Bend osprey nest removed from power pole due to fire danger gets rebuilt nest, new perch

(Update: Adding video, comments from Bend resident, Think Wild, Pacific Power)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- An east Bend osprey nest that was initially removed from atop a power pole by Pacific Power due to being a fire risk has gotten its nest rebuilt, along with a new platform installed away from any power lines.

Siran Patzsch, a Bend resident who has grown fond of the birds by visiting the nest each day, told us on Tuesday, "When I see the parents there tending to the young one, who will be flying off soon, I smile, knowing we saved one."

The osprey nest was built atop a power pole on Highway 20 at the Hamby and Ward roads roundabout, and recently gained the attention of neighbors.

Patzsch has lived in Bend for eight years, and enjoyed seeing the nest near her house. But one day, when Patzsch was going to show her family the nest, it was gone, prompting her to investigate.

"So, pulled over, my nephew ran and said, 'Come quickly, there's a bird on the ground!!'" Patzsch recalled. "So we immediately went to check on it, gave it water and shade."

Not knowing what to do next, a neighbor who stopped to help treat the osprey told Siran to call Think Wild, a wildlife hospital and conservation center in Bend.

Molly Honea, development and communications coordinator for Think Wild, told NewsChannel 21: "We brought the osprey in. He had a couple of superficial wounds, a little bit of cuts and bruises, but nothing too major. No broken bones, no serious damage. So, we kept the osprey overnight, and got him stabilized."

Pacific Power removed the original nest on August 2nd. Simon Gutierrez, a senior communications specalist for Pacific Power, explained the nest's removal.

"Pacific Power made the decision to remove the nest because our crews believed it had caused a power outage, and they identified it as a potential wildfire concern," he said Tuesday.

After the original nest was removed, Pacific Power installed a new new platform for the ospreys to have a new home.

Honea explained, "They already had a project planned to install a nest platform on that corner. So we were like, 'Do you think you could expedite that project?' And they did!"

The new nest platform was installed the next day by Pacific Power.

With the new nest on an un-energized stand-alone pole, the family of ospreys currently occupying it won't have to worry about their home being moved, or other unfortunate outcomes.

"We do get a lot of calls about birds, and osprey in particular," Gutierrez said. "Again, environmental stewardship is one of our core values, so we work hard to work with outside organizations and partnerships to try and make sure that were making the right decisions for the birds and animals around our infrastructure."

When the ospreys come to visit again next year, they'll have a safe place to raise their young.

Patzsch said, "It's so nice to see this continuing, knowing that they will return back to their nest that's even more wonderful and hopeful."

Ospreys are a popular bird species in Central Oregon, usually seen near rivers and canals.

They typically migrate to Oregon from April to September, before returning to Mexico for the fall and winter seasons.