What Kind Of Bird Is A Seahawk?
By Mike • January 19, 2006 • 23 comments
Now that Seattle’s football team is an NFL powerhouse, I’m getting a slew of inquiries asking, “What kind of bird is a seahawk?” Good question, sports fans!
Seahawk is but one of many nicknames for the awesome Osprey (Pandion haliaetus). This large, long-winged bird of prey cuts a striking figure, dark chocolate brown above and white below with a strong black line through its eye. This color scheme is obviously a bit more understated than the blue, teal, and chartreuse palette favored by the football Seahawks, but seems to work well for the raptor.
Osprey Pandion haliaetus. Miami, Jan 2008.
It has been the Core Team’s good fortune to spot osprey with ever-increasing frequency as we progress in our understanding and enjoyment of bird watching. Any regular reader of our site will note that we see Pandion haliaetus nearly every time we go birding in the warm months. We’re not complaining. We see all kinds of birds over and over in our travels, but we don’t always stop to admire them. Why does the osprey get special treatment? Their size, sleekness, and sheer presence has a lot to do with it. But it is also human nature to fixate on those animals firmly fixed atop their respective food chains. Humans are fascinated with raptors like hawks, eagles, falcons, owls, and osprey because they are predators. On safari, you may be pleased to spot a zebra, but admit it…you’re there for the lions.
Juvenile Osprey Pandio haliaetus. New York, July 2008
(aged as a juvenile by the faint ochre colour to the body feathers and the pale tips to the upperwing feathers)
Besides seahawk, osprey may also be referred to as fish hawk or fish eagle. According to the Peregrine Fund, the bird’s common name is derived from the Latin word ossifragus, meaning “a bone breaker.” A fitting name for a football team indeed! Here are some more fun osprey facts:
- The osprey is the most widespread raptor in the world. They can be found on every continent except Antarctica. Like most raptors, osprey are migratory. They breed in temperate climates and winter in the tropics.
- Osprey are particularly suited to catch fish, their primary food source. They possess a reversible fourth toe which allows them to grasp fish more securely by positioning two toes forward and two toes back. Also, the undersides of an osprey’s feet are covered in spiny spicules which prevent fish from wriggling free. They plunge feet first into the water to seize prey and may even submerge completely. A little known adaptation that facilitates these dives is the bird’s ability to close its nostrils.
- Osprey are only slightly smaller than eagles. The female osprey is larger than the male and may be distinguished by her brown spotted necklace.
- Osprey are one of the most difficult raptors to maintain in captivity. Although osprey were on the endangered species lists in most states since the 1970’s, they have successfully increased numbers due to conservation efforts since then. They are, for the most part, still considered threatened. Osprey are vulnerable to loss of habitat and organochloride pesticides like DDT.
Ospreys (photos taken at Jamaica Bay, NY. © Charlie Moores)
How are the Seahawks’ Odds This Year?
Even without checking their standings or depth chart, I can say with confidence that Seattle is not likely to win the Super Bowl. Nor for that matter are Philadelphia, Baltimore, Arizona, or Atlanta. In 40 Super Bowl match-ups from 1967 to 2006, only once has a football team named for a bird emerged victorious in the championship game. The Baltimore Ravens crushed my beloved New York Giants in Super Bowl XXXV (2001) to become football’s finest feathered franchise. Teams named for Homo sapiens just do better in this game. In an astonishing 27 of 39 contests, an organization named for a meat (not cheese) packer, chieftain, cowpoke, steel worker, indigenous American, gold miner, U.S. nationalist, or some species of pirate has won it all.
Have you seen the cool 10,000 Birds t-shirts? Get yours today!
[...] Of the 55 posts we published this month, the most popular was definitely the I and the Bird edition, edging out that perennial favorite of perverts everywhere, Another Sexy Redhead. Corey’s missives about his Yellow-headed Blackbird and New York’s Western Reef Heron also enjoyed their due popularity. Web searchers still show a healthy interest in information about mockingbirds and seahawks as well as mallards both manky and hybrid. [...]
[...] August 2007 introduced a new records in both visits and page views on 10,000 Birds. The most popular single post continues to be Another Sexy Redhead so the growing success of Corey’s calculated attempt to capitalize on the obliviousness of salacious web surfers, the deer post titled Buck Naked, is hardly surprising. Seahawks still arouse great curiosity in the public mind, as do mockingbirds and manky mallards. Also attracting a healthy amount of interest this month were my post on whether it was OK to touch a baby bird out of its nest and Corey’s quest for cranes, coots, and more. [...]
like your site would like to learn more
[...] Seahawks In The Super Bowl By Mike • February 3, 2006 • No comments yet How about those Seahawks? Though I’m a serious New York Giants fan, Seattle’s NFC Championship makes me pretty happy. Why, you ask? Besides the fact that Big Blue just wasn’t ready this year so it didn’t matter who took the conference, I’m very pleased that a football team with an obscure avian appellation is competing for the championship. Inquiring minds have been asking since the playoffs began, “What kind of bird is a Seahawk?” I, a humble devotee of both birds and sports as well as the overlap between these two topics, have the answer right here. [...]
I am a die hard seahawks fan but i want to know more about the seahawk were it lives and what it eats blah blah good article thogh
[...] than five teams sport bird names. If you like Ravens, Eagles, Falcons, Cardinals, and, of course, Seahawks, the NFL is the place for [...]
Hi Mike,
I really enjoyed your osprey photos. I have been watching ospreys out in Greenport, Long Island NY and was lucky enough to be able to shoot photos from right under the nest platform. I have a slew of photos and wonder if you would like to see them?
Charleen.
Sure, Charleen. Send me a link at mike AT 10000birds DOT com
Hello, Today 12-7-08 while driving in Brookfield Massachusetts we saw a large bird on the bank of a pond. It then flew to the edge of the ice. We turned the truck around and went back to get photos. I got 5 or 6 good shots. We thought it was just a really big hawk. Tonight while watching the football game with the Patriots ( we won!) and the Seahawks they showed a picture of one. Answer to our question of this morning. Funny how that happens. The first two shots I took, the bird is looking right at me! Then I got some in flight.
Just thought I would share.
thanks
[...] Seahawks As this website has previously established, Seahawk is another name for Osprey. Although this logo isn’t exactly realistic, it’s done in the local Native American [...]
[...] Seattle Seahawks — Aaron Curry, LB, Wake Forest Did you know that “seahawk” is actually another word for [...]
hey this page rox
Very informative story about the Osprey, one of my favourites here in Africa as well - and must confess I’ve never come across somebody who has said ‘no’ to seeing an Osprey.
Interesting little fact about the nostrils - something I didn’t know.
I can’t vouch for (and wouldn’t advise anybody else to on my behalf) much knowledge on NFL but now I do know about the Seahawks! :))
The Seahawk is also the mascot of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Their logo is clearly based on the Osprey. Recently a 20 foot copper statue of an Osprey (Seahawk) was dedicated on the campus. Ironically, despite having over 11,000 students they have no football team. Real Ospreys are sometimes see around Wilmington.
[...] con abucheos y los Seahawks llegaron con fuegos artificiales precedidos por el vuelo de un Seahawk [...]
Like the info and the pictures given re: Seahawk bird. Is there any green on the bird? Wondering how the Seahawks football team came up with their new color scheme which includes that lime green color. My husband thinks there is green on the bird?
@Donna Alexander: Actual Osprey have no green in their plumage.
Could someone please explain to me why you love bird’s so much?
With much misunderstanding
Bubba
Very interesting and beautiful website. I love all of the birds. They are the decorate of God. And give a happiness to all of the human.
Pimvisa
Seattle was not the first pro team to take the name Seahawks. The old Miami franchise in the All American Football Conference was named the Seahawks. It last one season, 1947. The next year, the league replaced the franchise with the Baltimore Colts.
I saw for the first time two Sea Hawks fly on to a palm tree in Mission Bay Park, San Diego, CA. Wow, what beautiful birds. We have many red tail hawks here, but I’ve not seen Ospreys here, bad non-sightings perhaps. Their marking and black hooked beaks are very cool.
Up until this December in Houston Tx, I had never seen an Osprey, but while walking the dog one cold morning, there it was circling a pond at the park. I new that the military has a plane by the same name but until this beautiful bird hovered over the water before diving for a fish, it never occured to me the reason for naming the plane. I was blown away to see a bird that size stationary in mid air, eyeing prey!
thanks for the logo of seahawks, explained !