Eurasian Eagle Owls are a widespread and highly adaptable species, found from the Iberian Peninsula and Scandinavia in the west to China and east-central Siberia as far east as the Pacific Ocean. This owl prefers rocky habitats but can also be found in coniferous forests and deserts. In the wild they have few predators and may live as long as 20 years; the primary causes of death are electrocution, collisions with traffic, and shooting. Captive birds have been known to live as long as 60 years.
Photographic notes:
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Kalie is a captive-bred zoo-surplus female in the care of a master falconer in the California Hawking Club. When these photographs were made, Kalie was 8 months old and despite her fierce expressions was described to me as a "puppy with feathers". Because captive-bred birds such as Kalie might be a mix of two or more subspecies, these photographs should be considered portraits of an individual, not representative of the species in the wild. On the particular day these photographs were made the weather was wet and blustery; because of the dim light, the windy conditions and Kalie's activity I used a 400-speed film (Fujichrome Provia 400F) for all photos. Equipment used: Leicaflex SL, Leicaflex SL2, Leica 80-200mm f/4 Vario-Elmar-R and Leica 280mm f/4 APO-Telyt-R. Lenses were mounted on a shoulder stock combined with a monopod. |