All posts by richardhoeg@gmail.com

The Evening Hoot! (Great Horned Owls)

Year 8
Where was everyone this past Friday night at 9:30 pm … long after sundown? I was out in the middle of the forest recording “the evening hoot”. The pics in the video swap back and forth based upon which owl is singing (video is 1.5 minutes long) … no pesky crows at sunrise in this recording … just the silence of the forest night.
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The photographs of the owls are the “exact owls” that are hooting. I have been fortunate enough to watch this Great Horned Owl couple raise a family for three years running. The Mom has been on the nest since the second week of February, and will not leave the nest even for one second till about the first week in April. She does all the incubating and feeding (the male brings the food to the nest … he does all the hunting for the family till early April).
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The biggest surprise while recording this file was being bombarded by a decapitated rabbit’s head. Originally the male was about 200 yards distant, and then it flew to the nest tree directly above where I was standing with supper for his mate. She quickly started eating and I about jumped 100 feet high when I got bombed. It was not expected a rabbit’s head to almost hit me, and the sound of it hitting the ground right next to me was loud in what was a quiet forest.
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The video / audio file is 1.5 minutes in duration. Here are the two actors / hooters! (video / audio link for email subscribers. (movie directly follow the two images)

The Evening Hoot … The Movie!

A Grosbeak Good-Bye!

Year 8

Yesterday, I spent a delightful morning in Sax-Zim Bog. How else might one describe a day with deep blue skies, calm winds and 44F?! The two week stretch of -175F weather got old! I took lots of hikes, and was surprised to learn how much snow has melted in the forest. My main reason for heading over to the Bog was to say goodbye for another year to the grosbeaks. Within days all of the Pine Grosbeaks should be gone and on their way up to the northern fringes of the Boreal Forest in Canada. I actually felt lucky to find two females.

The Evening Grosbeaks will hang around for a week or two longer. While a few will stay and breed in northern Minnesota, most will migrate north to the mid Boreal Forest up in Canada.

I also enjoyed some time with a few Gray Jays … a year round bird in northern Minnesota, and now Canada’s national bird (official new name … Canada Jay)

Finally, this morning I was out of the house shortly after 6 am in search of Great Gray Owls. I struck out 100%. The melting snow and time of year means it’s time for these owls to leave the roadsides where they hunt “meadow voles” and head deep back into the forest … to raise a new family and munch on “red backed voles” all summer.

Listening to the Weather

Year 8,

Before yesterday morning it had been almost a week since I had looked for Great Gray Owls. Although these owls thoughts will soon to turn to love, and they will retreat deep into the forest away from areas where they might me viewed, it still did not make sense to go birding for them. Since last Sunday the winds have been strong, which means the Great Gray Owls tend to conserve energy and wait for better hunting conditions. Loud winds mean these owls are not able to hear their prey running underneath the snow.

However, yesterday morning dawned with almost totally calm conditions. I immediately made the decision to go out owling and was rewarded with finding two owls out hunting long past daybreak. I heard from friends that one owl was seen hunting into the afternoon. Hunger is a great motivator.

Great Gray Hunting a bit after Sunrise (video link for email subscribers)

Upon getting home I hiked over to my own owls, the Great Horned Owl couple. At this point not much will happen till the eggs hatch, but I do enjoy the nightly singing / hooting easily heard from inside my house.

My Great Horned Owl Family (male in the tree, female on the nest)