Recently I was in a river bed, checking out the birds in the trees. A chain of events took place which even though not entirely surprising, the result was a lovely surprise.
The dog was chasing a military dragon around the creek bed and the tree roots. The dragon was never in any danger of being caught so I let the dog go unhindered. Finally the dragon skipped across the sand and around the back of a tree across the river a bit from where I was standing. The dog chased, and the dragon shot up the tree judging by the dog's response. The next second, a Barn Owl popped its head out from a tree hollow just above where I was standing. I'm not sure who got the biggest shock. It looked straight down at me, almost indignantly saying "how dare you awake me on this hot afternoon". Before I could react, the owl flew off to a nearby tree. Camera in hand I followed, mainly by the sound of the Yellow-throated Miners that were harassing this intruder into their space. I still had trouble seeing the owl, they really melt into the river gums' trunk and branches when they don't want to be seen.
Finally the Miners were too much and the owl flew around in a wide arc, settling near its original tree. I managed a couple of shots in flight, but still couldn't be sure it was a Barn Owl. I eventually found the owl looking down at me from a high branch and snapped off a couple of shots. By this stage, the dog was panting and I was sweating in the afternoon heat. I decided upon seeing the strange pink discolouration of the owl around its nose/mouth/cheeks that it was probably overheated from fright or the unexpected foray away from the cool of the hollow. The dog and I left it to return home to its own version of air-conditioning.
The dog was chasing a military dragon around the creek bed and the tree roots. The dragon was never in any danger of being caught so I let the dog go unhindered. Finally the dragon skipped across the sand and around the back of a tree across the river a bit from where I was standing. The dog chased, and the dragon shot up the tree judging by the dog's response. The next second, a Barn Owl popped its head out from a tree hollow just above where I was standing. I'm not sure who got the biggest shock. It looked straight down at me, almost indignantly saying "how dare you awake me on this hot afternoon". Before I could react, the owl flew off to a nearby tree. Camera in hand I followed, mainly by the sound of the Yellow-throated Miners that were harassing this intruder into their space. I still had trouble seeing the owl, they really melt into the river gums' trunk and branches when they don't want to be seen.
Finally the Miners were too much and the owl flew around in a wide arc, settling near its original tree. I managed a couple of shots in flight, but still couldn't be sure it was a Barn Owl. I eventually found the owl looking down at me from a high branch and snapped off a couple of shots. By this stage, the dog was panting and I was sweating in the afternoon heat. I decided upon seeing the strange pink discolouration of the owl around its nose/mouth/cheeks that it was probably overheated from fright or the unexpected foray away from the cool of the hollow. The dog and I left it to return home to its own version of air-conditioning.
Barn Owl
Certainly a nice surprise, Richard. Owls look so surprised by day. You caught some great flight shots with such a rare chance.
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