GHOW vs CA Ground Squirrel

This morning while driving by the Borrego Springs High School, I watched a Great Horned Owl drop from a Washingtonia Filifera Palm Tree at the pup fish pond. When I did not see the owl move back into the tree with its prey, I parked and approached the pond. The owl flushed into another tree 30 meters away, mobbed by a mockingbird and kingbird. When I arrived at the pond, I found and photographed a freshly killed California Ground Squirrel. I was unable to find any blood while examining the squirrel, but it was still very warm so I am confident that it was killed by the owl just moments before. When I walked back towards my car the owl moved back to the original palm from which it had dropped and I was able to obtain a photo of the owl.  Photos of the owl and squirrel at https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/41636517

William Terry Hunefeld
Borrego Springs CA 
Staying safe while birding, botanizing and tracking alone in the vast reaches of Anza Borrego Desert
Source: SanDiegoRegionBirding Latest Reports