If you build it, will they come? That’s the big question now at Hamilton Audubon Sanctuary after the foundation for an osprey nest was created last week. Kyle Rosenberg, owner of Forest To Shore tree service, came to Hamilton and worked with caretaker Glenn Evans and Properties Director Peter Baecher to create the framework for a nest high in one of the sanctuary’s trees.
The location is near the cove in a location that seems appropriate for an osprey nest. The tree work consisted of topping the tall candidate tree (an Eastern White Pine) and weaving a number of dead limbs and other organic material together to ‘start’ a nest. It also meant topping the dead pine next to it so that the host tree would be the tallest one around. Osprey apparently prefer to nest at the top of the tallest tree in the area; they do not want something higher nearby. Now, the goal is for an osprey pair to customize and complete the nest to make it their own.
The project was funded by a grant from Merrymeeting Bay Trust. The grant has also funded bird boxes and feeders as well as family birding programs designed to engage local families and young people in birding and wildlife watching.
Interestingly, as Kyle was finishing up in the tree, an osprey circled above the tree . . .
