SOAR
saving our avian resources
SOAR
25494 320th Street
Dedham, IA 51440
Phone: (712) 683-5555
Fax: (712) 683-5535
www.soarraptors.org
diversityfarms@iowatelecom.net
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SOAR saving our avian resources |
SOAR 25494 320th Street Dedham, IA 51440 Phone: (712) 683-5555 Fax: (712) 683-5535 www.soarraptors.org |
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Greetings and Welcome SOAR (Saving Our Avian Resources) is a non-profit organization that was established in 1999. SOAR is dedicated to saving our avian resources through raptor rehabilitation, education, and research.
October, 2006- The osprey are hopefully in South America by now and we hope that they will return to Iowa to raise young in the spring of 2008. In the meantime, contact SOAR to learn how you can help raise osprey at the Whiterock Conservancy next year. We will be reintroducing osprey for the next 4 years.
Click here for schedule of events Update Sept. 9
Kay inspects 2D.
Update Sept. 7 One more new resident will be moving in tomorrow! The Raptor Center in Minnesota has another young osprey who needs a release site. Pat Schlarbaum with the Iowa DNR will once again travel to the center near the Twin Cities and meet Terrie Hoefer in Ames, who will then transport the bird to Kay. Stay tuned for pictures. Speaking of pictures, Kay placed a trail camera on top of
the tower last week. We did this so we could read the id tags on the birds
and see who was eating off the tower. Y9, Y6, and AC were photographed Don't forget that you can observe the birds every Tuesday and Thursday evening from 5-7 p.m. Turn south off of Hwy 141 at the old sale barn (just east of the Middle Raccoon River Bridge - just east of Coon Rapids), follow the field road back to the green steel gate (the gate will be open for you), go through the gate and find spotting scopes, binoculars, and lawn chairs set up for observations at the north end of the large pond. The photo at right shows one of the birds soaring on September 4th. This photo was taken by volunteer Janet Pulver. We can't see the id tag, however we know it is not AT because AT is missing tail feathers and this bird has all of his. Update Sept. 2
Update Aug. 30 The door was opened on Satuday August 26th to release the newest arrivals. FX and the Wisconsin bird flew out, eager to be free. Each day we have not been able to see all 7 birds at once. It is possible that some may have begun to head south. This morning three osprey congregated in one tree while 6 vultures came together in another tree just north of the ospreys. We waited an hour and watched. No ospreys came to the roof but one vulture did and started to eat. We also watched one pied-billed grebe and one cormorant while sitting there observing.
Update Aug. 25 - New Roomies!
The other new resident at Whiterock has been at the Raptor
Center for the last year. He was found on
Right: Kay holds the
We also took some closeup photographs of the birds which we will use in curriculum that is being developed for area schools to learn about osprey, water quality and environmental issues.
Here you can see the sharp "spicules" on the foot of the Wisconsin bird. This is an adaptation that no other bird has - to help hold on to those slippery fish! Compare it to the foot of a hawk on the right.
As we watched one of the other osprey began fishing over
the pond, but not before flying over us and checking us out.
Two vultures sit in one of the osprey's favorite trees. They have found the free fish that sits on top of the tower. But don't worry, our birds chase them away and take their tree and their fish whenever they want it. Vultures are considered a raptor but they do not need to kill their prey so their beaks and talons are small. As a result they need to stay away from osprey beaks and feet!
Update Aug. 22 Well we must apologize for slowing down in the number of posts to this blog. We thought you might be getting tired of hearing the same thing everyday. (All the osprey are fine, they are eating, blah blah). But we are excited to hear that there are people out there
who are really reading this and this makes us very excited. Guess what
else? You can get excited and come watch the osprey yourself! SOAR
and Whiterock Conservancy are inviting you out to observe the osprey every
Tuesday and Thursday night Senator Tom Harkin visits the birds with Kay
Neumann, Join Kay Neumann, SOAR Executive Director, and Allia Janning, Great Places Intern, on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5 pm to 7 pm through the end of September at the Whiterock Conservancy to watch fledging osprey. Turn south off of Hwy 141 at the old sale barn (just east of the Middle Raccoon River Bridge - just east of Coon Rapids), follow the field road back to the green steel gate (the gate will be open for you), go through the gate and find spotting scopes, binoculars, and lawn chairs set up for observations at the north end of the large pond. SO, what about the birds? All 5 are still accounted for. They are eating and we think Janet and Colton may have snapped a photo of one of the birds with its own fish. Look closely at the picture, do you see an entire fish there? But we actually think it may look like a big fish but since the photo was taken so far away, what looks like the tail of the fish is probably just another branch of the tree. The five released osprey are still being fed at the hack tower and will usually come in for a piece of fish at this time in the evening. They are honing their flying skills and have been observed skimming the pond and perching nearby watching for fish. They are beginning to go up into soars and are chasing vultures and herons away from their tower and food source. They are amazing to watch fly and are doing a lot of vocalizing. Canoers are also treated to osprey observations while floating through the area.
The released osprey were relocated from Wisconsin nests. The
Wisconsin DNR is charging $500 per bird to cover their costs of tree climbing
and travel time. Three of Whiterock's osprey have been sponsored by Mary
Garst, Liz Garst, and Whiterock Conservancy's Board. SOAR is still looking
for two more osprey sponsors. SOAR would also gladly accept donations
of binoculars, spotting scopes, and bird identification books for upcoming
school field trips to the area. For more information on how you can help
bring nesting osprey back to the state of Iowa, contact Kay Neumann at
dfarms@pionet.net Update Aug. 15 The birds are still doing well. They are still eating the fish that we porvide for them. We are not sure how much they are fishing on their own but we feel confident they are learning. Osprey migrate to Central and South America for the winter. Our young birds will stay in the Americas for two years before coming back north for the summer. They will not begin to breed until they are three to four years old. Update Aug. 10 The birds are doing very well. Janet has observed some of the birds with fish that she did not give them. We are currently supplying the birds with cut up carp. But Janet has observed the birds with entire fish which they must have acquired on their own! Fast learners! Update Aug. 4 This morning when I drove in I was able to see 3 ospreys on the tower roof and two in a tree to the west. When I put the ladder up to the tower, two flew away and one remained. It stayed until I climbed the ladder to the roof and did o.k. till I put the fish up there and remove from the bad, and then he/she flew away also. Beautiful morning. When I was finished, I started out and noticed all were in trees not far from each other and by river. Update Aug. 3 - First dive!
In the picture left, volunteer Janet Pulver is shown throwing fish on to the roof. This afternoon we were able to observe the osprey fishing the river and the pond. At 12:30 three were on the tower and AT was on the snag closest to the pond. Y9 was eating on the tower. There is lots of vocalization going on. It seems as if one bird on the tower is noisier then the others but hard to tell from such a distance. At about 1:00 AT flies to the tower and eats a little bit and another one on the tower begins to eat. A few minutes later the 5th bird shows up. It looks like he has blue on his wing which would make him Y6 but it could be green which makes him AC. Next year we will make their identification markings easier to see from a distance! The 5th bird lands in a snag where another osprey is sitting. By 1:30 Y9 is still eating, the other bird that started eating at 1:00 is still eating, AT is not eating and did not eat much. The 5th bird leaves and starts to fish the river but from the vantage point in the tent we really can't see if he is dragging his feet or diving. By 1:37 birds are coming and going and it gets a little difficult
to keep track of where everyone is. The 5th bird comes back to the tower
- still lots of vocalization going on all this time. Seems they call whenever
vultures are near and they also call when one of them is flying, leaving
or approaching the tower. Then one in the tree leaves, AT nibbles a fish.
1:49: AT leaves the tower. While trying to study the birds on the tower
and figure out who is who AT starts to fish the pond - so might have missed
something. 1:56 AT makes a pass and lands on the stump sticking out of
the water.2:01 AT leaves the stump and plops directly into the water -
he is in the water for several seconds, flies out and does an actual
dive into the water! He wasn't very high in the sky but it was a true
dive, head first, wings and body vertical into the water. He flies out
and makes several more attempts splashing into the water at 2:04 he flies
to the tower. Lots of calls. The birds continue to rest, eat and call. The noisy one leaves the tower and tries to land in the small tree that sticks out of the water but can't, flies along river and then back to the pond and tries to land in the tallest tree that grows on the south side of the pond but he can't so he circles high several times and finally heads north over the river out of sight. Just AT's head is shown out of the water
We realize that by nearly 3:00 Y9 has not moved much on the roof of the hackbox nor have we seen him flap his wings. All of the other birds have flown. Y9 is also one who seems to be the last to leave the tower when Janet and Colton come to feed them in the morning and when Kay comes to feed him at night. He looks healthy and he is eating. Maybe he is just not as strong as the others yet.
Update Aug. 2 This morning upon arriving, coming into the drive from the highway, we could see with the binoculars, three ospreys in trees along the river, and one osprey on top of the hack tower. As we pulled on in we identified the 5th osprey southwest in the tree frequently used. The osprey on the roof stayed put until the fish were put on top of the tower. He was out of view so we do not know which one he was. At one time there were four flying at one time, confusing, but beautiful just the same. We can’t wait to see them snatch fish up out of the water and carry it off. All seem to have the acquired strength to make long sweeps of the pond and the river as we witnessed this morning. Absolutely beautiful. In the picture above there are 2 osprey Update Aug 1 - All present! Colton and Janet arrived at 7:00 a.m. this morning. All five of the ospreys were on the hack tower. The osprey were wet. Even so, soaked, all left the tower except for Y9. When Janet climbed the tower and then on up to the roof and left the fish, Y9 stayed put. Janet doesn't know if that is a good or questionable thing. The osprey flew off to the west and sat in different trees. It is a reward just seeing them all there. Update July 31 - Y9 is back and Y6 crashes! Kay fed the birds last evening (July 30) and when she did Y6 flew out of the hack tower, flew over the pond and back trying to land in a tree with little success. Then he/she flew over toward the hack tower and crashed! No injuries as Kay looked him/her over good. She placed Y6 back into the hack tower. Also Y9 was back on top of the tower! yeah! It is good to know he is still around.
This morning all 5 birds were at the tower. Y6 was still inside
the box, the other 4 were on top of the Janet threw in some fish to Y6 and then took the rest to the
top of the roof where Y9 allowed her to take two pictures and put the
food on the roof without bolting. She moved very slowly and Y9 lets Janet take his picture in the morning Kay fed the birds this evening. She said she saw a couple osprey off in the dead branches west of the hack tower. Also, Y6 left the hack tower again this evening and he flew a bit better than last evening. He flew over the pond and to the tree west of the tower.
Update July 30, 2006 At the morning feeding two ospreys were on the same tree as yesterday morning. Also one osprey in a tree just southwest of the tree with the other two. Y6 is still in the hack tower. All appears well. Then the two that were sitting together flew off and went to the tree way over west, a tree they all frequent. We only saw a total of 4 osprey. We sure hope someone spots the fifth one soon. We don’t know if it is the same four all the time or different and we are seeing all five but not at the same time. Update July 29, 2006 - Chasing vultures! This morning, two ospreys were on the tower, one eating the other just perched. Y6 is still in the hack tower. A total of 4 ospreys were observed this morning. The 5th was never seen, but he was probably around. When Janet went to feed them, both ospreys on the top flew west and landed in dead trees, one alone and right by the river, and the other one flew to the same tree where one of the osprey was already perched. Noon: One osprey was on a snag sticking up out of the water
(the one furthest east) He stayed there for an hour. When he finally took
off he flew west pitching down across the pond, and he had a hold of a
fish, but he dropped it and it continued skimming the water and then the
osprey banked up and flew after a vulture! He chased it quite
a ways west then banked and turned back to land on a tree just west of
the osprey tower. He remained in that tree while I was there. Two other
osprey came flying from the south, one landed in a tree just north of
the one that just landed after chasing vulture. The other osprey went
This evening at 6:00p.m. we could see two ospreys in the top of a dead limbed tree. Y6 was still in the tower and doing fine. The inside was completely shaded so hopefully cooler than the earlier part of the day. We spied another osprey over west in another dead topped limb, where they have been known to perch before. While there, the two in the tree flew off. One went to the same tree as the one far west, the other in a tree just a bit west of the one that we first saw them in. They seem to frequent the same trees. So total all day, we only could account for four ospreys at one time. Same thing this evening. Only four. The other may have been around but we were unable to pick him out if he was. Update July 28, 2006 - Y6 all alone and AH shows off It was very hot today. This morning when Janet and Colton came to the tower for the morning feeding there was only one osprey seen flying south along the river and Y6 all alone in the box. Later in the morning there was one short minute when AC, AH, AT and Y9 were located. One bird was perched in the snag closest to the pond, a second in a snag north and west of the close snag. A third bird flew in about a half hour after the first two birds were located and perched in the snag west of the tower and then we caught a brief glimpse of a 4th bird flying into the shade on the west side of the river. As it got closer to lunch time the birds began to move more; flying up and down the river, landing in different trees. 12:30 p.m. Three birds perched in "AT's tree" west of the box. One of the birds is AC, the others are most likely AT and AH. AC had flown over the pond earlier but did not drag feet or make an attempt to catch anything. 2:15 p.m. One flies to the tower. It appears as if it grabs a bluegill and flies away. 2:20 AC flies over the pond and drags his feet in the water many times. He then perches on a stump that sticks out of the water.
2:39 AH flies over pond and drags his feet, lands in the water, flies out of the water, drags feet, gets wet, flies out, gets wet, flies over to log sticking out of water. THen AT comes and makes a pass over the pond and heads to tower.
2:41 AH takes off and does a lap around the pond and joins AT on the tower. After a couple minutes AT begins to eat and after about 5 more minutes AH starts to eat. All this time AC is still perched on the stump in the pond and Y6 is in the box. No sign of Y9. 3:00 Y9 does some serious flapping but he does not jump into
the air. AT and AH are still on top of the tower, AM is still eating and
AC is still onthe stump. 3:09 AC flies around the pond, drags his feet and heads to the closest snag but then veers towards thetower and heads north up the river and can't be seen. A minute later he flies back and lands on the snag and holds his wings out to dry so he must have been fishing out of view. Then the volunteers leave and come back for a quick look at about 4:50 p.m. One bird is perched on the same stump in the pond, near a great-blue heron and one bird is in the snag closest to the pond and a third bird is perched on the tower. There is no time to see if any are Y9. Update July 27, 2006-AH gains his wings and AC takes a
swim and a 4th bird fledges (Note: The birds are sometimes called "he" or "her"
etc. We actually are not sure of the sex of each bird)
When Janet and Colton come to feed the birds at about 7:30 AC and AT take a new route off the roof. Normally the birds head straight west towards the river, then AC flies south and perches out of view, AT always flies to a snag just west of the tower on the other side of the river. Instead, AC heads east and flew over the pond twice, then heads down south like usual. AT followed and also flew over the pond before making a wide turn to it's favorite perch in a snag west of the tower. While watching AC and AT leave, AH disappeared. After running down the hill to see the tower from the north, AH could be seen perching on the west edge of the tower roof. When the birds are on the west side of the roof, it is hard to see them (so maybe AH was there when we couldn't see him this mornin. Still more interesting behavior this morning. AC came back to the tower at 8:23. At 8:27 AC took a bluegill from the roof and left with it! He headed out over the pond and then south and was gone but at 8:30 he was back and apparently decided he needed to eat the fish on the top of the tower. During this time Y6 and Y9 did some more flapping in the box. They don't jump in the air however. 11:50 a.m. AC and AT are on top of the tower. Only one bird in the hack box is visible. Where is AH? 12:00 p.m. AT flies back to it's favorite tree. AC flies near
AT's tree two times and lands in a snag to the north of AT's tree. Normally
AC heads south out of view. 12:30 p.m. AC appears to be fishing along the river, flying up and down the river between his new perch and the hack box. Then he heads to the pond. Flying very low and close to the water he makes a few passes then lowers his feet and drags his feet in the water! He does this twice then heads to the snag closest to the pond. He sits with his wings held out a bit, wrists bent holding flight feathers in. Drying his feathers? Still not sure where AH is as we can still only see Y9 in box, AC in tree, AT has returned tot he top of the tower along with another bird. Is that AH or Y6?
1:00 p.m. Can now see Y6 and Y9 in the box, two birds on top of the tower and AC in tree so all are accounted for. The birds are calling. 1:26 p.m. Everyone on top of the box is eating. 1:30p.m. AC leaves the tree and heads to the pond to try fishing
again. This time he goes swimming! He does not dive, as osprey usually
do, but flies low above the water and puts his feet down and almost goes
under the water. He keeps his head above water and after two or three
(very long) seconds (can he get out or do we need to run for the canoe?)
he pulls himself out of the water - No Problem! He continues flying around
the pond for a second lap and a second dip. This time he is in deeper,
his wings go completely under and after another heart pounding few seconds
flies free of the water to his new tree overlooking the pond and stretches
his wings to dry in the sun. (editor's note: WOW! Very Cool! This is what
osprey do and so why worry about them when
In this photo AC is just flying out of the water after his first "dip in the pond"
AC flies free of the surface. He then does a little lap and heads to the closest snag
5:00 p.m. A 4th bird was sitting on the perch directly in front of the opening of the hack box and flew away when Kay began feeding them. That leaves one bird in the box. AT was then observed to be following in AC's footsteps, flying low over the pond and dragging his feet. Will all 5 be flying by tomorrow? Update July 25, 2006 The birds are doing very well! AC and AT were the first two birds to take flight on Sunday the 23rd and have been been flying up and down the Middle Raccoon River. This morning AC and AT sat on the roof of the tower and ate some fish. They did not fly off until volunteer Janet Pulver came to feed them at 7:30 a.m. They did a "fly-by" at 8:30. At 9:30 a red-tail hawk flew near the tower and AH, Y6 and Y9 who are still in the hackbox, called loudly to it. At 9:42 AT came back and after about 15 minutes began eating a fish. Janet and Kay throw fish on to the roof of the hack box for those that have fledged. AC did not return to the tower until nearly 11:00. By then the three inside had retreated to the shade of in the back of the box. Update July 23, 2006: The birds have been in the tower eating fresh fish and flapping their wings while overlooking Whiterock Conservancy. This morning the gate to the nest box was lowered and one osprey flew out while the other four watched! We will continue to watch all the birds very closely until they leave on thier migration to Central and South America. We will continue to feed them for awhile as well, to be sure they are getting all they need. Once an osprey begins to fly we say it has fledged. In the wild, after fledging, young ospreys begin to hunt on their own. However, they often continue to return to the nest to receive food from their parents for two to eight weeks after fledging. Because ospreys migrate individually, juvenile ospreys must be fully independent of their parents by the time the southward migration begins. Yearling ospreys almost always remain on the wintering grounds throughout the next year and won't return north until they are 2 years old. They mature at 3 but do not begin nesting until they are 5 years old. In order to tell the birds apart they
have been banded with a letter code and also marked with ink. This will
help the volunteers to watch each individual bird and make notes on their
health, eating habits, etc. The birds are: Click here for more cool facts about ospreys or here :) Update July 17, 2006: The osprey have arrived! Five juvenile osprey, approximately 42 days old arrived at SOAR on Wednesday July 12th. The birds have been placed in the tower and are being watched very closely with binoculars and security cameras. In the terrible heat we have been having lately, extra ventilation holes were cut into the nest box. Also SOAR staff and volunteers have been spraying the birds down with a squirt bottle to help them stay cool. They do this by sticking the bottle through the flap in the wall - so they do not see a human. They enjoy the cool mist. Two of the birds appear to be several days older then the other three and one of these likes to "hog" the water. Stay tuned to this page as we will try to update it with more information and pictures as often as we can. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Osprey once nested and lived in Iowa, but no nests have been
recorded since the state was settled by Osprey return to where they were raised to build a nest and raise their young. For the reintroduction project, the Iowa DNR helps to obtain young osprey from Minnesota and place them in hack towers in the hope they will expand their range into Iowa. In the year 2000, an osprey nesting attempt occurred in northwestern Iowa but no eggs were laid. Last year, osprey attempted to nest at Saylorville and at Don Williams Lake in Boone County. Both of these sites were osprey reintroduction sites. Other reintroduction sites have been at Hartman Reserve in Black Hawk County and at Coralville Reservoir. ..................................................................................................DNR file photo This summer Carroll County will be added to the list. The Whiterock Conservancy near Coon Rapids will hopefully become home to future osprey families. SOAR has obtained the hack tower used at Saylorville, as they have completed their 5 year commitment to the osprey project. (With a nesting pair this spring!). In May, the utility poles were set, the National Guard used their crane, and the local utility company loaned the use of their bucket truck and the tower is up! In mid-July volunteers will travel to Minnesota and pick up
5 young osprey, at a cost to SOAR of $500 each. The osprey come from different
nests, and the Minnesota parents are left with one or two babies in the
nest to finish raising. The young birds will be brought to SOAR and placed
in the tower. They will be fed daily, and watched very closely with security
cameras by volunteers to make sure that everyone is eating and healthy.
It is very important that there is minimal human contact. By the first
week of August, the birds should be taking their first flight attempts.
Volunteers will continue to feed and watch the birds very closely. Sometime
in September the Osprey will migrate to Central America. This process
will be repeated by SOAR for several years. Hopefully in about 5 years,
our birds will begin to come back to western Iowa and start the process
on their own.
Here the osprey hack tower sits on the ground next to the utility poles. Thanks to MidAmerican Energy for setting the poles into the ground.
In this photo you can see the hack box being lifted into place by the Iowa National Guard. Carpenter Mike _____ is getting ready to attach the box to the poles with the use of the _____ bucket truck. Check back to this page often for more pictures. SOAR appreciates all of the volunteers and donations that have made this osprey project possible. We are also in need of more dollars, fresh fish and other help. If you can help with these items or can give technical advice for a live webcam set up, please contact us!
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Osprey! 
on the tower. AT is missing one or two center tail feathers and she has
been seen in the area but we have not observed her (or him) eating off
the tower. AT seemed to be the first to be very comfortable splashing
into the pond and was the first to dive. No one has observed the birds
actually catching anything but that is probably just because we all have
other responsibilities (dang it!). 
As
far as we can tell, there are 4 osprey still hanging around. That is the
most osprey we can see/hear at one time. That doesn't mean that the other
three are gone, although it is possible. Remember that every Tuesday and
Thursday in September you can go and observe the osprey for yourself from
5-7 p.m. The osprey still like to fish on the pond and that is great fun
to watch. Here you can see the tent that we used to observe the osprey
from the east side of the pond. We used the tent so as not to scare the
birds away when we first opened the gate. Osprey can be a bit skitish.
Some
new members have joined the group this evening! Two new osprey from the
Raptor Center in Minnesota have been placed at Whiterock Conservancy.
XF is a young osprey that was found on the ground near a nest near Lake
Amelia in Hugo Minnesota on July 26th. He or she had what amounted to
a broken finger (a fracture of the left phalanx proximalis). XF had already
been banned in Minnesota so his XF band is black. Our birds have purple
bands. And as with all banded birds he/she also has a federal id band
on the other leg.
the ground on August 30, 2005 near Balsam Lake in Wisconsin. He could
not fly. He was missing wing feathers and all of his tail feathers. But
now his feathers have all grown back. The Raptor Center wanted these birds
to be released in a hack situation where they would be fed and given some
time to adjust and practice fishing with some back-up food before they
fly off in a few short weeks to South America. Why weren't they released
in Minnesota?? Well Minnesota has lots of osprey and because they have
a lot of osprey they do not have a reintroduction program. All of their
osprey are wild birds with wild parents. Being released in a hack situation
will give them a little extra help that they won't get in the wild. 60%
of young osprey do not survive the first year.
So
the gate was raised and put back in place. This is so Kay can observe
the birds and so they can also look out on to the landscape and learn
about their new home. We quietly and carefully carried the birds up to
the tower, set up the security camera (which Kay uses to observe the birds
from a monitor in her truck) and started to place the birds in the hack
box. 
..
.. 
After
the birds were placed in the tower we quietly went down and watched the
birds on the monitor. We were watching to make sure the birds would not
fling themselves against the bars of the box. The older bird did try to
"escape" when it was first placed in the box, jumping and flapping
against the bars but it did not do that for long. He quickly quieted down
while Kay took the younger bird out of its box. We snapped some pictures
of him and placed him in the box and shut the door. All along, the
other osprey were watching from trees along the river, calling and calling.
By the time we climbed down we could see on the monitor that the birds
were sitting quietly in the box. 
The others were still calling from the river. A little while later some
osprey flew to the tower to help themselves to some fish before the vultures
tried to steal it.
until the end of September from 5:00-7:00 p.m. Watch them through the
spotting scope, maybe you will get to see them attempt a dive! Come and
learn about osprey and how you can help with this important project. Then
you can enjoy the birds just as Senator Harkin did! Tom Harkin, US Senator,
and Steven King, US Representative, have both been on site to view osprey
and learn about the reintroduction project. Their support has helped to
fund trails and staffing for the Great Places initiative in Coon Rapids.
The osprey highlight the need for wetland restoration, watershed assessment
and management, and environmental educational resources.
..
This
morning when we approached we found one osprey sitting on a branch snag
in the pond, one osprey on the roof and the other three in different trees
along the river plus the one further SW that the one seems to favor. The
one osprey on the roof flew off when I placed the fish on the roof. He
flew to the tree just west of the tower. All five were accounted for and
appear to be doing well. 
AT
explodes out of the water with ease
4
birds on top and Y6 is inside this morning! Yea!
tower.
Everyone was eating. This is very good news. Kay and the volunteers are
thrilled to have everyone accounted for. After Janet took the picture
above, one flew off the tower taking a fish with him. See picture at right.
He flew to the tree way over west. Again, one that they frequent. 
he/she
didn’t get alarmed. It was an exhilarating morning to say the least. 
-Y6
taking his time
further
north, looked like he/she was following the river.
AH
is fishing over the pond and AC is perched on a stump watching him 
.
.
. 
This
morning at 6:00 a.m. it was very foggy and two birds were on the tower.
It was too foggy to tell if one of the birds was AH. Had he left the tower?
At 6:26 a third bird lands on the tower and there are still 2 in the hack
box so now we know everyone is safe. Shortly thereafter AH begins to eat
a fish on the roof. Ten minutes later all 3 birds on top are eating. AH
and AC eat for nearly an hour. AH does some practice flapping and jumping
on the roof of the tower. Y6 and Y9 who are in the hack box do some practice
flapping.
he
is wet? Because he is young, this is his first attempt that we know of
and sometimes they do have trouble.)
In
this photo AC is deep in the water, both wings went under the surface
but his head always stayed above the water. You can see his left wing
breaking the surface and his head, with his mouth open and his head feathers
spread out. His right wing is still mostly under the water.
Europeans. That is, not until a reintroduction of osprey was begun by
the Macbride Raptor Center and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources
in 1997. 
