Hunting for Meadow Voles

Zooming in almost fully (Focal Length, [35mm format] - 1080 mm) on an owl that has just dived into a tangle of tall grasses and dried plant stems gives a photographer quite the challenge. Most of the few shots I had time to take didn't work, so this is probably the only shot worth keeping. Can't remember if the owl was successful in catching a Meadow Vole in this particular attempt. So many little Voles give up their lives to feeding animals higher up on the food chain.

My alarm clocks were set for 5:30 am on 28 February 2016, and I was full of hope that for once, I would actually get out of the house good and early. I have such a problem getting myself out very early when I go off for a drive by myself. I think it was something like 8:30 am by the time I dragged myself off the computer and out the front door. To my horror, I discovered that my car door locks had frozen shut and my car was totally covered in a thick layer of extremely stubborn ice, that took me a long time to remove. Half an hour or so later, I was finally ready to start on my trip NW of the city.

It had been quite a long time since I saw my last Great Gray Owl. Some of my most recent sightings had been one that was in Fish Creek Park in Calgary for a while and my last photos of it were taken on 18 February 2014. There was also a Great Gray at Griffith Woods, Calgary, and some of my photos were taken on 10 February 2014. Saw another owl on our May Species Count out of the city on 25 May 2014. Many of my 'best' sightings and photos of Great Grays were taken NW of Calgary, the last dates being 28 March 2013 and 5 May 2013. So, after 25 May 2014 .... nothing! Seeing one on 28 February was such a thrill. No matter how many times I see one of these owls and no matter how many hundreds/thousands of photos I've taken, each owl is as exciting as the very first.

"Although the Great Gray Owl is the tallest American owl with the largest wingspan, it is just a ball of feathers. It preys on small mammals and has relatively small feet. Both the Great Horned and Snowy owls weigh half again as much, and have larger feet and talons. The oldest recorded Great Gray Owl was at least 18 years, 9 months old and lived in Alberta." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Gray_Owl/lifehistory

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_grey_owl

When I first reached my approximate destination, I could see two or three cars way down the road, pulled over at the edge of the road. Often a good sign : ) Sure enough, friends had found an owl, It was on a distant barbed-wire fence post at first, then dove into the snow to try and catch a Meadow Vole. It then flew off into the trees with it and didn't return.

After a while, I drove some of the other roads in the area and later drove back to where the owl had been seen. Amazingly, assuming it was the same individual, it was in a distant tree, from where it hunted, moving to a different tree each time it made an unsuccesful dive. Eventually, it did catch a Vole. I left after a while, feeling that it was time to leave the owl 'in peace', and also knowing it was time for me to make the long drive home - approximately 246 km round trip.

A good thing I went when I did, as we had fog, a bit of snow, hoarfrost and very slick roads overnight till the following afternoon. There were 234 reported accidents in the city during those hours, none with life-threatening injuries, thankfully.