Earlier this month, we headed to the National Wildlife Refuge near Monte Vista. This year we saw several Great-Horned Owls split between two nests. The first owl was sitting on a nest located in the fork of a tree. The image below was captured during the early morning, with the owl peering out from the tree.
We found another nesting owl at a different location, but we were barely able to see the owl. However, perched on a branch on a nearby tree, we found that owl’s partner, standing guard. This owl, probably a male, chose this location to perch in the shadow of the tree. During the morning, his face was partially covered by sunlight. Later in the day, his face was shaded; this made for a better photo.
Later that same afternoon, we returned to the location of the first owl that we found. This time we found the partner of the first nesting owl, perched close by in the same tree as the nesting bird.
The sun had also moved around to the other side of the tree. The nesting owl also moved behind the branch, partially obscuring her head.
I captured another image of this owl’s partner, with a more full-on view of his face, and showing tail feathers.
What luck to see two pairs of owls during this year’s trip!