Soul of the Forest

At night, when all is still,

The forest's sentinel

Glides silently across the hill

And perches in an old pine tree

A friendly presence his!

No harm can come

From the night bird on the prowl.

• by Ruskin Bond

This image is of a Brown Fish Owl captured on an early winter morning in Gir forest, India. It is an enigmatic species among Owls with such mesmerising eyes. They are called Sentinels of the forest. When other diurnal animals in the forest are asleep or resting in the night, owls being nocturnal birds are awake and watching over the forest throughout the night. They can see clearly in the dark or in night and also have evolved a stealth flight which helps them to move about in the forest seeing everything and hardly being detected. Ecologically they contribute immensely to the food chain by feeding on small mammals or reptiles thus keeping their population in check in the environment.