Cape Coral Burrowing Owls

This is old stuff, that I needed back online!!!! New posts soon

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(letter F, I think)

he whole reason most photographers go to Cape Coral is because of their large population of Burrowing Owls. Empty lots, waiting to become houses, along with parks and public grounds are all on sandy soils which the owls love. A visit to the Cape Coral area was great for me, as it was close to Little Estero Lagoon and Bunche Beach (it is also close to Sanibel Island and Ding Darling NWR, which I didn't visit).

The first afternoon, with very rough directions, I arrived in Cape Coral. I decided to drive around at random, and see if I could locate some good spots for photography. I tend to consider myself an excellent naturalist, and I was able to put my skills to good use, as I quickly learned the Burrowing Owls habitat requirements and was able to find a number of Burrows. (Habitat requirements seem to be at least 4 white PVC pipes, a wooden "T" post, flagging tape and a sign that says "Burrowing Owls Nesting").....

All the burrows around town seem to be marked. I spent 3 evenings in the area, and found an excellent spot with 3 nests in a small area and short grass. The birds were in a parking lot, and were very used to people wandering around. I got hundreds of photos of the birds in various situations. One of my favourite images of the trip was made here (Owl at sunset, on the previous page). People in the area were very friendly and I didn't have a single problem!

Even when getting dinner at a nearby Walmart grocery store, there was a Burrowing Owl nest right beside the store, and I was able to watch them at night, under the store lights! While most are very tame, I used my 600 + 1.4xTC to stay a comfortable distance away from these protected birds. Make sure you check out my Burrowing Owl page for all sorts of photos! www.PeregrinePrints.com/zz_BUOW.htm

While I spent all my time here with the Owls, there was a lot to see even in the rural setting. Loggerhead Shrikes in peoples front yards, Osprey and Bald Eagle nests, Cattle Egrets following construction workers! It was a great place to be, and I'd reccomend it to anyone looking for owls or photographs!