Our Osprey pair is back again this year: local lore says the birds arrive for nesting around Valentines day. This pair, if it is the same as last year, found their previous nest carried off stick by stick by the eagles that nest on the far platform. We watched them build the nest over a three week period, and then they began incubating eggs. I got such a kick out of the Great Horned Owl that arrived in the night to check out their progress.
This is only the second year we have had birds nesting on the platform, though it’s been there since 2007. We’re lucky it’s so close to the house and we have a chance to watch it via webcam without disturbing the birds. (You can watch the live camera here; just look for the video that says LIVE on the channel.) We know that the incubation period for Ospreys is 32-36 days, so at the beginning of May, we really started checking in hourly to see what might signify an egg hatching. On Mothers day (!) the birds began behaving differently.
We can’t wait to watch these little ones grow up!
Longer version of video when the chicks begin to hatch
If you want to hone your observation skills, here is a longer version of uncut footage during that first week.
