Owl’ll be happy to see you!

March 18, 2018


For 5 years in a row, screech owls nested in our owl box every spring. Watching them raise their chicks was an annual delight. But then they stopped coming, and for the past 2 years, no owls, which bummed me out.


It’s nesting season again, and I’ve been on the lookout for any sign of an owl. Three days ago, as I was trimming bamboo canes in the back garden, I looked up and spotted something small and gray amid the leaves.


An owl! It was as unperturbed as I was elated. Could it be the male of a mated pair, with his missus in the owl box sitting on a clutch of eggs?


I worked in the garden all day, as the owl slept in the swaying bamboo, occasionally peeping through half-closed eyes to keep an eye on me. And then I heard it: a soft, sweet trill, oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, from inside the owl box — a nesting female! — which was immediately answered by the male owl in the bamboo. She called to him throughout the afternoon, and he answered each time. (Click here for audio of a screech owl’s monotonic trill, “the tremolo used by pairs.”)


At dusk, she appeared in the doorway — a rufous (red) screech owl, waiting for her mate to bring her dinner while she stayed with the eggs. I’ve named the pair Lucy and Desi (a cultural reference sadly lost on our young-adult kids). Just last week I saw a great horned owl in one of our trees, a known predator of the tiny screech owl, so I hope they have their guard up. If all goes well, I look forward to seeing fuzzy chick faces peeping out of the owl box in another month.

If you’re curious about the owl box, my husband made it from plans he found online (you can buy one ready-made too). Screech owls naturally nest in tree cavities, but they readily accept owl boxes. Last year, to make it more difficult for squirrels to get in and out of the box, thinking that might be why the owls were staying away, we sheathed it in galvanized tin. The metal skin also deters their destructive gnawing. We spray-painted it brown to blend in with the trees. It seems to have worked.

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16 responses to “Owl’ll be happy to see you!”

  1. Sherry says:

    Hooray! Wishing your owls a successful nesting.

  2. Ann says:

    Ever have a problem with squirrels using the box?

  3. Kris P says:

    How exciting! As bunnies have now moved into my garden, I think I’ll need an owl house to encourage them to visit too.

  4. How wonderful! No owls here, just a big cinnamon shouldered hawk preying on the backyard birds at the feeder. Look forward to seeing your baby pictures. P. x

    • Pam/Digging says:

      Raptors of all kinds are fascinating, but it’s true that it’s more fun knowing they’re eating tree roaches and mice rather than songbirds. —Pam

  5. Jean says:

    I’m so happy for you! Show it to me when I see you this week. I wanted to put a box up this year but then completely forgot about it. Ah well. At least I saw a monarch today. ?

  6. Lisa at Greenbow says:

    Squirrels are so destructive and aggressive. They would eat baby owls too. Bleh… Can’t stand those long-tailed furry rodents.

  7. Sherry says:

    Pam, I made an impulse purchase of a pretty little crossvine. Since bringing it home, I’ve read some conflicting info about its deer resistance. Would this be “safe” to plant to grow along a 5ft tall metal fence where there are often deer cruising by?

    • Pam/Digging says:

      It all depends on what your deer decide, Sherry. Sorry if that sounds cheeky, but it’s true. Different groups of deer have differing tastes, or different resources available to them, and you never know until you try. For what it’s worth, I have it on my back fence, which could be nibbled from behind, and there are definitely deer back there. I’ve never seen them tugging at it. —Pam

  8. Sherry says:

    Not cheeky at all. Where we used to live, the deer would be so hungry by the early fall, all bets were off about what would be eaten. We had to net nandina and the bloodgood maple sometimes. I’ll give it a try in the spot that’s my first choice & see what happens. Thanks, Pam.