July 9, 2020

Osprey Cam Update

The Osprey family is having a wonderful summer on the South River! Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum took turns building their nest. Osprey require the perfect spot to build a nest. An area that is open and easy to approach, has a sturdy base and is high above predators, such as water snakes or raccoons.

The Osprey parents had three eggs, unfortunately one of them did not hatch. However, the two fledglings are growing up very quickly! They are typical teenage siblings, they fight for food and attention. On a typical day the father hunts for fish, while the mother stays with the children and feeds them. Once the live fish is brought back to the nest, the children are fighting to get to the food. Osprey eat a lot of fish, they are the ONLY hawk in North America that almost exclusively eats live fish. Almost 99 percent of an Osprey’s diet is made up of over 80 different species of live freshwater and saltwater fish. Soon they will be leaving the nest to explore the Chesapeake Bay all on their own. I have enjoyed watching them grow so far and cannot wait to see what they do next!

Brittany Babbington, summer intern