December 30 The Hawk's Body

I see red-tailed hawks (Buteo jamaicensis) almost every time I ride along the Capital City Bike Path between Olin Park and the Beltline. This evening, I stopped riding when I saw a shadow off the trail and was shocked to find this hawk in the grass. Could it have died from a virus or some other illness? Did it not eat enough food over the last few weeks and found a comfortable place here to rest? Was it clipped by an automobile crossing John Nolen Drive? I was too cold to linger and give it a close examination, but I do notice that its eye has already been eaten by a scavenger. I assume that when I pass by it next, many of this hawk's nutrients will have been recycled into several different birds and mammals.