Boy Scout Dylan Green gives osprey nesting platform a needed upgrade
by Ben Wurst, Habitat Program Manager
Dylan and his father John pose for a quick portrait in front of one of the new platforms.
This past Sunday we assisted Dylan Green, along with his family and fellow Troop 65 scouts to install three new osprey nesting platforms. The project was done by Dylan as part of his Eagle Scout Service Project. He self funded the project using his own money to purchase the supplies needed to construct the platforms and built the platforms together with his fellow Boy Scouts. The platforms were used to replace two platforms that were in bad condition. The third was installed in a location where a platform used to be located. The osprey population at Cheesequake State Park is small, but it is good habitat for ospreys. Continue reading “Photos from the Field: Cheesequake Osprey Platform Replacement”
Ready to release Chump. RIP, Chump! photo by Northside Jim.
I thought long and hard about sharing this news, hence the delay in this post. In late October, we received news that a young osprey I banded this summer was re-sighted. It turns out that this bird was not your average young osprey, out of the 892 produced this year. This young bird hatched at a nest behind the Long Beach Island Foundation of the Arts & Sciences, around June 11th, a nest referred to as home to “LBI’s Most Famous Osprey Couple, Jack & Wendy.”He was banded, along with his nestlings, on July 5th. He was tagged with a red auxiliary “field readable” band: 78/D, as part of Project RedBand, which allows fellow biologists and citizen scientists the ability to identify the bird while still alive (most osprey band reports occur during mortality based events). At the time of banding, he was also given the name Chump, by Northside Jim.
NJ Osprey Project Volunteers Wayne Russell, Matt Tribulski and John King repair an osprey platform.
New Jersey ospreys have headed for warmer climates until their return in the spring. NJ osprey project volunteers are busy repairing and cleaning out nests, adding predator guards and perches in preparation for the nesting season. It’s an endless job as there are 100’s of nesting platforms throughout the state and maintenance is always needed. These repairs keep the nests as safe as possible for the nesting ospreys.
ACTION ALERT: Support ecological management of the most valuable public resource for our coastal ecosystem and economy
by Ben Wurst, Habitat Program Manager
Menhaden is a common food source for ospreys during their nesting season in New Jersey. Photo by Northside Jim.
The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission is accepting public comment on the establishment of ecological management of Atlantic menhaden (Brevoortia tyrannus), which is a keystone species. Basically, a keystone species is one that plays a large role in the ecosystem where it lives. If a keystone species is lost then the ecosystem would dramatically change or cease to function, causing widespread effects to other species that benefit. In New Jersey, ospreyshave largely benefited from a healthy menhaden population as we’ve had relatively high reproductive rates (more than double what’s needed to sustain population) over the past decade. From 2006 to 2016, the population has grown by 30% and above the pre-DDT, historic milestone of over 500 nesting pairs. Around 82% of the state population of ospreys nests along the Atlantic Coast and we observe menhaden at a huge number of nests during our mid-summer surveys. If menhaden numbers drop, then we will likely see osprey numbers follow suite, as reproductive rates will decline, as they are in the Chesapeake Bay.
I would like to take the time to share a noteworthy event from last week, as well as highlight a CWF volunteer who deserves recognition for his dedication to wildlife. CWF received a call last Friday from a concerned citizen about an osprey chick that had fallen from its nest in Avalon. Osprey chicks are extremely vulnerable to summer storms, and are often blown right from their nests in strong winds. The storm that pushed through the area Thursday night had likely blown this chick out of its nest onto the marsh below. This particular nest had just been surveyed on July 6 and had contained three young chicks.
osprey chick down on marsh after severe storms
Often when staff members are not available to respond to calls like this, we rely on our volunteers to represent us. In this case, when CWF volunteer John King got the call, he hooked up his boat and immediately headed out to assess the situation in hopes of making a rescue. When he arrived on the scene, John realized that there were actually three osprey chicks on the ground below the nest; however, two of them were unfortunately already deceased. The parents were also sitting on the ground with the one surviving chick when he arrived. John picked up the chick and examined it for injuries. When he determined it was in good condition, he carried it up a ladder and placed it back into the nest as the parents circled and screamed above him. As he left the site, the parents immediately returned to the nest to check on their chick.
Osprey chick returned to the safety of it’s nest
Even though John was only able to save one of the three chicks, this was still a success story that would not have been possible without the help of a devoted volunteer. The concerned citizens who had called in the emergency watched the whole rescue from across the lagoon and reported back the following day that the chick was sitting up in the nest looking healthy. CWF also greatly appreciates citizens who care enough to observe wildlife responsibly and report wildlife emergencies when necessary.
Adult returns to nesting platform after chick is safely returned to nest.
John King has been volunteering for CWF for many years and has worked on several projects including the Calling Amphibian Project, NJ Tiger Salamander project and the NJ eagle project. He has been very involved with the NJ osprey project, headed by CWF’s Ben Wurst, assisting with osprey surveys during the breeding season and helping to construct and erect nest platforms over the winter. In addition to CWF, John also volunteers with many other conservation organizations and is always happy to lend a hand. Although he is retired, his volunteer work is practically a full time job. I sincerely admire John’s continued enthusiasm and his dedication to wildlife, and I believe the world would be a better place if there were more people like him.
Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ thanks you, John!
Citizen Scientists Needed to help collect data on nesting ospreys
by Ben Wurst, Habitat Program Manager
Two young ospreys and an adult on a nest in Ocean County.
This year we are hoping to get a better estimate of the size and health of the osprey population in New Jersey. Up from only 50 pairs in the early 1970s to an estimated 600+ pairs today. Ospreys are an indicator species and as top tier predators, they show the effects of contaminants in the environment before many other long lived species. They are our new age “canary in the coal mine” so keeping tabs on the health of their population is key to assessing the health of our estuarine and marine ecosystems. Continue reading “Calling all Osprey Lovers!”
NJTV News recently covered the continuing recovery of ospreys in the Garden State by visiting the nesting pair at Long Beach Island Foundation for the Arts & Sciences. CWF’s Ben Wurst and David Wheeler joined NJTV for this inspiring video and accompanying story.
Braving the Caribbean Sea to Survey Turneffe Atoll
by Ben Wurst, Habitat Program Manager
Jay T. loads gear into Horace’s boat on Sittee River.
For the final leg of our survey of Ridgway’s ospreys in the northern most part of our study area, we set out for Turneffe Atoll. Turneffe Atoll is an archipelago of mangrove islands and coral reef that’s approximately 20 miles east of Belize City. It’s 30 miles long and 10 miles wide and Belize’s largest coral atoll. Luckily, it was declared a marine reserve in 2012, which protects it from future development. Turneffe is an amazing assemblage of different marine habitats which provide habitat for a variety of many different species of wildlife, including American crocodiles (more on this later!), conch, spiny lobster, manatees, dolphins, sea turtles, and many species of birds, coral and fish. The mangrove islands are large with taller trees on the interior of the island. This is where most, if not all, the ospreys nest. We left on Monday, February 20th. Continue reading “Studying the Ridgway’s Osprey of Belize: Part III”
February 18: Second Survey of nests surrounding Placencia
Our second survey began from Placencia, a small beach resort town on the southern coast of Belize, which is a beautiful place to visit if you’re planning a trip to Belize. It was flat calm that morning, which made for great boating, but it was extremely hot! Life in the tropics was finally setting in… We headed towards the first nest location, which was last surveyed in 2016 by Paul and his team. Paul and Alan have been surveying osprey nests in Belize since 2014, so all known nests have been mapped and surveyed over the past couple years. Through the continued surveys of these nests we should be able to determine if the low productivity of Ridgway’s (around .3-.4 young/active nest) can sustain the population in Belize (the southern most nesting colony of Ridgway’s throughout their range). The work performed as a part of these surveys is critical to their long term survival in Belize. The first nest we visited was very unkept; however a pair was present. This ended up being quite the common sight during this survey. Continue reading “Studying the Ridgway’s Osprey of Belize: Part II”
