Show us your Owls

[Bush dog]

Pantanal, July 2010

Burrowing owl

 

[MMMim]

Hello Owl Lovers!

Spotted Eagle Owl - Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden, Capetown, S.A.

 

Scops Owl (same guy, different viewpoint - I think he looks like Yoda in the second shot) - Porini Mara Camp, Kenya

 

 

Cheers

Heather

[MMMim]

Oops.  No idea why those loaded sideways and no idea how to fix it.

[BRACQUENE]

@Bush dog

Great picture ; never seen those long legged owls before as I have never been to North or South America and moreover they seem to be active during the day mostly and found in open grasslands 

[Bush dog]

Thanks @BRACQUENE

 

Here is one more, in July 2009 this time.

 

 

 

[Bush dog]

Duba Plains, March 2016

Verreaux's eagle owl

 

 

 

 

[BRACQUENE]

First Safari on the first night close to Tafika Camp South Luangwa NP September 2014

 

eptember 2014

[Galana]

After a week away I see this topic has slowed a little so will add  a few of my own.

Plenty  of Verreaux's here for me not to add to them other than as an Owlet taken in the nest.

Tarangire National Park. Tanzania.

[PeterHG]

A Barred Owlet from the Kruger Park in 2017

 

[pomkiwi]

Deleted as not an African image. apols

 

Edited December 30, 2020 by pomkiwi

[Galana]

23 minutes ago, pomkiwi said:

Deleted as not an African image. apols

Should they be African species? @BRACQUENEdid not specify that!

 

I am not sure how to present mine in any order.

I could share Drotsky's Pels that they also showed @PeterHGtwo years after working hard to show it to me in 2016.

It does not look much different and was probably in the same tree but more hidden for us.

 

Big Ginger Teddy Bear. Pels Fishing Owl. Drotskys Cabins Shakawe, Botswana. Dec 2016.

[Galana]

Moving on I will show a couple of African Scops.

My first dates back to 2007 which I have always liked.

It had serenaded me all darn night just outside my tent at Babu's Camp in Mkomazi NP, Tanzania,

So when I went to breakfast I found it easily and was taken by the camouflage. More like a carved log  than

a carved log.

Later captures were more lifelike so I show but two more:-

Scops. Robert's Camp, Lake Baringo, Kenya. Dec. 2014

and ...

more up to date:-

Norman Car Drive, South Luangwa NP, Zambia, December 2019.

[PeterHG]

6 minutes ago, Galana said:

Should they be African species? @BRACQUENEdid not specify that!

Well, it is a sub- thread of 'Your Africa images' so I presumed the Owls should also be African.....

[Galana]

5 minutes ago, PeterHG said:

so I presumed the Owls should also be African...

There is an undeniable logic to that. Mea culpa.

Well that thins out what I was going to post.

[Peter Connan]

Please post them all, whether African or not!

You will find other threads here where the precedent has been set.

 

My two cents

[BRACQUENE]

Why not @Peter Connanwe don’t want to be more catholic than the Pope  and this topic can only benefit from that ! 

[Galana]

OK. To continue with more African for now and  the Scops theme.

(Does  anybody know how the name "Scops" came about? If so pls inform.)

Anyway.

From African Scops to their cousin.

"Southern" White-faced Scops.  Hobatere, Namibia.

"intermediate" if you are a splitter.

White faced Scops Owl. Just north of the Equator at Lake Baringo, Kenya. In the grounds of the now flooded Lake Baringo Lodge.

Some authorities split WF Scops into Northern and South but don't say what happens on the Equator.

 

He is winking because he knows...

Northern Scops Owl. Mandina River Lodge, Banjul, The Gambia.

 

 

[BRACQUENE]

@Galana

Thanks for all the beautiful scops ( I particularly like the northern one)and the Pels Fishing you posted : the word itself comes I think from Ancient Greek skops being a type of small owl I read whilst I know skopein means “to look at “ and skopos is a watcher

[Galana]

Welcome. I never tire of looking at elephants or owls.

More Scops species to follow next year.

[Galana]

Another delightful couple to complete my African Scops series.

 

The couple.

Singled out.

 

And they have two colour morphs just to be different.

Sokoke Scops Owls.  Arabuko-Sokoke Forest, Kenya.

They have to be high on the short list for cuteness especially as they seem to always be in pairs.

(Now that's one less opportunity to post on "What bird is that.")

[BRACQUENE]

1 minute ago, Galana said:

Now that's one less opportunity to post on "What bird is that.")

 

I will be selfish ; I prefer you posted this cute pair on my topic 

[Galana]

Nobody else seems to be offering anything so I may as well plod on (avoiding candidates for "Name that bird")

 

This next one is a bit special to me so forgive the elaboration and indulgence.

First I offer a couple of standard shots.

You can see the frown and sense the annoyance.

I regularly see this bird when in Africa by hearing them call, finding the tree and gazing into a pair of bright yellow eyes.

When with my good friend Emmy they are guaranteed. His technique for luring out obscure small birds is to imitate the call of the Pearl Spotted Owlet. (a loud descending 'peeoo, peeoo, peeoo) which then pulls in Apalis, Batis, Sunbirds etc., all intent on mobbing the Owlet. And of course an Owlet then turns up to 'fight' Emmy and looks distinctly 'peeooed' when it sees us.

But they make lovely subjects.

There is a story to the final two shots.

We were having picnic breakfast in Ruaha TZ when I noticed an Owlet having his. Now this young chap was not yet very wise and whilst he was grabbing Quelea with ease he had not worked out that if he grabbed one with each foot he had nothing left to perch with and was falling backwards into the thorn bush.

Eventually he got caught in the thorns so I went to lend a hand. He lay quite still while I slowly undid the sharp thorns from his primaries etc., until he was free to go.

But he sat a while to pose for me as a thank you hence this sequence of photos.

Pearl Spotted Owlet with my reflection in his eyes. Ruaha NP. Tanzania.

[BRACQUENE]

Great story @Galanaand I even looked in his eyes and yes I can see you in his left one  I suppose I don’t have to tell you and our readers that they are earless and that the name comes from the pearl-like white spots on crown and head 

[Galana]

The Pearl spots show well on the three top photos.

However you need to know that all owls do have ears. (the feathered 'Ears' that are visual on some owls are more or less ornamental and serve no aural purpose but can be erected for displaying.)

The true ears are in the facial disc which therefore acts like a sound collector or WW1 Acoustic mirror with the improvement that the ears are asymmetric and this aids the owl in locating its prey.

Nature got there first.

Mankind followed later.

This is a WW1 Acoustic mirror on the English coast near Kilnsea, (E. Yorks) used to listen for Zeppelins

(photo credit Paul Glazzard)

 

But nature has the stereo version.

 

[Galana]

Well from the Pearl Spotted to its close relative the Barred so that those interested can make the comparison in Field marks.

First a repeat of the Peal Spotted.

Note the spotted forehead and back.

Compare with the Barred....

Spotted forehead not as prominent and quickly turning to barring on the crown and nape and of course down the back.

The Barred's chest and belly are 'arrow head' marked spots as opposed to the PSO vertical streaking.

Finally a nice, I hope, portrait of one that posed nicely for us near Umani Springs in Kibwezi Forest in Kenya.

Note very clear spots on forehead before they merge into clear bars.

I guess it is obvious that all Owls are my favourites but these two are particularly looked out for.