Birding News

Ospreys at Fermilab

The osprey is a state threatened bird in Illinois. Its numbers declined sharply during the 1950s and 60s due to DDT, but numbers are now increasing. The birds are raptors that mainly eat fish. In September 2008 an osprey pair was observed building a nest near the main injector at Fermilab. They continued working on the nest the following spring and successfully raised one chick. There are now four osprey nests at Fermilab and over the years they have successfully fledged 83 chicks, including 10 in 2024.