Perched atop a tall, Weathered Hoop Pine on Magnetic Island in Townsville, Australia, an Eastern Osprey has a 360 degree view of its territory.
The eastern osprey (Pandion haliaetus cristatus) is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey. They live in Oceania at coastal regions of the Australian continent, the Indonesian islands, New Guinea, and the Philippines. It is usually sedentary and pairs breed at the same nest site, building up a substantial structure on dead trees or limbs. The subspecies resides in a habitat close to coasts and estuaries that provide opportunities for fishing. In 2022, it was considered a defunct species by the IOC, due to its low genetic divergences and absence in morphological differences.
Size: 7944px × 5296px
Location: Magnetic Island, Townsville, North Queensland, Australia
Photo credit: © Photography By Marco / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: alma, animal, araucaria, attraction, australia, bay, beauty, behaviour, bird, care, cristatus, cunninghamii, destination, diurnal, eagles, eastern, environmental, fish, fish-eating, haliaetus, hawk, hoop, hotspot, island, keen-eyed, large, magnetic, mature, natural, nature, nest, north, observing, osprey, pandion, parental, perched, pine, pines, point, popular, portrait, portraiture, prey, protecting, protective, queensland, raptor, relaxed, river, sea, supervising, tourist, townsville, travel, tree, vantage, vigilant, weathered
