Photo of the Week - Sleeping Eastern Screech-Owl

Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina

This little owl was an unexpected discovery during our Christmas jaunt. One of the shuttle bus drivers for Biltmore inn guests happened to mention that “Screech” had been spotted on Christmas day, after a long absence. She pointed out his tree perch to us as we drove past along one of the estate roads. Of course, we had to later retrieve my car from the parking lot and go back for a photo shoot later! We could only venture as close as 20-25 feet from the nesting tree because a large stream separated us. 

Owls hunt for food at night, so they catch their beauty sleep during the day. I noticed this little one changing its expression slightly now and then, but it never opened up its big yellow eyes. There are several different colors of the eastern screech-owl, and this one is regarded as a “red morph” variety. Screech-owls are small, and this one was about 8 inches tall.

HERE is a link if you want to learn more about these cute little owls.

And, I have an added treat for you today – a poorly shot video of Screech. I haven’t a clue how to execute a proper video with my new camera, and the autofocus function failed me miserably. The video is also sadly lacking action. But you get to hear me prattle on like an idiot in my (adopted) southern drawl. Before I started the video, I told Screech that I would feature him on my blog. That announcement didn’t elicit any kind of response. But, the little owl provided some eye flutters in the final seconds of the video after I sweetly asked it to say hello. How cute is that?

I will safely stick to doing simple photography and forget about any notions about learning videography, LOL.