Osprey

Pandion haliaetus

Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Pandionidae
Presence in the Strait: Seasonal
Abundance: scarce
Protection in Spain: Vulnerable · Andalusian Catalogue
In Spanish: Águila pescadora

Marine taxonomy: validated in WoRMS, AphiaID 159377

33% of its open observations in the area are from September.

Photograph: froggymum, CC BY, vía iNaturalist

Length: 55–69 cm
Wingspan: 145–160 cm
Weight: 1,400–1,650 g

Presence in the Strait

Scarce winter visitor to reservoirs, marshes and coasts (<12). Formerly bred on the Peninsular coast with at least six pairs (Gibraltar, Tajo de Barbate and Cape Trafalgar), although it was more abundant on the Moroccan coast. The last pair disappeared in the middle of the ‘50s. Currently there are birds breeding in reservoirs of Guadalcacin (year 2003) and the Barbate (year 2012)..

Identification

Large, with long narrow wings. Strong contrast between white lower areas and dark upperparts. Juveniles have less sharply defined breast-band and white-tipped upperparts, giving a mottled appearance.

Movements

Partial migrant (>50 post. migr.) with peaks in 2nd hf. March and 2nd hf. September.

Ring recoveries

United Kingdom (3), Sweden (3), Finland (1) and Germany (1).

Bioestrecho editorial text. Last revised: 8 September 2026.

Photographs from iNaturalist observations with the licence checked file by file. Those marked “Strait” were taken within the area; place and date are those of each observation.

Calendar in the Strait

33 %

Peak in September. Observations under CC0 or CC BY licences. The distribution also reflects observation effort.

Where it is seen

Open records from the atlas database, in cells of about 9.0 km. Opacity follows the square root of the count, and also reflects where people observe most.

See on the map

Sensitive species (cliff nest, exposed to plundering and disturbance): its observations are shown with the location generalised to about 11 km, here and in the explorer. The original source keeps the exact position.

First open record: 25 February 1966
Latest record: 8 April 2026

The oldest and the most recent open observation in the extended area. A recent first observation does not mean the species is new: it means nobody had published it openly before.

Conservation

The catalogues, Andalusian and Spanish, are what binds; the Red Book assesses the Spanish population with IUCN criteria, and the global Red List is the context.

LCNTVUENCR

Andalusian Catalogue: Vulnerable
Spanish Catalogue: Vulnerable
Red Book of the Birds of Spain 2021: EN · Endangered · breeding
Global Red List (IUCN): LC · Least concern

Plan: AVES DE HUMEDALES · Annex I of the Birds Directive

Andalusian Catalogue: Junta de Andalucía, list of 24 April 2025. Spanish Catalogue: MITECO, table of 30 June 2025. Red Book: SEO/BirdLife, 2021 (Annex I). IUCN: via GBIF, 6 September 2026. Red Book and IUCN categories are assessments; catalogue categories are legal obligations.

Phenology compared

Monthly distribution in proportion, by decade. It shows whether the passage is getting earlier or later.

1990–1999

2000–2009

2010–2026

Proportions, not totals: observation effort grew faster than any population.

Where they come from

8 birds ringed in other countries and recovered in the area.

United Kingdom3
Sweden3
Finland1
Germany1

See the journey on the map

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Pandionidae
GBIF taxon key: 2480726

Sources

Distribution and calendar: Bioestrecho's own database, ingested from GBIF and OBIS
Photograph: froggymum, CC BY, vía iNaturalist
Taxonomy: GBIF backbone, pending WoRMS for marine taxa
Editorial text: written by Bioestrecho
Last revised: 8 September 2026

Osprey

Presence in the Strait

Identification

Movements

Ring recoveries

Gallery