Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: focussed

Great Gray Owl from my archives, taken NW of Calgary on 17 May 2012. They have such an incredible attention span when they are hunting for food, and barely acknowledge that you are standing there. No matter how many of these large owls I see, I am in total awe each and every time. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Grey_Owl www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Gray_Owl/id The Calgary area is under a Blizzard Warning for tonight and tomorrow. "A Blizzard Warning is issued when winds of 40 km/hr or greater are expected to cause widespread reductions in visibility to 400 metres or less, due to blowing snow, or blowing snow in combination with falling snow, for at least 4 hours." www.google.org/publicalerts/alert?aid=db67361bd082ccd1&am... "December is expected to arrive with a blast of Arctic weather in both Calgary and Edmonton, as well as sections of central and southern Alberta, between Sunday afternoon and Monday morning. The storm is expected to produce significant snowfall, between 15 and 30 cm, and wind gusts in excess of 60 kilometres per hour. Blizzard conditions could result in deteriorating visibility on highways throughout the province." Read more: calgary.ctvnews.ca/environment-canada-issues-severe-winte...

Another photo taken at the Calgary Zoo, on the day when this gorgeous Great Gray Owl skimmed my head twice and my jacket sleeve once! It was perched on a tree stump, maybe 8 or 9 feet from me and caught me totally off guard when it flew "at" me! I think it just wanted to get to the other side of the path, LOL. Such a beautifully marked bird of prey. With its head lowered slightly, you get a better view of the pattern created by all those tiny feathers.

A photo of a beautiful Great Gray Owl from my archives, taken on 25 June 2012, on a drive NW of Calgary. They have tremendous concentration, barely taking their tiny eyes off the ground when they are in hunting mode. "The owl has been called a wise bird for the same reason that some men are thought to be wise — he looks wise. One reason he looks so steadily at you that you think he is studying you is because the light is so strong in the daytime that his sight is bad. But the owl is not as wise as he is said to be." From www.birdnature.com/feb1899/owls.html "In ancient Greece, owls were associated with Athena, the goddess of wisdom. She was thought to be accompanied by one at all times, and owls eventually gained their own reputation based on their connection with the goddess a myth that continues to this day. There is also the common belief that owls simply "look" smart! Unlike most birds, owl eyes are placed on the front of their heads (versus on the sides) to help them focus on prey when hunting. This wide-eyed glance gives them the impression of thinking really hard when, in reality, they are most likely just thinking about their next meal!" From www.whyzz.com/why-do-people-think-owls-are-smart

As you can tell by the lush green surroundings, this is not a new photo, but one that I took back in June : ) I tend to post closer shots than this, but I thought it was kind of nice to see a bit of the area which this Great Gray Owl called/calls "home". This fence and post were right by the road : ) The only thing of interest for this Owl was watching intensely for "food" - not a bit concerned that I was there.