DFW Urban Wildlife

NOTE: This is the continuation of an earlier article. The previous post can be found here: Great Horned Owl – Trinity River Nest.

These may be the last photographs I run of this Great Horned Owl nest in Carrollton, Texas. Although this nest represents an excellent opportunity to follow the hatching and rearing of a brood of Great Horned Owlets, gaining adequate access to the nest has been problematic.

The nest sits in a tree, which stands on the banks of the Trinity River, which follows, for a short distance, the route of Stemmons Freeway. This stretch of highway and its accompanying service road are largely barren of business establishments and such—especially on the owl nest side of the thoroughfare. The Trinity River bottoms dominate here, and only a few determined souls have attempted to hang a shingle with this part of Stemmons as the address.

Fortunately—or so I though—there was a lone doctor’s office which seemed to offer a near perfect place to stage a photography session. A short walk along the service road and I would have been at the ideal spot for photographing the nest—close enough for getting good pictures and far enough away that the bird would not be disturbed.

Unfortunately, the parking lot at the doctor’s office had been posted with an abundance of signs stating clearly that it was not to be used to facilitate hunting, or fishing, or loitering. Even a politely worded letter could not convince the property management to see their way clear to allow me to park in their lot for even just an hour a week.

Clearly, there have been problematic episodes with so called “sportsmen” in the past. What a shame it is that these guys created trouble in such abundance that the property manager could no longer consider allowing for even minor accommodations.

Observation Details

Related Posts:

Great Horned Owl – Trinity River Nest Mediterranean Gecko – Just Hatched Chamberlain Drive Rookery Death Toll Paper Wasp – Nest Building Great Horned Owl – Two Nests in the VCDB