3 o6 THE FOWLER IN IRELAND. 



into the water, and flap several times with the wings 

 ere they could rise, dashing the spray high in the 

 air when making a plunge. The head is bent back 

 just as the bird meets the water. It indeed seems 

 to take aim, and then clutch a fish by guessing its 

 position when close upon it. Its feet are admirably 

 formed to do this, as the toes radiate from the leg, 

 so as to bend round an object in whatever way the 

 bird drops on it. I have seen an Osprey make 

 three false stoops in succession, after which it flew 

 slowly away, as if disheartened, to rest on a rock. 

 This occurred on a very bright day, with a calm clear 

 sea, and the bird must have been deceived as to the 

 depth at which its wished-for prey was swimming. 

 An Osprey will hover over the surface of sea or 

 lake, when in search of food, as still as a Kestrel 

 looking for mice in a stubble-field. Then comes 

 the sudden dart downwards with partially folded 

 wings, and for the moment the bird is lost to view 

 in the spray caused by the fall. The breast of an 

 Osprey and the under side of the wings, and espe- 

 cially the legs, are closely set with feathers, as in 

 the plumage of a Diver, and almost as water-resist- 

 ing. Ospreys have longer legs in proportion to 

 their bodies than have other birds of prey. This 

 provision enables them to dip their feet deep into 

 the water after a fish when occasion requires it. 

 The under surface of the toes is as rough as a file, 

 and prevents any chance of their prey slipping. 



Mr. Ross, of Killarney, tells me " that though 

 Ospreys are often seen hovering about the Lakes of 

 Killarney, they are very rarely shot." 



Ospreys were unusually numerous in Ireland in 



