We are inviting a little mystery into our lives, a mystery known as Megascops asio or the eastern screech owl. These tiny owls live in wooded areas in eastern North America. They roost and nest in natural cavities and nest boxes and have adapted to life in urban areas where they readily habituate to people.
It’s fascinating to learn about the mutualism between owls, snakes, and ants. I had never considered that a nest might be a cooperative home. You always teach us something new, Bill.
Lovely! Thank you for sharing the owls with us. They are wonderful, and I hope your nest box will be successful so you can enjoy them as neighbors. We have barred owls in the woods on our property, and I am always so thrilled by our chance encounters. Their songs are so beautiful, one of my favorite soundtracks of our winter nights. On those rare moments I spot one in the branches, I freeze - and just enjoy basking in their gaze. They seem to consider me so thoughtfully and patiently, slowly assessing me before deciding whether to stay or fly :) It’s a rather special feeling to sit under a barred owl’s stare!
Lovely poem to end your post, one that I have not read before.
I’ve thought about putting up a screech owl nest box for years. The tree with the south-facing hole where one sat in the sun during winter days has recently fallen down. However we never saw evidence of nesting in that tree. Now I feel a nudge to get a nesting box up. Thank you.
Eastern Screech-Owls are such a treat to see. I've yet to see them in flight and mostly have seen them perched at the entrance of an old squirrel or woodpecker hole in a tree. Love the idea of a nest box.
I keep thinking about this post and wishing I had a population of screech owls nearby. I think I'm not wooded enough for the westerns to show up. I keep wondering though, if I could put up a nest box for kestrels. They are still present, but got pushed out of their nest cavity in my front yard pines 15 years ago by starlings. I just am not sure how I would keep the starlings out of it. Oh, starlings.
It’s fascinating to learn about the mutualism between owls, snakes, and ants. I had never considered that a nest might be a cooperative home. You always teach us something new, Bill.
Lovely! Thank you for sharing the owls with us. They are wonderful, and I hope your nest box will be successful so you can enjoy them as neighbors. We have barred owls in the woods on our property, and I am always so thrilled by our chance encounters. Their songs are so beautiful, one of my favorite soundtracks of our winter nights. On those rare moments I spot one in the branches, I freeze - and just enjoy basking in their gaze. They seem to consider me so thoughtfully and patiently, slowly assessing me before deciding whether to stay or fly :) It’s a rather special feeling to sit under a barred owl’s stare!
Lovely poem to end your post, one that I have not read before.
I’ve thought about putting up a screech owl nest box for years. The tree with the south-facing hole where one sat in the sun during winter days has recently fallen down. However we never saw evidence of nesting in that tree. Now I feel a nudge to get a nesting box up. Thank you.
Thank you Bill. I loved learning about the owls and -- seeing them!
Eastern Screech-Owls are such a treat to see. I've yet to see them in flight and mostly have seen them perched at the entrance of an old squirrel or woodpecker hole in a tree. Love the idea of a nest box.
I think I am in the range of these, as I've seen one at as local wildlife rescue. But my yard is too suburban to support a nest box.
I was this week looking for a tutorial on owl perches... brilliant! Thank you for this wonderful post!
This was wonderful to read. Thank you for the information and the beautiful images.
Fascinating. Thanks for sharing.
I keep thinking about this post and wishing I had a population of screech owls nearby. I think I'm not wooded enough for the westerns to show up. I keep wondering though, if I could put up a nest box for kestrels. They are still present, but got pushed out of their nest cavity in my front yard pines 15 years ago by starlings. I just am not sure how I would keep the starlings out of it. Oh, starlings.
I was this week looking for a tutorial on owl perches... brilliant! Thank you for this wonderful post!