Most folks that attract birds to their yards are always hoping to add a new bird to their yard list.  Recently, my niece, Vicki, looked out her window and spotted a great horned owl perched atop a tractor-drawn rotary mower parked in her backyard.  Needless to say, she was startled. This was not a “new” backyard bird one would expect to see in most yards.

       However, the truth of the matter is there is a good chance that great horned owls have flown over or near your yard in the past.  One reason is they are now nesting closer to humans than ever before. As we continue to blanket the Georgia countryside with well development, great horned owls are now nesting in suburban backyards and with sight of high-rise apartment buildings in cities such as Atlanta. I have even seen a pair of great horned owls nesting high up in a pine growing on the grounds of the Cloister on Sea Island. Another reason why we do not often see them in our yards is great horned owls do the vast majority of their hunting under the shroud of darkness.  However, they will also hunt during the daylight hours too.     My niece and her husband, John, will probably never know why this owl was out and about on a sunny early winter day.  However, more than likely it was hunting.  Owls will typically hunt from a perch and swoop down on unsuspecting prey.  However, they will also walk across the ground in search of mice, voles or other small mammals.

       This particular bird stayed in my niece’s backyard for two to three hours. During this time, it moved from one piece of farm equipment to another.

       This was indeed a rare and wonderful wildlife encounter!