GHO, Yannatos

One of the main reasons for creating this blog was vanity: it would give me a chance to showcase my, of course, splendid nature photographs. But that, to be sure, was not the entire reason. More importantly, it would give me a chance to showcase my natural history discoveries. If everything worked out right, each account would be accompanied by a spectacular image, and the combination would, in time, be a sensation and garner me riches, National Geographic assignments, teaching jobs, and hordes of devoted fans. So far, I'm still waiting, but while I do, I have to admit that sometimes, the best discovery and the best photograph are not one in the same. Case in point: this afternoon, while I was walking in the woods behind the millpond, I spooked a large bird that flew into a nearby oak. Delicately, I approached it, shooting the blob that I knew to be a Great Horned Owl over and over again as I walked closer. I didn't have the Sigma supertelephoto with me, and the owl didn't let me get very close before it flew into the shadows. It's there in the picture, however, and if you look very closely, you can spot the bird, which resembles oak bark. If you look even harder, you can see what I'm pretty sure are ear tufts, eyes, and a beak. I'm delighted with the documentation of my unexpected finding, but I don't think this is a magazine cover possibility. Maybe next time.