If you're a mouse, be afraid, very afraid...

[upsidedown]

That's amazing; thanks for sharing. When you watch his ( or her) eyes they don't move. I remember seeing a kestrel in Jersey from a cliff-top do the same; his wings and body were working like crazy but his head never moved an inch.

I hadn't realised how beautiful Eagle Owls are until I saw is though.

 

[Arch]

That's amazing; thanks for sharing. When you watch his ( or her) eyes they don't move. I remember seeing a kestrel in Jersey from a cliff-top do the same; his wings and body were working like crazy but his head never moved an inch.

I hadn't realised how beautiful Eagle Owls are until I saw is though.

There was a BBC wildlife show a while back, that had a shot of a sparrowhawk persuing a small bird through a forest, in slow motion. The little bird was jinking in between trees, and the sparrow hawk followed through every gap, sometimes having to fold its wings completely back, sometimes twisting its body 90 degrees to get through, and the head never moved from watching the prey.

And a while back, might have been on SpringWatch or similar, they set a hawk a challenge, getting it to fly to bait through tight holes in a screen. As they varied the shape of the hole (square, letterbox, vertical slit), the bird altered its approach each time, changing how it folded its wings to get through.

We think we're clever with our opposable thumbs, but who wouldn't like to fly like that!

 

[TVC]

Last week I was at the Cotswold Falconry Centre and handled a few owls (flew a Harris Hawk too). The amazing thing with owls is that their binocular vision gives them staggering long sightedness, up close they can't see a thing. This was demonstrated by the handler making to punch the owl in the face (pulling up short of course although after a couple of times I thought he'd made his point), and the owl didn't flinch, it had no idea.

Here's my favourite I handled, a Great Grey Owl:

 

[benb]

Lovely photo, Velvet Curtain.

 

[Fnaar]

What a hoot!

 

[TVC]

Lovely photo, Velvet Curtain.

Thanks, found it on google images

 

[Rezillo]

This was brought in by one of our cats a few years ago. There was a tremendous early morning feline commotion followed by silence before I could fully wake up and intervene. This normally indicated that whatever was causing the commotion was no longer in a condition to cause any more and could be left for later to clear up, rather than chased up and down our hall at 3am with a bowl and sheet of cardboard.

However, I found this perched on the cloakroom curtain rail the next morning, plus a few feathers round the cat flap

It seemed completely unharmed and flew out and off once the window was opened.

John

 

[Speicher]

Excellent footage - I thought it was Speich on the pull!

Dayvo - Notice how all the comments on this thread are about how the attractiveness and intelligence of Wols.
Then ask them what they say about men in cardigans!

 

[Piemaster]

There was a BBC wildlife show a while back, that had a shot of a sparrowhawk persuing a small bird through a forest, in slow motion. The little bird was jinking in between trees, and the sparrow hawk followed through every gap, sometimes having to fold its wings completely back, sometimes twisting its body 90 degrees to get through, and the head never moved from watching the prey.

And a while back, might have been on SpringWatch or similar, they set a hawk a challenge, getting it to fly to bait through tight holes in a screen. As they varied the shape of the hole (square, letterbox, vertical slit), the bird altered its approach each time, changing how it folded its wings to get through.

We think we're clever with our opposable thumbs, but who wouldn't like to fly like that!

That sounds more like a goshawk than a sparrowhawk. It's hunting territory is wooded areas. A birds view clip here that starts with a Peregrine falcon but goes to the goshawk through trees at the end.

 

[Arch]

That sounds more like a goshawk than a sparrowhawk. It's hunting territory is wooded areas. A birds view clip here that starts with a Peregrine falcon but goes to the goshawk through trees at the end.

Oh yes, you're probably right. Whatever it was, it was impressive!

 

[Arch]

However, I found this perched on the cloakroom curtain rail the next morning, plus a few feathers round the cat flap

It seemed completely unharmed and flew out and off once the window was opened.

John

I'm wondering at that point, which of you was more astonished! The Wol-let certainly seems to have it based on the eyes!

 

[Rezillo]

I'm wondering at that point, which of you was more astonished! The Wol-let certainly seems to have it based on the eyes!

It was quite a sight! They must have caught it immediately post-prey swoop but how they got it indoors without severe injury to cat or wol is a mystery.

I wasn't going near it without leather gloves- anything our cats bring in seem to take out their incarceration on me by tooth or claw - but it eventually flew out. It even posed on top of a telegraph pole to glare back at me before flying off

John

 

[theloafer]

some i took in july at muncaster castle


they have a world owl trust there well worth a vist

http://www.muncaster.co.uk/meet-birds

larry