Young Barred Owl, just learning to fly. And curious about that thing down below staring up at him.
I had not planned on publishing this, but while not great it is a fledgling Owl staring down at the human thing.
Two minutes later we were both getting soaked in the rain and scrambling to find a dry spot.
I have photographed this guy several times, even have a large image hanging in my home.
I would say this is ‘Owl Royalty’.
So far the Little Blues are not cooperating. The usual smaller bird rookery has no residents. They look to have moved into a bigger, and isolated, swamp island rookery.
Sooner or later they will need to move around, even if just for hunting.
For now the best I can do is catch them long distance.
Unless you hear them jump in you would never know.
Shot at the Center For Birds Of Prey, Charleston. Look closely and you may see a radio transmitter. He is allowed to fly even though unable to care for himself.
I have had this photograph for about a month, but today I was inspired to publish it.
You see, I was in a dense swamp and found a young Barred Owl that had just learned to fly. And… rain, dark dense swamp, really, really, dull photos. Nothing to publish.
But I did see a young fuzzy owlet testing his new skills.
Three images of an Egret as she arrived in a rookery. They must fly in fast, bank and turn, to land on their own cypress. Acrobatics are required.
This time of year it is getting more difficult to catch these shots. It’s not a good idea to stand in the water so we are surrounded by tree limbs and the dreaded hanging Spanish Moss.
Spanish Moss is the iconic beauty, swinging in the breeze. Until you try to photograph around it. it is a wispy nothingness and always floats around your lens (or head).
This is first Ibis I have seen locally for about a month. I didn’t even realize that until I noticed this one.
I was shooting a Night Heron and just caught movement off to the side. A Green heron casually leaving while we were preoccupied.
As usual glare was an issue, but this one shot worked out.
