The Loved Up Owl Named Gigi.

I had to post this wonderful story of a Great Horned Owl. I come across it on Youtube and was rather surprised by the owl's response to the Wildlife career named Pojeky. The ailing owl was bought into the Mississipi Wildlife Centre suffering from acute weight loss. It was on the verge of death. 

However, with dedicated care from Pojeky, the Great Horned Owl named Gigi, managed to pull through the dilemma. She never forgot who helped her and showed affection to the career. Many don't think owls are capable of such feats but I think Gigi is.

Owls, Vultures and Hawks! (At the New Forest Raptor Centre)

Carole and I arrived at Ringwood in the New Forest on Sunday 28^th February 2016. We were a little earlier than expected so we drove around the New Forest and came upon a raptor centre. We thought it would be a grand way of killing a few hours before checking into our room above a restaurant in Ringwood town.

As we went into the raptor centre a falconry display was going on. We caught the tail end of a falcon or hawk of some sort. As we sat down, the falconer brought out a Turkey vulture. He said this particular bird was from all across the Americas. It flies at ten thousand feet and can smell and spot a rotting carcase at many miles. Many birds of prey rely on their keen eyesight and some have little sense of smell. The Turkey vulture is an exception to this rule. Its sense of smell is well developed and it has huge nostrils. Its eyesight is not as sharp as most birds of prey, yet it is still much keener than human vision.

After the Turkey Vulture went back to the compound, the falconer brought out two Eurasian Eagle Owls. The larger one was a female with pointed ears. The smaller one was a male with ears that were a little less pointed than the female counterpart. The falconer spoke a lot of these birds of prey. He said that the two were bonded as friends but would not mate. He went on to say that this is common among owls. Sometimes the female likes the male and will mate. On other occasions, she will bond and tolerate the male, though not mate.

When a male Eurasian owl tries to woo a female of the same species, he will bring an offering. Something like a dead rodent. If the female accepts, she may well go on to mate with the male. If she rejects the offering, she may attack and try to eat the male. It depends on how the female is approached and if she likes the look of the male.

As said previously, sometimes the female will bond in a way of tolerance of the male without actually mating and producing offspring. How this gets passed the rejection of approach and passed trying to eat the rejected male to bonding; I don’t really know. I just took the falconry expert’s word for it. As one can see from the pictures. They are magnificent birds of prey.

Another thing he told us was concerning the wise old owl with huge knowing eyes. He said this is a myth and that all owls are rather stupid and dim on the intellect scale. Their brains are small compared to their advanced eyesight.

Hawk or Falcon

Hawk or Falcon as we entered raptor centre

The Turkey Vulture

Short Eared Owl Chased off by Crows.

New Year’s Day 2016! Another bygone year to tuck away in memory and a new one to start. I got up and went straight to my blog to check the traffic. I did the various other sites and was pleased to know I had sold another book during the night in the UK or Ireland. Probably Ireland because it was a historical story set there.

It was a nice winter morning and I suggested to Carole that we might go to the bird hides at Manea. As it is New Year’s Day, it might be very quiet. Well… It’s always quite, but more so than usual because it is a festive day.

We loaded up the car and off we set for the 10-minute drive across the farm fields towards Manea. Along the way, we saw lots of kestrels and a common buzzard. Upon reaching the hides, we were surprised to see a larger than the usual number of cars parked on there. More people than Carole and I obviously had the same idea.

The Fen before the long dyke with scattered bird hides was flooded, as is usual in the winter. In the distance was Ely Cathedral. In summer the fen is full of grazing cattle, but this time of year, the River Delph’s banks burst and overspill across the Fen creating a wonderful lake.

For once, the Marsh Harrier’s did not appear while we were in the hides, though one did fly directly over our car when going home.

The kestrels were out in force and there were loads of Reed Warblers and waterfowl out upon the vast flooded fen. We had our coffee and biscuits while searching the lake for various birds. Carole is much more knowledgeable about the birds then I am. She knows most of the breeds, especially those that dart about upon the reeds. I’m more interested in the more vicious birds – birds of prey. For me, they have an awesome beauty.

I got a few shots of Willow Tits and, what we presumed were Sedge Warblers.  I’m sure we also got a Grey Wagtail too. My attention was caught by a Kestrel that was hovering between our hide and the next along. Something upon the dyke’s scarp had caught its attention and it kept coming back to the same spot.

The best part of the few hours visit came on the way home. We were just driving out of the car park along the river when we saw an owl land on a post. This was on the other side of the dyke opposite the flooded fen. I stopped the car and got my camera out. I began snapping away just as the crows homed in. They get very agitated over any bird of prey. I’ve seen them gang up on Marsh Harriers and now they were after the owl.

I was certain it was no Barn Owl because I had got a look at the face. I thought perhaps a Tawny Owl but the crows spooked the bird of prey and moments later it took to the air as two carrion started to harass the bird in flight. It twisted and turned as the crows swooped and squawked.

I knew I had some decent shots but it all happened so fast that I was unsure what type of owl it was. Owls are nocturnal, but Short Eared Owls hunt in daylight and like low flat marshlands. Bingo!

We looked at the photos on the computer and then put them in the grouping in our UK birds’ manual and found the short-eared owl matched this photo in every way. Face, feather patterns and white underbelly, plus location and time of day.

Carole and I were so pleased. It was the first time I had seen a short-eared owl in the wild.

Barn Owl Hunting in the Fens

Taking Sasha, our puppy German Shepard, for a walk along the Creek Fen Road, there were loads of things of interest. The field were fool of poppies growing in the wheat. We met a farmer who said they were a pain but did not do a great deal of damage to his wheat crop. He was checking for black grass, which he said was more of a danger for his wheat. 

There were various wild flowers growing along the hedge rows and loads of birds. We spotted a number of barn owls but they were to far for me to capture on camera. That is, until I got close to the River Nene. Carole saw one by a grassy mound and called, "Look at that."

To my delight, there was a barn owl hovering about where we had seen young rabbits scatter into the long grass. They were obviously trying to evade the bird of prey.

I must have got about thirty shots, but only a few come out with any clarity. We also saw another barn owl at distance, across the River Nene. It was flying across a field. The picture is good because of the wheat crop and the cottage etc. The barn owl is hardly noticeable, but it gives some idea of how many owls are in the Fens now days. Their population is increasing and farmers are encouraged to put up owl boxes to attract them.

Of course there were lots of other good things going on as well, besides the delight of owls hunting. We had a lovely summer afternoon walk from our house into the Fens, chatting away and clicking the camera at this and that.