Taxidermy Osprey
Log #5624
Latin: Pandion Haliaetus
Size: Measures approx. 53cm x 62cm x 27cm
Description: Handsome, adult specimen with fish prey in naturalistic setting. This "Norfolk School" box case is probably by celebrated Victorian taxidermist Walter Lowne of Great Yarmouth.
The Osprey, sometimes known as the sea hawk, fish hawk or fish eagle, are the only raptors (including owls), whose outer toe is reversible, allowing them to grasp their prey with two toes in front and two behind. This is particularly helpful when they grab slippery fish. The genus, Pandion, was described by the French zoologist Marie Jules César Savigny in 1809, and is taken from a mythical Greek king, Pandion. In 1994, the Osprey was declared the provincial bird of Nova Scotia, Canada.