Tuesday, April 06, 2010

The Ospreys of Hoover Reservoir

There's an amazing nature viewing area in Columbus that practically nobody knows about-  the boardwalk at the top end of Hoover Reservoir near the tiny village of Galena.  It's a place where rafts of hundreds of ducks float about in the spring, and shorebirds of all kinds poke and prod muddy flats in the fall.  I went there armed with my camera only two weeks ago.  What's amazing is how the march of spring has progressed since I took these images- we're really greening up here quickly in Ohio with several days in the lower 80's.

But I digress.  I have been to Hoover boardwalk before, seeing the two Osprey nesting platforms, but no sign of Ospreys.  A few days before my visit, I read a tip posted to the Ohio Birds Listserve that a pair of ospreys had been sighted in the area, so my recent visit was to specifically to see and possibly photograph the ospreys. 

The ospreys did not dissapoint.  Although there wasn't any activity at the platform closest to the boardwalk, the platform furthest from the boardwalk to the south was flanked by two ospreys.  These birds were FAR from the boardwalk, not much more than specks when viewed with 10x binoculars.  Still, I was able to get a few shots of the birds in flight, and when I got home and examined the images on the computer screen, this osprey was carrying a gigantic fish- perhaps a large gizzard shad.

And there was some evidence that the ospreys may be building a nest on one of the platforms.  After a brief absence, they flew right over me, both carrying sticks and headed to the nest platform.


I uploaded this image at 2000 pixels.  Click for a much larger image, and see if you can find the osprey in the tree.

So that was my thirty minute adventure with the Ospreys of Hoover Reservoir, located right here in Central Ohio on property owned by the City of Columbus.  Maybe they'll lay eggs?  Maybe they already have eggs- I'll be back soon.

Tom

7 comments:

  1. I lived in Columbus for 10 years and had no idea.

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  2. Lana- Thanks!

    Judy- The boardwalk was constructed around 2005, so it's possible it wasn't here when you lived in Columbus.

    Tom

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  3. I've never seen an Osprey...great shots!

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  4. Last weekend, I spent some time with five Ospreys up at the north end of Alum Creek Lake. I was able to photograph fishing, nest building and mating behaviors. You can see them at http://www.clanoflaherty.com/blog3/2010/04/ospreys-at-alum-creek-lake/

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  5. We were just there. Here are some close up pictures: http://www.hammercam.com/p299657377

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