Last night, while on a stroll along the shores of Lake McIntosh (a few blocks from my house in Longmont, Colorado) I came across a great horned owl who, for a few moments, put on a bit of a show. I regularly see owls around the lake at this time of night but normally they are barely discernible bulbous shadows high up in the trees, hooting into the darkness. I can rarely get closer than a hundred feet or so before they fly away.
This guy, however, was hanging out in the grass, directly under one of the street lights. Rather than fly away, he waddled his way closer (a hilarious sight). His behavior was so odd, so nonchalant, I thought he might be hurt until he flew to the top of the post you see in the picture above, posing for me for a good five minutes before finally flying off. In addition to the above pics, I compiled a YouTube video with clips of his antics.
