Question: Why is there so much variation in the color of Osprey eggs?
Answer: Ospreys build nests mostly of available vegetative material, but they may use considerable man-made material as well. This may include rope, fish line, sheet plastic, Christmas bows, styrofoam -- you name it.
The wide variation in the color of nesting material requires much variation in egg color so the eggs will be somewhat camouflaged in the nest. But that doesn't always work -- the rub is that egg color does not necessarily match nest material color.
