Kamloops wildlife photographer Doug Giles is known for his stunning photography and has snapped photos of a variety of owls over the years, but earlier this week he photographed a species he hadn’t seen before.

“I was really surprised, it was an exciting moment,” he said.

It was a sunny winter day on Jan. 28 when Giles went for an excursion in the Kamloops area and spotted a boreal owl perched on the railing of an old fence beside a mixed deciduous and coniferous forest.

“They’re rarely seen because they’re highly nocturnal,” Giles said. “They live in higher elevations in thicker forests where it’s fairly dark.

“We’ve had a lot of snow in the higher elevations so I’m thinking maybe it moved out of its territory to look for food.”

The boreal owl lives in northern forests around the world and prefers old growth forests that have a lot of nesting cavities to live in, according to Sierra Club BC.

The owl is small with a large square head without ear tufts and a short tail. It is mostly brown with white spots and has yellow eyes.

Kamloops wildlife photographer makes rare find | iNFOnews.ca

This photo shows the back of a boreal owl spotted in the Kamloops area on Jan. 28. iNFOnews.ca/ Doug Giles

The little predators have excellent hearing and hunt for small animals by perching in trees listening, then swooping down to catch prey.

“It appeared to hunting, listening for mice, but it also looked like it wanted to fall asleep,” Giles said. “It was amazing to see one, it’s probably something I won’t see again.”