Syracuse.com - Canal Corp. teams with DEC to relocate osprey nesting site in Lysander

[HuntingNY-News]

State workers relocated a nest that had been built atop a crane destined for the scrap heap.

The following is a press release from the state Thruway Authority:

Last spring, a pair of ospreys built a nest atop an unused crane that is stored in the New York State Canal Corporation’s maintenance yard in Lysander. Little did they know that this particular crane is inoperable and scheduled to be sold for scrap metal later this year.

Despite migrating to a warmer climate for the winter months, ospreys commonly return to past nesting sites, especially those beside the Oswego River and wetlands, according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).

In anticipation of the osprey’s return, the Canal Corp. and DEC have moved the nest to a platform attached to an inoperable radio tower across the yard and installed a pointed conical device in the nest’s original location to encourage the ospreys to use the relocated nest.

Newly constructed platform atop inoperable radio tower. State Thruway Authority

In recent years, the Canal Corp.’s Lyons Canal Section successfully relocated a similar osprey nest from the top of the existing Cayuga Lake Range Tower to a newly constructed replacement tower.

While Syracuse Division Canal employees have had experience with these types of projects, all work was conducted with guidance from DEC and by utilizing information obtained from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and New York Power Authority.

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog