Life would be boring without birds.  Birds  serve as “winged sentinels” of environmental degradation and scientists routinely use birds to gauge the health of ecosystems.Birds possess skills that historically made them useful to militaries. During World War I, pheasants detected oncoming hostile aircraft at long distances and “gave the alarm by their insistent cries,” says one account; canaries, of course, sensed poison gas; gulls followed submarines in search of garbage. Carrier pigeons successfully navigated through shellfire (and past bullets aimed at them). They transported messages that helped the Allies capture German submarines, and that saved the crews of downed seaplanes and a sunken minesweeper. It turns out birds aren’t just useful. They’re bona fide heroes.

If you happen to be a birder (like me) or a biologist, then “of course, birds have an intrinsic value, and we have an ethical obligation to conserve them. I can’t describe the joy I felt while having a stare down with an Osprey. It was a thrill of a life time for me. So many people responded to the shots I sent them, thanking me for the captures as most of them had never had the pleasure of seeing an Osprey in the wild.

Enjoy the beautiful feathers and the message.

copyright Estee Millar

“When the Osprey comes to you it can also be a symbol that an important message is coming to your life. When you see the Osprey, it is a good time to listen and to take heed to any advice that the animal spirit gives you. As a solar symbol, its association in alchemy would be that of fire”….