Nickname
Dewey Beach Lion's Club nest cam
Coordinates
(38.6926, -75.0783)
Substrate
Osprey Nest Platform
Description
Lions Club park, next to North Beach Bar/Ivy Events. DB Lions Club placed NJ design platform Feb. 2019 with webcam installed Mar 2020
Followers
None
What to look for
Review All Observations
2023 - baygirl2022 - baygirl2021 - baygirl2020 - baygirl2019 - baygirl2018 - baygirl2017 - baygirl
aAdult Arrival3/25/233/17/223/18/213/17/203/20/193/19/183/27/17
aOccupiedYesYesYesYesYesYesYes
aActive
bEgg Laying4/2/21
bIncubation Initiation4/5/234/6/224/2/214/9/204/18/194/14/184/20/17
cClutch Hatching5/9/215/31/195/22/185/31/17
dNestlings33232
eFledglings21222
eFirst Chick Fledging7/4/237/2/217/17/197/17/187/22/17
fChicks Last Observed8/1/218/20/198/20/188/22/17
xNest Failure5/24/20
xReason For Nest Failureadult abandonment

Select Seasons

Show reports, diaries, and photos from:Current 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017

Activity reports

2017 Nest Activity Report by baygirl
Adult arrival03/27/2017Nestlings2
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings2
Nest Active First chick fledging07/22/2017
Egg layingChicks last observed08/22/2017
Incubation initiation04/20/2017Nest failure
Clutch hatching05/31/2017Reason for nest failure
2018 Nest Activity Report by baygirl
Adult arrival03/19/2018Nestlings3
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings2
Nest Active First chick fledging07/17/2018
Egg layingChicks last observed08/20/2018
Incubation initiation04/14/2018Nest failure
Clutch hatching05/22/2018Reason for nest failure
2019 Nest Activity Report by baygirl
Adult arrival03/20/2019Nestlings2
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings2
Nest Active First chick fledging07/17/2019
Egg layingChicks last observed08/20/2019
Incubation initiation04/18/2019Nest failure
Clutch hatching05/31/2019Reason for nest failure
2020 Nest Activity Report by baygirl
Adult arrival03/17/2020Nestlings
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings
Nest Active First chick fledging
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiation04/09/2020Nest failure05/24/2020
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failureadult abandonment
2021 Nest Activity Report by baygirl
Adult arrival03/18/2021Nestlings3
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings1
Nest Active First chick fledging07/02/2021
Egg laying04/02/2021Chicks last observed08/01/2021
Incubation initiation04/02/2021Nest failure
Clutch hatching05/09/2021Reason for nest failure
2022 Nest Activity Report by baygirl
Adult arrival03/17/2022Nestlings
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings
Nest Active First chick fledging
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiation04/06/2022Nest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure
2023 Nest Activity Report by baygirl
Adult arrival03/25/0023Nestlings3
Nest OccupiedYesFledglings2
Nest Active First chick fledging07/04/0023
Egg layingChicks last observed
Incubation initiation04/05/0023Nest failure
Clutch hatchingReason for nest failure

Photos of this nest

Nesting Diaries

09/20/2023 by baygirl
dates are when i was able to confirm, likely earlier except fledge dates accurate

04/06/2022 by baygirl
observed incubating behavior today, may have begun a few days ago, one osprey deep and flat in nest and one on dock pole at 6 pm, drizzle, fog, 54 degree 12 mph NE

03/31/2022 by baygirl
high south winds gusting to 20 mph, some rain, one on nearby piling eating a fish, then flew to nest, nest cam not repaired and pair could soon lay eggs

03/27/2022 by baygirl
pair flying to nest but dealing with very high winds, the winds may delay nest camera repair work, this would be the week it must be done- prior to egg laying!

03/24/2022 by baygirl
both ospreys up on the nest perches at 3:40 today. Nest cam not repaired. Earliest egg laying/incubation recorded at this nest was 4-02-2021. And we are pretty certain this year is the same air as last season due to behaviors observed. Delmarva Power needs to repair the nest cam prior to egg laying.

03/17/2022 by baygirl
Today is the first day I see both ospreys on the nest. As last year, the male is continuing his submissive, or is it passive aggressive? posturing. He turns his back to her when she arrives to the nest and he flutters his wings, mantles over the fish he has brought. He makes her work for it! The nest cam is not working due to lightening strike over the winter. Hoping Delmarva Power repairs the cam prior to egg laying.

08/08/2021 by baygirl
both adults at nest around 930 this morning, male had fish, female came in and he was manteling over it and then she took it from him, similar behavior as the early spring when they first arrived, interesting unique behavior from this male that I had not seen in other bonded pairs, the behavior is similar to newly forming pairs

08/04/2021 by baygirl
fledgling seen on 8-1, both adults on nest early morning 8-2 with mockingbird and red wing blackbird harassment for an hour, adult male seen in morning briefly 8-3 with mockingbird harassment, fledgling not seen at nest but all 3 may be at the water tower

07/28/2021 by baygirl
seeing only occasional nest visits now by the fledgling/juvenile, adult female not seen past 2 days, this morning at day break adult male was on nest in defensive posture but nest is mostly empty now. I suspect the adults are at the water tower or out of view on platform perches that hold cameras, with female likely making her exit very soon

07/14/2021 by baygirl
cant be certain but appears Dewey caught his first fish today around 9:30 am

07/02/2021 by baygirl
73 degrees, off and on showers, WSW 4 mph, "Dewey" fledges around 12:24 p m during a brief break in the rain. took another 15 minutes or so to return to nest. This is good that he will have some time to acclimate to his nest territory prior to fireworks. Appears to be a male, smaller bird with pure white chest

06/24/2021 by baygirl
single chick growing and eating well, is wingercising on occasion, should be close to fledge sometime first days of July

05/31/2021 by baygirl
today the second chick has barely moved since yesterday morning and finally stopped breathing at 2:30 pm. Just the oldest chick remains alive at the nest

05/30/2021 by baygirl
youngest passed today, it was cold rain overnight with temps in low 50's, fish brought in sparingly by the male and female was ravenous and attempting to eat and shelter was hard. last fish brought in at 9:30 this morning was reported to be a northern stargazer, a fish with some venom and light electric shock, all 3 chicks were fed the fish, the youngest died at 11:00 am, the second dropped and appeared in a stupor until ...

05/29/2021 by baygirl
heavy rain today and tomorrow, cold temps, all 3 attempting to get under mombrella today, fingers crossed the runt makes it thru this storm

05/24/2021 by baygirl
youngest getting fed by mom and dad, but not as regular feeding due to other 2 chicks size difference, they are able to literally pin the baby down but no aggression confirmed except adult male to adult female over a fish that he may have wanted to feed the chicks himself. he is unusual in that regard.

05/22/2021 by baygirl
last hatched much smaller now, it does get fed but is not growing in relation to the other 2 chicks

05/16/2021 by baygirl
so far both are very present at the nest, even the male wants to feed his chicks and his mate, fish seem to be coming in regularly, all 3 hatchlings look similar in size right now, very positive thus far!

05/13/2021 by baygirl
3rd chick hatched sometime after dark last night and before 5:30 this morning

05/13/2021 by baygirl
feeding somewhat regular today with the youngest nestling getting fed well today

05/10/2021 by baygirl
1 egg with first hatched getting stronger

05/10/2021 by baygirl
6:52:40pm on video tape the 2nd hatchling begins to break out of the shell before mom obscures it, then at 6:58pm you can catch a glimpse of the little one squirming at momma's feet as she pecks at some of the egg shell.

05/10/2021 by baygirl
not good parenting being observed today, no fish brought to nest until afternoon and then took awhile for momma to accept the fish and finally feed 2 hatchlings, however both look strong and similar in size and were both fed well

05/09/2021 by baygirl
Amazing nest cam footage today starting at 6:25 am when male takes over incubating duties, can see egg moving, then female returns just in time for egg shell to open with her help at 6:44 to 6:46 am. great views of the hatchling in what is called the "reptilian stage" 7:53 male brings in long silvery fish, female is eating at 7:54 and suddenly at 7:54-55 an interloper attacks nest, male jumps to defend and almost inures the hatchling! The carcass that was brought to the nest on 5-4 is visible on right side of nest. Female begins to eat and reach her head towards hatchling, training it perhaps? and finally at 8:30 it appears the female is successful in getting the hatchling to eat. Egg tooth very visible on the nestling. just a wonderful experience to see live!

05/04/2021 by baygirl
8:19 this morning the male brought part of a dead bird, looks like a gull, nice nest decor..ugh

04/14/2021 by baygirl
face mask brought to nest today, lots of trash in this nest

04/09/2021 by baygirl
some rain, 55, E 8 mph, off eggs a short time but pair seems to be incubating normally so far

04/06/2021 by baygirl
hi 68, sun and clouds, N 8 mph, around 10:30 am third egg visible in nest, I was hoping for just 2 this season as this pair truly needs some incubation experience but lets see how it goes, maybe this is the original pair and all will be normal again!

04/04/2021 by baygirl
did not see a third egg laid today, but both ospr seem to be incubating and more attentive so far...

04/03/2021 by baygirl
2nd egg laid today approx 12:15-12:20 but not visible on nest cam male climbing on female while she was slaying an egg...so far male seems to be stepping up, bringing in fish and incubating regularly

04/02/2021 by baygirl
egg laid sometime past 15 hours. its cold with flurries today, 37, NE 13 mph, clouds, I am seeing similar behavior as pair last year and might assume we have the same pair..the male seems immature and is not incubating the egg

03/31/2021 by baygirl
i drove past twice today and did not see the ospreys nor did I see them past few days, when present at the nest... I hope this pair is not the same as last season, or has matured from last season. and start to remain at the nest!

03/28/2021 by baygirl
60, S 7 mph, fog early heavy rain turning to drizzle, same pair at nest this morning, bringing in some sort of undetermined trash that looks like wet fabric.. hopefully it wont catch the ospreys and will soon be buried by natural nesting material

03/27/2021 by baygirl
male continues to be submissive at the nest yet he is bringing in nest material, a bit of trash and fish that he makes her work hard for. i know there will be at least one if not a pair challenging this pair for the nest so i hope whichever pair wins settles down and actually hatches and raises a chick or 2

03/26/2021 by baygirl
pair seems to be getting along better, still occasional male showing submissive behavior but copulating attempts, I checked the nest at 10 am and again at 2 pm and did not see any ospreys at that time, new fence around North Beach sand pit blocks view of the dock that they sometimes used to perch.S 20 mph, 82 sun

03/25/2021 by baygirl
66 hi today, some overcast clouds, S 8 mph, same 2 ospreys coming and going to nest, attempted bonding or failed copulation at least once but still seeing the male submissive or on defensive alert at nest

03/19/2021 by baygirl
3-18 witnessed attempt at copulation with female complying, but still seeing submissive behavior of male, he brings fish and she does have to work at getting the fish from him. Both bring in nest material and male brought some trash..this may end up a bonded pair if the other ospreys do not arrive but I suspect this is not the original pair

03/17/2021 by baygirl
past few days have seen 2 ospreys on nest, not seeing bonded or bonding behavior, one very submissive, a male, second perhaps a female but can not confirm second bird.trash coming into the nest. this nest will likely see a shakeup just like last season.

03/13/2021 by baygirl
approx 9 am, 48, sunny, N winds 8 mph, 1 adult possibly male on nest moving nest material

08/02/2020 by baygirl
adult male continues to bring sticks to nest, have not seen female recently

07/28/2020 by baygirl
see an adult on the V perch off and on but the season is over here!

07/06/2020 by baygirl
some sort of blue decoration brought to nest this morning, yesterday lots of territorial behaviors with at least 3 osprey involved

07/02/2020 by baygirl
male continuing to guard nest from interloping ospreys

07/01/2020 by baygirl
egg barely visible today some intermittent rains came thru, eventually by the evening time the egg was completely covered by nest material. the male has been on the nest alot today, showing defensive posture, I will assume the pair from earlier this season is back to challenge for the nest. at sunset the male was even eating his fish on the nest, thats unusual for him.he must be worried he will loose his territory, have not seen female, she may not hang around thru the entire summer, time will tell.

06/29/2020 by baygirl
egg remains in center of nest, no incubation observed

06/24/2020 by baygirl
male on top of V this evening, 8 pm

06/23/2020 by baygirl
egg uncovered again by 4:30pm

06/22/2020 by baygirl
egg was slowly covered by soft dried grasses this morning, adult male brought in the grasses and rearranged sticks until the egg was no longer visible on the nest.

06/20/2020 by baygirl
sporadic incubating by the female today, egg appears to be still ok so momma keeps trying, sort of...

06/18/2020 by baygirl
appears the adults have given up on incubating the egg. we should see them on the nest from time to time throughout the season as they will not abandon their real estate, next season they may have to fight to keep this nest as I believe they are not the original pair that moved from the old lighthouse to nest here in 2017 until this year.I believe based on observation thus far that this is a young pair and they should get better at nesting in the years to come.

06/16/2020 by baygirl
heavy rains this evening, osprey not on nest much today, I think they may finally have abandoned the egg...maybe?

06/15/2020 by baygirl
again off and on the egg all day, I stopped by the North Beach Bar today, the outdoor walled off new volleyball and dining area is very nice however no matter how tall the osprey platform it will still be in the direct line of loud humans and bands in the future. for this season there will be no osprey chicks impacted by the proximity of the nest to this bar.

06/14/2020 by baygirl
the pair spent more time off the nest and egg than on it today so perhaps they are finally giving up?

06/08/2020 by baygirl
male off egg this evening at 8:06 for at least an hour, did not see female time for this pair to abandon that egg!

06/08/2020 by baygirl
at 9;45 pm no osprey back to nest

06/08/2020 by baygirl
both off the egg more today, hope this is the day they abandon that egg and get on with their summer on the bay. too late for them to realistically have a second clutch of eggs, hoping her hormones are waning now

06/07/2020 by baygirl
pair still incubating but off egg now and then

06/05/2020 by baygirl
male on egg this evening after dark. about 58 days incubating. so far my longest failed nesting incubation was 60 days. this pair might go far beyond that. looks like the North Beach Bar is setting up dining tables and volley ball almost under the nest platform so maybe no chicks this season might be a good thing for this pair. they are up high but still that amount of human activity so very close will be disturbing to them and may be the reason they get off the nest and egg. why people think wildlife, any wildlife, is comfortable so close to loud partying just amazes and concerns me at the same time.

05/28/2020 by baygirl
i feel bad for this pair. they continue to incubate! there is no way this egg will hatch at this point so now its just waiting to see how long until they give up. if only they had been so diligent for the first 40 days.

05/25/2020 by baygirl
pair still incubating with short breaks. while its understood that many variables affect an eggs hatching with heat worse than cold I have not found any research on length of time an egg can remain viable other than the much noted incubating range of 35-43 days, since we are now past that point i am assuming this egg is no longer viable. lets see how this goes and maybe I will learn something positive and new about ospreys and incubation!

05/24/2020 by baygirl
another day of attempt at incubation with a few instances of egg left unattended. the male is trying very hard to get that egg to hatch, hes been on the egg a few hours straight this evening.its now past the 43 day mark and i hope this pair does NOT try to renest this season. its getting far too late to have another clutch and healthy chance for fledglings.

05/23/2020 by baygirl
egg was once again left unattended early this morning, during rain storm, pair comes and goes, they are incubating in spurts but we are at day 43 or 44. This nesting has failed, unless research is dead wrong and eggs can hatch after 44 days.I am waiting to list it as a fail because I am ever hopeful.This pair has to be a very young new pair at this nest.

05/21/2020 by baygirl
male and female continue to leave egg unattended and when at nest showing defensive posture of something off screen, most likely another approaching osprey. today is day 43 of incubation, doubtful that this single egg is viable. keeping the faith awhile longer.

05/21/2020 by baygirl
male brought in plastic bag that made its way over the egg. female incubating over plastic bag at 2:20. Its questionable that this is the original pair that was at the nest prior to the nest cam being placed on the platform 3-24 and would explain how the original pair lost their nest to a new pair. we know a pair was attempting to nest on the burned top of the lighthouse 2 weeks ago. the original pair came from the lighthouse a few years ago when an excluder was placed over the top of lighthouse. this is pure conjecture but certainly not a crazy scenario of the situation unfolding at this nest this season.

05/21/2020 by baygirl
male brought a plastic bag to nest that was over the egg for a time today, when male brought a fish in just before 5 pm the female flew off with the fish and the male kicked the bag out of the nest. yay, now lets hope he doesnt go get it again later this evening!

05/20/2020 by baygirl
female on egg this morning and remained with egg during the high wind storm of past 24 hrs with winds today still high at 20 mph. we are at day 42 on incubation of egg.

05/19/2020 by baygirl
noon, very high winds, NE 24 mph with gusts, 57 degrees, female remained on nest thru the night and during rain, both adults at nest today, male still bringing in lots of sticks, female incubating most of the time thus far today.

05/18/2020 by baygirl
rain off and on today, cooler temps in 50's, another sporadic day of incubation with one off and on for periods of time over 30 minutes. i am not certain we have a working pair of ospreys at this point as i have not see 2 together at nest in at least a 24 hr period following yesterdays fight. we may have just a male at this nest now, not 100% sure at this point that I can ID male and female but i think the male has been at the nest.

05/18/2020 by baygirl
this afternoon momma osprey spending time incubating while it is raining! yay!

05/17/2020 by baygirl
both ospreys off nest and egg from about 11:45 past 12:15, possibly longer as per nest cam video will show, there is battling going on at nest and in the territory and i cant imagine the egg will be viable in 59 temps with winds over 15 mph and gusting.the new osprey pair from the lighthouse may be to blame for this seasons unsettled nesting.

05/17/2020 by baygirl
what a day for this pair, they spent some time battling other ospreys and they left their egg unattended for periods of time. the egg should hatch with in next few days IF it is going to hatch. if it does I sure learned a thing or two about vulnerability of ospr eggs!

05/16/2020 by baygirl
in range for hatchling, hope the egg is viable

05/16/2020 by baygirl
this pair continues to leave their single egg unattended for periods of time. it is now in the hatching age range

05/11/2020 by baygirl
called by tristate to assist in possible osprey nesting in the dewey lighthouse today, (light house use burned and will be demolished this week, that is the same location this pair came from a few years ago. was taken to the top and i saw nesting material strewn about but not signs of actual nesting, however there is a new osprey pair hanging out at the light house and may explain why the pair at this nest disappears for longer periods of time, they may be checking out the new pair on their old home

05/08/2020 by baygirl
male flew away as i approached the nest area, female deep in nest

05/01/2020 by baygirl
one incubating as I drove by today, did not see mate on usual marsh perch. this is probably the quietest this nest site will ever be due to COVID 19 virus restaurant shutdown.

04/28/2020 by baygirl
this pair leaves their single egg unattended for very long periods of time, over 20 minutes seems quite long in cooler temps.

04/28/2020 by baygirl
this evening I watched the nest cam, male left nest at 6:35, he returned at 7:37 sat briefly then female came and took over incubating. weather is 55 temp, winds ssw 4-5 mph. I will be amazed if this egg hatches. The problem with this kind of nest cam is one can not see what is really happening in the nest environment so its interesting to see the egg sit there unattended for over an hour, I do not know what the ospreys were doing to keep them off the nest. The female seems to not incubate as regularly during evening hours and this may be a problem, years past they were always fairly productive as a pair, assuming this is the same pair.

04/22/2020 by baygirl
heavy rains and winds past 3 days, single egg remains in nest, parents incubating in a nice deep nest bowl.

04/18/2020 by baygirl
always learning and humbled by each ospreys individuality. the female appeared back at the nest (webam view) around 2:00 ish and has been there since. She is looking very scruffy and may simply be molting but her condition even in the rain is a bit ratty. So she took a 12 hr incubating break into the middle of the night! so much for the idea that the female stays on the nest all night.

04/17/2020 by baygirl
female missing from nest entire evening, male on nest continually since around 2:00 I think... this is my observation from looking back at the webcam feed as well as my awareness of her missing from around 6:30 pm till after dark. just seeing the male, very very unusual and worrisome. Hope to see her in the morning!

04/17/2020 by baygirl
late this evening after seeing the male remain on the nest deep into the evening I checked the time loop on the webcam. at 2:24:30 the male brings the female a fish, and drops it directly on the single egg, then not long after another osprey approaches with a piece of wood, dangling straight down almost like a dagger and drops it right behind the male who attempts to guard the nest, the interloper flies away quickly, and soon after the female struggles to get the fish and flies off camera. the male settles onto the egg and then at about 2:28:30 an osprey drops down at him and he attempts again to defend the nest. After that I do not see the female return to the nest for the remainder of the day. I do not expect to see her again as in many years of monitoring osprey its always the female on the nest at night, But I hope she is ok....if I do not see her tmr I will take a ride to the nest site just in case she may be on the ground injured.

04/16/2020 by baygirl
interesting that this pair has just one egg. i did not see any other eggs that may have blown out of the nest prior to the single egg on 4-9-20. so perhaps there were more? seems unlikely that now, 7 days following the single egg, there will be more eggs laid. lets see how it plays out.

04/14/2020 by baygirl
single egg made it through the storm yesterday

04/14/2020 by baygirl
male has a more pronounced dark head streak and he has a slight necklace. he is a character, very adamant about helping to incubate and very ambitious in bringing nest material even if it all means stepping all over his mate.

04/11/2020 by baygirl
1 egg still visible today with plastic in nest

04/10/2020 by baygirl
incubation is a guess as I was not able to monitor as closely this season. With the new webcam I assume someone has an exact date. The webcam will show everything that people have not been aware of. Disturbances below the nest, trash brought to the nest etc. I am hoping for an uneventful season with these 2 wonderful osprey who began their nesting lives together years ago on the Lighthouse at Rusty Rudder complex. They were forced off that original nest location by the owners of the Lighthouse and made their way over to this current location.

04/10/2020 by baygirl
high nest sites are prone to much more wind damage, eggs can be blown off a nest. I hope these 2 can hold on today, 52*, Winds WNW 25 mph with gusts up to 50 mph on the water. the male will find a low perch to sit out much of this wind storm.

09/04/2019 by baygirl
one adult on v of nest plat today

08/29/2019 by baygirl
entire family moves to the water tower after chicks fledge so hard to continue to track them

06/26/2019 by baygirl
consistently seeing just 2 chicks but there could always be another one or 2, the angle and height makes it difficult but it seems the ospreys are much happier in this new high platform

06/04/2019 by baygirl
its time for chicks but i have not seen any feeding or shading behavior, today could not see any osprey in nest but the angle is difficult and no mate seen

05/29/2019 by baygirl
expect hatchlings any day now, female deep in nest today, then she got up and asked her mate who was on the platform v to get fish, he left and she spent about 10 minutes turning eggs and fixing nest in 90 plus temps, then she settled back down onto eggs

05/22/2019 by baygirl
could not see any osprey today

05/10/2019 by baygirl
one incubating, can only see from distance due to height of platform... but thats a great thing!

04/13/2019 by baygirl
both on the v's of the platform, they seem to like to sit together up high and facing the water, I am happy to see them on a safer platform

04/09/2019 by baygirl
female on nest rim at 5 pm today, did not see mate

03/29/2019 by baygirl
both on the V perches of the platform at 5 pm

03/25/2019 by baygirl
the nest has filled the platform which is good because there was very little base with wide open slats. i watched the pair bring in many loads of sod from a nearby property and they are already creating the nest bowl so I would expect incubation by the end of the month. no predator guard has been placed on the pole.

03/17/2019 by baygirl
nest is built up since my last check, no predator guard on the pole at this time. did not see the osprey but clearly at least one is at the nest

03/11/2019 by baygirl
extremely high platform, (possibly over 30 ft? ) with no way to capture/rescue injured birds. but it will be much safer and hopefully the adults will be able to feed the chicks without disturbance. hoping a predator guard is placed on the pole soon.

09/09/2018 by baygirl
This is one of 2 very high risk, poorly placed nesting platforms in my monitoring group of 50 nests. I surely hope that the powers that be that oversee all the good work that volunteers do to help osprey also scrutinize businesses and organizations that place nest platforms for entertainment with no regard or understanding for the health and safety of the birds. Who is going to protect this species from ignorant individuals?

08/30/2018 by baygirl
1 adult male on water tower, nest area no juveniles seen

08/20/2018 by baygirl
4:15 today, 1 juvenile on the V of the platform looking over to the water tower where the adult male was perched.

08/11/2018 by baygirl
one juvenile perched on the V of the platform today at 3:30 pm. it was staring out to the water. an adult that appeared to be the male was perched high on the water tower facing the nest, just like last season.

07/23/2018 by baygirl
2 fledglings deep in the nest at noon today, one adult on the water tower, just like last season. at least the fledglings are going to the nest for rest, and hopefully getting fed there as needed.

07/17/2018 by baygirl
2:45, 88, 17 mph, clouds and sun very humid day: 2 fledglings on the nest , one adult flew in from the north part of the bay.1 adult on the V perch of the platform. fledglings off and on nest also adult female coming and going. no runt in the nest, runt has died. usual crowd of noisy bar goers milling around in the parking lot near the nest.when chicks get to be close to fledge age the adult female often gives one chick the entire fish to eat and with 2 larger aggressive birds to feed i believe that point becomes the breaking point for a runt in a nest, it is no longer fed by the adult female and is not given a fish by the adult female. very hard to watch. if the smallest chick doesn't catch up in size early on in the nesting period it can not make it, simple as that. many small chicks in a nest of 3 do catch up in size, i see it often but rarely where there are outside stressors on the family such as this busy location.

07/11/2018 by baygirl
5:45 pm, 84, ENE9 mph, sun and clouds, Adult female on nest calling for fish.2 large chicks visible on the nest and then one runt stood up. oh my, its very small, it has what looks like bare shoulder and back of neck with some sparse feathers jutting out of that area, its eyes were closed and it was hanging its head, then it slumped down on the nest rim and propped its head on a stick. the other 2 chicks were getting some wing exercising in and jumping up in the air, they should fly very soon.Sad to see the effects of chick aggression in a nest. What an awful place for chicks to grow up and clearly the runt is not getting fed regularly. I did not see the adult male but the bar was pretty crowded with people coming in for the evening. the large sign was advertising friday nights live band. Live bands, fireworks, constant human noise and activity, one of the worst nest sites I have seen in 6 years and just like the other high risk site at Capt. Macs Seafood House in Fenwick where that runt appears to have died, there is too much stress on the adults to provide properly for their young. People just want to say look at our osprey nest, they do not research and do not even see the birds in the nest. They have no idea how many chicks are in the nest, do not know there is a runt not being fed. They just want to see osprey and have the birds attract business. Its cruel and should not be allowed.

07/04/2018 by baygirl
This is the day that always concerns me for the high risk osprey nests specifically and all the nests near human activity in general. This nest site however is beyond cruel. I monitored for over 30 minutes on July 2nd, a very warm day. All 3 chicks were very visible on the nest, trying to catch a breeze on the nest rim. The adult female was on the nest also and the male arrived about 15 minutes into my visit, he took his fish to the pole on the nearby dock to the south of the platform. There is a runt in this nest. I have just 2 runts in over 80 chicks counted at 37 active nests and both runts are at the high risk nest sites, this one and Capt. Macs seafood House in Fenwick. While I have a third smaller chick on some nests, they are simply smaller, not runts as I am seeing here. My humble experience tells me this is not a problem with supply of fish, its a problem with delivery of fish caused by too much human disturbance. Case in point here on July 2nd. the sign at North beach bar reads:"On the 4th We will Have the largest fireworks show in the State. # BOOM". Does anyone care that it is going to be directly over this nest site? 3 large trucks parked beside the platform, Zambaletti or similar name on the trucks with 3 workers covered in soot preparing large trays of fireworks and burnt debris at the waters edge. So much activity the adult male osprey did not take the fish to the nest but sat on the nearby pole watching the people near the platform. There are now signs up in the "wetlands" telling people to stay away from the birds but no sign at the waters edge for boaters etc to see and no sign at the end of Vista Dr. where there is a clear path thru the marsh near the nest site. The signs that are on the "wetlands"are not visible because the vegetation is too grown up around them. But it was an tiny attempt to protect osprey that should not be there in the first place. I will be thinking of this nest tonight as well as the pollution this fireworks company is causing beside a waterway and "protected wetland". What a mess humans are.

06/21/2018 by baygirl
3 good size chicks in nest with female, calling for fish

06/14/2018 by baygirl
3 nice size chicks in the nest today with the adult female perched on the V perch of the platform. male on opposite V perch. female is calling for fish but he just sits there. then female gets down in nest and picks up a fish and begins to feed a chick... guess she decided the fish she had would do...

05/20/2018 by baygirl
about 3:45 today one osprey, presumably the female, was very deep in the nest with the mate out of sight. The bar and parking lot was very busy.

05/19/2018 by baygirl
the nest has just one osprey incubating whenever I stop by, the second bird is rarely seen. there should be and may be chicks, will check again tmr. we have had a solid week of heavy rain.

05/08/2018 by baygirl
following a party weekend, 4:00 today, no mate seen nearby and no confirmation of an incubating osprey in the nest. she or he may be there but could not see a bird today

05/04/2018 by baygirl
I arrived around 5 pm to the North Beach bar parking lot. the bar was very crowded, many cars in the lot, bikes leaning at the marsh fence,boats and jet skis on the floating dock near the platform. a band was playing, there was an obvious trail thru the middle of the marsh, the SUP shack was ready for business and there were no stay back signs anywhere. In short, the scene was identical to last season. This is cruel and irresponsible of the Lion's Club to not even attempt to protect this osprey pair that the club simply wants as a status symbol. They do not care that these birds are living beings. The female was in the nest, she was incubating but was very stressed, her head kept popping up every few seconds and she was swiveling that head as far around as she possibly could just to see where all the danger might be. the male arrived with a fish and began circling the bar looking for a place to land to eat, he flew off out of sight toward the south. This is perhaps the first day the bar is open and tomorrow is the big party complete with what I hope is the band named "5 Live donkeys" and fireworks. Just a crazy sad situation that should be corrected by taking the platform down this coming fall. I wont hold my breath. Does anyone care about the osprey in DE? The DBLC rep texted me that they will place signs up after the fledglings are off the nest. Hm, I think this person is trying to shake me...

04/22/2018 by baygirl
one osprey incubating. did not see second ospr. the lions club representative said they would be placing stay back signs "in 2 weeks", this was over 2 weeks ago. i did not see any signs

04/14/2018 by baygirl
If this pair had eggs about 3 weeks ago then this is a re-nesting. But definitely they are incubating eggs as of today. I watched the female up on the V of the platform and then she got in the nest, dug around a bit perhaps turning an egg, and then she settled down in with the telltale rocking on her egg(s) Beautiful windy clear day, 68, winds SW 20 mph with gusts. Male was out fishing and returned with a fish to a nearby dock.

04/10/2018 by baygirl
2 at the nest at 1:45 today. later at 5:45 just one on the V perch of the platform. If this pair was incubating they are off the eggs.will just have to see how long till i see incubation signs once again.

04/07/2018 by baygirl
No incubation activity or nest building seen recently with both osprey at the nest area again today. The female perched on the v of the platform and the male on his favorite piling nearby. The property owners have obviously been doing road/parking lot grading directly next to the site, about 15 feet away, and the house next to the platform, about 50 feet away, is having the roof worked on so this pair may have stopped incubating- if they were on eggs.

04/03/2018 by baygirl
One osprey eating a fish on piling at north beach bar dock, second osprey- appears to be female- on the nest. no incubation observed although I have been seeing the female laying deep in the nest. she may simply be preparing the nest for the eggs.

04/02/2018 by baygirl
pair is steadfast on this dangerous platform. past few days the female has been very deep in the nest but then I saw her up on the v perch yesterday. She will be incubating very soon if she isnt already. The Lions Club rep told me they "are working" on getting stay back signs and plan to install soon but I think it is too late now as they will definitely flush the ospreys off eggs.The rep also says the bar is going to place stay back signs.. I do not know why they did not do this prior to nesting season.

03/24/2018 by baygirl
Yesterday, 3/23/18, a day following a 2 day nor'easter, no ospreys were in sight at this platform. I was hopeful the storm had pushed them south to a new location even though I know that is unlikely i am ever hopeful... but today around 3:00 in the afternoon the female was on the V portion of the platform and the male was on his favorite spot on the bar dock eating a nice size fish.For now it is very peaceful for this pair so why would they relocate. If only they knew what was coming in May!

03/19/2018 by baygirl
Well I am sad to see the pair are both at the nest today around 2pm with temp 43,clouds, Winds ENE shifting to the west 9mph and up. Nor'easter approaching for tmr. The female was on the V perch looking quite ragged but showing a gorgeous large necklace. The male has a faint necklace. He was initially on the North Beach bar dock but flew to the platform and landed on the opposite v perch. She was calling softly for fish and off he went to find her one. There is now a predator guard on the pole of the platform but no stay back signs or fencing to create a safe nesting zone for this pair. The sign at the bar says they open May 5th cinqo de mayo with fireworks and "Five Live Donkeys' which I can hope or assume is a live band and not the animal variety. At any rate this pair will most likely nest in relative quiet till all hell breaks out in the tourist season. Very hard to watch but since fish and wildlife does not step in for this sort of situation there is nothing more that can be done to protect this osprey pair from a communities selfish need to have "their own" osprey platform 50 feet from an outside bar. A platform has been placed 7 blocks south in a more peaceful open marsh area of south Dewey but without early season disturbance its doubtful the ospreys will relocate. Had the platform been taken down they may have moved easily to the new nest site.

02/24/2018 by baygirl
This platform was leaning badly and someone appears to have tried over the winter to straighten it. It still leans but doe look much better. Unfortunately they did not place a predator guard on the pole and this would be a good idea as the platform is so very close to an open air bar and restaurant. Raccoons could be an issue. We are trying to get the DB Lions Club to place the predator guard or allow us to do it. And we are looking to place a new platform near the southern range of the osprey pair that nested here so unsafely in 2017...

09/15/2017 by baygirl
The family moved to the Dewey water tower. Last sighting of a juvenile was August 22nd. I did see both adults perched together at the water tower on August 23rd. The last day I saw the adult male was September 3rd. He was on the water tower of course. The osprey vacated the nest area as soon as the young were independent enough to get away from the intense human disturbance. Dogs were being exercised at the nesting platform marsh..a dog park of sorts. Unfortunately in moving to the water tower the osprey have caused some issues at the water tower maintenance yard. Hoping next season their nesting platform can be relocated- away from the bar....SUP's, boaters, live rock bands and dogs running in the marsh....

08/02/2017 by baygirl
Crazy day at this nest. Stand Up Paddle boards beside the platform on the north side and a catamaran to the south, this in a marsh that's about 60 feet wide. the marsh grass is totally trampled under the nest from dogs that are allowed to run every day, multiple times a day underneath the platform. This is absolutely the worst abuse of a wildlife area I have seen in my 5 years of monitoring osprey nests sites. The juveniles are landing on the nest trying to get fed by the adult female but she is so stressed she regularly flies away and the youngsters sit and cry for fish. I know they made it this far and will probably be alright but this is ridiculous indifference to a federally protected bird. Something must be done to move this nesting platform to a safer area of Dewey beach.

07/29/2017 by baygirl
As of today both fledged youngsters are doing great, learning to fish in the bay at Dewey. Both adults bringing fish but mostly prodding the babes to get their own. A piece of plastic rope of baling type fabric was dangling from nest this past week and is not deep in the nest. Hopefully it is now buried by new nest material.

07/10/2017 by baygirl
Who knew this nesting family could perservere through the insanity of Dewey bar life but today I checked the nest to see mom feeding 2 growing, healthy looking and hungry chicks while the bar goers yelled and partied right next to the nest. The Dewey Osprey can hang:)

06/29/2017 by baygirl
nest check today and both chicks look healthy with mom bringing nest material to nest. workmen in the water 10 feet from nesting platform, they were working on a floating dock. female was stressed a little issuing warning calls but in general she seemed to be managing. the North Beach bar had a truck with 4th of July decorations, I have no idea where the fireworks will be set off but this family is surely in for a ride over the next few days.

06/24/2017 by baygirl
I checked the nest today during a very hot afternoon in crowded Dewey Beach. The bar was very busy and loud but the female osprey was sitting on the nest with her now very visible 2 growing chicks. She did start a soft warning call when 2 men drug some sort of float or kayak up onto the marsh directly next to the platform, about 10 feet away. They were there for over 30 minutes and the female osprey was stressed but did not leave her chicks. There is also a floating dock newly tied to the rocks next to the platform, possibly due to the storm that swept through the area early this morning. It really is a miracle this osprey family is still thriving in this busy location but perhaps their old locale got them acclimated to Dewey beach shenanigans. fingers crossed the chicks will fledge.

06/17/2017 by baygirl
One chick visible today when I checked this nesting pair. Both adults were at the nest with a red wing blackbird harassing the male as he tried to perch on the platform. Hard to imagine this family can nest with so much commotion so very close to them but they are actually looking pretty good. I did talk to the girl who takes kayaks out into the bay directly under the platform. She is now aware to keep people moving by as quickly as possible.

06/07/2017 by baygirl
The pair has chicks and seems to be dealing with the commotion next to the bar. The kayak rental biz has not opened yet so lets see how the spreys deal with people at the platform, maybe they will manage. I noticed the female today was tucking her head under her wing to rest on the nest so maybe this is her technique to deal with Dewey Beach craziness. I have never seen an osprey tuck its head but it will help her block out the noise of the music!

05/29/2017 by baygirl
The story of the famous Dewey Beach Lighthouse Osprey: I was hoping not to have to post this nesting pair at this particular location but they are close to hatchlings and so I might as well create a nest report. This pair was originally nesting for past many years on the top of the historic lighthouse at The Lighthouse Restaurant across from the Rusty Rudder. Early this season I saw a metal excluder had been placed on top of the lighthouse. I met the general manager who told me he had been given permission from Kate Fleming, Fish and Wildlife, to place the excluder and she told him to try to place a platform nearby. He said he would not do that. This was disappointing to me because this pair had been in Dewey for quite a few years and I assumed they would be arriving soon and I wanted to at least try to find them a new nesting location, hopefully not on a roof since they were used to a high nest. I started looking for open marsh and found a good spot south of Bayberry Dr. It took me some time to find the address for the landowners as they are seasonal. In the meantime the pair showed up around Mar. 27 and started taking nest material to the light house but were unable to place it. The female in particular was very stressed and kept flying around Dewey while the male continued to perch on top of the lighthouse. I observed him go south to the marsh area I wanted for a new platform location and he was getting nest material there and dropping it back at the excluder. Then the female flew a few blocks north to the old, never used and leaning NJ V design platform that is in a sort of park/marsh area at waters edge and about 25 feet from east of Maui kayak concession and North beach bar, an open air bar with live bands nightly starting around Memorial day weekend if not before. I have talked about that platform location for years and was always happy no osprey had chosen to nest there. Besides the BearTrap golf course platform this platform is the worst possible placement. It has a townhome 25 ft away on its south side and the party bar on the north side not to mention a short walkway right under the platform used by kayakers and SUP's. There had never been so much as one piece of nest material on it. Even with this osprey pairs past experience of close proximity to the noisy Rusty rudder bar they have never been this low to the ground and close to people. But they built up a nest while I was working to get another platform permission on private land and sure enough by April 20 they began incubating- while it was still very quiet in the town of Dewey. When I saw the bar was going to open I talked with the mayor and he said the lions club wondered why they never had osprey and they never realized it was a bad location for an osprey family.....So....I checked the nesting pair last on May 26 when I observed the female fussing deep in the nest, either turning eggs or more likely tending a hatchling, the male was on the nest too watching deep into the nest (common behavior during first week of chicks). It was the first day the bar was open and in full swing and the female was nervous, giving warning calls when people walked by. A boat came in to dock at the bar and the high wind blew it straight up to the platform, literally about 5 feet from hitting the platform and the female and male both took off the nest, the male returned faster and the female flew around screaming for perhaps 5 minutes and then settled back into the nest. That's all I could stand to watch. I plan to check them again during the week when it will be quieter, for now anyway. This is a sad example of unchecked osprey platform construction and lack of thought about a wild animal. It is the chicks that may suffer at this location. The platform does not even have a predator guard and is in an area where garbage will easily attract raccoons. There are lots of drunk 20 some-things wandering by too. I am keeping the faith that it will work out for the osprey family and if it doesn't I will do my best to get them relocated by means of proper channels.