It's Owl Season..... Again

PNWPhotos.com a friendly and growing community of photographers with an interest in the Pacific Northwest region. We feature a Photography Discussion Forum and Pacific Northwest Photo Gallery. It's a fun and friendly place to talk with other photographers, ask questions, share you knowledge, view and post photos and more!


Great shots. I have not found any evidence that our local pair at Yost Park has nested.
Click to expand...
Thanks again, Terry, Bill and Janice!

I went onto ebird.org a few days ago to try and figure out the Yost Park situation from their standpoint... Looking at reporting history, It does not appear owlets have ever been spotted there. Of course, this doesn't mean that there isn't a nest up there. The activity you guys are documenting strongly suggests there is. I would think the two owls that you are seeing are male and female. I may have to go up there one day and take a look around.



Chad
 
Sepia tone on a recent image taken of a Great Horned owlet.
3973992_orig.jpg
 
photographmemories said:
Thanks again, Terry, Bill and Janice!

I went onto ebird.org a few days ago to try and figure out the Yost Park situation from their standpoint... Looking at reporting history, It does not appear owlets have ever been spotted there. Of course, this doesn't mean that there isn't a nest up there. The activity you guys are documenting strongly suggests there is. I would think the two owls that you are seeing are male and female. I may have to go up there one day and take a look around.



Chad
Click to expand...

Many of the Yost Park regulars I have talked with, who do not appear to be birders, have mentioned seeing owlets in the park in the past. Some have given me specific locations where they saw owlets and have spoken about the adults buzzing them when the owlets were on the ground.
 


spent about 4 hours at Yost Park this afternoon, and finally found the owls... one was perched on a branch stub in a hemlock tree on the north slope, the other was about 40 feet straight up in a maple tree above the main pathway. lousy angles - wish i could've got them more at eye level - but hey, i'm just glad i was able to find 'em! 7D, 400mm, various settings at ISO1600...

IMG_9120cropsm_zps9d983752.jpg


IMG_9119cropsma_zpsf23d171c.jpg


IMG_9133cropsm_zps19be1229.jpg


IMG_9162cropsm_zpsf352e773.jpg


IMG_9165cropsma_zps6e4986ad.jpg
 
fiznatty said:
Good job, Rocky. It can be really tough to find them there. Nice that you got one out on the maple!

Max
Click to expand...

With the trees at the bottom of the ravine leafing out, the owls will start hanging out there around sunset as they prepare to make their nightly hunting rounds.
 
It is shortly after midnight and I just heard two barred owls calling to each other from Pine Ridge Park, which abuts the end of my court. While I have heard the owls calling to one another for several years in the past, I have yet to spot one in the park in the daylight. And no, I am not going to grab a flashlight and run out to look for them right now.
 
Last edited:


I discovered a new Barred Owl nest yesterday in the Sehome Hill Arboretum, near the top of the hill above the university. This is the first pic after I found it. The setting is dark and the view is wide open; but the nesting tree is across a ravine with thick underbrush so I don't think it's subject to disturbance from humans.
I'll be checking on it....

BADO0502.jpg
 
Last edited:
Found a Barred Owl this morning on my annual field trip down the length of Whatcom Creek.
It was in plain view on a branch over the creek, but it was so dark and rainy that no one wanted to unpack their cameras. I'll find him later. :cool:
 
The Yost Park barred owls still show no sign of nesting. Late Sunday (5/4) afternoon the Steller's jays guided me to the one I believe to be the female.
01.JPG

A few minutes later the male flew in from behind me amidst the trumpeting of the jays.
02.JPG

They briefly preened each other.
03.JPG

Steller's jays, henchbirds of their corvid cousins the crows, were constantly screeching and harassing the owls.
04.JPG

I repositioned for a better shot. It had been raining, which made the hillside slippery and tough to negotiate.
05.JPG
 
Last edited:
One of the owls (the male?) flew to a nearby tree.
06.JPG

Leaving its mate alone.
07.JPG

It kept repositioning itself on different branches and looked as though it were hunting.
08.JPG

09.JPG

10.JPG

Before leaving for home, I followed the owl to another tree where it was continually harassed by a pair of Steller's jays. The jays would strafe the owl and sometimes make contact with it. The owl pretty much ignored them.
 
Last edited:
Debbie Lynne Chally said:
Wow Bill, great shots! I especially like the last series of four photos. Thank you for sharing!
Click to expand...

Thanks, Debbie. The owls were in the NE corner of the park, which is the darkest and possibly hardest area to photograph them. Photos #1-4 were taken under the forest canopy. I took photos #5-10 after repositioning myself on the downhill, sunlit, open side of the tree where they were perched. The tree is on the southern edge of the stand of old Doug firs which comprises the NE corner.

It was difficult standing on the wet, steep hillside, but I was able to get shots of the owls which were closer to eye level and in (relatively) good light. It would have been much easier to do this 40+ years ago. My efforts did; however, make me appreciate the nature shows I have watched that were filmed in steep, mountainous rain forests where the photographers had to endure Third World conditions, high temperatures, high humidity, poisonous insects and reptiles, and the danger of being the next meal for predators higher up the local food chain. :(
 
Last edited:


You must log in or register to reply here.


Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a commision from some of the links and ads shown on this website (Learn More Here)

Back
Top