Snowy Owl by Richard Pegler

 

A Snowy Owl posing nicely on what looks to be the Arctic tundra in the heart of winter takes this week's winning spot ... apart from this striking image was actually taken by Richard Pegler on Tresco, Isles of Scilly, in mid-March! Snow on Scilly is rare enough, perhaps even rarer than a Snowy Owl, and the two combined together have produced a unique image that will stand the test of time.

This is a truly lovely photo. The owl has assumed a nice pose and appears relaxed, with the head turned towards the camera, yellow eyes open but not alarmed. Exposure is spot on, with detail in the plumage and the landscape is perfect. One of those that I look at and think "I wish I'd taken that", particularly as both the owl and the snow would have been Scilly ticks for me! Congratulations to Richard on his winning image, taken with the 500 mm end of a 50-500mm zoom, at 1/640 th second, f11 on ISO640.

With March laboriously crawling towards April like a Bank Holiday twitch along the M6, and a very cold weekend forecast for Easter, there may be even more wintry shots being posted next week.

 

Other notable images

 

Common Kestrel, Hawker's Cove, Cornwall (Paul Ash).

Little Owl, Bawdsey, Suffolk (Gary Richardson).

Red-breasted Swallow, Etosha, Namibia (David Tattersley).

Eurasian Bittern, Minsmere RSPB, Suffolk (Mary Wilde).

Barn Owl, Keyingham, East Yorkshire (Chris Cox).

Long-eared Owl, Somerset, Britain (Michael Sherwin).

Firecrest, Dungeness NNR, Kent (Brian Anderson).

Eurasian Siskin, Lynford Arboretum, Norfolk (Jim Mountain).

Barn Owl, Aust Warth, Gloucestershire (Chris Hawes).

White-spotted Bluethroat, Landguard NR, Suffolk (Les Cater).

Black-headed Gull, Pennington Marshes, Hampshire (Joe).

Black Guillemot, Glenarm, Antrim (Ian Dickey).

Red Kite, Harewood, West Yorkshire (Martyn Jones).

American Herring Gull, Kilkee, Clare (Gerard Murray).