I was walking out of the park around 8 p.m. this evening via The Pond at 59th Street. Looking out on the ice, I saw a group of Mallards sleeping on the ice, when one of the ducks caught my eye. It was one of the two Wood Ducks that have been hanging out on The Pond this winter.
The three Long-eared Owls are continuing to roost in Central Park. Tonight after a very warm day, high winds at dusk made owl watching and photography difficult. Most of my exposures at fly out are about half a second long, so I had blurry picture after blurry picture! Lucky some made the cut.
After Lola disappeared in December, a fairly dark female appeared on the scene. After a few weeks, this relationship didn’t work out and she left the park.
Pale Male now has a second “girlfriend”. They seem to be much more of a couple and I wouldn’t be surprised if she becomes the permanent mate.
A group of four owls was found rousting in an Austrian Pine on Cherry Hill on Saturday morning. When I arrived in the afternoon, only three were visible.
A squirrel decided to harass the owls, soon after I arrived. It broke off small branches with pine needles and dropped them on the owls. Eventually, the squirrel got two owls to move to other trees. One to a tree in the open, and one to another nearby pine tree.
News of these owls has spread, so I’m posting these pictures. If you go see these owls, remember that they are day sleepers with very good hearing. Let them get some shut eye, if you visit them.
I was looking for owls Friday night in the north of Central Park. The hunt was unsuccessful but I did get to watch the activity that occurs after darkness falls.
Around the Loch and The Pool this means Raccoons and Rats coming out for the night, and ducks figuring out where to sleep for the night.
What surprised me this evening was a Great Blue Heron that flew in fifteen minutes after dark. While each winter, a sighting of a Great Blue Heron in The Loch, especially when most surounding water bodies are frozen isn’t unusual, it always surprises me.
I went looking for Pale Male’s second “girlfriend” of the winter, but missed her each afternoon this weekend. My understanding is she’s much easier to find in the morning!
Here are some shots of Pale Male in the rain on Saturday.
