With no fishing pole or net, just a pair of powerful, spiny talons, the Osprey – Pandion haliaetus is known as the world’s most excellent fisher. Found almost everywhere on Earth except Antarctica, it ...

Osprey toes also have sharp spicules on their lower surface, allowing them to grasp slippery fish. They are the only raptor that plunge-dives feet first, sometimes going completely under water ...

Osprey emerged in the mid-1400s from the Anglo-French word ospriet, ... The inside surface of their feet is covered with tiny points called spicules, which, with their long, ...

Note that the talons have sticky spicules on their feet, better to hold onto a moving creature while they are flying. Ospreys are ... rivers, lakes, even canals. In Maine, we’ve seen osprey couples ...