Oops I Dropped It

by Deborah Benoit

Title

Oops I Dropped It

Artist

Deborah Benoit

Medium

Photograph - Original Art By Deborah Benoit

Description

The Osprey breeds near freshwater lakes and rivers, and sometimes on coastal brackish waters. Rocky outcrops just offshore are used in Rottnest Island off the coast of Western Australia, where there are 14 or so similar nesting sites of which five to seven are used in any one year. Many are renovated each season, and some have been used for 70 years. The nest is a large heap of sticks, driftwood and seaweed built in forks of trees, rocky outcrops, utility poles, artificial platforms or offshore islets. Generally, Ospreys reach sexual maturity and begin breeding around the age of three to four, though in some regions with high Osprey densities, such as Chesapeake Bay in the U.S., they may not start breeding until five to seven years old, and there may be a shortage of suitable tall structures. If there are no nesting sites available, young Ospreys may be forced to delay breeding. To ease this problem, posts are sometimes erected to provide more sites suitable for nest building.[39]
Preparing to mate on the nest
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The platform design developed by one organization, Citizens United to Protect the Maurice River and Its Tributaries, Inc. has become the official design of the State of New Jersey, U.S.A. The platform plans and materials list, available online, have been utilized by people from a number of different geographical regions. Osprey-watch.org is the global site for mapping osprey nest locations and logging observations on reproductive success.
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Ospreys usually mate for life. Rarely, polyandry has been recorded. The breeding season varies according to latitude; spring (September�October) in southern Australia, April to July in northern Australia and winter (June�August) in southern Queensland. In spring the pair begins a five-month period of partnership to raise their young. The female lays two to four eggs within a month, and relies on the size of the nest to conserve heat. The eggs are whitish with bold splotches of reddish-brown and are about 6.2 cm � 4.5 cm (2.4 in � 1.8 in) and weigh about 65 g (2.3 oz).[38] The eggs are incubated for about 5 weeks to hatching.
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The newly hatched chicks weigh only 50�60 g (1.8�2.1 oz), but fledge in 8�10 weeks. A study on Kangaroo Island, South Australia, had an average time between hatching and fledging of 69 days. The same study found an average of 0.66 young fledged per year per occupied territory, and 0.92 young fledged per year per active nest. Some 22% of surviving young either remained on the island, or returned at maturity to join the breeding population. When food is scarce, the first chicks to hatch are most likely to survive. The typical lifespan is 7�10 years, though rarely individuals can grow to as old as 20�25 years. The oldest European wild osprey on record lived to be over thirty years of age. In North America, Great Horned Owls, Golden Eagles, and Bald Eagles are the only major predators of Ospreys, capable of taking both nestlings and adults. However, kleptoparasitism by Bald Eagles, where the larger raptor steals the Osprey's catch, is more common than predation. The White-tailed Eagle, which is very similar to the Bald Eagle, may harrass or predate the Osprey in Eurasia. Raccoons can be a serious threat to nestlings or eggs if they can access the nest.

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February 1st, 2014

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