Get Off My Lawn!

Gallery: AvianPosted November 6, 2016232 views6 comments

Sony A77II
Sony SAL 70-400G SSM @ 400mm
ISO 400, 1/640 @ f5.6

Okay, this is one of my rare forays into Avian so please give honest feedback. I'm essentially an avian photographer by opportunity only but I still enjoy dabbling.

One thing my wife and I were anxious to check out on our September Canadian Rockies trip was the osprey nest on the Bow River Bridge that we discovered on our first Canadian adventure in 2009. On that occasion we were visiting in July and there were chicks in the nest. If there were chicks this year they must have fledged and left because we only saw adults at the nest.

Ospreys and magpies are two of my favorite birds when we travel in the northwest so this was a double delight to see this interaction. There were a couple of magpies "trespassing" on this particular morning. The osprey was clearly not happy being bugged and on occasion the magpies were pretty brazen. I guess they've figured out that not being a fish has some advantages.

For those of you who know birds, how long do these nests stay active? Will the same mating pair come back year after year and do the ospreys overwinter there or head for warmer climes? All comments welcome and Nate/Keith if this needs to go to Man and Nature please move it there. >=))>

Comments

6 comments

Comment posted by Dennis Plank on November 6, 2016 at 6:32 PM

Great title and great pose on the Osprey's part, Bill. They don't overwinter at high latitudes. Even with our mild winters, they've been gone for a month or two already, though I suspect it has as much to do with the supply of fish as the weather. They do use the same nests year after year and they just keep getting bigger. Nice composition and I kind of like the bridge as support for the nest. I think it would be and improvement if you could tone down the whites on the Osprey's butt.

devil

Registered on January 28, 2008, 1767 Posts, 23192 Comments

Comment posted by Jim Gavin on November 6, 2016 at 6:38 PM

My only knowledge of habits of osprey come from observing some nests near my home. It appears they do leave when it is cold and head south but return in the spring to raise a new brood. I have seen the same mating pair return to the same nest several years. They do a spring house cleaning and rebuild before occupying. Last year they had three kids and it appears that all five returned last spring. The parents were not too excited about the kids continuing to occupy the same home, so they sent them packing. At least that is what appeared to happen. Did a little research and the three kids that returned must have been from an earlier brood because the youngsters apparently remain south for a couple years until old enough to breed and then they head north.

Registered on August 14, 2008, 293 Posts, 1250 Comments

Comment posted by Jim DeWitt on November 6, 2016 at 8:45 PM

Nice interaction, Bill. One slight correction: this is a juvenile, hatched this year. The mottling on the back of the bird is pretty reliable. Either he was still being fed by his parents or he was hoping he would be.

Registered on August 28, 2006, 1240 Posts, 8506 Comments

Comment posted by Philip Hodgkins on November 6, 2016 at 9:18 PM

Bill, good interaction, with the personality of the two species shown well. The butts on both birds are, well, blown! A little taming would possibly help.

Registered on July 24, 2006, 2741 Posts, 12349 Comments

Comment posted by Carl Johnson on November 7, 2016 at 8:55 AM

I do love the interaction shown. Too bad magpie blends in with the nest, I had to search for the magpie. I do realize you can only take the shots nature gives you. Good job.

Registered on October 27, 2016, 8 Posts, 41 Comments

Comment posted by Allen Brooks on November 7, 2016 at 9:12 AM

Nice interaction shot between the birds. Great pose on the Osprey; the Magpie seems rather indifferent. Good detail in the Osprey's face. There's a couple of white flecks you might want to clone out-above the Magpie and right center.

Registered on July 27, 2011, 262 Posts, 2597 Comments