Osprey boat cruise planned for July 11

The osprey is a fish-eating hawk commonly seen in North Idaho. At least 100 pairs nest annually in the Lake Coeur d'Alene region including the lower reaches of the St. Joe and Coeur d'Alene Rivers.

Adult osprey along with the young of the year birds begin their annual migration in mid-September, traveling all the way to Baja, Calif., Central America, and many all the way to South America. The adults return in late winter/early spring to the area where they originally hatched.

The University of Idaho and the Idaho Department of Fish and Game have been studying and banding ospreys at Lake Coeur d'Alene for more than 25 years. The work is done to determine survival and mortality rates and to further define the migration patterns and wintering areas of the population.

To conduct this research, young of the year pre-flight osprey are briefly taken from nests just before fledging. A band with a unique number is gently applied to one leg, and the 6-7-week-old birds are safely placed back in the nests.

You may be wondering what the adult osprey think of the process. The adults take flight when the research boat approaches. They make their displeasure known with loud, screeching calls intended to scare the biologists away and to tell the young osprey to lie down flat in an effort to hide. Yet, these brave biologists have more than 30 years of experience banding osprey and they can understand "osprey" language. Knowing the osprey are only using scare tactics, they go about their work and get away from the nest in no time flat.

The banding process goes very quickly. After the leg bands are applied and the biologists move away, the adults immediately return to the nests to find their young safe and secure...but sporting new leg bands.

None of us know if having a leg band is a status symbol or an embarrassment in the osprey world, but the bands allow for the gathering of some remarkable information to help biologists learn about the species and to protect osprey populations.

Would you like to learn more about this bird that is common to our area in the summer? Consider watching osprey research work firsthand.

An Osprey Boat Cruise has been scheduled for Saturday, July 11. The trip will run from 9-11 a.m. Boarding begins at 8:30.

The cruise will be leaving from the east side of The Coeur d'Alene Resort boardwalk by Tubbs Hill and McEuen Park. Parking is available under Front Street, on nearby city streets, and in the pay lot at the North Idaho Museum. The cost of the trip is $15 for adults. Children under 12 are free when with a paying adult. A family rate of $35 covers two adults and three children up to age 18. Seniors and students are $10.

Space is limited to 150 people and reservations are required. Reservations can be made by calling the Coeur d'Alene Chamber of Commerce at (208) 664-3194.

Wildlife biologists will be in a small boat that will travel alongside the Lake Coeur d'Alene Charter Cruise boat. Well-known wildlife biologist and renowned osprey researcher Dr. Wayne Melquist will take young of the year birds from osprey nests and band them, while the passengers on the cruise boat watch and take photos.

Speakers on the cruise boat will include wildlife biologists and avian experts, including Beth Paragamian representing IDFG. They will be on board the cruise boat to provide fascinating biological information on ospreys and other wildlife species. Bring binoculars and a camera. A sun hat and sunscreen are advised.

Invited guest speakers also include the Coeur d'Alene Tribe, the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality's Coeur d'Alene Lake Management Team, the Bureau of Land Management, the Inland Northwest Land Conservancy and the Cougar Bay Osprey Preservation Association.

The annual event is sponsored by the Natural Resources Committee of the Coeur d'Alene Chamber of Commerce. Cooperators include The Nature Conservancy, the IDFG, the Idaho Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the University of Idaho, the Audubon Society and The Coeur d'Alene Resort.

Phil Cooper is a wildlife conservation educator for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game.