Osprey

Recognition
An eagle-like bird that appears to be dark brown and white. The eyes are bright yellow. There is a partial dark face mask. They have quite a distinctive high pitched call.

Where seen
These have been seen perching on the broken tree stump on the pond close to Sweetbay or quartering around the mouth of OBV marina. Seen in the spring at their nest sites along the Caloosahatchee River at nest platforms and in the trees around the Miserable Mile. Seen too on the nesting platforms erected around Sanibel, Matlacha and Captiva. Seen perching for hours on the undercarriages of the bridges on the river. The photograph above was taken on the top of the club house roof.

Jimmy’s notes
Often seen fishing in groups whilst riding the thermals – a great pleasure for this Anglo writer whose country boasts no more than 150 breeding pairs throughout the UK.  In England itself the first offspring were born in 2001 after a breeding gap of 160 years!

 It is believed that they mate for life. They can be described as fish-eating eagles that dive into the water in order to catch fish. They will often scoff their fish while perched on a post or a bare tree.  Name derives from Medieval Latin avis prede meaning “bird of prey” although the Oxford English Dictionary connects the word Osprey with the Latin word for “bond-breaker” (ossifraga).