I don't believe I have ever actually seen an owl, but I have definitely heard them out my window at night.  A few years ago, a snowy owl was in my neighborhood for a little bit but I never got the chance to see it.  I will be sure to jump on that opportunity if one ever comes back now that I know how cool they are!

I’ve heard barred owls in our Northwest yard and seen them with young at a nearby nature reserve. They can be pretty aggressive. One dive-bombed my son when he was out jogging one evening. Other owls I’ve been fortunate enough to see are barn owl, short-eared owl, long-eared owl, great horned owl, and western screech owl.  I saw burrowing owls while birding with my folks in Tucson. They’re adorable! As the video mentioned, snowy owls come south every so often, and it’s so exciting when they do! Since we don’t get much snow here, they’re easy to spot.

I have had the opportunity to observe owls in captivity at the John James Audubon Center in Audubon, PA. There, I encountered a Great Horned Owl, a barred owl, and three Eastern Screech Owls (two reddish-brown and one gray).   Additionally, I have identified two Great Horned Owls communicating in my own backyard during the early hours, around 3:00 AM. This area, with its golf course and farmland, offers a unique habitat for these majestic birds. It is truly encouraging to know that the Audubon Society is providing care for these rescued owls and that they serve as Bird Ambassadors, helping the community learn more about these fascinating creatures.

I may have seen an owl not in an animal sanctuary, but my closest encounter was that I heard one, right outside my house as it was getting dark.  I went out to see it but the area has multiple large trees and I could not see it, though it sounded very close.  A few days later I found a skeleton of a rabbit in that area of my yard and I suspect he was hunting or had just caught the rabbit.  The call was something like hoot hoot hoo.  I listened to different owl calls but I couldn't quite figure out which one it was.

I see Barred Owls on a pretty regular basis around my studio. When it was being built 7 years ago the workman would often find it perched on the roof beams, several times leaving owl pellets. The Barred is clearly my studio’s familiar. Within the past month I have had him/her fly right in front of me, landing in a tree then watching me. A great Horned Owl also visits my studio.  He will visit in the fall hooting around dusk. This picture was taken October 5 at 1:30 pm. I live in northern Michigan on 27 wooded acres

I have seen: Great Horned Owl (Guyana) ,Spectacled Owl (Guyana),Black Banded Owl (Guyana), Burrowing Owl (Guyana), Ferruginous Pygmy Owl (Guyana) and Snowy Owl (Manitoba, Canada)

Yes. We have seen snowy owls in Winnipeg.   We also had what we thought was a screech owl in a bird house in Winnipeg.   We were able to participate in an owl banding project at Scanlon Creek near Bradford, Ontario many years ago.   The biologist was catching Northern Saw-whet owls.

I've seen a trio of juvenile Barred owls while camping.  I've seen two juvenile Barred owls in the tree outside my bedroom window.  In both instances they were having a good time calling back and forth to each other.  They also didn't seem to care when I shined my flashlight on them to watch them.  They didn't really seem to care how close I came to them either.  The pair outside my window hung out for about 3 nights then they left.  It was awesome to see them so close up.

Yes!  It was one of the most exciting sightings I’ve ever had.  I caught a glimpse of a Snowy Owl as I was driving through open farmland.  I was so surprised that I nearly drove into the ditch.   I’m in Northern California and we just don’t expect to see them here.  It was February 2017 and a particularly cold, wet winter.  It must have been following its food sources.   I was very appreciative that it waited just long enough for me to snap it’s picture.  As I’d drive in that area daily, I watched for it for days and weeks later but never saw it  again.   This was near Delevan, Colusa County, California.

I have seen Barn Owls and Great Horned Owls in zoos, but sadly I have never seen one in the wild. I have always wanted to! I hope this course will give me some tips for seeing an owl out in the wild.

I believe I heard 2 northern pygmy owls while running this morning.  I am looking forward to going out for a walk to see if I can spot them.

Yes I have! I have seen a Barred Owl and Great Horned Owl in the wild. I, of course, have seen other owls in zoos/captivity. Both have been featured in this course as we've seen, and both are magnificent birds in my opinion. I love the haunting look of the eyes and facial disc of the Barred Owl, and the intense, determined look in the yellow eyes of the Great Horned Owl. I have seen these birds in the park reserves near my home in Anoka, MN and my parents' house in Maple Grove, MN, as well as on the trails along the highway. Additionally, I believe we occasionally get a pair of owls right outside our bedroom window at night. This Barred Owl I spotted while on a walk on a trail adjacent to the highway and happened to turn its head right when I looked up!

I have seen a few Great Horned Owls around my neighborhood of Oak Creek, Colorado! I have seen one at a time, but have heard two calling to each other. I don't consistently hear or see them, however, when I do it is always a treat! Especially when I witness one in flight. Their silence during flight is something to marvel at.

I was lucky enough to see 2 Great-horned Owls and 2 Barn Owls while I was paddle boarding in Northern Utah last weekend.  The alarm calls of mobbing robins and chickadees alerted me to the presence of the first owl, an adult Great-horned,  concealed deep in a juniper tree about 4 feet off the ground.  A little further downstream I spotted a strange large pale shape in another juniper tree.  It looked like a plastic bag, but it was another Great-horned owl.  This time a fledgling.  It stretched its neck up and bobbed its head around to get a better look at me and then flew off.  When I paddled back upstream 2 hours later I could still hear the chickadees and robins mobbing.  I was looking around for the fledgling, but saw a different owl in the same area, an adult Barn Owl.  It too flew off after watching me and then I spotted a second Barn Owl.  The original adult Great-horned was still in the same tree getting mobbed.  It seemed like maybe it was drawing fire for the other owls as the little birds didn't pay any attention to them.  I have never gotten such good looks at Barn Owls.  Felt like I was as Hogwarts!

I live in central Texas in the United States. We have four types of owls in our immediate area: Great Horned (probably the most common), Barn, Barred and Eastern Screech.  I heard a Great Horned Owl while birding yesterday in a wetland park. Here is a photo of a Barred Owl I took at that same park several years ago.

I had a Great Horned Owl perch regularly on a dead tree at the opening of a bamboo cluster.  It was a regular visitor for about 5 years.  I would stand near the dead tree and we would just look at each other.  How lucky was I. The bamboo had to be removed and the owl moved on.  I still hear the call of a Great Horned Owl in the woods behind my house and sometimes see a big owl glide thru the trees.  Maybe the owl still lives near me.

I saw a snowy owl in the Meadowlands in NJ one winter (must have been an irruption year). Other than that, I saw a Great Horned Owl at a Rehabilitation facility, and some Owls from Temple University in Philadelphia (Temple's mascot = an owl).

Yes! I've seen Barn Owls, Great-horned, and Ferruginous Pygmy Owls :)

Great Horned Owls, Eastern Screach Owl & Snowy Owl

Yes ! Whenever I am leading a birding tours, I always go for owling even during a daylight. That is one of my productive way of birding and no wonder owls are fascinating creatures. This picture of African Scops-owl (Otus senegalensis) was digi scoped with my cellphone down in Rift Valley part of Ethiopia in the daylight.

2/21/24 2:39 pmWhen I was preteen some birder friends with large acreage would show us various birds when we visited them. Once Harry showed us a fairly developed owlet that he took from the nest and then replaced. He was wearing heavy leather gloves. About five years ago our family was visiting in Edinburgh, Scotland, where naturalists had two rescued owls outside of a Scottish National Heritage shop. For five pounds you could hold the largest European owl (Great Grey, maybe). I was able to stroke its breast feathers - so soft! And had my picture taken with it, a highlight of my trip. It was both educational & a fund raiser for the bird group. In Seattle, where I currently live I have seen Barn Owls once in one park and fairly large owlets in another park.  When I lived in Spokane, WA, a friend called me about a barred owl that had caught a squirrel in a nearby park and was enjoying it's meal, mid-afternoon, in a tree in her front yard.  The tale of the squirel can be seen arcing to the left of the owl.

When I was preteen some birder friends with large acreage would show us various birds when we visited them. Once Harry showed os a fairly developed owlet that he took from the nest and replaced. He was wearing heavy leather gloves. About five years ago our family was visiting in Edinburgh Scotland where naturalists had two rescued owls outside of a Scottish National Heritage shop. For five pounds you could hold the largest European owl (Great Grey, maybe). I was able to stroke its breast feathers - so soft! And had my picture taken with it, a highlight of my trip. It was both educational & a fund raiser for the bird group.

I got to see a Snowy Owl in the wild in Kaktovik, Alaska. I didn't get a good photo of it but it was thrilling to know I saw one.

I saw several great grey owls one winter a couple years ago when they came out of the boreal forest into the more open wooded areas in central Saskatchewan. That was on a nature society field trip. I also saw a great grey perched on a fence pole with a small mammal in his mouth in late summer in Alberta. Completely by chance. What luck! I even happened to have my camera with me and I watched him swallow that mammal through the zoom lens, while also getting a couple photos. Amazing! The person who lived there said there was a family raising young on the property. I came upon a great horned owl perched on a branch during the day one summer. I saw a few northern saw whet owls when I visited a banding station in Saskatchewan. So adorable!