Disclaimer: This post will not dazzle you with quality bird photography.
Birding at dusk on Saturday at The Wilds, I enjoyed nice long looks at a number of distant short-eared owls. As much as I willed them closer and squeaked like a meadow vole, I could not get a single one of these birds within reasonable camera range. That's reason enough to go back on a sunny winter evening.
These images are evocative (photo-speak for out of focus, poorly framed, and birds tiny in the frame) and I hope they'll give you a bit of a sense for what it's like to watch these mini-Mothras in action.
Hmmm, must have been short-eared owl weekend. Trip out to friends' house on Sunday at dusk, they live in short grass prairie east of the Black Hills of SD. Grazing land with shelterbelts scattered, usually see raptors along the drive. Owls had been reported on that stretch of road, lo and behold, there he/she was. Flushed off power pole by car going by, flew parallel to the road along with us, good view...if we'd had a camera , they would have been "evocative" photos, too.
ReplyDeleteCaroline in SD
It is wonderful to be able to come across some of these Short-eared Owls!! They are soo much fun to watch!
ReplyDeleteI would be esctatic to get some bad photos of short-eared owls.
ReplyDelete:)
Some things were never meant to be captured on film. It's a bonus if you can.
ReplyDeleteSome things were never meant to be captured on film. It's a bonus if you can.
ReplyDeleteAll that new, fancy equipment and the birds still won't cooperate.
ReplyDeleteI think that may be a rule of bird photography.
You call short-eared owls Mothra too? That's janetspeak for short-eared owl. I'm forever telling my partner, Nancy, that I am going to Plum Island to look for Mothra.
ReplyDeleteDoes your camera have a video mode? That might be the best way to capture the moth-like flight.