Prologue
Candace E. Cornell Salt Point, April 2014 Song of the Osprey very nearly we have lopped the branches of supporting us all. so branch by branch then; by feather and fish and leaf we must retrieve them all, renew them all because the thrill of wild things is a measure of our pulse. —Michael Harris To get to know an osprey, REALLY get to know one, requires that you sit for long hours of daily observation from April until the end of September and study their every movement and that of its family. Most people wouldn’t spend that much time in such a pursuit, but I gave it a go last summer (2013) at Salt Point, recording data on the lives of these magnificent birds. I observed from about 7:30 a.m. until sunset non-stop, everyday, rain or shine or snow, from the first day the male on April 20, 2013, which I nicknamed Orpheus, arrived at Salt Point until September 21, 2013, when he, the last of the family to leave, began his 3-4,000 mile migration to the Caribbean and points as far south as