Osprey Cam Web Log 2007

Season Ends

Today is Blog Action Day for the environment, which is a time when thousands of bloggers around the world write about an environmental topic of their choosing. And since this is a raptor blog, I thought I'd mark the day by writing about my recent trip to Hawk Mountain where I observed migrating raptors (see below).

Also, I wanted to say that this will be my final entry for this season's Osprey Cam Web Log.

We'll continue to keep the Gallery open, so feel free to send in your photos throughout the fall and winter. And keep in mind that we expect to turn on the Eagle Cam in late November or early December.

General News

First, some general news. I wanted to thank all those who came out to our Open House on October 6, and I wanted to remind our readers that we will be having our Christmas Open House on December 1 from 10am to 4pm. We will have crafts, entertainment, food and special sale prices on the wonderful nature items in our gift store, so be sure to come out and do some early Christmas shopping.

In addition, don't forget that we offer free guided bird walks at the Refuge on select weekend days during the fall and winter. These walks are led by some of Blackwater's best birders, so you will learn and see a lot. Visit our calendar for upcoming dates. And note that you do not need to call ahead to reserve a spot. Just meet at the Visitor Center before the listed time.

Interesting Websites

A couple interesting website links I wanted to pass along in my last web log entry: First, the Wild Bird Feeding Industry has set up a nice website to help answer questions about putting out food, water and shelter for birds. The site is called Backyard Bird Care, and it offers helpful tips and also activities for kids.

Also, I was just alerted to an Eagle Cam based at a national forest in Oregon; there's an intro at the beginning of this link, but when it ends you can see the cam. I haven't seen any eagles there yet, and sometimes the cam goes down, but it's a nice view.

Be sure to look at the slideshow of the camera installation that they have on the website. When you get to the cam history page, click on the "Project Photos" on the Willamette Pass Eagle Cam button. And if you click on the "More Video" button, you can see a couple short clips of an eaglet in the nest.

And finally, although this has nothing to do with raptors, I just found out that Greenpeace is tracking migrating humpback whales on their way to the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary in Antarctica. You can follow the whales (which include females with calves) on their migration using the website's Google Map. They also offer videos, as well as profiles of all the whales. Note that the website data is being intentionally delayed so that Japanese whalers cannot use the information to track the whales.

Hawk Mountain

A couple weeks ago, I had the privilege of going to Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania to do some hawk watching. If you've never heard of Hawk Mountain, it's part of the Kittatinny Ridge, which is the southeastern most Appalachian ridge in the Ridge-and-Valley Province, and it's one of the best places to watch hawks and other types of birds on migration down the East Coast.

In the early part of the 1900s, Kittatinny Ridge became a hunters' paradise as the shooters would line up on the mountain to injure and kill thousands of unsuspecting raptors as they migrated south. In 1934, conservationist Rosalie Edge acquired land in Pennsylvania where most of the slaughter was occurring, and a few years later this land became Hawk Mountain Sanctuary -- the first raptor refuge in the world. Today the sanctuary serves as a model organization that promotes raptor conservation and education, not only in North America but also around the world.

The reason why raptors enjoy Hawk Mountain is because the mountain terrain offers thermals and deflective air currents that they can ride. Thermals are warm pockets of air rising upwards, and the raptors ride the thermals up into the sky (like an elevator) and then soar down the valley for long distances, all without having to flap their wings. Then they look for the next thermal to ride up into the sky and continue on for many miles. This is a great way to migrate and save energy at the same time.

In order to see the raptors that are migrating through the valley, you need to do a little hiking. The South Lookout is a short walk from the beautiful Sanctuary Visitor Center, so it is more accessible. But if you want the big raptor counts, you need to go up to the North Lookout or one of the other higher vistas, which is more of a hike. If you visit, be sure to wear sturdy shoes that have good tread because the trails have rocks that you must maneuver around, and you want sure footing.

But once you reach the North Lookout, you will realize that all the rocky effort was worth it. Gazing out over the valley and watching the eagles and ospreys appear (seemingly out of nowhere sometimes) is an inspiring sight. Although these are the same species that I see at home, there is something magical about knowing that I'm seeing these birds on migration -- which is a very different part of their lives that I don't normally observe.

At Hawk Mountain, they have helpful staff members on the lookouts to tell you what species you are seeing. Although eagles and ospreys are rather easy to identify (even in flight), the many species of hawks, falcons, and vultures that appear are a lot harder to ID from a distance, so the staff members provide guidance as to what kinds of birds you're observing.

As luck would have it, the day before I went, they had seen big hawk numbers because a cold front had passed through (prime hawk-watching weather), so our numbers were a little low by the time I arrived. But I did see a couple bald eagles and an osprey, as well as vultures, peregrine falcons and numerous types of hawks. We were also treated to seeing some migrating monarch butterflies, as well.

Sitting on the rocky outcrop and looking out at the beautiful valley, it sets your heart pumping a little faster to hear the official Hawk Mountain counter call out "Bald Eagle!" and then see the majestic raptor coming over the valley with its distinctive white head and tail. Who knows where this eagle came from or where he is going. And who knows how many times he has passed this way during his life. But on this one day, I was able to witness his journey.

If you love seeing beautiful scenery and majestic raptors -- and you don't mind climbing over some rocks -- then be sure to plan a future trip to Hawk Mountain. Visit the Hawk Mountain "Visiting Us" page to find helpful information on planning your first visit.

And be sure to check out their website's Virtual Tour, which has some beautiful 360-degree movies, including this one of the North Lookout.

Thanks to all those who have joined me this season for our 2007 Osprey Cam Web Log. It was a very odd year to say the least (our first with no chicks), but I hope you enjoyed it nevertheless.

See you in March when the ospreys return,
Lisa - webmaster
(contact)

Visiting Birds

As I mentioned on the Osprey Cam page, we've updated the Gallery with many new photos. Much thanks to everyone who sent in their image captures over the last few weeks.

Among the more interesting shots are photos of our visiting Great blue heron, and also our visiting turkey vultures. Something worth noting is that the vulture that you see with the gray head and black-tipped beak is in fact an immature turkey vulture. The adults he sometimes hangs out with might be relatives.

Also, we've seen occasional photos of an American kestrel, which is a small hawk that sometimes likes to perch on the platform. And we just recently saw a flock of black birds descend on the platform for a bit -- they made quite an impressive sight.

As for eagles, we've been seeing single birds and couples. We also had a wonderful episode where an immature bald eagle was on the platform with an adult, and they seemed rather chummy.

As for ospreys, it's been a while since we've seen one on the platform, and it's possible we won't see another one again this year.

Osprey Camera Position

Several cam watchers have written in to ask if we could raise the camera the next time we visit the platform. As our regular cam watchers remember, in previous seasons the camera used to show the field and sky behind the platform. We installed a new camera back in March, and the new cam's field of view is such that it shows mostly the platform and not the background view.

In order to return the view to its former self, our cam technician will have to redesign the camera arm and then rent a bucket truck from a local company to go up and install it. Obviously this will be a big project, so our cam technician has not been anxious to do it before the winter. However, he has said we will definitely do it before the next osprey season. So we ask for your patience while we make plans for a new arm that will allow us to get the old view -- or something close to it -- back for our loyal cam watchers who enjoyed seeing the sky.

In the meantime, we have noticed that the new setup does give us one advantage -- it lets us see shots of the birds sitting on the camera arm. In fact, even the Great blue heron managed to sit on the arm, despite its tall body.

Migrating Ospreys

Rob Bierregaard, from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, has posted some recent news on the migrating ospreys that he is tracking this year. According to Rob's latest maps, the adult osprey named Homer is currently resting somewhere just north of Blackwater Refuge. And as we mentioned last week, Felix -- the wonder osprey -- recently crossed 1000 miles of open ocean, after which he provided even more surprises by dipping his young talons into the Pacific Ocean, something that is rare for East Coast ospreys. I should note at this point that Rob has said they are not 100% sure Felix is a male. Rob reported that it was hard to ID the gender of the bird, so they won't know the gender for sure until the bird returns for nesting season.

Although we were all impressed with Felix's stamina, the fact is it would be best if Felix didn't cross long sections of open water too many times because the longer an osprey is out over the ocean, the better the chances that weather could prove to be deadly. And speaking of the deadly effects of open-water travel, we were sad to see that the immature osprey named Patience apparently perished only 40 miles from shore. What a shame that she made it so far only to run out of steam at the very end.

Eagle News

I also wanted to pass along some recent eagle news. Our photographer friend Bob Quinn alerted me to an excellent online eagle gallery by nature photographer E.J. Peiker. Be sure to check out his fantastic eagle photos -- some of the best I've ever seen.

Speaking of Bob Quinn, we wanted to remind everyone that Bob will have a table at our Open House on October 6. This will be the first time Bob has displayed his photos at one of our events, so be sure to come to our Open House, where you can check out Bob's work and offer him your thanks for sharing so many of his wonderful photos with us on the website. You might even want to purchase one of his beautiful Blackwater photos.

And back on the topic of eagles: One of our cam watchers -- Susan Feldhuhn (or Suzi) -- is a volunteer at Tri-State Bird Rescue and Research, which is an excellent local organization that helps injured birds. Suzi recently helped transport an immature bald eagle that had become trapped in a silt basin. After Tri-State rehabilitated the bird, Suzi was also the one who released the eagle back into the wild. You can read more about the event, and see the photos, on the Tri-State website. Much thanks to Suzi, as well as all the other wonderful folks at Tri-State.

If you live in Delaware; Salem County New Jersey; or eastern Maryland, please consider volunteering with Tri-State, as they are always in need of bird transporters and other types of volunteers. You can read more on their Volunteer page.

Open House News

We've just learned that Richard Clifton, the 2007 Duck Stamp Artist, will be at the Blackwater Refuge Open House on Saturday, October 6 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Richard Clifton is a 45-year-old Delaware native. He lives and works on a historic family farm that adjoins a national wildlife refuge. Richard’s win in the Federal Duck Stamp Competition in October of 2006 was the culmination of more than twenty years of work in the wildlife art field. His depiction of two swimming ring-necked ducks will grace the 2007-2008 Federal Migratory Bird Stamp.

Join us on Saturday, October 6 for the many activities we have scheduled throughout the day, and while you're at the Open House you can view the Maryland Junior Duck Stamp display, as well as buy a 2007 Federal Duck Stamp and have it signed by Richard Clifton. And remember that possessing a current Duck Stamp gives you free entry to any national wildlife refuge open to the public, and it also means that the Refuge System will have more money available to protect habitat. Read more about the importance of Duck Stamps on our Duck Stamps page.

Until next time,
Lisa - webmaster
(contact)