Watch This Powerful Osprey Snag a Live Barracuda Straight Out of the Water

Fishing is hard enough with the advantage of a boat and staying dry. But ospreys have neither advantage, and they’re better at fishing than most, using their absurdly impressive vision and their uniquely shaped talons to snatch their preferred meals right out of the water in one fell swoop.

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What Do Ospreys Eat?

Ospreys are raptors that almost exclusively feast on fish. Their talons are shaped perfectly for this venture as it allows them to grip fish straight out of the water. Even as they fly back up, fish in tow, they keep them securely held with the rough pads on their feet.

As primarily fish-eating birds, ospreys rely heavily on bodies of water to find their meals. They are often seen perched high up in trees or on other elevated structures near lakes, rivers, or oceans, where they survey their surroundings for potential prey. Once an osprey spots a fish swimming below the surface, it will take flight and dive down toward the water at incredible speeds – sometimes reaching up to 80 miles per hour!

Using its sharp talons like fishing hooks, an osprey will grab onto a fish with both feet before carrying it back to shore or its nest to consume. Ospreys have also been known to supplement their diet with small mammals such as rodents or rabbits when necessary.

What Animals Eat Barracudas?

The type of animal that turns barracudas into prey differs, depending on how big the barracuda is. When it’s smaller, it may get snatched up by a raptor, like in the video below. However, if it’s a great barracuda, which can weigh over 100 pounds and grow to over five feet long, a raptor doesn’t stand a chance, no matter how perfectly hooked its talons are.

Although they’re not an easy catch by any means, barracudas fall prey to humans. They make for a delicious meal and are well worth the hours spent with a line out. Juvenile barracudas may become prey to several underwater predators, but adult barracudas aren’t so easily accessible. They’re big and they’re fast, so they need a worthy predator like a shark or goliath grouper.

Osprey Snatches Barracuda

The video is in slow motion, which makes it even more dramatic — and the osprey’s catch even more impressive. The osprey has already made its catch and is emerging from the ocean triumphant, shaking its head to release water and keeping its wings outstretched with purpose. As soon as its wings are out of the water, it starts flapping, rising higher as the ocean’s waves undulate around it.

Within a few seconds, you spot the barracuda. As the osprey flies higher, you see its curved talons around the barracuda’s tail. Its left talons have a better grip, and even though the fish is wriggling, it’s not going anywhere. As it ascends further, it releases its right talons, flying for a bit with only the left talons piercing the barracuda.

The barracuda continues to wriggle despite the wounds to the lower portion of its body. This is when the osprey demonstrates its prowess — mid-flight, it engages its right talons again, perfectly hooking onto the upper part of the fish, sinking deep into its skin. This is the moment when it stops wriggling.

The photo featured at the top of this post is © BlueBarronPhoto/Shutterstock.com