I took this photo in 2020. Instead of hiking around Manhattan, I was hiking in the woods north of the city. I think I can say many altered their lives in significant ways after March of 2020, although for some it may have been temporary.
Have you made changes that you stuck to? For me it was probably taking more animal pictures. What about you?
Going off the beaten path and travelling on a country road I had not travelled on before, I had to stop and take this picture.
It is another example of using an vintage vehicle to advertise. This one advertises a farm. Go off the beaten path once in a while, there are interesting things to see.
The barred owl has a facial disk. The disk is composed of feathers that grow around the owl’s head. These feathers help make the bared owl a skilled hunter. These feathers they say help direct sound to the bird’s ears. They say it is the same effect as cupping your hands behind your ears. The disk feathers allow them to hear the movement of a mouse in the grass, the flapping of feathers in the night, or the slithering of a snake in a tree or on the ground.
The hunter becomes the hunted in the Pacific Northwest. The government wants to cull barred owls. The barred owl is being blamed for the decrease in population of the spotted owl. The barred is more indigenous to the east coast, but has been moving over the the Pacific Northwest. Therefore, the US Fish and Wildlife wants people to kill 500,000 of them. It is very controversial as it will eliminate a species in one area to save another. What do you think?
I take pictures of tree holes. I know that may be odd. I am hoping to find an owl or another animal dwelling in the hole. This photo was taken from quite a distance with a zoom lens and is heavily cropped. It was before sunset.
I did not see the raccoon when I aimed for the tree hole. Maybe it was there and the image was too small to see it, or maybe it just entered the frame just as I clicked. After I zoomed in and looked at my camera I said Holy Cow! Then I went for a closer look at the tree. I did not see the raccoon again. Hopefully it was his home and not another animal’s home he was looking to raid eggs from. Enjoy the rest of your weekend.
The short-eared owl was in a new spot tonight. I am convinced it is the same owl every time one lands on posts etc. This time it landed on the ground next to the parking lot. The wind had picked up and it settled there for a long time looking to be in a not so happy mood. They do not seem to like winds above 10 miles an hour.
Yes, I felt the earthquake today. I was on the third floor of my workplace. The building shook for about 20 seconds or so, the floor seemed to shake, and there was a rumbling noise. I was surprised it was only a 4.8, but there appears only be some minor damage in places such as cracks on walls and water in basements. I did not feel any of the aftershocks. The were less intense. The one most likely to be felt I think occurred around 6 p.m., but I was watching this owl by then and was further away. Have a great weekend.
When the owls come out in better light it gives me a chance to up the shutter speed to 1/2000 of a second. This enables me to stop the action better and get less blur and more details in the image.
Many times they are coming out at sunset or after sunset. To try to reduce noise in the photos I had lower shutter speeds in early photos. Many of those photos have blur in the wings and do not have sharp details. I have a lot of shots the last two or three days I went where they came out prior to sunset. This photo was still lightened. Hopefully your week is not as soggy as mine so far.
Some people only go in search of wildlife on sunny days with blue skies. Some people only look for things in early morning or golden hour light. Sometimes cloudy days or photos a few hours before sunset can work.
I take photos whenever I can get them. Animals do not go by our schedule. I have a lot of short eared owl photos. I was happy anytime I saw them, but hoped for good lighting conditions.
It sounds like we will have rainy and possibly snowy weather this week. Whatever the weather, have a nice week.
Two nights ago a wish came true. I was hoping a short-eared owl would land on a birdhouse close to the viewing stand. It was not there for long, but I got off a few of shots.
It was not ideal lighting conditions, but I will take it. It came out with clouds at the horizon during sunset. They could be leaving for Canada anytime soon.
Sometimes wishes do come true. Have a great week!
What do you think of when you hear the term “gray ghost?” For some it brings to mind the football player, Tony Canadeo, who played for the Green Bay Packers many years ago and earned his place in the Hall of Fame. Some people think automatically of of Bruce Wayne’s hero in Batman. Others think of Confederate soldier Mosby who led raids on Federal supply lines during the US Civil War and was known for his ability to appear, disappear, and blend in with locals. But did you know there is a hawk that is known as the gray ghost? The male northern harrier has that nickname.
Males have different colouring than females. All the pictures shown here are male northern harriers.
Northern harriers eat small rodents such as mice and voles. The location of these pictures appears to have many mice and voles. Amongst other things they eat small rabbits and other birds. They say many farmers like northern harriers because they eat mice that damage crops. Harriers are sometimes called “good hawks” because they pose no threat to poultry as some hawks do.
Northern harriers hunt by flying low to the ground in open areas during the daytime. I frequently see them flying in the late afternoon before the owls come up. When hunting, harriers circle an area several times listening and looking for prey. They can hover and make sharp turns. When they spot prey, they swoop down and grab the prey with their sharp claws. They will also steal prey from owls, which I have seen them try to do at the location pictured.
According to Texas Parks and Wildlife some Native American tribes believe that seeing a hawk on your wedding day is a sign of a long, happy marriage.
This bird has been ghost like and elusive to me. This is the first year I have seen it up close enough to get good shots. Maybe it was tired of the attention the owls were getting. Have a great rest of your week.
There were maybe 3-4 other cars at around 4 p.m. The others left, then I saw two owls on the far side of the field come up and do short flights spaced.
Later, as cars started to arrive, one flew and landed on one post and stayed for a long time. The post was far out, so no pictures here. However, when it flew, (as its audience was growing again) it flew back and forth over the trail and landed on various posts on both sides.
By my count it landed on four different posts, at least one of them multiple times.
It flew rather close to the parking lot and the trail.
Despite the cloudy, overcast sky they came out before sunset and at least one of them gave us quite a show. Anything is possible even on a cloudy, dreary day.
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