Things you need to know about OSPREYS!

Ospreys are one of the most widespread birds of prey in the world and are found on every continent. In this video you'll discover lots of interesting information about them, what they eat, where they live, what their chicks look like and lots more.
#osprey #birdwatching #ukwildlife
Depending on where in the world you are, you might recognise this bird as a river hawk, a sea hawk or a fish hawk, but here in the UK we know them as ospreys.
Ospreys are quite a large bird, with a wingspan of 145 to 170 cm and weighing from 1.2 to 2 kilograms. Their wings, backs and on top of their tails are covered in dark brown feathers, whilst they have a white crown and dark brown eye stripe. Females are around 20% larger than males and they can also be separated by the colouring of the feathers down their throats and undersides. In males these are almost completely white whilst in females the feathers are heavily mottled with brown. As their alternative names suggest, an ospreys diet is almost completely made up of fish, which they catch by plummeting feet first into the water. To help them to keep hold of any prey they manage to catch, they can turn their 4th toe to point backwards, meaning they have 2 forwards and 2 rear facing claws. This allows them to hold and manoeuvre their catch, which will often be carried forwards facing and therefore more streamlined.
Naturally, Ospreys will nest on cliffs and in the high crowns of large trees, but in the UK they will frequently use man made nesting platforms. The same nest is used year after year and after a little maintenance when the birds return in the springtime, between 1 and 4 red speckled white eggs are laid. This is usually by the end of April with the eggs being laid between 1 and 3 days apart. They aren’t very large for such a big bird and measure just over 6cm long, which is about the same as a chickens egg. Sometimes the female will carry out all of the incubation, which lasts 37 days, whilst her mate brings her food in the nest, although some males will take over incubation for a short period each day to allow the female to leave. When the chicks hatch they are covered in striped cream and brown fluff with their dark eye strip already being visible. They hatch at the same rate as they are laid meaning their can be more than a week difference between the youngest and oldest chicks. When there is plenty of food, this is no problem, but if food is in short supply only the older chicks will get fed and the younger ones will not survive. As the chicks grow, the male brings most of their food to the nest, where the female tears it into smaller pieces and feeds it to them. After 7 to 8 weeks the chicks can fly and look very similar to their parents and will slowly begin to venture away from the nest. At this point, some adult females leave their nesting territory and start to make their migration journey south, but until all of the chicks are fully independent and start migrating themselves, the male will remain and continue to bring them food. Although pairs are usually monogamous for many years, they do not migrate to the same place for winter and will only rekindle their relationship when they return again in the spring.
Ospreys have a typical lifespan of around 9 years although the oldest known bird, is currently still alive and at least 30 years old.
Some of the footage and images used were obtained using creative commons licences, the originals and their licence details can be found at • Osprey
• Osprey Chicks Learning...
• Osprey Adult Female is...
• Osprey in Nest Part 8 ...
• Osprey
• If there was a perfect...
• A young Osprey learns ...
• Osprey hunts a big Fis...
• The Osprey Power Animal
• Osprey Nest in Florida...
• Osprey at Freshwater L...
• Louis' turn to dump a ...
• Osprey chicks
• Osprey Grooming in Tre...
• Osprey grabs a huge st...
• Osprey nest feeding ti...
• Osprey Adult Female is...
• Osprey feeding a young...
• Osprey The Fish Hunter
• ospreys mating on Loch...
• Aila the Loch Arkaig o...
• Osprey fledging by Lis...
• Le Balbuzard pêcheur (...
• ミサゴ 拾い物 九州の干拓地 2月中旬 野鳥...
• Osprey Nest in Florida...
• Osprey in Nest Part 8 ...
www.flickr.com...
www.flickr.com...
www.flickr.com...
Thumbnail image: www.flickr.com...

[@seancassidy4812]

Good video man. It is suitable for all the family. Everyone should know this stuff. Keep at it. We will watch it.

[@chrisstones1249]

Once again, fabulous , you should have your own t.v. station ,young man .👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@charlesstewart9246]

You've come a long way ,on your short journey in u-tube world. You've matured into a very professional presenter. Well done Liam, you're on a lifetime trip I doubt you'll ever regret taking. I'm an ex gamekeeper ( many years ago,never retired the life) and you describe in short all the information needed to assist anyone to learn what they're looking at/listening to. It's not easy to compact such information into little packages that are easily understood by others. Congratulations 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿👌🏼😃🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@jasondavis4813]

Always loved ospreys since I was a child what an amazing sight to see them take a fish from the water one of nature's most spectacular shows brilliant video

[@mysterycrumble]

super! THANK YOU!

[@Smashy4Pants]

Exactly what I needed to know, thank you.

[@paulsanderson8804]

Very nice footage liam great documentary well put together. Nice one ..

[@Tom_Porter]

There are two nesting sites in the Lake District that I know of, absolutely beautiful bird

[@kiwi_sodas]

Yes!!! I've been waiting so long for this, Ospreys are my favourite bird!!! Amazing video as always!!

[@WatchRWildlife]

4:27 😮

[@dannypietersz7760]

what a gorgeous species of bird!

[@geoffharding7779]

Great video. My son and I used to go to Rutland Water every year to see them.

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Thank you. I am hoping to get across to see them there this summer.

[@HarryTownsend-sn5sx]

Great video Liam, love the ospreys. Keep up the content

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Thank you!

[@karend7640]

Thing is Liam - not only do you make great informative videos but you come across as someone you'd like to have a pint with!!

[@phileo_ss]

4:34 How did it manage to catch two large fish in one go!? Great footage. And thanks for the interesting facts too.

[@tamjammy4461]

Ta Liam. The footage of the osprey catching 2 fish on one dive is unbelievable. Ive spent a fair bit of time watching them fish at Rutland and never seen that before. Always good to see them so 👍

[@Mgh-r]

Hi dear liam ❤❤❤❤❤❤ thank u 🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@missapippin9020]

Wonderful video Liam with so much interesting information. What an incredible bird. Thank you very much❤

[@alastairsmith1096]

Nice one.

[@nickwebb9290]

Another great one Liam, some amazing footage there too,many thanks 😁

[@bernardshieldstysonfive1009]

Hi Liam brilliant video again love birds of prey that was very interesting brilliant footage and love the way you explain it all keep up with your amazing work and videos Bernard

[@petwil90]

Another fantastic video!

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Thank you!

[@alistairmaclennan3791]

Thank you . brilliantly made film .As always

[@alanjust]

Brilliant Liam! Really well edited too! Thanks very much!

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Thanks Alan, I am glad you enjoyed it!

[@Matt_Alaric]

Good stuff.

[@petelumley1578]

Really informative video Liam. I have never seen a Osprey in the wild, it must be a fantastic sight.

[@MazSwanboroughSmith]

Thank you Liam for an excellent and really informative video! I’ve watched a few of your videos now and aim to binge watch them all when there’s time. Your presentation, scriptwriting and narration are brilliant, with lots of facts without waffling on, and your love and enthusiasm really comes across. ❤

[@TR-rz1xt]

Always excellent viewing Liam - thank you very much!

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Brilliant, thanks for watching and commenting :)

[@NaCreagachaDubha]

Fabulous. Many thanks!

[@timroot4207]

Thank you Liam !!!

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Youre welcome Tim!

[@mohammadumair9497]

Always an excellent video liam.

[@CitizenSnips314]

Appreciate the effort, thank you!

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Thank you for watching.

[@philiptaylor7902]

Thanks Liam, great video.

[@Jaded-Wanderer]

Another great video

[@dm1946]

Thanks for the video Liam, we thought we knew a lot about different birds but your video's show us more than we thought we knew. Great !!

[@charlesmckenna712]

Yes I found two when I was about 9 years old I left him alone when bargain evening and there was still there captain for a while and let them go beautiful bird s

[@williamrobinson7435]

A really impressive raptor, ospreys. I note all the details you've included in the description, this is a great idea and really helps the facts to penetrate; we really do appreciate the work you put into these excellent films. Nice one Liam! 🌟👍

[@steveh7866]

Just watched five on the trot: guess it's time to subscribe :) Thank you

[@paulwarner5674]

Saw Ospreys in a reserve in Scotland few years ago. Do know that they were trying to introduce them into the Poole harbour area a couple of years ago. But never seen them in the wild as such.

[@SkylarkFields]

Fantastic footage and facts! Been watching ospreys on a live cam situated an hour or so away from where I live, so it's great to learn more about these lovely birds.

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Thank you :) I sometimes check in the local osprey nest cams as well. I am currently installing my own nest camera, but I doubt ospreys will be visiting my front garden any time soon.

[@SkylarkFields]

Haha, that's a shame! However, I'm sure you'll get tenants of some kind in there!😊

[@DesmondsDonders]

I love watching these birds fish,

[@lin462]

I was lucky to see a pair up in Boat of Garten.

[@NaturallyCuriousUK]

Interesting that the pair splits up outside of the breeding season. Rarely fail to learn something new from your videos buddy. 👍👍👍🤓

[@coecludd]

Lovely informative video (as always). I've never seen an Osprey or even heard of this species. Hopefully I will see one at some point. I live along the south coast (so I know there are two here somewhere) 😉

[@IRSA1]

What an interesting bird, with unique breeding habits and impressive fishing skills !

[@andysexton415]

Hi Liam, thank you I live on the Restronguet Creek estuary off the Carrick Roads we have an osprey that comes every year and spends time fishing in the creek. Your Video's are stunning, thank you

[@anthonyalfredyorke1621]

Thanks Liam great video, have a wonderful weekend. PEACE AND LOVE TO EVERYONE ❤❤.

[@vanlifebayou]

I have an Osprey in my area. ❤

[@JacqJansen]

Prachtige beelden. Jacq

[@christrella3134]

Very enjoyable! We have them all over the USA, near water well inland as well sea side. Ours migrate into South America and have a very long migration. Good stuff!

[@clarsach29]

i'm lucky enough to live close to Loch of the Lowes in central Scotland which has a resident pair of Ospreys and plenty of hides to watch them from. It's amazing to see them lift a fish from the water and fly with it when the fish is almost as big as the bird and thrashing around...they're powerful birds!

[@OspreyFlyer]

👍❤️

[@Compo67]

Cool video Liam , thank you, a ton of work goes into these videos I’m sure 🙏. I always remember in past decades , that these birds were always being featured on the news because of their rarity in the UK, but despite being closely protected they kept getting the nest raided for the eggs. Even today Ospreys are still rarer than golden eagles in the UK so I read 😁👍

[@songsfromthelord888]

Thanks for wonderful video! We just saw a nesting pair in northern New Hampshire/ Vermont on the Connecticut River. 😊 Remember that God loves YOU! 🙂

[@EileenGoehring-lb8hy]

I watch the nest's in Wales Scotland ,one in Florida at the moment wonderful birds 🦅🦅

[@nickiramsay2421]

My favourite bird of prey, I watch all the osprey nest live feeds in the Uk, they are amazing birds.

[@sjaakmcd1804]

Awesome Liam (I missed this post) We get ospreys migrating /stopping off in Bury Lancs. Do you know about Raptors eye colour? The latest research is: yellow=daylight hunters, orange=dawn/dusk hunters, dark orange-brown=night hunters. But as birds age and develop their darker light level hunting skills their eyes go darker too. Ospreys eyes are even better, the colour changes with location. In N Scotland in Summer nights last a few hours of dusk so their eyes are yellow but when in Africa their eyes darken to cope with the shorter daylight hours. Cheers and keep up the good work

[@denisehernandez5051]

Hi. I just watched your video about the osprey. It was very educational. I knew about the front facing claw that can turn around to carry prey. I'm familiar with their loud vocalizations, too. I happen to live in a mobile home community nowhere near water. Yet a pair of osprey ignored the sign that says this is a 55 and over neighborhood and have built a nest in a very tall palm tree across the street from me and have babies. They haven't left the nest yet. It's been a few months.

[@MrTrick.]

There are nesting pairs at Rutland Water, well worth a visit.

[@AShotOfWildlife]

I think I will manage to get to see them there this year, hopefully!

[@catherinefairley2716]

Loch of lowes in dunkeld is where I go to see them

[@tufftraveller4784]

Keep seeing one or two near Cotswold Water park.

[@paulohara1502]

👏👏👍👌🥰

[@donniwoodland4369]

Hi Liam I really want to get into birding but don’t really have the money to spend on good image quality binoculars, maybe u could show us some cheap alternatives and tips 👍🏻love the videos btw

[@Tim.Weaver]

I was intrigued to discover that the male and female partners migrate and winter separately. I'd just taken it for granted that birds in a pair would stick together all year.

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Yes, I found that bit interesting too. I wonder if they ever pass by each other over winter and if so, how they react.

[@birdlover6842]

I read that the oldest osprey in the world is Iris in Missoula Montana USA and she laid 3 eggs a couple weeks ago or so.

[@raphlvlogs271]

unlike most globally widespread species they are specialists instead of generalists

[@AShotOfWildlife]

Thats an interesting insight. I hadnt realised this so thanks for sharing.

[@alanequi2786]

Bald eagles have made a huge comeback in the US in the last 50 years, and before that they were nearly extinct, except in Alaska, but as far as I know, ospreys were never in much danger here, at least not compared to the UK.

[@gerrimilner9448]

never seen an ospreay

[@AShotOfWildlife]

With their numbers increasing, it may happen sooner rather than later :)

[@syntheticfuture1718]