![\"short-eared](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/10\/short-eared-owl-7871b-ron-dudley.jpg\")
<\/a>\u00a01\/1000, f\/5.6, ISO 800, 500 f\/4, 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nI\u00a0photographed this male Short-eared Owl delivering voles to the nest many times.\u00a0 In 13 of those cases I could clearly see in my images\u00a0which foot it was using to grasp the prey and each time (13 out of 13)\u00a0he used his left foot (though one time it may have switched the prey from right to left in flight).\u00a0 I was able to photograph the female in flight with prey only once but she was also carrying the vole in her left foot.<\/p>\n
A sample\u00a0size of only 14 may not be large enough to draw any hard conclusions about potential handedness in Short-eared Owls\u00a0but I certainly\u00a0was\u00a0intrigued by what I observed and photographed.<\/p>\n
I reported this observation in a previous post with more details and photos but that was early in my blogging history so not many folks ever saw it.\u00a0 When I came across this previously unpublished image I thought it was worth another mention.\u00a0 If you’re interested, here’s a link to that earlier post<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n Handedness is a complex phenomenon and it’s a matter of degree rather than an absolute but many other vertebrate species (or individuals)\u00a0can also\u00a0show some\u00a0degree of handedness.<\/p>\n I find that fascinating.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Handedness is a preference for using one hand (or limb) as opposed to the other. It’s a phenomenon many of us associate strictly with humans but other vertebrates can also show handedness, including birds. For example, many parrot species have a strong and consistent preference for using their left foot when bringing food to the beak.<\/p>\n Based on my own observations in the field I believe that Short-eared Owls may also display handedness.<\/p>\n