Michigan Officials Seek Volunteers To Monitor Osprey Nests

LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Michigan officials are looking for volunteers to keep track of ospreys — a once-threatened raptor that is making a comeback in the state.

The large, fish-eating birds declined in the 1960s because of damage from the now-banned pesticide DDT.

Ospreys were successfully reintroduced to the state and removed from the threatened list in 2009.

Groups monitor nests in several areas of southeastern Michigan. The state Department of Natural Resources and the Detroit Zoo want to expand the project throughout the Lower Peninsula with an "adopt-a-nest" initiative.

DNR wildlife biologist Julie Oakes says visiting a nest for 30 minutes three times between the end of March and early July can answer key questions such as whether birds are nesting and whether there are chicks inside.

Training is available for interested volunteers.

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