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Woodsy has a posse.
This happened to me last year during barred owl nesting season. (Barreds are the owls most likely to be out during the day.) The second time I tried to pass the same tree, the owl flew out to meet me, clopping her beak ferociously. Apparently they're fairly harmless, but dang--that was scary.
The best advice I got about it was to carry an umbrella when I walked past the owl tree.
Laurel
The owls are not what they seem.
A year or two ago we had an owl on a ski trail that was attacking people and carrying away small dogs. Fortunately that all stopped, but the legend lives on...
I'm sorry, but this is not a news story. I have been attacked by birds four times now. Once skateboarding, twice while running, and once while waiting for the bus. They usually just kind of brush up against your head, but it is scary no matter what.
Wh-hooo goes there?
Bird photographer Eric Hosking, most famous for his shot "Barn Owl with Prey" (an truly amazing achievement for the time), lost his left eye when an owl attacked him:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Hosking
http://www.poelking.com/wbuch/fruehzeit/erstfoto-4.jpg
yeah, what laurel said--prolly she was nesting nearby. happens with starlings here in s.f. all the time. maybe there's a market for hats with hawk silhouettes on them. or hats with owl figures on them. ;o)
wow, i live in that neighborhood and i have always had a "weird" thing with owls there. i swear that there is an owl that follows me. not ever attacking me or anything, it just seems to always be hooting or fly by at the right moment. weird.
Hollywood Park is an affluent but slightly funky community with lots of wildlife. I have seen hawks, eagles, armadillos etc. The town is famous for it's herds of tame deer. It doesn't surprise me that they would have aggressive owls.
I for one welcome our new owl overlords.
(Hey, they fly. They *are* over us, dadgummit!)
Silly Muggles...
I pulled into my girlfriends driveway two nights ago and i see an owl fly into a tree so i walk towards it to get a better view. Literally feet from it, we stare eachother down. The owl swoops down from the tree towards my face and i run like a scared little girl. Weird to see this post on boing boing right after i get attacked :-P.
What about getting rabies shots...?
I was attacked at night by something while I was out running and it scratched my head. I ended up getting rabies shots.
I heard from a friend whose family in Puerto Rico owns a coffee plantation that "chupacabras" are most likely just owls. Big glowing (reflective) eyes, like to puncture coffee berries and smallish animals with their beaks and drink their juices -- sounds like a chupacabra to me.