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Osprey population ‘near complete collapse’ on the Eastern Shore, scientists report
The osprey population on the Eastern Shore has dropped to just 18 birds, and scientists at Williams & Mary’s Center for Conservation Biology say it’s a sign of an “early complete collapse” of the species. In 1975, one of the first aerial surveys for ospreys, there were 68 breeding pairs on the Eastern Shore. In 1987, when the area was surveyed again, the population was about 83 pairs. Now, researchers have found only nine pairs from Fisherman Island to the Chincoteague Causeway.