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A DESCRIPTION OF 
THE OSPREY, OR FISHING HAWK. 
(Falco, or Pandion Halicetus.) 
True to the season, o'er our sea-beat shore, 
The sailing Osprey high is seen to soar 
With broad unmoving wing ; and circling slow, 
Marks each loose straggler in the deep below ; 
Sweeps down like lightning, plunges with a roar, 
And bears his struggling victim to the shore. 
THIS bird is always found on the sea-shore, or near rivers 
or lakes, as it feeds entirely on fish. It is common in 
Great Britain, and also in America, where large colonies 
are found of it, the birds living together like rooks. 
" When looking out for its prey," says Dr. Richardson, 
"it sails with great care and elegance, in undulating 
and curved lines," at a considerable height above the 
water, till it perceives its prey, when it pounces down 
upon it. " It seizes the fish with its claws, sometimes 
scarcely appearing to dip its feet in the water, and at 
