Eco-Ed Endeavors documents 37 active breeding nests, but just three fledglings from six nestlings observed
ANNAPOLIS, MD. – Severn River osprey reproduction has failed for the second consecutive year, with Eco-Ed Endeavors documenting 37 active breeding nests but only three young seem to have survived to fledging age during the 2026 survey.
The survey documented 101 osprey nests, including 37 active breeding nests. During the summer, observers recorded six nestlings in the active nests. Subsequent observations and review of the data indicated that only three of those young reached fledgling age.
That translates to a reproductive productivity rate of just 0.08 young per breeding nest.
Research by William & Mary’s Center for Conservation Biology identifies 1.15 young per breeding nest as the approximate reproductive rate necessary to maintain a stable Chesapeake Bay Osprey population. At that rate, the Severn River’s 37 active breeding pairs should have produced approximately 43 young.
Instead, only three fledglings were inferred – approximately 7 percent of the number needed to maintain the current population level (see chart below).
Signs of Food Stress
Field observations by students, staff and volunteers participating in The Osprey Project during the 2026 survey point to food availability as a potentially significant factor in the poor reproductive results. Observations suggest that inadequate food is contributing to chick mortality. Osprey chicks depend entirely on their parents for fish. When fish become scarce, adults may be unable to deliver enough food to sustain their young.
“We’re seeing a generation of chicks dying soon after hatching. We suspect starvation is a major factor. Mama and papa osprey just aren’t able to bring enough fish to the nest to keep their chicks alive,” said Thomas Guay, founder of Eco-Ed Endeavors.
In some Severn River nests, Eco-Ed Endeavors observed breeding activity ending unusually early. By mid-July, most of the 37 nests that had been active earlier in the season had been abandoned.
The 2026 findings are particularly concerning because they follow similarly poor reproductive results documented by The Osprey Project in 2025, when productivity rate was approximately 0.16 young per breeding nest. In 2026, the rate fell to 0.08.
The consecutive years of extremely low reproductive productivity rates echo results tracked by osprey watches in the Patuxent, Choptank and Chester rivers. “This is clearly a disturbing Bay-wide trend. It’s not a one-off event,” Guay observed, “and the situation seems to be deteriorating rapidly.”
