Before I go on a business trip tomorrow, with probably no opportunity for nature photography, I like to give you a brief update about the animals I follow very close at the moment.
Yesterday I was very concerned about the well being of the little foxes in our woods. A big Barred Owl was sitting in a tree within sight of the den. This was the first time that I have seen a Barred Owl during real day light. We hear their call "Who-cooks-for-you" all the time but have seen it only at dusk or at night. The owl flew away when it saw me. We had seen only one pup outside of the den lately and I was wondering if the owl was a successful fox hunter. Today I definitely saw two different fox pups. One has unfortunately a heavy injured eye and is probably half blind. It acted normal but I have my doubts that this little fox will have a very long life. The second one looked very healthy but peeked only briefly out of the den.
- All images: Nikon D300s, Sigma 50-500mm / f4.5-6.3 APO DG HSM, tripod
Yesterday evening Joan and I went to Mud Lake at the Mississippi River but we were not able to find the young Great Horned Owl. I looked at every tree in the neighborhood of the eagle's nest where the owl was born but with no success. I went back today after 7pm and found it immediately sitting on a low horizontal branch near the water. The last sunlight was falling on its right eye and I was able to make a few clicks. That was the best unobstructed view of the owlet so far.