{"id":56312,"date":"2019-02-23T05:43:38","date_gmt":"2019-02-23T12:43:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=56312"},"modified":"2025-08-04T07:55:02","modified_gmt":"2025-08-04T12:55:02","slug":"winter-barn-owls-in-flight-during-daylight-are-hungry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/02\/23\/winter-barn-owls-in-flight-during-daylight-are-hungry\/","title":{"rendered":"Winter American Barn Owls In Flight During Daylight Are Hungry"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AmericanAmerican Barn Owl flying over a playa in morning light – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

I always feel fortunate when I am able to photograph winter American Barn Owls in flight during daylight hours but that means that these gorgeous owls are struggling to stay alive and that is a concern for me. During the winter when our temps in Utah are cold and there is heavy snow on the ground these nocturnal owls can be seen hunting for prey to obtain the calories they need to stay warm on long winter nights.<\/p>\n

Yesterday I photographed two American Barn Owls that were up flying and hunting at Farmington Bay WMA<\/span><\/a> and they actually concerned me more than the American Barn Owls I have photographed in previous winters because right now there isn’t a thick layer of snow on the ground at the WMA which could mean they are having difficulty finding prey or that their prey’s population has crashed.<\/p>\n

\"DaylightDaylight flight of an American Barn Owl – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

This American Barn Owl was up and actively hunting in the vegetation between the road, the playa and the marsh yesterday. I’d seen it take off from a sign post to fly north then it circled back and flew towards the south in front of me.<\/p>\n

\"AmericanAmerican Barn Owl in flight during daylight – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

The American Barn Owl was looking and listening for prey as it flew past in the beautiful morning light giving me great views of it as I photographed it.<\/p>\n

\"AmericanAmerican Barn Owl flying over a frozen marsh – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

I wasn’t going to process this photo at first because the owl’s eyes were partially closed but I kind of like that sleepy-eyed look.<\/p>\n

\"AmericanAmerican Barn Owl diving after prey – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

This photo made up for the one I missed recently of a American Barn Owl diving for prey because there was a stupid fence post in the way, this time I had the owl out in the open with nothing obstructing my view. If I get another chance to photograph a American Barn Owl diving for prey I hope the photography gods allow me to also get a catch light in the owl’s ebony eyes.<\/p>\n

\"AmericanAmerican Barn Owl flying next to the road – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

Even while I photographed the American Barn Owls yesterday I worried for their well being because for them to be flying during the day I know they have to be very hungry and stressed.<\/p>\n

Note:<\/strong> American Barn Owls will also fly during daylight hours to feed their hungry chicks when they have large broods.<\/p>\n

\"MorningMorning light and an American Barn Owl in flight – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

I hope that these American Barn Owls find all the nourishment they need now so they can survive until their breeding season begins and spring arrives.<\/p>\n

I do have some guilt within me when I photograph these striking owls in flight during daylight hours because we humans are without a doubt making their lives harder by destroying their habitat, poisoning them by using rodenticides and by not doing enough to slow down climate change.<\/p>\n

\"CloseClose up of an American Barn Owl in flight – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/3200, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

My last American Barn Owl photos from yesterday were taken when one of the American Barn Owls flew in so close I clipped wing tips in most of them, this is the only one where I didn’t but wow, it was close!<\/p>\n

Even though American Barn Owls are one of my favorite avian subjects to photograph I simply can’t forget that they are up and flying during the winter because they are hungry.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

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

I always feel fortunate when I am able to photograph winter Barn Owls in flight during daylight hours but that means that these gorgeous owls are struggling to stay alive and that is a concern for me. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":151281,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","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":[129,27,1022,697,26],"tags":[4004,3985,2663,4142,5490,4159,4052,4122,6926,6493,4094,4099,3967,294,4353,6973,4106,49],"class_list":["post-56312","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-barn-owls","category-avian","category-davis-county-utah","category-farmington-bay-wma","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-barn-owl","tag-birds-of-prey","tag-close-up","tag-daylight","tag-diving","tag-flight","tag-flying","tag-frozen","tag-hungry","tag-marsh","tag-morning-light","tag-owl","tag-owls","tag-owls-of-utah","tag-playa","tag-prey","tag-tyto-furcata"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/barn-owl-flight-daylight-mia-mcpherson-5876.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-eEg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":76280,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/12\/20\/hunting-barn-owl-in-flight-over-the-frozen-marsh-at-farmington-bay-wma\/","url_meta":{"origin":56312,"position":0},"title":"Hunting 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strictly nocturnal but during harsh winters with lots of snow they do hunt during the day here in Utah.","rel":"","context":"In "American Barn Owls"","block_context":{"text":"American Barn Owls","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/owls\/barn-owls\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American Barn Owl flying over a marsh in winter, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/barn-owl-flight-winter-snowy-mia-mcpherson-9479.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/barn-owl-flight-winter-snowy-mia-mcpherson-9479.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/barn-owl-flight-winter-snowy-mia-mcpherson-9479.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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McPherson","date":"November 6, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"By having the American Barn Owls smaller in the frame in my photos I can share more visual information about where these beautiful owls live, hunt and thrive.","rel":"","context":"In "American Barn Owls"","block_context":{"text":"American Barn Owls","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/owls\/barn-owls\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Foggy, snowy American Barn Owl in flight, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/barn-owl-fog-snow-mia-mcpherson-1777.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/barn-owl-fog-snow-mia-mcpherson-1777.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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