Another Great Horned Owl Waits For Darkness

A great horned owl waits for darkness.
Great Horned Owl, Point Reyes National Seashore

It’s mid-day and this adult great horned owl has hours to wait until darkness.  In summer their hunting hours are much shorter than in winter, although they are busiest just after sunset and just before sunrise regardless of season.   They prey on whatever is available.  Hans Peeters, author of Field Guide to Owls of California and the West, states (page 191) that they have been known to even prey on house cats, bald eagles and canada geese.  Bald eagles?  Bald eagles weigh about 10 pounds.  Great horned owls only weigh about three pounds.  I wonder what they’d take if they weighed as much as an eagle?

Great Horned Owl Waits for Darkness

Photo of great horned owl perched in tree.
Great Horned Owl, Point Reyes National Seashore

This owl was in a tree next to the road to Point Reyes Lighthouse.  Point Reyes National Seashore has a healthy population of great horned owls.   The ranching portion of Point Reyes is mainly made up of grazing lands.  These lands have a fairly high population of gophers and other rodents.  They are also punctuated by stands of mature trees.  Find a stand of mature trees and you’ll find a pair of great horned owls.