Where Dennis Puleston (right) grew up in England, the osprey was never a common bird. When he moved to the Hamlet of Brookhaven after World War II, he was impressed that ospreys nested high in old trees along the Carmans River. Little did he know then that his beloved ospreys would seriously decline in his lifetime only to be restored by his commitment to their well being.

At the request of the Gardiner family, he studied ospreys each year on their island in Gardiners Bay. He discovered that the rate of successfully fledged osprey chicks was dropping dramatically. He brought unhatched eggs for analysis by new scientific techniques conducted by Dr. Charles Wurster at Stony Brook University. High levels of DDT confirmed the warnings of Rachel Carson in her 1962 book, Silent Spring. And prompted action to ban DDT.

As an expert naturalist testifying in Suffolk County courtroom in 1966, Dennis along with others presented the scientific evidence showing that DDT thinned eggshells. This trial spurred the creation of the Environmental Defense Fund in 1967 with Dennis as its first Chairman. By the time he passed the leadership baton of the Board five years later, William Ruckelshaus, the first administrator of EPA, had banned DDT in the United States.

Because the osprey is so much a symbol of the environmental health of Long Island and is so intimately connected with Dennis, friends and family of Dennis have formed the Dennis Puleston Osprey Fund.

(Photo by Marilyn J. Abbey)

MISSION STATEMENT

The purpose of the fund will be to encourage research about ospreys on Long Island, to improve the nesting opportunities and to educate the public about these magnificent birds.

The new Dennis Puleston Osprey fund Web site is up and running. You can check out the site by clicking here. There are several areas of the site that you can explore.

"Who was Dennis Puleston?" This section contains information about the late Dennis Puleston, an important environmentalist for whom the Fund is named.

"Make a Donation" -Here you can download a donation form to make a tax-deductible donation to help the fund.

"All About Ospreys" -This section gives some information on these magnificent birds.

"Osprey Cam" -The Osprey Cam is a live video of a nest in the South Shore area.

"Osprey Nest Database" -Users can post observations for the various nest sites in this section.

"Links" -Contains links to other osprey-related sites.

"Message Board" Users can post questions and observations about ospreys here.

"How to build a Platform" -This section gives some simple directions about how to erect a safe and appropriate nesting platform for ospreys.