Baby owl takes a nose dive from picnic table during flight attempt

The semi-arid Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is situated in the remote northern western part of South Africa. It is one of the last true wilderness places left in Southern Africa. It is a vibrant semi-desert wilderness area with a surprising abundance of life. There is a diverse number of fauna and flora and one of the great attractions are the incredible number raptors found in the park. Birds of prey include various species of eagles, hawks, falcons, vultures and owls. During a recent visit to the park we stopped at one of the few small picnic spots where you can get out of your vehicle, stretch your legs after a long drive and have something to eat. We were the only people at the rest stop at that stage. While we were relaxing I suddenly noticed a movement on another picnic table on the other side of the resting area. I grabbed my camera and started filming. We realised it was a baby spotted eagle owl, standing on the table looking a little confused. The owlet kept looking upwards into the tree as if it urgently had to get back up into the tree. We decided to drive a little closer and see what this little one was up to. The owlet was still standing on the table looking unsure when it suddenly made an attempt to fly back up into the tree. The clumsy little owl failed miserably in its attempt. It looked more like the juvenile took a leap of faith and ended up nose diving straight down to the ground. We couldn’t help but to find this sudden fall very funny. The baby owl looked a bit shocked and confused after the fall. With us laughing at the owlet’s failure, it decided to sneak off and hide behind the tree. We drove around the tree and found the youngster hiding under a fallen stump on the ground, staring at us with its huge bright yellow eyes. It was as if the baby owl felt embarrassed by its sudden fall from the table and just wanted to hide. We decided to leave the owlet in peace and continued with our journey.