Sjoerd, the trail camera is working fine--so far we have seen a fox and found that we have a doe trotting through the backyard rather frequently. I fear for my rose bushes! We also have three skunks--yippee . . . . Here are photos of the owl, taken on three consecutive days:
Jane, I am really excited to hear what sorts of things you guys have been able to film on that camera. That is just great. Those owl foto's up above are interesting to look at. Do you think that the eye is improving (if something was wrong with it in the first place)? Aside from the eye though, isn't it a beautiful creature.
Nothing for nothing, but that center photo looks like a different owl. Look how deep the coloring goes down to it's beak, and the length of its horns are larger. Looks more mature to me. Then again my eyes are getting old.
I wonder about that as well, LI. Jane--look at the brown bit between the two eyes. In foto 1 and 3 the brown colouring just above the bill comes to a sharp point and in the centre foto that is a thickly round point. Would it be a pair?
Oh my, that had never occurred to me, that there might be more than one owl! We have only seen one at a time, and believe me, we have been keeping a close watch. It is possible--when I see the owl I nearly hyperventilate and might not be the most reliable of observers. If y'all aren't getting really bored with owl photos and comments, I'll post more pictures if we can get clear ones. The owl seems to be moving up the tree, and will soon run out of branches for perching.
No,no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no....times a million !. Absolutely NOT tired of your owl foto's. I wouldn't mind seeing the skunks either. hahaha.
There are many of these guys that make a low swoop and wind up getting hit by cars here. I have one buried in our animal cemetery for that same reason ! Sometimes young ones just can`t catch enough prey at this time of year and they may be less fearful than an older seasoned bird. But to have one on the ground in view of people is not something they would normally do.
Its possible that is a juvenile just learning and the center pic is the mother. The center pic already has its ear tufts/no fuzz but the other two pics do not and still have the down fuzz ! That would indicate an older bird. So she may be keeping an eye on it.
After looking up one of my books on owls Licenter is right it is two different owls and the first and third is definitely a juvenile. Mart is also correct in that the middle picture is of an adult and most probably the mother who will keep an eye on the youngster until it can catch prey and feed itself. Isn't it great Jane that your husband managed to take shots of both birds? I hope he can take more of them as I certainly will never get bored or tire of looking at them.
Eileen, thank you for taking the time and effort to look up the owls. We had no idea of what was going on, and our identification books didn't have juvenile pictures. Mart sure knows her owls! I learn so very, very much here on the Stew! My husband, the photographer, has the patience and knowledge to get pretty good photos. You should have seen him hanging over the fence today, getting photos of Yellowlegs down by the pond! I thought he had fallen asleep, but no, he was just leaning over the fence imitating Ansel Adams!
Early this morning (5 a.m.) we had strong winds, thunder, lightning, and rain. As soon as it was light enough to see (7:30 a.m.), we went out to see if the owl was still in the mesquite tree. He was! We were so surprised. Of course, I was surprised when I went to the barn to feed the chickens, and found evidence that the owl had spent time in the barn. Anyone want an owl pellet? We figured he'd had a rough night, so we didn't get too close. Here is a silhouette of him up in the mesquite tree. He doesn't look wet, so he must have gotten to shelter before the rain hit. Sometimes I feel a little silly, obsessing over an owl . . . .
