Once a rarity on Long Island due to toxic pesticides, habitat encroachment and overfishing of their food stock, ospreys are staging a comeback along with their fellow raptors, the bald eagle, which can be seen tending nests and cruising along the island’s many waterways.
It was a monumental 1962 book by Rachel Carson, Silent Spring, that focused attention on the environmental hazards of DDT, a deadly insecticide that rendered bird eggs brittle and unable to support a developing chick. Apex predators, the birds of prey absorbed concentrated doses of the chemical, which entered the food chain through microscopic phytoplankton and zooplankton, causing them to practically disappear from the local ecosystem.
“DDT comes into the food chain at the lowest levels and intensifies in the fatty tissue of the higher species,” explained John Turner, a naturalist and avid bird watcher from Setauket. “It’s taken almost half a century for the birds to rebound because it's been that long since the EPA banned the chemical.”
Turner also pointed to state legislation that restricted the commercial harvesting of menhaden as another reason for the resurgence. An oily species that was used by native Americans as fertilizer—one fish per corn kernel—menhaden, also known as bunker, have been gathering in massive schools in local waters where they serve as food for not only birds, but game fish and sharks. “It’s been a nice turnaround for any number of creatures,” Turner reported.
“We’re not going to allow industrial-scale fishing to further decimate this species for its own profit,” said George Jackman, Habitat Restoration Manager for the Hudson Riverkeeper organization, in supporting the 2019 ban. “We need to protect these fish on behalf of all the life that relies on them. Protecting the menhaden is absolutely essential for supporting life in the Hudson and the coastal Atlantic.”
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Long Island’s Dennis Puleston of the Environmental Defense Fund also played a role in bringing attention to the threats of DDT and worked to eradicate its use. The 700-acre Warbler Woods Nature Preserve in Yaphank, one of many of the region’s preserved habitats, is named for him.
Bird watchers note a particular trait of the osprey which demonstrates its understanding of aerodynamics. If it catches a fish and happens to grip it tail first, the bird will drop it in mid-air and catch it again so it will fly with its head facing into the wind. In pointing out another adaptation that helped the fish hawks thrive over the eons, in addition to their sharp talons and beaks that allow them to grip and tear into their quarry, Turner said their feet have evolved with sandpaper-like spicules that give them a solid purchase on their slippery prey. “I’ve seen an osprey pull an eel out of the water which had to be four-feet-long,” Turner said. The birds have an oilier coat than most allowing them to quickly shed water after plunging into the sea for a meal.
Eagles have special adaptations of their own including sharp ridges in their mouths well suited for tearing into food and huge wingspans that enable them to stay aloft without much effort. America’s national bird, eagles have been a symbol of war and imperial power since Babylonian times. Their likeness is found on Greek and Roman ruins, coins, and medals. The impressive birds have at least eight nesting spots on Long Island, including the Wertheim National Wildlife Refuge, Centerport’s Mill Pond, and Gardiner’s Island, Turner noted.
Steve Brown of East Setauket, a past chairman of Brookhaven Town’s Conservation Advisory Council, pointed to habitat protection as another key reason why the raptors, baitfish and other species such as seals, sharks and whales are making an appearance more and more off Long Island. The council has been behind land preservation efforts and keeping stormwater runoff from pouring directly into local waterways. “The land acts as a purifier for water heading back into the sea,” Brown said. “The more you protect the uplands, the cleaner the marine environment will be. This, of course, bodes well for all species.”
Brookhaven has conducted an ambitious land acquisition program including the purchase of dozens of small lots on the South Shore following Superstorm Sandy. Land picked up by the county due to tax defaults were transferred to the town for preservation, rather than putting them up for auction, Brown noted. “Low-lying areas, especially in the Mastic Peninsula, cannot support septic systems, and many of these parcels were taken off the tax rolls.”
Working with the town highway department, the advisory council advocated the installation of drainage systems that hold water in specially-designed “Vortex” units where sediment and other pollutants carried by storm water are captured. Vegetation, including the ubiquitous Spartina beach grass, provides another level of filtration as part of the environmental protection efforts. Grant money helped pay for the systems along Carmen’s River and Beaver Dam Creek, in addition to new street sweepers to remove winter sand and other contaminants, Brown said.
Another advisory council campaign involved convincing the county to reduce pesticide use against mosquitoes by about 50 percent, according to Brown. “The pesticide Scourge was certainly a scourge to the environment and we’re glad the county agreed with us to cut back on its use,” Brown said, speculating that pesticides were most likely the cause of lobster die offs the south shore experienced in past years. The environmentalist pointed out the Forge River Watershed Sewer Project, currently being built along the river’s headlands in Mastic, will be a huge advancement in keeping the local waters clean. “For the sake of the ospreys and eagles, and all of the other wildlife, I hope they continue expanding sewers so that a majority of the coastal homes, not the current minority, have access to environmentally-friendly waste disposal systems.”
The creation of nesting platforms have also increased osprey populations as the birds prefer elevated perches where they can build their large nests with sticks and pieces of driftwood. According to Robert DeLuca, president of the Group for the East End, more than 300 pairs have settled into the North and South forks producing up to three chicks per season, about a 100 percent increase over the last six years. The group has been working with PSEG to install a special apparatus that protects the large birds from electric lines. The utility would rather not have nests built on their poles and have worked with DeLuca to set up the alternate platforms. “We’re also seeing that the ospreys are returning to the trees to nest, which is their natural habitat,” DeLuca noted.
Many local groups are dedicated to helping the birds and even police departments keep their eye out to assist when needed. On Saturday, a town police officer rescued a wounded osprey in Southampton and brought it to the Evelyn Alexander Wildlife Rescue Center in Hampton Bays for rehabilitation.
“A lot of times there’s a perception that when the human hand touches something we screw it up,” DeLuca commented. “But with the ospreys, even though they started out being a victim of pesticides and overfishing of their food, a lot of human intervention has gone into their recovery, everything from protecting fish stocks and better management of their habitat, to protecting their nesting platforms and creating new ones–all of these things have really helped. And so the bird is probably at its highest levels in recent memory, for sure.”