This post is dedicated to my very good friend, Margo, who I met through this blog. Margo is going home after an extended visit and I'll miss her until she returns.As promised to Margo, here is the shot of the 3-week old Great-horned Owlet from Kapok Park. You'll have to click on the photo to see her cute little red tongue. She's so adorable. I thank Margo for clewing me into this place. I'd have never found her if it hadn't been for her.
This second post is a more normal (what we'd expect) photo of the same Owlet. From what I can see there's only one.
This Owlet is the cutest little thing. We watched her/him for about 2 hours peeking down at us, preening and calling for Mommy.I've never seen a Great-horned Owl in the wild, and to find an Owlet was a most pleasant experience. It was just icing on the cake! (Sorry about the cliche)
After a couple of hours, we saw Daddy return to a nearby tree to watch his little one. I guess Mommy was out hunting. A very nice birder told us the difference between the male and female is that the female has a wide, white stripe down the center of her chest.
Margo and I went back there today and saw the mother. It's still on my camera and I'll probably be posting it soon. We also made some more shots of the Owlet. What a thrill!
This year, was the first year I've had the experience to see Eagles on the nest and Owls on the nest. Previously, I had never seen either in the wild. It just motivates me even more to get that nice new 100-400mm lens all the much sooner. I'm saving as much as I can for it and can't wait to be able to buy it so I can get better close-ups of these cute little birds.
Posts
6 comments:
Loyce, this post made my day! Your photos are fantastic--if you weren't such a good friend, I would be jealous!!! It was thrilling to see these magnificent owls living free and wild and reproducing. Florida's parks give hope to the preservation of these and other species. Thank you for a wonderful day--I look forward to many many more.
...and I'm confident that we'll be sharing many, many more wonderful days together, Margo.
Have a safe trip home. I'll miss you.
Thanks for such a nice comment.
What a nice set of shots. How lucky to be able to spend some time observing such interesting birds. Owls have always fascinated me. I see lots of barred owls when I'm out and about but haven't seen a great horned owl in a few years. Glad you have been enjoying the experience and sharing the photos.
Thank you, Jim. They're so cool. I love watching these guys grow.
Beautiful shots of the mom owl and the other ones with dad and baby owl! Maybe we can do a meetup for this park? Thanks Loyce for sharing your images and love for photography.
Thank you, Andrea. I'm happy that you liked it. A meetup for this park is definitely in the near future.
Post a Comment