THE EAGLE, KING OF BIRDS, AND HIS KIN 



© Wright M. Pierce 



COASTING HOME 



The American osprey is a strong and graceful flyer. When about to land at the nest he 

 sets his wings and coasts in (see "The Nest Life of the Osprey," by Capt. C. W. R. Knight, 

 in the National Geographic Magazine for August, 1932). 



Drawing by Hashime Murayaraa 

 TWO TYPES OF FEET FOUND IN THE HAWKLIKE BIRDS 



The foot of the osprey, at right, illustrates the development for grasping and holding, 

 characteristic of the predatory forms of falcons and hawks. The foot of the turkey vulture, 

 at left, is a weaker type, fitted for walking and perching and not for seizing living prey. The 

 inset shows an enlarged view, magnified four times, of the spines on the foot pads of the 

 osprey, which enable it to hold slippery fish, an arrangement found only in this species. 



