Deceased Catbird

It's been a great year for catbirds, with lots of nestlings becoming fledglings becoming near-adult members of the community. These sociable and handsome birds with gray feathers and black skullcaps should be about ready to migrate, but one of the fold won't be making the trip, at least, not in body. Early in the summer I found a youngster, too stunned to move, sitting in the road. I never did find out whether it had fallen out of its nest or had just not navigated well on its early attempts at flight. In any event, I moved it out of harm's way, and since I never saw it again, I could at least hope it eventually made its way in the avian world. Not so this unfortunate critter. I found it on the side of the road, quite dead, but with no visible signs of trauma. My guess is that it was flying too low and was hit by a car. I hope it never knew what happened. As I moved it to a more dignified resting place, I hope its catbird spirit is flying still.