A couple we often see in the bosque, told me they had just discovered the nesting place of a pair of owls last night. When I got to the nesting area a few minutes later, there were two owls to be seen — a larger owl in a cottonwood, and another, smaller owl, in an elm tree next to the cottonwood. The larger female was out taking a break, I presumed. She was hooting up a storm on her perch in the cottonwood. The smaller owl was perched on a limb, a silent sentry, very alert, guarding the area. The sun had been down for fifteen minutes or so, forcing me to bump up my ISO to 3200 to get a somewhat sensible shutter speed. As I was photographing the owls, a chorus of coyotes started howling from the undergrowth all around where I was standing beneath the owls. The scene became surreal as I was standing in a small clearing, darkness falling all around, the owl hooting from above, and coyotes yipping and howling in surround sound.
Dark, with hooting owls and howling coyotes? Eons ago I spent a summer working on an Oral History Project in Western Oklahoma. There, the interpretation of the scene as described was very different from the 2019 Bosque Dweller, photographer, and blogger. 🙂
Hi Susan. I can imagine.
PS: I’m looking forward to photos of more baby owls later on this year!
All the owl enthusiast are keeping an eye out for nests.
Awesome! It’s been years since I’ve seen an owl in the wild, not too common around here.
Thanks, Tiffany. We have lots of owls.
A great story it is 🙂
Thanks, Harry!
Awesome batch of photos–thank you for sharing!
Thanks, Liz!
It is good to see your owls again. Coyotes and owls! You have some interesting bosque encounters, Tim. I love these stories.
Thanks, Lavinia!
Cool shots! And a story to go with it!
Thanks, Nancy!
I don’t think I’ve ever seen an owl in the wild. Plenty of hawks around here but no owls.
Hi Teri. We have lots of hawks, also, especially Cooper’s hawks. I see one or more Cooper’s hawks most days.
Not sure what kind we have but there are a few that have staked out their territory nearby.
Were they in my Cottonwood? Are there owls in my Cottonwood? Oh, I hope!!!!
Hi Resa. There are no owl nests in your cottonwood, because there are no hollow places for them to nest. However, the owls like to sit in your tree and hoot. They often serenade us all night long hooting from your cottonwood.
Cool! I’m down with that!
Oh how wonderful … love those action shots! Hasta la vista 🙂
Let the fun begin. Thanks, Julie.
[…] since January 2019. I spot them when I go birding early in the morning. Nocturnal by nature, these owls are alert to their surroundings for most of the day. Only high noon sees their melatonin levels […]
Thanks, Verseherder.