Adolescent owl trying to look tough after getting spooked by a robin--how embarassing

Wet great horned owl chick braves an assault from a robin in Prospect Park

The pair of great horned owlets in Prospect Park, Brooklyn, are now flying around the Ravine, somewhat awkwardly. I hadn’t seen them in more than a week and thought they might have moved on, but yesterday, thanks to a bunch of crows, I got to see them again.

The crows pointed me in the right direction–several hundred feet away from their nesting tree. I saw one soggy owl perched on a branch, trying to put on a brave face to the mob of screaming birds. The crows took off, but he was still left with a robin–of all birds–yacking at him from a few feet away. He put up with it a while, then got spooked and flew. My nine-month-old daughter Ginger bounced and giggled as he flew; he’s big enough that even a baby can see him. But not big enough not to be scared by a thrush.

He moved over to another area, where he was still plagued by songbirds and started bobbing and weaving, as if to get a better look.

Where to SEE WEIRD BIRDS (All the interesting birds: pelicans, puffins, prairie chickens, vultures, hummingbirds)