Saturday, February 6th, the third annual Raptor Fest was held at Boyd Hill Nature Preserve in south St. Petersburg (Pinellas County).  This is a popular event held annually for one day from 10am to 4pm.   Unfortunately this particular day didn't have the best weather outlook but we were able to get some photos before the rain set in for the day.  Most all of the birds that were at the Raptor Fest have been injured in some way and are no longer able to function in the wild.  These birds are used to help educate all of us.  One request was made, no flash while taking pictures and I didn't see anyone breaking that rule which is great!

Great horn owl - I have seen these in the wild in a few of the parks located in Pinellas County.  A few years back there was a nest of these owls at Honeymoon Island State Park.

Screech owls were the smallest of the owls we saw at this event between 6 inches and 9 inches in height.  I included this picture to provide perspective as this screech owl sits on the hand of a volunteer.

This little screech owl was hit by a car and rescued.  The owl has brain damage as a result of the impact and also lost the ability to use one of it's eyes.  This is the sad result of modern technology, but she survives with assistance from humans to provide her a 'captive mouse' to catch and eat.

If you'd like to view more pictures from this particular shoot, visit our 'wildlife' gallery.