Barn Owl and Great Horned Owl Family … Friends??

Year 9

I was dumbfounded yesterday afternoon when I found a Barn Owl and a Great Horned Owl Family peacefully coexisting within 30 yards of each other. My experience, and common birding thought has always taught me that Great Horned Owls, which are top of the food chain, will NEVER tolerate other owls or raptors nearby. However, north of Tucson I found just this situation. A family of five Great Horned Owls did not seem to mind the presence of the Barn Owl. I can only speculate that prey must be plentiful, because Dad GHO could have easily attacked and killed the Barn Owl. At home, I have found the remains of several Barred Owls underneath my local owl’s nests over the past four years.

I did some Google searches, and even the Cornell School of Ornithology seems to be in line with my way of thinking, but I did find one birder / naturalist who lives in Utah who experienced the same strange situation a few years back (read his account … with pics)

The Barn Owl

Mom Great Horned Owl and Family

Dad Great Horned Owl

Finally I have included images of both species chilling out and falling asleep … not the mark of a stressed out bird … the exact opposite. Let me stress that each image in this blog post was taken within a 100 yard radius (a very small area in terms of nesting and perches). I even think there may be a Barn Owl nest in the immediate vicinity, but I did not want to stress the owls out by making a close exhaustive search.

Two Owls a Sleeping

Las Cruces Roadrunner Dumb Luck Birding!

Year 9

Dumb luck birding! This is an essential requirement when birding, but the key is to let other folks know how to benefit from your luck. A few years back, quite by accident, Molly and I discovered that Las Cruces is a fantastic place to stop for one night, take a hike, and for me … easily see Roadrunners at a close distance which do not “exit stage left” upon seeing a human. The hiking path right next to the Rio Grande River in Las Cruces, New Mexico is great habitat for roadrunners, and because of all the “humans” that use said path, the birds have become somewhat used to people. During our first stay and bike ride a few years ago I saw lots of roadrunners along the path next to the river, often as close as 15 yards away, and the birds did not spook. Yesterday evening was no different. It is an easy 2.5 mile bike ride over to the river, and I saw my first roadrunner within yards of starting to bicycle along the river. Obviously one could also drive over and walk.

We stayed at the Comfort Suites … a very pleasant motel which is “south” of Interstate 10, and there is even a great small restaurant directly across the street … a vineyard which sells its own wines and serves Italian food with lots of outdoor dining, Luna Rossa Winery and Pizzeria. We are driving to Tucson. Thus, Las Cruces was a great final stop along our drive.

Las Cruces Roadrunner and Map

Duluth Shipping Season Opener & Crescent Moon!

Year 9

It was a fantastic early morning on the big lake. Shortly after 6 am the most gorgeous Crescent Moon rose between the trees, and then shortly before 8 am the Burns Harbor (a ship which carries iron ore to the steel mills of Ohio and New York) opened this year’s shipping season. If you want to watch / listen to an amazing amount of Hooting and Tooting back and forth between the Ship, the Aerial Bridge, and the Tug which helped the Burns Harbor through the ice, skip forward to 2:05 of the video. The symphony of sounds lasts till the very end of the video (video link for email subscribers).

Crescent Moonrise

Burns Harbor