We Continue our Osprey Love Affair...

BLPG member Margaret O'Brien has sent through some more of her great photographs of ospreys for our enjoyment. (Photographs copyright Margaret O'Brien)

I was on the river in my kayak when I saw this osprey patrolling for fish. It's talons opening and closing continuously, it made fine adjustments with its wings, rising and falling in the air and never taking its eyes off its prey before eventually plunging feet first into the water.




It isn’t only Willie wagtails that aren’t fond of ospreys. An Australian Raven and its mate (out of the picture) eventually succeed in driving this one out of the tree.

Osprey emerging from a dive. A fishing osprey is one of Nature's most spectacular sights, the water exploding for several feet around the bird, in part due to the displaced water, but in instances where it plunges into a school of fish it causes the school to scatter in a chaotic frenzy.



 
With its prey in its talons, the osprey climbs about 20' into the air where it shakes itself vigorously to shed its feathers of water. It then realigns the fish to face forward to reduce aerodynamic drag before flying to a favourite perch to eat it or to deliver it to the nest.