Concerns on declining osprey population on Virginia’s Eastern Shore

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- New research indicates concern for Virginia's Eastern Shore osprey population due to lack of prey available in the area.

A study conducted in May 2025, by doctor Bryan Watt's of William and Mary found that there was a 90% decline in nesting osprey on Virginia's Delmarva Peninsula.

According to a press release, the Center for Conservation Biology stated that the "most likely cause of the decline is prey availability."

The decline also adds to a recent trend of osprey chicks starving in their nests across portions of the Chesapeake where osprey historically relied on smaller fish -- oily fish called menhaden -- for nutrients.

According to the release, "Osprey in many parts of the region are reproducing at rates well below the historic lows of the DDT crisis in the 1970s." The Chesapeake Bay also holds the highest population of osprey in the world.

Virginia is the only state along the Atlantic coast that allows menhaden reduction fishing in its waters. Additionally, Omega Protein -- a reduction fishing operation -- catches more than 100 million pounds of menhaden from Virginia's waters every year, according to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

In a letter from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) they talk about a “serious consideration of reducing purse seine fishing in the Bay” given that data to understand impacts of concentrating the industrial menhaden fishery in Virginia waters remains 'woefully inadequate.'” 

The release said that due to lobbying efforts by Omega, certain funding has been blocked for necessary menhaden research throughout the Chesapeake Bay.

In the upcoming months, further menhaden management for the Chesapeake Bay is expected to be considered by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC).