Great Gray Owl

[JayinMN]

Not the best picture but its a start to the "owl season" I found a pair of great grays tonight but they didn't really want their pictures taken. I saw one last weekend too. It should be another good winter for owl watching. I also saw two N. Hawk owls.

[ShawnZ]

I think you are the "owl whisperer", you seem to have an insight into where/when to find this species that few others have. I think the picture is very nice by the way.

[Steve Foss]

Hey Jay:

GGOs this early could mean an interesting year. Or it could just mean a couple sightings in the same area. Well, it's ALWAYS an interesting year when it comes to northern owls.

Time will tell.

[JayinMN]

Its the same birds, same areas. They certainly are not migrants so I do not want to get anyone's hopes up for a GGOs irruption. These birds I see off and on all year long. They just don't usually come out early enough for pictures. Also this GGO is not from the Sax-Zim bog. These are from another swamp over in Lake County, I don't know if that swamp has a name. I got pictures of a GGO in the same spot in July and have seen them there a few other times when its too dark to shoot. Now with the number of hawk owls being reported already, who knows, maybe we will have a lot of them coming down from Canada.

[wishing for walleyes]

Makes me wish i lived up north.Nice shot.

[finnbay]

I saw one a week ago on 21 between Ely and Babbitt.

[MN Shutterbug]

Just keep him around until I can get up there. I'm really counting on you to locate him for me. You failed me last year. Don't let it happen again.

[R. Miller]

Awesome!