The appetite of these new owlets is ever growing and the parents are constantly on the go 24/7, just to try and quell the demands. The unrelenting screeching and open beaks is just incredible. Foraging along the old and decaying fence the male parent scours for any morsel of food to drop into the open mouth of number one chick. This was about three weeks ago and so have fledged, but still close by until they are driven out by the parents. Just love the 'clam shell' eye lids of the youngsters.
Thanks to those who viewed & commented.
Steve
Subject: Little owlet demanding to be fed (Athene noctua)
Location: UK
Camera: Canon 1DX
Lens: 200-400f/4 Gitzo tripod/Uniqball head
Exposure: 1/1000s at f/5.6 ISO800
Original format: Landscape
Steve you look like you have lost a bit of dof on the young one but I do think the fact that the viewer is drawn to it's cute face with the closed eyes makes up for that, keep showing us more of these cracking shots.
Very cool Steve. Looks like you and I have the same kind of situation going with our owl families. My guys screeched and begged at this stage continually until they started figuring out how to hunt on their own.
In my group the dad is almost the sole provider. Is this the same as yours? The shot looks great and I always like the closed eyes on these guys. Your techs look perfect too. Nice fun frame.
Thanks folks, certainly it's great to build the respect with the subjects, as over time they allow you into their world, although still using long lenses to give them their comfort, space and overall, respect.
I know what you mean David, you can hear the owlets once they settle down, creating that 'hissing' sound and once the parents arrive, the noise is full on. Agree, it does seem that the male is the main provider, but both will sit on the nest. Is the female slightly bigger with your species too, she certainly has that killer stare? I originally thought part of the ID was that she was much darker in colour, comparing the two there is a huge difference, however I'm envious of you flight shots and good light too. Just hope the Snowies come back next year, and that they don't all stay with Daniel, LOL.
That's the same with my Burrowing owls, the male is much lighter than the female although the sexual dimorphism isnt as prominent as other raptors that I have dealt with.
I actually learned something new here on BPN a while ago that made sense. The male is lighter because he stands out of the burrow looking for danger for most of the day compared to the female and therefore gets sun bleached and is overall lighter. Not sure if that analogy works for your owls but it makes perfect sense for mine. Have fun!
This is lovely, Steve. My eyes are instantly drawn to the little demanding fellow, this is probably the cutest (behavioral) shot of owls I have seen from you lately.
Wish this image had sound, although I am trying to imagine that "hissing" you are describing.
Thank you for all the info on these little guys, I adore them!
Demanding offspring
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