After cleaning and repairing a nest, or starting a new site, courtship rituals take place in April, when the male will often be seen flying overhead with a fish headfirst in its talons. These are equipped with retractable outer toes and scaly spicules for a better grip of the slippery prey. During May the eggs are laid and the female takes over most of the incubation duties, while being fed by the male. In June the young are hatched and are constantly being fed by the mother with fish supplies provided by the male. At this stage the birds are most vulnerable to disturbances by man and predation by Raccoons and Great Horned Owls. After having learned to fly and fish from their parents, they leave in September for the Caribbean and Latin America, where the young remain for 2 years, then to return to the old breeding site. Only about 50% of the young survive the first year.

Osprey feed mostly on Brown Bullhead, Small mouth Bass, Pumpkinseed, Blue gill, White Sucker, Carp and Yellow Perch. Once the Osprey were threatened with extinction because of the wide-spread use of pesticides like DDT. With its long term and accumulative effects this pesticide was particularly devastating on the egg shells of this and other birds high up in the food chain. But with the ban of DDT at least in North America the population is recovering, especially where aided with nesting structure provisions and good fishing habitat.

The caring observer should remain a good distance, at least 700 feet, from the nest.

Randy Roth pictures copyrighted, used by permission.