Introduction

The 2024 Osprey season along the Willamette River is winding down as we begin the month of September.

In July and August, I recorded video clips of the three Boulders juveniles at the nest as their parents shaded and fed them and then as they got ready for their first flights.

The nest’s location is convenient for filming, but traffic on the busy street below makes it too noisy for audio recording.

I selected video clips from July 15 through August 29, which you can watch by clicking on the link immediately below.

Below are my brief comments on the Osprey behavior in each video clip and other observations .

July 15

In this short opening clip from July 15, the female parent stands in the nest next to one of the juveniles. Through most of June, the juveniles were still too small to be seen above the deep nest. The juvenile in this video clip was alert as it looked around like its mother.

July 17

In the July 17 clip, the female parent provided shade by holding her wings out to protect the three juveniles from the hot afternoon sun. At this stage of development, juvenile Ospreys cannot regulate body temperature by themselves.

Young pant on hot summer days; small young are especially vulnerable; female shades young until they become too large for this to be possible.¹

July 26

I look forward each summer to seeing the juveniles begin exercising their flight muscles. During my observation on July 26, one of the juveniles was exercising its wings but not yet hovering above the nest.

July 28

I observed for about thirty minutes on July 28 and captured this video clip of the female adult feeding all three juveniles.

August 2

In the clip for August 2, the male parent landed at the nest with a fish for the family. Note how he flew off after a few seconds as he had four mouths to feed.

August 3

On August 3, or perhaps the day before, at least two juveniles made their first short flight from the nest, landing on a nearby utility pole. This is the same pole juveniles from this nest have flown to in previous summers, so I wasn’t surprised. I think the third juvenile also flew from the nest, but I am unsure.

August 4 Clip 1

Two of the juveniles were in the nest with the female parent when one of the juveniles hovered briefly. The third juvenile was on the same utility pole as the prior day.

August 4 Clip 2

In this second clip from August 4, the female parent returns to the nest after a short flight. The female parent in this Boulders nest spent much less time away from the nest than at the Owosso nest a mile away.

August 14

All three juveniles were together in the nest, calling frequently for more food. The juvenile on the left was eating, eventually flying off to continue eating alone on the nearby utility pole. The female parent is on the extreme right.

Earlier that morning, we saw four juveniles perched in a tall snag opposite a short distance from the nest along the river. I assume the fourth juvenile was from the Owosso nest downstream.

August 29 Clip 1

In the first clip on August 29, one of the juveniles was alone in the nest, begging. It then flew to the nearby utility pole.

August 29 Clip 2

And in the second, and final clip from August 29, the juvenile returned from the utility pole to the nest.

We also heard one of the Boulders Osprey juveniles begging from the nest on September 4, but they now spend most of their time away.

Attachment to the nest fades as the young begin to forage for themselves and reach independence. Although they often return to the nest for feedings, older fledglings increasingly disperse to nearby perches to feed, and begin to wander and explore their surroundings.²

1. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Birds of the World, birdsoftheworld.com (paywall). ↩
2. Ospreys: The Revival of a Global Raptor, Alan F. Poole, p. 105. ↩