I really loved this one. Pharaoh is such a good looking owl, and the city and water look so nice, and I've never seen an owl pic including camels before!
They say it's better than one! ๐
I appreciate the sentiment. I like them both, so pay off that is accepting their roles to play.
It hasn't been around all that much, but I've seen it a few times before. I've seen it maybe twice a year. It's got about a 50% success rate to my knowledge.
I do have some coverage near the feeders and there are trees on the other side, but this one got taken out in the middle of the yard. They usually travel together and keep watch for each other, but this one took one too many risks.
She's a superb owl!
It's either education... or e-limination!
They are beautiful and marvelously built for their purpose, even though it isn't always a joyous one.
On New Year's Eve, I saw a Cooper's Hawk catch one of my blue jay friends that I've bonded with these last few years. I wanted to protect my bird friend, but it was already caught, and the hawk needs to do what hawks do, so I just had to sit there. I didn't want to scare the hawk and have the jay's sacrifice be in vain.
But it's a reminder these animals live hard lives, and we should cherish their existence while it is there, and we should protect what we can of the wild. It all needs each other to function the way it's intended. It's often beautiful, but there is a cost to everything as well.
Cooper's Hawk
Goodbye, Jay friend... ๐
I hope you keep the hawk strong and safe through the winter.
These little Saw Whets seem fairly cooperative around the camera. Great work by the photographers of all of these as well.
With its dinner
Awesome! You guys have been having some great encounters lately!
Looks to be a lovely GHO there. I love how you can still see the white patches on the neck and chin!
You can see them displayed nicely on my owl pal Annabelle:
From Middle Tennessee Raptor Center
Remington enjoyed posing for pictures at the Christmas tree lighting this evening. Remi could have stayed all night but me on the other hand left before the tree was lit. I was freezing cold! ๐ฅถ
From Audubon Center for Birds of Prey
Rescuing raptors is never exactly easy, but last week we had a particularly tricky situation on our hands. We received a call from a homeowner who saw an Eastern Screech Owl fall into a 9 foot concrete column in their back patio. The owl had been in the area for a few days, perching on top of the column, and it was by a stroke of luck that the homeowner saw the moment it fell in. With a width of about four inches, the hole was not wide enough for the owl to spread its wings and fly out.
Volunteers Maggie Haynes and Noah Hoffner-O'connor met at the home and immediately began trying a variety of rescue methods. Finally, they found something that worked: A soup ladle with two cords attached provided a little scoop for the owl to rest in while they raised it up. Once at the top of the column, Noah quickly grabbed the owl before it could jump down again.
Here at the Raptor Trauma Clinic, we gave the owl a quick exam and it passed with flying colors-it was released later that same day. Noah and Maggie discussed with the grateful homeowner the possibility of installing a screech-owl nest box, and the necessity of covering the openings at the top of those columns. Cheers to Noah, Maggie, the conscientious homeowner, and the little screech owl, flying free once again!
One owl you should know well... The Snowy. From memes, to Harry Potter, to yearly controversies about photographers flicking like paparazzi to get a look at them, we all love the Snowy Owl. It's big, bright, goofy, beautiful, and powerful all at once. Seeing them takes our hearts on a Polar Express ride of happiness. This owl was already tops of the first round voting, and is on a good track to the finals.
A mysterious stranger is looking to stop the Snowy's crusade. The Crested Owl is secretive and exotic. From tropical destinations not seen by many, but it is a sight to behold for those that do. With its unique sense of style and the thrill of the unknown, can it derail the Snowy?
Upvote your pick now!
Buffy has retained a bit of its popularity from last year, coming off a great win over Mottled Wood. I thought the newcomer would have given it a bit more challenge, but its charming personality overcame the challenger with no issue.
The petite Saw Whet has been making big waves, having the second highest score of the first tier matches. There's been a few people calling for SWO to go all the way to the finals.
Both owls are known for their charming appearance, one a dopey big lug, the other is pure concentrated cuteness. Which owl gets your vote? Upvote them now!
Titmouse grabs the wrong thing from the feeder.
You liked my cardinal from yesterday, so I'll share this jay I also got a pic of yesterday.
Same Pixel 7 through China binocs and dirty patio door ๐
From Wendy Erickson
Great Gray Owl!
This is my first GGO and omg am ecstatic to say the least. I never expected to see this Owl on my acreage and it happened so fast. just lost all sense of Whooo Haaaa! So he is a bit soft and completely lost all my senses with camera settings.
Yes photographers are fussy and am very much a picky perfectionist. This is my ultimate dream to say the least. I have only seen one once and that again was on our property but it was dark.
They are so beautiful! This guy was hunting. More to Come!
North Saskatchewan
From Jim Ankrom
Grey morph screech trying real hard to look like a red morph screech under the sodium street lights. Master of camouflage, indeed!
Wherever you are right now, one or both of these owls is probably not toooo far away. These owls can fly further then probably any other owls. This had allowed them to go places other owls could only dream of. There's one place one of these two can't go... The next bracket!
Technically, there are 30 barn owls. We're going to look at the Western Barn Owl of Eurasia and Africa, we did the American one last time. You can get a better guess on if a Barn Owl is make it female by looking at the belly. The males are usually whiter and there are less belly spots. The ladies are a little tanner and have more spots. Their populations are doing a bit of a rebound because they actually love nest boxes and people are finally learning how awesome it can be to have owls around.
While Barn Owls like snug little places like tree hollow, nest boxes, and sometimes even barns, the Short Eared Owl loves the widest expanses it can find. Shorties can migrate 1200 miles / 1900 km, and have even been found hundreds of miles in the ocean in remote islands having babies in a tropical paradise. They have a unique courtship flight ritual in which the male will clap its wings up to 10 claps per second. It sounds like a woodpecker or snapping some bubble wrap.
Both of these owls are classics. They have many similarities, but also maybe differences, making this a potentially difficult choice. Let me know who you're going with now by upvoting your selection.
This one could get interesting! We've got some undeniably to tier owls in both of the contests today. This one features 2 of the best North American owls, while the other are likely the 2 most ubiquitous on the planet.
First up, the owl that's not afraid to get down and dirty. They'll even collect dung to put at the entrance to the burrow to cover their own scent or to deter animals from entering. They also incidentally do us some big favors. Just by being there hungry little selves, a family of Burrowing Owls can eat almost 7000 bugs and 2000 rodents each year.
Up second, the king of the night skies, the Great Horned Owl. This mighty hunter gives nightmares to que a number of it nocturnal forest brethren. Even other raptors like Osprey, Peregrines, geese, and even just about any other owl can become dinner if they aren't alert! They are the second most massive American owl, only the Snowy is heavier. What do they do with this size and power? The use it to hold down their turf. Average home range for a GHO is 1.5 square miles / 960 acres (3.6 sq km / 388 hectares). While a whole family of Burrowing Owls can eat 2000 mice a year, a single GHO can take 4000 squeakers out of action.
The little joker has a large and vocal fan base. Burrow is a charmer and has endless numbers of cute and funny photos. GHO on the other hand, is distinguished and classy looking during the day, but at night it mercilessly patrols the area it calls home. When Watchmen needed a version of Batman, there is a reason it was Nite Owl they went with. GHO is Bruce Wayne by day, but Batman of the forest by night!
Upvote your favorite owl now!
Almost published the next tournament post by accident again. ๐
I hate seeing my deleted posts, so I'll turn it into a low effort picture post.
Since you voted out my dear Long Ear, I'm going to celebrate it anyway!
The long-eared owl is a species of owl which breeds in Europe, Asia, and North America. This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owls, family Strigidae, which contains most species of owl.
Just playing around with the camera adapter for my binocs.
Mr and Mrs Cardinal came to visit for a light breakfast.
A little color correction and snipped out some rain spots and stuck food on the plexiglass.
Pixel 7 through cheap binocs through my dirty patio door, SE Pennsylvania
I was worried it was one of my Woodpeckers at first. I have fewer of them. I'm still not totally sure who it was, as all that was left was most white belly fluff. I looked around his for flight feathers, but didn't see any.
It can help itself to all those dang starlings that keep cleaning out all my premium bird food! ๐