Amherst Island - Long-Eared Owl

[busbyea]

Skipped the "Daily Grind" today and went to Amherst Island with Marc (Blackburnian); and Dancad (Dan); both of this magnificent forum.

We were treated to a variety of raptors today; Long-eared Owls (19-20); Short-eared Owl (5-6); Northern Harriers (4); Red-tail Hawk (5-6). Unfortunately; No Saw-Whets were located.

The Owl Woods were FULL; both with Long-Eareds & People. These owls are VERY skittish; and difficult to get close too; not to mention see them. At times we were standing right under them and never noticed them until they were spooked.

Taken with the 30D; 500mm; 1.4X; (700mm); @ ISO 500; 1/400; f8.0; EC +1 1/3. Hope you enjoy; not the greatest of shots but will have to do (for my first time seeing these).

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c23/busbyea/Long-Eared-Owl-02.jpg

[Stephen Stephen]

Well done Ted. I wish that I had been in town to go with you guys.

[ZipDude66]

Fine looking shot has a feel of mystery. Well done Ted!

Zip

[canondslruser]

Skipped the "Daily Grind" today and went to Amherst Island with Marc (Blackburnian); and Dancad (Dan); both of this magnificent forum.

We were treated to a variety of raptors today; Long-eared Owls (19-20); Short-eared Owl (5-6); Northern Harriers (4); Red-tail Hawk (5-6). Unfortunately; No Saw-Whets were located.

The Owl Woods were FULL; both with Long-Eareds & People. These owls are VERY skittish; and difficult to get close too; not to mention see them. At times we were standing right under them and never noticed them until they were spooked.

Taken with the 30D; 500mm; 1.4X; (700mm); @ ISO 500; 1/400; f8.0; EC +1 1/3. Hope you enjoy; not the greatest of shots but will have to do (for my first time seeing these).



Nice shot Ted. Much better than I did :-) This is a hard to photograph owl; very shy. I was planning to go to Amherst Island today (had the day off) but decided not to. Went to shoot the Mergansers instead. Lousy lighting for most of the day. The sun peeked through early in the morning and very late in the afternoon...just briefly.

I went up to Amherst Island last week. Just missed the Saw-Whet owls. But your picture reminded me of my encounter in the jack pines. While taking a peek under a tree looking for a reported Saw-Whet owl I came face to face with a Long-eared owl. It was overcast and late in the day so I barely made out its eyes but the long ears gave it away. We had a stare-down for about 15-20 seconds before it flew off. No photo. I did get to see an American Kestrel and a hawk perched on a line. It was overcast (had been drizzling earlier in the day) so lighting was terrible for photography.

I read the report today on Ontbirds from Bruce Dilabio. Lots of Long-eared Owls sighted.

[canonloader]

Great composition. Ha, no wonder our ancesters were spooked by the dark woods. :D

[ngannet]

Enchanting shot. What a gorgeous bird. I'm very envious of the numbers of these birds you have up there (and short-eareds, etc.) I still haven't seen a Long-eared Owl yet:(

[canonshooter4life]

Nice shot... I take it this place is good for owls ... i might make a trip there when i get my 400 5.6...

Brandon

[canondslruser]

Nice shot... I take it this place is good for owls ... i might make a trip there when i get my 400 5.6...

Brandon

The jack pines at the back of the "Owl Woods" trail where the Long-ear owls roost is very dense. In the winter you can see Short-eared owls flying in the fields near the Kingston Field Naturalists property at the east end of the island. Last Winter was great for photographing Snowy Owls on Amherst Island. Are you Brandon Holden with the Canon 600 f4 IS?

[Gary Fairhead]

I was thinking about you gus all day today. Wished i could have gotten away but not in the cards this time around:cry:

I love the light and he/she is very focused and focused on you. We will have to have a long talk on evrything else you saw:D

[canonshooter4life]

The jack pines at the back of the "Owl Woods" trail where the Long-ear owls roost is very dense. In the winter you can see Short-eared owls flying in the fields near the Kingston Field Naturalists property at the east end of the island. Last Winter was great for photographing Snowy Owls on Amherst Island. Are you Brandon Holden with the Canon 600 f4 IS?

Nope but i have heard of him he is from the same city as me ... lol i wish i had a 600!

Brandon

[Wayne Wood]

Nice shot Ted I really like it , has kind of a peek-a-boo effect you did well to get the focus on him behind the bush ,,,

[Anthony J Howe]

The darkness and the light works well in this image Ted with just enough space to peek through with those very stern eyes, nice one, well done.

[Blackburnian]

Awsome feel to this shot Ted!

Here's my only pic fom the day with a somewhat "full-face".

[dancad]

This was a VERY memorable day. Man, 2006 is turning out to be quite the year birding-wise!! I couldn't believe how many owls would flush out of the trees at any given time! Never seen or experienced anything like it! For those of you reading this, at one point we had 4, count'em 4 owls perched in the same tree...two of those we never saw until they flew out.:rolleyes::lol:

Anyhow, since we were three from POTN there let me also include a shot in order to complete the trilogy...a shot very similar to Ted's, as this was by far the most cooperative individual amongst all those very skittish ones. Taken with Ted's 500mm and 1.4 converter (thanks a million, Ted!):D

[busbyea]

Thanks Stephen; Not worry; there WILL be more trips; some in the near future I do believe.

Thanks Zip;

canondslruser Nice shot Ted. Much better than I did This is a hard to photograph owl; very shy. I was planning to go to Amherst Island today (had the day off) but decided not to. Went to shoot the Mergansers instead. Lousy lighting for most of the day. The sun peeked through early in the morning and very late in the afternoon...just briefly.

I went up to Amherst Island last week. Just missed the Saw-Whet owls. But your picture reminded me of my encounter in the jack pines. While taking a peek under a tree looking for a reported Saw-Whet owl I came face to face with a Long-eared owl. It was overcast and late in the day so I barely made out its eyes but the long ears gave it away. We had a stare-down for about 15-20 seconds before it flew off. No photo. I did get to see an American Kestrel and a hawk perched on a line. It was overcast (had been drizzling earlier in the day) so lighting was terrible for photography.

I read the report today on Ontbirds from Bruce Dilabio. Lots of Long-eared Owls sighted. Thanks canondslruser; Well; just like in chess....GO WITH YOUR FIRST INSTINCT !!! ;) ... By the way; We met Bruce; and he spent a considerable amount of time talking to me; and pointing out a few other owls.

canonloader Great composition. Ha, no wonder our ancesters were spooked by the dark woods. Thanks canonloader; You may have a point there; THEY are spooky to say the least. Especially when you walk under a tree and not notice them until they high-tail it outta there...SCARY! :shock:

ngannet Enchanting shot. What a gorgeous bird. I'm very envious of the numbers of these birds you have up there (and short-eareds, etc.) I still haven't seen a Long-eared Owl yet Thanks ngannet; My first time seeing this owl; or should I say 19 or 20...WHAT an experience. One you must find time to enjoy.

canonshooter4life Nice shot... I take it this place is good for owls ... i might make a trip there when i get my 400 5.6...

Brandon Thanks Brandon; Certainly worth the effort. This place is a MAJOR stop-over for migrating owls.

Gary Fairhead I was thinking about you gus all day today. Wished i could have gotten away but not in the cards this time around

I love the light and he/she is very focused and focused on you. We will have to have a long talk on evrything else you saw Thanks Gary; Get yourself READY for the NEXT adventure...Coming soon !!! :rolleyes:

liv2trip Nice shot Ted I really like it , has kind of a peek-a-boo effect you did well to get the focus on him behind the bush ,,, Thanks Wayne; What an experience to say the least... WOW !:shock: :shock: What a tough day...SHOOTING Wise. Just BEING there WAS Un-freakin' believable...

Anthony J Howe The darkness and the light works well in this image Ted with just enough space to peek through with those very stern eyes, nice one, well done. Thanks Tony; My colleagues seemed to manage the light much better then I.

Blackburnian Awsome feel to this shot Ted!

Here's my only pic fom the day with a somewhat "full-face". Thanks Marc; Once again....THANK YOU ! What a DAY!..Nice looking shot Marc; Great full view..Love the EYES..

dancad This was a VERY memorable day. Man, 2006 is turning out to be quite the year birding-wise!! I couldn't believe how many owls would flush out of the trees at any given time! Never seen or experienced anything like it! For those of you reading this, at one point we had 4, count'em 4 owls perched in the same tree...two of those we never saw until they flew out.

Anyhow, since we were three from POTN there let me also include a shot in order to complete the trilogy...a shot very similar to Ted's, as this was by far the most cooperative individual amongst all those very skittish ones. Taken with Ted's 500mm and 1.4 converter (thanks a million, Ted!) Thanks Dan; If I wasn't there; I would have a HARD time believing what we experienced...GREAT DAY; with GREAT FRIENDS!...Great looking shot you managed Dan. Much better then my try at it...

ps Your welcome...the 500 is more then enough to SHARE...;)

Here's one last image from the day...

Same 30D; 500mm; 1.4 X; (700mm); @ ISO 500; 1/100; f8.0; EC +1/3

http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c23/busbyea/Long-Eared-Owl-04.jpg

[Reyno]

Very nicely framed and perfectly exposed capture. Very well done Ted.

[T.D.]

Wow, Wow, Wow!

You guys are so lucky to have these nearby. Well done all the way around!!

[busbyea]

Thanks to Reyno & Turnerzdad; Appreciate you taking the time to look & provide comments..

[dancinec]

Excellent jobs Ted and Marc and Dan, it is nice to see such cooperative effort going on.

[pttenn]

Wow I LOVE that shot...very mysterious.
Karen

[busbyea]

dancinec Excellent jobs Ted and Marc and Dan, it is nice to see such cooperative effort going on. Thanks Dennis; Marc & Dan are 2 excellent photographers that I have learned some much from. I enjoy their company and the knowledge they share.

Gary; Wayne (liv2trip); & Stephen are the others from the area; (And the Forum) that have shared much in the way of knowledge and fun outings.

pttenn Wow I LOVE that shot...very mysterious.
Karen Thanks Karen; Hope to hear more from you...