Listening to the Weather

Year 8,

Before yesterday morning it had been almost a week since I had looked for Great Gray Owls. Although these owls thoughts will soon to turn to love, and they will retreat deep into the forest away from areas where they might me viewed, it still did not make sense to go birding for them. Since last Sunday the winds have been strong, which means the Great Gray Owls tend to conserve energy and wait for better hunting conditions. Loud winds mean these owls are not able to hear their prey running underneath the snow.

However, yesterday morning dawned with almost totally calm conditions. I immediately made the decision to go out owling and was rewarded with finding two owls out hunting long past daybreak. I heard from friends that one owl was seen hunting into the afternoon. Hunger is a great motivator.

Great Gray Hunting a bit after Sunrise (video link for email subscribers)

Upon getting home I hiked over to my own owls, the Great Horned Owl couple. At this point not much will happen till the eggs hatch, but I do enjoy the nightly singing / hooting easily heard from inside my house.

My Great Horned Owl Family (male in the tree, female on the nest)

Falling Down … Getting Back Up!

Year 8
When you fall down, you get back up!
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Today I took my first bicycle ride up the shore since I collapsed due to my bad heart valve. I told Molly I was going on a ride, and she asked if I wanted her to come along. I thanked Molly, but said I needed to conquer my fear on my own (I was greatly afraid of collapsing and crashing).
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While I am not out of the woods yet, and have another heart operation scheduled for April 2nd, I am doing well. However, when your last ride led to a crash due to “blackouts”, taking your first ride since getting a new valve is scary.
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Everything went fantastic, and I saw perfectly … no blackouts … no crashes. Given the 40F sunny day with light winds it was a great day to bike the shore. I both cried for joy, and then hummed the theme from Rocky.
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I was dog tired upon getting home, but it was a good tired. Oh yes, Molly was smart and decided to take a bike ride of her own. While I am certain she just wanted to get out enjoy the fantastic weather, just perhaps she also wanted to insure her husband was okay. It was nice to see her bicycle by on the other side of the road.
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Oh yes … remember I always bike with my Canon Sx70 Super Zoom camera. The Bald Eagles are migrating north. Seen during my ride today.

Snowy Owl Success

Year 8

Late yesterday afternoon I looked outside and noticed my local trees were looking quite windblown. I had planned on looking for Great Gray Owls just before sunset, but any bird which hunts by hearing would find the conditions difficult. Wind whistling through the trees is noisy which makes hearing voles running beneath the surface of the snow almost impossible. Great Grays during windy conditions often do not hunt at all … hungry or not. Expending energy with little chance of success is dumb, and drains life energy.

Thankfully Snowy Owls hunt by sight, and as long as the wind is not too strong it is possible to find them on the tops of tall trees, power poles and light poles. After an hour of searching I found this immature male a bit before sundown.