Hoo Hoo!

[JeffL]

Caught this fellow as I spent a few hours tromping around in the woods looking for big trees to measure.......

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v404/jlacoy82/Owl1.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v404/jlacoy82/owl2.jpg

 

[douglas1]

pretty cool, thanks for sharing....

 

[TreeTopKid]

Cool photo. You must have been on tip toe!

 

[NYCHA FORESTER]

 

[stihl sawing]

Neat, Looks like a screech owl, They can make an eerie sound.

 

[Zodiac45]

Neat, Looks like a screech owl, They can make an eerie sound.

They're a "hoot'

 

[BuddhaKat]

Why is it that we, who go into the forest and cut down trees for our survival are portrayed by the environmentalists as destructive to the ecology, yet we get such a charge out of seeing such a majestic creature in the wild? Most of them won't go into the forest because it doesn't have a bathroom.

Great pictures! Thank you for sharing them and your story.

 

[Kevin in Ohio]

Neat, Looks like a screech owl, They can make an eerie sound.

Don't believe it's a screech owl as they have tuffs over their eyes. I'd guess a barred owl. They are one of the few with dark eyes as opposed to yellowish amber. It's common for them to hunt during the day as most other owls are nocternal.

I had a run in with one 2 weeks ago while loading wood up in our woods. Had about a half load and went to throw a limb out of the way. On the backside of the pile was a full grown one with a mouse in his mouth. He flew up in a tree about 30 ft away. I walked under the tree and was about 15 ft away and he just looked at me and swallowed his catch. He stayed there and when I got ready to pull the truck out I thought he'd fly away. He didn't. I came back after unloading and he was still there. He finally flew away after 2 1/2 hours letting his meal settle. Amazed me trhat I wouldn't bother him but I was wondering if he was looking for another meal to run on the woods floor. If he had that figured out they are REALLY smart.

 

[pdqdl]

Oh yes. I have had lots of predatory birds work around me in the daytime, especially while field mowing with a tractor.

I had a red tailed hawk snag a rat out of a curb line about 90 feet in front of my tractor once in a spectacular sweeping snatch around some commercial sattelite dishes and bradford pears. He had been waiting in a dead tree about 175 yards away for at least an hour.

My favorite is when I get the barn swallows in giant flocks swirling around the tractor, snapping up the bugs the machine stirs up. Not as spectacular, but they do it all day long, and it's very peaceful to watch them swooping around so close.

 

[Kevin in Ohio]

Oh yes. I have had lots of predatory birds work around me in the daytime, especially while field mowing with a tractor.

I had a red tailed hawk snag a rat out of a curb line about 90 feet in front of my tractor once in a spectacular sweeping snatch around some commercial sattelite dishes and bradford pears. He had been waiting in a dead tree about 175 yards away for at least an hour.

My favorite is when I get the barn swallows in giant flocks swirling around the tractor, snapping up the bugs the machine stirs up. Not as spectacular, but they do it all day long, and it's very peaceful to watch them swooping around so close.

When we harvested a while back with the combine we had coyotes walk along side the combine up and down through the field. They'd wait for a rabbit to jump out and nab him. They were smart enough to know that once the swath was getting smaller they'd walk on that side way over as well. worked well for them till we started carrying the rifle and that gene pool ended

 

[forestryworks]

at the place i cut i can see and hear an owl about 50 yards away. but i never can get close enough for a good pic. he takes off with that huge wingspan... i'm thinking it's a great horned owl.

 

[treemandan]

That is not an owl, its the rare and endangered pipsqwack bird!

 

[jcappe]

They sure are neat birds, the only problem I see with them and the hawks is they are hard on the baby pheasants and my homing pigeons.