In early April Bruce Brummitt spotted this Long-eared Owl near his home in NW Calgary. These elusive owls are resident in the Calgary area, but this one may have just been passing through. It was seen for a few days but has not been seen since April 4.
The owl was only seen at dusk, in low light. Some of the photos were taken with a flash, so the owl’s iris looks red in those shots. All photos by Bruce Brummitt.
Magpies mobbed the owl.
Shome photos from April 4:
You have a great bird blog!
I was wondering if you knew anything about owl pellets. I live just north of Airdrie, and an owl has started leaving pellets at the base of a large spruce tree right near my front door. The pellets are about 1.5 inches long and are dark to medium grey in colour. The owl we see the most here is the great horned : http://gogreygirl.wordpress.com/category/nature-bird/
but we’ve briefly seen other kinds, though not long enough for me to photograph and identify them.
Do owls leave pellets under where they are nesting or do they just choose one tree to dump their refuse under? Do owls use conifers for nesting sites? I’ve only ever seen Great Horned owl nests in deciduous trees.
Hi Margie,
Thanks for the comments! Typically the areas where you’ll find owl pellets are either around a nest site, or around a favored roosting site (usually near the nest, or a good hunting area). They do indeed use conifers as they allow much better protection and camouflage from birds that would typically otherwise mob them during the day, and most times they will also nest in those types of trees as well. The pellets do sound about the size of the typical Great Horned Owl pellets.
– Dan
I love the facial expressions captured on this beautiful owl.