A Smithtown nature center rehabilitated a juvenile osprey that could not stand on its own, returning it to its nest in Oyster Bay after five weeks. The bird was one of three chicks raised by its osprey parents, and made a “miraculous recovery,” the center said.
“We re-nested the baby, and it was like a miracle. It really was wonderful,” said Janine Bendickson, the director of wildlife rehabilitation at Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown.
PSEG Long Island sponsors and monitors the nesting platform via webcam. The company contacted the nature center when monitors noticed the bird’s inability to stand. PSEG said that because ospreys tend to build their nests on the tallest structure near the water, the company has environmental partnerships in place to survey utility poles and mitigate risks.
The birds are common in the area, and PSEG said a 2023 report recorded that osprey breeding activity on the East End of Long Island has increased by 200% in eight years, with 199 active nests increasing to 477.
Bendickson said the center initially thought the bird was attached to the nest itself due to a fishing line or similar material. However, she said, when rehabilitators visited the bird, it was not stuck to the net, and it was undetermined why it could not fly.
Bendickson said the center took the bird for X-rays and found nothing wrong. She said the bird was most likely outcompeted for food by its siblings, as it was the only one in need of rehabilitation. Ospreys’ diet primarily consists of fish, and Bendickson said the bird was hand-fed by rehabilitators and recovered quickly.
“She made a miraculous recovery. Within three days, she was standing. Within a week, she was in our flight aviary,” Bendickson said.
The osprey spent five weeks at Sweetbriar before it was successfully returned to its nest last week, PSEG said. Because the birds are averse to humans, rehabilitators waited to return the bird to its nest until it could fly completely on its own, in case their presence disturbed the osprey parents.
“PSEG Long Island is pleased that we were able to play a role in rescuing this young bird and giving it the best chance of thriving in the wild,” said David Lyons, interim president and COO of PSEG Long Island.
Lyons said the company builds partnerships with environmental groups to protect the local environment and improve service.
“We work closely with wildlife conservation partners to protect osprey from high-voltage equipment because good environmental stewardship is part of being strongly involved in the community, and because it also improves reliability for customers,” Lyons said.
