I went to the park again this morning to search for the owl. He was sleeping in a tree so I hung around for a while to see if he would wake up.
Shortly the owl paparazzi arrived and before long there were quite a few people stopping to admire the sleeping bird.
At one point, a flock of a dozen or so blue jays arrived at the tree squawking and trying to irritate the owl. But he just looked around and went back to sleep.
I got a couple of shots of him cleaning his talons and you can see how long and sharp they are.
He was still sleeping after a couple of hours so I left. But he seems to be making his home in the park so I will be back for more.
I found out a little information about this bird from an Audubon Society member. There are only 4 or 5 barred owls in the entire State of Oregon. They are originally from the east coast but have widened their territory up into Canada and are now coming west. It’s a nice treat for us to have him here.
I wanted to include a photo from Friday that I hadn’t processed before my post this weekend. When I looked at it, I realized you can see the reflection of the bridge I was on in the owl’s eyes.
Maralee
Through My Lens 
I absolutely love these owl shots you’ve been getting! There must be something about some owls that makes them less afraid of humans. Last winter, several snowy owls showed up near where I live, out of their normal range. I had never seen one, so I made the trip to the place they had been spotted. On the way over, I was thinking to myself that it would probably be a waste of time, as I would I find one to photograph within the large area that they were being spotted in. When I got there, I found that it was too easy, there was a crowd of owl “paparazzi” there photographing one of them. He would sit there and “pose” for the group of photographers lined up for a chance to get a photo, it was a sight to see, much like your photo. Sorry about the length of this comment.
Thanks for your comment. I have never seen a snowy owl and would absolutely love to see one. The Audubon person who was at the park said there have been sightings at a park near the Columbia River here in Oregon. But that it a fair distance for me so I probably won’t make it over there. He said this owl is a young owl and for some reason doesn’t seem to be afraid of people or dogs. Now he just needs to find a mate. 🙂
Maybe it’s the young males that will pose, as the snowy owl was also a young male. And, I forgot to mention that the jays were lucky the owl was in a good mood. I have seen owls kill jays or crows that were harassing them.
I think this owl had just recently had a good meal so wasn’t particularly interested any anything else at that point.
The owl images are fabulous but I live the image of the owl paparazzi. Great work.
Thanks, Edith. It’s pretty funny to see how the crowd gathers when the owl is spotted.
The first blue jay and owl shot is beautiful. It is something how he stays where he is after all of the attention.
Thanks, Judy. There must have been at least a dozen blue jays harassing him and he just sat there.
Very nice shots.
speaking of talons . . .
Wow. That is amazing. I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of those talons.
Lovely photos Maralee… total winners, and throwing in the paparazzi was a good move, it just shows how many people have an interest in birds and their life…. but owls photograph so well and these are brilliant… love them…
Thanks, Rob. I’ve started taking more interest in photographing birds lately. I think your blog and this owl have contributed to this interest. 🙂
Great capture. Spectacular shots!
Thanks so much, Joyce.
Amazing and I love the last shot!!!!!
Thank you. I loved the way I could see the reflection in its eyes.
I love all of these, but the first one is just so wonderfully composed, and the blue of the jay is a wonderful contrast to the earthy tones of the owl.
“Owl paparazzi” – you slay me!
Thank’s Carissa. I think this is the most photographed single bird in the history of Oregon. 🙂
Your owl shots are amazing. I also love the last shot with the reflection.
BE ENCOURAGED! BE BLESSED!
great post, especially the last one, the portrait
an awesome blog you have here 🙂
Thank you so much. I’m happy you stopped by my blog. The owl was one of my favorite subjects for a while. But sadly, it was hit by a car and is no longer with us. It is one of the unfortunate things about having wildlife so close to populated areas.
that’s too sad to hear, but yeah.. that’s just what happens when wildlife and urbanity collide 😦