The Story of Osprey 52/K

by Ben Wurst / Habitat Program Manager

In 2014, we began to band osprey nestlings produced at nests within the Barnegat Bay watershed with auxiliary bands. This was an effort which came about from the interest of Jim Verhagen, a LBI resident and wildlife biographer. He wondered why young ospreys were not banded with color, field readable bands, like some endangered raptors, including bald eagles and peregrine falcons. This spawned Project RedBand, an osprey banding and re-sighting project. The goal of the project was to learn more about ospreys when they are alive while engaging coastal residents in their management. Just under 500 young ospreys were banded with red auxiliary bands from 2014-2020 from nests all along the Barnegat Bay estuary.

Now we are focused on obtaining re-sightings of adult ospreys who are returning to their natal areas along the New Jersey coast. Over the last few years, around 20-30 red banded ospreys have been re-sighted each year — with the majority being sightings of live birds. When a red banded osprey is re-sighted, then we can learn about their life history, including their age, dispersion, and sometimes their wintering habits. In addition, there is always a story to tell, which is an important aspect for engaging the community in their management and conservation. Here is the story of osprey 52/K.

Over a weekend in early July, 2019, I received notice that a communications tower at East Dover Fire Company in Toms River needed emergency access for critical repairs by a cell network provider. The tower hosted a pair of nesting ospreys who had young in the nest. To access the tower and nest that contained young ospreys, the contractors needed to obtain permission from NJDEP Fish & Wildlife and a permit from USDA Wildlife Services but they also needed someone with raptor handling experience. This was an opportunity that I could not pass up!

After permits were acquired and agreements signed, I visited the site with the cell contractors. We worked in the early morning, to avoid the hottest part of the day. A crane was used to hoist us to the top of the 150′ high tower, where the osprey nest was located. The nest contained three nestlings who were around 5-6 weeks old. I was left at the nest to shade the young as the contractors began working on the communications equipment.

As they inspected the equipment, it was determined that it would take longer than anticipated, so I decided to remove the young from the nest and bring them down to the ground. This would reduce stress to them and the adults, who were flying around the nest. While the young were with me, they were all banded for future tracking with both a federal and red auxiliary band — 50/K, 51/K & 52/K. After being on the ground for around an hour, they were safely placed back in their nest (with two fish) and the adults returned to care for them.

Fast forward to this September, we received a re-sighting report from photographer, Chris Kelly, who photographed osprey 52/K near his home in Wall Township. She was hanging at a small pond (Old Mill Pond) that he regularly visits, since it is also a place where he sees bald eagles. This sighting was the first of 52/K since being banded. His photos clearly show a distinct necklace of brown feathers which indicate that she’s a female. What also solidifies this is the fact that she was observed far away from her natal area. From all of the red band re-sightings that we have received in New Jersey, our data shows that males return to nest in very close proximity to their natal areas (within a few miles) and females wander.

Not quite sure if 52/K is nesting yet, since she is only 3 years old, but this re-sighting helps us to determine where she might nest in the future. As a young adult, she is likely looking for suitable areas with plentiful prey to hone in on a nest site. She may try to usurp another resident female or establish her own nest, possibly on a communications tower. Either way, this re-sighting was a special one as it shows that ospreys can co-exist with communications equipment and maintenance of those structures, as long as the young are protected from unregulated disturbance. Those who are aware of ospreys nesting on communications towers should report nest activity on Osprey Watch every year. If you see an occupied nest being disturbed, then please report to 1-877-WARN-DEP.

Special thanks to Chris Kelly for reporting his re-sighting of 52/K! We hope to obtain some more red bands at some point in the future when the manufacturer accepts new orders. For now, we will continue to seek re-sightings of red banded ospreys to learn more about them and engage more residents in their management.

>> Learn more about Project RedBand

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