Old man winter

A nice coating of ice and snow on the coastal saltmarsh and Absecon Bay.

Ospreys are currently enjoying tropical weather in N. South America while all of us in the Northern Hemisphere are dealing with an arctic air mass that has engulfed most of the U.S. Prior to 2013, no ospreys have been seen in New Jersey past December 31, thanks to warmer weather during winter months. This year is a stark difference and really, something that is more typical weather for winter.

Ospreys will remain on their wintering grounds for at least another 6 weeks or until mid-March. Most spring migration occurs in late March. For now you can follow one bird (C2) from Jamaica Bay, New York who is wearing a satellite backpack and wintering in Venezuela.

• Check out the winter view of the saltmarsh from our Osprey Cam

A new year, more project areas

From Oceanport to Linwood, I'll be there

I already have several new platforms that are being set for construction and installation. I've spoken with several individuals who are interested in having nesting platforms placed to help the population reach historic numbers and in areas where they can be easily observed. In Oceanport we are working with Fort Monmouth and the Army Corps of Engineers to install several more platforms there. I'll be installing some more on Barnegat Bay, an area of interest of mine. When I started working with ospreys in 2004 there were only a couple platforms there, many of which were on channel markers. I've installed over 30 from Forked River to Tuckerton in the past 4 years. Then I'll be installing another in Ventnor on municipal open space near no other platforms. Finally, my last (for now) installation will occur in Linwood out on salt marsh owned by the city. 

Ice blankets a shallow creek along the D. Bay in December.

This is a good amount of platforms to install before April. With cold weather settling in and ice on the bays, I'll be stuck on land for a bit. In the meantime, I'm working on getting salvaged wood from the Atlantic City boardwalk. I'll be using this wood to construct these platforms. 

Happy New Year!!