Blog #323 Feeding Ophelia

 Nest and trail cameras (cams) are becoming invaluable tools for understanding wildlife,  revealing behaviors we had no idea were occurring. The Salt Point Osprey Cam has  disclosed a number of surprises during these past two years, and now we have another curiosity: Orpheus has been directly feeding Ophelia bites of fish as if she were a  helpless nestling. What is going on? 

Orpheus directly feeding Ophelia. 

Orpheus normally provisions Ophelia with fish during the day as she incubates the  eggs. He typically leaves it in the nest for his mate or waits for Ophelia to grab it from  his talons. Ophelia then carries the fish off to find perch to eat and Orpheus takes over  the incubation duties. Curiously, in addition to these normal feedings, Orpheus has  been directly feeding Ophelia bites of fish as if she was his offspring. These feedings can happen at anytime and are not in place of meals. Bite after bite, he tears the fish  apart and feeds it to her as if she was infantile, one of his chicks. It is endearing to  watch the pair interact like this (and is probably anthropomorphic to think so). One mate  directly feeding another is not part of the usual Osprey courtship feeding behavior nor is  it seen in any other context in the scientific literature. The behavior doesn’t seem to be  courtship feeding since Ophelia’s eggs will begin hatching in a day or two. It is obvious  that Orpheus is strongly motivated to be a parent as he is a diligent provider and spends  enormous time incubating the eggs. The pair often has shoving matches to see who 

does the honors. Perhaps these parental-like direct feedings are an offshoot of these  instincts.  

A schematic sagittal view of a songbird brain, courtesy of Current Biology. 

The avian brain has the same basic configuration as the mammalian brain including the  presence of pleasure-pain neurotransmitters and receptors. Birds share the same basic  distribution of neuroreceptors for dopamine (green circles), its projections (green  arrows), κ opiate receptors (red circles), and μ opiate receptors (blue circles). These  receptors are distributed across the reward and pleasure centres of the brain as in  mammals. The dopamine and opioid receptors are found within the same brain areas,  especially the nidopallium, striatum, VTA, and various nuclei of the song control system. It is assumed they have the same function in non-passerines and mammals. 

We saw above that birds have similar neurological systems and brain regions as  humans that produce neurotransmitters to counteract pain and stress. I wonder if birds—Ospreys in particular—receive some sort of pleasurable or stress-reduction  hormones while feeding their young. By extension, Orpheus is gaining what may be, in  a sense, a pleasurable experience by feeding his mate. Either that or he’s trying to take  over Ophelia’s job. It is also possible that he is detecting a need of Ophelia’s that is not  obvious to the human observer. Perhaps he senses that she is underfed and, hence, is  supplementing her diet. 

Orpheus feeds Ophelia in the same way as she feeds her chicks, courtesy of the Peregrine Fund. 

The birds-eye-view of the nest cams is opening a new chapter in Osprey natural history.  The saga is just beginning. We need cam watchers to become citizen science reporters,  informing others when such unique behaviors are seen. 

Eyes to the sky! 

Candace  

Candace E. Cornell  

Friends of Salt Point  

Cayuga Osprey Network 

Lansing, NY  

cec222@gmail.com 

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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