Owls are beautiful birds. I have been fortunate to see some close up thanks to visiting various bird sanctuaries. However, seeing owls in the wild is more tricky, as they are well camouflaged in trees or grassland and many only fly during the darker hours of the day.

I particularly enjoyed the Owl Experience at a bird sanctuary in mid-December 2021 where I got to look at some owls while they used my arm as a perch. Coincidentally, the Dee Estuary¹ then played host to a wild owl experience in late-December/early-January. A veritable flock of Short Eared Owls arrived, and they were joined by a Barn Owl. The sight of them all swooping around looking for food just before sunset was amazing.

The owls did have some trouble, even though the estuary marsh provided them with good food. One Short Eared Owl got into a fight with a crow, and some birdwatchers were rather inconsiderate, walking out into the marsh in an attempt to get better photographs but disturbing the owls and their prey in the process. However, announcements on the internet improved people's behaviour so the owls were troubled less on subsequent days. The views from the official viewing area were perfectly good, so I was very pleased with the photographs I took.

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