Yes, you guessed it. I’m talking about ospreys. There’s a lake about 20 miles from here that has a decent population of the impressive “fish eagles.” We usually go a few times a summer and while my partner and the kids swim, I go for a walk in the woods along the lake shore, and if we get there early enough, I get to watch the ospreys fish. This time they gave me a good show, and there were also a couple of great egrets in the shallows and a great blue heron watching from a tree. But unfortunately they were all fishing along the far shore where even my zoom lens couldn’t get good images of them.

Then a shadow swooped over me and I looked up to see an osprey with a big fish in his talons had just flown right over my head from the woods behind me.

About a quarter of a mile through the woods behind me was another finger of the lake and I can only guess he came from there. I knew I had just a second to catch him before he would be too far away and I fumbled with my camera in my eagerness not to miss the opportunity. He was almost too far away already by the time I framed him and his friend.

Then his friend/rival/mate dropped away and I got a solo shot.

I was convinced he was headed for a nest on the far shore…

…until he circled back, flew by me and headed for the north end of the lake…

…where there is a stand with a nest on top and one hungry youngster waiting.

But he didn’t get the fish. My osprey disappeared into the trees behind the nest.

So I spent some time admiring the reflections.

On the way back, I heard a pileated woodpecker call several times but never did spot him. So I took one last shot of the far shore through the trees and went to see if my family was soaked enough and sunburned yet.