April 4, 2011

Views, Springs, and Owls

On our third day, we planned to do a loop ride.  We would thread our way through the two domes on the left in the photo above, where we would find Cowboy Cave.  The sky was cloudy but the views were fine as we set out. 
As we neared the cave after a 10 mile ride, the animals were ready for a drink.  Above, Daisy is standing on a precipice with a 500 foot sheer drop into a sandstone amphitheatre, where Steve suspected we would find a spring.  We looked down and saw water flowing.  All we had to do was find a way to reach it.  After rejecting a few scary burro trails, we finally found a trail made by some of the smarter, safety-minded burros.  We followed the smart trail and reached the bottom of the canyon without incident.
Ah, refreshing.
Even more refreshing.  The size of the pool and stream may not look like much to those of you from rainy climates, but this is a large spring for the Canyonlands area.
While exploring around the spring, Steve flushed a bird with an almost 2 foot wingspan. It conveniently landed in a pinyon within camera range. 
This Western Screech-Owl is no more than 9 inches in length and weighs only about 5 ounces. 
Owl feathers have a comb-like or fringe-like leading edge of their primary wing feathers. With a normal bird in flight, air rushes over the surface of the wing, creating turbulence, which makes a gushing noise. With an Owl's wing, the comb-like feather edge breaks down the turbulence into little groups called micro-turbulences. This effectively muffles the sound of the air rushing over the wing surface and allows the Owl to fly silently.  http://www.owlpages.com/articles.php?section=Owl+Physiology&title=Feathers
The Western Screech-Owl eats rodents and insects. 
And yes, it's unusual to see one in the daytime.

19 comments:

  1. the owl is so serious looking....what a great photo...Daisy is sure enjoying the cool down..

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  2. Loving that mud bath shot...and the owl is stunning. It almost looks unreal. Just beautiful!

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  3. Outstanding screech owl pic! "Silent Death," I think the mouse people call them. Desert hiking pics brought TSEliot, The Waste Land, V. What the Thunder Said to mind: "...And water, A spring, A pool among the rock, If there were the sound of water...but there is no water."

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  4. Dang, that looks steep, but worth the extra effort for safety to a delightful Daisy spring. Plus the owl, Wow, what a rare capture. Hope we get to Cowboy Cave soon. ;)

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  5. I'm glad you found a smart trail to spring -- Daisy obviously enjoyed it a great deal. Your picture of the screech owl is stunning.

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  6. Yeah, I bet your safe trail would scare the dickens out of most folks. Great picture of the owl. It looked like Daisy took full advantage of the spring.

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  7. I am amazed at how often you are able to locate creeks, springs or standing pools of water. I've seen a lot of desert in my years and very little water. But I have seen more water than I have owls. Wow! Great shot. One day I hope to get a picture of one, but I have to find it first.

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  8. Hi Janie, Daisy looks like she is really enjoying that water!!!!!!

    LOVE the Owl... Awesome!!!
    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  9. Oh! The owl is so cool! And Daisy is quite the brave dog. Those canyons drop off crazy-steep!

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  10. That Owl is a cutie! The only time I've seen a Screech Owl was in a nesting box at Lake Matamuskeet near our coast. Wherever I've lived there's been Barred Owls instead.

    Oh criminy I'd have hated being on that trail. lol Those drop-offs would have been too much for me.

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  11. Any water is welcome when thirst is great. It looks very clean, too.
    That little owl has a big wingspan!

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  12. Any water is welcome when thirst is great. It looks very clean, too.
    That little owl has a big wingspan!

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  13. We met Esther in Taipei, hope things will work out for her and her family.

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  14. great ride, and the owl was a great bonus :)

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  15. Beautiful blog. Love all the pictures!
    Cruise Picture

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  16. The photo of Daisy up on the big 'drop' made my heart skip a beat!
    I LOVE owls and this one is gorgeous.

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  17. I love the photo of Daisy in the water. That was a mighty thoughtful owl to land where you could get a good shot of it.

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