I was not in sight of the osprey nest when mom osprey found me.
She was angry, very angry; the dropped legs and feet are a threat posture.
I was pulling on my camo when I saw her shadow over me and then heard her scream.
I stopped, dared to lift my camera toward her, and she warned me again.
I did not argue and regretted having somehow upset the protective mom.
Quietly walking back to my vehicle more than a quarter mile away, I wondered about the violent reaction.
I have watched the nest for almost a month, on and off, and I rarely got more than a glance from the parents.
Part of the mystery was solved when a human resident told me that a lot of people had found the nest over the weekend.
They ignored the parent ospreys’ warnings and irritated the human resident since “his” birds were upset.
Another part of the mystery: one of the chicks had fledged and that makes parents very, very edgy.
I gave mom and nest a wide berth and headed on up the lake – asking the Creator to provide the nest some peace.