The last two days were stormy with strong winds. In short, I knew that the owls had not been able to hunt successfully. With that knowledge I headed out before sunrise to my owling grounds. I was not disappointed! The number of Great Gray Owls which were hunting after sunup was amazing. Starvation is a great motivator.
Dawn’s Early Light Over the Owling Grounds!
Attack of the Vole Patrol
Great Gray Owl and its Vole (same owl as in prior sequence)
Northern Hawk Owl gets in on the Action!
Yesterday I took three friends up to the Bog. The weather was weird … over 40F, no wind, and bright skies … in short not a Minnesota winter. Only five days earlier we were in the midst of a two week long cold snap where temperatures in northern Minnesota were well below 0F every night.
If you are planning a trip to Sax-Zim Bog, make certain you visit the Friends of Sax-Zim Bog web site and review the “Plan Your Visit” page. Download a map. Believe it or not there are lots of birds, including owls which do not live on McDavitt and Admiral Roads. While we did make a brief visit to the South Logging Road off McDavitt to see a Northern Hawk Owl, most of our time was spent on roads where we were the only car / people in sight. This meant we had to find our own owls, but also insured my friends experienced a more true wilderness experience. Get off the main drags!
Here are a few photographs from yesterday …
Barred Owl
I was thrilled to find a Barred Owl out hunting around 10:30 am. I consider this bird nocturnal.
Be One with the Tree, Luke SkyWalker!
When Great Gray Owls see their enemies (ravens, crows, and eagles), these birds stand up very straight to minimize their profile from above lessening the chance of an attack.
Gray Jay
Canada’s new national bird enjoys eating off a deer carcass.
Oh man … what a morning north of Duluth. I lost track of the number of Great Gray Owls I found out hunting. The wind was dead calm, and the light was fantastic. At one point, I could see three different great gray owls hunting at the same time!
Here is a sequence of eight photographs I took of one owl after it had just successfully dispatched a vole. Enjoy! (click/press upon any image to view at higher resolution)
