I met an owl in the lane

It surprised us both I think!

At the start of darkness, the night just beginning, out of the flickering dusk an owl takes flight, stares at the tussocks and glides up over the hedge and is only yards from me in the lane.

It zig-zags away, startled.

The Barn Owl reappears a field away, I watch it fly, and dive, disappearing into the frosty pasture.  I try and hold my gaze on the spot where it landed, but have to blink away the cold.  Shortly it rises and continues its low, searching flight.  I saw it drop five times, and on this fifth attempt a catch, which it carried off to a nearby silage barn.

What a twilight treat.

For those who might be as besotted with Barn Owls as me – Shop Barn Owl sculpture