Great Horned Owl

Brookbanks Ravine, Toronto, 9 March 2010

Its facial discs were very pale orange and barring on the front was scaly with no rufous. Its overall paleness and distinct scaly appearance below suggest it is an intergrade between Bubo virginianus virginianus and B.v. scalariventris, but closer to the latter. See Snyder's Great Horned Owl for more information about B.v. scalariventris.

This Great Horned Owl was resting high in an Eastern Hemlock in Brookbanks Ravine. A barking dog underneath the tree did not bother it, nor did  many people walking the trail with dogs. Its tameness is another indicator that it is northern bird wintering in Toronto.