Scientific Name:   Pandion haliaetus

Length:   21.3-22.8 in (54-58 cm)

Weight:   49.4-70.5 oz (1400-2000 g)

Wingspan:   59.1-70.9 in (150-180 cm)

Nest:   The nest is a large heap of sticks, driftwood, turf, or seaweed built in forks of trees, rocky outcrops, utility poles, artificial platforms, or offshore islets. As wide as 2 meters and weighing about 135 kg (298 lb), large nests on utility poles may be fire hazards and have caused power outages.

Eggs:   3, sometimes 2-4. Creamy white, blotched with brown. Incubation is by both parents but mostly by female, about 38 days.

Feeding Behavior:   Ospreys have a vision that is well adapted to detecting underwater objects from the air. Prey is first sighted when the osprey is above the water, after which the bird hovers momentarily and then plunges feet first into the water. They catch fish by diving into a body of water, oftentimes completely submerging their entire bodies. As an osprey dives it adjusts the angle of its flight to account for the distortion of the fish's image caused by refraction.

Young:   Female remains with young most of time at first, sheltering them from sun and rain; male brings fish, female feeds them to young. Age of young at first flight averages about 51-54 days.

Range:   The osprey is the second most widely distributed raptor species, after the peregrine falcon, and is one of only six land-birds with a worldwide distribution. It is found in temperate and tropical regions of all continents, except Antarctica. In North America it breeds from Alaska and Newfoundland south to the Gulf Coast and Florida, wintering further south from the southern United States through to Argentina.

Brief Description:   The upperparts are a deep, glossy brown, while the breast is white, sometimes streaked with brown, and the underparts are pure white. The head is white with a dark mask across the eyes, reaching to the sides of the neck. The irises of the eyes are golden to brown, and the transparent nictitating membrane is pale blue. The bill is black, with a blue cere, and the feet are white with black talons. On the underside of the wings the wrists are black, which serves as a field mark. A short tail and long, narrow wings with four long, finger-like feathers, and a shorter fifth, give it a very distinctive appearance.