Whoo’s there? Another screech owl!
April 21, 2012
While sitting on the patio around noon today I spotted a shape in a tree over the back fence that looked like an animal. I squinted and realized it was a second screech owl having a siesta—the male of what I now hope is a nesting pair, with the female still occupying the owl box.
The female in the box is very skittish (protecting eggs or owlets, I hope), but the male in the tree was cool as a cucumber, letting me get directly beneath him for a closer portrait and only slitting his eyes slightly to watch me. He’s very small, about 8 inches tall, and absolutely adorable.
All material © 2006-2012 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
Very cool! Fingers crossed this is a nesting pair!
Me too, Karin. —Pam
This is exciting news! I hope you have owlets soon. I think I have to have one of these boxes. I had not bought one before because I was afraid that the owls might hunt the songbirds that I feed, but maybe these little guys are looking for smaller prey?
They definitely ignore the songbirds during the day. The blue jays harass them sometimes, so maybe they feel threatened. From what I’ve read, they mostly hunt moths, lizards, and rodents. —Pam
Perfect camo for this little fellow. I too hope you have a nesting pair. What fun to get to see owlettes.
They really do blend in with the trees. I felt lucky to spot him. —Pam
Awe-how beautiful. I would love to have owls on our property – my kids would love it.