Russell Island is a low, salt marsh island of 220 hectares located 10 kilometers west of Deep Creek, VA along the upper Bay side of the Eastern Shore. Primarily marsh, the island also has an upland stand of hardwoods and brush approximately 35 meters long by 200 meters wide. The hack tower was constructed near the west end of the stand of trees. With ospreys nearby, the hack box was constructed with a peaked roof to thwart their nesting attempts. The island provided a rich selection of prey including shorebirds, waterfowl, and songbirds.

The release site on Russell Island was one of the most successful of the coastal sites. It maintained a 100% fledging success rate through its first 3 years. Much to the surprise of hack attendants however, a Great Horned Owl moved in to the area during the fourth year. The site fledged only 3 of the 7 young falcons. Remains of the other birds were found at different areas around the site, apparently taken by owls. This effectively closed the site to future releases.

List of Hack Attendants

Robin Abbey
Richard Browne
Rudy Cashwell, Jr.
John Chamberlayne
Evelyn Gallagher
Jeff Sabol
David Turner
William Wat Tyler