Hellgate Osprey Nest

Hellgate Osprey Cam

You are watching a mating pair of Osprey named Finnegan and Iris. These Ospreys usually start laying eggs mid April – May.

Nesting information: In 2012 Iris raised 3 chicks with her former mate Stanley, unfortunately Stanley never returned to the nest in 2016 and is presumed to have died sometime over migration, Louis came into the picture in 2016 and the pair tried but failed to have chicks. In 2017, Iris & Louis had 4 eggs

that successfully hatched but sadly all passed.. 2018..3 babies hatched..2 passed away. Eggs haven’t been laid at this nest for several years now. Update: In 2024 Iris returned with a new mate named Finnegan. For more information about this camera please visit allaboutbirds.org.

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Hellgate Osprey Nest Cam & Owl Pole Perch Cam

YouTube Video XUFb7RyVnJ8

Watch live with updates, tweets, and highlights at

http://AllAboutBirds.org/ospreys

Watch the cam and learn about the Montana Osprey Project at

http://hs.umt.edu/osprey/

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This Osprey nest is at the mouth of the spectacular Hellgate Canyon at the edge of Missoula, Montana. It’s in a very busy location, right outside the Riverside Health Care Center and next to busy parking lots, a construction site, a busy highway, and a railroad. However, it’s also an ideal location in many ways, since these Ospreys have riverfront property only about 50 feet from the Clark Fork River. Being so close to people does not bother them, and hundreds of people enjoy watching them every day.

The female Osprey at this nest is called Iris because she has very distinctive spots on her iris, especially in her left eye. These iris patterns serve as individual barcodes and allow us to identify her. She has nested at this site for many years. Her mate of many years, Stanley, did not return in 2016, and she attempted to breed with a new male dubbed "Louis" after an influential local Salish elder named Louis Adams (for more info: http://missoulian.com/news/local/new-osprey-father-named-in-honor-of-salish-elder/article_a9a4e738-e22f-5660-9633-b8cfec680244.html)

After a single year of successful breeding with Louis in 2017, Iris went through several years of unsuccessful attempts as Louis paired up with another female a little downriver. Then, in 2024 a new male showed up (later christened "Finnegan" by viewers) who successfully paired with Iris and began a new breeding season.

Ospreys are consummate fishing birds, and this pair fishes primarily from the Clark Fork River and nearby Rattlesnake Creek. They use their 6–7 foot wingspans to soar above the water, looking for fish, then diving as deep as 3 feet for shallow-swimming prey. Adult Ospreys usually weigh 3–4 pounds, and they can carry prey up to 50 percent of their own weight. Ospreys can live up to 25 years, and they typically lay 1–4 eggs in a clutch.

The nest used to be on a power pole about 200 feet west of where it is now. This was dangerous, since the Ospreys could have been electrocuted, causing fires and power blackouts. In 2007, the current nest platform was erected to provide a safer place for the Ospreys to nest. They took to it immediately. Getting the new nest platform set up, and installing and running to high resolution camera for this feed for you to enjoy has been a large effort involving many groups: Riverside Health Care Center, Karen Wagner, Kate Davis and Raptors of the Rockies, Northwestern Energy, Dave Taylor Roofing Company, and Dr. Erick Greene of the University of Montana.

#birdcams #live #osprey #birds #wildlife #nature #nowplaying #montana

Hellgate Ospreys Nest Cam | Cornell Lab | University of Montana

Cornell Lab Bird Cams December 24, 2024 8:40 am

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Video – Finnegan Brings In A Whopper! – Hellgate Osprey Nest
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June 14, 2024

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Ardyth ~ Tucson(@ardyth)

januari 2, 2025 8:38 am

#1298587

· It is with a heavy heart and great sadness that I write about the passing of Brian Busby. Brian passed away a week ago, on 23 December 2024. Brian was an integral part of all the Osprey research and education. Brain got an undergraduate degree in Conservation Biology from State University of New York in Syracuse. He then was hired in 2015 by Rob Domenech of Raptor View Research Institute. He then left to pursue graduate work in Raptor Biology at Boise State University. After he finished up his great research on Barn Owls, he returned to Missoula in… Read more »