by Tom Chillemi –
It had been a long flight, all the way from South America. Their wings were tired. All they wanted was a simple place to nest. But all of the best places on Urbanna Creek had been taken. Every channel marker had a nest on it.
They settled for the only place they could find. The fish cleaning station at the end of the dock at Queen Anne’s Cove seemed like an adequate nesting sight for these soon-to-be parents. There was a problem — people wanted the same space.
The osprey pair set about gathering sticks and branches and piling them in the sink. Even though someone undid their work repeatedly, the persistent ospreys kept trying to build a nest as soon as the human walked away.
Fortunately for the raptors, humans intervened. Carolyn Crighton, who along with her husband Dave lives in the condominium complex, reached out to a wildlife biologist with the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources.
The best solution, she was told by the wildlife biologist, was to erect a nesting platform nearby.
“This was really a community event,” said neighbor George DeVries, who lives next to the condos and his home overlooks the cove. “We all felt so sorry for these birds.”
Two days after the platform was up, the ospreys were busy building on it. “They’re doing fine now,” said Carol Crighton.
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