From Calvin Schnure

Compare the photo on the left vs right.

The two photos are of the same bird, a Northern hawk-owl, taken within an hour of each other. What’s going on? The hawk-owl owl normally looks a bit plump, with an oval-shaped body. But if a predator is nearby (I saw a Rough-winged hawk soaring earlier in the afternoon) they sit up straight and tall and try to look thin.

Presumably this makes them less obvious (does it think it looks like a stick?) or less appetizing to the predator.

Northern hawk-owl
Sax-Zim Bog
March 3, 2025