Osprey brings home nesting material.  I am so excited to see these awesome birds return for the season.  At this particular nest up in Longmont, Colorado, they were busy setting up their home.

These birds have proven to be very adaptable to the presence of humans – as you can see by these pictures.  The Osprey never gave us a second look and ignored the golfers that were playing through not 10 yards away.

Scroll down to view another sequence of images of the Osprey hard at work on their home.

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Male Osprey delivers nest building material

Was expecting to see these guys start arriving any day now and sure enough, found one this morning at Barr Lake State Park.  Not a great spot to watch them as the nest poles are a good ways away from the trail.  As a result this pic isn’t that great – I’ll have to start checking some of the better locations around.

You’ll notice the pole as this site is leaning severely.  I guess the state couldn’t get the equipment needed to fix it and, oddly enough, the nest didn’t successfully fledge any little ones until last season when it became crooked.  Go figure.  😉

Female ?osprey? gives a picture perfect flyby near Lake Granby, ??Colorado?. This gorgeous bird was enjoying its breakfast on the top of a pole when we came along. It calmly finished its meal and then obliged us with a great flyby complemented by the deep blue, high-altitude Colorado skies.

With temperatures dropping and snow having fallen nearby this past week, the osprey will soon begin their migration to their winter grounds along the coasts of Mexico and in South America.

Taken this morning in Longmont, Colorado.  This female osprey was hanging out on a light pole near her nest.  After posing for many pictures of her just standing, she obliged with a picture-perfect flyover.  

The osprey in the Centennial State will soon be starting their winter migration to Mexico and South America after summering in the northern, cooler climes of North America.  

Using GPS tracking, scientists have estimated that an osprey may migrate 160,000 miles over its 15 to 20 year lifespan. 

This male osprey and its mate were at a nesting platform just south of Grand Teton National Park on July 18, 2014. Both gave me one heck of an airshow as they flew around, taking off and landing from the nest multiple times. While the pair had clearly made their home, I did not witness any little ones so they may not have had a successful mating season.

How can you tell the difference between a male and female osprey? Females usually have a ‘necklace’ across their white breast while males have none.  The main image here shows a female.

Scroll down for more pics of these osprey and others in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks.

Osprey landing near the Madison River

Osprey landing near the Madison River

Osprey returns with breakfast

Osprey spreads its wings

Osprey pair on a nest

A male osprey launches from its nest

A male osprey launches from its nest

Male osprey in flight

Male osprey in flight

Female osprey with the Grand Tetons in the background

Female osprey in flight

Osprey landing sequence - 2 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 1 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 6 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 7 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 4 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 5 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 3 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 11 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 9 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 12 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 8 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 10 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 13 of 14

Osprey landing sequence - 14 of 14

Springtime brings a return of many birds to Colorado that leave during the winter including the osprey.  These relatively large birds come to the Front Range for breeding during the spring.  Many locations have built osprey nesting poles to help them find a home.

Today I went to the Boulder County Fairgrounds to look at a pair that is quite famous – they even have their own live webcam.  The nest unfortunately is a bit too far away to get decent pictures of with my modest equipment.

However they were kind enough to come a bit closer and allow me to get some nice shots.  One roosted on a pole only about 30 feet away and groomed himself while I snapped away.  It then took to nest building and I managed some images of it returning with material.

Photos © Tony’s Takes. Images are available for purchase as a print or for digital use. Please don’t steal, my prices aren’t particularly expensive. For more information contact me here.

[alpine-phototile-for-picasa-and-google-plus src=”private_user_album” uid=”tonyhake” ualb=”6001443878048459601″ authkey=”Gv1sRgCOrty52y_dXoTg” imgl=”fancybox” style=”wall” row=”4″ size=”710″ num=”24″ shadow=”1″ border=”1″ highlight=”1″ curve=”1″ align=”center” max=”100″]