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    Pandion – Osprey

    One of only six land-birds with a cosmopolitan distribution habituating all continents except Antarctica

    This second widely distributed raptor species has its own separate taxonomic genus.

    Ospreys cruise over water bodies as their diet consists of 99% fish and 1% rodents, small birds, and reptiles. They have unique physical and behavioral characteristics which assist in hunting and catching prey.

    They can detect fish from 10-40m (33-131 ft) above water. In the early 20th century, the population of Osprey was threatened in many areas due to urban development, unplanned coastal recreation, and harmful side effects of an insecticide called DDT. DDT makes their eggs’ calcium coating weaker, easily broken, and eventually infertile. Ban on DDT in several countries has significantly recovered the species.