BOCA BEACON - June 19, 2015
Page 23
The osprey, a perfect dad
■ BY DELORES SAVAS
“Whenever I hear the call of a bird
and the answering call of its mate, I
could visualize the notes on a scale,
all built up within my consciousness
as a natural symphony.”
William Christopher Handy,
American Blues Composer
W
hile the osprey does not
have the melodic tunes of
many song birds, many
islanders know instinctively the sound
of an osprey call and look forward to
its return every year.
One deceased islander Ned Jewett
had 23 osprey nesting poles constructed on the island in 1992 to help
increase their population on the
island. Another deceased islander
Virgil Ian Pitstick was an avid fan of
the osprey and always looked forward
to their return to the osprey platform
in his yard.
This year I picked the osprey as
best father because he is indeed a
great provider, nest builder, protector
and, I might add, a very romantic guy
in his courting skills. Although, like
most husbands claim, he is a little
‘bird pecked’, he does have to toe the
line, if he doesn’t want to hear the
cries of his mate.
The male normally chooses the
nesting site and arrives there days
before the female. While waiting for
his mate, (if this is an old nest) he will
spruce it up with new twigs and some
freshly caught fish. He will also practice his sky dance that consists of
aireal feats of grace and beauty. This
dance is said to be a territorial display, and a way to advertise for a
mate for males that do not have one.
Once the female arrives, she will be
fed and a period of courtship will follow. Usually the female will choose
the mate with the best location of its
nest. Already mated couples do not
have this problem - they go to their
old nest and start to clean the house
for their new brood, and prepare to
have to spend time on delivering and
feeding their offspring.
While the female and male both
have important roles in raising their
young, the female is the one that has
the major role in taking care for up to
four eggs. For the first six weeks after
hatching, it is the male that will provide fish, which its mate tears apart to
feed the hatchlings.
It is during this time that the male
will be the provider and defender of
the nest from owls and eagles. After
six weeks the male will give the
female a break from her nesting
duties, and will watch the young while
she stretches her wings. She may
return home with a freshly caught
fish. Many islanders have seen an
osprey flying with a caught fish held
head first for less wind resistance. It
is grasped with their unique reversible
outer toe that allows them to secure
the fish with two toes in front and two
in back.
Sometimes, like human parents
with children, some fledglings enjoy
the free meals and are hesitant to
leave the nest. The parents, especially the male, will stop bringing home
free snacks to the young, and they
will soon leave the nest.
Islanders look forward to seeing
and listening to the beautiful cries of
the osprey every year, and witnessing
the protective nature of the male
osprey defending its nest and young.
A great father.
email: [email protected]
2015 Tarpon Tournaments Season
• Boca Grande
Area Chamber
of Commerce
Ladies Day
Tarpon
Tournament
Winners
1st - Spook
Capt. Nat Italiano
2nd - Jill Marie
Capt. David Chatham
3rd - Casuarina
Capt. Charlie Coleman
• 10th Annual
Howl At The
Moon Tarpon
Tournament
Winners
1st - Tracy Lynn
Capt. Willie Mills
2nd - Boca Blue
gone Haywire
Capt. Sandy Melvin
3rd - Phil Jack
Capt. Mark Liberman
• Boca Grande
Area Chamber
of Commerce
“World’s
Richest” Tarpon
Tournament
• Boca Grande
Kids Classic,
All Release
Tarpon
Tournament
Winners
1st - Team Gardner,
Moffitt Cancer Center
Capt. Matt Haag
2nd - Team Hudson’s
Grocery
Capt. Willie Mills
3rd - Team Ram-lin
Manufacturing
Services
Capt. Waylon Mills
1st - Lucky Lady
Capt. Steve Ahlers
2nd - Tracy Lynn
Capt. Willie Mills
3rd - Casuarina
Capt. Charlie Coleman
Winners
• 6th Annual
Howl At The
Moon
Ladies Night
Out Tarpon
Tournament
Winners
1st - Jill Marie
Capt. David Chatham
2nd - Lenora
Capt. Jayson Futch
3rd - Deva vu
Capt. Dumplin Wheeler
• Turnin Tides
Invitational
All Release
Tarpon
Tournament
Saturday, June 20,
5 to 8 p.m.
Hosted by Angie Mills,
(941) 270-0289