Osprey with bluegill

I went to the Bird Walk in Myakka River State Park near Sarasota Florida today and watched the ospreys diving into the lake and carrying out fish in their talons. At one point, four ospreys were doing this simultaneously . This time of the year, the osprey chicks are quite large and getting ready to fledge (fly from) the nest. They also require a lot of food which keeps both parents busy going to the lake, catching fish, and returning to the nest, a trip that they make many times each day. I was fortunate to capture this image of one of the ospreys traveling inland with a freshly caught bluegill, presumably to serve as a meal for the hungry chicks waiting back at the nest.
Read less