London Ospreys overcame much adversity in 2024 to fledge a record number of young birds. Canada geese occupied two Osprey platforms before the Ospreys arrived a few days later than usual, probably due to weather conditions. More importantly, four of 15 nests from the previous year were removed during the fall and winter. Two were removed from cell phone towers, one from the navigation lights at the Airport, and one from Labatt stadium lights. All but one were replaced or rebuilt, and one other was re-occupied. In total, 23 young Ospreys flew from their nests, a very successful year.
The City of London installed a new pole and Osprey platform near the restored wetland next to the Rotary Trail south of Gainsborough Drive. It was immediately occupied by a pair of Ospreys who raised a single young bird. This platform was a very timely addition as the nest on the nearby cell phone tower was removed last winter, and a metal “defeater” was installed to discourage nesting. Ospreys like this location probably because of the good fishing opportunities in the nearby flood control ponds and the Thames River.
This year, there was drama at the Labatt stadium, where Ospreys have nested on the lights for many years. The City replaced the stadium lights during the fall but did not install a nest platform above the new lights, a successful strategy used by Western University at Alumni Stadium and Ontario Hydro at Clarke Road. Instead, the City expected that the Ospreys would occupy an existing lower platform on the stadium property. When the Ospreys returned in March, days were spent in unsuccessful attempts to build a nest on the new lights. When the stick repeatedly fell through the gaps between the lights, a nest was started on the low platform. This did not satisfy the female Osprey, who persistently perched on the high light tower and persistently added sticks to that location. After some experimentation, both adults constructed a stick nest on top of the new lights. These delays may have had some impact as the adults raised a single chick instead of the usual two or three.
In past years, the City installed a pole and platform near the Greenway water treatment plant, which is next to the Thames River. An Osprey family occupied this nest, which was very popular with walkers and photographers on the nearby trail. The platform was not occupied in 2023, but everyone was happy to see a pair of Ospreys arrive this April. Two young birds were raised and flew from the nest in August.
Many thanks are due to the Nature London Osprey monitors. Some provided regular reports and others filled in with occasional observations. The 2024 results are summarized in table form below.
London Osprey Nesting – 2024 Results
Nest Location Young Fledged Notes
Clarke & Fanshawe Pk 2 Platform
Hudson Boat Works, Fanshawe Pk 1+ Lights
Airport – Huron & Dakota Pl 2 Lights New/Rebuilt
Sovereign & BelleiIsle 1+ Tower
River Rd & Gore Rd 1+ Tower
London Gospel Hall, Fanshawe Pk 1 Tower
Stoney Creek Baptist, Highbury 1+ Tower
Windermere & Adelaide, Soccer 2 Lights
Windermere Stoneybrook Ball 2 Lights New/Relocated
Adelaide St at South Thames 2 Chimney
Windermere at Kilally 0 Platform/Goose occupied
Windermere & Richmond 0 Tower Roof Nest gone
Western Alumni Stadium 2 Platform
Gainsborough & Hyde Park 0 Tower/ Removed
Rotary Trail south of Gainsborough 1 Platform New
Labatt Stadium 1 Lights/ Rebuilt
Greenway Park 2 Platform
Dingman & White Oak 2 Tower
Millar Berry Farm 0 Tower/ Removed
TOTALS 23+ 15 Active nests
+ indicates possible additions – not confirmed
Ospreys love high open nest sites. Since their wingspan is nearly six feet, and they fly in with a heavy burden of fish, they want to avoid obstacles that might interfere with their landings. The height provides a feeling of safety from climbing predators like raccoons and a clear view of predators approaching from above, such as Bald Eagles and other Osprey. As a result, Ospreys often select high nest locations – like cell phone towers or stadium lights. This provides a challenge for monitors. The great height and deep nests make it difficult to see the occupants in detail. We sometimes see feeding activity that suggests more than one small bird in the nest, but we often do not see how many birds reach the fledging stage. Confirmed young birds are shown in the table, but in some cases, we show a ”+” for the possibility of additional but unconfirmed young birds.
London Osprey Nesting Over the Years
Year Young to Fledging Age Active Nests
2024 23 + 15
2023 22+ 15
2022 17+ 12
2021 23 11
2020 19 10
2019 16 + 8+
2018 16 10
2017 13 8
Prepared by Ric & Sandy Symmes – Nature London Osprey Monitoring Coordinators