Three Canadian naturalists have had a life long love affair with the great gray owl.
Ottawa filmmaker and naturalist Dalton Muir, Winnipeg cinematographer Robert Taylor and Dr. Robert Nero of the Canadian Wildlife Service of Winnipeg have collaborated in a study of this elusive species.
In order to record the life of this species, which is the fourth most desirable sighting for a bird watcher, they constructed nests in the forests of Manitoba in the dead of winter.
When a mated pair of gray owls selected one of their nests to raise their brood, they constructed a blind nearby to carry on their research.
A complete study of the nesting, hatching and raising of the young in intimate detail includes extraordinary close ups of behaviour never before seen.
[Episode 14 of 104 half hour Profiles of Nature]