"Owling" (1 Viewer)

[Tringa45]

This topic gets revived periodically on BF as if it places specific demands on a binocular.
All the Little, Tawny, Long-eared and Eagle Owls I have seen have been observed in broad daylight, so any binocular would have sufficed.
My sole Barn Owl was in flight at night and a binocular would not have helped with the ID, which was provided by someone who new where it was.
I have observed distant Short-eared Owls in farmland in fading winter light with a scope at about 35x and a mere 2,5 mm exit pupil.
Much as I like large exit pupils for their viewing comfort, they only extend the viewing time in twilight by an insignificant amount and if one's interest involves watching crepuscular animals then some sort of night vision device would likely be necessary.

Lastly, a short anecdote: Some years ago a member here who has not been seen recently posted a request for advice on an owling binocular. I offered to give him my old but good 7x50 Zeiss Binoctem and received the blunt reply, "No thanks, I need WP (waterproof)", sufficient evidence to show he was looking for a task to justify a new toy instead of a tool for the job.

John

 

[Richard D]

I find 7x50s fine for watching Barn Owls (SLCs) at dawn and dusk, although I've no doubt night vision would extend viewing time (at the expense of image quality).

 

[has530]

In my experience eyes are needed far less often than ears with owls. That being said, when I do get a look in low light an 8x42 does fine as my pupils don't get much bigger than 5mm anyways.

 

[wllmspd]

Was out trying to see barn owls in the local park with my old, wide angle 7x50, stayed out till an hour after sunset hoping for some badgers to emerge, only got a few foxes instead. Night vision doesn’t offer much magnification and best suited when it’s properly dark,

Peter

 

[tenex]

This topic gets revived periodically on BF as if it places specific demands on a binocular.

Many hunters have carried big glass for the same reason, at least until recently. Do you find that odd too? Isn't it just up to the individual to decide how much an admittedly modest advantage matters to them?

While I've seen some in daylight, I've enjoyed owls more around dusk, when I feel like I'm in their element, and they're more likely to be doing something. I'm thinking of a Screech-owl I saw fly to a perch a couple of years ago... could I have followed and found it in that light with a 32mm instead of 56? Possibly. Would I have noticed the mouse in its claw? Possibly not.

 

[mwhogue]

Probably just coincidence but most of my success spotting our local pair of barred owls has come with the Zeiss VP 8x25. Maybe they think I can't actually see them with such "puny" glass (?)

Mike

 

[quincy88]

Lastly, a short anecdote: Some years ago a member here who has not been seen recently posted a request for advice on an owling binocular. I offered to give him my old but good 7x50 Zeiss Binoctem and received the blunt reply, "No thanks, I need WP (waterproof)", sufficient evidence to show he was looking for a task to justify a new toy instead of a tool for the job.

That’s really generous. Hopefully you’ve found someone who can use those 7x50s since then. Wow. Zeiss too. Pretty cool.
Maybe he really did need WP and thought they’d get destroyed in his possession. I would turn that down if I was confident that I’d break them.

 

[jafritten]

This topic gets revived periodically on BF as if it places specific demands on a binocular.
All the Little, Tawny, Long-eared and Eagle Owls I have seen have been observed in broad daylight, so any binocular would have sufficed.
My sole Barn Owl was in flight at night and a binocular would not have helped with the ID, which was provided by someone who new where it was.
I have observed distant Short-eared Owls in farmland in fading winter light with a scope at about 35x and a mere 2,5 mm exit pupil.
Much as I like large exit pupils for their viewing comfort, they only extend the viewing time in twilight by an insignificant amount and if one's interest involves watching crepuscular animals then some sort of night vision device would likely be necessary.

Lastly, a short anecdote: Some years ago a member here who has not been seen recently posted a request for advice on an owling binocular. I offered to give him my old but good 7x50 Zeiss Binoctem and received the blunt reply, "No thanks, I need WP (waterproof)", sufficient evidence to show he was looking for a task to justify a new toy instead of a tool for the job.

John

I largely agree with you, John. The best chance to find and watch any of the owls you mention is in broad daylight. When I go "owling" I draw upon the knowledge I have about their typical habitats and their behaviour, listen for their calls and look for evidence of their being somewhere around like feces and pellets. So, any binocular will do.

I do see, however, the appeal of watching a crepuscular owl in low light. I sometimes watch long-eared owls sitting on tree or roof tops in my neighbourhood. For that purpose, my 42mm binoculars are fine and certainly more suited than my smaller ones. I don't have larger binoculars. I never use binoculars for owls on the wing after dark. I just try to look against the brighter parts of the sky which is a very nice experience. If I want to see detail, I just look at them in daylight.

A couple of days ago, when we were returning from the edge of a forest where we watched foxes, we saw something we thought was another fox. But it was an eagle owl sitting on its prey. I only had and 8x20 pair with me and I wished for something like an 8x56... I had to take a photo for ID.

 

[wllmspd]

The short eared owls near me are active in the early afternoon, any binos/scopes/cameras will do, magnification preferred as it’s a big open space they’re roaming round!

Peter

 

[Tringa45]

That’s really generous. Hopefully you’ve found someone who can use those 7x50s since then. Wow. Zeiss too. Pretty cool.
Maybe he really did need WP and thought they’d get destroyed in his possession. I would turn that down if I was confident that I’d break them.

Fairly modest GDR production, probably late eighties. I passed them on to the Committee Against Bird Slaughter if I can give a plug for that organisation, so they're probably in Malta, Cyprus or Lebanon now.
If anyone, particularly in Germany, Britain or Italy has any serviceable bins surplus to requirements, they would be a deserving recipient.

John

 

[jgraider]

Taken through my Athlon Ares spotting scope at a distance of approx. 800 yards.

 

[jurek]

If you can, invest in a thermal imager. It not only allows you to see the owls, but watch a lot of intersting behaviors of them