An acorn woodpecker just pulled a fat grub out of a black oak snag.
I took this picture in an area that burned in a wildfire in 2008. When it comes to wildfires, woodpeckers are the big winners!
Wild Wednesday … Grabbing a Little Grub
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Tag Archives: birds
Wild Wednesday …Osprey Update
One of the remaining osprey keeps watch from a nearby oak tree.
The surviving ospreys have seemed to rally this week after the helicopter incident I blogged about last week, Wild Wednesday … A Death In The Family. For most of the week only one young osprey was in the nest. It occasionally left, but would return later. It sat in the nest calling for food.
The young osprey waits.
After a few days, I saw the second young bird return. Then both called.
The other young osprey awkwardly comes in for a landing.
Waiting patiently for breakfast.
Eventually, I saw the parent osprey. She came in with a fish for the young birds, but didn’t give it to them. She flew to the edge of the tower and started calling the fledglings. When the youngster moved toward her, she lifted off and flew up river. She was training her young fish hawks.
She brings in a fish for teasing her youngsters into following her. Her behavior has inspired my confidence in their future success.
After examining the photos I took of the dead osprey, I’m pretty sure it was the male bird that was struck by the helicopter blade. Now, mother osprey soldiers on. No news yet on the Fish and Wildlife warden’s investigation.
Wild Wednesday … A Death in the Family
This osprey put it all on the line defending its young, and paid for it.
Sorry, no wildflowers this week, only a sad story. If you’ve followed my blog for a while you may have seen some of my posts about the ospreys that nest and raise their young on a large electrical tower at our mill site. The tower, perched near the Sacramento River, overlooks prime fishing habitat. These birds are practically mascots for our operation. Almost without fail ospreys raise two offspring in the tower nest every year and have done so for decades.
The osprey family 2015, just a week before the tragic incident.
However, a week ago last Monday, while in our office we heard the sound of a low-flying helicopter. This isn’t unusual except for the helicopter wasn’t just flying over. It was lingering. I strained to look out my window to see the helicopter, but it was just out of sight on the north side of the office. My window faces west. Then I saw an osprey buffeted by the rotor wash being blown off to the southwest. Next, a large bird wing fluttering to the ground outside my window. That got me out of my office and headed for the north end of the building. When I made it outside, the helicopter was gone. One of our foresters, our lead research scientist and her assistant met me. Our scientist was extremely agitated and told us the helicopter had struck one of the ospreys. As we walked out into the parking lot, the mill superintendent walked out from the opposite side and yelled to us. Then he reached under one of the pickups and pulled out the body of the dead osprey. He informed us that a number of the mill workers had seen the incident and were just about in tears. Fortunately, our research scientist got the aircraft identification numbers.
The osprey was cut to pieces defending its nest.
She recounted to us how the ospreys became agitated because the helicopter hovered so close to the nest. All four birds were at the nest, both parents and two offspring. The parents took off and were responding defensively. One of the birds began diving on the helicopter trying to drive it away from the nest. On its fourth pass at the helicopter, it was struck by the blades, severing both wings and plummeting to the ground.
California Fish and Wildlife was contacted and a warden responded. He collected the remains and took statements. We are awaiting the results of the investigation.
I’ve been watching all week, hoping to see the three remaining birds at the nest. So far I’ve only seen two return, but most of the time there’s just one. Both of the offspring can fly and they come and go to the nest. Our biggest concern is that the young are unable to fish on their own. Hopefully, the remaining parent will be able to keep the youngsters fed and that this helicopter incident doesn’t result in three dead ospreys. I’ll keep you posted.
If you want to see the previously osprey post just click on the osprey tag below and they’ll come up.
Wild Wednesday … The Killdeer
Killdeer in colored pen and ink, and in person. 
Osprey Remodel
The osprey returns to the nest with a stick.
They began rebuilding their nest the day she arrived and the two osprey were back together. This is what they typically do after the winter storms take there toll on the nest. This particular nest is only one year old and must have weathered the winter fairly well. They spiffed it up the first day and that was that. They moved in.
The building materials arrive.
Doing some touch up to the nest.
Off for more sticks.
Just a bit of work and this nest is good to go.
The picture below is how the nest looking in 2011. Usually, they add a new layer to the nest every year. Not so much this year. In 2011 the nest had been built up much more and was on the opposite side of the tower. Normally, the nest gets taller and taller until a severe Winter storm blows the top of it off. I’ve seen the nest over 6 feet tall. Last year the nest survived some very bad storms. Late in the season the nest was gone after a moderate storm. I checked under the nest for debris, but found very little. I found out later that the local power company employees climbed the tower and removed the nest.
This was the nest in 2011.
When they osprey returned and found no nest they immediately started rebuilding. Although, as often happens with men and women they had a bit of a disagreement. They each began building nest on opposite sides of the tower. As typically happens when there is a disagreement, she got her way and the nest ended up in it’s current location.
The is nothing more relaxing then a cozy nest.
Osprey Love
Last week he was still patiently waiting for his mate.
On Friday our lovelorn male osprey was still waiting alone when I left work.
Late this morning she arrived. She came one week after he arrived.
This morning when I arrived there was only one bird in the nest. When I went back outside about mid-morning and she had arrived. The two of them sat close together for quite some time and every now and then, one would call out. I took some pictures then put my camera away into my truck.
Blitz grazes during a break.
I let the girls out of the truck for a short break. The girls ran to the far side of the parking lot to a field they like, and I walked after them. By the time I had almost reached them, I looked back at the osprey. They were now locked in mating embrace. Immediately, I turned and ran for my camera in the truck, but their interlude only lasted about ten seconds. I didn’t make it. A missed opportunity for sure over a rookie mistake. The male immediately flew away and didn’t return until the afternoon.
He keeps watching her and she keeps looking away. Playing coy.
She is warming up before the big moment.
He is enthralled with her.
She’s a beauty.
Back together again.
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