When I saw that the nests were gone, I was a bit angry at myself: I had called FPL about them and thought they took them down — without luring the birds to a higher location, to a platform. I contacted the local chapter of the Audubon Society (Halifax River Audubon Society) to learn where I could find someone to install a platform, and the president, David Hartgrove, was kind enough to talk to me for a while about these nests. He explained that they had gone up in flames during a recent bad lightning storm.
My only sense of relief came in thinking that these nests had been “practice,” and that I hadn’t seen evidence that anyone was laying eggs. A few days later, I found the ospreys — one perched atop the pole where the nest had been, and another perched on the newly installed platform. While I felt so badly for them — I had watched that young male work on these nests since last August — I’m glad they are off the electric poles and hopefully onto a platform for good. In the one photo, the osprey appears to be holding onto a lone stick.
I just wish it had all occurred earlier (the platform installation), before disaster struck.
Yes, Florida Power and Light does install platforms. Not everyone at FPL apparently knows that, though.
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