An osprey nest perched atop a dead bishop pine on Ottinger’s Hill west of Inverness was knocked down last month when the Pacific Gas and Electric Company felled the tree, drawing the ire of residents who see the event as a tragic and avoidable act of wildlife destruction. Photographer Daniel Dietrich noticed the nest’s absence one evening in late March while leaving the Point Reyes National Seashore; he had spent weeks watching a pair of ospreys prepare for spring’s breeding season ever since their arrival nearly a month prior. Ospreys, which are generally monogamous, reoccupy nests they inhabited the previous year. Mr. Dietrich discovered that the tree had been cut down and debris from the broken nest lay strewn across the hillside, while the ospreys sat chirping in a nearby tree. “It’s a blatant disregard for wildlife,” Mr. Dietrich said. “PG&E had time to take the tree down before the osprey returned, or they could have waited until after breeding. There’s a very large window of time to take it down, and they chose the absolute worst time.” Denny Boyles, a spokesman for PG&E, said the dead tree had been identified as a hazard and removed because it stood within striking distance of a power line. The tree’s location made it impossible for a lift truck to reach the top, Mr. Boyles said, so crews had no way to save the nest. He could not say whether or not any osprey eggs or young were in the nest. “Although it is unfortunate and regrettable that this nest was destroyed as part of an emergency tree removal, PG&E’s priority first and foremost is public safety,” he wrote in an email. He added that PG&E is authorized to remove trees deemed hazardous under a general permit issued by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. This week, Fish and Wildlife officials said the service is investigating whether the nest was removed in accordance with the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act. “Generally speaking, when we allow for the removal of nests or relocation, it is after the breeding season,” said Scott Flaherty, a Fish and Wildlife spokesman. “It would be after those nests are not active anymore.” Avian experts with PG&E believed the tree’s takedown occurred early enough in the spring to give the birds “the best chance” at building a new nest, Mr. Boyles said. He added that PG&E plans to coordinate with the National Park Service to discuss the possibility of constructing a nesting platform nearby. But others are skeptical. “It’s unlikely that these osprey will be able to rebuild their nest anywhere this late in the season,” said Melanie Piazza, director of animal care for WildCare’s wildlife hospital. “The whole season and energy for them is probably a loss.” For Inverness resident Jerry Meral, the problem as greater than this one incident. “It isn’t just this one instance,” Mr. Meral said. “They often do it during bird nesting season. There’s only one solution: don’t do it this time of year.”