Consumers Energy to remove osprey nest

GIRARD TWP. — An almost full-size osprey chick is sometimes visible in the family nest on a Consumers Energy power pole along Union City Road.

Locals who watch out for the osprey are unsure if there are one or two chicks this year.

The male and female constructed the nest this spring, rejecting a pole and platform built by the power company they used last year along Hodunk Pond.

In 2022, Consumers removed the Osprey’s large nest from the top of another nearby pole, where the pair had nested for several years.

Consumers had annually removed the nest to keep predator birds away from the dangerous power lines. In 2023, the company installed a fiberglass rod on the pole, making building a nest there impossible.

Prior 2023 story Consumers Energy moves osprey nest from pole

No one is certain why the pair rejected the pole with the platform after one year of use in the dangerous roadside location.

Consumers Energy spokesperson Brain Wheeler said, “The nesting pair didn’t like what we had done and so built a new nest on a nearby pole – which creates a fire risk.”

Wheeler said, “Once the chicks fledge and the nest is empty, we will remove the nest in the fall which does not require a permit.”

Osprey are protected species under federal regulations and can’t be disturbed while nesting.

Osprey migrates south for the winter.

Wheeler said, “We’re exploring new ways to keep the nest off our poles so there isn’t a fire risk. That said, we don’t have a clear option selected yet.”

Department of Natural Resources wildlife biologists speculate that osprey likes the area because they catch fish from Hodunk Pond and small animals from the nearby tilled fields.

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The pair were first spotted nesting in the area in 2017.

— Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Consumers Energy to remove osprey nest