Rumors of a Northern Hawk Owl pulled me away from the Lake Superior owling grounds and up to Sax-Zim Bog. The morning was foggy and damp due to all the recent snow melt, and the sun was nowhere to be seen. I first drove to where the Northern Hawk Owl had been seen two days prior and had immediate success. However, given the owl was rather deep into the forest in combination with the dark conditions, I decided to make my first visit to Mary Lou’s feeders and check out the new photographer’s blind.
Wow, and I repeat wow! The blind is fantastic and by arriving by 8:30 am the birds were still actively feeding. I saw huge numbers of:
- Black Capped Chickadees
- Blue Jays
- Common Redpolls
- Evening Grosbeaks
- Pine Grosbeaks
- Pine Siskins
- Red Nuthatches
- White Nuthatcches
In addition, two trumpeters swans flew over … a rare event for mid February, and both Downy and Hairy Woodpeckers were present. After my trip to Mary Lou’s, I made two more stops to see the Hawk Owl. While I never had good light, it was fun to watch this rare bird hunt.
Evening Grosbeak
Blue Jay
Northern Hawk Owl
Love your images. Thanks for sharing.
Your daily adventures never cease to amaze me 😎 Hopefully this spring weather we are have in West Virginia will continue to head north. Keep the pictures come Richard.
John