OSPREY (Pandion haliztus carolinensis) 
Length, about 23 inches. The great size, 
brown upper parts and white under parts are 
distinguishing features. 
Range: Breeds from northwestern Alaska, 
and central Canada south to the Gulf coast, 
western Mexico and Lower California; win- 
ters from the southern United States, Lower 
California and Mexico to Central America. 
A thin, high-pitched whistle, the alarm as 
well as the call note of the osprey, frequently 
directs the attention of the passer by to this 
fine hawk as he circles high in air on the watch 
for fish. The bird is common along our coast 
and to some extent along our rivers, and his 
bulky nest of twigs, often in low trees or 
sometimes on the ground, frequently attests 
his former presence when he is wintering else- 
where. When unmolested, ospreys return to 
their own strip of territory year after year, 
and they and their descendants probably rear 
their young in the same nest for generations, 
repairing it from season to season as necessity 
requires. The osprey lives solely on fish which 
he catches himself—he disdains carrion—div- 
ing from mid air upon his quarry and often 
burying himself in the water momentarily by 
the force of his descent. Usually he succeeds 
in carrying his prey to his nest, though his 
slow and labored wing-beats often prove how 
heavy is his load. Visitors to the seashore, 
and even old residents, never tire of watching 
his superb flight and interesting habits, and his 
plunge after his quarry, whether successful or 
unsuccessful, is a sight to be remembered. 
BALD EAGLE (Haliztus leucocephalus 
and subspecies) 
Length, about 33 inches. ‘The white head 
(adult) and naked tarsus distinguish this spe- 
cies from the golden eagle. 
Range: A resident of Alaska, much of Can- 
ada, and the whole of the United States in 
suitable localities. 
Though a fisherman by profession, the white 
head is by no means the master of his craft 
that the osprey is. In fact, he never fishes for 
himself so long as he can rob the more skillful 
and more industrious fish hawk. When neces- 
sity compels, however, he fishes to some pur- 
pose, and much after the manner of his erst- 
while victim, the fish hawk. He is far less fas- 
tidious in his food habits than that bird, how- 
ever, and often gorges himself until he cannot 
fly on dead fish gathered along shore, espe- 
cially on the great salmon rivers of the north- 
west. When fish are scarce and waterfowl are 
plentiful, the white head has little difficulty in 
living off them. Complaint is made in Alaska, 
where the bald eagle is numerous, that he 
sometimes interferes with blue fox farming by 
killing the animals for food. Though the blue 
fox is not a large animal he is by no means a 
pigmy, and the bird who would make him his 
quarry must needs possess both strength and 
determination. As this eagle has been taken 
for our national emblem, it would seem to be 
the part of patriotism to condone his faults 
and remember only his virtues, among which 
are a magnificent presence, superb powers of 
flight, and devoted care of his family. 
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© Howard H.C 
OSPREY, OR FISH HAWK, RISING FROM A STRIKE 
When a fish is sighted, this bird checks himself directly over the quarry on wings that 
beat horizontally, then down he goes at reckless speed, with wings folded and talons wide 
open. There is a great splash as the hawk strikes the water and seizes the fish by the back. 
In the picture above the osprey had been deceived by an artificial gold fish anchored by an 
18-ounce stone, and it shows him shooting upward after the decoy had slipped from his grasp. 
67 
