Today we have a parliament of owl photos from reader Steve Adams. Steve’s notes are indented, and you can enlarge the photos by clicking on them,
Here is a series of Short-eared Owls (Asio flammeus) that I have photographed over the past few months. I am fortunate that there is an area nearby that has extensive open fields and protected grasslands where the owls seem to have a preference for hunting. It is also an excellent habitat for Northern Harriers, which can often be seen hunting the same fields. These photos come from several outings I made from November through February.
In this first series, the late afternoon Sun cast beautiful light on this Shortie as it came in for a landing on a fence post.
This next set shows owls that overflew or nearly overflew me. I must admit that I almost missed these shots since I was so surprised by how close they came.
This last set shows those wonderful, piercing eyes that make them so good at hunting.
JAC: Here’s a range map of the species from Cornell’s Birds of the World:
Beautiful owl photos! Thanks!
Ah – perfect.
Incredible! Thank you!
Those are fantastic!
“wonderful, piercing eyes” indeed! Thank you for these
Outstanding Owl photographs, the inflight ones are special. Thank you.
May I ask where these photos were taken?
Hello Laura,
These photos were taken in Livingston County, NY, about 25 miles south of Rochester. It is an area that is mostly devoted to agriculture. The owls and Northern Harriers seem to find this place especially good for hunting. Their numbers have been increasing over the last several years.
Amazing pictures! Owls are common here in the Pacific Northwest but we rarely see them—maybe a half-dozen times in the past five years. Maybe we’re not looking in the right places. Occasionally, at the entry point of a public trail, we will see a sign posted “Beware: Owl Attack Possible!” That sign gets my attention. Seemingly, owls can be aggressive against hikers when they (the owls, of course) are raising young.
cute!
Very, very nice photos (of beautiful owls)!
Great photos. I used to see a lot of shorties (periodically – they seemed to pass through in waves) in my SE Alta field area. Always made my day.
Speaking of Northern Harriers and Short-eared Owls makes me think you may be in Washington state. Great photos, thanks!
Hi Jim,
I’m not in Washington State but am in Western New York State. I photographed these owls in Livingston County, about 25 miles south of Rochester.
Those are JUST STUNNING!
I just read the new book “What an Owl Knows” by Jennifer Ackerman — an in-depth exploration of the extraordinary sensory and other adaptations of owls. Short-Eared Owls come in for a fair amount of discussion.
Hi Susan,
I just finished “What An Owl Knows” a couple of days ago and enjoyed it very much. It gave me a push to get off my duff and send these photos to Professor Coyne.
Excellent! 🦉🦉🦉
Handsome! I can hear the local Great Horned Owls (Bubo virginianus) every night but have only ever seen one of them once.
Wow, what a beautiful owl. Their range map says they’re in my neck of the woods “year-’round” but I’ve never had the luck of seeing one. Thanks for sharing.
These are some of the best owl photos I’ve ever seen. Thank you so much for posting these. I hope we get to see more. I can’t even imagine the time and skill and patience that went into taking these.