Today, I was driving around in Feather Sound when I saw this guy just hanging out. It looked like a young osprey to my untrained eyes. Noting the behavior was a little abnormal, I decided to stop the car and check to see if it was ok. I couldn’t see any signs of injury, so I just stayed and watched for a while.
Osprey on the Side of the Road – Photograph by Mineh Ishida
Over time, he grew accustomed to me, and his alarm changed to casual wariness. I slowly began to approach him, being careful to watch for any signs of alarm. Over the course of 30 minutes, I was able to get within a few feet.
It’s amazing when a wild animal decides to accept you. Their behavior changes drastically, and you can feel the difference. Maybe it’s just me anthropomorphizing, but it really is a magical experience to build a relationship with animals outside of confinement.
Over the course of 30 minutes I was able to get closer to the Osprey – Photo by Mineh Ishida
When we reached a reasonable comfortable level with one another, I was literally 3 ft away from this beautiful bird. His wariness gave way to curiosity and he posed beautifully for my camera. I stayed there for probably an hour just sitting next to this Osprey in the rain. I think I understand why ancient people worshiped nature. It’s truly a spiritual experience.
He posed quite nicely for the camera don’t you think? Photograph by Mineh Ishida
We sat there and stared at each other at a distance of 3ft. I was so amazed by his curiosity. Photograph by Mineh Ishida
I was really amused by this face… You can almost hear him saying “OMG Mineh… What is that thing? A Camera? WHAAAAAATTTTT?”
Osprey says: “OMG Mineh… What is that thing? A Camera? WHAAAAAATTTTT?” Photograph by Mineh Ishida
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