barred owl

Yesterday, late afternoon, an owl visited our backyard. I called my husband and we spent a good amount of time taking pictures. First group of photos were from the deck- clear across the yard. Last few the owl had moved into another tree and we slowly walked out onto the lawn to get closer. It looked rather sleepy at first:

then started to look around- small birds were chipping alarm calls all over (that's how I first noticed he was there)

Then looked straight at us

From higher up in another tree, after we moved much closer- had its back to us and looked over its shoulder

This was the best shot I got- one of the final pictures before it flew away. It's a barred owl.

My photos are not the best quality because the owl was rather far off and I just have a little digital Canon- my husband used his zoom lens and got some nice closeups, they're on FB. I wonder what the owl caught to eat. I have heard one calling in the woods behind our neighborhood for the past few weeks- not at night, but during the afternoon.

Its visit surely frightened the local population of squirrels- I have not seen a single one all day- and usually there are two or three (if not more) busy around my yard. My husband said: "Now Irwin has some competition!" (our cat, who is an avid hunter).

The owl looks small in these pictures, but the wren that was frantically hopping around it seemed so tiny in comparison. (My husband thought the wren was a hummingbird at first glance). I am pretty sure (though I have not actually seen any nests) we have a catbird nesting in the crab apple tree, also wren, nuthatch and robins have nests nearby. Or so I guess by their constant presence and busy behavior.