Nickname
056-A-001 (Frenchtown Cell)
Coordinates
(40.5173, -75.0587)
Substrate
Communication tower
Description
Frenchtown Cell 1. This tower is on route 29 just north of the Roller Rink and can be accessed via private property which leads to the cell company access road, with permission of the farmer on whose field the tower stands. The cell company road is gated on route 29.
Followers
None
Monitoring groups
What to look for
Review All Observations
2023 - DianeMC2022 - DianeMC2021 - DianeMC2021 - CyclistBarb2020 - DianeMC2017 - Ben Wurst2017 - DianeMC2013 - Ben Wurst
aAdult Arrival4/12/233/27/224/8/215/10/20
aOccupiedYesYesYesYesYesYesYesNo
aActive
bEgg Laying
bIncubation Initiation
cClutch Hatching
dNestlings2233
eFledglings2032
eFirst Chick Fledging7/29/208/9/17
fChicks Last Observed
xNest Failure
xReason For Nest Failure

Select Seasons

Show reports, diaries, and photos from:Current 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2017 2013

Activity reports

2013 Nest Activity Report by Ben Wurst
Adult arrivalNestlings
Nest OccupiedNoFledglings
Nest Active First chick fledging
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiationNest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure
2017 Nest Activity Report by Ben Wurst
Adult arrivalNestlings
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings
Nest Active First chick fledging
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiationNest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure
2017 Nest Activity Report by DianeMC
Adult arrivalNestlings
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings2
Nest Active First chick fledging08/09/2017
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiationNest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure
2020 Nest Activity Report by DianeMC
Adult arrival05/10/2020Nestlings3
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings
Nest Active First chick fledging07/29/2020
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiationNest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure
2021 Nest Activity Report by DianeMC
Adult arrival04/08/2021Nestlings
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings
Nest Active First chick fledging
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiationNest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure
2021 Nest Activity Report by CyclistBarb
Adult arrivalNestlings3
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings3
Nest Active First chick fledging
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiationNest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure
2022 Nest Activity Report by DianeMC
Adult arrival03/27/2022Nestlings2
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings0
Nest Active First chick fledging
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiationNest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure
2023 Nest Activity Report by DianeMC
Adult arrival04/12/2023Nestlings2
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings2
Nest Active First chick fledging
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiationNest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure

Photos of this nest

Nesting Diaries

03/22/2024 by DianeMC
One adult could be seen at the top of the tower as viewed from Rt 29. I could ID as the female. I drove to the top of the drive leading to the farm to check the back side of the tower. She was the only osprey seen this morning. I will watch for her mate to, hopefully, return soon.

08/17/2023 by DianeMC
Part 2 Upon returning home, I realized I left my stool in the field. I had to return to get it. I almost left the camera at home thinking this would be a quick trip, but at grabbed it as I left. I'm so glad I had it with me! This 2nd visit was quite the surprise. As I drove into the field, I saw 2 osprey around the nest. One landed, another attempted to do so but took off to the trees to the right of the tower as seen from my approach from the farm's access road. I thought I had witnessed a prey delivery. I couldn't be more wrong! I got to my viewing spot and watched the female juvenile. I will call her Speckled Necklace. Her necklace was lighter than some others I've seen, but still quite visible. She was in the nest eating. Another juvenile, a male, flew past the nest and into the trees out of my view. Seconds later Speckled Necklace started sounding the alarm. A 3rd juvenile osprey circled the nest. She landed on it and I could see this was another female. I will call her Dark Necklace. When Dark landed, Speckled went crazy! She stood up, wings out, and screamed. Speckled Necklace worked her way around behind Dark Necklace and grabbed her back. Dark tried to escape and worked her way to the edge of the nest facing me. Speckled held on tight! I could hear them screaming at each other and the sound of their wings beating and hitting the sticks of the nest. Sticks fell. I thought Dark got tangled in the tower and was dangling with Speckled hanging on. It felt like they hung there forever but according to my photos it was only about 2 minutes. They both flew off - Speckled Necklace still hold tight to the back of Dark Necklace with her talons. They landed in the field nearby. I rushed to get them back in my sight, and found both on the ground but separated. Both flapped a few times, and Dark Necklace took flight away from the tower. Speckled Necklace remained on the ground for 2 minutes. She kept looking into the trees next to her. When she finally flew off, she flew strong and right to the trees. I caught sight of her and the young male flying off together in the back field and out of my view. From the behavior I saw today, I believe the male and Speckled Necklace to be siblings. I think the 2nd female, Dark Necklace was a different osprey and not from this nest. The interaction between the 2 young females was very aggressive on Speckled Necklace's part. She was defending her nest from an intruder. It was quite the observation. I'm glad all birds were OK and not injured. I was thankful I did not have to call for a rescue.

08/17/2023 by DianeMC
Part 1 of 2 observations Today - What a crazy day today's visit was - I thought I would have to call in a rescue. Thankfully not, but I will start at the beginning. Unfortunately I had not had the opportunity to get back to the nest since my last visit of more than 4 weeks ago. That is much time between visits, and I'm afraid I missed all the fun of flapping and hovering above the nest as the nestlings prepare for their first flight. I arrived this morning about 10:45am. All was quiet, and I could see nothing from that viewpoint. I changed my position, and could see 1 female in the nest. She sat watching the area. I observed a pair of kestrels in the distance. I saw 2 osprey fly out of the tree line between the tower and Rt 29, towards the river. I could not get a shot since they surprised me. The female finally went to the edge of the nest and took off about 11am. She flew nice and strong, circling the area and giving me a big show and great photo op before flying out of my view at 11:07am! I changed my position once again to view the tower head on from my point of entry into the field. I watched a male kestrel perched in the trees the other ospreys had just flown over. The female (I am calling Small Necklace for ID purposes as this report continues) flew back and landed in the nest about 11:15am. Her eyes were to the sky and I followed her gaze. Very high and distant I could see another osprey flying towards the tower. She began vocalizing. The other osprey was a young male as identified by his markings (clear, white chest and scallop pattern on the wings) and eye color. By 11:18am, he was over the tower and came down like a missile - head first and wings tucked in a dive. He circled the nest, and a minute later he attempted a landing on the nest. Small Necklace was having none of it. As she went up in the air, he came in talons first. Not uncommon landing behavior. Her behavior was interesting, as she shifted her body and came at him talons first! When he saw her reaction, he turned away from the nest and aborted his landing. They both flew out of my sight behind the trees opposite the tower and over the back field. By 11:19am she was flying back up to the nest, and he flew off. She stood in the nest watching the sky until about 11:44am at which time she disappeared from my sight. I thought she had flown out when I blinked and missed it. Finally she came back to the side of the nest facing me about 11:50am. She looked around, lightened her load twice, and finally took to the air at 12:10pm. She circled the tower gaining altitude, and finally headed to the river and beyond until she was out of my sight. I waited a short time, and decided to leave at 12:45pm.

07/14/2023 by DianeMC
Today I drove out to the field with the land owners permission. When I approached the tower, I could see the male perched on a roadside post of the tower. I could see the female on the nest. It looked like she was feeding. A zoom of my camera's lens showed she was feeding a chick. It was difficult to see the chicks as they appeared down in the middle. Finally both popped their heads up for a good look. Just shy of 1/2 hour after arriving, the female spotted something flying close. She followed it, vocalizing, and I followed her gaze. It was the male flying in with a fish. He perched on a tower post below the nest, and proceeded to eat himself. It was a hot and humid day, the female and both chicks panted heavily up in the nest. It was good to finally see the chicks.

07/13/2023 by DianeMC
I watched from a distance this day. At first I thought the nest was empty. As I zoomed in on my photos I could see 1 adult watching the vulture who flew past the tower. I could not see anyone else from this view. I will return in the next few days for a closer, better look, and hopefully a chick count.

07/07/2023 by DianeMC
I stopped for a quick look from Rt 29 today. I saw one adult perched on the tower, the other having just flown off. I did not see any little heads in the nest on this trip.

06/28/2023 by CyclistBarb
8:30 a.m. I was passing this tower on route 29 en route to do osprey nest checks north of Milford. I stopped along the shoulder, set up my scope and camera, and even though the morning light was poor, and the photos were backlit, I still spotted the male to the left and the female to the right, both perched on the tower posts. As I watched I saw the small head of one chick pop up. It then turned and I could see the profile with beak. I watched for about 15 minutes but did not see any other chicks. I assumed the nest and its residents would be more clearly visible from up on the farmer's hill.

04/12/2023 by DianeMC
Saw both adults on the tower, observed from Rt 29. The male flew off and the female remained on the beginning of the nest.

08/02/2022 by DianeMC
I did not have a camera today, but could confirm seeing 2 chicks in the nest. Dad was perched on a tower post. Mom flew by the tower, circled around, and flew high and away. The chicks were not showing any signs of branching or flying. I watched for about 30 minutes before leaving.

07/25/2022 by DianeMC
When I arrived about 8:40, the female was on the tower. About 15 minutes later she called out to the male who was flying nearby. She took off, and the two of them put on a beautiful flying demonstration. I do believe this was a lesson for chick(s) in the nest, who I could not see. Five minutes later, both adults raced back to the nest. Both chased 3 ravens who were circling the tower. One of the adults landed in the nest, while the other engaged the ravens, talons out! The ravens finally gave up and flew off with the male escorting them away. The female remained on alert on the nest. Ten minutes later when the excitement was over, I got my first visual confirmation of 1 chick in the nest! The first view was of a tail with still developing feathers. I walked further into the field in a different direction suspecting any chicks were on the far side of the nest. That provided a look at the chick, but still only seeing 1. This nest has produced 2-3 chicks for the few years. I am hoping to see more, but for today's visit 1 was all I observed. Before leaving shortly before 10am, I did see the male fly by the area.

07/06/2022 by DianeMC
I arrived just before 10am and found the male perched on a post of the tower. The female flew by a minute later. She flew off leaving him as lookout. About 10 minutes later the female flew in with a branch in her talons. She landed and placed it in the nest. A red-tailed hawk flew into the area, and the male took off to give chase. She stayed on the nest. I stayed until 11:30. The male never returned, the female was on the nest, and I saw no visible proof of young.

06/06/2022 by DianeMC
I arrived and observed this nest from Rt 29. I did not stay long, but did observe 1 adult perched on the tower. All was quiet today.

03/27/2022 by DianeMC
I arrived at the tower about 9am on this day. I observed from Rt 29 today. The female was perched on the tower. A short time later, the male flew in with a stick in his talons. As he attempted to land, a crow came flying in, and was not happy with the osprey. All 3 birds sat perched on the tower for a short time, before the chase began again. The male took off, followed by the crow. For the next 5 minutes, they flew over the tower area, the crow chasing the osprey. At one point they were close to the tower, and the female got excited, putting up her wings. She did not leave the tower though. The male osprey finally flew away from the tower, followed by the crow and out of sight. I waited for a while to see if he, or they, would return. I could hear a crow, but saw nothing, only the female still sitting on her perch.

08/26/2021 by CyclistBarb
A quick look at this nest and I find it empty thus confirming all three chicks have fledged.

07/30/2021 by CyclistBarb
2:35 p.m. Because I want to get a total northwest chick count, and because Diane has been so busy, she asked me to visit this nest which she usually reports on. I first said hello to Russ, the friendly and welcoming farmer who owns the land around the tower. I am able to drive into the tower area via his private road. Last year I gave him photos and some of my raspberry jam. This year he told me he thought there were two chicks. However, when I arrived, I set up my scope and saw three again! At least two of them flew on the considerable breeze that we have today. Mom was on the tower for the first few minutes, but she flew off toward the river and I never saw her again. I can't say for sure that all three are fledged, but at least two are! While I watched I heard plenty of loud vocals. The first fledgling to take flight flew over to the field to the east and then while I watched it fly over the field, it returned to the tower and landed on one of the top posts. Its siblings watched.

04/08/2021 by DianeMC
Due to recent rain and wet ground, I did not ride out into the field where I normally observe. Today I just wanted to confirm that the pair was back and on the tower. They are both back and seen on the tower.

08/03/2020 by DianeMC
I wanted to do a check before the storms. When I arrived about 1:30pm, I did not see any birds on the nest. I could hear young cries from the tower. As I drove a bit closer, I could also hear a young crying out from the opposite side of my vehicle. I thought perhaps someone was flying over the fields. I drove past the tower to turn around and check the far side. Sure enough, thee sat on the juveniles on a pillar of the tower. I drove past again to put some distance between my vehicle and the tower. Driving with my windows down, I again heard cries from over the back field. I stepped out so I could scan the sky, and to my surprise heard a cry from the tree right next to me! There was one of the chicks perched in the tree. I moved back in the vehicle and heard an adult. The male came flying to the tower and landed on a pillar. When I looked out my window the chick in the tree had flown. It flew up to the nest. A couple minutes later, it moved to the opposite side of the nest. I could see the 3rd chick then. I confirmed 2 chicks in the nest and 1 on the pillar where I had first seen it. Dad remained on his perch. Mom must have had the day off or a spa day. I did not see her this day.

07/29/2020 by DianeMC
9:15-11 am Lots of action at the nest today. When I first arrived the female was at the top of one of the tower pillars, preening. I could hear one chick constantly calling out. She was ignored. I could see another chick on the nest but not the 3rd. Both chicks on the nest at that time are female, and took turns flying around the tower. They made nice solid landings on the nest and on pillars of the tower. At one point an adult male flew around the tower, and then was gone after a few passes. I thought it was one of the chicks but photos show it was an adult. Not Dad. The time stamp on photos show seconds between the last photo taken of the adult male and the first photo of Dad flying to the nest with a fish. The mystery male was an adult looking at his plumage and eye color. Those eyes were bright yellow. When Dad arrived with the fish, there was lots of yelling from the 2 chicks on pillars under the nest. Neither chick flew up to the nest where he dropped the fish, but Mom did. After the delivery, there was lots of noise from the adults. They were not happy with a group of black vultures flying too close to the tower. Dad gave chase, the vultures left, with Dad escorting them. Mom sat on a pillar, and ate the entire fish, watched by two of her offspring below. Not long after Mom finished the fish, the 3rd chick flew to the tower and made a pin point landing on a narrow pole. For a few minutes all 3 chicks and Mom sat on the tower, then the male chick left his perch, circled the tower, and flew to the nest next to Mom. One of the girls joined her brother in the nest looking for leftovers. There were none. The 3 fledglings took turns flying around the field. During one flight, 2 flew together. It was good to see all 3 flying! I don't know when the exact day the 1st fledge occurred between my last 2 visits. It was great to see all 3 flying today! Photos to come.

07/24/2020 by DianeMC
10am - 12pm The morning was overcast and cloudy. When I arrived the female was perched on one of the tower pillars. Two chicks were visible in the nest. One faced the river and I only had a view of the side and back. The other faced me. The third chick was not visible until much later. All 3 are still in the nest. The chick I could see was a female and most active. Watched as first she began wing flapping. Then she settled down again. A bit later, she became quite active and caught great air. I thought perhaps she might "branch" flying to one of the pillars, or even take off. She did neither. The day was hot and very humid with no breeze at all. That action quieted down and I saw movement on a lower pillar. From past experience, that is the male's favorite perch. That proved true today too. Since all seemed quiet, I made the decision to leave. As I got in my vehicle, I noticed the female was gone from her perch. Within minutes, I saw an osprey flying towards the river. I waited and saw the male return with a fish. As he approached the nest, I could see 3 others. Dad dropped the fish and flew to his perch. Another osprey was flying back to the tower, crying out the entire flight. She landed on a pillar next to the nest, still vocalizing. Very high above and heading toward the tower, another osprey flew over. It kept flying over and past us. I wondered if it was one of the Rt 12 ospreys. It flew in that direction. When I left the tower, the female was on her perch, the male on his, and all 3 chicks still in the nest.

07/19/2020 by CyclistBarb
10:45-11:20 a.m. I was able to get good photos of three healthy looking chicks setting up my camera on my car window clamp, then walked out into the farm field and got even better views unobstructed by tower pillars. The parent (Mom I believe), and three chicks were there. There was a lot of wing flapping! I expect they will take flight in the next week or so.

07/19/2020 by DianeMC
From the road today, I could make out just a tail or wing feather sticking up over the nest. No good views for photos. Will return for a better view.

07/17/2020 by CyclistBarb
6:45-7:15 p.m. I went out to check on the age of these chicks at the request of Kathy Clark. The cell tower maintenance crew needs to do work and asked if this would disturb the osprey family. We think these chicks will soon fledge so if they can wait a couple or three weeks, so much the better. It is difficult to see this nest from route 29 as it is on the east side of the tower. It is very far away if viewed from the roller rink parking! However, I met the farmer on whose field the tower sits and he was very friendly and gave me access to much better viewing areas! I will return early Sunday a.m. to get photos with good lighting! Check out the chick in the middle! Do you think he is well fed? What a laugh I got...I think that is the biggest crop I have seen on any raptor ever!

06/19/2020 by DianeMC
From the road it is difficult to see inside the nest. No birds visible, but she is most likely incubating.

05/10/2020 by DianeMC
May 10th was the first day I arrived to check the nest. I did not see any birds, but did observe new nesting material and nest construction underway.

07/31/2019 by DianeMC
Arrived at the nest to find everyone gone. Both chicks have now fledged. Will continue to check in to see if anyone still visits before leaving for the season.

08/09/2017 by DianeMC
Lots of activity at this nest. Finally got to see the young. When I arrived, 1, the female was on a pillar of the tower. Soon, her brother flew in also. Listened in to quite the conversation between them. The "boy" flew off again, and she flew to another pillar. Dad came in with a food drop - small. He sat on a pillar under the nest platform. The boy came back. I don't think there was much left to eat from Dad's small drop. About 30 minutes later, Mom flew in with a great catch! There was lots of excitement and noise, as Mom dropped the fish into the nest where the "girl" was waiting. The boy couldn't get turned around and off the pillar fast enough. Things quieted down as the two siblings ate. Mom took off, to check out me below. She made a couple low passes, vocalizing, looking straight down on me. I think she was giving Dad a hard time about his baby sitting skills. HA She settled down, accepted my presence, and everyone went about their business. What a privilege to watch this family!

07/20/2017 by DianeMC
Secured permission from land owners to observe this nest from their property. Male was on a lower pillar eating a fish. Female flew in with a fish in her talons. She flew into the nest presumably to feed young. Heard lots of vocalizing but could not get a visual on young. She flew off at one point, circled overhead and returned to the nest.

07/15/2017 by DianeMC
Hard to get a good angle to observe this nest. There is a hedgerow of trees in front. A nest is visible at the top level of the tower on the right side. No birds were observed. Will go back for another visit.