Owl time at Horseneck Beach

Short-eared owl in flight. Don Douglas and I were standing near the northern most spot on Cherry and Webb Point, Horseneck Beach, looking in the general direction of Tripp’s Boat Yard when a raptor came into view that was new to both of us. While he flew something like a Harrier, not high off the ground and following the contours, he obviously wasn’t a Harrier. His tail was far too short and his head to short and large. “Owl” was what came immediately to mind, then “short-eared owl” – not because I had seen one before, but because I knew they liked this environment. What I didn’t know was that they flew in the day time (and this was 11 am on a cloudless day) and they tend to fly in an erratic pattern, similar to Harrier, but “more moth like” according to one book I later read.

We got a real good look at this guy for about 10 minutes. He first landed on the ground just a short distance from the water. As we approached he flew, circled around nearby, and landed in a shrub. He was nearly invisible once he had settled down. When we got within about 75 feet he flew again, this time heading back towards Tripp’s. As he approached the dunes and pines there at least three small birds flew up to meet him, harassing him, and eventually chasing him away.

All the pictures are from the flight he made when he left the ground and landed in a tree. If you look closely at the wings you will see revealing patterns on both top and bottom in frames where the sun hit them right. Each picture is part of a still frame from digital video I made.

Posted by Greg Stone at April 28, 2003 10:36 PM