The human real estate market may be slowing, but not so in the avian world of the osprey. With spring in full bloom, the large brown and white raptors are seeking high places near good fishing areas to build their rambling stick nests – and there might not be enough prime spots to go around without a little human help.
Osprey, known as an icon of salt and fresh waterways, suffered serious decline in Delaware and throughout the United States during the 1950s and 60s, largely due to the effects of the pesticide DDT, other contaminants and potentially harmful chemical compounds known as PCBs. After DDT and most PCBs were banned in the 1970s, the osprey population recovered and in recent years has enjoyed a dramatic increase in numbers.
In Delaware the bird that's also known as the fish hawk is soaring. “We seem to be having a boom number of osprey pairs looking for good nesting sites this year,” said Division of Fish & Wildlife Biologist Holly Niederriter. “Why we have so many isn’t clear, though there could be a number of factors, including mild weather, good food supplies or loss of nesting sites elsewhere.”
Ospreys like to nest atop high structures that are safe from predators and near a water source with plenty of the fish which almost exclusively comprise their diet. Before the advent of artificial structures such as cell phone towers and electric poles, osprey nested in tall trees, often choosing dead ones to keep predators at bay. Nowadays, with suitable trees in undisturbed locations in shorter supply, osprey may try to nest in less-than-ideal artificial locations, such as dangerous live power poles.
____________________________________
Article by Joanna Wilson; photos by Holly Niederriter
____________________________
“DNREC receives at least one report per year of an osprey falling prey to live electric wires. But luckily for the osprey, Delaware citizens, Delmarva Ornithological Society members and local electric companies have been willing and able to help the birds settle on safer high rises to raise their young,” Niederriter said.
In Seaford, for example, when an osprey pair attempted to nest on a live electrical pole in the Wal-Mart parking lot, Dave Thomas of the city electric department followed advice from DNREC’s Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program and put up an artificial platform for the birds. It was successful at attracting tenants, as were similar projects at the local high school football field and another downtown electrical pole last year. This year, all three platforms are hosting nesting osprey pairs. 
In Kent County, when ospreys attempted to set up housekeeping on two electric poles, Stephen Enss of the City of Dover Public Utilities Department erected additional utility poles to divert electricity away from one nesting pair and put up a new platform for another pair in the Little Creek area.
Further north, in previous years Conectiv (now Delmarva Power) put up poles at Woodland Beach and along the canal to aid osprey that were in similarly dangerous situations.
And, throughout the state, private citizens with osprey nesting near their homes have aided the birds by fixing failing structures and by donating their time and resources.
The tireless efforts of the Delmarva Ornithological Society have played an integral role in osprey conservation in Delaware. With the support and partnership of DNREC's Division of Fish and Wildlife and the Division of Parks and Recreation, and funding from grants and donations, the organization has taken the lead in constructing, installing, repairing and replacing osprey platforms throughout the state.
However, when building new platforms, placement is key, Niederriter cautioned. “Platforms need to be placed away from predators and areas where fish could be contaminated.
Also, randomly placed platforms often go unused. Ultimately, it’s best to let the osprey choose their own nest sites and thereby determine placement,” she said.
Delaware’s Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program also oversees a volunteer project in which citizens monitor osprey nests near their homes or workplaces and record data on their behavior. To minimize disturbance to nesting osprey, volunteers will need to own binoculars to observe the nests from a distance.
In 2007, volunteer osprey monitors logged more than 250 hours collecting data on 33 nests. An additional 10 to 15 nests, mostly in Kent and Sussex counties, need dedicated volunteers to monitor them.
For more information, please contact Jeremiah Dann at 302-739-9912 or jeremiah.dann@state.de.us, or visit www.fw.delaware.gov/Info/Pages/OspreyMonitoring.aspx
