Do animals love? I don't know, but is saw stunning evidence that an Osprey mother would rather die than let a Bald Eagle near her nest.
This is a Bald Eagle banking in flight. An average Bald Eagle has a 6.5 foot wing span and weighs anywhere from 6.5 to 14 pounds. This was a big eagle, because we took this picture from at least 300 yards away. I will tell you that even from that distance he looked huge and his dive was formidable. I would not want to see him coming after me.
This is a female Osprey in flight. She weighs no more than four pounds with a wingspan of perhaps 6 feet. She's dainty when compared to the eagle.
That eagle posed a threat to the Osprey eggs, so our intrepid little mother took out after him like a rocket, totally without regard for her safety, calling to her mate as she flew.
The two of them ran the eagle off and the mother bird returned to the nest. Notice her focus as she carefully lands on the very edge of the nest in high wind.
Can you say, "I only have eyes for you"?
At the end of the day, she fiercely guards the nest as she waits for her mate to bring carry-out.
I can't say that the Osprey love their young that aren't even hatched yet. But they certainly guard them with their lives, as good parents are wont to do.
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