There are not a lot of opportunities to spot an owl in the mountains. Any help from others is appreciated. Help for me often comes from wildlife, particularly from the birds. They are always helpful letting me know what else is going on. Just in the last few days, thanks to the birds like the robins, chickadees and juncos mobbing. I got to see a Barred Owl and a goshawk. The more you understand what is going on around you and what different calls mean. The more chances you have of seeing the uncommon.
For this picture, it was another day for birding, getting my camera ready before following the trail into the woods. I could hear magpies and crows calling out. By their calls, it sounded like they were mobbing a predator. Slowly and carefully, I moved closer until I could see an adult Great horned Owl. After a few minutes, the owl had enough, it tried to fly away from the other birds. In pursuit were the crows and magpies. Just then, I realized there were two adult Great-horned Owls. The second was out of my view at first, but when it flew after the first owl, I got to see it. It looked as if both owls had enough and wanted to get away. The calls of the crowns and magpies got fainter and fainter as the owls got farther and farther away from where I was still standing.
