I was walking my dog near midnight. In the top of a leafless old tree, way up, I saw the unmistakable silhouette of a Great Horned Owl, black against a black sky. I rushed home and came back with a portable searchlight. I shined my light on the owl, getting a good look. It was huge, with brown streaks and had tufts on its head that looked like horns. Its round yellow eyes glared down at me. I thought the bird might take off. Then I remembered reading somewhere that unexpected bright light could cause an owl’s wide-open eyes to lose night vision for a moment, so I clicked it off. The owl had work to do. Owls sometimes eat skunks, and our dog had been skunked earlier in the year. I figured maybe this owl would grab a skunk if it saw one. We needed its vision to be in good shape. I said, “Sorry about the light, bub.” And went home.
Owl’s are cool, I’ve never seen one. It’s nice that you turned the light off.