On June 25, the Virginia Osprey Foundation began its 3rd Annual Osprey Chick Banding in Colonial Beach. A total of 11 chicks were banded coming out of five nests. All chicks appeared to be of good size and well fed! You may ask, “why do you band birds?”. The data obtained from banding birds is useful for scientific research as well as management and conservation projects. By essentially identifying individual birds by a unique band number, it is possible for scientists and others to study migration, social structure, life span, survival rate, and population growth. Our bander, Ken Smith, is federally permitted and permitted by the Commonwealth of Virginia to band not only ospreys, but other raptors. Ken comes to us with years of experience and expertise. We truly appreciate his dedication to these ospreys and for his time and effort in Colonial Beach.
We always have the safety of our birds front and foremost. As we learn about our ospreys, we can better protect them and their habitat so that they may continue to thrive.
We want to give a heartfelt thanks to Todd Dalton and Dominion Energy for their support, without them we would not be able to do this important work.