Parallaxing Short-eared Owl fledglingParallaxing Short-eared Owl fledgling – Nikon D810, f8, 1/1250, ISO 500, -0.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, FX mode, natural light, not baited

I can not resist photographing owls. Before I left on my recent trip north to Idaho and Montana I located a pair of Short-eared Owl fledglings along side of a road in northern Utah. They were right on the edge of the shoulder of the road.  One of the owls was perched on a mound of dirt and the other one on top of a tumbleweed and both of them had grasses behind them.

Both of the fledglings were parallaxing, or tilting and bobbing their heads, in order to obtain absolute depth information of the object they are looking at. In my experiences in the field I see far more young owls parallaxing than I do adults. This Short-eared Owl fledgling spent a lot of time looking at the vehicle on the far side of the road parallaxing with its head tilted or bobbing up and down.

I have many more images of the pair of Short-eared Owl fledglings to process and hopefully post at some point in time. Who knew that owl fledglings and chicks could be so cute perched on tumbleweeds?

Life is good.

Mia

Click here to see more of my Short-eared Owl photos plus facts and information about this species.