Aging gracefully
Common Redpoll / Carduelis flammea
A friendly greeting
When the clouds roll in
Davisburg Community Church, Alberta
Fancy silo with stairs
One of yesterday's Snowy Owls
Male beauty
Common Redpoll on the wire
Varied Thrush
When winter really was winter
Glenmore Dam, Calgary, Alberta
Downy Woodpecker
Clark's Nutcracker
Snow Bunting / Plectrophenax nivalis
Barn-shaped mailbox
Focused, listening, watching
Old barn with a different style
Moose cow looking for salt
Northern Pygmy-owl, one year ago
Davisburg Community Church, Alberta
A most challenging bird
Snowy Owl - just close enough
Varied Thrush - a lifer
Delicate colours of summer
Sweet little garden ornament
A quick glance
Little country church
Pine Grosbeak / Pinicola enucleator
'Superman, where are you now?'
The cross and the moon
A photographer's nightmare
One year ago
Time for an old barn again
Dainty little Common Redpoll
Swivel-head
Red Squirrel
An unusually pale American Robin
Pretty good camouflage
Little Downy Woodpecker at work
Dianthus sp.
On the hunt
Taking the quieter road
Pine Grosbeak
Short-eared Owl
See also...
Keywords
Authorizations, license
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204 visits
Northern Hawk Owl with Meadow Vole


I'm slipping in this distant, poor quality photo as my third image this morning - too grainy to see in larger size! Just wanted it as a record of seeing the owl with a Meadow Vole that day - taken just before the rest of the Vole was swallowed in one big gulp.
I decided to drive NW of the city on 11 February 2016, to make a second visit to see if there was any sight of the Northern Hawk Owl. It looked like the three hours of driving round trip, plus driving several of the backroads nearby a few times, were going to be in vain. Sure, the sun was shining, the sky a deep blue and some of the scenery was beautiful, but, let's be honest, it would have been disappointing to not see any owls, of any species.
After a great deal of patience, managed only because friend, Bonnie, had also decided to go there that day, we finally were in luck. At the time the owl was spotted by another photographer (thanks so much, Harshad!) who was further down the road from us, I had just said to Bonnie that I had spent enough time up there and really wanted to do the long drive home before it got dark, because of poor night vision. There were just the three of us when Harshad saw the owl on top of a distant tree. During the afternoon, though, various people came and went. No owl baiters turned up, thank goodness, unlike on my first visit. That day, one of the photographers who was already there got rid of them very quickly, as soon as they arrived.
Part way through my visit, I enjoyed such an interesting chat with someone who happened to be driving down one of the backroads in the opposite direction to me. Stirling Clark is a carpenter, who makes beautiful furniture (and other things) in the Finish style. He has 20+ years of experience with Finish carpentry, door and trim installation, built in custom cabinetry, hardwood floor installation, stairs and railings, outdoor decks, siding, renovations and new construction, and general carpentry. His (other) passion is photography, enjoying nature, landscapes and wildlife. He told me that he had a Northern Hawk Owl visit him at his carpentry workshop recently - quite a treat. A pleasure to meet you, Stirling!
www.stirlingclark.ca/carpentry.html
www.stirlingclark.ca/photography.html
"The type of prey the Hawk-Owl catches will determine its eating strategy. For mammalian prey the ritual is generally the same: the Northern Hawk-Owl will eviscerate its prey, eats the head first (especially for prey like the red squirrel, whose head is fairly large), and then—when tackling larger prey—it will eat the organs and cache the remains; with smaller prey, the owl will simply swallow the body whole."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Hawk-Owl
"The Northern Hawk Owl can detect prey by sight at a distance of up to 800 meters (half a mile). Though it is thought to detect prey primarily by sight, the Northern Hawk Owl can find and seize prey under 30 cm (1 foot) of snow." From AllAboutBirds.
www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/northern_hawk_owl/lifehistory
I decided to drive NW of the city on 11 February 2016, to make a second visit to see if there was any sight of the Northern Hawk Owl. It looked like the three hours of driving round trip, plus driving several of the backroads nearby a few times, were going to be in vain. Sure, the sun was shining, the sky a deep blue and some of the scenery was beautiful, but, let's be honest, it would have been disappointing to not see any owls, of any species.
After a great deal of patience, managed only because friend, Bonnie, had also decided to go there that day, we finally were in luck. At the time the owl was spotted by another photographer (thanks so much, Harshad!) who was further down the road from us, I had just said to Bonnie that I had spent enough time up there and really wanted to do the long drive home before it got dark, because of poor night vision. There were just the three of us when Harshad saw the owl on top of a distant tree. During the afternoon, though, various people came and went. No owl baiters turned up, thank goodness, unlike on my first visit. That day, one of the photographers who was already there got rid of them very quickly, as soon as they arrived.
Part way through my visit, I enjoyed such an interesting chat with someone who happened to be driving down one of the backroads in the opposite direction to me. Stirling Clark is a carpenter, who makes beautiful furniture (and other things) in the Finish style. He has 20+ years of experience with Finish carpentry, door and trim installation, built in custom cabinetry, hardwood floor installation, stairs and railings, outdoor decks, siding, renovations and new construction, and general carpentry. His (other) passion is photography, enjoying nature, landscapes and wildlife. He told me that he had a Northern Hawk Owl visit him at his carpentry workshop recently - quite a treat. A pleasure to meet you, Stirling!
www.stirlingclark.ca/carpentry.html
www.stirlingclark.ca/photography.html
"The type of prey the Hawk-Owl catches will determine its eating strategy. For mammalian prey the ritual is generally the same: the Northern Hawk-Owl will eviscerate its prey, eats the head first (especially for prey like the red squirrel, whose head is fairly large), and then—when tackling larger prey—it will eat the organs and cache the remains; with smaller prey, the owl will simply swallow the body whole."
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Hawk-Owl
"The Northern Hawk Owl can detect prey by sight at a distance of up to 800 meters (half a mile). Though it is thought to detect prey primarily by sight, the Northern Hawk Owl can find and seize prey under 30 cm (1 foot) of snow." From AllAboutBirds.
www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/northern_hawk_owl/lifehistory
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