[Watch Live] Maryland Osprey Cam Stars Return

KENT ISLAND, MD — Maryland reality stars Tom and Audrey – a pair of nesting ospreys – have returned for the 2016 season of raptor family life via a live-streaming webcam.

The osprey cam shows the daily lives of the pair that have returned to Kent Island after their winter sojourn in South America, says the Chesapeake Conservancy.

»Click here to watch the livestream of the nest.

Tom and Audrey are building a nest on their platform in preparation for raising this season’s brood of chicks. The property owners where the cam is located say there has been an aerial battle between two ospreys, though not the pair on the platform. And cam watchers have reported mating behavior on the platform. So can eggs be far behind?

View the osprey live webcam on the Chesapeake Conservancy website and read theosprey camera blog.

The organization dedicated to ensuring conservation, stewardship and access of the Chesapeake Bay says after an almost 90 percent decline in population from 1950-1970, osprey populations have rebounded due to conservation efforts and the banning of DDT. Osprey are an indicator species for monitoring the long-term health of the Chesapeake Bay because their diet consists almost entirely of fish and they are sensitive to many environmental contaminants.

Two eaglets that recently hatched at the bald eagle nest at the National Arboretum were internet sensations. You canwatch live on the DCEagleCam as the new eaglets experience everything for the first time.

From the Osprey Camera Blog, here are some common questions:

Q. How do you tell Tom and Audrey apart?

A: Audrey, the larger of the two, has lemon eyes and a necklace of dark feathers. Audrey is responsible for incubating the eggs while protecting the hatchlings from predators.

Tom, the smaller of the two, has a light brown patch on the nape of his neck and golden eyes. Typically, Osprey males have 80-85% the mass of their female counterparts. With less bulk, males will fly long distances, provide fish for the family, and protect the nest in an energy-efficient manner.

Q: Do Ospreys mate for life?

A: Yes. Although they spend the winter apart, Ospreys will return to the same nesting site year after year. Tom and Audrey have summered at the Crazy Osprey Family’s roost since 2009. How romantic!

Q: How many eggs will a female typically lay?

A: Ospreys lay between 1-4 eggs per clutch. Roughly 80% of females within the Chesapeake Bay lay three eggs each summer season.

Q: What is an egg’s incubation period?

A: Eggs typically hatch in 36-42 days – a longer incubation time than the bald eagle! In the summer of 2013, Audrey’s three surviving eggs hatched in 39, 40, and 40 days respectively.

Q: When will the chicks take their first flight?

A: Once an egg hatches, the nestling will develop for 7-8 weeks before taking its first flight.

Q: What does Tom do when he is off-camera?

A: As the “commuter” and family provider, Tom regularly leaves the nest to fish in nearby Chesapeake estuaries. Upon returning from a catch, male ospreys will dramatically dive, duck, and dance above the nest with their prize fish locked in their talons. Unfortunately, Tom’s spectacular courtship flights are not captured on the webcam. According to osprey biologist Dr. Paul Randolph Spitzer, “Not surprisingly, mating often follows.”

Q: Why does the Crazy Osprey Family dispose of Tom and Audrey’s nest at the end of the summer?

A: Mating pairs will return to the same location and add to their nest year after year. As the nest grows, it becomes prone to fall off of its supports. As a result, Tom and Audrey’s kind caretakers will remove the nest at the end of the summer to both limit parasite growth and possible collapse.

Q: Where do Tom and Audrey go for the winter?

A: Tom and Audrey will part ways with their offspring and fly south to “vacation” in South America. Over the course of their 15- 20-year lives, Ospreys will log up to 160,000 migration miles!

Q: Why is there man-made material in the nest? Is it harmful?

A: Don’t be worried! According to Dr. Spitzer, “Ospreys often line their nest with a plastic bag, which suggests they have figured out the insulating and moisture-conserving value of sheet plastic.” Quite clever.

»Photo of osprey Tom and Audrey on last year's nest courtesy of Chesapeake Conservancy