Afternoon Ospreys

Yesterday afternoon there were three ospreys circling around above the marsh in a bright blue sky mixed with huge fluffy white clouds. I never saw a single one catch a fish. In fact, among the various egrets, great blue herons, pelicans and cormorants, I didn’t see anybody catching fish. Well, except for the super fast forster’s terns that were quickly zipping by and diving down to scoop up some sort of little green fish. The tide was going out and I suspect that all the fish had already moved on out with the tide leaving behind a disappointed group including these ospreys. 

Osprey Afternoon Flight

Osprey Afternoon Flight

Osprey Afternoon Flight

44 thoughts on “Afternoon Ospreys”

  5. Absolutely beautiful! You always do such an amazing job and you are still my favorite photographer. Although I don’t always have even a minute to tell you so, I really am in awe of your work.

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  13. I especially love these shots because I saw a pair nesting last year and I could not even get decent photos of them standing at the nest. I only had a 300mm so I was nowhere near close enough to them. This is actually the first I saw what they really look like up close. Thank you.

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  14. Thanks to this shot, I’ve identified a pair I recently say perched on a power pole and the line next to it. Sadly the one I managed to shoot had his (her?) back to me and they both flew off. I only managed to catch a wing tip. My birds just do not cooperate nicely like yours seem to… must be your charm.

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    • Oh I get my share of butt shots and wing portion photos so I feel your pain.
      These birds only cooperated to an extent. Although they were nice enough flyers, they failed to catch a fish for me. I saw a few hit the water and even have shots of one coming up empty. Very inconsiderate of them not providing more exciting photo ops don’t you think?

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  15. Some years back, I was in a boat on Loch Tay in Scotland, when an osprey flew low over us – an amazing experience!. Your pics took me straight back to that day – thank you Phil, for the memories and the brilliant pics!

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    • Last summer we were on my motorcycle going along the highway when an osprey carrying a fish flew over our heads.
      I looked straight up and yelled to Alyce…”hey, it’s an osprey, and it’s got a fish!!”
      Alyce replied… “yes and you are going 60mph on a motorcycle so maybe you should be looking at the road.”
      She was right of course. 😀
      Thanks Maggie!

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      • Hi Phil,
        These are amazing photos of a beautiful bird! I can only imagine capturing shots like these. I’d probably be grinnin’ for days. ;o) I think it’s really cool that even though you’ve seen tons of awesome animals like these, you still get excited when you see them (even at 60 mph). As always, thanks for sharing your stories and pics! They are greatly appreciated.
        Best regards,
        Mick

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  17. Hi Phil~You truly amaze me and must have the patience of a saint to sit and wait for the right bird and the perfect shot! The Osprey is a beautiful bird. 🙂

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  18. I Love Ospreys! They are hard to catch though aren’t they? They’re big and fast! I have one that fishes every afternoon at our dock. One of these warmer days I’ll stalk him to get some pics. Wonderful captures Phil.

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    • Yes ospreys are very cool, and they are fast especially when diving down for a crash and grab of a fish!
      But I was particularly humbled as a bird photographer earlier this week. We had a couple of forster’s terns out working the marsh and these guys are SUPER fast! You can go dizzy trying to track these birds. I got some pics which I’ll post soon.

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