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Oct. 8: Jaws has
moved eastward about 60 mi (100 km), and has taken up residence in a
lagoon or lake just west of the shores of the Gulf of Venezuela. We've had
other birds stop here.
The really interesting question now is whether he
will find his way up to Bahia Hondita, where he spent a year and a half
catching fish amongst the flocks of flamingos and other Ospreys that live
there.
Adult Ospreys always go back to the same
wintering spot, with remarkable accuracy. Tagging young Ospreys gives us
the opportunity to learn how they do this. When we tag adults, we just see
them go back to someplace they've already been, but we never see how the
find these spots. Does it take a couple of tries before they can reliably
home in on a good spot?
Very few young Ospreys (less than 20) have been
tagged in North America, and of those only one that I know of has made its
first return to the wintering grounds. Because Jaws came into South
America south of his fishing spot, we don't know if he'll recognize any
landmarks that would point him back to Bahia Hondita. On his first
migration he hit Hondita and stayed there, never venturing even as far
south as he is now. There are mountains around Hondita, and he's only 100
km from them, so he should be able to see them if he gets up on a soar.
Stay tuned! (This is the most interesting Osprey
I have followed to date!)
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