Migration Begins!

A juvenile osprey in Ocean City, NJ.

Many different things may indicate that summer is ending, labor day parties, less tourists, cooler temperatures, sour gum leaves turn red, shorter day length period, and southbound bird migration....For ospreys, it marks the beginning of the annual fall migration period back to their wintering areas where warm waters support high numbers of prey. This year all osprey young produced in New Jersey have fledged (529 young were observed this summer) and after they fledged they relied on their parents for food for several weeks. Now, many are on their own, using instincts and learned tactics to catch fast moving and cryptically colored fish. Many juvenile ospreys are dispersing from their nest sites and beginning there migration south to Central America, Northern South America, and the Caribbean Islands where they will spend the next two years and will not return to NJ to breed until late March 2011.

Route (red lines) typically followed by ospreys during fall migration. Most follow
landmasses south from Florida through Cuba into Hispaniola,
then fly directly south into Venezuela and Columbia.

Fall migrants can be seen as early as mid-August in New Jersey. Juveniles begin migration before adults. Sometimes juveniles fly completely in the wrong direction before they eventually turn and fly south. Satellite tracking studies are being conducted by on several juveniles and adults near New Bedford, Massachusetts. The data that is collected from the tags is great information and very interesting to follow where each of the birds goes during migration. Check out the link to follow the birds from Massachusetts.

This year volunteers and biologists banded 348 osprey young. In a typical year we usually get around 10 bands that are recovered. In 2008, 16 banded ospreys were found. Unfortunately almost all recoveries we get are from dead or injured ospreys. We do get great information from band recoveries. We can study survival/mortality rates, migration routes, and behavior.

Here are where bands were recovered in 2008:

Cayman Islands - Alive, was rehabilitated and released. Banded in 2006.

Mauricetown, NJ - Banded 2004.

Mauricetown, NJ - Banded 2003

Wildwood, NJ - Banded 2006

Hollywood, MD - Banded 2006

Margate, NJ - Banded 2008

Cape May, NJ - Banded 1991 - 17 years old!

St. Croix, USVI - Banded 2006

Vero Beach, FL - Banded 2008

Miami, FL - Banded 2008

Hollywood, FL - Banded 2008

Tolima, Columbia - Banded 2008

Cauca, Columbia - Banded 2008

Little Egg Harbor, NJ - Banded 2008

Mauricetown, NJ - Banded 2004

After a cold front moves through and winds are coming from the north, look up and you may notice the spectacular event that occuring all around you! If you want to get the best views of raptors and other birds during migration visit one of these locations:

Cape May Point State Park - Peak viewing period for ospreys is early October.

Higbee Beach WMA - A diverse wildlife management area in Cape May that has many different habitat types.

Hawk Mountain, PA - "Hawk Mountain is the world's first refuge for birds of prey. Open year-round, visitors enjoy scenic vistas, 8-miles of ridge and valley trails, a Visitor Center, Bookstore, and native plant garden, and each autumn, the chance to observe large numbers of hawks, eagle and falcons as they migrate past our lookouts. Operating as a non-profit eco-tourism site, your trail fee or membership dues directly support scientific research, public education and Sanctuary maintenance."

Kiptopeke State Park, VA - "Since 1963, Kiptopeke has been the site of bird population studies. Sponsored by the Coastal Virginia Wildlife Observatory and licensed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, volunteers capture, examine, weigh, band and release resident and migratory birds each year from mid-August through November. In the raptor research area, hawks, kestrels, osprey and other birds of prey are observed and banded from September through November. Kiptopeke’s hawk observatory is among the top 15 nationwide."

For more information about raptor migration and birding in New Jersey visit: http://www.birdcapemay.org/hawkwatch.shtml

2009 Osprey Project Photo contest

This year I wanted to have the general public and our volunteers help choose a photo that will be featured in our annual Osprey Project Newsletter published by the Endangered and Nongame Species Program and Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ. Click here to read previous years newsletters. 

To view the photos click on the slide show below and and vote for your favorite photo by clicking on the "LIKE" icon to the lower left of each photo. Note - you can only "like" one photo!!!

Thanks for voting!

Osprey Nestling Relocation

Over the weekend I was contacted by Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research to find a nest platform where a juvenile osprey could be placed. We have 475 pairs in the state, but I needed to find a specific platform where the nestling(s) would be similar in age (6-7 weeks old) to the juvenile from Tri-State. Instantly I thought of one pair that nested on a new structure inside Forsythe NWR in Oceanville along the "Wildlife Drive." When I was there on July 8th banding (nestlings between the ages of 4-6 weeks old) this nest had two hatchlings. The hatchlings were approximately 2-3 days in age and need very close parental care. On Monday, I got confirmation that there was one nestling in the nest at Forsythe, so I proceeded with the transfer of the juvenile osprey from Tri-State. The nestling was now 6 weeks old.

 An adult perched on the platform.

I picked up the osprey in Vineland, where I met Russ, a volunteer with Tri-State, who donates his time to help injured wildlife. I then drove to Forsythe NWR and met Jeff Sloane, a biological technician and two interns. We met out on the "Wildlife Drive" at the osprey nest where we were going to place the bird. Both adults were present at the nest (a good sign). We then loaded up the ladder and the osprey and paddled across the ditch to the nest.

Jeff Sloane, Biological Technician with USFWS carries the young osprey up to the nest.

I removed the juvenile osprey from a box and handed it to Jeff, who then placed it in the nest. The adults circled, calling to their chick to "lay down." Osprey nestlings rely heavily on their plumage or feather coloration as camouflage to help them avoid predation. Basically we are seen as predators. Once Jeff placed the bird in the nest he climbed down and we proceeded to leave the area quietly. Once Jeff climbed down and was removing the ladder, the juvenile osprey from Tri-State instantly took flight and fledged! We watched as it flew into the wind towards Atlantic City. It's flight was strong and it landed nearby in the saltmarsh.

 Jeff places the osprey in the nest.

Since all juvenile ospreys look alike (buff feather tips and orange eyes) it will hopefully beg for food from another adult in the area. Unfortunately, there is no way for us to track this bird or where it travels to. It is banded with a federal USGS bird band, so if for any reason it does not survive and someone finds the band, then we will get information on where and when it was found. Until then, we just have to hope for the best.

Platform Work Continues and Some Nesting Season Results

On Tuesday, I got some much needed assistance with the installation of 3 platforms in Little Egg Harbor inside the Great Bay Blvd. Wildlife Management Area. This past winter and spring I had some friends help me construct 14 platforms. We installed 9 in March. More than half the new platforms were occupied this year, a couple nests even produced young, while others were simply "housekeeping" or practicing to nest.

Two of the three new platforms were placed next to old ones that will be removed this fall. The old platforms were unstable and in a state-of-disrepair. The other platform was placed directly across from the old Fish Factory (photos will come soon!).

An adult osprey flies by while conducting surveys in Little Egg Harbor. Photo by Bill Steiner

On another note, I've got some great news and nesting season results for you. The results are astounding. Truthfully, I did not think that the osprey population would have grown as much as they did in the past three years, but it has. Over the past 10 years or so population growth has slowed (from around 19% to 9%), which I believe is mostly due to a lack in nesting platforms. But since 2006 (when the last statewide survey was conducted) the population has grown by 19% to 475 nesting pairs, statewide. This is another record breaking post-DDT milestone. Historically, records showed that prior to the 1930's there were more than 500 nesting pairs of ospreys in NJ. After the effects of DDT, habitat loss, and persecution the statewide population was down to only 50 pairs in the 1960's. This prompted biologists to list the bird as endangered and work began to help the population recover. A large part of the restoration efforts were focused on erecting artificial nesting platforms. Today, you can tell that all the hard work done by biologists, like Pete McLain, Larry Niles, and Kathy Clark and the many volunteers have paid off. Their legacy will live on with the osprey as they continue to thrive in the most densely populated state in the United States.