Nest by nest, conservationists count hundreds of ospreys to track recovering species

Bob DeLuca raised his binoculars last week toward a man-made nesting platform in Southold, where an osprey mother shielded her chicks from view. Nearby, off Old Main Road, the father perched in a tree, keeping watch after delivering a fresh catch from Shelter Island Sound.

The quiet exchange is part of an ongoing census by the Group for the East End, aimed at tracking the health and growth of the East End's recovering osprey population. 

Once teetering on the edge of extinction, the osprey has become one of Long Island’s most visible environmental success stories.

The widespread use of DDT, a pesticide that thinned eggshells and prevented eggs from hatching, nearly wiped out the osprey population across Long Island in the early 1970s. But after the United States banned the chemical in 1972, and following decades of targeted conservation efforts, ospreys are now nesting hundreds of eggs across the East End.

DeLuca, president of the Group for the East End, said the resurgence is proof that coordinated conservation efforts are effective.

"Extinct on Long Island 50 years, and today, it’s basically thriving," DeLuca said in an interview. "The osprey’s return has been a real success."

Today, the Group for the East End monitors more than 400 active nest sites with a comprehensive review taking place every three years. This summer, the group will track the number of active nests and fledglings; the average is currently 1.7 offspring per nest. By August, most chicks will fledge, the stage when young birds begin to leave the nest, and by September, they’ll migrate to Central or South America for the winter, DeLuca said.

The widespread installation of artificial nesting platforms — tall, human-built structures that give ospreys a safe place to raise their young — is behind the resurgence, conservationists say. These platforms help keep nests away from predators and dangerous power lines.

"The construction of those platforms as well as an increase in their primary food source have allowed the group to come back, and now they’re here in very big numbers," DeLuca said. He estimated there are "several thousand" ospreys that exist on the East End.

A 'special concern'

While the species is no longer labeled endangered by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, the DEC considers the species of "special concern."

Ospreys have begun nesting in less traditional, and more hazardous, locations, including the top of utility poles. The birds naturally seek tall structures to build their nests.

When ospreys build on electrical equipment, their large wingspan and the sticks they carry can cause electrical faults, fires and widespread power outages. The nests themselves are also at risk of catching fire and the birds face electrocution.

"If you blow up an osprey, they’re going to have an electricity problem," DeLuca said in an interview.

To mitigate these dangers, PSEG Long Island works closely with the nonprofit to prevent nest-building on poles and safely relocate nests when necessary. Volunteers for the group monitor nesting activity and share that data with the utility company. The company maintains a team to address high-risk situations as part of its mission to provide "good environmental stewardship," David Lyons, PSEG Long Island’s interim president and chief operating officer, said in a statement to Newsday. Lyons said that "protecting these birds from high-voltage equipment improves reliability for the customers we serve."

Chip Hamilton, a wildlife biologist for the state DEC, said "the private sector has really embraced the birds on their infrastructures and done everything they can to make sure they’re providing nesting habitats for us right here on Long Island."

While the Group for the East End once focused on saving the species, the work has shifted toward "conflict mitigation" — ensuring coexistence with human infrastructure and reducing disturbances.

"We don’t always have to intervene so long as we create the setting or the surroundings that allow nature to thrive," DeLuca said.

Public support

Peggy Lauber, president of the North Fork Audubon Society, said the osprey’s visibility and cultural presence helped the public rally around conservation efforts.

"I think people are happy about that. The community has played a part in that by being aware of their plight and by helping them with their comeback," Lauber said.

While Lauber celebrates the osprey’s resurgence, she pointed out that other species, such as the piping plover, are still struggling due to environmental threats such as rising sea levels, predators and beach traffic.

She urged the public to support nesting birds by picking up trash, keeping dogs leashed on beaches and staying out of fenced-off nesting zones. She described them as simple efforts that can have an outsize effect.

"This is the time of year when several populations of birds are nesting and raising their young," Lauber said. "It’s just good to be aware and to be on the lookout."

DeLuca said there are not "a ton of environmental success stories" in his line of work, but the ospreys' story offers optimism. 

"The environment is not always so dire that we should give up," DeLuca said. "People actually put their shoulder into something, and it worked."