Wild Bird Wednesday: Fish...It's What's For Dinner

I had an amazing and prolonged encounter with an Osprey at San Joaquin about a month ago.  They have a nesting platform there and were busy raising a baby earlier in year, but on that day, the baby had apparently just fledged recently and was flying around and so the adult birds were extremely active.  One was perched on a post in the parking lot as we arrived and we continued to see more of them in flight and even diving for fish during the rest of our time there that day.

I will warn you that, the Osprey being very effective hunters, some of the photos are graphic.  So, if fish blood bothers you, stop here.  They aren't the prettiest pictures...but they do really document the fearsome weaponry that these birds have at their disposal.

 

 

Here's the Osprey that was perched above the parking lot.

 

 

 

Staff at the location advised us that this was the male based on the color of the band on his leg.  Don't know if that was true or not, but am assuming they had their facts right.

 

 

 

I'm mostly taken by his eyes...so fierce-looking!

 

 

 

 

Getting ready for take-off....

 

 

...and there he goes.  Off to hunt for his lunch...

 

 

 

 

...let's see what's on the menu today...

 

 

 

...here fish, fishy, fishy...

 

 

 

Don't doubt my fishing skills, yo! 

 

 

Also, don't be eyeballin' my lunch!

 

 

Especially because the eyeballs are the part I ate first...YUM!

 

 

 

Can't a bird rip apart a fish in peace?  I know those crows want my lunch!

 

 

 

Also...wind gusts are not helpful!

 

 

 

Finally...a delicious mouthful!

 

I can't get over how incredible those talons are and how incredibly strong those legs look.  I definitely would not want to be a fish in the ponds at this sanctuary!

 

KJ