{"id":16509,"date":"2019-07-08T13:34:27","date_gmt":"2019-07-08T19:34:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.skyhinews.com\/?p=58735"},"modified":"2019-07-09T08:26:26","modified_gmt":"2019-07-09T14:26:26","slug":"featured-on-web-cam-grand-lake-osprey-eggs-fail-to-hatch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/local-news\/featured-on-web-cam-grand-lake-osprey-eggs-fail-to-hatch\/","title":{"rendered":"Featured on web cam, Grand Lake osprey eggs fail to hatch"},"content":{"rendered":"
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An osprey sits upon her nest near Grand Lake while waiting for her eggs to hatch. All three eggs in the nest failed to hatch this year and wildlife experts believe cold weather was a major factor.<\/strong>
File photo<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

When Kent Roorda, a resident of the Grand Lake area, began filming an osprey nest on his property earlier this year, he had dreams of showing high-definition images of eggs hatching in real time.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, that dream has been turned upside down by the harsh realities of nature. In late June Roorda provided an inauspicious update on the status of the eggs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am very sad to report that none of the three eggs have hatched,\u201d he stated. \u201cThe normal and average incubation time is 32 to 40 days. However, it has now been more than 50 days.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two more weeks have passed since Roorda\u2019s update, and the eggs continue to languish unhatched, as the expectant mother still sits atop the nest in a futile bid to bring her young into the world. The images from Roorda\u2019s live camera, which is still operating, show the mother still sitting diligently upon her nest.<\/p>\n

The exact reason the eggs failed to hatch is impossible to know, though Roorda believes the cold weather Grand County saw in late spring, when the eggs were being incubated by the nesting raptors, was a major contributing factor.<\/p>\n

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An Osprey family on a nest on Lake Granby.<\/strong>
Photo Courtesy of Bob Shoop |<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThe most favored reason seems to be that, on a couple of occasions, mom left the eggs a little longer than she should have while it was cold outside and the eggs became too cold,\u201d Roorda said.<\/p>\n

Matt Smith, an outreach biologist from Bird Conservancy of the Rockies who specializes in raptor work typically involving bald eagles, concurred with Roorda\u2019s assessment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe cold and snowy spring we had would likely contribute to that (hatch failure),\u201d he said. \u201cLeaving the nest for too long at a time is a pretty likely suspect. In warmer weather, this might not be as much of a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

Smith noted that other factors can and do play a part in hatching rates too.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing that can definitely influence a pair\u2019s success is the experience of the parents,\u201d Smith said. \u201cIt is not uncommon for younger birds to be less successful at rearing young.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Smith, disturbances at nesting sites can also play a significant part in a successful hatching. He also noted that osprey eggs sometimes fail to hatch because they were not effectively fertilized during the mating process.<\/p>\n

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An osprey lands in its nest near Lake Granby.<\/strong>
File photo \/ Byron Hetzler<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Food availability is another major factor. Osprey feed exclusively on fish, and during colder years, when lake ice lingers longer than normal, it can become especially difficult for the birds of prey to obtain enough nutrition.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe availability of food can limit nest success,\u201d Smith said. \u201cIf a bird has to spend more time away from the nest to feed itself, or if the other bird is not bringing enough food, that can lead to more exposure for the eggs. If the lakes don\u2019t get clear of ice, that can seriously affect them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The live images of the osprey mother still working to incubate her non-viable eggs might evoke a feeling bordering on tragic, but that sense of tragedy should be tempered by the understanding that hatch failures are not uncommon.<\/p>\n

According to Smith, a study conducted in Florida, where warmer temperatures help preclude some of the issues faced by osprey in Grand County, found that osprey success rates vary and in some cases a majority of nests see hatch failures.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis study in Florida found that success is usually in the ballpark of around 40-60%,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Now that the eggs have failed to hatch, Smith said, the birds will likely linger for a period before beginning their migration south, most likely earlier than they would if the eggs hatched. When osprey eggs do hatch, the parents will usually spend about three months in the area, as the chicks mature and learn to fly and hunt for fish.<\/p>\n

Without any young, the birds should begin their journey south soon. Smith said that raptor researchers still do not know exactly what factors drive ospreys\u2019 decisions to begin their migrations, but he speculated much of it is dictated by the day-night cycle and the ever shorter days marking the transition from summer to fall.<\/p>\n

Smith said a recent migration pattern study on an osprey from the Grand Lake area, affectionately named Shadow, revealed where some of Grand County\u2019s birds of prey spend the winter.<\/p>\n

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An osprey sits majestically atop a perch in the Grand Lake area.<\/strong>
Courtesy photo \/ Bob Shoop<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cWe tracked her migration to Mexico, to a large bay called Laguna Madre just south of Matamoras,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Smith explained that it is very likely other osprey that summer over in the Three Lakes region would spend their winters along the Mexican coast as well.<\/p>\n

For his part, Roorda is looking forward to future summers and more osprey chicks. He has watched several clutches of osprey eggs hatch on his property over the years and noted that 2019 was the first year he has seen the eggs fail to hatch.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s hope that both mom and dad will have better luck in future years,\u201d Roorda said. \u201cThey are such incredible parents, and it is sad when a failure occurs. On a positive note, it appears as though mom and dad are in good health and we wish the best for them in the days, months and even the years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

via:: Sky-Hi News<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An osprey sits upon her nest near Grand Lake while waiting for her eggs to hatch. All three eggs in the nest failed to hatch this year and wildlife experts believe cold weather was a major factor.File photo When Kent Roorda, a resident of the Grand Lake area, began filming an osprey nest on his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-16509","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-12 18:09:12","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KRKY Ski Country","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16509","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16509"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16509\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16526,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16509\/revisions\/16526"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16509"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16509"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/krky\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16509"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}