Owls That have seen me looking

There's something about owls that seem to intrigue everyone, including me.

Partially because they are birds of prey but also perhaps they are larger than most birds and seen infrequently.

What follows is a compilation of owls that I have photographed in various locations over the past 15-20 years.

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Ottawa Great Horned owls

Mud Lake had always been good for owls, particularly great horned owls, but sadly they haven't been back for almost 10 years.

They usually nest high up a pine tree. Unless there is another photographer already there, the nest can be hard to find. But there are a few hints...

L-R, Top-Bottom Birds dropping concentration at base of tree, rabbit fur, owl regurgitations, mice apparently rejected by hatchlings(?)

Another way to know the owls are around is the crows calling loudly and mobbing the owls. Crow babies are sought after food by the owls (I did not show that picture as it isn't pretty).

Once the young owls are big enough, the parents spend time out of the nest, but still watching over them.

The young owls are curious about their surroundings and will peer out from the nest (one year they nested in the top of a dead trunk).

Eventually they leave the nest, descend to the ground and over a few days work their way back up in the trees.

Ottawa Long Eared Owl

(Terrible picture, but only one I've ever seen, so we'll call this a "record shot"🙄)

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Ottawa screech Owls

Mud Lake has also hosted screech owls for a good many years. Screech owls are quite small, using hollows in trees as nests. They frequently use the same hollow in subsequent years.

Unless you have a sharp eye, or already know where they are, they can camouflage well with the tree.

One time we were lucky enough to be present when the young screech owls fledged. The pair had raised 2 or 3 young owls. One of the parents was watching over the fledglings who were surrounded by the paparazzi.

Saw Whet Owl

Another small owl which is infrequently seen. This one was having lunch well behind branches.

Great gray owls

Great gray owls have been seen at times in various locations.

This one was in the far west end of the city

There was one at Petrie Island that was blind in one eye, but seemed to be managing fine.

Ottawa Barred owls

A barred owl visited Petrie Island one year

With another barred owl at Fletcher Gardens

Which did something more than just stare!!!

Ottawa Snowy Owls

Each winter a few snowy owls drop into the west end of the city; a few years ago some were also seen in the south end.

Either a juvenile or a female

They often like to sit up high to watch for food. The almost pure white ones are male, the others are juveniles or females.

Ottawa Hawk Owl

The latest owl in Ottawa is a hawk owl.

When I went to photograph it, I found it fairly quickly but wasn't impressed where it was sitting.

But moving in closer and using a long lens.....

OWLS Near Ottawa

Not sure if the TV reception was affected by this snowy owl in St Isadore east of Ottawa.

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A pair of short-eared owls were over on the Quebec side at Breckonridge. I managed to come up with one of them.

Galapagos

Speaking of short-eared owls, going farther afield.... there was a Galapagos short-eared owl way off in the distance on Genovesa Island

It certainly is a long way off!

United States

On our winter trips to the US, we found a few owls.

A great horned owl at Loxahatchee Florida

Barred owls at Circle B Bar Reserve in Polk County, Florida

They were well hidden in the moss draped trees with predawn light.

In Phoenix, Arizona, burrowing owls were introduced to man-made burrows.

Some years later the experiment was deemed a failure and they were moved elsewhere.