It's been a fairly quiet winter for most species of owls here on the North Shore of Massachusetts, other than a large influx of Snowy Owls which are always a treat to see. I've yet to catch up with one for any decent images with all I've seen to date either very distant or in poor light.
But today may mark a change in my luck with owls for 2012. A stop along Stackyard Road in Rowley found a Short-eared Owl actively hunting alongside the road well before dusk. Perched up below:
and just before pouncing on a vole.
Both of the Short-eared Owl images were taken at quite a distance but I'm happy with them non the less!
Sunday, January 15, 2012
It was bitter cold on Sunday with a high of 16 and the day starting out at 5 degrees, wind gusts topped out at 22 mph. Finding birds was a bit of a challenge but once located, like the Cooper's Hawk in the images below, they were cooperative subjects.
A large, adult female Cooper's Hawk sitting in a hedgerow along Rte 1A in Salisbury
and a pair of head shots taken from inside the car as she kept an eye on the lens sticking out of the window.
A truly beautiful hawk, most likely a 3rd year bird with the orange eyes that start out yellow and end up red as the bird ages.
Earlier in the day, just after sunrise, did I say it was cold...:) the young Cooper's Hawk seen below had just made a run at the feeders in the backyard. Another try and no breakfast to show for it.
And lastly a stop in Seabrook, NH found an adult Glaucous Gull roosting in the parking lot along Rte 1A just before the Hampton bridge. A beautiful gull that we see infrequently in it's adult plumage.
Excellent close ups of the Cooper's Hawk! Those eyes are stunning. Great SEO photos as well!
ReplyDeleteThanks Tammy, nothing like a cooperative hawk!
ReplyDeleteSplendid images mate, nice to see a usa seo too!
ReplyDeleteVery enjoyable, you must have had a great time!
ReplyDeletegood work with the SEO!
ReplyDeleteThanks all, great fun to spend up close time with the Cooper's Hawk and the Short-eared was, as always, very enjoyable to watch as it hunted over the fields.
ReplyDeleteSplendid images of the Short-eared Owl, Phil, particularly the post shot. But I'm knocked out by the Cooper's Hawk - as you say, a truly beautiful hawk.
ReplyDeleteThanks Richard, the time spent with the Cooper's Hawk was loads of fun!
ReplyDelete