At 10 a.m. on Tuesday, March 6, 2012, Kalamazoo Nature Center (KNC) staff, working with Georgia-Pacific, Terra Contracting, local filmmaker Matt Clysdale and artist Brent Spink will provide a new nesting site for the Osprey that began nesting on an old power line pole on the former Georgia-Pacific mill site property in 2009. The nesting pair of Osprey has become a popular attraction and symbol for the returning health of the Kalamazoo River.
(Click on photo to enlarge)
Concerns that the existing nesting site is very close to where the route of the Kalamazoo River Valley Trail (KRVT) will cross the Georgia-Pacific property, brought the group together to form a plan to relocate the nest before work started on the KRVT trail extension.
KNC’s Kalamazoo Valley Bird Observatory staff was asked to survey the grounds at the GP site to choose an appropriate new site to place a new Osprey nesting platform. John Brenneman, Research Project Coordinator for KNC who has been involved in the site choice, design, and planning of the new platform stated, “Georgia-Pacific has been very willing to accommodate our plans and suggestions to help this threatened species to continue to expand in our area.”
On Tuesday, March 6 the old poles will be removed and a portion of the existing Osprey nest will be placed on top of the new platform after it is raised, to entice the Osprey to return to it this spring.
“Georgia-Pacific is glad that we can help provide a home for Osprey in Kalamazoo,” said Garry Griffith, Director-Environmental Field Services for Georgia-Pacific. Filmmaker Matt Clysdale began filming a documentary last year when the Osprey pair produced three healthy chicks. He will continue to film throughout the project.
Source: News release and photos from Kalamazoo Nature Center
