I wanted to give an update on our osprey couple and also offer a few photos from some of the other osprey cam nests that are seeing interesting action.

First, our couple: As we said on the cam page, we’ve seen more mating and more nest building from the ospreys, although at this late date, we really don’t expect more eggs. But nevertheless, it’s good to see our pair still together and bonding. If they decide to return to this same nest next year, then hopefully they will have a strong foundation as a couple and have success raising a family.

Some folks did ask about the old eggshell in the nest — that is one of the eggs the crow broke when we lost our clutch. It’s likely the shell is empty at this point.

Other Osprey Nests

In case you weren’t aware, the Connecticut Audubon Osprey Cam now has four chicks, which is an amazing achievement. This couple is an experienced pair, so we’re hoping they can handle such a crowded nest. For those who were not with us back in 2006, the Blackwater Osprey Cam had four chicks during that season and all managed to fledge, which is somewhat unusual in the osprey world as often one or two of the chicks won’t make it to fledging age when there are four. Visit our Cam Central page to see our gallery and web log from the 2006 Osprey Cam season.

One more thing I wanted to mention about the Connecticut Osprey Cam: This is one of the rare nests we’ve seen where the father regularly feeds the mother food.

Another nest I’ve been watching is the North Carolina Osprey Cam, and since they’ve moved that cam into a better position, we’re getting to see some nice shots of the family.

In this first shot I captured, we can see the whole family together. The father is nearest the camera and the mother is next to him (see her brown “necklace”). In the nest is the couple’s two chicks and one unhatched egg. Notice the chick has a white stripe down its back — when the chicks are lying in the nest, the stripes help camouflage them by making them look like another stick.

In this next shot we get a better look at the stripe and also a look at the oldest chick’s crop, where extra food is stored for later consumption.

The third shot shows the youngest chick flapping its wings and shows the mother watching the youngster.

And in the fourth shot we get a good close-up of the female taking oil from her preening gland (near the base of her tail), which she will use to clean and waterproof her feathers.

Another interesting nest is the Kentucky Osprey Cam where they have three chicks. Be sure to check out their excellent video clips that make you feel like you’re in the nest. This cam offers a good illustration of the second stage of chick development. First, the osprey chicks come out cute and light colored, but then they enter what’s called their reptilian stage when they look like little dinosaurs, and in this photo you can see the oldest chick is in that stage now.

For more osprey cams on the Net, see my April 19 post. And I did want to point out that one of the Finland osprey cams has moved to a new URL. It’s the cam I said had such a fantastic view, and you can now find it here; just click on the osprey photo. And remember Finland time is about 7 hours ahead of Eastern Time in the U.S.

Until next time,
Lisa - webmaster
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wildlife refuge, ospreys, osprey cams, Blackwater Refuge, Maryland