Blog #316 Down Cayuga Lake Way Part I

What are the Ospreys Up to? If you go Ospreying (birding for Ospreys) during the next  3–4 weeks you might be disappointed as most nests will appear empty. Most females in  the Cayuga Lake Basin are sitting tight on their nest, trying to keep their eggs an even  99 degrees despite the swings in temperature. Look for their white heads poking up just  above the stick nest. You will also see males guarding their nests and mates from the  nest perch or in a nearby tree. Males bring fish to feed their mates and incubate the  eggs as the females can eat in the trees. The pairs are still copulating even though they  are done laying eggs. This is also the time when intruders or floaters visit nests, challenging the owners and attempting to mate with unguarded females.  

Allen H. Treman Marine Park nest. 

Along Ithaca’s waterfront, the incubating females are tight on their nest. The oldest nest  in the south end of the lake is the Allen H. Treman Marine Park (active since 2012). The 

pair has been incubating eggs the longest, as older pairs tend to arrive and breed  earlier than other pairs.  

Stewart Park Youth Bureau Nest, courtesy of Cindy and Karel Sedlacek. 

The second oldest is the Stewart Park Youth Bureau nest, home of Stewart, a prolific hunter. Stewart has been a good partner since they first nested in 2015 and has always been a good provider. Besides the usual suspects, he has caught novelties like  longnose gar, pickerel, alewife, and drum. Many raptors do not eat the entrails of their  prey, but Ospreys are fussy. They reject the entrails of oily saltwater fish like menhaden,  but on Cayuga Lake, they usually eat the entire fish, fins and all but the largest bones.  Their stomach enzymes are adapted to dissolve the tough tissues the fish. Unlike owls  that expel pellets regularly, Ospreys only occassionally expel pellets of indigestible  items.

Stewart spitting out fish entrails during a meal, courtesy of Cindy and Karel Sedlacek. 

The female at the Stewart Park Suspension Bridge nest appears to be sitting on eggs. If  so, this will be the pairs first successful brood. The male is a good provider and is quick  to tend and incubate the eggs, while the female takes a break. 

Suspension Bridge nest next to the Newman Golf Course, courtesy of Cindy and Karel Sedlacek.

The pair nesting on a utility pole by the Stewart Park fishing lagoon are persisting against all odds. They began their messy nest last year next to the fish-filled lagoon.  NYSEG normally puts a potentially hazardous nest like this one on a riser away from  the live wires. However, with COVID the rules changed, and the NYSEG crew tore the  nest down. True to Osprey nature, the birds spent the next few days bringing hundreds  of sticks to rebuild the nest. NYSEG linemen tore the nest down again. Ospreys are  famously stubborn and persevere in the face of insurmountable odds. The birds rebuilt  the nest again. NYSEG refused to put up a riser because it was too hard to do so with “social distancing.” They tore the nest down for the third time. I imagine by now the  bird’s reproductive hormones were being pushed to the limits, but their reproductive  imperative was strong. The Osprey pair rebuilt their nest for a fourth time, but they had  no energy left for eggs. NYSEG also gave up and the nest remained intact over the  winter.  

The pair is back this spring and nesting. Let’s hope NYSEG puts up a riser for this  determined pair. More nests in Ithaca will be profiled in coming blogs. 

The Stewart Park fishing lagoon nest, courtesy of Cindy and Karel Sedlacek. 

Eyes to the sky! 

Candace 

Candace E. Cornell  

Friends of Salt Point  

Cayuga Osprey Network 

Lansing, NY  

cec222@gmail.com 

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP PROTECT OSPREYS: 

• AVOID GETTING TOO CLOSE TO NESTING SITES DURING THE BREEDING SEASON. IF AN ANIMAL  VOCALIZES WHEN YOU'RE NEAR, YOU ARE TOO CLOSE! BACK OFF IMMEDIATELY. 

• CARRY BINOCULARS TO VIEW WILDLIFE FROM AFAR. 

• RESTORE, CLEAN, AND PRESERVE LAKESHORE AND WETLAND HABITAT. • HELP KEEP LOCAL WATERS CLEAN, HEALTHY, AND SAFE. 

• RECYCLE USED FISHING LINE, WHICH CAN BE HAZARDOUS TO OSPREY.  

• JOIN THE CAYUGA OSPREY NETWORK AND VOLUNTEER TO HELP MONITOR OSPREY NESTS. WRITE TO: CEC222@GMAIL.COM. 

• 

EYES ON OSPREYS 

WATCH! 

Salt Point Osprey Nest Cam 2021 

READ! 

On Osprey Time—A Blog on the Ospreys of Salt Point 

VISIT! 

Cayuga Lake Osprey Trail

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