Survival of the Fittest

Recently, I noticed a dead osprey face down, wings outstretched on a neighbor's lawn.  I suspected it had fallen from the sky because it wasn't huddled into a ball, but spread wide.  I don't think anyone saw what happened.  After a few days, I wondered if it was one of "our" ospreys, since lately I only saw the juvenile and one adult.  Given the fact that earlier there was a private war going on involving "our" osprey, I suspect the bird could have been attacked.  We will never know.

Osprey family in July.  The juvenile is the little speckled bird in the middle.

Since then, I photographed the juvenile defending their food from an adult bird by holding it down with a claw (not very successfully).

The juveniles can be identified easily by their orange-yellow eyes, while the adults have yellow eyes.  

Two osprey in the family with the juvenile in the background.