28 



LAKES AND RIVERS. 



very sharp and admirably adapted for grasping, being 

 comparable to grappling-hooks, with the advantage of 

 being capable of direction with the celerity and skill 

 which no inanimate objects possess. Macgillivray 

 says : " The outer toe is versatile, and the lower sur- 

 face of the whole foot, particularly on the raised pads 



THE OSPREY. 



which are placed under the joints, have the surface 

 studded with hard and sharp pyramidal points, which 

 enables them to hold their prey, however slippery, 

 whether pierced by the claws or not. The claws are 

 very strong, curved so as to form part of a circle, and 



