{"id":67299,"date":"2020-03-24T05:35:50","date_gmt":"2020-03-24T11:35:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=67299"},"modified":"2025-06-15T10:45:13","modified_gmt":"2025-06-15T15:45:13","slug":"adult-male-short-eared-owl-flying-in-front-of-a-stormy-sky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/03\/24\/adult-male-short-eared-owl-flying-in-front-of-a-stormy-sky\/","title":{"rendered":"Adult Male Short-eared Owl Flying In Front Of A Stormy Sky"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"MaleMale Short-eared Owl flying in front of a stormy sky \u2013 Nikon D810, f6.3, 1\/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

I have tons of Short-eared Owl photos where the owls are much larger in the frame than this one is yet this photo and another one I took of this male in flight with a stormy sky<\/span><\/a> in the background remain some of my favorites of this species.<\/p>\n

I like that the adult male Short-eared Owl is small in this frame because this is often the view that I and others have of these wonderful owls in the field. With my naked eyes this owl was simply a small speck in the sky.<\/p>\n

This male and its mate chased a coyote away from their nest site just a few minutes before I took this photo and when she went back to the nest the male flew into the sky until the storm clouds to the north were behind him.\u00a0 The male owl seemed to glow against the darker sky and clouds.<\/p>\n

Looking at this photo also reminded me that cloudy skies aren’t always a bad thing when photographing birds. The storm clouds added drama that wouldn’t be there of this had been a plain blue sky.<\/p>\n

This isn’t the kind of Short-eared Owl image you’ll see in a bird guide but when you are looking for these owls in the field sometimes a view like this is all you will get.<\/p>\n

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

Mia<\/p>\n

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

This isn’t the kind of Short-eared Owl image you’ll see in a bird guide but when you are looking for these owls in the field sometimes a view like this is all you will get.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":148624,"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":[27,1148,130,26],"tags":[4004,4114,4101,4052,4122,4062,3967,294,4353,3971,4018,4043,2598,9390,4197],"class_list":["post-67299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-box-elder-county-utah","category-short-eared-owls","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-asio-flammeus","tag-clouds","tag-flight","tag-flying","tag-male","tag-owl","tag-owls","tag-owls-of-utah","tag-short-eared-owl","tag-sky","tag-small-in-frame","tag-storm-clouds","tag-stormy","tag-stormy-sky"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-storm-clouds-mia-mcpherson-1630.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-hvt","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":56354,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/02\/28\/short-eared-owl-with-a-stormy-sky-small-in-the-frame\/","url_meta":{"origin":67299,"position":0},"title":"Short-eared Owl With A Stormy Sky – Small In The Frame","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 28, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"I love the darkness and the light in the stormy sky in the background, how well lit the Short-eared Owl was and the position of his wings in flight and I like that he is small in this frame because this is often the view that I and others have\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Short-eared Owl in flight with a stormy sky, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/short-eared-owl-flight-storm-clouds-mia-mcpherson-1632.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/short-eared-owl-flight-storm-clouds-mia-mcpherson-1632.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/short-eared-owl-flight-storm-clouds-mia-mcpherson-1632.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/short-eared-owl-flight-storm-clouds-mia-mcpherson-1632.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":70891,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/06\/14\/photographing-three-short-eared-owls-in-northern-utah\/","url_meta":{"origin":67299,"position":1},"title":"Photographing Three Short-eared Owls In Northern Utah","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"June 14, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"I don't know for sure if I will see another Short-eared Owl to photograph this year but I do know I had fun photographing these three.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Short-eared Owl in flight over a sagebrush sea, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-mia-mcpherson-4449.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-mia-mcpherson-4449.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-mia-mcpherson-4449.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-mia-mcpherson-4449.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48093,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2017\/08\/13\/short-eared-owl-on-an-old-juniper-fence-post\/","url_meta":{"origin":67299,"position":2},"title":"Short-eared Owl On An Old Juniper Fence Post","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 13, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"I loved taking photos of birds on those old fence posts like this male Short-eared Owl that was looking down to the ground for prey.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Short-eared Owl male on a old juniper fence post, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/short-eared-owl-male-mia-mcpherson-0123.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/short-eared-owl-male-mia-mcpherson-0123.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/short-eared-owl-male-mia-mcpherson-0123.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/short-eared-owl-male-mia-mcpherson-0123.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":56749,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/03\/21\/im-eager-to-see-and-photograph-short-eared-owls\/","url_meta":{"origin":67299,"position":3},"title":"I’m Eager To See And Photograph Short-eared Owls","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 21, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"I love photographing the Short-eared Owls while there is still some spring growth around because the warm toned plumage of these owls stands out so nicely from the varying shades of green.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Stretching female Short-eared Owl in front of a green field, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-female-stretching-mmia-mcpherson-3918.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-female-stretching-mmia-mcpherson-3918.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-female-stretching-mmia-mcpherson-3918.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-female-stretching-mmia-mcpherson-3918.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":39425,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/05\/13\/short-eared-owls-nomadic-and-enchanting\/","url_meta":{"origin":67299,"position":4},"title":"Short-eared Owls – Nomadic and Enchanting","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 13, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"This year I've seen far more Short-eared Owls in Utah than I have since I moved here in 2009 and I've been enjoying photographing these nomadic and enchanting owls for over a month.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Short-eared Owl basking in sunlight, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-male-perched-mia-mcherson-8178.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-male-perched-mia-mcherson-8178.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-male-perched-mia-mcherson-8178.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/short-eared-owl-male-perched-mia-mcherson-8178.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15063,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/05\/28\/male-short-eared-owl-in-evening-light\/","url_meta":{"origin":67299,"position":5},"title":"Male Short-eared Owl In Evening Light","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 28, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"The nicknames for Short-eared Owls are many and include Evening Owl, Mouse-hawk, Marsh Owl, Bog Owl and Flat-faced Owl but I just call them Shorties in the field.","rel":"","context":"In "Beaverhead County"","block_context":{"text":"Beaverhead County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/montana\/beaverhead-county-montana\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Short-eared Owl in evening light in flight over a marsh, Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Centennial Valley, Beaverhead County, Montana","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-mia-mcpherson-8254.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-mia-mcpherson-8254.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-mia-mcpherson-8254.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/short-eared-owl-male-flight-mia-mcpherson-8254.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\/67299","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=67299"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67299\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148624"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=67299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=67299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=67299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}