Sunday, March 20, 2011

Currituck L'Orange

Full Moon over Carova
Marsh Fires on the Currituck Sound
The full moon of March 19 was challenged by the marsh fires near the Lighthouse. When I noticed the fires burning, I was hoping the moon would rise behind them, wouldn't that have been a sight!
Marsh fires are common in February and March. The fires are set to encourage new growth in the marshes.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Rainy morning

Osprey on nest Currituck Sound
One of the ospreys sits sentinel in a short rain break this morning.

Monday, March 14, 2011

Eating my Fish


The male osprey has his evening meal on the boathouse branch. The wind was very strong today and you can see it is still blowing. This morning he had a small rockfish and the crows were licking their chops. The crows love fish and wait for the osprey to leave or drop bits. After eating ,the male will take the fish to the nest and the female will eat. I watched the crows go to the nest (after both birds were away) to grab bits of fish. They didn't have long, as the female made a quick return. 'Eating crow' would have a different meaning in this situation.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Osprey Pair


A beautiful day here on the sound, so nice that lunch outside was a must. With two kingfishers rattling about overhead I went down to the water with my camera to see if I could get a shot. Instead I found the osprey pair sitting on the tree. They made this one move but relaxed again. Not sure if I spooked them or a bit of wind caught them but they remained on the tree.
The female is on the left, the male has a band on his left leg. The female showed up around the first of March and the male arrived this past week. Up and down the island ospreys are returning to their nesting spots.