A treat and privilege to see this rare visitor to the Ottawa area. Went to check out a boreal owl at sunset about 15 minutes from home. This is the third boreal owl in the Ottawa area that I know of. The one at Fletcher Wildlife Gardens, the one rescued in downtown Ottawa and then released, and this one.

The boreal owl went from a catatonic state to being fully alert at 6:24pm. It started to react to all sounds including the rustling of leaves and moving vehicles. Eventually it flew to a deciduous tree in front of the house where it perched in the open for about a minute or less. The owl flew off at about 6:33pm.