No. 4 Owl Returns
The Burrowing Owl that Ian Flaherty spotted on October 21 was gone the next day, but returned to the same spot this morning, October 23. I feel confident it is the same (“Number Four”) owl, based on the pattern of white dots on its crown and on the white streak in the center of its lower breast.
While I photographed it from a safe distance, it remained alert, swiveling its head from side to side, responding to sounds it alone could hear and sights it alone could see. It ignored a Parks maintenance truck passing slowly and quietly on the paved trail about twenty yards away from its position.
Judging by the marks on the rock where it stood, it must have eaten at some point in time, perhaps more than once. While I watched, it silently took off.
To give you an idea of how well concealed this bird stood, when viewed from the trail, here is a 12-second zoom video. To get a clearer line of sight I had to go off trail into the rough. The second video below, taken from a different angle, shows just a few seconds of the bird standing and scoping its environment.
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