A few days ago, as I walked through the neighborhood with my camera, I met someone who was biking. They told me that they recognized me from when I used to bike a lot through the neighborhood and then said that there was an owl up ahead. They decided to lean their bike on its kickstand and walk up to where the owl was with me.
When he pointed out where the owl was, I noticed that it was in the same spot that it had been the day before. While they tend to be very good about blending in, it was an easy place to see it. As I have said before, I have often walked past the owls just to hear them behind me.
The owl’s ability to blend in as well as it does and how silently it flies must help it with hunting. I remember that someone told me several months ago that they saw one of the owls perched in a tree close to the path with a mouse. It was too bad I wasn’t there to see the owl do its thing, but perhaps I will have a chance in the future to see one hunt.
Shortly after we saw the bird, he said that someone he had talked to previously said something about “Virginia gray owls” and that he had no idea what the person was talking about. I have never heard of an owl with a name like that. The birds that I always see around the neighborhood are barred owls. If you have not heard their call before, I would recommend looking it up. I always enjoy listening to them.