Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Very Productive Year for Osprey in NJ

Checking a nest at Great Bay Blvd. WMA, Little Egg Harbor - photo by Bill Steiner

2010 was a very productive year for ospreys in New Jersey, according to the latest Osprey Project report.

The reproductive rate was about 2 young per active nest (an all time high for the project). Calm weather contributed to the success as it makes prey easier for ospreys to find, especially fluke and flounder, one of their main prey sources.

Of the 308 active nests (where the outcome was known) 36% of nests had 3 young, 33% had 2 young, and 14% had one young. Only 11% observed had failed to produce young. For comparison, in 2006, 14% failed and in 2003, 46% failed.

Awesome Ospreys: Fishing Birds of the World
 Ospreys (Wechsler, Doug. Really Wild Life of Birds of Prey.)

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