Written by Libby Mojica
January 18, 2013

Quinte Conservation built a new osprey nest platform near Prince Edward Ontario. OspreyWatch nest 408. Photo by Osprey-Watch.org.

In 2012, The Center for Conservation Biology launched Project OspreyWatch, a project created to engage a global community to collect data on breeding osprey. Linked by an interest in osprey and a concern for the health of the aquatic environments on which they rely, this community will continue to provide a global perspective on this charismatic species.

Two adult osprey perched on a nest at Lake Panasoffkee, Florida. OspreyWatch nest 376. Photo by Osprey-Watch.org.

In the first year of the project, over 800 volunteers in 5 countries monitored 1500 osprey nests. Volunteers documented the arrival of the adult ospreys migrating back from their wintering areas in the Southern Hemisphere, counted nestlings, and documented their first flying attempts. Read a detailed nesting diary and view a photo gallery from a nest in Montana. Nest 956 in Missoula Montana
 

 
Volunteers are being recruited for the 2013 season from local birding clubs and from the general public. To participate, register for an account on osprey-watch.org and select a nest to monitor.

The mission of Project OspreyWatch is to bring citizen scientists together in order to collect information on a large enough spatial scale to be useful in addressing three of the most pressing issues facing aquatic ecosystems including global climate change, depletion of fish stocks, and environmental contaminants.

Two adult osprey in flight, from a Burien, Washington nest. OspreyWatch nest 516. Photo by Osprey-Watch.org.

An active osprey nest in Largo Florida. OspreyWatch nest 338. Photo by Osprey-Watch.org.