The ospreys come to Suriname from North America. Most of them are here from August to April, but some spend the whole northern summer in Suriname, as can be seen in the graph below. Most of them fish in the lagoons in the northern part of Suriname and once as many as 30 were seen above and around the same lagoon (Bigipan, Ribot, februari 1981). But you can also find them fishing in rivers far from the coast. Flying over the water, they dive down with their feet first to grab a fish, then fly off to a tree to eat it. The picture above is made by Pieter Verheij above the Suriname river in February 2005. Below is a series of pictures of an attacking osprey (photographed by R.Ribot).
All pictures are made of the same osprey flying above New Nickerie in Suriname. It glides above a waterway (1) looking for fish, then it hoovers above a spotted fish (2), it dives (3) and adjust its course just above the water (4).
Ospreys are present in all months, but, as can be espected, less of them are seen in the northern summer, when to go to breed in North-America. Probably a lot of young birds stay behind. Below a photo of an osprey, seen in June 2007 at Weg naar Zee by Erik Toorman. This bird will not breed in that year.
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More pictures of birds of prey in Suriname, South America, part 2
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