Barking Owl close up

Barking Owls are magnificent creatures.

Barking Owl (Ninox connivens)

I’d hoped to share some Dusky Swamphen chicks this week but my computer is still backing up my files. I’ve waited patiently but it hasn’t reached 2020 yet so I’ll save the chicks for another week and share this magnificent owl instead.

Barking Owls and boobooks are hawk-owls, they don’t have a heart-shaped facial disk. Barn Owls and Masked Owls are tyto-owls which do have heart-shaped facial disks. I love the details in the close-up including the beautiful colour of its eyes which seems subtly reflected in its bill. The eyelids have feathers that look similar to eyelashes, and perform the same protective function. Around its bill are rictal bristles which look quite hair-like but are stiff and very sensitive. These bristles are used when the owl is feeding itself or its chick when it needs to go by touch rather than sight, as their close-up vision is poor.

I took this close-up a while ago at Healesville Sanctuary. I can’t access the shutter speed information at the moment but it would have been fast, probably 1/2000th of a second as the owl was constantly turning its head and looking around.

Barking Owls eat insects as well as mid-sized mammals, reptiles and roosting birds. They live in many parts of Australia preferring woodlands with hollow-bearing eucalypts.

As I’m writing this post a dog has started barking on the far side of the creek, ‘woof-woof, woof-woof’ which is very similar to the Barking Owl’s call.


Happy birding, Kim

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~ Facebook page Kim Wormald – lirralirra
~ Facebook group  Ethical Bird Photography

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