Owl in the Twilight

Short-eared Owl in the South Dakota twilight

I drive through the Fort Pierre National Grasslands nearly every evening at twilight. This winter I have been seeing Short-eared Owls hunting on the grasslands almost every night. Sometimes I see an owl perched on a fencepost, but most of the time the owl will fly from its post when I stop my car. Every once in a while, however, I get lucky and the owl will stay put while I snap its picture. I found this cooperative Short-eared Owl earlier this week.