By: Sally Siko- Admin BWNC
One of the best things about birding is that you never quite know with 100% certainty what you’re going to encounter in the woods.
Sure, we’ve got our expectations but every so often we are presented with the opportunity to be surprised and delighted by what we see.
I this case, I was so happy to spot this handsome Barred Owl hunting for a snack this past weekend while on a trip to the Huntington Beach State Park in Murrells Inlet SC.
It was thrilling to get a close up look at such an impressive bird. At one point, I was showing the owl to some other photographers when it took off and zoomed about a foot over our heads only to land briefly to catch an insect on the side of branch. Then it quickly flew to a nearby tree to consume its prize much to the delight of all.
Barred Owls are a year round resident of South and North Carolina and are widely found across both states.
They are primarily found wetland areas, such as around beaver ponds and in open swamps, bottomlands, and nearby marshes. I spotted this one in the woods across the road from the Nature Center at HBSP not far from the marsh boardwalk area.
I think my favorite part of this encounter was that I was able to get a nice close up look at the owls expressive eyes.
They are beautiful!
Speaking of their eyes, did you know that can not turn their eyes in any direction at all?
This is because owls don’t have eyeballs in the traditional sense.
Instead an owls eyes are shaped like fixed tubes, almost like binoculars.
In order to compensate for the lack of directional movement, they can turn their head 270 degrees.
We can rotate our heads only half that far. Incredible!
Photos by @sally_siko of @birdwatching_nc on my beloved beast of a DSLR the @canonusa #5Ds