Whoo Knew!?
Two Owl Species, One Wild Day
This blog post is a continuation of my recent 2025 Summer road trip! To see a menu of all of the days on this road trip, click here.
Today’s Route | Estimated Drivetime - 3:52
I arrived at the morning’s meeting location early. I like to be early. Maybe that’s the military still in me, but I do not like for people to wait on me. That’s why I ensured the evening prior that I knew where I was going and got up extra early to ensure I could make it in time. But I digress…
Little did I know that this particular morning, day even, was going to be quite spectacular and much different from my norm.
Golden Hour Light on Baby Great Horned Owl | Prints Available
I spent this morning in Scottsdale, AZ, with two photography buddies. They are very good wildlife photographers. I, on the other hand, am more of a landscape photographer. However, I was going to give it a try this morning.
The morning’s photography subject was a fluffy little one who likely had no idea s/he was a star! Look how far I have driven to this point just to be here and take his/her photo.
A Great Horned Morning | Prints Available
S/he called out to his/her parents quite a bit. It must’ve been breakfast time. I never saw both parents, but I assumed the other was out hunting.
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A Great Horned Morning 2 | Prints Available
Little moments like these definitely make the long drives worth it. I’ve seen images of this nested pair with both parents and three owlets all on the nest together. That’s my eventual goal image. Lofty, I know.
These two fellas tend to specialize in wildlife, especially bird photography. I don't do this enough. It was fun spending the morning with them. I plan to meet with them again tomorrow morning, tho in a different city, Tucson.
During the morning’s shoot, I heard it through the grapevine that there was a cute little owl nesting in Saguaro National Park West. It was an Elf Owl, the smallest species of owl on the planet. I wasn’t exactly sure I’d be able to find the little owl, but I was surely going to give it a shot. I was approximately two hours away from Sag West. Sounds far until you consider that I live 12 hours away. I’d likely never be closer than I was at the moment. That, along with confirmed sightings, had me willing to gamble on finding it.
Internal Temp Inside Of The Five Billion Star Hotel
We wrapped up the morning’s shoot, confirmed tomorrow morning’s destination, and then went our separate ways. With it still being early in the day, I had a lot of time to kill before the evening, when I planned to be in Sag West.
I drove over to Lost Dutchman State Park. I wanted to scope out a spot that had me curious. The day had clear skies and got hot quickly. I didn’t have any interest in getting the camera out in these conditions. I decided to get a bit of office work done. The temps were warm outside and warmer inside the Delica. I turned on the fans that I installed. This seemed to help push out some of the stagnant hot air and replace it with less stagnant and less hot air. Still hot, but less hot. Eeek.
Office Time
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To say that I eventually got used to the heat would be, well, a lie. My brain was frying. I needed to move files around between my cameras, laptop, and SSD; I just knew that I was going to mess it up. One day, I will go to find an image that randomly comes to mind, and I’ll not be able to find it. This day’s brain-frying temps will be why; surely I messed up one of the many file transfers and just do not know it, yet.
A Couple of Chollas framing the distant Superstitions
Despite the heat, I had to get out of the Five Billion Star Hotel. As previously mentioned, it was hotter in there than it was outside. It was about now that I realized that I should have brought a floppy hat. I needed a way to keep the sun off of me. Oh, well, off I went.
The Good News And The Bad
The Obligatory Selfie
If I were going to make it to my next destination in time to be there as well as find my elusive subject, I’d have to get going.
The internal temperature climbed to over 116°F while the Delica was sitting. While driving, I was able to get the internal temp down to just under 95°F. Ever wonder why I avoid the desert in the summer? It’s currently barely warm in the desert, and it already feels like I could bake cookies on the dash.
Temperature Range… in mid May.
As previously mentioned, I stopped briefly at Last Dutchman State Park to catch up on some office work and to scout a composition or two for future shoots. I wasn’t planning to take any photos that day, as the cloudless sky was far from inspiring and lacked the dramatic elements I usually seek. Additionally, I had a long 2.5-hour drive ahead of me before sunset, which meant my scouting time was very limited.
After about an hour of exploring, I came across a composition I had seen before, but I only now realized it would require placing the camera high up on a steep rock face. Climbing up there would be quite challenging, and with a nearby beehive buzzing as well as strong, hot winds blowing through the area, it felt too unsafe to proceed. So, I reluctantly gave up on that idea and headed back to the Delica. On another day, I might have attempted the climb, but given my current physical condition combined with the wind and the bees, it simply didn’t seem worth the risk today.
Entrance To Saguaro National Park West
I hopped into the Delica and drove on to Tucson. This was not in my immediate area nor was it in my original plans. Regardless, I thought it was a great chance to see an owl I'd never seen before. Yes, I drove over two hours to photograph an owl. Okay, that's only partially true. The same morning that I learned of the owl's location, I also got invited to photograph a Crested Caracara; another of the avian variety that I'd never seen. The plan was to photograph the Caracara at sunrise. There was no way I was driving three hours prior to sunrise, so...; here I am with sunset plans and then sunrise plans in Tucson.
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Elf Owl (Micrathene whitneyi)
This tiny, nocturnal hunter is also the world’s smallest owl. Because of their size, elf owls feed chiefly on insects - usually beetles and moths. Elf owls nest in former woodpecker holes or cavities in trees and saguaros. Elf owls migrate to southern Mexico before the end of October and return to the Sonoran Desert by March to breed.
Length: 5.75 in. Wingspan: 13 in.
Diet: Insects and arthropods
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The Saguaro West Hotel
I found the Saguaro that I suspected to be the Elf Owl’s dwelling. It was a bit of a gamble, but I was confident enough to simply sit and wait for the light to get right and for the owl to become active. It’d be a multi-hour wait. Tho, I’d only do some of the waiting by myself. It seemed there were another couple of photographers circling around to photograph the owl.
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Our Set-up, or so I thought…
I was joined by the two other photographers. They appeared to be quite serious about bird photography. They were decked out in camo, their gear was camo, and the guy even brought a bird calling machine, which I was not a fan of.
Initially, I was pleased to have someone along to shoot with. I based this on my past experiences photographing nesting birds. Turns out, this experience was not going to be like that at all.
I’ve always been taught that if you impact the wildlife’s natural behaviors, you are doing it wrong. In this case, not only was this guy using a bird call, which was clearly agitating/confusing the owl, but he moved his equipment from where we all were set up and parked himself directly under the cactus where the nest was! His friend followed him over there as well, of course. They made the move because when he called the owl, it flew out of the Saguaro and into the bushes.
These two “photographers” scrambled to get a shot of the owl in the bushes. In doing so, they parked themselves directly under the saguaro where the owls were nesting. Meanwhile, I am still set up where I initially was, at a distance, in an effort not to interfere with the owl’s normal behaviors. In addition to not respecting the owls, they totally disrespected me by crawling around in front of my camera. They didn’t ask if they were in my shot. The only question I ever got was, “Are you not going to photograph the owl? He’s right there in the bush!” This was all quite frustrating. I felt lucky to get any shots at all.
Whoo Dat Down There? | Prints Available
Not only did the little Elf Owl have to deal with rude photographers, but it also had to deal with the actual owner of its borrowed dwelling. I do believe this to be a Gila Woodpecker. (see below image) The Elf Owls only migrate through, stopping to raise their young in the Sonoran Desert climate. Being out-of-towners, there’s no time to be spending building a new home, so they borrow one, much to the dismay of the homeowner.
Gila Woodpecker
Having fended off the landlord and the pesky photographers, it was time to relax a bit. (below)
Elf Owl | Prints Available
With nighttime fast approaching, it was time to leave the Elf Owl and the Gila Woodpecker’s domicile and begin positioning myself for tomorrow morning’s shoot. Tomorrow would have me focusing in on a Caracara nest and sitting through an evening thundershower near the Superstition Mountains. See ya then/there!
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