Great Gray Owl in the Moonlight
by Judi Dressler
Title
Great Gray Owl in the Moonlight
Artist
Judi Dressler
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
We had heard that there was a family of Great Gray Owls in Yellowstone NP, so we looked for them for hours. Nothing. Then, on impulse when it was already getting dark, we went back into the trees. And finally, amazingly, we saw one flying towards us, completely silent, a large beautiful ghostly owl... and then it was gone. No chance for a pic. We looked everywhere and found it again, but it kept flying away from us, landing, and flying again, but would not turn its head even once. "It's getting too dark, so you win", we said and turned back, and there we saw the moon, and below on a branch, sat a Great Gray!
In the stillness of a mountain meadow the elusive giant quietly floats on broad wings across meadows and openings in evergreen forests. Although the majestic Great Gray Owl is one of the tallest owls in the U.S., it’s just a ball of feathers -- both the Great Horned Owl and Snowy Owl weigh more, and they have larger feet and talons. The Great Gray Owl is distributed across the Northern Hemisphere, and is the only species in the genus Strix found in both Eastern and Western Hemispheres. Great Gray Owls mostly live in the boreal forest with small populations in western mountains, but in some years they move farther south in search of food, giving some a unique opportunity to see this majestic owl.
Photo taken on September 28, 2020, in Yellowstone National Park
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Won 2nd Place in FAA's JAN 2021 MIND-BLOWING GROUP AVATAR contest on 12/27/20
Won 3rd Place in FAA's 2020 Mind-blowing Group Avatar Image contest on 10/27/20
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Keywords and tags that describe this image include great gray owls, owls, great gray, moon, moonlight, pink sky, yellowstone, yellowstone national park, great grey owl, large owl, boreal, majestic, statuesque, beautiful, portrait, fall, autumn, branch, birds, wildlife, wild, aves, nature, perching, strix nebulosa, strigidae, strigiformes, judi dressler, and dressler.
Uploaded
October 5th, 2020
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Viewed 1,350 Times - Last Visitor from Fairfield, CT on 03/29/2024 at 9:55 AM
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Comments (65)
Spencer Bush
Wow, what a neat story and what an amazing image! All your perseverance paid off getting this amazing capture.
Bernadette Krupa
Congrats nomination this beautiful capture for Special Features in 1000 View Groups! L/F
Christopher James
One of your peers nominated this image in the 1000 views Groups Special Features Nominations For Promotion #23 . Please help your fellow artists by visiting and passing on the love to another artist in the the 1000 Views Group....L/F/Tw
Christopher James
Congratulation.....your wonderful work has been featured in the 1000 Views on 1 Image Group ..... Feel free to place your featured image in the Features Archive and any Genre specific Archive l/f/p
Murray Rudd
Congratulations on being featured in the FAA Group 'Raptors.' To ensure your feature remains available over time, post your featured image(s) in the Group's 'Thanks for the Feature / Image Archive.' l/f and p if you allow pinning (https://www.pinterest.ca/tendrelimages/raptors-at-fine-art-america/)
Bijan Pirnia
Congratulations, my dear Judi, on your second place honor in THE GROUP AVATAR CONTEST. Let's pop open a bottle of champagne, shall we. I have often thought that there is something special about owls and their gaze. When they're looking at you with those piercing eyes, it is as if they can see right through your soul or something.
Katie Keenan
Oohhhh this is fabulous! Loved the story of pursuing the perfect photo! You(and we, the viewers) were greatly rewarded!
Sarah Irland
Congratulations, Judi, for your win in the Jan. 2021 Group Avatar Contest for this beautiful image! What a wonderful capture!