Backyard Birder: The Barred Owl - an unusual backyard bird

J V O Weaver and his wife Sharon have homes in Niceville and in Miami and split their time between the two. Their two backyards are both diverse and attract different species. When they aren't birding in their backyards they like to visit our trail sites. The Weaver's love photography and it shows in their pictures. Stay tuned for more backyard birding adventures from J V O and Sharon.

My wife, Sharon, was looking out a window on our back porch last February, at our beautiful backyard.  It abuts an “Environmentally Protected Area” also known as “the swamp’.   The swamp is home to a myriad of critters: we’ve seen fox, bobcat, opossum, thousands of squirrels and heard the bellows of a gator or two.  I heard Sharon shout for me to “grab the camera, you’ve gotta see this!”

Perched in a giant tree was an unusual daytime visitor.



Copyright J V O Weaver


I grabbed a Nikon with a 300mm lens and set it all up on a tripod and began shooting through the window.  Our visitor looked at us and the camera and didn’t seem to mind a bit.  He just sat there as if he owned the place.



Copyright J V O Weaver




Copyright J V O Weaver





After a while, I decided I’d try my luck at shooting the owl without a window glass between us.

I went out the front door and very quietly, I circled the house and walked closer to the owl.  He just sat there.  I moved closer, set up the tripod and held my breath that the owl wouldn’t bolt.  He just sat there.  And I started shooting.  I bracket my shots.  I changed f-stops and shutter speeds.  After a hundred or so exposures I moved even closer.

Copyright J V O Weaver

Eventually, the owl decided to move to another tree.  It was now getting dark so I added a flash to get one last shot.  That one did it.  The owl left and as far as I know, he’s never been back.



copyright J V O Weaver