Short-eared Owl at Trestle Bay

Short-eared Owl

Took a drive out to view the surf from the South Jetty of the Columbia River today.  It was windy, kind of cold, and basically birdless.  But driving back past Trestle Bay, I stopped to glass a Red-breasted Merganser drake way out in the bay.   A funny looking bush in the foreground tempted a closer look, and turned into this sweet find -- I haven't seen a Short-eared Owl out at Fort Stevens since October 21, 2005.

• Short-eared Owls are highly migratory (for owls), traveling up to 2000 km one-way. Breeding is in Canada, winter grounds tend to be the southern US, though we get them along the coast here occasionally
• They are perfectly adapted to hunting grasslands and marshy areas - tawny color, streaked breast feathers, and a hovering technique before dropping on prey.
• More information about Short-eared Owls can be found at The Owl Pages 

photos were digi-scoped w/ Olympus C5050 zoom
& Swift Audubon 8.5x44 binoculars

Short-eared Owl habitat (can you see the bird?)