Birds of Prey

Three times each day, Tuesday through Sunday, Callaway Gardens hosts a Birds of Prey show at the Discovery Pavilion. We decided that if the rains held off we would head that direction this afternoon and check out this show. We decided to aim for the 3:30 show. There are two other shows; 10:30 and 12:30

  We arrived at the Discovery Center around 2:30 so with extra time on our hands we wanted to take in the current exhibit on display in the Exhibit Hall. Up Close With Nature: Photography Exhibit by Gail Stewart and George Bradfield. I will say these two photographers had a wonderful exhibit showing some spectacular shots of nature up close. Of course, photography was not allowed in the exhibit but we really enjoyed spending time there just looking at these incredible pictures.

We then wandered over to the Discovery Pavilion but with a little more time on our hands we began to walk one of the many trails at Callaway. This trail was called Meadowlark Gardens Trail and was just beautiful. Being early in the week there weren’t very many people present so we had this trail to ourselves. So peaceful!! We only had time to hike about a fourth of the trail so that leaves us with something to explore on another day. While we were hiking it began to rain a bit so we made our way back to the pavilion.

At 3:30 the Birds of Prey Show began. Our Ranger’s name was Stacy and she was great. She informed us that this show was a “free flight” show meaning that the birds were not tethered. They were free to fly as they would in their natural habitat. Of course, they were not in their natural habitat. Many of their birds could never be released into nature and survive. Some were rescued from abuse or injury and some raised from birth.

The first bird we saw today was the Harris Hawk. This bird is native to the Southwest. The Harris Hawk shows a dual personality. One is sitting quietly with a casual indifference and the other, when hunting, a relentless predator. The next bird to be released was the Great Horned Owl. He was magnificent!!  The Great Horned’s ears are not in the same position on either side of their head. Their right ear is typically higher in the skull and at a different angle. When he tilts his head, he can pinpoint both horizontal and vertical direction of a sound. The last bird of the day was the Barred Owl. Barred Owls sometimes go fishing. They will wade knee-deep in water and catch fish or crayfish with their feet.

There are other birds in their show but for this showing we saw these three. We did find out that they have a Bald Eagle but are unable to release him at this time (for a show) because there is a pair of Bald Eagles nesting in the area. We found out where this nest is located and so we will try to return early one morning to see these birds as well as the Osprey.

As we were heading to the Rhododendron Trail it began to rain really hard so we will have to make that another time. We really enjoy our trips to Callaway Gardens Resort. It is a wonderful place to walk, sit, view nature and just BE. Today was especially nice because with so few people in the Gardens it was like we were there alone. A quiet day, a peaceful day, a GREAT day.

We hope your day has been a good one! Thanks for dropping by and allowing us to share our latest outing with you.