A special Sunday event: our sixth annual photographic essay celebrating such magnificent birds of prey. These nocturnal hunters hail from Europe, Asia, North America, and South America and are captured here in photos from recent years. If you have some time today before the big game (or are skipping the event entirely), I invite you to take a look. It is always a hoot to put this collection together.
Superb Owl Sunday VI
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![An owl spreads out its body and feathers while looking toward the camera.]()
Read moreA Eurasian eagle-owl spreads out its body and feathers in a threat display. #
Mihail1981 / iStockphoto / Getty -
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![An owl flies in front of autumn foliage.]()
Read moreA barn owl flies near an apple orchard in Noord Brabant in the Netherlands. #
Henk Bogaard / iStockphoto / Getty -
![A small owl stands in a grassy area.]()
Read moreA burrowing owl is seen at the British Falconry Fair, held at the National Center for Birds of Prey at Duncombe Park in Northern England on June 27, 2021. #
Oli Scarff / AFP / Getty -
![A portrait of a snowy owl]()
Read moreA portrait of a snowy owl #
Hendrik Demiddele / 500px / Getty -
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![A large owl takes flight in a snow-covered pine forest.]()
Read moreA great gray owl takes off from a small tree in a snowy taiga forest near Kuusamo, Finland. #
Karl Ander Adami / iStockphoto / Getty -
![A very close view of an owl's eyes.]()
Read moreA Eurasian eagle-owl is seen at a shopping festival in Kuwait City on February 10, 2017. #
Yasser Al-Zayyat / AFP / Getty -
![A snowy owl flies above water.]()
Read moreA snowy owl flies above water on a snowy day in the Netherlands. #
Henk Bogaard / iStockphoto / Getty -
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![An owlet perches on a man's hand.]()
Read moreA young Eurasian scops owl perches on a man's hand. #
MriyaWildlife / iStockphoto / Getty -
![A barred owl perches in the woods.]()
Read moreA barred owl perches in the woods. #
Harry Collins / iStockphoto / Getty -
![An owl perches on a pole among solar panels at sunset.]()
Read moreAn Indian eagle-owl is silhouetted against a dusky sky in Pavagada Solar Park in Thirumani village, Karnataka, India, on October 9, 2021. #
Abhishek Chinnappa / Getty -
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![A pair of owls sits together.]()
Read moreEurasian eagle-owls look on during a meetup of the Kuwait Owl Team, a local group dedicated to the protection and proliferation of owls, in Kuwait City on March 6, 2021. #
Yasser Al-Zayyat / AFP / Getty -
![A person leans close to the face of an owl.]()
Read moreFalconer Giovanna Piccolo performs with her Eurasian eagle-owl at Roma World theme park in Rome, Italy, on May 9, 2021. #
Yara Nardi / Reuters -
![An owl flies through a forest.]()
Read moreA Eurasian eagle-owl flies through a forest. #
Jan Rozehnal / iStockphoto / Getty -
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![A small owl perches in a hole in a tree trunk.]()
Read moreAn eastern screech owl perches at the edge of its nest, enjoying a small burst of sunshine on a freezing day in the Laurentian Forest in Canada. #
Marcophotos / iStockphoto / Getty -
![Four small owls look toward the camera.]()
Read moreA group of owls is seen at the National Zoo of El Salvador, in San Salvador, on June 15, 2017. #
Oscar Rivera / AFP / Getty -
![An owl sits on a beach.]()
Read moreAn owl sits on the beach in Malibu, California, as the Woolsey fire approached on November 9, 2018. #
Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times via Getty -
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![A close view of an owl's face]()
Read moreA studio portrait of a Ural owl #
Henrik Sorensen / Getty -
![A white-and-black owl perches in front of a distant American flag.]()
Read moreAn American flag flies in the distance as a rare snowy owl looks down from its perch atop the large stone orb of the Christopher Columbus Memorial Fountain at the entrance to Union Station in Washington, D.C, on January 7, 2022. #
Carolyn Kaster / AP -
![An owl flies over a snowy field]()
Read moreA great gray owl flies over a field in Kuusamo, Finland. #
Karl Ander Adami / iStockphoto / Getty -
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![A close view of a young owl]()
Read moreA close view of a young barred eagle-owl, also called the Malay eagle-owl #
Shelyna Long / iStockphoto / Getty -
![A small owl flaps its wings as it is fed tiny chunks of chicken liver by a person using tweezers.]()
Read moreA young owl is fed chicken livers before being released into the wild in Uşak, Turkey, on August 5, 2019. The owl was treated by the head of Uşak's Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, veterinarian Nebahat Avcu, after being found injured. #
Soner Kilinc / Anadolu Agency / Getty -
![An owl looks down toward the photographer from high above, perched on a tree branch.]()
Read moreA spotted wood owl sits on a tree branch in a park in Singapore on May 27, 2021. #
Roslan Rahman / AFP / Getty -
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![An owl cranes its neck to look at something offscreen.]()
Read moreA Eurasian eagle-owl looks at students from a local school after the release of a five-month-old red-tailed hawk on September 29, 2010, in New York's Central Park. Wildlife rehabilitators and park rangers showed various birds during a program for two elementary-school classes. #
Stan Honda / AFP / Getty -
![Two fuzzy young owls look down from a perch in a tree.]()
Read moreA pair of great horned owlets peers down from a perch in a tree. #
Lavin Photography / Getty -
![A silhouette of a perched owl at sunset]()
Read moreA silhouette of a short-eared owl at sunset #
Siva Kumar Nimmadala / iStockphoto / Getty -
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![A close view of an owl's face]()
Read moreA close view of a Siberian eagle-owl #
Grafissimo / Getty -
![An owl sits on a thorny branch.]()
Read moreA hawk owl is seen perched in Krynki, Poland. #
Damian Kuzdak / iStockphoto / Getty -
![A portrait of a horned owl]()
Read moreA portrait of a horned owl #
Izanbar / iStockphoto / Getty -
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