Osprey Watch

  

Above is a video about a nesting pair of osprey on the Potomac River south of Old Town Alexandria. The video provides a good primer on osprey identification as well as nesting and feeding behaviors.

There are two active nests in Cliffwood Beach at the moment, in case you want to see osprey in action. The nests in nearby Keyport have vanished, probably due to Superstorm Sandy. I think the nest above Union Beach Police Department is active, based on the comments about pooping birds from the staff there. I've not checked out the nests in Laurence Harbor or Cheesequake yet.

If the weather cooperates, I plan an outing this weekend to find the reported nest off Wilson Avenue in Matawan. It seems to be along the Hudson Trail by the power station.

Check out my page at Osprey Watch for locations of these and other nests in our area. I've posted directions and photographs and Osprey Watch provides maps. You can register from their home page to become an osprey watcher yourself. I welcome additional watcher reports and photos. The breed is starting to thrive again after some difficult years, so please don't disturb them. We all hope for a successful nesting season. And be sure to donate to Osprey Watch if you're able.

UPDATE: After dinner at MJ's Sports Bar on Route 34, where we watched the Brazil v Colombia World Cup match and a bit of the Yankees v Twins game, I took my wife over to Wilson Avenue to locate the osprey nest near the Hudson Trail. Turns out there is an active nest atop the huge -- I mean really tall -- communications tower at the JCP&L Wilson Avenue sub-station.