My friend Madhusmita and her husband Kusi came over to visit:

This was a real NTP meet, as I met and got to know Madhu entirely through the NTP e-group!

Of course, in the short time I had, I dragged her off to Forest Park to see the Great Horned Owls…and we were all thrilled to see one baby owl having fledged, sitting outside the nest!

I dared not approach the little one any closer, but I met Danny Brown with his Canon 40D, his 500 mm lens, and the teleconverter, photographing the owls, too... Another guy, who gave his name only as Jeremy, walked up, and said he'd been watching the owls since 2001. Here's Danny: Danny, however was rather concerned that there was now only one baby instead of the two he'd seen on Friday. He was hoping the other one had just flown off, and had not become dinner for a predator...the Red-Tailed Hawk and Kestrel are still very much around in the Park, and they are constantly looking for food. (and...it's such a small world with the Internet...he told me that he was in touch with Harshad Barve whom I came to know through India Nature Watch So we chatted while watching the owls.... I've panned from Sarah, sitting well behind the nest, to the fledgling: and here's the baby: (you can hear a lot of other birds in the video, too!)

While we were watching the owls, a couple of

RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS

also kept us entertained:

I enjoyed looking at some of Danny’s pics on his laptop in his car, and later, on his website, too. He’s a biologist, working with fish, over at St.Charles, and wildlife photography is his hobby.