We now have reports of 50 Great Gray Owls in Simcoe County. We had only 9 owls on December 25th but this number jumped quickly as many arrived around December 28th and 29th. There were more reports to the south of us early in the New Year but most of our owls remained at the locations first reported. In many cases where one owl had been hunting for the last few weeks it was joined by two or three other owls all hunting in the same field. At one location between Muley Point Road and conc. 7 of Ramara southeast of Orillia it is now possible to observe 10 Great Gray Owls in a drive of about 8 km. The best time to view these owls other than overcast days is between 4:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. Several observers have sent me excellent photos of these birds.
Bob Bowles
