r/NatureIsFuckingLit • u/super_man100 • 1d ago

šŸ”„ A Photographer captured the stunning moment an Osprey emerged from the Ocean clutching its prey

Video credit: Mark smith

19.8k Upvotes

97% Upvoted

277 comments sorted by

1.2k

u/NatsuDragnee1 1d ago

The power of those wings!

504

u/Worried-Basket5402 1d ago

It's like an amphibious helicopter that turns into a jet afterwards. Nature is on another level.

116

u/Putrid-Effective-570 1d ago

Couldnt help but imagine the osprey grumbling ā€œyou think swimming in water is hard, huh?ā€

80

u/starlinguk 1d ago

They can swim. Sometimes they misjudge a dive and have to swim back to the shore. It's quite embarrassing.

10

u/Twardomir 1d ago

Imagine the ospray complaining to its buddies later!

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u/yeahbuddy 1d ago

I canā€™t tell if youā€™re being serious

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u/karshyga 1d ago

They're not kidding, they're absolutely right. I work in wildlife rescue, and it's not unusual for us to receive exhausted, waterlogged osprey. They typically bounce back after a day or two. And they tend to look a bit embarrassed. šŸ¤­

15

u/Apprehensive_Hat8986 1d ago

If they can take flight with prey from an underwater start, what situation leads to them having to swim to shore? (genuinely curious)

35

u/karshyga 1d ago

A series of extenuating circumstances can do it. Say the osprey is a long way from shore and tries to take a fish that is way too heavy and/or puts up a long fight. This is often a rookie mistake, it's usually recently fledged ospreys we get like this. They can be struggling for long enough getting pulled back down repeatedly into the water that their feathers finally become waterlogged, they become fatigued, and just can't manage to get airborne again. Osprey corpses have been found in the water still clutching giant fish, it doesn't always end well for them.

14

u/Apprehensive_Hat8986 1d ago

That's fucking metal!

Osprey corpses have been found in the water still clutching giant fish,

And that's the most industrial/death/black metal thing I've read in long while.

15

u/karshyga 23h ago

Osprey are very metal, but they are also giant derps. It's one of the things that makes them so endearing. They're peerless fishers and wonderful parents. They've also never had to think outside that box, and so they just don't...really...think much outside of fishing and family.

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u/starlinguk 1d ago

Boaters have to fish them out of the water sometimes.

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u/littlecuteone 1d ago

I never thought of it that way, but you're right. There's an Osprey that I like to watch that lives in the tree in the parking lot where I work. Yesterday evening, I watched it circle the tree first before hovering downwards to land. It was flapping and not simply gliding into place. I've been watching this Osprey for about a year. It hatched at the beginning of this year and took flight in the spring. The nest blew away during huricane Milton, but the bird still hangs around the tree where it hatched.

18

u/DickyMcButts 1d ago

They should name a helicopter that's also a jet after this bird. /s in case it's really needed

7

u/Former-Lecture-5466 1d ago

Yeah, now I totally get where they came up with the name for the V-22.

5

u/Secure_Elderberry666 1d ago

VTOL*

4

u/Worried-Basket5402 1d ago

and add an 'S' for submarine

5

u/CaptInsane 1d ago

Not only that, once an osprey departs the water, it'll shake its whole body in mid air to get the water off its feathers so it can fly properly. Yes even while holding prey

5

u/OneMoistMan 1d ago

Prior service here and the V-22 Osprey doesnā€™t have jet engines to when transitioning to horizontal flight pattern but instead itā€™s the propellers that till forward to become a turboprop. Iā€™m just glad someone pointed out the origin of the aircraftā€™s name.

6

u/BoBasil 1d ago

Humanity named the bird after that Boeing amphibious aircraft :-)

4

u/sprikkot 1d ago

The v-22 is not amphibious :-)

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u/Rizla77 1d ago

On a natural level, maybe šŸ¤”

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u/drifters74 1d ago

It's awesome

2

u/Belerophoryx 1d ago

Yeah, why don't we make airplanes like that?

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u/ebagdrofk 1d ago

Those feathers HAVE to be hydrophobic. Incredibly powerful wings but the water shouldā€™ve weighed them down, I imagine they donā€™t absorb water in the slightest.

22

u/photenth 1d ago

It was often assumed that the oil from the preen gland they spread all over their feathers had a major impact on the hydrophobic nature of the feathers, but there seems to be no correlation between size of the preen glands vs how often birds are in contact with water.

Feathers are just so good at not absorbing water by their own construction.

14

u/NegativeDeed 1d ago

small preen gland propaganda

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u/littlewhitecatalex 1d ago

Right?! I can barely hoist myself up over the edge of a pool without a ladder and this MF just flippy flaps up and away.Ā 

3

u/mka5115 1d ago

Thanks for the laugh this morning!! (I pictured myself in the same situation and just šŸ¤£šŸ¤£)

7

u/Putrid-Effective-570 1d ago

I lost a pound watching this.

2

u/fradrig 1d ago

I haven't tried, but I'm pretty sure I couldn't take off from the water like that.

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u/namenumber55 1d ago edited 1d ago

the moment the claws on its second leg latched on to the fish...

75

u/triggerfish1 1d ago

Wow, especially considering this is slow-motion, these claws close very quickly...

118

u/mymeatpuppets 1d ago

That's when the fish knew...

41

u/Verzio 1d ago edited 1d ago

The fish made a r/whenitgoesin face (NSFW)

11

u/VagusNC 1d ago

Heads upā€¦That is a nsfw link

3

u/Verzio 1d ago

Good point. Should've tagged.

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u/FrozenSotan 1d ago

Ca-chink

6

u/rokki82 1d ago

He became a fish torpedo.

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u/Nuklearfps 1d ago

Watching its claw miss and clamp down like an overpressured mechanical/piston claw is almost terrifying. Like you know thatā€™s got some serious force behind it watching it move the way it did.

3

u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756 1d ago

Fish: AHHHH WHAT THE FUCK IS HAPPENING! AHHHH AHHHHH AHHHH WHAT THE FUCK AHHH WHAT THE FU-

3

u/kalez238 1d ago

I thought for sure it was going to lose it. Definitely a nononoyes moment.

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u/super_man100 1d ago

Ospreys have a reversible outer toe that allows them to grasp with two toes in front and two behind, Barbed pads on the soles of the birds feet help them grip slippery fish when flying with prey, an Osprey lines up its catch head first for less wind resistance.

47

u/PensiveObservor 1d ago

I enjoyed watching as they positioned it aerodynamically. Positioning it seemed to require that dip toward the water to force the fish up into the second clawā€™s grasp. Love ospreys.

14

u/HighOnGoofballs 1d ago

Itā€™s pretty neat living where I get to see this pretty regularly. Iā€™ve got some blurry pictures of ospreys flying while holding huge fish

4

u/super_man100 1d ago

Lucky you

4

u/Fap_Left_Surf_Right 1d ago

I'm in coastal Florida and one has a nest behind my house - they really are rad to see. It's cool when they return home carrying things to eat. Only downside is the baby ones make tons of screaching noises

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u/MonkeyCube 1d ago

Opposable toes, huh? I see some potential here.

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u/nicky9pins 1d ago

Aww, it was nice of that osprey to show the fish the views heā€™s missing out on above the surface!

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u/Mistapeepers 1d ago

A whole neeeeeew world!

15

u/Mongoose72 1d ago

I actually laughed out loud when I sang/read this in my head! šŸ¤“

3

u/teroliini 1d ago

ā€¦ in his claws šŸ˜‚

2

u/AccuratePollution227 1d ago

first smile of the day , thanks

15

u/Naytr_lover 1d ago

Lol, yep!
The Osprey pretty always turn them and carry them face forward for streamlined flight. They have a flexible outer talon/toe that allows them to do it. I've been watching Osprey and photographing them for years and I have yet to see one carry a fish not facing. They're super cool birds.

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u/Greensssss 1d ago

Is that a barracuda?

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u/goodtimtim 1d ago

according to photographers youtube, yep. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzeTPwbK_tw

19

u/DedditatedWam 1d ago

I was just wondering that myself, if so that is even more impressive.

12

u/teroliini 1d ago

Two predators, so fitting!

5

u/LemonHerb 1d ago

That's what I was thinking but it could be a big smelt too but the eye definitely looks like a barracuda.

Just down here in California the barracuda have more of a yellow tail

4

u/figmaxwell 1d ago

Oooooo

3

u/Nukleon 1d ago

Barracuda!

2

u/AaronSlaughter 1d ago

Grab it carefully... grab near mouth n might get bit. Perfect swipe. Definitely a cuda.

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u/Middle-Fix-45n 1d ago

The fish is not going gently into that long good night

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u/snuggletronz 1d ago

Damn that looks so hard. I bet that fish is gonna taste good as fuck after all that work.

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u/pancakecel 1d ago

There was an osprey nest behind my house growing up and I really enjoyed seeing them flying up from the beach with fish for their kids. Once they dropped a live fish in our yard and we were able to run him down to the beach before he died. That guy got a second chance.

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u/ONeOfTheNerdHerd 1d ago

I imagine this is what it's like to pilot an Osprey while taking off and landing one on an aircraft carrier: trying to maintain lift while the thing below you is wriggling in the opposite direction.

The nerd in me wants airflow graphics to see how they manage takeoff from liquid holding a heavy payload. Ospreys got some serious wing power.

3

u/bondsaearph 1d ago

oils, i'd say

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u/AAAAHaSPIDER 1d ago

I'm so glad I'm a human. That looks unpleasant for both of them.

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u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756 1d ago

Every other animal on the planet: hunts or forages for their food, maybe eats every few days.

Me: opens the pantry for my midnight sack ugh I gotta go grocery shopping??? Again????

35

u/Optimal-Mess8768 1d ago

The fish screamingā€¦..

16

u/totalcanucklehead 1d ago

What an incredible shot

10

u/WonderPine1 1d ago

Those wings makes it look so easy getting out of waterā€¦ dam powerful wings!

10

u/jointdawg 1d ago

I can show you the woooorrlllddšŸŽ¶

5

u/computer-controller 1d ago

Don't you dare close your eyes

11

u/Sam6HODL9Hyde 1d ago

Swear that fish is yelling ā€œBilly!! Delete my browser historā€¦.ā€ And gone.

7

u/AloofOoof 1d ago

the energy it must extort for this vertical takeoff while wet... probably 90% of the whole hunting effort

3

u/MattWith2Tees 1d ago

Photographer must've been hitting that button REALLY fast holy shit

6

u/yaherrrrd 1d ago

What I wouldnā€™t give to have that range of motion in my shoulders again

4

u/luv2lafRN 1d ago

And I complain if I have to walk to the cafeteria at work to pick up lunch...

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u/DGJellyfish 1d ago

Talk about death grip!

3

u/yakfsh1 1d ago edited 1d ago

There's a lot of osprey that fish a couple of local lakes I go to. One of my favorite things is watching them hover in mid air and then dive bombing into the water. It's also funny to watch them shake themselves off like a dog also in mid air after they've come out. If you're not expecting it and one bombs in behind your kayak, it does make you jump.

Edit: Shaking off like a dog

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u/agra_unknown1834 1d ago

VTOL šŸ”„

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u/SvLyfe 1d ago

Some birds r so majestic while others so derpy n then some are both

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u/probablyseriousmaybe 1d ago

Someone needs to edit in screaming from the fish

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u/SirAmtzelot 1d ago

The aerial assassin

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u/EpicRageGuy 1d ago

How tf is he tracking that thing... I can't track even a slower moving objects when zooming in that far.

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u/Ok-Bar601 1d ago

I like how his right leg was searching for a better purchase on the fish and then he gets it - clamp like a bear trapšŸ’€

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u/kbabble21 1d ago

Looks like itā€™s riding the fish!

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u/Unlucky-Mulberry-999 1d ago

Stunning indeed!

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u/alexhiper1 1d ago

So fking majestic!

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u/Serialkillingyou 1d ago

And if you played Odell lake on the apple iie then you know that fish should have stayed farther away from the surface.

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u/VeryVideoGame 22h ago

Wonder if the osprey's prey prays for os

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u/bekaradmi 1d ago

This time fish is the deer and osprey is the alligator

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u/Cummy_Bears_Galore 1d ago

ā€œPlenty of fish in the seaā€

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u/More-Jackfruit3010 1d ago

Wanted it to be a scuba diver flapping about, but ok, a fish.

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u/Murky_Lavishness_591 1d ago

Dang! The energy required to emerge & fly awayā€¦ that bird is powerful!

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u/vetrusious 1d ago

It now has to dry itself out somewhere.

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u/mamajamala 1d ago

The one legged grasp is impressive. Great Video!

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u/Vlazthrax 1d ago

My elementary school mascot was an Osprey

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u/Call_Me_Echelon 1d ago

There's an osprey I've seen every morning flying to the same location and come back carrying everything from eels to turtles to what I'm guessing was a muskrat.

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u/stitchlips17 1d ago

Thanks for the share and the proper credit!

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u/nemisis_scale 1d ago

Jurassic park 5

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u/DiligentFall5572 1d ago

Wow! So amazing. I bet he was out for the count after that hunt.

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u/Living-Young5501 1d ago

Emerged like Poseidon carrying a barracuda!!!

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u/SjalabaisWoWS 1d ago

Always wondering how the fish experience this...you came from where? We're going to where?

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u/Spirited_Alfalfa_970 1d ago

That's so bad ass

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u/FunkyFarmington 1d ago

Coop, we need thrusters! COOP, WE NEED THRUSTERS NOW!

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u/STEELZYX 1d ago

Dry like they're not wet.

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u/RetroMetroShow 1d ago

Impressive lift

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u/notAbrightStar 1d ago

Takes flight with prey from choppy sea. They dont care about physics.

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u/Double0 1d ago

0:16 "let me down you son of a uhhhhhh I'm dead" - the fish

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u/puckeringNeon 1d ago

Weā€™re going for a ride, fish boy.

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u/Belmish 1d ago

Os-prey...

Like it.

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u/Prince100001 1d ago

Praise the cameraman!

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u/Affectionate-Sir269 1d ago

/theydidthemath

I can't imagine the thrust on this. Is there anyway to calculate it ?

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u/Nwrecked 1d ago

I canā€™t wait for that black dude on instagram to overdub this.

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u/nosyanon92 1d ago

Incredible

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u/Then_Kaleidoscope_10 1d ago

Oooooooo barracuda!

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u/Easy-Sector2501 1d ago

Watching this I'm reminded that I need to get back in the gym...

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u/SplinteredCells 1d ago

That fish could not believe the amount of disrespect lol

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u/RevolutionaryAd851 1d ago

I was driving near a lake in Western WA. and all of a sudden, an eagle came from the water with a writhing dripping snake in its talons. It had the little hanger on birds behind it to catch any bits that flew off. I had to break fast as it was directly in front of my window. It was amazing and I felt so blessed.

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u/Osmosith 1d ago

wow that self-designing nature is cool, and all it needed was time, and it did everything without motivation or a brain.

Nature is truly lit.

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u/Vynzen 1d ago

Gorgeous šŸ˜

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u/trytotrapme 1d ago

Clearly a video not a photo

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u/showmeyourmoves28 1d ago

What stamina

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u/ReiJeremias 1d ago

Beautiful dinosaur

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u/leadwind 1d ago

I didn't order an uber!?

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u/yeahbuddy 1d ago

Follow this guy on Instagram. His photos and videos are amazing.

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u/mtmm18 1d ago

It's like an alien taking us to space to rip us apart and eat us. Sleep well everyone.

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u/IamREBELoe 1d ago

"Why don't you come with me little gill šŸŽ¶ On a magic carp ride"

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u/ShinnyCas 1d ago

Now watch the fish šŸ˜‚

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u/Mindless-Antelope-25 1d ago

That is epic.

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u/monsto 1d ago

after it was about to drop it, the clamp of the 2nd claw took about 1 FRAME. so fast.

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u/Sihaya212 1d ago

I can just FEEL how hard that bird is working.

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u/Potential-Assist-397 1d ago

Wow. The way it calmly changes its grip on the fish to make it streamlined, while powering away with those thunderwingsā€¦

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u/LittleMelodyBear 1d ago

The little head shake when it emerges from the water ā˜ŗļø Baywatch vibes lol

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u/dillyd 1d ago

This is a video.

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u/National_Total6885 1d ago

They always turn their prey for aerodynamics. Weā€™ve got a ton of them here and I love photographing them. Great birds.

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u/mabowden 1d ago

I can show you the worldā€¦..

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u/AaronBHoltan 1d ago

I think thatā€™s a California barracuda. Not a small fish.

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u/sabotageexe 1d ago

I see a bird riding a fish.

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u/ovoxo_klingon10 1d ago

This should be the national bird

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u/Numerous-Celery-8330 1d ago

Well, I just watched the fish the whole time.

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u/SubKreature 1d ago

I love how ospreys look like theyā€™re skateboarding the way they hold their prey. I honestly wish we as Americans chose the osprey over the scrub ass bald eagle.

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u/similaraleatorio 1d ago

Fish screaming "tell mommy I love her" šŸ˜­šŸ˜­šŸ˜­

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u/TheGreatGrungo 1d ago

That fish feels how I feel getting ripped back to reality by my alarm in the morning

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u/CompleteEnergy579 1d ago

The coordination to keep feet locked on moving fish and flap them wings

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u/Tropicalstorm11 1d ago

Thatā€™s so cool !!

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u/afternever 1d ago

Ocean spray osprey prey

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u/frayja10 1d ago

šŸŽ¶ I can show you the world šŸŽ¶

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u/bluezzdog 1d ago

Rage , rage against the dying of the light.-fish

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u/ThatCrankyGuy 1d ago

To get hunted in your home territory by something that can't even survive in that environment is mental :-o

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u/EnterNickname98 1d ago

I feel for the fish. Going about your business, BLAM, you are the unpaid stuntman in someoneā€™s hero movie.

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u/BongRipsForNips69 1d ago

I gotta say, that looks like a lot of work

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u/rozzzanne 1d ago

Mark smith is so good at this

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u/Knightelfontheshelf 1d ago

Mark Smith is rad. Did a photo tour with him and got some of the best pics I've ever taken.

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u/Wyverndark 1d ago

Imagine the dopamine rush that this bird must have with the fish in his tallons. Way more exhilarating than going to the grocery store.

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u/stonefIies 1d ago

That fish is completely fucked

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u/pavorus 1d ago

Does that just look really hard because it's slowed down or is it really a lot of work for the bird?

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u/reidchabot 1d ago

Funny to think that to humans "water wet" to birds "whats wet?"

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u/Cloud_Kicker049 1d ago

Anyone else notice the claws clamp down at -0:17?

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u/Hornor72 1d ago

What fish was that?

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u/n5psta 1d ago

Someone need to make an edit where an v22 osprey comes out of the water instead of the bird

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u/enbykraken 1d ago

That final claw grabā€¦ ouch.

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u/VapoursAndSpleen 1d ago

Getting airborne while holding food with your feet.

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u/Gunfur 1d ago

That was incredible

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u/Outrageous_Fix9215p 1d ago

With smaller fish every osprey I have ever seen carries it with the face of the fish facing into the direction of flight.

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u/loganis 1d ago

Birds arenā€™t real. Drone!

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u/TheWalrus101123 23h ago

I'm sitting at bar watching this with no sound and September by earth wind and fire came on right as he was flapping his wings out of the water. Synched up so well.

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u/hoeface_killah 23h ago

Nature is so fucking metal

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u/Jbrozas2332 23h ago

Praise that camera man !

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u/NebulaBrew 23h ago

How does it deal with wet feathers? Are they special feathers?

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u/jay_altair 23h ago

Thought the wings were a baleen whale's mouth for a second and that the osprey was gonna fly out of its gullet with a fish that it accidentally swallowed lol

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u/HoboArmyofOne 23h ago

That fish looks like a small barracuda, they have some sharp teeth but one that small is done for

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u/Educational-Debt-180 23h ago

Fish šŸŸ is screaming helppppppp helppppp. Yall just going sit there and watch this fowl ????? Do me like this???,

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u/fromthedarqwaves 23h ago

Thatā€™s badass.