, I guess!
Kathy B got it,there might be a story behind that date and time. Pretty confident. If you win you’re going to have to give us the secret or story.
Hello everyone and how exciting we got quite a list going. Starting on 5-7-16 I will be listing all the names only once per day but giving the updated names as I get new posts. This way you only have to look at the present days post if you want to go back and review other people’s dates. You can pick the same date someone else has picked if that is your guess.
Hatch ?
Update as 5-6-16 PM
more osprey viewers added
Kathy B
May 31st. 11:13 am
————-
Lucie Pecor
June 2nd 2am
Rodee Hansen
June 3rd – Friday – between 9 am and 3 pm.
Jara
June 4 at 12:01 am
Leann switch new date
May 06- 12:44
Bobbie
Tues, May 31st, between noon and 5pm
Redkayak
June 5th morning
Bre
May 30th, Monday morning around 9am-ish..
Patty
June 2nd afternoon
Rjoneal
June 3 am-12noon
June C
June 2 AM
Carol IV
June 4,between 5am and 11am for first hatch…
Betsy
Jun 4th at 1 pm for first hatch.
I’d like to register my guess – June 8th between 6 a m. and 2 p. m. for first hatch
I don’t see my post on the date I choose ?? @rjoneal
605pmEDT:5/6 “Raindrops keep falling on my lens…” poor Gracie..I know..”It’s nature” But I can still feel sorry for them….
5:45 pm ABC7 just showed a picture sent to them of a soaked blue jay in the rain … they should see poor Gracie and George!!!!
Poor Gracie … pulled the longest shift (aside from her night shift) … around 3 3/4 hours and in the rain!! George did stop by, once, early into her sitting (after the first 1 to 1 1/4 hours!), to bring seaweed and let her know she was doing a good job and that he was around for her if she needed him (probably in a nearby tree … out of the rain ) She is a good mama, turning the eggs periodically … and she got to stretch her wings a couple of times and to poop over the edge of the nest. George brought her the usual fare of a headless fish (seemed to be a good-size) at about 4:25 pm and then he sat on the eggs. She returned to the nest to take over from George after less than 15 minutes … either she was in a hurry to get back to her “babies” and scarfed that fish down or she dropped it! And this is where we leave off.
Just noticed … that box is supposed to be 🙂
4:22pmEDT George brings in fish for teatime…Gracie says “thanks!! BaBye!!” I get a kick out of watching them settle onto the eggs..hooking their beak into the nest so they can scootch snugly up to the eggs…
4:38pm Gracie’s back..
I was concerned earlier (late morning,I think, because the eggs at CC nest were left alone for what seemed like a long time..someone there now. It’s good to see how diligent G&G are. Gracie practically scoots under George in her rush to get back on them!!!!
Think it was about 6:30pm George in with fish and feeding Gracie. so cute. I really hope this weather lets up soon. Aweful !
Welcome back Betsy!
Thank you wise one!
Hatch ?
Update as 5-6-16 4:15pm
more osprey viewers added
Lucie Pecor
June 2nd 2am
Rodee Hansen
June 3rd – Friday – between 9 am and 3 pm.
Jara
June 4 at 12:01 am
————
Leann switch new date
May 06- 12:44
Bobbie
Tues, May 31st, between noon and 5pm
Redkayak
June 5th morning
Bre
May 30th, Monday morning around 9am-ish..
Patty
June 2nd afternoon
Rjoneal
June 3 am-12noon
June C
June 2 AM
Carol IV
June 4,between 5am and 11am for first hatch…
Betsy
Jun 4th at 1 pm for first hatch.
May 06- I didnt mean to switch my date. I was commenting that the osprey had switched places. Sorry if I confused everyone. Can I have June 01- early morning back?
I am going to say 6/5 between 7:00 am to 3:00 pm when an egg will hatch
Okay, I’m done with my pity-party ( 😉 RJO&P). But I have been watching George and Gracie and reading all the posts. To reword Robert Palmer’s song (for those of us who are old enough to remember!!) “Might as well face it, I’m addicted to … OZ”.
Tucker: Had to look up pescar – fishing 🙂
Rjoneal: Have my own countdown calendar on my desktop (3, in fact, 1 for each egg!!) … but you already have my date down!
Kathryn: As far as sleeping with one eye open, the best that I could find is “Sleeping with one eye open is something we now know birds share with some marine mammals (which need to return to the surface to breathe), but certainly not with us. It is not even true of all birds, and so far it is known that songbirds, ducks, falcons, and gulls can sleep with one eye open. A complete survey has yet to be undertaken.” (https://www.audubon.org/magazine/may-june-2013/what-makes-bird-vision-so-cool) It’s It’s called “unihemispheric slow-wave sleep and keeps birds alert to potential predators while still catching some Zs” and birds have both REM and NREM sleep (http://ca.audubon.org/news/how-do-birds-sleep). And “birds use their right and left eyes for different tasks” (https://www.audubon.org/magazine/may-june-2013/what-makes-bird-vision-so-cool). Fascinating … I wonder how much more reading I could get done??!!
Wendy C: A woman after my own heart 🙂
Leann and CarolV: I was watching when Gracie brought that wood-stake thing (got a video grab!) and the whatever-that-was-fish-wood-pulpy thingy!! George’s expression with each … priceless!! Yes, CarolV, Gracie sure does have the ankle walk down … except when right after she brought that stake thing and decided to move the fish-wood-pulpy thing and the clump of grass-root thing to the edge of the nest … in the wind… I thought for sure she was going to break one of the eggs!! 🙂
She had me worried ,too! Break an egg or fall overboard….
Or totally knock EVERYTHING over the edge! Thanks, “neighbor”!
This is fun and exciting.
Here is my 1st hatch input. It will occur June 3rd – Friday – between 9 am and 3 pm. (It has to be before the Kentucky Derby on Saturday or after that event). Rodee H.
Maybe George will pick up a red rose for Gracie that morning!! He got close with that green thorny thing a couple of weeks ago (which, BTW, [you know me everyone — I had to “research”] … if it was part of a rose bush were prickles: “Prickle – A spine-like superficial outgrowth of the stem. Roses have prickles, not ‘thorns.’” (http://www.rose.org/rose-care-articles/basic-rose-terminology/) Still hurt as much when you touch them, if you ask me!
Oh, wait, today is the Kentucky Derby … the Preakness is May 21st … and the Belmont Stakes is June 11th. No need to worry, those of you who are horse racing fans … shouldn’t interfere with hatching and vice versa!
? Hatch
Update as 5-6-16 2:30pm
more osprey viewers added
Leann switch new date
May 06- 12:44
Bobbie
Tues, May 31st, between noon and 5pm
Redkayak
June 5th morning
——-
Bre
May 30th, Monday morning around 9am-ish..
Patty
June 2nd afternoon
Rjoneal
June 3 am-12noon
June C
June 2 AM
Carol IV
June 4,between 5am and 11am for first hatch…
Betsy
Jun 4th at 1 pm for first hatch.
Hatch guess June 2nd 2am
1st hatch guess, June 5th morning
May 06- 12:44- Switch. 🙂
12:18pmEDT George has a headless fish in the nest, but Gracie doesn’t seem interested…When she saw him pulling away on it, she decided she might as well nosh,,off she went….