Bare-legged Owl

[Bill Dix]

Also known as the Cuban Screech-Owl, an endemic species in Cuba. This guy emerged wing-first from his hollow palm tree, with head covered in a classic villian pose. Then he dropped his wing to expose those remarkable brown eyes. A treat to see. Adjusted shadows and highlights, and smoothed the bg a bit.

D7000, 80-400 VR @ 400mm, ISO 1600, 1/800s @ f/7.1, HH

[Roland Aalto]

What a beauty Bill...

[Miguel Palaviccini]

Never seen eyes quite like that before. Looks like you were in for a treat and were able to capture it very well.

Did you happen to get any shots of him outside of the tree?

[Bill Dix]

Never seen eyes quite like that before. Looks like you were in for a treat and were able to capture it very well.

Did you happen to get any shots of him outside of the tree?

Thanks Miguel. No, I just got several versions of this pose; this had the best HA and wing position.

[Jim Crosswell]

I like the eyes, composition, home and BG. Looks like you had a great trip. Well done Bill!

[Sanjeev Aurangabadkar]

Amazing looking bird Bill. You were lucky to get this! Well done & TFS.

[Diane Miller]

Wonderful capture!!

What would you think about taking a little off the top, and also the bottom (although less there).

[David Salem]

Wow, talk about nocturnal eyes. Bet he can see really well in the dark. Cool capture of a rarely seen species. Well seen and captured.

[Satish Ranadive]

Excellent image Bill Sir.Seeing for the first time.Owl has eye like bats. Very nice pose,exposure,lights and composition. TFS.

Regards,
Satish.

[Jamie Douglas]

Cool image Bill and cheers for sharing this as I haven't come across this species before.

[Bill Dix]

Thanks everyone.