Monday, March 3, 2008

Out of the Garden V

When your day begins with such a magnificent splash of light you know it is going to be a good day. We did our regular birding this sunday morning and although we didn't see any migrants we felt like the world had slipped into spring since the week before. We were greated every few feet by Red-winged Blackbirds singing on territory. Red epulets were flashing on every little shrubby tree that dots the ditches. The males have been here a couple of weeks but most had not actually started to stake claims until this weekend. The females won't be far behind. Later in the day a friend emailed us that they had found a really great bird. After a phone call, we threw our binoculars around our necks and dashed over to a marsh not far from where we live. Looking at this willowy wet habitat you wouldn't expect to find such a treasure as...
this sweet littleNorthern Saw-whet Owl. Now you have to remember this little owl is only 8 inches (20cm) long. I can't tell you what a thrill it was to see this little bird. It is only the third time I have ever seen one and to be so close!!! I had to back up to use my binoculars. It was certainly aware of our presene but it didn't appear to be too concerned. We stood and watched it watching us for some time.
The sun was playing peek a boo with the clouds and at one point put quite a lovely light on the little bird. If you would like to read more about these little owls and see more picutres you can go to Mon@rch's Blog where he writes about banding these little fellows.
My Dearly Beloved took the pictures of this sweet little owl. Thank you dear. I always get too excited to take pictures when something really good happens. I want to thank our birding friend for going back out into the marsh with us to make sure we saw the little treasure he had found earlier in the day.

30 comments:

  1. OH, how cool! I've never seen an owl up close and personal like that Lisa. Lucky, lucky you! Thanks for sharing your adventure. :c)

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  2. Sometimes I like the dormant season. You can see the birds more clearly. What a lovely little creature. Thanks for posting these pictures.

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  3. Wow Lisa!!

    What a treat for you to see this dainty looking owl! That is the kind of friend you need! I can imagine your excitement – good job you had DB to take photos as I wouldn’t have wanted to take my eyes off it to take a photo :-D

    It is fascinating to see the difference in light levels on the same point and you really don’t appreciate until you look at your photos. I see your whole garden is changing now that more light is getting in. Using your garden will be different now with your potting shed moved. I love the colour although I would never be brave enough to use paint like this myself ;-)

    Ah… but your crocus has flowers now, wonderful, and I am with you on red sedums I have some too. Yes, repairing fencing v a complete revamp will be costly – we need to consider this too. It can be a great opportunity if cost doesn’t come in to it. Oh… I didn’t see a hedgehog, I saw a dinosaur :-D

    So you have had rabbits to deal with between storm damage and Luna’s illness! Hope they are still leaving your plants alone. More importantly I hope the meds are working for Luna :-D

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  4. Mouth dropping magnificent bird, Lisa. How lucky you are to live close to a marsh area, so full of wonderful wildlife. I will check out the post you linked, can't get enough of owls. We have them across the way, I can hear them, but we don't see any here. By the way, I have a mystery in the shed that you may be able to help me with, if you care to come over to Faire Garden and check out today's post. I need to know what to do about it, if it is good or bad!
    Frances

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  5. You are welcome Jayne and kjohnson.

    Luna is doing ok Shirl. As to the light it is amazing how light affects everything. THis mornig the sky is red...as the old saying goes, 'sailor take warning'. Storms are forecast for today.

    I saw the nest in your shed Frances. I don't know what made it. It is huge! I would be tempted to wait to see who/what is making it.

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  6. I love when rare sights like this one happens. I love the tense in the way to see that rare bird. Great Pictures G.!!
    (my english is not the best i hope you can understand me)

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  7. Lisa, I love the pic. especially the owl...framing anyone? Tell Db he did a great job!

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  8. Well, you sure made my day begin with a magnificent photograph of a very special bird!

    So nice to hear that they are on the move~ we haven't had any signs yet...but in a few weeks, the action should start ;-)

    In the meantime, I will content myself with watching the eagles and the woodducks along the river, as they pair up for breeding :-)

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  9. Your little owl is darling. Good photo!

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  10. My jaw dropped...really...when I saw this picture of the owl. How cool! I'm so glad you shared!

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  11. My favourite bird, the owl, how lucky you were to see such a beauty. Wish I could have been there to.

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  12. That's a beautiful sunrise! It's pretty cool that you could get a picture of that neat little owl.

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  13. What a great owl! Lucky you :)

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  14. That is one cute little owl! I prefer the overcast photo is is a lovely monochromatic composition (but then I like gray & I don't like brown).

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  15. Lisa, what a spectacular photo of the sunrise!! And to get photos of that saw whet owl too. What a glorious day for you.

    PS: I'm working at the library int eh city and can't believe how simple it is to open your blog and leave a comment (compared to my usual dial up woes). This is exciting!

    Here's to more magical days for you such as this!

    Diane

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  16. Hi Lisa, amazing photos of the owl lovely looking bird, great eyes, you must have been able to get quite close. Love the photo of the sun set one to be proud of. Mike.

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  17. Your owl photos are stunning. Thanks for sharing them. :)

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  18. What a beautiful little owl! And what a gorgeous sunrise!

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  19. What a sweet little owl! I can understand your excitement - viewing an unusual bird like that. And what a great photografpehr you have! /Katarina at Roses and stuff

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  20. Dear Lisa,
    He is beautiful! How exciting to see him. Your husband took fantastic pictures. You do seem to be very close as they are tiny little owls. I have never seen one. Wow!
    Your sunrise picture is very pretty too.
    I want to go back a droll over your Owl.
    Sherry

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  21. I can see that this little owl has enchanted you all as well as it did us. I am so happy I could share it with you via these great pictures.

    Gabriel, your English is bueno. I understand you. Do you have owls in Puerto Rico?

    Cyndy, all the residen birds are pairing up here too. The Canada Geese especially are two by two near where they nested last year. There will be a bumper crop of them this year no doubt.

    MMcD, I like the monochrome look of the photos too...I also like lots and LOTS of color tho. :)

    Sherry, I am still drooling over the little owl. I wish we could have gone back over to try to see it again today. We didn't want to stress it so we didn't.

    Diane, I can imagine your frustration with trying to look at blogs with dial-up. UGH... I probably wouldn't ever look at them if I had to use dial-up. I have no patience.

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  22. What a beautiful sky and what a day you had! I've never seen this little owl. In fact, I've just been so excited to learn about birds this winter; I hope to continue!
    Thank you!

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  23. That is a great picture! Or, should I say, those are great pictures. I haven't heard of this particular owl before this post. Thanks for posting!

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  24. What a great friend you have, obviously one that knows you well!

    Amazing that you were able to get so close without it flying away.

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  25. Oh Lisa, that's so cool! I have never seen (or heard) a Saw Whet owl. Thank goodness for bloggers like you (& Mon@rch) who share their photos and stories.

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  26. Wow, Yeah, Sweet! No Saw-whet! I am soo excited for your and for sure they are amazing owls to find! I am so glad you shared this bird with us!

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  27. Lisa! I'm green with envy and very jealous. I've never seen an owl in the wild and he's soooo cute! Your photos are fantastic and, did I say I'm jealous? LOL!

    Great day. I'm hooting for you!

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  28. What a gorgeous sunrise picture!

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  29. Lisa thank you for your lovely words. I have posted them today for everyone to enjoy.

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  30. Oh WOW! I don't blame you--I would have been too excited to take pictures, too! (Or, worse, in my excitement I would have scared it away before any picture could be taken. lol.)

    Nice pictures... what a treat.:)

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