28 May 2007 - Delaware lake Ospreys feed nestlings - Tuttle

E-mail from Dick Tuttle:
Photo by Frank Germann, taken May 15, 2007

Hello Everyone,

The hatching due-date for the Delaware Lake Ospreys was Friday 25 May 2007. On that date, I visited the old bridge abutment and because of the depth of the nest, I could not see enough (35x) with my scope to draw any conclusions. After six minutes of frustration (1816 - 1822), I drove across the road and entered the woods with my telescope and director's chair. From 1832 - 1907, I watched at 82x to see the female stand twice while I did not see a tail wag of any significance. At 1901, she stood and while turning 180 degrees, she dipped her head into the nest 13 times -- too much action for egg rolling alone. Minutes later, she settled in WITHOUT A FINAL TAIL WIGGLE, leading me to conclude that one or more hatchlings were in the nest. Also, once settled, her entire back was visible in what is a very deep nest cup. She was standing over hatchlings.

Confirmation of nestlings came Monday 28 May when I watched (82x) from 1530 - 1646. The female was alone at the nest for most of the time and she shifted, rocked back and forth, twitched, panted from the heat, fluffed up, and was generally agitated. She dipped her head to her front many times and when she stood, she settled back while standing high in the nest after much attention to the cup.

For two minutes, an extra Osprey caused high pitched chirps from the nest female. The extra bird circled the nest and closed in to within several yards. The extra bird had a misplaced primary feather in its left wing.

The male showed up at 1631 to snag an eight-inch channel catfish close to the nest pole. He caught it like an eagle, without splashing, something I had never witnessed before. He landed on the West sign and ate the fish's head. (I attached extra wood to the signs several years ago so Ospreys can use them for eating perches.) He delivered the fish to the nest at 1642 where the female stood, ate five bites, before "FEEDING THE NEST CUP." She delivered bites to multiple locations in the cup. I was tired and hungry myself, so I left feeling satisfied that this nest contains nestlings that hatched on or near the the predicted date.

Alum Creek No. One is scheduled to hatch 29 May to finish Osprey hatching in Delaware County, Ohio. Also, it is time for heads to appear above the nest cup at the Hoover nest. Let's hope for a large count this year.