Locked in a gravity-defying clash, two short-eared owls erupt into a mid-air battle over the marshes of Washington’s Skagit Valley. Talons outstretched, one owl twists upside down just feet above the ground—an electric moment of territorial tension rarely witnessed at such close quarters. For me, this photograph is the culmination of years spent chasing these elusive raptors. Growing up in New York, I devoted countless hours to watching short-eared owls skim over winter fields, dreaming of photographing their sudden collisions. After moving to Seattle, I felt compelled to seek out the West Coast “shorties” and to document the behaviors that bind the species across its wide range.