Birds - Post 'em up

Owls are so cool, I used to see them occasionally when I lived in CT, haven't seen one since I moved to Boston though (not really surprising).
 
Pelicanlanding.jpg
 
Last week this fella was sitting outside my porch waiting for a snack. Had to take the photo through the glass:sigh:. Thought it was a Great Horned...but to small...and in the bottom part of a tree? Preston
2ik5xd0.jpg

...

Mrs. H - the certified birder (I am not making this up!) - is sitting at her 'pute with five different birding books on her lap (including an owl book). It is still really hard to tell whether it's a great horned owl or a long-eared owl. Behavior is odd for the latter (they're usually up close to tree trunks in the daytime and virtually invisible)... face and other aspects of the coloration, however, resemble the latter more than the former (although the 'ears' appear to be wider-set than they should be on the latter). Both species are found in your area :p The latter is about 15", so if it really is smaller than a great horned owl (size 17 - 22" or so), then perhaps it is a long-eared owl.

Mrs. H volunteers at a Mass Audubon site; she'll check with the pros on her volunteer day next week!
 
Great green heron shot!

Here's a shot for you Tolkien fans. This old stump always reminds me of an Ent.

"Sentinel of Fangorn"
588774705_ZqfEX-O.jpg
 
Mrs. H - the certified birder (I am not making this up!) - is sitting at her 'pute with five different birding books on her lap (including an owl book). It is still really hard to tell whether it's a great horned owl or a long-eared owl. Behavior is odd for the latter (they're usually up close to tree trunks in the daytime and virtually invisible)... face and other aspects of the coloration, however, resemble the latter more than the former (although the 'ears' appear to be wider-set than they should be on the latter). Both species are found in your area :p The latter is about 15", so if it really is smaller than a great horned owl (size 17 - 22" or so), then perhaps it is a long-eared owl.

Mrs. H volunteers at a Mass Audubon site; she'll check with the pros on her volunteer day next week!

It was the size and the facial markings that made my decision...the facial markings don't show up in the photo, sorry, but, as I looked at the book and the owl sitting there, there was little doubt.

FWIW, tell Mrs. H that I had a friend in the late sevenites-mid eighties that was a bird bander, he also ran a bluebird nestbox trail of over 250 nestboxes! I use to go with him banding and running the trail during nesting.

Some of the most fascinating birding experiences happened while with him. Like the time he had me hold a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, because he had to get a different bird out of the net. Showed me how to hold it so it wouldn't get away or hurt. He knew what was about to happen, I didn't, said that he had to band the other and not to let go of the Sapsucker. That Sapsucker did a job on the back of my hand...painful as it was I didn't let go...he was laughing all the while and took his time with the other bird:yes:. Preston
 
.....I just went through the whole thread....Great Shots by everyone....I love bird pictures.....
 
Back
Top Bottom