Osprey Dominion

By Lou Pastina

There is a winery on the North Fork of Long Island called Osprey’s Dominion. It was the first winery out east that I ever visited, and I was not disappointed. In fact, it was the first place I ever tried a Cabernet Franc, and I loved it. The winery is named after the bird, the osprey. These birds are very cool to watch as they like to swoop into water and catch fish and then fly away with their catch in their talons. There is a nest that is on Crossbay Boulevard traversing the bird sanctuary just outside of Broad Channel and well before Howard Beach heading north. The nest is on the west side of the road, and I always look up to see if the nesting couple are there. You can’t miss them because they almost look like bald eagles and are majestic creatures.

There comes a time when they head south and will abandon the nest until next year. I assume it’s the same couple that comes back each year, but I truly don’t know. I read that they mate for life, so we have something in common! I had the delightful experience of seeing these birds out west, on the Colorado River. The western version is smaller than their eastern cousins. But impressive, nonetheless. You might ask, why is Lazer blabbering on about ospreys after not writing for so long? Well, a couple of reasons, the first being, you must be motivated, inspired to write. I am not just going to turn out gibberish for you all to read. Although you could rightly claim that’s really all I have ever done. And I was poked recently by a friend who asked, “hey Lazer, what gives, you ever going to write again?” And frankly, he was right, I’m overdue. So, the first thing is this, if you like wine, go to the north fork of Long Island.

But! If you like ospreys, don’t go to Crossbay Blvd., because on a recent bike ride, I spotted 14 ospreys sitting in trees. Yes 14! I couldn’t believe it. These are big birds, like I said, like eagles, and they were in this dead tree sitting on branches. Were these the offspring of the nesting pair on Crossbay? I don’t know that either. But if you like to bike ride, wait for a nice warm, sunny fall day and then take a ride through Fort Tilden. Go in right by the RAA building and take the path to the right. Go near sunset, and you will be treated to bunnies hopping all over the place. When you exit the trail at the Silver Gull, go down to the main road and head back into Rockaway. You will notice that the forest that you biked through, which is now on your right, has many old, dead, large trees with multiple branches. Well before the entrance to Roxbury, there a few of these trees that really stand out. And that is where I continue to see multiple groups of ospreys hanging out. With the bay right there, it must be very good fishing for these birds. Occasionally I will see them as well at the circle heading back. There they sit atop the light posts.

What a great treat to have in our own backyard. Fort Tilden is a national park, and it does have its little treasures, and surely these magnificent birds can be counted among them.  Interestingly, the name for a group of ospreys is a “duet.” How musical!  And a little reading on my part taught me that they are usually solitary creatures, except when breeding. So, it makes seeing this cohort even more fun. I hope they stay around for the fall season, and I hope you get to see them.