Everyday heroes: Tales of osprey rescues
While humans may be responsible for a lot of the injuries and fatalities of wildlife due to pollution and littering, there are everyday heroes who step-up and help rescue ospreys and return them to be wild.
In my last blog for Conservation Without Borders Flight of the Osprey expedition, I talked about the dangers of plastic and how we humans have polluted our planet. Plastic is a non-biodegradable material that is everywhere, even in the depths of the Mariana Trench, and causes great danger to Ospreys who get entangled in it, or bring it back to their nests. This blog however talks about times where humans have helped Ospreys, rescued them from perilous situations and allowed them to return to the wild to resume living free.
In no particular order, here are some recent examples.
At Balgavies Loch in Scotland, an Osprey nest on an island collapsed, leaving the chick, who hadn’t fledged yet, very vulnerable. It’s thought the extreme temperatures of the recent heatwave caused the tree to crack and fall. Fortunately the Osplet was found by the local warden Jim Hughes, who was able to capture it and take it to safety where it was fed. In the meantime staff and volunteers built a temporary platform on the island on which the chick was placed a little later. The adults were seen circling overhead, and reports have been received that the family is now back together again.
https://www.thecourier.co.uk/fp/news/angus-mearns/3521221/angus-osprey-chick-saved/
An Australian Osprey had a lucky escape when surfers saw it drowning and rescued it on their surfboards - there are many instances of surfboard rescues, as surfers usually care about the natural environment and are well placed to make a rescue.
Barry Brown had been watching the Ospreys fishing in Brisbane when he spotted one bird flapping its wings and struggling in the sea. He watched as local surfer Bill Lowe and a friend grab their boards and paddle out to the bird. They found its feet and wings tangled in fishing line. After cutting the line they brought it to shore on their surfboard and handed it over to Barry who dried and wrapped it in a towel and carried the bird to a quiet spot on the headland, away from the tourists on the South Gorge walk.
Bill’s grandchildren, who had been picking up plastics on the beach that morning, watched over the osprey, shooing away the butcherbirds that were encircling as it dried out on the grass. After it stopped shaking, it was able to fly away.
In Calvert County Michigan two young Osprey chicks had a lucky escape when the tree containing their nest blew down in a storm and they fell onto a road. At around 6:00 p.m. on July 26, OFC Lopez was on patrol when she received a call about birds in distress in Lusby. She was able to get to them before they encountered any traffic, secured the two Osplets and transported them to a local wildlife clinic for TLC and eventual release into the wild.
https://thebaynet.com/dnr-rescue-two-baby-ospreys-under-fallen-tree-in-lusby
On 26th July Eversource power company in Hartford Connecticut received a call regarding an Osprey who was stuck 50 feet up at the top of an electrical pole between high tension power lines and in danger of becoming electrocuted. Michelle Ford (Eversource Senior Program Administrator - Wildlife and Protected Species) answered the distress call and sent out a troubleshooting crew to respond to this crisis. Crew member Ernie managed to safely ascend to the top of this pole to rescue the Osprey.
The young bird was unharmed and was thought to be a fledgling making its first flight who chose the wrong place to land and was unable to fly away out of danger. The Osplet was taken to a place of safety to be released once the storms had passed by and the weather was more suitable for an inexperienced bird.
https://www.facebook.com/APlaceCalledHope
The fire department in Grand Rapids Michigan were called out to an Osprey tangled in netting on the Grand river not too far from downtown Grand Rapids. They managed to bring it ashore and the local Wildlife Rehab centre collected it and took it for vet checking and eventual release back to the wild. Netting and fishing line is a menace for a fishing bird like the Osprey. This one was lucky - many are not.
https://wgrd.com/grfd-osprey-rescue-grand-river
An Osprey was rescued when it was found wrapped in fishing line on the Longshore golf course in Westport Connecticut. There are three active Osprey nests on the golf course which is near the ER Straits marina. This poor bird’s wings were completely wrapped in twine and it was unable to fly or even move. Chris Davies, a professional golf instructor who’s also a fisherman, was told about the bird and went to free it using his fishing line cutters.
https://06880danwoog.com/2022/07/20/unsung-hero-247
Surf’s up! Surfers in Jacksonville Florida helped a drowning Osprey and brought it to shore on their surfboards. The bird appeared to be injured and was unable to lift itself out of the water, according to reports it perched quietly on the surfboard as it was brought ashore and handed into the care of wildlife officers.
And in Wales last year, the famous Osprey couple Aran & Mrs G suffered a tragic loss when unprecedented extreme weather struck. Aran was injured and unable to fly, and all three tiny chicks were lost to hyperthermia. It’s thought he injured his wing on hidden debris in the floodwaters while he was fishing. He was still able to fly, but lacked the strength needed to pull himself up from the water after diving for fish. Bywyd Gwyllt Glaslyn Wildlife made the decision to fish for him, placing fish daily on a nearby unused nest platform. He was able to collect the fish from there and bring it over to the nest for Mrs G.
There were fears his injury would see him unable to withstand the rigours of migration, but I’m delighted to report that both he and Mrs G returned safely this year and have raised three chicks. Blue 497 fledged on 18th July, Blue 498 on 20th July and Blue 499 on 21st July. Without the intervention of Glaslyn Osprey project, Aran would have died too, and left the venerable Mrs G having to fend for herself.
When Jimmy and Caitlyn went surfing in the US, Kaitlin saw an Osprey in distress. Jimmy rescued the bird with her surfboard and with the help of bystanders managed to cut the fishing line that was entangling it off. Jimmy and Kaitlin joined Sacha Dench on a podcast to discuss the whole event.
In a very short time, Sacha and the Conservation Without borders team will set off on the Flight of the Osprey expedition (#FOTO) which will start in Scotland, travel down through the UK visiting Rutland Ospreys, Dyfi Ospreys and the history-making Poole Harbour Ospreys among others. They will then head across the channel to start the long overland trip down to West Africa. #FOTO will highlight the dangers faced by Ospreys along their migration route, including hunters, wind turbines, plastic pollution, habitat degradation or outright loss, and all the consequences of climate change.
The expedition will investigate and catalogue both land and sea danger factors, and work with communities and organisations along the way to highlight and mitigate the hazards. But while this is being done on a larger scale - Sacha is the United Nations Ambassador for the Convention on Migratory Species - individuals like you and me can and do make a difference.
Although we’re not all around at the right moment to rescue an individual bird, the choices we make directly affect the environment and therefore our wildlife. Whether that’s committing to going plastic free, refusing to buy harmful palm oil products, making donations to wildlife organisations, cleaning up our fishing line, or teaching our children to take better care of the planet than the adults have, every small action adds up.
We can make a difference - #TogetherWeFly
Geemeff
