Wednesday, March 8, 2023

Spotted Owlet

This is a young one of a spotted owlet and he is busy having a good look at the world outside.
The parents are sitting on the opposite branch and one of them keeps a constant watch on the little one.
When one is awake, the other one is asleep (almost)
Spotted this family in Wanowrie and the hole in the big tree was a perfect natural nest for them
If you wait long enough you can see how the young one keeps changing its position in the nest
While its common name is self-explanatory, it is interesting to note that the scientific name of this small owl, Athene brama, has been derived from two divine, mythological figures: a Greek goddess and a Hindu god. In Greek mythology, Athene (or Athena) is known as the goddess of wisdom, war, and liberal arts; and the goddess holds a special bond with the bird. Brahma is a supreme Hindu god, who holds the honorary position of being the Creator.
Although listed as ‘Least Concern’ (LC) in the IUCN Red List, it is important to understand how rapid tree-felling significantly impacts this species.  Loss of trees means the loss of tree cavities for owlets.
Owls cannot move their eyes, therefore, they have to move their entire head to look around and can turn their head 180 degrees. This is possible because owls have an extra vertebra in their spine. 
I am glad we have such huge trees and hope  we humans have the good sense of not cutting down these huge trees as many birds and micro organisms depend on them and help in sustaining life on this earth. Have captured a part of their moment and compiled it into a video.
Last month I was lucky to spot the nest of a pair of the Woolly necked stork.
This was a first time for me as I had never seen them before. My camera was running when the second bird landed in the nest. 
Inspite of their size, this Is one of the least studied species of the birds in the world.
Unlike human beings, their eyelids move from front to back and they do a lot of blinking.
Here too I got some good footage and made it into a video It was nice to see them flying gracefully.

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Lovely & very informative!

Anonymous said...

Brilliant effort - Shridhar Hirlekar

DUTA said...

Quite fascinating to see the holes in the tree that serve as nests to the cute little owlets!
Your photos and videos are as usual clearly supporting the narrative.

Anonymous said...

Dear Joe,
Very good information. Good photography! Thanks for sharing. - Sunil Dahake

Ed said...

I think patience must be a virtue of yours in order to get such nice pictures!

The bike shed said...

Owls are fascinating birds. Contrary to common belief they hunt mainly by audio rather than sight - the large eye feather areas acting as sound dishes for hidden ears. WE have some barn owls near us in Wales but they are, sadly, getting very sparse.

Anonymous said...

Hi Joe... Indeed this is good information. Good photography! Thanks for sharing

Anonymous said...

Hi Joe, this is Jennifer. Very informative and lovely. Thanks.

Liz A. said...

You got some great shots of those birds. It's sad what we humans are doing to their habitats.

Betty said...

Hi haddock this is a great post, I love owls... am on holiday in kerala..
Will watch the videos when home :)

Penelope Notes said...

What a cozy nest for the little owlet and you provide such interesting informative commentary and videos. Thank you for sharing your world!

baili said...

This is really beautiful blog full of wonderful gifts of nature
I am in love with birds madly therefore enjoyed the intriguing information and lovely photos of owl and that amazing Huge bird.

You are incredibly lucky to have such majestic beauties around wow.

Massive thanks for making my day and thanks for the kind visit and words as well.
Blessings

Anonymous said...

Dear Joe, Nice photos.
Came to know many things.
Very informative.
Thanks
R P Madiwale

Jenn Jilks said...

Great seeing your owls. I haven't seen one in months.

Red Rose Alley said...

These are wonderful photos of the birds. I especially like the Owl ones. I've always wanted to see an Owl in person. They are such extraordinary birds. That tree is the perfect place for the baby Owl to have shelter.

~Sheri

Sharmila said...

Wanworie is probably the only place right now in Pune where we still have some trees left. Lovely photos Joe.

Anonymous said...

Well presented blog of God's gift - the nature. You must have lot of patience my friend to capture those beautiful moments!!

Divers and Sundry said...

You got great photos of the owl! We do have owls here, but they aren't this kind and we rarely see them. I've never seen babies. Cool!

Lady M said...

This is cool - I am not to familiar with the birds of the Indian subcontinent.