The Ospreys are back…which makes me think of the ‘Osprey Incident’

Yesterday while working outside I heard the distinctive call of an Osprey. Looking up, I saw a pair circling overhead. They’ve been gone for the winter (they migrate south, sometimes all the way to South America, sometimes closer like California or Florida) and yesterday is the first I’ve noticed them back. In the past two summers here, we’ve had a nesting pair somewhat close, though we’ve yet to discover the nest. This raptor needs to be near a body of water, as its diet consists almost exclusively of fish. They are fishermen par excellence, so much so that bigger raptors such as eagles will try to steal their catches (see my post here for an interesting tale about that), though Ospreys are fairly large themselves. Their presence accentuates the ebb and flow of life here, the waxing and waning of flora and fauna with the seasons. Things are starting to wake up after the colder weather and long rains of the winter. It’s good to have our feathered friends back again.

Last May, I was working near the shoreline of the lake, endeavoring to hack a trail through the thick underbrush. At the time, vacation rental guests staying in the boathouse had no shore access (the steps up from the boathouse lead straight to our living area), so I had engineered a separate walkway from the boathouse to the shore using an old dock section. However, a trail was needed from that landing point to a more clear area.

As I was going about my work, I heard a large splash in the lake right off the shore. A bit startled, I turned quickly and was amazed to see a large Osprey in the water not 30 feet from me. It was flapping its wings gamely but not really going anywhere. After a few minutes of this, I thought it might be hurt and not able to lift off again. There are three docks at this property (one for the cottage), one for the boathouse, and an old dilapidated one further down our little bay built on three enormous logs that amazingly still float. The Osprey had splashed down near this old dock, and after flapping around ineffectually for a while, it began a sort of fluttering / swimming gait towards the dock. Upon reaching it, the raptor pulled itself out of the water, and in one talon it grasped a decently sized trout…which is why it couldn’t lift off again. The fish was too heavy.

The Osprey then proceeded to devour the trout on the old dock. I ran and got Sherri and a camera, and here is what we captured:

Here also is a short clip of the Osprey with its catch:

Amazing! We watched for a quite a while, taking numerous pictures and movies. Later, when the Osprey had eaten its fill, a number of ravens and turkey vultures battled over the scraps, so for us the entertainment was an all day affair. Just another day of life on the lake!

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