Osprey Nest Project Comes to Kettle Creek

A sure sign of spring is the annual return of the osprey to the Jersey Shore.

Along with the bald eagle, ospreys will no longer be classified as 'endangered' this year by state officials. The non-breeding portion of the osprey population was upgraded to 'threatened' last month.

But one Ocean County resident saw a break in the harmony between the two species – a growing competition between the eagles and the ospreys over habitat.

John Zingis, an environmental consultant by trade, put up the first of two osprey nests on the Tunes Brook Branch of Kettle Creek last year. But after a rough winter that necessitated a late start on the project, the nest was completed a couple weeks after the birds had returned to Brick for the season.

This year, Zingis hopes the original nest will be populated with ospreys, and an additional nest he and several other volunteers erected last weekend will serve as an additional space for the birds.

"Installation of this nest box was more challenging, when compared to the first nest box," Zingis said. "We had to trounce over 150 yards to the proposed installation area."

A group of three people – Zingis, his wife, Mary Patterson, and friend Tom Patierno – were sometimes sucked three feet down into the mud on the way out to the marshland, Zingis said. The work proved risky.

"Brick Police were notified before the project was initiated so they knew there weren’t a bunch of crazies out on the marsh," Zingis said.

But after two hours of difficult work, the 10-foot-tall osprey nest – originally constructed by Zingis in his garage – was up. The nest box, Zingis said, is supported by multiple braces to enhance its sturdiness in the marsh. The braces are painted forest green as a sort of camouflage to prevent raccoons and other predators from accessing the area where the birds might stay, he said.

Zigis sought approval from the township council, as well as the Seaview Village  Association, the condominium complex that owns the marshland.

"Ospreys should be seeking nesting locations within the next couple of weeks and hopefully they’ll take advantage of these two new locations," said Zingis.

Though there is no land access to the nests, the first nest structure is located south east from the public beach along the south side of Tunes Brook Drive. It can from the dock with the naked eye, but binoculars enhance the view.

The latest nest is located approximately 2,100 feet east-southeast and is easily viewed from the adjacent waters.

Editor's note: For the birding enthusiasts, the approximate state plane coordinates are northing = 434,350 and easting = 596,142.