More than 200 abandoned mines in Montana discharge toxic pollutants like mercury, arsenic and lead into our rivers. Mines that promised to be clean ended up costing taxpayers tens of millions of dollars to clean up. I-186 would prevent this in the future by requiring new mines to prove there won’t be a need for perpetual water treatment after they close up shop. Currently, no laws have successfully prevented mining companies from causing permanent water pollution, declaring bankruptcy and leaving Montanans stuck with the bill for cleaning up toxic pollution.

Montanans aren’t the only ones stuck with the pollution. The survival of ospreys that nest and hunt along Montana’s waterways is threatened from irresponsible mines: Acid mine drainage – that requires perpetual water treatment – has seeped into their aquatic habitat, lacing the fish they eat with contaminants like mercury. As smaller fish are eaten by larger fish, who in turn provide sustenance for wildlife like osprey, the concentration of toxic pollutants like mercury and arsenic becomes higher in the tissues of the species at the top of the food chain. As with many bird species, mercury contamination weakens the integrity of egg shells, proving fatal for many chicks. Some areas of Montana with high concentrations of mercury have now seen osprey egg mortality to be as high as 50 percent.

Fortunately, in this year’s election we can do something about it: We can support I-186, which will come to a statewide vote because of the actions of thousands of concerned Montanans.

I-186 supports responsible mining. It is not anti-mining. It is anti-pollution. It requires mining corporations to be good neighbors to the wildlife and Montana communities that depend on healthy waterways and clean water.

Clean water, uncontaminated waterways, and abundant wildlife — that’s what I-186 is all about. From our famous rivers like the Smith, the Big Hole, the Yellowstone and the Missouri, to the creeks and streams that flow through national and state parks, Montana is synonymous with blue ribbon trout streams and unrivaled outdoor recreational experiences.

By voting Yes on I-186, you are saying YES to clean water, protecting taxpayers, and helping to save incredible wildlife like osprey. You are saying YES to Montana.

Protect Montana’s waters by pledging to Vote Yes for I-186 on November 6^th.

PLEDGE

Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) are prevalent these days along the 225-mile long Catawba River which runs from western NC down into South Carolina. This wasn’t always the case as osprey populations on the Catawba River, like in many places, were non-existent or minimal at best as late as the early 1980’s. This was due to environmental factors, most notably widespread usage of the pesticide DDT, which weakens eggshells. Through a concerted effort to re-introduce osprey populations, their numbers have increased greatly. 

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Ospreys need large open bodies of water, which the reservoirs of the Catawba provide, in order for young to successfully imprint on habitats for the furthering of reproduction and for diet as this species depends on freshly caught fish, hence the nickname ‘fish hawk’. North Carolina Wildlife Federation, through grants from the Catawba-Wateree Habitat Enhancement Program, has deployed, each year for a decade, osprey nesting platforms in Lake James, Mountain Island Lake, Lake Wylie, and Lake Norman-all reservoirs of the Catawba River

30-foot poles are driven into the water adjacent to island shorelines in sites vetted for biological and navigational suitability, but far enough so that their unencumbered height is attractive to the birds while also protecting against predators like black snakes and raccoons. The program has proven highly successful as nearly all the platforms erected support nesting ospreys year after year. 

The young birds fledge in the summer, and migrate often to Central and South America in the fall (the females usually leave about a month before the males), and they return back to their nesting sites every March.  

Building upon the nesting platform project, we are excited to announce a live stream feed on one of the platforms. This EarthCam project highlights the work of NCWF’s local chapter, the Lake Norman Wildlife Conservationists (LNWC) – a community based organization established for the purpose of environmental education, appreciation of wildlife and natural history, and conservation of wildlife habitat and natural resources. 

This nesting platform, located in the shallow water surrounding a small wooded island, is one of over seven-dozen platforms constructed by the LNWC over the past decade.  LNWC relied upon its vast network of people and organizations to bring a variety of skillsets and resources together to complete the project.

The project was made possible thanks to the commitment and generosity of following community partners: Stutts Marina for providing sponsorship funding; Lancaster Docks for placing the poles; Morningstar Marinas – Kings Point for donating the use of their double-decker rental pontoon; All Seasons Marina for making their facilities available as a staging area; and, last but not least, LNWC volunteers, Terry Marr, Gene Vaughan, and Billy Wilson.  Mother Nature made things a bit challenging as the ospreys arrived a bit earlier than anticipated, and then March weather was certainly tough, especially on the Lake with high winds, waves, rain, snow and ice – but the volunteer team persevered and completed the installation process despite the tough elements.

The opportunity to view an active osprey nest provides a unique educational experience to the public and helps foster awareness of NCWF’s mission to protect, conserve and restore the wildlife and habitats of North Carolina.  To view the osprey activity, visit our website and spread the word about our effort to share this bird’s eye view of North Carolina wildlife in their natural habitats.

To start, nobody can really agree on what to call them. The name menhaden comes from a Native American word that means “he who fertilizes”. They’ve been called American sardines because people once ate them like the more sought-after European sardine. The Dutch called them mossbunker – shortened to bunker in places like Long Island – because they resemble a fish from northern Europe. Others call them pogy. They’ve even been called bug-heads because of a parasite we get from time to time.

Lots of names. Not a lot of respect.

To make it worse, they’re pretty much the bottom rung on the food chain in the Atlantic Ocean. Sure, they’ve got plankton below them, but as far as vertebrates go, it’s menhaden and everything that eats menhaden. Just last week, schools of menhaden were were chased by a whale off Rockaway Beach, and then a similar event happened again a few days later in the Hudson River. Nowhere is safe for a menhaden these days.

It’s not just whales, either. Osprey, eagles, sharks, bluefish and striped bass all consider them a valuable food source. At least one author gave this fish the respect they deserved, calling them “The Most Important Fish in the Sea.” Although, it sure doesn’t seem like it sometimes.

In addition to all of the predators that chase them every day, menhaden have to deal with people, too. Around 22 percent, are caught for bait, and the rest are primarily harvested for uses such as fish oil, dog food and fertilizer. Unfortunately, over-harvest threatens not just menhaden, but the entire food chain above them, including other fish that make it to your dinner table like striped bass.

That’s why a few years ago, the Atlantic States Marines Fisheries Commission established the first catch quota for menhaden – reducing harvest by 20 percent. That’s led to bigger and more fish, and thus a boon for numerous predators. But, the commission has allowed that catch limit to creep back up, first by 10 percent, and then by another 6.5 percent.

Now, the commission is considering a new approach for setting those limits. The new approach will allow fisheries managers to assess menhaden’s overall impact on the food chain when setting catch quotas. This is where you come in. Menhaden are little fish, and can’t do much for themselves. But you can speak for them. Attend and testify at a committee meeting somewhere along the East Coast in the coming weeks. And if you can’t, please consider submitting comments to the commission.

These fish have enough on their minds between predators and commercial fishing operations, so please led them a hand.

Most ospreys breed in the north and migrate south for the winter, and rely upon coastal habitat areas along the way.  But coastal development combined with the impacts of superstorms and extreme weather events such as Hurricane Sandy could spell trouble for coastal communities and wildlife.

Protecting Wetland Wildlife Habitat

On Saturday, wetland habitat for wildlife like osprey came into focus as the Wall Street Journal gave National Wildlife Federation President & CEO Collin O’Mara and Allied World Assurance President & CEO Scott Carmilani a chance to tell its 2.4 million subscribers how natural defenses can protect the homes of both people and wildlife:

Just as Sandy showed the growing risk from extreme storms in our changing climate, healthy urban marshes in New York, New Jersey and Delaware demonstrated how natural defenses can provide unrivaled protection from the damage they can inflict. For example, a broad coalition of federal, state and local agencies in New York have spent eight years restoring more than 150 acres of wetlands in Jamaica Bay using hundreds of thousands of cubic feet of dredged material and more than a million native marsh plants. These restored marshes held strong during Sandy and helped absorb the storm’s destructive wave action. According to a 2008 study published in the journal of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, coastal wetlands provide as much as $23.2 billion worth of storm protection annually in the U.S. […]

Not much is expected from Washington these days, yet reforming disaster preparedness may have bipartisan appeal. For conservatives, our proposed solutions reduce federal expenses and support private markets. For liberals, the solutions protect local communities and restore natural resources. What are we waiting for?

The column focused on our recent joint report, Natural Defenses from Hurricanes and Floods: Protecting America’s Communities and Ecosystems in an Era of Extreme Weather.

Here are a few recommendations for elected officials and policy-makers to provide a way forward for protecting the coastal habitat that osprey and other wildlife depend on.

Curb Risky Development

Fix federal and state laws that encourage risky development by privatizing economic benefits while socializing losses. Subsidies within the National Flood Insurance Program should be phased out with sensitivity to low-income households. In addition, a greater portion of federal disaster-relief funds allocated to state and local governments under the Stafford Act should be dedicated to mitigate hazards. Communities should be required to take proactive mitigation measures to be eligible for assistance in the aftermath of natural disasters.

Congress also should strengthen the Coastal Barrier Resources Act, which prevents federal subsidies for risky development on some sensitive coastal lands. It should make restoration projects a priority in the Army Corps of Engineers’ budget; and it should finalize Clean Water Act protections of wetlands and streams that absorb millions of gallons of floodwater.

Step Up Our “Natural Infrastructure”

Major investments in “natural infrastructure” should become the preferred means of defending communities against the dangers of extreme weather. Protecting and restoring wetlands, dunes, living shorelines, upland forests and other open space provides a host of benefits: flood protection, clean water, habitat for fish and wildlife, and increased opportunities for recreation and tourism.

This Election Day, make a commitment to vote for wildlife friendly ballot measures and candidates who will help put in place protections for our wildlife and their habitat.

Fish make up 99% of their diet.

I’m pretty sure the other 1% is bronco.

Ospreys are ambush hunters.

They rely on their impeccable eyesight and timing to win football games. I mean, catch prey.

Ospreys have a reversible outer toe.

Owls and ospreys are the only raptors with a reversible outer toe, allowing them to grasp a football fish with two toes in front and two behind.

One osprey flew 2,700 miles in just 13 days.

That’s the equivalent of 4,752,000 yards and a lot of touchdowns. Experts believe these birds can log over 160,000 miles throughout their 15-20 year lifetimes. Let’s just say they can go the distance.

They have sharp spines on the bottom of their feet.

These spines allow ospreys to grasp slippery fish–Another adaptation to help them hunt are the scales on the shank of their legs, instead of feathers.

They are the only raptor to plunge into water for prey.

Although eagles and other birds catch fish, ospreys are unique in their ability to dive into the water. They can dive from heights of up to 100 feet, and completely submerge.

They are found on every continent, except Antartica.

Clearly it doesn’t matter if they are home or away, or how cold it is, ospreys suck it up and play.

How to Help

Osprey Activities:

• Check out this book about ospreys, Wild Wings.
• Download this coloring page and fact sheet about ospreys.
• Read more about osprey migrations and other unique behaviors.
• Download this activity worksheet about birds of prey.

How National Wildlife Federation is Helping Ospreys:

• Chesapeake Bay- NWF works to protect water quality in the Chesapeake Bay, home to many ospreys.
• Gulf of Mexico – NWF works to address the BP Oil Spill in osprey habitat such as Bon Secour Refuge.
• Michigan – NWF works to address the Enbridge oil spill, which affected osprey habitat.
• North Carolina – NWF certified a Community Wildlife Habitat where they built osprey platforms.
• Tribal Lands – NWF’s Tribal Lands program works with tribes to protect osprey habitat, such as the White Mountain Apache.

Touchdown! Game over.

Like what you read? Please consider making a donation to support our work protecting ospreys and other critical conservation work:

At the osprey nest on our ranch in Lolo, Montana my wife and I are extremely careful not to leave twine around as we’ve seen ospreys take off with their talons caught up in dangling twine knowing that this is a great hazard. We like to think of our habit as child-proofing a home, except these youngsters aren’t people. We’d like to encourage others to “child-proof” their area by picking up twine which can get caught in nests.

In setting up an osprey camera up at our ranch, we hoped to support the University of Montana’s osprey research program and to share these incredible birds with the world. You can see the osprey nest and the bits of twine the adults have brought to it at the Dunrovin Ranch website by following  the webcam link.

This year our fingers are crossed that both the parents and their offspring will survive until fall when they migrate to Mexico or even further south for the winter.  For more information on this nest and on the dangers posed by twine to osprey, visit  The West’s Best Nest .

And whenever you see a piece of twine lying around, remember to think of these great creatures and please pick it up!

Your Photo Could Be Here

We want one of your nature photos to be the next Photo of the Day! Share your images with our Flickr group and tag them with PhotoOfTheDay-NWF12.

Don’t have a Flickr account? It’s free and easy to create one.
 

This Photo of the Day was donated by a participant in the annual National Wildlife Photo Contest. See more photos or sign up for the 42nd Annual National Wildlife Photo Contest.

I read to my kids each night, but this week, we read a book that really made a difference to us.

Wild Wings by Gill Lewis

How an Osprey Brought Our Family Together

I started reading this book to my daughter Nora. Nearby, my husband and son worked on a puzzle. Often I read one book to Nora and one to my son Russell because they like different topics. But this time, the book was so interesting; soon I could see that all of them were listening.

The evenings passed. It has never happened that all four of us were completely enthralled with a book, and it felt very cozy. We would sit in the living room with only a few lamps on, feeling warm in the winter night.

We came to the final chapters. There was a part that was particularly moving (which I won’t give away) and I felt tears come to my eyes. I looked up at my husband and there were tears in his eyes too. I cry easily, but it was surprising to see this on my husband’s face. My kids were looking back and forth between us. I managed to read the book to the end.

When we looked at each other, this pause felt like a different type of “wildlife moment.” Our family spends time outside and cultivates our love of nature. But I realized this moment was special in its own way. Children remember and internalize values when their parents show vulnerability or pause. Life can be a rush of tasks and decisions. That look across our family told the perfect unspoken story.

Here is a related quote that I love:

“There are two lasting bequests we can give our children. One is roots, the other is wings.” — Hodding Carter, Jr.

I would suggest reading the book Wild Wings, or more importantly, slow down with those you love. It’s winter, it’s time to snuggle.

Osprey Activities for Your Family

• Purchase Wild Wings through this link and support National Wildlife Federation.
• Download this coloring page and fact sheet about ospreys.
• Check out this Ranger Rick Adventure comic when he learns about ospreys in the Everglades.
• At my kids’ school, the grade five class is watching osprey migrations via the DFYI Osprey project.
• Get tips on watching birds of prey during Hawk Watch each fall.
• Download this activity worksheet about birds of prey.
• Purchase a bird watching kit from National Wildlife Federation and support our work.

How NWF is Helping Ospreys:

• Chesapeake Bay- NWF works to protect water quality in the Chesapeake Bay, home to many ospreys.
• Gulf of Mexico – NWF works to address the BP Oil Spill in osprey habitat such as Bon Secour Refuge.
• Michigan – NWF works to address the Enbridge oil spill, which affected osprey habitat.
• North Carolina – NWF certified a Community Wildlife Habitat where they built osprey platforms.
• Tribal Lands – NWF’s Tribal Lands program works with tribes to protect osprey habitat, such as the White Mountain Apache.

What You Can Do for Ospreys:

Ospreys rely on healthy waterways for their diet of fish. Take action to protect America’s waterways for ospreys and other water-loving wildlife.

Information about Ospreys:

• Read this National Wildlife article about the status of ospreys in North America.
• The Red Lake Band of the Chippewa has made conserving wildlife and habitat one of its top priorities, including osprey habitat.

Osprey Photos from the 2011 National Wildlife^® Photo Contest

See more osprey photos from the photo contest.