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In a typical year, I don't get to see many owls. So after seeing the Burrowing Owl at Anahuac NWR, I wasn't expecting to see any more owls for a while. However, a few days ago I noticed that someone had spotted Great Horned Owls very near CyFair College and I decided to go and look for them.
It didn't take me long to see that there was a large nest in the area where the owls had been reported.
As I approached the nest, I was delighted to see that it was occupied by an adult Great Horned Owl and a juvenile.
A couple of days later I went back to check on the nest and I was surprised to see that there were actually two young birds in it.
I scanned the branches around the nest but couldn't see any sign of the parent.
Then as I turned to leave, I realized that the adult owl was perched just a few yards away and was obviously watching me.
I hope to get back to the nest later this week to see how the two owlets are developing.
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There was a lot of excitement last month when three Short-eared Owls were spotted on Longenbaugh West Road on the Katy Prairie. Within a few days it seemed that every local birder had seen the birds. Every local birder except me, that is. I made three early morning trips to the site but didn't see any of the owls.
Then another pair of Short-eared Owls turned up a couple of miles further east, on Porter Road. I tried again. This time, after a couple of unsuccessful trips, I finally managed to see one of the birds - but only for a few seconds, and at a distance, and in near darkness. Not very satisfying!
Yesterday morning I went back to Porter Road in hopes of getting a better look. I arrived at 7:20 and immediately spotted one of the owls scouring a field west of the road. The second owl appeared and I watched for several minutes as the pair crisscrossed the field. I was thrilled to get some reasonably clear photos.
One thing that surprised me was the length of the owls' wings.
As I watched over the next 15 minutes, every so often the two birds would fly directly towards each other. Then, just when they looked certain to crash into each other, they would both switch into a steep climb and then stop, to hang in the air for a moment, face to face and only a foot or two apart. Quite a sight!
After 25 minutes of watching the owls, they moved away to the far side of the field and I decided it was time for me to go to work. I got in my car and started to leave. However, I had driven only a few yards when I noticed that one of the owls was now heading back my way. I leaped out of the car and took more photos as the bird flew past me, crossed the road and started scouring the opposite field.
It just goes to show that, where birding is concerned, if at first you don't succeed, try again - and again - and again - and ...
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