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12-13-2015, 10:13 AM
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: Calgary
Posts: 2,008
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Know your Owls?
As part of my stop smoking program, I've been doing regular evening hikes through the weasel head. As of late, I always hear, and occasionally see, owls that sound like a sick crow. A single, but continuously repeated 'squawk'. Are these Barred Owls? Last night it sounded like there may have been three of them together. Is this the beginning of thier breeding season? I'll take the binos tonight, but it's usually getting dark before they start calling.
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12-13-2015, 10:25 AM
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Banned
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Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 4,090
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Last edited by drhu22; 12-13-2015 at 10:31 AM.
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12-13-2015, 11:36 AM
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Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 3,221
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Might be a screech owl.... I don't know where their normal habitat is, but these days, I don't think that matters anymore...
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12-13-2015, 12:15 PM
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: Calgary
Posts: 2,008
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Quote:
Originally Posted by drhu22
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Cool site. Its the second one Ive checked for calls, and has not included what I've been hearing. I'll do a bit more searching this evening.
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12-13-2015, 12:38 PM
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: West Central Alberta
Posts: 6,673
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Barred Owl has a very distinctive call. When you hear it it sounds like they are saying "Who cooks for you?".
Also a Barred Owl is the only owl I know of with dark eyes.
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12-13-2015, 03:53 PM
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Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: central Alberta
Posts: 12,629
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Yes it is the breeding season pretty soon. Owls are probably defining their breeding territories now. Some owls nest and lay eggs in February. The fledglings stay in the nest up to 5 months.
My guess is it's great horned owls.
Click on the arrows to listen to the various sounds.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/...ned_Owl/sounds
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This country was started by voyagers whose young lives were swept away by the currents of the rivers for ten cents a day... just for the vanity of the European's beaver hats. ~ Red Bullets
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It is when you walk alone in nature that you discover your strengths and weaknesses. ~ Red Bullets
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12-13-2015, 04:17 PM
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Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: With my dogs
Posts: 4,545
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Quote:
Originally Posted by amosfella
Might be a screech owl.... I don't know where their normal habitat is, but these days, I don't think that matters anymore...
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No Screech-Owls in AB. A squawk is most likely to be an alarm call of some sort. Was this in an open area? If so, Short-eared Owl would be a strong bet. They have an interesting vocabulary.
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alacringa
"This Brittany is my most cherished possession — the darndest bird-finder I have ever seen, a tough and wiry little dog with a choke-bored nose and the ability to read birds’ minds." -Jack O'Connor
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12-13-2015, 07:06 PM
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: Calgary
Posts: 2,008
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Red Bullets
Yes it is the breeding season pretty soon. Owls are probably defining their breeding territories now. Some owls nest and lay eggs in February. The fledglings stay in the nest up to 5 months.
My guess is it's great horned owls.
Click on the arrows to listen to the various sounds.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/...ned_Owl/sounds |
No calls tonight, did see one owl, and although it was dark, I thought it looked like a smaller Great Horned. The call I had heard previous nights was the 'female squawk' from your linked site.
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12-13-2015, 09:36 PM
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Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Calgary
Posts: 1,494
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Keep up the good work on non-smoking...
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12-13-2015, 09:47 PM
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Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Devon/Spruce Grove
Posts: 343
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If you have an iPhone or iPad, National Geographic has a North American bird app that has all the sounds for each bird as well as variations of each birds sounds that really help in figuring birds out. It also has maps of the birds ranges, various male and female pictures as well and a description. It's nice since you can have it with you while you are out and hear or see the birds to help right then and there to identify them. I love it. You can get quite a rise out of chickadee's when you play there sound since they are territorial, they'll come right at you.
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