Osprey Chicks Banded at Hammonasset

John Picard describes banding six osprey chicks at Hammonasset:

When Julie Victoria, Wildlife Biologist, CT DEP Wildlife Division, asked who would like to hold the first osprey chick for banding, Ed Localio didn’t hesitate even for a moment. He took two steps forward and held out his hands. And why wouldn’t he. Ed had been looking forward to this moment for months. Nearly every day since March 7, he had been monitoring the four new osprey platforms at Hammonasset Beach State Park and reporting his findings back to the Meigs Point Nature Center. 

9am: 2 osprey sitting on platform #1, one is eating a fish, looks like a flounder

10:15am: 3 osprey are flying around platform #2, not sure what is happening here, maybe a love triangle...?

Despite the ability to easily see adult osprey when they are on the platforms, it is difficult to assess from a distance how many chicks there are until they are old enough to stand up and make their presence known. Most often they stay hunkered down and try to blend in with the nest material to avoid calling attention to themselves.

So, on the morning of July 10 when Julie and Ed, accompanied by Menunkatuck Board member Shannon Scheisser, Menunkatuck Friend and volunteer Cate Nyary and I struck out into the salt marsh with a pocket full of aluminum bands and a ladder we were in eager anticipation of what we would find. The goal was to return with an empty pocket a muddy ladder and memories to last a lifetime.

Platform #1, located on Meigs Point, contained one chick which was nearly large enough to fly. Julie stated that this one could probably fly if it tried to but she wasn’t going to offer this information to the chick. Ed had his hands full with this bird. 

Platform #2, located to the east of the entrance road, midway between the entrance gate and the rotary, held three osprey chicks. All three were much smaller than the chick on Platform #1. However, they all appeared to be in good health and were just as surprised to see us as we were of them. Providing food for three chicks is a demanding task which would explain why there was a freshly caught flounder tucked in the corner of the nest, possibly set aside for a late lunch. There was also an added bonus of a barn swallow nest with four young birds in it, neatly tucked into the supporting members immediately below the platform and just above the predator baffle. The clever swallows had found a place to build a nest that would not only stay dry but is raccoon proof!

Platform #3, located behind the Camp Store, had two more osprey chicks. These two birds were sharing their nest not with a flounder, but with a assortment of braided rope, ribbons, fishing line and deflated balloons. Osprey have a habit of picking up trash to place in their nest and the results can be disastrous as the birds can sometimes become hopelessly entangled. This is yet another reason to remember to dispose of fishing line, kite string, balloons…responsibly. (In the Fall, after the osprey have fledged, we will once again visit the platforms to remove any and all trash that remains in the nest.) 

Platform #4, located near the Meigs Point Nature Center, was installed on June 13, too late for osprey nesting activity for this year. The osprey have been using this platform to perch, preen and eat their fish along with the willets that seem to like taking advantage of the platform as well. We are confident that this platform will be used by the osprey next year. Ed will be sure to keep us updated.