A 13 x 19 dark walnut, wood framed photograph.

Photograph of an osprey on Assateague Island, a bridge away from Chincoteague Island on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

Assateague Island, home of the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, attracts more than 1.5 million visitors a year. People come from all over the world for birdwatching, viewing the wildlife, seeing the famous Chincoteague Wild Ponies, and enjoying the miles of white sand beach along the Atlantic Ocean.

The photograph was taken by a student staff member of www.wildponytales.info, an online magazine which covers Chincoteague and Assateague Islands.

The photo was taken with a Canon lens on a Canon Digital Rebel Xti camera. The print was made on a Canon Pixma Pro9500 professional ink jet printer using 10 individual pigment colors and produces extraordinary vivid images. With pigment ink, photographers can print incredibly smooth gradations and can create long-lasting prints that resist the damaging effects of light for up to 100 years.

This osprey caught our attention while perched high in a Pine Tree just past the curve on Beach Road, on the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. The Ospreys are usually white chested with dark-brown wings and a “mask” of black surrounding the eyes. Their eyes are pale blue with a golden center. Their feet are white with black talons. Unlike other species of birds, both male and female appear similar in color and size. They usually weigh between three and five pounds. They are about 20 to 24 inches long with a wing span that is quite large at five to six feet in length. Ospreys, sometimes called Sea Hawks, come during the spring, summer, and fall. Then they divide themselves and go back toward their home for the winter. While here on Chincoteague, the Ospreys usually nest in marshy areas. They nest is made of heaps of sticks, driftwood, and seaweed. They are usually found in rocky out crops, on poles, or high in forks of dead trees.