THE OSPREY. 



93 



the abdomen is of a dirty white hue and the 

 thighs are immaculate white on their inner 

 surface. 



While this appears to be the usual condition, 

 it is not invariable. Professor Collett found 

 two Ospreys about eight days old. taken from a 

 nest in Norway, which "were different both in 

 size and colour." and communicated his observa- 

 tions to Dresser. The biggest 1 220 millimetres 

 long) "was enveloped in black velvety down, 

 but not thick. In the down the white shafts of 

 the feathers (the extremities furnished with 

 downy tufts) could be plainly distinguished: on 

 the head all the shafts were black. The small- 

 est of the nestlings lis? millims. long) was 

 covered with white down, the colour on tin- 

 back only being black: above the eye and ex- 

 tending backwards towards the region of the 

 ears was a blackish stripe; shafts of feathers 

 indistinct." (Dresser, vi, 140.) 



THE OSPRBY SUBJECTIVELY CONSIDERED. 



In America the Osprey is frequently a victim 

 to the assaults of larger or swifter birds. The 

 Bald Eagle is a notable assailant and has been 

 often observed to attack the bird and compel it 



A PAIR OF YOUNG OSPREYS. 



to drop its prey. A less known enemy and, in 

 fact, only described as such by a single observer. 

 is the Frigate-bird. 



In Europe there is no redoubtable enemy like 

 the eagle and the bird is not compelled to sur- 

 render its prey to any other. 



In India, however, the Osprey is also compelled 

 to act as a food-provider for an Eagle kindred to 

 the Bald-headed— the White-Bellied Sea-Eagle 



or Haliaetus letfCQgaster, a species about as large 

 as the Bald-headed. Although this "lives chiefly 

 on fish and sea-snakes which it captures from 

 the water," it is reported by Blanford (as well 

 as others) that "it not unfrequently robs the 

 Osprey of its prey." 



OSPREY DRIVERS. 



In many parts of the I'nited States the Osprey 

 is to a considerable extent the enforced food- 

 finder for the Bald-headed Eagle. This subser- 

 viency has been witnessed and recorded by ob- 

 servers in various places although perhaps an 

 undue idea of its frequency has been encouraged 

 by somewhat exaggerated accounts. One of the 

 most recent (Judge J. N. Clark of Saybrook, 

 Conn.) communicated his observations to Ben- 

 dire. He lived "about 2 miles from the sea 

 shore, and oik- of the matters of daily observation 

 [such are Mr. Clark's words] is to see an Osprey 

 wearily bringing a heavy fish from the sea and 

 passing on toward the woods where invariably 

 one or more Bald Eagles are waiting to seize 

 the prey it brings. A few futile efforts to 

 escape, a few notes of remonstrance, and it sur- 

 renders to superior prowess, and again returns 

 to the fishing grounds, only to repeat the 

 same weafy round over and over again." 

 The observer thought that "experience 

 seems to teach nothing- to these birds." 



On the Pacific coast, the Osprey is also 

 a victim to the attacks of the Eagle. Peale, 

 as far back as 1848, called attention to the 

 fact that ■'uu the Columbia river, they ap- 

 peared to be annoyed by the great numbers 

 of Eagles, which are constantly plundering 

 them of their food, and in consequence, they 

 are obliged to seek more retired fishing 

 grounds. 



In subtropical regions, another tyrant, 

 even more cruel and feared than the Bald 

 Eagle, may compel the Osprey to serve as 

 its fisher, if we can credit the account of 

 Mr. I. Lancaster. At least attention may 

 be drawn to a subject that requires future 

 inquiry. 



The Frigate-bird (Fregata aquila) was 

 seen making repeated assaults on the Osprey 

 in Southern Florida by Mr. Lancaster, and 

 his results have been published in an ani- 

 mated account of "the torture of the Fish- 

 hawk" by that bird in the American Nat- 

 uralist (1886, p. Z2^-2M)\. Mr. Lancaster's 

 observations were made in February and 

 March while studying "the mystery of the 

 flight of soaring birds." Some may be in- 

 clined to divide the perturbation of the 

 ( )sprey between the imagination of the 

 historian and the bird, but the account is at 

 least very readable. His observations were 

 made about Charlotte Harbor on the west coast 

 of the peninsula. The birds which particularly 

 interested him were the Fish-hawks. "These 

 birds are arboreal in their habits, nest in the 

 tops of the pine trees and rarely resting on 

 the ground. 



(To be Continued.) 



