17th
2007
Our Monday/Tuesday visits to an osprey nest in Harpswell, Maine.
Osprey Nest Visit # 2: This afternoon, we went back to Harpswell again, and began our hike at 12:45 pm in the hopes that the sun would shine in front of the nest illuminating the birds. Because of the lateness of the hour, the camera was able to focus much more clearly with the greater light availability, and today’s photos look like they were taken with a different camera! Wow, what a difference proper lighting makes for photographic subjects. Drew also took some short video clips. In order to cause as little stress to the birds as possible, he would set up the camera and then retreat for 15 minutes to where Kasha and I were hiding out of sight of the birds. It is important to consider stealth when wildlife watching. We try to arrive and depart very quietly, and talk in very soft voices while there. Kasha goes with us and gets tied up to a tree in a shady spot on the opposite slope of the summit.
The chicks spent much more time huddled under the parent’s wings to keep cool. They did a lot of panting as well. The outdoor temp. was about 82 degrees and the sky was free of clouds. It was hot, hot, hot on that nest with the full intensity of the sun beating down on all the inhabitants. After awhile, the chicks seemed to decide that it might be cooler if they were able to spread their wings, so two of them came out from under the parent while the third chick stayed put. We are going to try to visit the nest next week to see the progress the chicks make. It shouldn’t be too long before they are ready to fledge, and that would be quite exciting to witness. We will count ourselves quite privileged if we are able to see fledging occur.