Snowy Owl In Rye
 

Not here on the Lake but I just had to share. I have been trying for years without success to capture images of a Snowy Owl. I have seen them in the past and they are usually so far off in the distance that they look like one of those little tiny marshmallows that you get in a packet of instant hot chocolate.

Today was different though and thanks to a tip from a friend that lives on the coast I finally got to see one up close and personal in some great natural habitat. This was very exciting for me.

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snowy owl
 

Excellent-beautiful-great shots. Thanks.

Unbelievable photos Airedale!

Just awesome!

Thanks for sharing them!!

Dan

Amazing shots. How close were you to the owl?

Between 50 and 75 feet for the static shots and about 30 yards for the in-flights.

Wow!
 

Thanks so much for sharing- those are beautiful photos!

Incredible Photos
 

Airedale, your photos are incredible, clear, sharp, just exquisite.

Thanks
IG

Thanks all. I think I just might go back again this weekend to see it again. Hopefully I will get a chance to see it capture a meal.

Beautiful
 

OMG. I am so jealous. My nickname is Bird Dork... I especially love the raptors. Look at those talons! What a beautiful creature and your photography is always spellbinding. Thank you

I did go back today and was able to get a shot of her up in a scrub pine. She was there for hours.

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h3...ps4xerungu.jpg

That would make a great Christmas card.

Snowy Owl Program on PBS
 

PBS Channel 11 will be airing a program on Snowy Owls on Wednesday evening. I believe it is at 9:00 PM. Have to check the time. Good chance to learn more about them.

Snowy Owl Program Time
 

The time of the PBS Nature program on Snowy Owls (Ch. 11) is at 8:00 PM on Wednesday, December 23.

I wonder if hes soft. Looks fluffy. Bet yet we all know that bird will scoop up something on a full sprint no problem. Awesome photos!

Amazing series Paul.. these need to be published! Bravo.. standing and clapping!

Thank you Steve. I will be making large (13" x 19") prints of # 1 and # 4.

On Christmas day my family and I were traveling to Newburyport, MA to celebrate Christmas with friends. On the way there we stopped in Rye to hopefully catch another glimpse of the Snowy. There were only a handful of hopeful bird watchers and photographers there and one of the bird watchers sadly informed us that the Snowy was gone and had been gone for several days.

We went on a day trip to the ocean today to visit with friends and to hopefully see the owl. We had a nice visit with our friends but the owl was not around. We talked to a woman playing with her dog in the state park and she said the owl isn't always around so maybe it hasn't moved on.

If you go out make sure to stop at Petey's which has really good seafood. They're a couple of miles up the coast from Rye Harbor. They're worth the trip even without the owl.

I ALWAYS stop at Petey's. We love it there!

North...to Canada?
 

Lacking an Edit button, I didn't get a chance to say what a photographic challenge it is to capture a bird in flight—and you've got two excellent ones! (I'm still working on getting a Loon in flight, or better yet, one landing).

Maybe that Snowy Owl flew north to get captured (in flight) on a Montréal traffic camera?

:look:

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Olive
 

Hi - AMAZING photos - will be purchasing!!

The snowy owl's name is Olive, and my understanding is she returns each year. We live in Portsmouth but lived on Rt. 1A across from the ocean in Rye for one winter. Olive attracts a lot of attention and generally hangs out down by the Rye State Park area. She's very interesting. And gorgeous!!

Thanks for posting. :):banana:

The Snowy was back in Rye yesterday. Caught her enjoying the last bit of sunshine on a rooftop.

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h3...ps50r8eyg5.jpg

Amazing..........