Perhaps my final posting for a while of this most accommodating Screech Owl. This Screech has been photographed and photos of it posted by many over the past six weeks or so. It conveniently resides close to a main trail in a public park very close to my home. Lucky you, you say. Well actually it is not usually this easy. Following is the other extreme.

For quite a few years, a few of us had been looking to find and photograph a Screech Owl, to no avail. Then three years ago, we heard of one roosting regularly in a tree in someone's front yard. The only problem was, it was 4.5 hours drive from Ottawa. As we were getting desperate, we decided to make a day of it and check it out as we had yet to see and photograph our first Screech. When we got to our destination, the Owner of the house told us that regretfully, the Owl was not in its customary roost hole and that if it wasn't there by 8:00 AM, it probably wouldn't be there all day. What a BUMMER, but the Owner and his wife were super nice and treated us to coffee and goodies. Then back home we went. Nine hours of driving for a cup of coffee and goodies.

The Owner had offered to call us the next time the Owl was there. This he did the next day. Only one of us was able to go that day (not me) and he did get some good shots.

About a month later, we found two Screech Owls close to home in the same woods were the current one resides. This may be one of them or an offspring. So, sometimes you win and sometimes you lose.