| Author | Thread |
|
|
07/08/2011 07:58:17 AM · #1 |
WARNING: This story does not have a happy ending. :(
My son and I have been volunteering to check bluebird boxes at a local park. The furthest box is on the point in a river. There are many osprey nests along the river, but we noticed one nest that was quite accessible with a long lens. It was nesting on a sign in the river, and there was a baby in the nest:
My son and I went out to watch the nest for the take two challenge. I had tried getting an osprey flying into a nest with a fish a couple of years ago at a different park in Maryland. It was a good shot, but I had always hoped to have an opportunity to do better.
We sat out for about an hour and a half and completely lucked out! One of the parents flew in with a fish! Not only that, he flew in, didn't deposit the fish, and then flew off. He did that four times before actually dropping off the fish. Here are the shots that I was able to get:
    
I ended up with many chigger bites, but it was worth it.
Of course, after I entered the take two challenge -- then they announced the National Geographic challenge!!
I went back out, this time staying around for about 2.5 hours. No flying fish that day, but one parent did fly in with a stick and started arranging it in the nest, I probably should have entered this one in the challenge, but I really liked the intensity of the one I did enter. This one has more action, however:
outtake:
entry:
Other shots from that day:
 
I sprayed myself more liberally with spray, but many more chigger bites and three deer ticks.
The bug bites were keeping me awake at night, but the osprey were so incredibly fascinating, that I had to go back out again. This time I brought a queen sized sheet, laid it out on the ground, sprayed it with bug spray and set up a tripod (the other shots were hand held). It worked!!! Hardly any bug bites! (although I was only there for about an 1.5 hours this time.)
Not much activity in the nest. The other parent had already dropped off a fish, so there was feeding time. Though a branch was quite problematic.
 
After that I went to the mountains for a couple of days. It was about a week before I was able to get back to the nest. I had really been looking forward to watching the baby grow up. I figured he'd need to eat more, so perhaps I could get some fishing shots, and perhaps even the fledging.
My son and I went out to the park. When we got there the sign was empty. The nest was completely gone -- not even one stick left! We were both devastated. We stopped by the ranger station on the way out, wondering if it was a storm or human destruction. They said the people that live on this creek on the river are very respectful of the wildlife, and even the kids that boat through are very responsible. Other nests, farther out, were fine. There was a bad storm on the 4th of July, and they assume that the nest blew down.
The incredibly sad part of the story is that I don't think that there's anyway that the baby was old enough to fledge. He was still awfully little the week before, and it takes 7 to 8 weeks to fledge. I felt so incredibly bad, and I still do. I spent about about 6-8 hours watching them, and was completely fascinated. I had fallen in love with the little family and thought that I had weeks to observe and photograph. They were incredibly special. I'm sure the parents are fine, and will nest next year.
But I just wanted to say: "Rest in peace, baby osprey. It was incredibly special to have watched you."
Message edited by author 2011-07-08 07:59:49. |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 08:05:27 AM · #2 |
| Awww What a sad ending to a very cool story. I'm sorry for the disappointment that you and your son must be feeling Wendy. Nature has it's own way of doing things and we don't always like the results. Now there may be more fish for the other hungry baby Ospreys in the area. |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 08:08:20 AM · #3 |
:-(
This almost reads like something that should be in the paper (or a magazine). Well done Wendy! |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 08:20:41 AM · #4 |
| Some amazing pictures, but a very sad story. Such beautiful creatures. |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 08:29:27 AM · #5 |
| Ahhh Wendy.... after watching the baby eagles from Decorah (virtually... from Colorado)for so long, and feeling so attached to them - I can understand the attachment when you have been watching and documenting from so near. Your images of this little family are so beautiful! I am so sorry for this loss and hope that you experience a better result in the future. Your images and story are awesome and demonstrate so well, the strength and the fragility of life and nature. |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 09:29:59 AM · #6 |
| Thanks, all... I was hoping that someone would understand. I was crying when I went into the ranger station... |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 09:41:38 AM · #7 |
| Wonderful story Wendy, and I understand your sadness and sense of loss. I'm so sorry for your sadness. |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 10:52:37 AM · #8 |
| So sorry to hear of the loss of the baby osprey, Wendy :-( |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 11:12:29 AM · #9 |
Aawww! Poor baby.
eta: Great shots of course.
Message edited by author 2011-07-08 11:12:50. |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 11:22:14 AM · #10 |
| So sorry. I know just how you feel as I've been through this twice with a pair of birds that nest in our garden. It's really heartbreaking when you grow attached to something so little and it doesn't ever grow up:( |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 11:52:53 AM · #11 |
| Poor baby ... wildlife watching can be heartbreaking :-( |
|
|
|
07/08/2011 11:59:20 AM · #12 |
Thanks for sharing the story, Wendy. Contact your local paper with this link; wouldn't surprise me at all if they did a feature story with this tale and your pictures. Go for it!
R. |
|
|
|
05/23/2012 02:45:49 AM · #13 |
| Sad ending indeed. I never knew the lengths you went to to get these incredible images. I am most seriously impressed. |
|
Home -
Challenges -
Community -
League -
Photos -
Cameras -
Lenses -
Learn -
Help -
Terms of Use -
Privacy -
Top ^
DPChallenge, and website content and design, Copyright © 2001-2025 Challenging Technologies, LLC.
All digital photo copyrights belong to the photographers and may not be used without permission.
Current Server Time: 04/07/2025 01:24:38 PM EDT.
