{"id":46408,"date":"2017-04-21T05:47:29","date_gmt":"2017-04-21T11:47:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=46408"},"modified":"2025-10-14T14:17:20","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T19:17:20","slug":"side-lit-male-burrowing-owl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/04\/21\/side-lit-male-burrowing-owl\/","title":{"rendered":"Side Lit Male Burrowing Owl – Early Morning Light And Wildflowers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"SideSide lit male Burrowing Owl in wildflowers – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/320, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

I saw several burrows with mated pairs of Burrowing Owls at their entrances two days ago up in northern Utah.<\/p>\n

That excites me because there should be young owls before too long and I really hope they have a successful year for raising their broods.<\/p>\n

Some of the burrows are quite a distance from the road but a few are close enough that with my long lens I am able to obtain images of the owls that do not require much or any cropping of the original frame.<\/p>\n

Western Burrowing Owl<\/span><\/a> populations are declining and in Utah they are listed as a Species of Concern. Part of the reason they are in decline is habitat destruction.<\/p>\n

Burrowing Owls lay between 2 to 12 eggs which are incubated solely by the female and hatch in 21 to 30 days.<\/p>\n

The young owls usually emerge from the burrows at about two weeks of age to wait at the entrance for the adults to bring them food.<\/p>\n

At about four weeks of age they can take short flights and by 6 weeks of age they fly very well.<\/p>\n

I’ve watched this burrow for several years now. Although in the morning this burrow doesn’t get the best angle of light, I still enjoy seeing the adult owls at the entrance and later in the year the owlets learning how to use their wings and play with each other.<\/p>\n

Two mornings ago I photographed the side lit male Burrowing Owl with wildflowers in the background. With all the rain we have been having, it won’t be long before the vegetation completely obscures the burrow and the owls.<\/p>\n

One year this burrow was basically a hill of dirt then the next year there were just grasses at the entrance, another year there was some type of non-blooming weeds and this year these wildflowers appeared.<\/p>\n

I am not certain what the wildflowers are in this photo but next time I am up there I am going to to photograph the flowers and will try to identify them.<\/p>\n

This burrow has produced quite a few young owls while I have watched it. I am glad that this burrow is on fenced private property because I believe that has stopped people from walking up to and onto the burrow and may have prevented people from getting close enough to harass the owls.<\/p>\n

Sometimes fences, even devil wire, protect the birds from humans.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to view more of my Burrowing Owl photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two mornings ago I photographed the side lit male Burrowing Owl with wildflowers in the background but with all the rain we have been having it won’t be long before the vegetation completely obscures the burrow and the owls.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":160393,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,1148,52,26],"tags":[55,2663,4214,4098,4062,3967,294,4353,11852,4342,165,4307],"class_list":["post-46408","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-box-elder-county-utah","category-burrowing-owls","category-utah","tag-athene-cunicularia","tag-birds-of-prey","tag-burrowing-owl","tag-desert","tag-male","tag-owl","tag-owls","tag-owls-of-utah","tag-ranchlands","tag-side-lit","tag-spring","tag-wildflowers"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-male-wildflowers-mia-mcpherson-0043.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-c4w","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":46227,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/04\/14\/burrowing-owls-with-wildflowers-on-a-windy-day\/","url_meta":{"origin":46408,"position":0},"title":"Burrowing Owls With Wildflowers On A Windy Day","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 14, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"It was challenging to photograph these Burrowing Owls and wildflowers yesterday in the windy conditions but I am glad I had the opportunity because the wildflowers won't last all that long.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Burrowing Owl kicking up sand in a stiff wind, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-wildflowers-mia-mcpherson-8233.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-wildflowers-mia-mcpherson-8233.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-wildflowers-mia-mcpherson-8233.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-wildflowers-mia-mcpherson-8233.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":98321,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/12\/20\/aba-bird-of-the-year-2022-the-burrowing-owl\/","url_meta":{"origin":46408,"position":1},"title":"ABA Bird Of The Year 2022 – The Burrowing Owl!","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 20, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"It was announced yesterday that the Burrowing Owl is the 2022 ABA Bird of the Year! Burrowing Owls are small, long-legged, sandy-colored, charismatic owls with bright yellow eyes.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Immature Burrowing Owl on a stump in soft morning light, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/burrowing-owl-immature-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-7693.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/burrowing-owl-immature-morning-light-mia-mcpherson-7693.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Back lit Burrowing Owl in winter on Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-back-lit-mia-mcpherson-5674.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-back-lit-mia-mcpherson-5674.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-back-lit-mia-mcpherson-5674.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-back-lit-mia-mcpherson-5674.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 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Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-adult-mia-mcpherson-7603.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-adult-mia-mcpherson-7603.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-adult-mia-mcpherson-7603.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-adult-mia-mcpherson-7603.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":57363,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/04\/20\/male-burrowing-owl-with-blooming-redstem-filaree\/","url_meta":{"origin":46408,"position":4},"title":"Male Burrowing Owl With Blooming Redstem Filaree","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 20, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday I was lucky enough to find a male Burrowing Owl whose burrow is in front of a clump of Redstem Filaree that is blooming profusely and for me that was a joy because I had two of my favorite subjects in the same frame.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Burrowing Owl and Redstem Filaree in bloom, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-spring-flowers-mia-mcpherson-2497.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-spring-flowers-mia-mcpherson-2497.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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And they are pretty darn cute!","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Two juvenile Burrowing Owls in early morning, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-juveniles-mia-mcpherson-8541.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-juveniles-mia-mcpherson-8541.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-juveniles-mia-mcpherson-8541.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/burrowing-owl-juveniles-mia-mcpherson-8541.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46408","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46408"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46408\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/160393"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46408"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46408"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46408"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}