Liberty Bulletin Board

Osprey Season on the South River

If you've been out on the South River this month, you've already seen them — osprey returned to the Chesapeake in March and are now well into nesting season. These remarkable raptors travel up to 4,000 miles from their winter grounds in South America to raise their young right here on the Bay, often returning to the exact same nest year after year.

Look for their enormous stick nests on channel markers, pilings, and dedicated platforms throughout the South River. Adults are easy to identify by their bright white underbellies, dark eye stripes, and roughly six-foot wingspans. You'll often see them hovering 50 to 100 feet above the water before plunging feet-first to snatch a fish — they're the only raptor that catches its meals almost entirely from the water.

Chicks typically hatch in late May and June and stay in the nest for about two months before fledging. If you boat past an active nest, give it a respectful distance — osprey are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and the parents will dive at perceived threats. By September the families head south together, one of the great quiet rituals of life on the Chesapeake.