My father and I drove up to see the Snowy Owl at Little Talbot Island State Park that was seen yesterday. It’s a beautiful bird! Apparently I saw one in Eureka, CA when I was a kid, but I don’t remember seeing it, so it’s not on my list. This is a lifer for me.
It was hanging out on the beach by a fallen palm tree, and then later it flew toward the water. It was windy and pouring down rain most of the time we were there, and even the shelters provided little relief from the rain with all the wind; my clothes were soaked, but it was worth it. We kept our distance from the owl, so these photos are pretty heavily cropped.
If you go to visit the owl, it’s pretty easy to find. Drive to the south parking lot and look for the birders. There’s a road that continues south past the parking lot. You can follow that road to where it turns toward the beach; when the road hits the sand, you should be able to have good views of the owl if it hasn’t moved. There’s really no need to approach the owl. Apparently before we arrived some birders were approaching the owl too closely, but while we were there everybody seemed well behaved. To my knowledge, this is only the 3rd sighting of a Snowy Owl in Florida.
Scott Simmons
Scott Simmons, based in Florida, is a lover of nature, landscape, and wildlife photography. Scott became interested in photography in 2001 when he was given his first SLR camera. When he acquired a telephoto lens, he became progressively more interested in birds and other wildlife. Scott enjoys learning about bird habitats and behavior, striving always to take images that are both beautiful and interpretive. Scott believes photography is a great vehicle to help others to appreciate the wonder for the stuff of earth.
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