Day 7 - A night with the Ural Owl

Owls are my absolute favorite bird to observe and taking images of. Therefore, I was really excited and looking forward for the last day of our trip. We met with Jarno, a very sympathetic local who owns a piece of land where Ural Owls are nesting in an old tree every year. Like with the bears it's highly recommended to watch and photograph owls during the evening and the night as this is the most active of these animals. The male is out for hunting while the female is taking care of the eggs or chicks. Jarno prepared a hide with chairs for us and explained how to behave to do not disturb the owls. Lemmings and mice are the main food source for owls but having regular cycles of population growth and decline. 2021 was not a good year for the owls as the population of mice and lemmings was quite low. Therewith, it's hard to find nesting owls as the chances for the chicks are quite low to survive. Nevertheless, this owl couple seemed to be experienced to handle the situation. The male stopped by several times to feed the female.

We spend most of the night in the hide and left for two hours only to take a nap back in the car. One of the best nights of my life.

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