Waking Up Early On A Sunday To Be With The Great Horned Owl

Sunday is usually my day to sleep in a little. I had an idea to use the morning light to make some photos of the great horned owl at the Celery Bog. The owl has chosen a nest location that is hard to photograph from most angles. The best light and angle is in the morning so I had no choice but to head to the bog before the sun even came up. I was in my spot at first light and just watched for a while. For a couple of days the owl had been sitting up a bit higher than normal. I was hoping that meant that an owlet was present. Imagine my surprise when I saw two owlets down low in the nest. They never got up high enough to see them clearly, but you could see them moving around. As the day progressed others saw them much more clearly. I guess I was there when it was a little too cold. Every day with these owls is a learning experience. I hope that in the coming days you will see some photos of the owlets with their momma.

A Little Video

The owl was watching everything around it so I decided to try a little video. While I was doing that the owlets started moving around. I had picked a great time to start recording! As I said above you never really get a clear look, but you can see them moving around.

Are You Kidding Me!

A little epilogue of my experience. I went out to see the owl and the owlets Monday at lunch and I was treated with a nice little surprise. I saw a group of men cutting up trees that had fallen nearly under the nest. Of course the sound had flushed the mother of the owlets and they were just sitting up there all alone. They knew that they were disturbing the nest, but they went ahead and did it anyway. It is funny how those running the nature centers have no real regard for the nature inside of it.

Part Two. By now you might have seen my post from last night. I was beyond angry about what had transpired during the day. I ended up staying out watching the nest from afar until I couldn’t see it anymore last night. The two owlets were still there, but the hawks were definitely checking them out. Hopefully we have some good news this morning that momma came back and all is well. Everyone loves a happy ending, and in 2021 I think that we deserve one.