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| A female Osprey sits in her nest.
High above Windmill Marsh the male osprey soared, alternately
circling and hovering as it scanned the water below. Then, in an
instant, it plummeted toward the surface of the marsh. The final
second of its rapid descent was shielded from our view by towering
pines, yet there was no mistaking the loud splash. Moments later the
Osprey was airborne once again. Though his talons were empty there
would be no returning without food. He continued his search, flying
eastward over the marsh.
A
quarter mile to the west in Hazard Campbell Marsh, the female of the
pair stood guard, her fledglings hidden from sight in the deep
confines of a large stick nest.
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It was early May and Claudia and I were hiking the network of trails
on Oak Orchard Wildlife Management Area. This was not our first
sighting of this pair of ospreys. Three other outings had yielded
similar results, with the female standing guard over the nest while
the male perched in a nearby dead tree.
AKA the “Fish Hawk”, Ospreys attain a wing span of five feet or
better and commonly nest along lakes, rivers and coastal areas, the
species’ preferred hunting grounds. Like the Bald Eagle, Ospreys
have made a dramatic comeback in recent years. Pesticide use in the
50’s and 60’s led to a drastic decline in their numbers but
thankfully, they are once again nesting in areas from which they once
disappeared.
Until Next Time,
Jim & Claudia
