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| Barred Owl |
Paul took Brady home and came back for another look. He led us to the spot. By this time the nocturnal creature had settled in to sleep the day away. We were able to photograph it as minor intruders on the bird's schedule. We left it to its slumber.
Some time later a commotion rose in the forest to try the owl's equanimity.
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Cooper's Hawk |
Its presence was discovered by a competitor at the top of the local hunting order, a Cooper's Hawk. The Lord of the Day chattered with outrage.
The frustrated hawk sounded for all the world like a scolding squirrel, which is one of its favorite prey. Perhaps it had learned the alarm call from its victims. Then too, many taciturn species scream warnings and terror at mortal predicaments. Even rabbits and deer.
The Lord of the Night secured its ready talons to the branch and dozed unperturbed. Had the Lord of the Day achieved a territorial purpose or simply vented? It flew off to survey raptorial prospects in the brightening realm.
Your comment about normally quiet species screaming in emergencies reminded me of the unique experience I had about 10 years ago while solo backpacking in the High Sierras of California. In the middle of the night I was awoken by the pounding hooves of a herd of deer fleeing just outside my tent. Then, a little way off, I heard what sounded like a sheep bleating. At dawn I found many deer hoof prints around my tent and deduced that the bleating was that of a deer being killed by a mountain lion.
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