Early morning hours, the best time for photography and that means traveling down some old country roads shrouded in a thick blanket of fog. My mind races back to a scene from the horror movie, An American Werewolf in London and I remember the warning to stay off the moors. No worries. We aren’t far from our location and we should arrive right before sunrise.
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Perfect timing! The sun is still far below the horizon and I am now floating on the surface of the water in the comfort of a nice stable boat. Being in a boat is the only way to show you this incredible place, Blue Cypress Lake.
Say goodbye to civilization but take note that a glorious full moon fills the sky and gives a sneak peak at what makes this lake so special and no, I’m not talking about werewolves here, I’m talking about the incredible Osprey. Talk about being in the right place at the right time, this shot defines that statement quite nicely and that opportunity quickly faded as the moon slowly drifted below the towering cypress trees.
Forget all the modern theme parks. This is the real Florida and not much has changed here in a very, very long time. The cypress trees with their massive outstretched branches tangled with delicate hanging Spanish Moss help set the stage for a truly incredible place but what makes this place so special?
How about 2.5 miles or 4.1 kilometers filled with osprey nests. In fact, there are over 300 nesting pairs of osprey in this tiny condensed area. Factor in the osprey chicks and you have roughly 1500 birds in these beautiful trees. This is osprey photography heaven. Practically every single cypress tree has a nest.
As the sun peaks out over the east side of the lake, a beautiful golden light illuminates a sky filled with flying birds who have tasty fish ready to feed their families and speaking of families, this is the one area where you can literally see the entire osprey nesting cycle in one short morning.
Of course, it starts with two birds who aren’t very camera shy. Let’s give these birds some privacy and see the nesting process a little further into the cycle.
Like this bird who has somehow managed to rip a massive branch out of a nearby pine tree.
This should help add some support to its nest and speaking of nests, let’s have a closer look at some of these amazing creations that will help support the next generation of life.
Pick a tree and you will most likely find a nest. Many of these nests are isolated in small clumps of cypress trees that are far from shore. These birds don’t really have to worry about any other birds competing for valuable nesting space. You could say that they have it easy.
Move in a little closer and you will see that some of these nests are so large that they take up the entire top of a huge cypress tree.
That nest was a good size but this nest might be the largest one on the lake. Look at the size of this thing. This is obviously an osprey mansion.
These birds will use almost anything they can find to build their nests. One local fisherman learned this the hard way when he woke up one morning to find his trusty fishing pole was missing from his front porch. He glanced up and saw that one clever osprey had taken it early that morning and weaved it into its nest. Now that is pretty amazing if you ask me.
The outside of these nests might be made up of sticks and fishing poles but the inside contains something a little more comfortable. Like old dead vegetation or perhaps some nice soft Spanish Moss!
When neither of those work, old dried up grass is always a great option and check out this bird’s wing position. This bird is coming in super fast and what beautiful sight against all those vibrant colors coming from the cypress trees in the background. This bird should have one happy mate.
Some nests are a little more modest. Take this precariously placed nest for instance. It sits high in the top of an old half rotten tree and this one isn’t exactly exploding with color either but those two birds up there, those are juvenile osprey.
You can easily tell them apart from the adults because they have spots on their wings and beautiful orange eyes. It may look like these two have been abandoned but that’s not the case at all.
Mom is proudly perched in the tree right next door and dad is sitting in another tree close by as well and that look means that it is time to check out another nest.
One of the really great things about photographing osprey at this location is the practically limitless supply of great photo opportunities. There are literally hundreds of bird flying into their nests and capturing those few seconds before they land really helps illustrate just how amazing these birds are.
You get to see some simply awesome wing poses and you get to capture the look of concentrated determination as they open their talons and come in for a landing.
Let’s not forget the lighting. It is about as good as it gets for bird photography. It is pretty easy to see why this area is so popular for osprey photography but there is another more important story happening here. Don’t get me wrong, capturing shots of single birds coming in with amazing wing displays is great but the underlying story here is all about family, survival and life.
As expecting or new parents, these birds have a lot of work cut out for them and they have a very specific routine that they adhere to.
The female, she proudly sits on top of her throne of moss and branches where she will watch over the eggs and when they hatch, she will be the one taking card of the chicks. She will be there to feed them, keep them warm and pretty much take care of their every need.
The male, he has two jobs. His first job is to bring food to the female and the chicks and it looks like this guy is coming back empty handed and the female looks a little irritated too but check out how white this male osprey’s head is.
This is the first osprey I have seen with an almost solid white head. What an amazing looking bird. Since this bird came back with no food, let’s see if we can find some other male osprey who are doing a better job at providing some tasty fish.
Here comes one now but that doesn’t look like much of a meal. I think this bird got a little hungry on the way in.
That’s… a little better but still not quite a full meal for his mate and I think she would agree.
What’s this guy got other than some simply incredible lighting? I think that was a fish at some point in time.
Let’s see if we can get a better angle on this one. There, that’s better and yes this was a fish. You can clearly see the tail and I think the remains of the head are dangling below.
You know, these male osprey certainly don’t seem to be having any trouble finding fish but they seem to be eating large portions of their catch. The male osprey has to eat too and it looks like they are mostly eating the heads of the fish before bringing them back to the nest. Maybe fish brains and fish eyes provide them with some extra energy for the hunt.
Finally, there’s one with a whole fish and that fish is something many fisherman in Florida are after. That is a Florida Crappie, or Speck or Speckled Perch, take your pic.
Either way, I hear this is one tasty fish and this bird is sure to have a very happy mate waiting for him back at the nest.
And he’s coming in for a landing now but he didn’t land in the nest. I don’t think this male osprey understands quite how this works. Let’s see if we can find another!
There we go. This bird has the right idea and look at that. There is a Mayfly photo-bombing this shot and it appears as if the osprey is looking right at the bug.
Awesome but I think this bird has something different on its mind. This osprey is headed back to the nest where it will drop off this nice tasty fish for his girl. Take note of this bird’s talons as it comes in for a landing.
Some people have told me that osprey can’t physically let go of their prey and will often drown if they catch something too large. This is not true at all. I have seen them let go of large prey countless times and this series of images is photographic proof that these birds have the ability to open their talons and let go and let go of their prey.
Earlier I mentioned that the male osprey has two jobs. His other job is defending the nest site. If you get too close, the male will often let you know by coming in right at you. A chilling experience and a warning well worth listening too.
So why are the male osprey so defensive? It’s all about protecting the family and in this shot we get a nice view of the entire family.
Here’s a closer view and one of the juvenile osprey is trying out its wings. It will be flying within the next day or two and this one is just really wondering what it is I’m doing with that big old lens.
Look at the difference in size here. That’s mom on the right and the juvenile hunkered down on the left. You can really see the difference in eye and feather color here but let’s get a closer look at the juvenile.
Check out those vibrant orange eyes and beautiful patterns on the feathers. This alternating color pattern helps give these young birds some nice natural camouflage. When viewed from above, you wouldn’t even be able to see them in the nest.
All of these birds are about to fledge. Let’s see if we can find a nest with some younger chicks.
Oh wow, this is definitely a younger chick. What an awesome sight. Does it have any siblings?
Yes, there are definitely two chicks in this nest but what’s mom doing over there on the left!
Oh wow! She is feeding a third chick. I told you the underlying story was all about family. How awesome is this.
It looks like the chick on the left is having a hard time eating sushi but mom is patiently waiting with a nice fresh piece of fish. She needs to feed these cute little chicks so they can quickly grow.
And once the food is down, it is time to scoot out butt first to the edge of the nest and feed the fish. Talk about the circle of life, there it is.
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