'It Truly Takes A Village': Juvenile Osprey Rescued, Returned To Nest By PSEG Long Island

OYSTER BAY, NY — A young osprey was returned to its Oyster Bay nest thanks to PSEG Long Island, a rescue organization — and a caring community.

According to PSEG Long Island, the juvenile osprey had been rescued in July; the osprey was one of three chicks raised by osprey parents that have nested on the PSEG Long Island-sponsored nesting platform for several years.

PSEG Long Island maintains a 24/7 webcam on the nest, which is how the chick’s health problems became known, officials said.

After the bird was rescued, it was given a veterinary examination and then placed in the care of Sweetbriar Nature Center, where it spent about five weeks regaining its strength.

"It truly takes a village," a representative of Sweetbriar Nature Center said, adding that the young osprey may not have been getting enough food.

Once the young osprey demonstrated it could fly on its own, PSEG Long Island provided the equipment and support to wildlife experts as they placed the osprey back in its nest, where food is left by the osprey parents so their juvenile offspring can eat before fall arrives and the birds migrate south, officials said.

"PSEG Long Island is pleased that we were able to play a role in rescuing this young bird and giving it the best chance of thriving in the wild," said David Lyons, interim president and COO of PSEG Long Island. "We work closely with wildlife conservation partners to protect osprey from high-voltage equipment because good environmental stewardship is part of being strongly involved in the community, and because it also improves reliability for customers."

With an eye toward balancing commitment to the consistent, safe delivery of power for customers and a mission of being a good environmental steward, PSEG Long Island installs protective equipment to deter the returning birds from nesting on electrical equipment, which puts both the raptors and the electrical system in danger. On occasion, it has installed nesting platforms.

(Courtesy PSEG Long Island)

Osprey are wild animals that are extremely uncomfortable with human encounters, experts said. Osprey parents have been known to abandon nests with eggs or chicks when they encounter something they perceive as a large predator — including humans — in the nest. To avoid imperiling the other two osprey fledglings, wildlife conservation experts advised against any intervention effort until the healthy offspring had shown they could fly on their own, officials said.

Ospreys build their nests on the tallest structure near a body of water. To proactively monitor its utility poles for osprey nests, PSEG Long Island partners closely with Group for the East End, a nonprofit organization that has advocated for the protection and preservation of nature on the East End since 1972. Volunteers with the nonprofit conduct their own surveys of the area and share osprey data with the company, which maintains a team dedicated to mitigating risks and relocating nests safely and in accordance with all regulations protecting the wildlife.

According to a 2023 report issued by the Group for the East End, osprey breeding activity on the East End increased by 200 percent in eight years, with 199 active nests in 2014 growing to 477 in the summer of 2022.