Raptors at Our Farm

We have seen quite a few raptors here at our farm including owls, hawks and bald eagles and I wanted to share some of the pictures with you. Although its quite exciting to see these great predators, I do worry about my small animals; cat, dog and chickens. We’ve seen this great horned owl in a tree by our house several times. According to Wikipedia the great horned owl is the only owl known to have killed a human. Many cultures have a special place for owls in their storytelling. I’m told in both Native American and Irish cultures the great horned owl was considered a messenger of death or at least ill well but also associated with the medicine men/women. Other stories say that the great horned owl is associated with the soul of the dead. Perhaps it is one of my parents or my sister looking out for me. Owls in general are said to give energy, wisdom and bravery.

The barn owl we found in our driveway. It could not move its legs and so we put it in this cage and my son drove it to the owl rescue group. Unfortunately we do not know what became of it afterward. Other raptors we have seen include falcons and the red tailed hawk. We have also been visited by a blue heron.