Deep Dive

(Osprey)

Four thousand miles.
I follow the greening marshes north
to begin again my ordained course.

The scene below grows familiar.
Over marsh and bay,
last year’s nest still stands,
ready to be reclaimed and repaired.

Guarding the nest, 
I also watch the skies
until, at last, amongst teaming flocks of shorebirds and waterfowl,
a familiar shape takes form and calls to me.

I take to the air,
inviting a joyous sky dance.
My life’s single mate joins me in aerial splendor.
We display for all to see until exhaustion demands rest.

We share a fish.
She tidies my repairs.
Gently we settle in and slumber.

I have probably taken the Osprey, a favorite bird, for granted for most of my life. I’ve been cheered by their piercing calls, marveled at their gleaming, striped heads, and thrilled as they streak low over water to snatch a rising fish. There was so much more, however, to know: migrations thousands of miles long, life-long mates together only during breeding seasons, absolute masters of the air—eagles, falcons, and hawks need not apply—and deep dives, a skill totally unique among the world’s raptors.

That singular technique was captured in PBS’s Nature episode “Season of the Osprey.”  It startled me so much that I had to try to paint this picture, to show the bird the split second after it strikes the water and reaches out to grasp a surprised fish. 

Imagine him high in the sky, then spying a fish below. He folds his wings tightly to his body and stoops like a falcon, building deadly momentum and speed. His neck and head stretch downward, perfectly aligned with his legs, feet, and talons. A nanosecond before striking the surface of the water, he flairs his wings up and over his back, streamlined for entry. He plunges deep, disappears briefly under water as his outstretched talons grasp and hold his prey. Then, with a single, forceful down stroke of his wings, he’s back on the surface. He orients and lifts into the air again. Carrying his prize, he momentarily stalls and shakes off like a dog. Then it’s back to his nest. 

If this were the Olympics, I’d be cheering and holding a “10” high over my head.