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Camera IconStock image. Credit: Supplied/Supplied

Close call for osprey nest on phone tower

Staff ReporterMandurah Coastal Times

Fauna relocator Allison Dixon said there were plans to remove the nest, but she convinced Telstra staff to temporarily leave the nest because two fledglings were using the nest.

‘The parents bring food to them,’ she said.

‘The process for these two fledglings to be able hunt on their own can take several weeks as the parents teach the offspring how to fly, how to hunt and then feed themselves.’

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Department for the Environment and Conservation senior wildlife officer Rick Dawson said there was an issue with the tower and Telstra needed to fix it.

Ms Dixon said bird poo was also an issue.

‘I am trying to find out if they can install non-corrosive covers on the sensitive equipment that is within the nest area,’ she said.

Telstra, the DEC and Ms Dixon discussed the options of removing the nest or relocating it.

‘The problem is the breeding osprey pair will continue to use this tower for nest building and breeding,’ Ms Dixon said.

A Telstra spokesman said construction work that was required on a base station would be deferred until the fledglings left the nest.

‘In this instance Telstra is working with the DEC to build a nesting platform at this site to permanently house the Ospreys,’ he said.