Raptor nest may be cause of Upper Su outages

TALKEETNA — Willow and Talkeetna residents plagued by another round of brief but annoying power outages can rightfully thank some bird brains for their plight. Federal wildlife officials have barred Matanuska Electric Association from removing a troublesome osprey nest from an Intertie power pole near Willow until the young birds in the nest fly away.

Nightly outages could keep happening for roughly 3,000 customers until the young raptors decide to migrate, which could be within the next few weeks.

MEA spokeswoman Lorali Carter said the birds should be gone by mid- to late September. Crews on weekly helicopter flights will check the nest to see when it is abandoned, she said. MEA officials hope the lights will stay on once the nest is removed.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reissued a permit MEA first sought in 2000 to remove a nest that also was on Pole 68, just north of the Little Su River and west of Houston. There are two provisions, however, said Assistant Regional Director Larry Bell. MEA must wait until the nest is abandoned and must put up something to deter the nest from being rebuilt. Federal records show no evidence that a deterrent was built following the 2000 permit.

“In about two weeks the chicks should leave,” Bell said.

The situation puts the needs of humans against the nesting needs of raptors, which cannot be legally harvested or disturbed while nesting.

“We hope for an early resolution” Bell said. “We certainly want to work with them. We, too, don’t want people to be without power.”

Bell said that the last he heard from MEA the nest was not the cause of the outage. Carter said Thursday that the nest is the probable culprit.

Earlier this month MEA thought the situation was handled when a damaged insulator was replaced on Intertie tower 69. Carter said more than one damaged insulator atop Intertie poles in the area were replaced in an effort to stop the outages. When they didn’t stop, the nest was isolated as a likely cause.

Those who track bird behavior say the time is ripe for ospreys to take a trip south.

According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, by 5 weeks old the young birds start “wing-flapping exercises” and can fly by their eighth week. This can happen as early as mid-August. Most ospreys migrate south by October.

The average osprey is about 2 feet tall with a wingspan of more than 5 feet. They eat a diet of fish, breed once a year and attempt to hatch between two to four eggs. They often nest on man-made structures and return to the same nest if they can over a 25-year lifespan. The eggs take up to 52 days to incubate, the work split between the male and female, who are mated for life.

If the feathers on its head are sticking up like Phyllis Diller’s locks on a good hair day you are looking at one anxious or annoyed bird.

Birdwatchers with sites online seem to agree the osprey is often mistaken for a bald eagle.

The birds breed as far north as Alaska and winter in warmer climates.

Contact John R. Moses at john.moses@frontiersman.com or call 352-2270.