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Great Horned Owl

Bubo virginianus

Notes:

My lucky spotting of the week! I have been watching several nesting pairs of great horned owls near my house over the last month and a half. On Sunday, I went to check in on one of them. Just as I pulled up, I saw the female land on one of the low lying branches with a huge snake in her mouth. I snapped off several pictures as she flew to the nest to feed her two chicks. Pretty rare to see GHO in the daylight hours hunting. (Although I know that when they have chicks they hunt through out the day and night.) Most of my pictures didn't come out, even though I spent an hour watcher her feed her babies. However, I did get a few good ones of her in the nest as well. I will post the other pics as soon as I get a chance.

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58 Comments (1–25)

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 10 years ago

Thank you again Stanislav Greš!

Stanislav Greš
Stanislav Greš 10 years ago

excellent ... +1

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 10 years ago

Thank you littlelokelani!

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Haha! Thank you Adarsha B S! It might be my favorite moment I've captured on PN thus far!

Adarsha B S
Adarsha B S 11 years ago

Epic capture :)
Nice story :)

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

No doubt James! Thank you for the kind words! This owl ended up having 3 babies, all of which fledged!

JamesCramer
JamesCramer 11 years ago

Amazing picture, right spot at the right time.....

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Thank you mcaul6515 and thank you narcoss! I was super lucky! I'm a little sad, I went back to the nest just yesterday and it was abandoned. The adults and babies are gone. I guess it's more of a bitter sweet because that is what they are supposed to do. The babies fledge and the parents take them somewhere safe. Fingers crossed to them making it!

naross
naross 11 years ago

What a shot!!! Right place at the right time. Beautiful owl too, and enjoyed reading the notes.

mcaul6515
mcaul6515 11 years ago

Amazing action shot!

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Thank you Arun!

Arun
Arun 11 years ago

fabulous ...

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Thank you Jakubko! I feel lucky to have captured the moment!

Jacob Gorneau
Jacob Gorneau 11 years ago

Fantastic!! What an awesome shot! I loved the story, too!

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Thank you Cheryl and Maria! It was a treat to watch her care for her young chicks! She is a great Mother. However, my friends that also observe her says that the father is lazy and rarely takes part in hunting. He can often be seen sleeping in a near by tree!

Maria dB
Maria dB 11 years ago

Wonderful capture and what a cool experience to be able to watch her feed the young!

CherylWright
CherylWright 11 years ago

Absolutely amazing, what a magnificent shot! Well done and thanks for sharing!

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

I'll work on the other pics tonight! ...I've been lazy...or busy...one of the two! ;)

gatorfellows
gatorfellows 11 years ago

wonderful, cannot wait to see more :)

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Thank you EnvUnlimited! I'll try and get the other pics posted this weekend!

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Thank you Alice! It definitely feels like Spring when the baby owls start popping up!

alicelongmartin
alicelongmartin 11 years ago

Wonderful story and picture!

EmilyMarino
EmilyMarino 11 years ago

Thank you Sandra, Jerry and Joshua! All the kind words today have truly made my day!

Josh Asel
Josh Asel 11 years ago

HOLY HECK!! i am lost for words. "absolutely amazing" doesn't quite do it. congratulations what a winner!

SandraPereira
SandraPereira 11 years ago

Wow ..this is an amazing picture

EmilyMarino
Spotted by
EmilyMarino

Colorado, USA

Spotted on Mar 31, 2013
Submitted on Apr 4, 2013

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