AMERICAN OSPREY 367 



that matches the bottom so closely. The osprey is a clean sports- 

 man and prefers to catch living fish, but it is not above picking up a 

 dead fish if it is still fresh; but it is not a carrion feeder like the 

 bald eagle and will not touch a tainted fish. 



It has been stated repeatedly by good authorities, on apparently 

 reliable evidence, that the osprey sometimes tackles a fish too big for 

 it to lift, is unable to release its grip, is dragged under water, and is 

 drowned. The evidence is too convincing and there is too much 

 of it to dispute the fact, as the drowned osprey has been found on 

 several occasions, sometimes still attached to the dead fish. Mr. 

 Nicholson tells me that he has seen an osprey dive beneath the sur- 

 face and never appear again. But it seems to me incredible that 

 such a skillful fisherman would be foolish enough to tackle a fish 

 big enough and strong enough to drag under water so powerful a 

 bird with such a broad expanse of wing. It seems still more incon- 

 ceivable that a bird that can so easily drop a fish in the air or at its 

 nest cannot release its claws under water, even to save its life. There 

 must be some other explanation for what has occurred ; possibly the 

 large, horny scales on the back of a sturgeon might entrap the 

 claws of an osprey, if the bird were rash enough to tackle it. An 

 osprey has been known to break its wing in diving (Fisher, 1893) ; 

 I once caught one on the ground with a broken humerus. 



Most of us have seen the osprey's method of hunting, as it flies 

 along at a moderate height above the water, scanning the surface for 

 its prey, flapping or sailing, or stopping to hover above a likely spot. 

 Its keen eyes can sometimes locate a fish when flying at a height of 

 100 or 200 feet, but oftener it hunts at 30 or 100 feet above the water. 

 Wlien a fish is sighted, it plunges downward with half -closed wings 

 enters the water with a splash, sending the spray flj'^ing, striking the 

 water breast first, with wings extended upward, and seizes the fish 

 in its strong talons; usually it does not go much below the surface, 

 but sometimes it disappears for an instant or shows only the tips of 

 its wings above the water. If successful, as it usually is, it rises 

 heavily from the water with the fish in its talons, shakes the water 

 from its plumage, and flies away to its nest or favorite perch. But 

 not every attempt is successful, and not every fish seen is in a position 

 that will insure a successful dive, so the osprey may pass on or even 

 check its plunge in midair; but it keeps on trying until its per- 

 sistence is rewarded. Mr. Skinner says of the ospreys in Yellowstone 

 National Park: "Not only do they plunge into lakes and quiet 

 stretches of streams, but I have also seen them hunt the swollen and 

 raging Gardiner River in flood." 



The fish is invariably carried head first ; probably it is usually 

 caught that way, the approach from the rear being oftenest sue- 



