Osprey [Pandion haliaetus] ~ #61

There are two Osprey nests (that I know about anyways) in Lillooet. For the past few years that I’ve been birding they’ve been occupied. I love these birds of prey and I visit the nests each time I’m in town.

There’s the nest on the Old Bridge. It’s at the north end of town and doesn’t have cars going over it anymore, just foot traffic and motorcyles. This was the end of June, and there was no obvious young in the nest but one of the Osprey was tending the nest.  She was a little cranky and was being very vocal about it.  I don’t know if she was upset at me being there, or if she was yelling at her “husband” who I spotted on a cable attached to the bridge, over the Fraser River.

I am guessing the one on the cable was the male, due to his lack of brown necklace. The branches were obscuring the other osprey’s chest, but I can only assume it was the female in the nest. The male caught himself (and his family I should hope) a lovely fish. When I first spotted him he was just sitting on the cable, holding his prey with pride. However, as I was leaving I watched him start to eat the head of the fish (I saved the headless fish picture until two below, so don’t look past the next picture if you don’t like headless fish). I figured that’s why the Osprey in the nest was yelling (“Save some for us!”).

The next day I went to the other nest, which is on the opposite side of town, just off the Upper Spawning Channel on a hydro pole. The funny thing was that the same behavior was happening on this side of town. There was one in the nest that was making a big fuss, while their partner had himself a fish. In this case however, the Osprey had already eaten the head of the fish and was continuously flying over and past his nest, as if teasing his nest-mate.

I don’t think they were too happy with me (even though I was quite a distance away) and the one with the fish was trying to stare me down. I eventually went on my way and was never sure if the fish made it’s way to the nest.