Photo by Sherry McCartney
Shorties never really look much concerned by anything. They just stare directly into the camera like they're the Jim Halpert of the owl world...
this post was submitted on 17 Apr 2024
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It was likely woken up by a one or more small birds who don't appreciate the predator sleeping close to their nests. They make a ruckus and peck at the sleepy owl, who flies some distance away and tries to sleep again but there might be some following it and alerting local ones so it needs to find another spot. I have witnessed this behavior and it's rather funny. If you hear an unusually loud bird cacophony and see them gathering around a spot, look if an owl flies out of there.
I usually see this behavior referred to as "mobbing."
It is often used to locate these birds of prey, who try their best to stay hidden. For wildlife researchers and photographers, it's almost like having a camera network all over the outdoors to alert them when these animals get spotted. It also brings out the other rare birds as well.
The behavior itself is very unique in the animal world as it demonstrates cooperation between different species.
Mobbing isn't considered an attempt to hurt or kill the target of the swarm, because an actual fight wouldn't benefit either side, as birds are very delicate generally, so any small injury could mean the end for any of them. It's mainly just to move them along so they don't have an opportunity to snatch anyone up.