Great Gray Owl Facing Forward on Bare Branch

A great gray owl sits upright on a thin, bare branch and looks straight at the camera. Its small yellow eyes stand out against a round face marked with pale concentric rings and a white bow-tie patch below the beak. The plumage is a soft mix of grey, white and charcoal streaks, and it blends with the pale trunk at the left edge and the tangle of leafless twigs around it. Behind the bird, the dark green background is out of focus. The light is muted and even, and the mood is calm and watchful.

The great gray owl (Strix nebulosa) is one of the largest owls in North America by length, though much of its bulk is feathers. It lives in boreal and mountain forests and often hunts at dusk and dawn. It finds voles and other small prey by hearing, even under snow. This photo was recorded in Thompson-Nicola, British Columbia, in October, when the trees had already lost their leaves. The centred subject and dark, quiet background suit a widescreen monitor, where the owl sits well behind desktop icons, and the landscape format also works on a laptop.

More like this: Snowy Owl Resting Among Gray Riprap Stones.