The osprey should be the official bird of the Jersey Shore

    There’s a webcam aimed at an osprey nest at Island Beach State Park on the Jersey Shore.

    An osprey nest is typically a large heap of sticks, driftwood and seaweed usually built in forks of trees, rocky outcrops, utility poles, channel markers or artificial platforms.

    Ospreys mate for life and return to their nest every spring.

    Fish generally make up much of their diet.And they are as adept as hunting as they are at navigation.

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    After plunging into the water for food, ospreys turn the fish into the wind to decrease wind resistance and return to the nest

    Barnegat Bay and the Jersey Shore are perfect locations for osprey to make a home.

    A couple of years in Maine, a picturesque fishing boat with a tall mast called the “Deborah Lee” was chosen by an osprey couple as their new home. It’s forbidden to move nests if they contain eggs, leaving the boat out of commission.

    Osprey are known collectors, using a wide range of items for their nests. The couple living at Island Beach has collected everything from dolls to flip flops.

    The American goldfinch is the official state bird of New Jersey, but the osprey should certainly be the official state bird of the Jersey Shore.

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