A Great Gray Owl (Strix nebulosa) Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. The genus name "Strix" is Greek and means owl and the species name "nebulosa" has it's origin in Latin and translates to misty or obscure. The Great Gray Owl is like a phantom and most people including myself have brief dawn and dusk fleeting opportunities to view these magnificent raptors. I captured this portrait when he flew across the meadow and literally landed right beside me.
My award winning image "Eared Grebes" is presently on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington DC. Additionally, it is published in both Audubon (May/June 2016) and Nature's Best Photography Magazine (Fall 2016). The image will be on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History until November 2017. Eared Grebes" was photographed on Yellowstone Lake in Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. Canon 7D, 500mm f/4 IS, ISO 320, 1/400 second @ f/8. Image. https://www.audubon.org/magazine/may-june-2016/the-2016-audubon-photography-awards-winners
I observed many different preening behaviors but most often, the Pelicans would repeatedly slide their feathers between their beaks.
