We had another totally unexpected visitor today!
Imagine getting up early morning and as you go outside, you scan the area all around and notice something unusual. I saw a movement out of the corner of my eye and swung my head to look intensively at the big tree next to our cottage.
Yes, I saw something lumpy that was not a natural part of a branch and my first thought was that it was a cat.
But come, let me show you the story!
See what I mean? There's a lump in the fork of the tree that should not be there!
Ever so softly I approached the tree to try and figure out what it was! Oh, oh, oh, a sleeping owl.
I let out a soft cough and he peeped!
Here is a closer look at his eye!
Then it was time to leave for church and the first thing upon our return was that I checked if the owl was still in the tree.
I could not get to the frontal side of the owl, as the tree that he was in is inside a fenced off property next door and we were told that the residents had gone out for the weekend and that they would return later on today.
So I waited!
So, the neighbors returned and they allowed me to come into their yard. This is the first shot that I took of the sleeping owl from the front side.
I acted the coughing part again and as I was in the open, this guy opened his eyes to stare directly at this idiot with the camera that was disturbing his much needed sleep.
As a bonus, I took another few shots and then left him alone to get his rest!
He is still there now at 19:30hrs and I presume that he will only leave at about 21hrs to start his nightly hunt. My first to see a "Spotted Eagle Owl" and I hope he will return to the tree. If he does, we will organize to put up an owl box for him in the big tree! What a blessing to see this lovely creature free and wild!
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Great pictures of a magnificent bird
Thank you Sir @stevec I really hope he makes a habit of sleeping in the tree! Then we can get him a box and they can breed! Blessings!
A good introduction to a new character from the wild surroundings! How do you manage that? Amazing footage. I hope that You will be able to make friends with her :)
Sadly the owl only stayed for the one day and we hope it will return. I keep my ear to the ground Lady Madlen and fortunately have a gift to spot anything unusual. We will put some bait out, as I heard that are also other species of owl around. Apple farms attract a lot of rodents which in turn attracts the predators! Blessings! @madlenfox
What a fantastic creature! Your photos are incredible! So, this is not an eagle at all, but a stunningly beautiful owl! Do you know how he got his name? Resteeming!
Thank you Lady Melinda, you cannot believe how glad I was to get him in a full frontal. The Spotted Eagle-Owl probably derived the name from the Owl's size, as they are of a similar size as eagles. Blessings and thank you for the resteem! @melinda010100
Those are all amazing photos. Apparently this owl is related and a similar size to our great horned owl.
Beautiful pictures. I have been known to crawl over a fence or two in pursuit of a picture. I admire your ethical purity ;) We have a pair of great horned owls that we often see flying in our neighborhood when we go for walks right before the sun comes up. We also often hear them at night. And see them silhouetted on lamp posts in the evening.
@steven-patrick thank you for the kind words and I would love to see a horned owl. I know what you mean about crawling and jumping and it's surprising to what lengths we would go to get a nice shot. The sound of an owl's call is so reassuring that all's well, especially in the bush here, as they will not call whenever there are other predators about. We live in a valley filled with apple farms which acts like a magnet for all kinds of birds! Blessings!
What a lovely visitor it is!! Owl always looks very innocent and peaceful creature, you have taken a nice shots of it and I love your idea to "organize to put up an owl box for him in the big tree" 😊 must do it for that cute visitor. I really enjoyed your blog @papilloncharity
@mrunalini thank you for the nice comment and we will certainly be investigating some owl boxes. Like I said above, the apple valley draws all kinds of birds and it looks like a paradise. Blessings!
Kewl pictures indeed, nice and clean and crisp with great colour and detail! Nice work! :)
@clubfungus no idea what "Kewl" means my friend, but it sounds good. Maybe it means cool? Glad that you liked the shots and I was blessed to get them! Thank you for the kind support!
Hi @papilloncharity yes its means cool just my way of doing things! Thanks for the positive vibes, much appreciated! Cheers Kurt :)
@ clubfungus Hi Kewl Kurt, I think the name has a nice ring to it! Blessings! Stephen
What a beautiful bird to see up close, you really captured some lovely photography there.
Seeing it in nature where it should be, so exciting!
So glad that I could get it Lady Joan and a pleasure to share it! Always satisfying to see animals in their natural environment and I feel so sad for those that are trapped in zoo's. Blessings! @joanstewart
Awww How special and beautiful :) Wisdom commeth ;) He is just so gorgeous and I'm sure very exciting for you.
@youhavewings A dream come true my friend. It seems many other surprises and adventures await here in the apple fields. And of course I am thankful for each wonder that I can share with the world! Blessings!
Oh my what a sight!!! I love owls, they are so majestic. These photos are absolutely beautiful and they've made my day so much better! ❤️ Thank you for sharing!!!