Winter Help for the Osprey
In late February five retired guys, who are members of both the Jersey Shore Sea Kayak Association and the Friends of Sedge, braved the ice and cold northwest wind to help the osprey, a bird listed by the Federal Government as an endangered species. Since osprey are still on their wintering ground in Central and South America, this was an ideal time to rebuild aging nest platforms that have been further damaged by winter storms.
Our task was to build an osprey nest platform in the center of the 1,900 acre Sedge Island Marine Conservation Zone. We met at 10:00 am outside the entrance to Island Beach State Park and drove to the launch site at A-21. After loading lumber and tools in a canoe (our equipment barge), we attached tow lines to three of our five kayaks and headed south across the open water to the Snake Ditch where an old nest platform was lying on its side. Our last 100 yds were in a quiet backwater off the main channel where we had to break through ice to get to the nest site. With five people working, it took less than an hour to sink 4x4’s into the marsh, attach an old oak shipping pallet and then build a frame to hold nest material. We even replaced the cross bar on the perch pole near the nest. Just after we returned to the launch site, a huge pan of ice blew into the cove where moments before we had paddled on open water.
It will not be long until the osprey begin showing up in the Marine Conservation Zone. Males arrive in late March to stake out their territory. The females show up a few weeks later and almost immediately begin setting up their nests. Toward the end of April a biologist from the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife will check for eggs in each of the more than two dozen nests. For four weeks parents will take turns protecting the eggs and catching fish to feed their mate. (Boaters take note: This is a critical period for survival. Stay well away from nests so that the birds are not disturbed.) Most eggs will hatch by the beginning of June. At the beginning of July the biologists will return to band the juveniles just prior to their first flight. If things go well more than two dozen juvenile osprey from the MCZ will join the adults in late August when they begin their southerly migration.
The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife and the osprey living in the MCZ greatly appreciate help from individuals such as these who braved the sub-freezing temperatures to accomplish this task. Please remember that the individuals who completed this project are all expert paddlers, wearing the best winter gear, working as a team. Kayaking in the winter is not for beginners.
Jim Merritt, Program Director of the Sedge Island Natural Resource Education Center
Our task was to build an osprey nest platform in the center of the 1,900 acre Sedge Island Marine Conservation Zone. We met at 10:00 am outside the entrance to Island Beach State Park and drove to the launch site at A-21. After loading lumber and tools in a canoe (our equipment barge), we attached tow lines to three of our five kayaks and headed south across the open water to the Snake Ditch where an old nest platform was lying on its side. Our last 100 yds were in a quiet backwater off the main channel where we had to break through ice to get to the nest site. With five people working, it took less than an hour to sink 4x4’s into the marsh, attach an old oak shipping pallet and then build a frame to hold nest material. We even replaced the cross bar on the perch pole near the nest. Just after we returned to the launch site, a huge pan of ice blew into the cove where moments before we had paddled on open water.
It will not be long until the osprey begin showing up in the Marine Conservation Zone. Males arrive in late March to stake out their territory. The females show up a few weeks later and almost immediately begin setting up their nests. Toward the end of April a biologist from the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife will check for eggs in each of the more than two dozen nests. For four weeks parents will take turns protecting the eggs and catching fish to feed their mate. (Boaters take note: This is a critical period for survival. Stay well away from nests so that the birds are not disturbed.) Most eggs will hatch by the beginning of June. At the beginning of July the biologists will return to band the juveniles just prior to their first flight. If things go well more than two dozen juvenile osprey from the MCZ will join the adults in late August when they begin their southerly migration.
The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife and the osprey living in the MCZ greatly appreciate help from individuals such as these who braved the sub-freezing temperatures to accomplish this task. Please remember that the individuals who completed this project are all expert paddlers, wearing the best winter gear, working as a team. Kayaking in the winter is not for beginners.
Jim Merritt, Program Director of the Sedge Island Natural Resource Education Center
posted by Sedge Island at 10:03 AM
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