#0669 · 🐦 birds

Osprey

🇳🇱 Visarend ·Pandion haliaetus

LCleast concern 🐦 Birds 📍 in the Netherlands

9 photos from iNaturalist (Creative Commons) · credits & licences

1. © Greg Lasley · CC BY-NC 4.0
2. © Greg Lasley · CC BY-NC 4.0
3. © Lawrence Hylton · CC BY 4.0
4. © José Antonio Linage Espinosa · CC BY-NC 4.0
5. © froggymum · CC BY 4.0
6. © Glenn Berry · CC0
7. © Peter Olsoy · CC BY-NC 4.0
8. © terrasantos · CC BY-NC 4.0
9. © willet63 · CC BY-NC 4.0

what is it?

The osprey or more specifically the western osprey ( Pandion haliaetus ) — also called sea hawk , river hawk , and fish hawk — is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a large raptor, reaching more than 60 cm (24 in) in length and 180 cm (71 in) across the wings. It is brown on the upperparts and predominantly greyish on the head and underparts.

base stats

NL sightings 228iNaturalist, research grade
worldwide 227,626iNaturalist observations
weight 1.4 kgadult, up to
threat LCleast concern

Bars compare against all animals on log scales: up to 300,000 Dutch and 600,000 worldwide sightings (the most-seen species), 150 t (blue whale), 30 m and 400 years (Greenland shark).

fun facts

Spotted 228 times in the Netherlands on iNaturalist.
227,626 observations worldwide on iNaturalist.
Weighs up to about 1.4 kg.
Scientifically named in 1758 (268 years ago).

fact sheet

English: Osprey
Nederlands: Visarend
scientific name: Pandion haliaetus
class: Aves
order: Accipitriformes
family: Pandionidae
IUCN Red List: LC · least concern
sightings in NL: 228
sightings in Europe: 13,412
sightings worldwide: 227,626
GBIF records in NL: 75,268
weight: 1.4 kg
length: —
lifespan: —
named: 1758

IUCN in Dutch: niet bedreigd. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: iNaturalist taxon 116999, Wikidata Q25332, GBIF 2480726, Wikipedia (EN), Wikipedia (NL). Intro text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.