Don't bother knockin' if...

In many areas owls are working at creating a new generation.  Owls attempt to time the birth of their offspring to coincide with their peak hunting season when prey are plentiful.  This assists the owlets as they hone their hunting skills and increases the chances that there will be plenty of food for all of the new mouths.

Read more about it here.

Nature's Art

Look at this fantastic piece of owl art!!

This 'wing print',probably from a Barred owl is featured in an article in The Free Press here.

A young Barred owl flew into a window at Keene State College knocking itself silly.  The bird had just grabbed it's breakfast but due to low visibility slammed into the window and fell to the snow below.

Assisted by college do-gooders the owl, now named Woodsy, was rescued from her snowy fate.  Apparently Woodsy suffered the same injury as many an NFL player and was a bit concussed. She's doing well and should be released in the Spring.

BTW, the Keene State College mascot is the Owl. Read the full story here.

You know this winter has gone on for too long when...

it's Thursday night and for your weekend entertainment you are seriously considering:

Law Enforcement Torch Run Polar Plunge
Jump into the freezing cold waters of Twin Lakes Recreation area to raise money for the Special Olympics.
Palatine High School VIP Dinner Dance
27th annual dinner and auction event
The Bridge Beats the Winter Blues
Casual night of dinner and friendly but competitive games.


And, yes, even though I love owls, I want to scream,


Owl Prowl
Learn about the special adaptations owls have as silent predators and why they are important members of the wildlife community. Take a hike and try to lure owls out with recorded calls. Event is for adults only.
(Adults only!?!)


From the Palantine Patch:  And you still want more? Click here

But Can a Leopard Change His Spots?

Dateline: Helsinki

According to a report in USA Today, researchers at the University of Helsinki are reporting that the milder winters are causing a shift in the survival rates of two varieties of the Finnish Tawny owl.  Over some 20 odd years of study revealed that the gray variety does better in winter than the brown variety. But with the milder winters of late (less snow) the brown variety is now doing better than the gray.  The guess is that other animals hunting the owls find it harder to spot the gray when there's more snow and they find it harder to spot the brown when there's less snow.

I don't think Chuck Darwin would be surprised in the least.

Eule Goes Hollywood-Mariachi Style

Yet another movie with Owls!  Well, this story isn't exclusively about owls like the Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole  but Rango does have owls!  Recently, some of the stars of Rango (Where's Johnny Depp?) were in Berlin to promote the film.  Opens March 4th in the U.S.A. und am dritten März in Deutschland.


Look for it in a theater near you.



Pic from: The Examiner.com

But Baby, It's Cold Outside

Sure it's a cold and SNOWY winter.  But can Spring be far off?

As reported in the Richmond-Times Dispatch, Great Horned owls are beginning their search for a mate. The owl's hooting in the hours of early morning are apparently a prelude to mating.

Perhaps we should take a cue from the owls.....

Carmen McRae & Sammy Davis Jr-Baby, It's Cold Outside

Can't We All Just Get Along?

In the 1980's the notorious/famous Spotted owl defeated loggers in the Pacific Northwest. Now they face a new challenge:  The Barred Owl.   According to The Scientific American, "These birds are more aggressive, can live in any type of forest, and eat more types of food than spotted owls, making them more adaptable to the current Pacific Northwest landscape."
Of course, the Spotted owl is still losing it's habitat to man, as well.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has proposed controlling (killing?)  some of the Barred owl population .


 vs  vs 
Bets on the winner, anyone?
Reorted in The Scientific American.

I Prefer the Wings

  Dateline:  Bethel, Maine  A Barred owl was caught inside a barn where it had been decapitating one chicken a day and flying off with the heads.   According to the article on the Bloomberg News website, Wildlife biologist Judy says chickens are too big for owls to carry off and owls are notorious for eating heads. She says many animals that owls live on, such as squirrels and voles, live under the snow.

Apparently the owl was starving to death.  Rough winter.  Make mine extra spicy.

Taco Bell: Think Outside the Bun

Dateline: Crystal Lake, IL

Apparently, a Great Horned Owl attempted to make a meal out of Chico, a Chihuahua.  The owl would have had its lunch had it not gotten tangled in the dogs leash.  Chico was slightly injured and may have been spared further damage by wearing his puffy winter jacket (ala George Costanza). See the rest of the story here

¡Yo quiero Taco Bell!

Look at Her Fly!!

An article from the Middletown Patch includes this great shot of a Short-Eared Owl.

The article says that these owl are rare in the area of  Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge.   but according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website, during the winter these birds are common to much of the U.S., including New England.  Myabe they are just rare in the local area.  But rare or not I can see why some people are excited at the sight of this bird in flight!

Check out the article here, it has more pics!

XXOO

Not sure what to give your favorite owl lover, lover for Valentine's Day?

As usual Martha Stewart has an answer for you.  She has a cookie recipe that is (please forgive me) a real HOOT!  Check out the recipe and video at Martha's website.

It's a good thing.

Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty.....

Dateline:  Kedington, UK:  In the "Tastes just like chicken" category:  Owners of a missing eagle owl fear she could make a meal of someone’s cat.  European eagle owl Izzy is only 10 months old but is already 2ft 6in tall, with a 5ft wingspan.

Owners Jane and John Walmsley said she would be getting hungry and could take a fancy to a pet cat – in the wild the owls eat hares and rabbits.

John said: “If anyone spots her don’t touch her, as she will be getting scared and hungry, but call us as soon as possible. What we’re most worried about is people’s cats.”

See Full Story including video of this magnificent bird here

Can you hear me now?

Fascinating article from the Minneapolis Star & Tribune

Seems that owls that live in wooded environments, like the Great Horned Owl, have a low hoot because the trees are a barrier to higher frequency sounds.  Lower frequency sounds work better.  So, to be heard (like for mating, HELLO!!) they have developed a low hoot.

Listen to a Great Horned Owl vs the Burrowing Owl (grassland habitat).
 (audio from the Owl Pages)

It also seems that most birds don't hang near high noise areas like freeways because it makes it so difficult to be heard.

Check out the rest of the article-Fascinating!!

Home EC 101

From The San Jose Mercury News:

HAYWARD -- Baking owl pellets were behind the evacuation of the four-story science building at Cal State East Bay shortly after 10 a.m. Tuesday.

Fire officials said someone had pulled a manual alarm. Because the source of the problem wasn't clear, "it caused a lot of havoc for us," Hayward fire Capt. Thor Poulsen said.

"We got there, and students were running out of the building," he said. "Some said there was smoke; some said there wasn't. ... We were hauling a hose up the stairs. We were on high alert."

Poulsen said firefighters found the source of the concern in Room 212 -- owl pellets, the inedible remains of rodents that owls regurgitate after swallowing the animal whole.

"They were cooking owl pellets at 300 degrees for a certain amount of time to kill bacteria," Poulsen said. "Somebody smelled it -- apparently it smells a little bit -- and pulled the fire alarm."

Poulsen said two trucks and at least four engines responded.

Let's go to the hop, Let's go to the hop... GULP!

From the Daily Mail:

Speaking of owl diets...
A Burrowing Owl near Cape Coral, Florida was seen struggling to eat a frog. LOL!!  This is why they say to cut your food into bite-sized pieces.

Immature Great Horned Owl Video

Check out this brief video of two Great Horned Owls in a tree in Dayton, OH.

Um, there won't be a photo with this post

From the Paramus (NJ) Patch:

Midland School
As part of their study of bones, the fourth grade students dissected owl pellets and found skeletal pieces left over from the owls’ meals! Students will assemble these skeletal remains and compare and contrast them with the human skeleton.

Say!  Isn't that the Mac-n-Cheese from Tuesday's lunch!?!?

I found myself looking into a pair of penetrating dark eyes.

Here's a beautiful little account, by Mike Burke, of an encounter with a Barred Owl.

Like a camouflaged soldier at attention, the big bird stood unmoving and nearly unseen in the bare oak. I took a step closer, and its head rotated slightly. I found myself looking into a pair of penetrating dark eyes. It hesitated a moment, then noiselessly alit. 

Check out the rest of the story in the Chesapeake Bay Journal.

Hard Winter for Barn Owls in the UK

As another major winter storm builds in the US this just in from the Wiltshire news: 
 Barn Owls near Minety  in the UK, are struggling to survive following last winter’s freezing temperatures.

Barn owls prey on small rodents but the blanket of snow that covered much of the landscape early last year made it almost impossible for the owls to locate and catch them.

Only about 20% of the owl boxes surveyed had shown signs of breeding.

Without enough food, the barn owls will not be able to breed. Or they may even starve.