This Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker insisted in having its photograph taken. It was working away at a tree only feet off our deck, and stayed in this one location (food motivates) long enough for me to walk down the hill to our garage, get something, walk back up to the house, go inside and then get my camera. Sapsucker’s are one of my favorite woodpecker. I think this is the unique bird which drums in the tree nest to our bedroom window every morning at 5:00 am. Who needs an alarm clock?!
Finally, here are two More videos from yesterday’s Great Horned Owlet Rescue. Make certain you see yesterday’s post which has some cool videos and images from the actual rescue. These two movies were taken with my good camera.
The first video was taken shortly after I found the owlets and before the DNR and the Community Service Police Officer arrived to effect the rescue. (video link for email subscribers)
The second video was taken shortly after this particular owlet had been removed / rescued from the dog park. The owl was not happy with us, but quieted down quickly. (video link for email subscribers)
Today was an unexpected but special day. Molly knows I have been experiencing M.O.S. (missing owlet syndrome). After six years of watching Les and Amy raise Great Horned Owlets near my home, I was looking forward to a seventh year. Although I found this season’s nest, four weeks ago for unknown reasons the nest failed (night time raccoon attack??).
Anyhow this morning I had some intelligence on a family of Great Horned Owlets within driving distance of my northern Minnesota home. Leaving shortly before 6:30 am I went to visit the owl location. After walking around for ten minutes, I heard an “owl squawk” which I recognized as a female Great Horned Owl. I knew wherever Mom was, the owlets had to be near by … I just did not realize how near the owlets were to me. I had been scanning high up in the white pines, but briefly I looked down and discovered two owlets were on the ground within 10 yards of my location.
I backed off immediately, as I was obviously too close. Unfortunately the owlets were on the ground within a fenced dog park. My inspection of the owlets told me their flight feathers were not fully developed, and that both birds had likely experienced a “controlled crash” from the trees the prior night. I realized this was NOT a good situation for either owls or dogs. They could not escape any dogs that found them within the dog park.
Thankfully for most of the time I was the only person present (no dogs). I contacted both the local police and DNR. Between the three of us, we briefly captured the owls and released them moments later outside the fenced in dog park area. Momma Owl was watching us the entire time. Both owlets are now still on the ground (not unusual), but in safer protected thickets where I assume they will use downed tree boughs to climb back up into some white pines. My thanks to the Minnesota DNR and the local police department (not named to protect the owl’s location). Both organizations responded to my help requests and were instrumental in saving the owlets. Normally one should leave owlets found on the ground alone, but not when the owlets could not fly and were within a fenced dog park.
Today was also my half way point for cancer radiation treatment (20 out of 40 treatments). God provided me a real gift.
Enjoy!!!
My view when I finally looked down, and not up into the trees!
Owlet A (trying to scare a dog which appeared at one point)
Owlet B (trying to scare me when I got too close)
Momma Great Horned Owl
The Rescue Video! (video link for email subscribers)
Many folks have asked me if the owl irruption is over in NE Minnesota. The answer is “yes” and “no”. The huge influx of owls on the North Shore of Lake Superior has been over for some time. However, this irruption was originally a southward movement irruption … owls moving south but as they hunted out areas they ran smack dab into Lake Superior. Owls do not like flying over large bodies of water, and thus there was a traffic jam of owls along the shore of the big lake. Eventually most of these owls worked their way down the shore past Duluth (a few staying to hunt good habitat) and spread out across northern Minnesota. There were also lots of owls that just flew directly south and never smacked into Lake Superior.
All these Great Gray Owls are now working their way back north. Some will choose to become year round residents in the Boreal forest & bogs of northeastern Minnesota and join our resident year round Great Grays. Some owls will work their way back up to the border country with Canada and beyond … into eastern Manitoba and NW Ontario.
This morning I found a few Great Grays well away from the North Shore and Sax-Zim Bog. They seemed to be following traditional spring migration paths which other bird species also utilize. Thus, with hard work and research there are still more owls around than normal, but the days of a Great Gray Owl on every other Scenic 61 signpost are gone!
I hope you enjoy my “Down on the Farm” Great Gray Owl photographs. Each farm was near good owl habitat, and remember … in the winter these of owls eat meadow voles.
Great Gray hunting from an Antique Hay Mower
Sticking the Landing! The owl eventually dropped straight down and caught a vole next to the mower
Great Gray hunting a farm field next to the forest
