California Corbina a Mighty Tasty Treat!

Friday, Nov. 14, 2014 

As soon as I got to the south end of the San Elijo Lagoon, I was treated with another beautiful flyby as the Osprey made a quick straight line to the ocean. When I saw the Osprey fly by this morning, my hopes for a shot of it diving for fish disappeared, just like the Osprey did as I watched it fly towards the ocean.

Still overcast and shooting into the light... This is a shot of the Osprey as it flew off the big snag by the boardwalk and came directly towards me. What an exciting way to start my morning walk.

Looking very intense.

  

It scans the area but nothing drew its interest. The Osprey keeps flying towards the ocean to the north of the lagoon, that is where the lagoon opening is and the best surf fishing when the tide is just right.

After a wild morning of photographing the GBH (Great Blue Heron) and prey (my next blog), I was ready to call it a day when I saw the Osprey flying in from the ocean. It had just flown past the end of the Pole Trail Rd on Rios and it was heading this way. But it has something in its talons!

  

The Osprey is coming more into view of my camera lens... Wow, it has a huge fish!

  

The Osprey sees the photographers clicking away and a whole group of school kids all looking at him with excitement. What a great opportunity for the kids to see this fantastic bird of prey with a huge catch of the day! 

  

I think he wanted to fly to the far docks by the freeway but the clicking of our cameras and the cluster of enthusiastic kids made him change his destination plans.

He slowly drops his right wing... ready to make a wide right turn away form the clicking sound of our camera.

A slow lean to his right... and we get a great view of his prize fish. It looks like a California Corbina, one of the best eating fish you can catch at our beaches.

Corbina will usually come in with the incoming tide and as they hunt the sandy beaches for sandcrabs, they sometimes swim in such shallow water that their fins may be exposed out of the water. When my son and I go fishing for these fish we have to hunt them by sight, throwing the sandcrab baited hooks about 5 feet in front of them hoping for a strike.

My son caught one last time we went fishing at the shallow beach break at Cardiff, near the lagoon mouth at incoming tide and that fish was a fantastic tasting fish. I can see why the Osprey would rather hunt a Corbina instead of an algae-eating bottom feeding mullet.

This photo really shows how well the Osprey balances his prey. He grabs the fish at the front and in the back holding it in this manner makes for a more aerodynamic flight.

His turn is slow and easy.

Using his powerful wings to change his course.

  

I didn't get the shot of the Osprey diving for his fish but just to see him with this catch was quite a treat.

We really get to see the size of the fish compared to the size of the Osprey in this photo.

The full stretch of his wings. What a beautiful sight! 

He is now turning north west.

Veering slowly to the right.

He's always on the lookout for anything that may want to steal his prey. A few years ago, I saw a Great Blue Heron harass an Osprey just as he grabbed a fish and was trying to lift it out of the water. The Osprey had to let the fish go to defend himself. This Osprey makes warning flights when his talons are empty to all potential birds that may give him problems.

Osprey heads for its favorite telephone pole on Manchester Ave. to eat this tasty treat and it's time for me to head for home.

 Have a super day everyone!