Owl Photograph - Great Gray Owl Hunting At Sunset by Morris Finkelstein

Great Gray Owl Hunting At Sunset is a photograph by Morris Finkelstein which was uploaded on January 15th, 2018.

Great Gray Owl Hunting At Sunset

Great Gray Owls (Strix nebulosa) are fairly large measuring about 27 inches in length and about 2.4 pounds in weight; this species is the world's... more

by Morris Finkelstein

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Title

Great Gray Owl Hunting At Sunset

Artist

Morris Finkelstein

Medium

Photograph

Description

Great Gray Owls (Strix nebulosa) are fairly large measuring about 27 inches in length and about 2.4 pounds in weight; this species is the world's largest owl by length (but not in weight)! They are deceptively large due to their abundance of fluffy feathers, rather than muscle mass. They are widely distributed in North America, mostly in Canada and Alaska, and occasionally in the northern United States, northern Europe (Finland, Norway, Sweden, Russia, and Estonia) and northern Asia. This owl has a rounded gray face, yellow eyes, large facial discs, and a white collar below the beak. Their preferred breeding habitat is in dense coniferous and oak forests, adjacent to bogs or meadows. They prefer to hunt around dusk or dawn, or at night, relying on their very excellent sense of hearing, capturing prey as deep as 2 feet under the snow's surface. They feed almost exclusively on small mammals (mice, lemmings, and voles), and occasionally on grouse, quail, small hawks and ducks. Their biggest threats are from diminishing habitat, West Nile Virus, and motor vehicles. Because they are not as territorial as most other birds of prey, they are not easily flushed by humans or cars, and are difficult to spot in the field.

This Great Gray Owl hunting in a snow-covered agricultural field at sunset was photographed in Sax-Zim Bog on 1-8-2018. I used a Nikon D850 camera body and a Nikon 500mm f/4 VR2 lens to capture this image. Settings: 1/1600 sec, f/5.0, ISO 3200. Sax-Zim Bog is located in St. Louis County, Minnesota, about an hour north of Duluth, and comprised of over 300 square miles of state, county, and private forest and wildlife management lands. It is considered an Important Birding Area (IBA) because it is home to breeding Great Gray Owls, Northern Hawk Owls and Boreal Owls, as well as many other species of birds and animals.

I am honored that my photograph was featured in the Fine Art America groups:
FAA Portraits - Birds, 1-16-2018
Animal Photographs, 2-15-2018
Snow-Ice-Frost, 3-14-2018
Images That Excite You, 3-18-2018
Wild Birds Of The World, 3-19-2018
Midwest America Photography, 4-2-2018
Wildlife One-A-Day, 8-5-2018
Nikon Full Frame Cameras, 8-10-2018, 3-14-2018, 2-26-2018
FAA Portraits, 9-24-2019
10 Plus, 7-5-2020
Wonder Of Wings, 10-13-2020
Camera Art, 3-11-2021
Your Very Best Photography, 3-24-2021
The Outdoor Photographer, 9-11-2021
Big Sky Of Art, 9-26-2021
Birds In Focus, 11-4-2021

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