Pandion haliaetus

Osprey is one of those birds that seem to be everywhere, yet is one that I still find to be impressive despite its abundance. Here in SE Texas they actually get pretty scarce during the summer so I always get an extra kick when they start returning in the fall. This weekend happened to be the first weekend since the spring that I encountered lots of Osprey around Galveston. This particular one was enjoying a fish on top of a telephone pole when we stopped to check him out. It hung around for a while but eventually decided that three people pointing huge camera lenses at it was just a bit too much attention and flew to another telephone pole a bit further down the road. We took that as our cue to move on and let the bird finish its fish in peace but it was exciting to share a few minutes as the bird ripped apart its meal. I always find Osprey feet to be pretty amazing since they seem so large relative to the rest of the bird. The long talons are also pretty spectacular, seeing them makes me glad I’m not a fish.

www.texastargetbirds.com


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