Osprey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Osprey
An osprey preparing to dive.
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Class:	Aves
Order:	Accipitriformes
Family:	Pandionidae
Genus:	Pandion
Binomial name
Pandion haliaetus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Pandion haliaetus

An osprey is a cool bird that loves to eat fish! People sometimes call them 'fish hawks' or 'sea eagles' because they're so good at catching fish. These big birds can be up to 60 cm (24 inches) long, which is about the length of a ruler and a half. They have dark brown wings and a white belly.

All About Ospreys

What an Osprey Looks Like

Ospreys are pretty big birds! They usually weigh between 1.4 to 2 kilograms (about 3 to 4.4 pounds). From their beak to their tail, they are about 52 to 60 centimeters (20 to 24 inches) long.

When an osprey spreads its wings, they can stretch out from 150 to 180 centimeters (5 to 6 feet) wide! This is called their wingspan.

• Colors: Their back is brown, and their belly is white.
• Head: The head is white with a dark stripe that goes across their eyes.
• Eyes: Their eyes can be golden or brown.
• Beak: The beak (which is like a bird's mouth) is black.
• Feet: Their legs and feet are white, and they have strong black talons (which are like a bird's nails).

Ospreys have a short tail and long, thin wings. It can be tricky to tell male and female ospreys apart, but males often look a bit lighter in color. When an osprey flies, it holds its wings in a curved shape, which makes it look a bit like a gull.

Osprey Homes and Habits

Ospreys are found all over the world! They like to live near water, like lakes, rivers, and coastal areas, because that's where they find their food. They build large nests, often high up in trees or on tall structures like telephone poles.

Their main diet is fish, which they catch by diving feet-first into the water. They have special feet and talons that help them grip slippery fish.

Protecting Ospreys

Ospreys in Scotland

Scotland is a great place for ospreys to live because it has lots of trees and lakes, which are called 'lochs'. However, many years ago, the number of ospreys in Scotland became very low. By 1967, there were only two pairs left! This happened because of people stealing their eggs and hunting them.

To help these amazing birds, a group called the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds started protecting osprey nests. One famous nest at Loch Garten has been protected, and ospreys have returned there every year to breed. Over 1.5 million people have visited to see them!

Thanks to these efforts, the number of ospreys in Scotland has grown a lot. However, it takes time for them to spread to new areas. This is because young ospreys often like to build their own nests close to where they were born. This has been seen in studies done in the USA and Sweden.

Images for kids

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  American subspecies

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  Australasian subspecies is the most distinctive

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  Californian bird with scraps of fish on its beak

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  In flight, Northern Territory, Australia

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  Osprey in flight with a fish kill at Bhigwan, India

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  Western Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) feeding on a recently caught fish. Characteristically its tongue often pokes out whilst swallowing food Kartung, The Gambia

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  Preparing to mate on the nest

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  Osprey standing next to its nest showing their relative sizes

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  Osprey chick (Pandion haliaetus carolinensis) in nest

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  Egg, Collection Museum Wiesbaden

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  Adults on a man-made nest in New Jersey, USA

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  Cap badge of the Selous Scouts was a stylized osprey