Transformation of a preening owl

This photo was taken on 11 January 2015, when I called in at Fish Creek Park again for some fresh air and, hopefully, find a friend or two. I was lucky with both. It was a Sunday and a lot of photographers had gathered to watch and photograph this tiny, popcan-sized Northern Pygmy-owl.

I was impressed that all the photographers were very respectful of this tiny owl. That day, apart from a couple of very brief, low landings in bushes, the tiny owl stayed perched extremely high in tall trees. Thankfully, it was still within my camera reach and we were all lucky enough to see it perched in a variety of places. Bright blue sky completed the picture. In this photo, we were treated to a short preening session that resulted in a temporarily puffed ball of feathers.

"The Northern Pygmy-Owl may be tiny, but it’s a ferocious hunter with a taste for songbirds. These owls are mostly dark brown and white, with long tails, smoothly rounded heads, and piercing yellow eyes. They hunt during the day by sitting quietly and surprising their prey. As a defensive measure, songbirds often gather to mob sitting owls until they fly away. Mobbing songbirds can help you find these unobtrusive owls, as can listening for their call, a high-pitched series of toots." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Pygmy-Owl/id

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_pygmy_owl