Greater Manchester - 6.11.18
It's at this time of year that you start thinking about trying to get images of one of those iconic birds, the Short Eared Owl. In the North West there are some traditional locations where SEO frequent but this morning I'm on the lookout for a "shortie" thats turned up locally a few days back.
Short Eared Owls being partly diurnal there's every chance they can be seen at any time of the day, and when I read this morning that the bird had been seen an hour earlier despite the drizzly grey day I thought I have a go to get some images.
Now at the location where the owl was seen earlier this morning I settle down taking it the sites and sounds of this urban countryside with underlying hum of road traffic noise. I'm wearing my new Paramo rain jacket just as well really as it's started raining not the conditions you really want for flying owls. A couple of Ravens croak as they fly passed and a lone Kestrel hunting is being mobbed by a Magpie taking exception to its presence.
I'm probably a little optimistic expecting to see the shortie in the middle of the day, never the less I'm happy to be out and about. Looking around I decide to head to a fence a couple of hundred meters further on before I calling it a day and heading back, several cows are looking at me so I guess I've failed the field craft skills test again.
Standing for maybe ten minuets optimistically scanning the small marsh area its all looks very quite, then to my left I see a light brown coloured object low down in the grass...its the Short Eared Owl sat on a log ....don't panic Mr Mainwaring !
I grab a couple of shots just in case the owl decides to take off and depart...
Short Eared Owls being partly diurnal there's every chance they can be seen at any time of the day, and when I read this morning that the bird had been seen an hour earlier despite the drizzly grey day I thought I have a go to get some images.
Now at the location where the owl was seen earlier this morning I settle down taking it the sites and sounds of this urban countryside with underlying hum of road traffic noise. I'm wearing my new Paramo rain jacket just as well really as it's started raining not the conditions you really want for flying owls. A couple of Ravens croak as they fly passed and a lone Kestrel hunting is being mobbed by a Magpie taking exception to its presence.
I'm probably a little optimistic expecting to see the shortie in the middle of the day, never the less I'm happy to be out and about. Looking around I decide to head to a fence a couple of hundred meters further on before I calling it a day and heading back, several cows are looking at me so I guess I've failed the field craft skills test again.
Standing for maybe ten minuets optimistically scanning the small marsh area its all looks very quite, then to my left I see a light brown coloured object low down in the grass...its the Short Eared Owl sat on a log ....don't panic Mr Mainwaring !
I grab a couple of shots just in case the owl decides to take off and depart...
Short Eared Owl
Slowly with a great deal of creeping about I get as close as I think I can without disturbing the bird, I'm sat down in the wet grass motionless and manage some images in the low light gloom.
The Short Eared Owl has now moved to a post and in the next two images show the owl rejecting a food pellet - wide open !
After umpteen attempts submitting images to BirdGuides weekly photo competition I've finally managed to get not a "notable" but....."Picture Of The Week" for the above image of a Short-eared Owl.
What's special about this images is that it was taken locally within ten miles of the house. Special thanks to RA the original finder and the morning update that enabled me to get some terrific shots.
And out comes the rejected pellet....right place at the right time !
The owl is constantly looking around and skyward and of course always keeping an eye on what I'm up to, the stare says "I see you"
The owl is constantly looking around and skyward and of course always keeping an eye on what I'm up to, the stare says "I see you"
The next couple of shots show the owl shaking off the rain droplets, the light conditions aren't that great so to keep the iso to reasonable levels I'm shooting at 400/sec, ok for static shots but a little blurry for any movement but I think this adds to the image.
The shortie now starts quartering the tall marsh grass occasionally taking to a post
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