Bird of the Bible – Great Grey Owl

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8 KJV)

This video is great. If you do not chuckle, then you should.

“A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones.” (Proverbs 17:22 KJV)

“The little owl, and the great owl, and the swan,” (Deuteronomy 14:16 KJV)

This Great Grey Owl is a “great owl” for sure. Love those eyes. “The Great Grey Owl or Great Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa) is a very large owl, documented as the world’s largest species of owl by length. It is distributed across the Northern Hemisphere, and it is the only species in the Strix genus found in both Eastern and Western Hemispheres. In some areas it is also called Phantom of the North, cinereous owl, spectral owl, Lapland owl, spruce owl, bearded owl, and sooty owl.’

“Adults have a large rounded head with a grey face and yellow eyes with darker circles around them. The underparts are light with dark streaks; the upper parts are grey with pale bars. This owl does not have ear tufts and has the largest facial disc of any raptor. There is a white collar or “bow tie” just below the beak. The long tail tapers to a rounded end.”

Great Grey Owl (Strix nebulosa) WikiC

Great Grey Owl (Strix nebulosa) WikiC

“In terms of length, the great grey owl is believed to exceed the Eurasian eagle-owl and the Blakiston’s fish owl as the world’s largest owl. The great grey is outweighed by those two species as well as several others, including most of the Bubo genus. Much of its size is deceptive, since this species’ fluffy feathers, large head and the longest tail of any extant owl obscure a body lighter than that of most other large owls. The length ranges from 61 to 84 cm (24 to 33 in), averaging 72 cm (28 in) for females and 67 cm (26 in) for males. The wingspan can exceed 152 cm (5 ft 0 in), but averages 142 cm (4 ft 8 in) for females and 140 cm (4 ft 7 in) for males. The adult weight ranges from 580 to 1,900 g (1.28 to 4.19 lb), averaging 1,290 g (2.84 lb) for females and 1,000 g (2.2 lb) for males. The males are usually smaller than females, as with most owl species.”

“They breed in North America from as far east as Quebec to the Pacific coast and Alaska, and from Finland and Estonia across northern Asia. They are permanent residents, although northerly populations may move south and southeast when food is scarce. In Europe, they are found breeding in Norway and Sweden and more numerously through Finland and Russia. Even though the species occurs in Europe, the first great grey owl recognized by science was found in Canada in the late 18th century.”

Information from Wikipedia with editing. See more about them: Great Grey Owl – Wikipedia

The Video was from Paul Dinning Wildlife.

The Owl is a bird that is mentioned in the Bible 10 times. [Leviticus 11:16, 17; Deuteronomy 14:15, 16; Psalm 102:6; Isaiah 34:11, 14, 15]

See:

Gideon

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History Through the Eyes of Ogden Owl

(Sandra Conner, my Christian friend, that writes great blogs, books and a whole lot more, has taken me up on the challenge to write about the Great Grey Owl.)

Here is her tale about our owl:

“Lee Dusing, over at Lee’s Birdwatching Adventures Plus, has posted the picture on her site of this owl with his eyes bulging as he takes in some scene before him. Lee has asked us to write a caption or a story based on the picture — taken by Peter K. Burian.  So, naturally, I had to take up the challenge — even though I’m not much of an owl person in general. My story is below the picture.

LEE'S OWL PIC -- PETER K. BURIAN

HISTORY THROUGH THE EYES OF OGDEN OWL

Ogden Owl couldn’t believe his eyes. He was sure they must be bulging because he was straining so hard to see what was really going on. He’d lived in these sparse clumps of trees close to the sandy beaches of Kitty Hawk, NC, for almost three years now, and ever since he’d moved here, there had been some strange things going on.

Two human beings had spent months at a time out on the sandy stretches of land between the hills, half rolling – half carrying – some contraption that looked a little like a huge, ugly bird, but that seemed to be bound to move on the ground. Ogden was usually up doing his hunting during the night, and by morning, he was ready to get some rest, so he hadn’t bothered with the humans much, except to shake his head at their ability to waste time and energy out here on this almost barren stretch of land.

But early this morning, when he really should have been considering getting some rest again, he had noticed that the two human beings had an even bigger monster of a machine – even more ugly – and this time it made a horrible noise as they moved it across the ground.  They pushed it onto some kind of inclined track, and the next thing Ogden knew, one of the men seemed to climb right into the middle of the machine.

Ogden could hardly hold his eyes open, but he was determined to find out what was going on practically right under his nose. Suddenly the huge machine began moving along the inclined track, picking up speed, and then, to Ogden’s astonishment – and horror – it lifted up from the ground, all the time making a roaring noise. It seemed to catch the wind with its enormous wings and sailed through the air just like he did when he took off from his tree limb and weaved through the sky looking for food.

It couldn’t be! Surely not! Human beings flying??? His eyes stayed glued to the scene. For long seconds, the huge, ugly contraption floated and soared – and scared the heck out of Ogden.

When the machine came back down to the ground and sat down without breaking apart, Ogden took a deep breath. He hadn’t realized that he had been holding his breath the whole time he watched that ugly, noisy machine fly. He shook his head now and stirred restlessly on the branch where he sat. He sighed and stretched his wings a little, wanting to feel their strength once more before he moved back onto one of the hidden branches of his tree to get some rest. He felt sad – and fearful. He had a feeling that life was never going to be the same again after today.  ~”

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Source: History Through the Eyes of Ogden Owl

Click to find out more about Sandra Conner

I have enjoyed reading several of her online stories, plus I have read her three latest novels:

Set Free To Love – Novel 1, Smokey Mountain Series

‘Cameron’s Rib’ – Sneak a Peek… – Book 2

Sneak a Peak at “Repaired By Love” — Book 3 in ‘Smoky Mountain Series’

Her Short Stories

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Not Sure What Happened!

Please re-check the last article I posted this evening. I went to fix one thing and it wiped out most of the article. It is now the way is was supposed to be.

Great Grey Owl

I am still looking for remarks or a story that could be posted as to what you think that expression is saying.

Great Grey Owl (Strix nebulosa) ©Peter K Burian at www.peterkburian.com

Great Grey Owl (Strix nebulosa) ©Peter K Burian at http://www.peterkburian.com

Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty: (Job 5:17 KJV)