Tag Archives: WI North: Richard Bong Airport

Owl Notes … the Irruption and Locals

Year 12,

The Owl Irruption is changing. While there are still Great Gray Owls in the Duluth / Two Harbors region, the numbers are down dramatically. The days of seeing an owl on almost every sign post and pole seems to be over. I suspect this change was caused by just too much hunting pressure, and the Great Gray Owls needed to move on because the local meadows and wetlands were hunted out.

In addition, an owl adventure that began on exciting high note on Sunday morning has ended poorly. I received a phone call at 9:15 am describing an owl which I believed needed help. I found the Great Gray, hand captured and delivered the bird to Wildwoods Rehabilitation Center in Duluth. It was interesting once more to have an owl, which was secure in a box, riding next to me in my Subaru. Unfortunately the owl did not survive past Monday. While the bird was not injured, it was starving and could not be saved. As a fyi, I do not photograph birds that I am involved with rescuing. Taking time out for photography would be wrong when the animal needs my help.

Nature must have known I needed a pick me up after the downer of the owl’s death. While quite cold yesterday, during a hike I discovered my local Great Horned Owl’s nest. Les and Amy are back for a seventh year nesting near my home. Here is a photo of Les keeping watch over his lady love. For the time being I will not be posting images of the nest to protect Amy. As a reminder, this is the time of year to take walks after sunset in the dark … listen to your local owl’s hooting … triangulate the sound … find the nest. The Poppa Owls will always perch very near (as in only yards away in a different tree). By triangulating the the hooting you can really zero in on the nest area. I then return after sunrise when I am better able to see.

And Amy … image taken two evenings before she nested.

The local Snowy Owls which winter here on the Arctic Riviera must have also decided to help cheer me up. An hour before sunset yesterday I found not one but two Snowys.

Snowy #1

Snowy #2

Great Gray Owls are Boring!

Year 12

Yesterday morning I interviewed a local celebrity who made the outrageous claim that Great Gray Owls are boring, and she could personally not understand where all the owl paparazzi had gone to. I tried to calm her down, and said “the grays” were just a passing fad and soon the color of snow would reign once more.

Snowy Owls Rock!

The Butcher Bird / Northern Shrike

Year 11

With a hint of sun I decided to cruise the Superior, Wisconsin fairgrounds and the Bong Airport in search of the large predator which has not made any appearances this year. While I did not find a Snowy Owl, nor has anyone else except a brief sighting one day by Mr. Steve, this winter for the first time ever there are no Snowy Owls in the Twin Ports, I did find two Northern Shrikes.

This predator bird is perhaps ounce for ounce the most vicious killer out in the bird world. It is also know as the Butcher Bird … for good reason. This robin sized bird, not a hawk by any means, is one of our winter visitors from up north here on the Arctic Riviera. Take a look at this first image and focus upon the pointy fence. Northern Shrikes are known for impaling their kill on barbed wire or any other nasty pointed item. While I did not see this Shrike catch anything, it did not need to go far upon catching something to cache its prey for a later meal.

On the other side of the Superior Airport, I found another shrike hunting. These birds tend to like bushy trees by meadows where they can hide and surprise their prey.