NEWS FROM THE BARRED OWLS

The canopy of all the trees around is closing very quickly now, making it harder every day to get a clean shot of our Barred Owls. As you can see in my second picture below from two days ago, I finally had a chance to photograph the owlet. I’m not happy with the picture because I had to employ a speed light as my main light source but I saw its silhouette against the evening sky and the only way to make the click for this documentary shot was to use flash. It was so dark already that I’m surprised that I got away with a halfway sharp image.

A day earlier, last Monday morning, I witnessed some drama in our woods. I heard and saw both adult owls and they were celebrating a successful hunting effort. One of them had a bird in its talons and as far I’m concerned it may have been a young Blue Jay. While it flew out of sight to a different tree the other owl sat kinda proudly in best morning light in a tree across from my office. The picture above was made shortly after while a Blue Jay attacked the owl and tried to scare it away. I have seen this behavior before. The Blue Jays are pretty fearless and hit the owl with their wings, hoping that this predator goes away, but in this case it was obviously too late.

Young Barred Owl

STORY WITHOUT PICTURE

Barred Owl ----------

Today’s nature story from our woods here above the Little Maquoketa River Valley can’t be told with a picture due to the lack of light. The photo above is from April 26, and is just supposed to support my story. As the avid reader of my blog already knows, we have watched a pair of Barred Owls this spring and finally saw yesterday an adult owl delivering a chipmunk or mouse to a big cavity in a hickory tree only ~25 yards away from our house. We had suspected that the nest was there but didn’t really have a proof until yesterday.

This evening, sitting on the porch with a glass of wine after sunset and enjoying the mild weather, I heard a subtle whistling call and saw the owl flying away from the nest site. Looking again at the tree we saw the silhouette of a small owl. No doubt, this is an owlet who just started its branch hopping period in life. I can’t wait until tomorrow and hope to get a glimpse of this young owl. The rapidly coming out leaves will make it more and more difficult to spot an owl in the trees every day that passes by and my hope is that the owlet is at least tomorrow still nearby. Otherwise it will be like searching for a needle in a haystack…

 

NOT LITTLE ANYMORE

Juvenile Great Horned Owl, Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa ---------    

I made an early visit to Mud Lake this morning and came back with nothing. Looking for the branchling between all the leaves is like searching a needle in a hay stack. My photography friend Linda went later in the day to the same place and spotted the owlet successfully. I finally went back in the afternoon and found the young Great Horned Owl sitting on a branch in a large cluster of maple trees, the same spot Linda had described in an email to me. I’m very thankful to her for sending me the message.

I guess we shouldn’t call the owlet “little” anymore. It’s hard to believe it was only 37 days between the photos from today and my first shot of the young bird in the picture below. The click above was made when the bird turned its head and had an eye on our little dog Cooper, who sat quietly in the grass below. Maybe there were some thoughts about a future meal… Looking at its big claws leaves me without any doubts that this owl will be a great predator.

First sighting, March 28, 2017 (image cropped)

SPRING BIRDS UPDATE

The Male House Wrens sing and try to attract the females since April 21, 2017. Today a female wren inspected both floors at one of the nest boxes, and the male was probably praising how good of a place that would be for raising a family.

I like to photograph small birds any time of the year but spring is probably the most rewarding time. Most birds look at their best because it’s also mating season and during that time some species don’t care so much about the presence of a photographer because their mind is of course somewhere else. I love the light that we have when the first leaves just come out here in our woods. Yes, the sun can be powerful and make it harsh sometime but I love how crisp things appear under the spring sun.

Today new bird arrivals can be reported. We saw the first hummingbird at one of our feeders. The Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, males and females, are here since yesterday, and a male Scarlet Tanager was present today for the first time this season as well.

Chipping Sparrow, arrived already April, 21, 2017

So, what about the young Great Horned down at the Mississippi River? I was there Monday night during a rain shower and the nest was empty. It took me just about five minutes to find the owlet, now called a “branchling”, in a tall tree next to the nest. Other birders and photographers had sent me updates and photos today (thank you Linda and Kevin!). I will try to locate the owl tomorrow again, but with the leaves growing rapidly it’s going to be a challenge as always during an owls branch hopping stage.

Female Purple Finch, has still not left for their summer grounds up in northern Minnesota and Canada.

SPRING BIRDS AND MORE

White-throated Sparrow, near Durango, Iowa

I don’t mind to travel and it is an essential part of my job, but it is nice to be home again, especially at this time of the season. It’s getting green here in eastern Iowa, a little earlier than other years, and with the warm weather more birds arrive in our woods.

Yesterday I heard the wonderful sound of the male House Wrens for the first time this spring. He will wake me up in the morning during the next days and weeks by his melodious songs that hopefully will attract a female to one of our nest boxes.

There were several White-throated Sparrows in the grass below our bird feeders and they look never more beautiful than during this time of the year.

In addition a pair of Chipping Sparrows has arrived and unfortunately a Brown-headed Cowbird is around already. They like to lay their eggs into the nest of other birds and that doesn’t always go well for the offspring of the host bird.

Owlet, Great Horned Owl, Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa

After being away for an entire week I had to go back to Mud Lake Park at the Mississippi and find out how the little owlet is doing. Other photographers kept me up to date during my time in California but since I watch this nest since five years I wanted to see it with my own eyes. The young owl has grown tremendously since I saw it the first time peeking out from under the mother’s feathers (Click HERE for the first photo). There is definitely only one owlet in the nest this year (last year we saw two) but it is so nice to see this episode continue.

MOTHER OWL

Mother owl did not show me her precious offspring this evening. She just sat on the nest and kept her owlet covered. I still don’t know how many owlets are in the nest but I talked to a camper, who had watched the owl since a while, and he told me he has not seen more than one.

As you can easily see the light had no character today. Yes, we had another day with mostly a deep overcast. I hope I can show you some more photos of a young Great Horned Owl soon.

ONE OWLET REVEALED

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Image cropped  -----------     

I had exciting thirty minutes at Mud Lake Park this evening. First I saw my first of the season Eastern Phoebe and Great Egret. There were also more than 80 Snow Geese heading north and a Brown Creeper worked its way up at one of the big trees. But the star this evening was the Great Horned Owl, revealing finally one owlet in her nest. Great Horned Owls are blind at birth and this little bugger didn’t have its eyes open yet. The female owl sat very high in the nest again and I wonder how many owlets were actually still under her body. I guess we will find out soon. Food seems not to be scarce. There was another gray-black feather ball at the edge of the nest, which I believe was a dead coot again that one of the parents had bagged.

UPDATE ON THE GREAT HORNED OWL

March 21, 2017  -------   

I have been several times at the nest of the Great Horned Owl at Mud Lake last week. As the two photos show the conditions can be very different from one day to the next.

Five days ago, March 21, great late afternoon light hit the nest. Mother owl didn’t change position at all. I recognized a ball of gray-black feathers on the right. This is probably the remains of some prey, possibly an American Coot, that she or the male owl had bagged.

March 26, 2017

This image is from today, March 26, 2017. The rain had just stopped and the owl still looks quite wet. She sits very high in the nest and that makes me believe that her offspring has hatched already some time ago. Here is a time table of my first sightings of an owlet at the same nest for each year:

2016: March 28, a second owlet March 31

2015: March 16

2014: March 28

2013: April 14

It looks like we may see some new life soon. I will try to visit the nest more frequently during the upcoming week.

Both photos were made with the Sigma 150-600, at 600 mm in DX-crop mode of the Nikon D750. This is the equivalent viewing angle of a 900 mm lens. I use the DX mode if I can’t go physically closer to my subject.

GREAT HORNED OWLS, EMPTY NEST

Owlet #1

I received an email this morning from another photographer (Thank you Ken!), telling me that yesterday he found the nest of the Great Horned Owls down at the Mississippi River empty. I replied that they might just be hunkered down in the nest because of the cold and wet weather we have at the moment. I just learned that owl feathers are not waterproof and rain can impact their ability to fly noiselessly, which can be trouble for an adult during the breeding season because they cannot hunt. Wet feathers lead also to a higher loss of body heat, which could be a thread for the owlets. However, I had to check it out during my lunch break today.

Owlet #1

As Ken already reported, I found the nest empty. It took me about half an hour until I discovered one of the owlets sitting on a big branch in a tree about 50 yards to the east from the nest. I took several pictures from both sides of the tree. Because of their ability to turn the head by 270 degree, owlet #1 had an eye on me most of the time without moving the rest of the body. The wind was blowing hard and getting an unobstructed view was a challenge because branches and leaves were swaying around the whole time.

Owlet #2,  All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, Better Beamer flash extender

I scanned every tree and branch around with my eyes in search for #1’s sibling. I just couldn’t find it. Ready to give up and go back to work I suddenly saw owlet #2 sitting upright in the tree next to me and only a few yards away. It was probably watching me the whole time while I tried to find it and laughed its head off…

It’s great to see that the young Great Horned Owls started branch hopping. Pretty soon they will learn to fly and they may stay with the adults until fall. The leaves in the tress grow rapidly and it will become very difficult to find the owlets again. I’m very happy that we can see two owlets, instead of just one, for the first time during the last four years.

WARM LIGHT AND THE LATEST ABOUT THE OWLS

Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Image made at 500 mm with Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens

It’s a nice situation, I have made so many images recently , I just need to make up my mind what stories I like to tell first or maybe never. Sometimes the latest observations seem to be more important than the older pics… 

The backwaters of Mud Lake are the closest access to the Mississippi River for us, just ten minutes away from home. As you know, I watch the Great Horned Owl and their offspring during this time of the year at Mud Lake State Park and the photo below tells hopefully more I can even write about here…

Using the long lens for landscape photography may not be on every photographers mind. The compression of a scene, combined with gorgeous light, made me push the shutter release button this evening. The kiss of warm light during sunset is the right time to be there. The mighty Mississippi is behind this dike and the canal in the foreground is part of the Mud Lake backwaters.

UPDATE ON THE OWLETS

600 mm, 1/100s, f/6.3, ISO 320, flash fill

I know I have some friends out there, and as far away as South Africa, who like to hear about how our little owlets are doing. The weather has been kinda “crappy” during the last few days but I try to drive down to the Mississippi River after work several times a week in order to see how the young Great Horned Owls develop. For those who do not always read my blog, this is the first time during the last four years that the Great Horned Owl is raising two young owls. Any other year before was only one owlet in the nest.

Today it seemed again that the juveniles are in good condition and there was a brief moment when I saw both of them at the same time. The mother perched in trees nearby most of the time. She was at the nest only once while I was there. Mother owl went always back to the same trees and branches during the last week because she probably can observe the nest very good from all of her preferred spots. She must trust me, because she turns quite often her back to me and rather looks over to the Mississippi and perhaps watches for some prey.

600 mm, 1/100s, f/6.3, ISO 320, flash fill

Rain and dark clouds during the last evenings made the photography very challenging. There wasn’t an ounce, and not even a gram of nice light! In these conditions I like to master flash fill for my images, with all its quirks, like overexposed branches, red eyes, or just dealing with the settings in camera and in the flash. The missing contrast on an owlet’s head or body in low light makes it difficult to obtain always focus for a sharp image and not every picture is a keeper. I know, this doesn’t sound like fun but I really enjoy the process of trial, error, and improvement, and it makes me happy if at the end of the day there is an image on the memory card that tells the story…

SAME STORY, BETTER LIGHT...

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head

Same thing as yesterday, two little owlet heads peaked over the edge of the big nest from time to time. The adult Great Horned Owl was again sitting in different trees, not too far from the nest. But what a difference today photographically spoken. Yesterday, with the dark gray sky, was like biting into a lemon. The only way to make lemonade was using fill flash for having some colors. But even then the gray background just sucked…

The clouds were about to move out of our area and a shaft of low sun light and the subject (Mrs. Owl) against a partly blue sky make all the difference…

NATURE CLICKS #324 - GREAT HORNED OWL

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, gimbal head

Yesterday evening I was greeted by a chirpy little owlet, sitting at the edge of the big nest, down at the Mississippi River at Mud Lake Park. I quickly set up my tripod and watched the bird through the SIGMA 150-600mm / f4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM, zoomed out to its longest focal length. For a while I thought there was a second owlet in the nest, but after looking closer at my pictures on the screen of the NIKON D750 I found out that mother owl just “took a nap” deep down in the nest, while the juvenile enjoyed the sun. What a great moment when she finally went up and left no doubt about who is in charge. I’m so happy to see that we have for the fourth year in a row the pleasure of watching a Great Horned Owl raising her offspring.

FOURTH YEAR IN A ROW - THE GREAT HORNED OWL

It was a cold day due to some icy wind. It didn’t stop me to take Cooper, our little dog, down to Mud Lake at the Mississippi River after work. Not that I was really longing to go out into the wind but it is the time of the year when the Great Horned Owls lay their eggs. And yes, for the fourth year in a row an owl sits in the old eagle’s nest. Photographically it is not so interesting because you can’t see much of the owl, but as a bird lover I’m very excited.

The photo below shows the young owl that grew up in the same nest last year. The shot is from April 27, 2015, taken after the owlet had left the nest already.

April, 27, 2015

GROWING OWLET

I have been traveling the last few days but finally had a chance to check the nest of the Great Horned Owl again this evening. As you can see, the light was perfect and the little owlet sticked its head out of the nest, as if it would greet me at my arrival. Most of the time I spent there today the young owl had its eyes closed and you could only see the upper part of the head. The third year in a row I’m amazed how fast a young owl is growing. I have not seen the mother at any of my visits lately but I’m sure she does everything to feed the juvenile owl and is out on the hunt for prey.