My Morning Owl Buddy



Short-eared Owl



Nearly every morning just after dawn I am greeted by a Short-eared Owl fifteen miles south of Fort Pierre along U.S. Highway 83. Sometimes the owl is perched on a fence post like in this photo taken earlier this week. At other times I observe the owl flying over the fields west of the highway, hunting for small rodents. Large numbers of Short-eared Owls spend the winter hunting in that area of the Fort Pierre National Grasslands. It is nice to see that there is at least one remaining there into the summer months. That could mean they are nesting out there somewhere. Do you suppose I will be seeing some juvenile owls on fence posts soon?