Hi Beth and Tweeters,

Since last summer was the first year the Osprey were banded,
the earlier breeding success and condition of the young birds
is not known. As the Herald story indicates, this deformed
bird caught the attention of Charles Henny, who probably is
the most experienced Osprey expert in these parts. Bud
Anderson also spoke with Alan Poole, the author of OSPREYS: A
NATURAL AND UNNATURAL HISTORY, which is the standard text on
Osprey, and Poole indicated that deformities in Osprey are
extremely rare. I'm sure that between Henny and Poole that
they have banded many thousands of young Osprey. There will be
a considerable effort this year to gather more data on the
birds, including attempts to identify prey species, collect
specimens, and do some toxicology work. Needless to say the
situation is complex and there are many unanswered questions.
There is a "colorful" history of an assortment of contaminant
pollution in the waters of the area (EPA Superfund site,
various mills and industries, port activities, tire fire
leachate, agricultural runoff, etc.). One thing we discovered
last year is that at least some of the birds are catching
Starry Flounder, which seem to be plentiful here. Early
observations this year tend to be confirming this. Flounder
that are feeding in the sediments might be getting into
sediments that are more polluted than the top surface layer.
The deformity might have been a spontaneous one also. It just
certainly seems that a closer look is warranted. We will also
be taking an initial look at the D.C. Cormorant colony in the
same area, since they are also a fish eating bird.

Ed Schulz
Everett, WA

-----Original Message-----
From: Calliopehb at aol.com <Calliopehb at aol.com>
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Date: Tuesday, April 30, 2002 7:27 PM
Subject: Osprey Story in the Everett Herald


> Hi Tweeters,
>There was a disturbing story in the Everett Herald concerning
deformed
>Osprey. Click on the link to read the detail. Has this been a
problem in the
>past years out on the mouth of the Snohomish River?
>Happily Birding,
>Beth Thompson
>calliopehb at aol.com
>Arlington, WA
>
>
><A
HREF="http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/02/4/25/15430796.CFM">C
lick here:
>HeraldNet - Deformed osprey spawns waterfront study</A>
>