They're baaaack! 8-)) A 4th one joined them soon after this photo. It's about 8:30 pm, and dusky/dark. They were not at all concerned by us peeking at them, nor the camera flash! We finally went quietly out on the deck and sat down - our presence didn't bother them at all! Astonishing how unafraid they are. And what on earth do they want looking into the house??? Look at their intense staring - I need to check out a Birdwatching site to find answers! Are they seeing their reflection? or light? or moths on the deck glass door? They did a lot of looking UP. Soon these 3, then 4, swooped away, and we saw the 5th one join them from another direction - we're happy to know they are still a whole family. Their delightful head bobbing and circling must serve some practical purpose.
This is Sunday evening. Saturday night one was sitting on the fence looking right back at us into the kitchen window, when we opened the window for night air. We are blessed.
That is so cool to have an owl family right in your back yard. We have pheasants who dig up the sweet corn seeds and deer that eat it when it gets a little bigger, then coons go for the ears when they're just about ready to pick. I'd gladly trade them for your owls.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice experience and it isn't connected to technology in any form - nature is a great entertainer!
ReplyDeleteOh.... lucky you! I love owls! Wish we had some around my place! They are so cute! From a distance of course! Thanks for sharing! Cheers!
ReplyDeleteWhat lovely visitors! Owls are usually solitary, so if they are in a group like this it must be parents teaching chicks how to hunt. It must have been a good year for the parents to be able to raise three babies. Owl eyes work much like humans' eyes, so, yes, they can see your house and those inside. But they are moving their heads around because their main tool for finding food are their ears. They have depth of hearing like we have depth of vision. Moving their head gives them a better idea of the location of their prey. And they have REALLY good hearing -- a screech owl can hear a mouse from about 100 yards away. If these are screech owls (it's hard to tell their size from the pictures) they'll be hunting small rodents like mice, small snakes, large insects like grasshoppers, and other similar sized prey. They're not real picky, but they do like their prey alive. Screech owl's calls (hoots) are, well, screeches. They sound like a sick cat, or a lady in trouble. Both sexes call (they need to find each other in the dark.) Because the female is larger than the male (as in all hunting birds) her call is lower pitched.
ReplyDeleteSally H (volunteer at a nature and science center)
Oh Sally - YOU are just what I needed - we had questions about that head bobbin, # in the brood, etc. Thank you so much for your information. Yes, they ARE screech owls, and we can hear their very soft, almost purring calls - sweet and gentle. 8-))
ReplyDeleteElaine Adair
This is so cool, Elaine. I love seeing those owls. We have barn owls around here and you can hear their soft hooting in the evening, but we never see them quite like this.
ReplyDeletewhat a wonderful experience! I live in the city and lately the sparrows have been coming on to my window ledge in the pantry (3rd floor)- frankly I think they are just trying to annoy the cat! However, I don't live far from woods and twice now I've left for work (around 5:00 a.m.) only to see a moose standing in the middle of the street! The first time I thought I'd drive up close, but I soon realized the bottom of his body was higher than the top of my car. We both just looked at each other and then I slowly backed down the street and turned in the opposite direction!
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful to get to experience this owl family!
ReplyDeleteI'm just loving your whole owl saga! What a great thing to get to experience! Thanks for all the updates.
ReplyDeleteHave you checked out whatbird.com? There's lots of info on there. I use it a lot for the birds we see around here.
It must be quite a thrill to watch these owls. I am loving the ongoing stories you are telling about them - the pictures, too. Do they stay around your area all year 'round, or are they seasonal? We have some owls here. I can hear them at night and sometimes early in the morning. Haven't seen them though and don't know what kind they are. Their sound is "who who". I wonder what they are.
ReplyDeleteThe closest I've ever come to an owl is through the roof of our RV. A Great Horned Owl would perch on the ladder at night after we went to bed. Friends told us in the morning that they had seen it. We could hear it! It was thrilling to hear it scuffling around on the roof, almost like a visit from Santa's reindeer, one anyway.
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful your pictures are of these owls! I'm so glad that we have the technology to be able to share your viewing them with us, from all over the world. You rock!
ReplyDeleteElaine how neat to keep seeing the owls! I haven't seen any here along the river and it was interesting to read what Sally commented!
ReplyDeleteI've loved your posts about the owls! What a privilege to have them so close.
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