The Bad Boys of the Owl World

Post by Skeeter & Marolyn Lasuzzo

Photography by Skeeter Lasuzzo

The Great Horned Owl is more elusive than both the Barred and Great Gray Owl.  The Great Horned usually hunts at night and is usually only visible after sunset.  You will understand my surprise when I called a Great Horned Owl to a tree just a few minutes before sunset and he called back to me.

   

Marolyn and I had gone to an area of Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge where last year a pair of Great Horned Owls had raised two owlets in a nest near the road.  If you remember from my blog last year, one of these adults was killed by a car.  We first pulled off the road behind an oil lease installation across the road from the old nest site and decided to try my imitation of a Great Horned Owl.  After my first attempt, I heard an owl answer me.  Within seconds the owl flew to a nearby tree to check me out and exchange hoots with me.  Notice the white feathers on the neck of the Great Horned owl.  These feather are only visible when the owl is hooting.  I guess my imitation is better than I thought.  We hooted back and forth a few times as the owl moved from one tree to another before he figured out I was not a threat and flew back into the woods.  

We then looked for the old nest site.  We were surprised to see a second Great Horned Owl checking out the old nest.  The nest had been  mostly destroyed by winter storms.  After determining the nest was unusable, the owl flew off in the direction of its mate.  It was good to see that the surviving owl from last year had found another mate and was back in the same area looking for a nest site.  Great Horned Owls do not build their own nest.  They either use an old hawk nest, find a usable cavity in a tree or steal a nest from a hawk.

The Great Horned Owl is the bad boy of the owl world.  They are the only animal that will regularly feed on skunks.  They are known to kill and eat other owls and birds of prey, like hawks, and will also attack Osprey nestlings.  While rabbits are its preferred prey, the Great Horned Owl will kill squirrels, raccoons, armadillos, porcupines, Great Blue Herons, ducks, swans, and even baby alligators.  They have also been know to attack small domestic dogs and cats.  They are strong enough to carry off prey that is 2 to 3 times their size.

We have since "talked" to this Great Horned Owl on a couple of occasions.  Great Horned Owls live a solitary life except during mating season and raising their young.  Even after the adults separate, they usually stay within a one square mile home area and live around 13 years in the wild.

It is always a pleasure to see and photograph these magnificent owls - the bad boys of the owl world.

Woo-Hoo - Housing Project at Refuge - Part II

Byron Rushing and a Techline crew, subcontractors with Grayson Collin Electric Co-op, “light” -ened the task of installing owl nest boxes at Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge this week. This summer, a Friends of Hagerman volunteer built nest boxes for Screech Owls, Barn Owls and Barred Owls with materials provided by the Refuge. Four Screech Owl boxes and four Barn/Barred Owl boxes were built. Now, thanks to GCEC, all the owl boxes have been placed from 12’ to 14’ off the ground, to meet the owls' nesting needs and allow for monitoring. On Monday of this week, Bryan Fish, Bryan Fish, Jr., Dwyane (Hoot) Jones, Jr., and Ron Griffin from Techline moved poles taken down in the process of re-routing power lines for the new Visitor Center/Administration complex at the Refuge, drilled holes and set the poles in place with the owl nest boxes attached (shown in photo), at the recommended heights.

Visitors to the Refuge will probably not see the owl boxes, as most of them are placed away from public use areas. In order for the Barred Owls to use the nest box, the boxes must be placed at least a mile apart, and in a wooded area. The Barn Owl’s territorial size is just the area around the nest box, and their boxes are placed in open prairie at the Refuge, their preferred habitat. Screech Owls’ habitat is at the edge of woods, and their territory, like that of the Barn Owl, is the area around the nest. Whether the nest boxes are visible to visitors or not, be assured that thanks to GCEC and Techline’s support for the Refuge and the Friends, this project will encourage growth in the owl population of the area.

The official site for information about Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge is http://www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/texas/hagerman/index.html and for information about activities and events, see http://www.friendsofhagerman.com.

Woo-Hoo - Housing Project at Refuge

By Dick & Sue Malnory

The Friends of Hagerman are building nest boxes for Screech Owls, Barn Owls and Barred Owls at Hagerman NWR, with materials provided by the Refuge. A total of eight boxes will be mounted on poles by Grayson Collin Electric Cooperative, when the time comes to move power poles in the construction process for the new building - the power company will donate and install the poles, as well as hang the boxes.

This is a big deal - well, the next boxes are big! The Audubon design for the Screech Owl nest box (http://www.audubonmagazine.org/backyard/backyard0201.html) is approximately 9”x 9” x 20” tall, with a 3” diameter entrance hole. The roof slopes, with an overhang on the front side. For the Barn Owl or the Barred Owl, the box design by Norman Watenpaugh, (http://www.scvas.org/pdf/cbrp/BuildingBarnOwlBoxes.pdf) is approximately 17” x 24” x 22” tall, with a sloping roof. The entrance is rectangular, 6” x 8” and there is a perch.

Four Screech Owl boxes and four Barn/Barred Owl boxes are being built. In order for the Barred Owls to use the nest box, those must be placed at least a mile apart, and in a wooded area. The Barn Owl’s territorial size is just the area around the nest box, and their boxes will be placed in open prairie at the Refuge, their preferred habitat. Screech Owls' habitat is at the edge of woods, and their territory, like that of the Barn Owl, is the area around the nest.

Barn and Barred Owl boxes will be placed from 10’ to 20’ off the ground, while Screech Owl boxes can be situated 5’ to 20’ high.

The other owl seen at Hagerman NWR, the Great Horned Owl, is not a cavity nester, but rather takes over the abandoned nest of other birds such as hawks or crows, or even the nest of squirrels.
Visitors to the Refuge will probably not see the owl boxes as they will be placed away from public use area, but be assured that support for the Refuge and the Friends projects is helping to grow the owl population of the area.

For more information about Hagerman NWR, see http://www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/texas/hagerman/index.html and for information about programs and activities, see http://www.friendsofhagerman.com.

Animal Dads of Note

From the US FWS Newswire and Friends of Hagerman NWR

Good dads make the going easier. So with Father’s Day having just been celebrated on June 20, it’s a great time to look at the animal kingdom, where some dads’ flair for parenting can make the difference between life and death. Here are a few devoted animal dads and some National Wildlife Refuges where they live.

Role model: Red fox (Vulpes vulpes)

Reason: The male of the species makes an attentive father, especially in the first month after birth. While females nurse the cubs, the fathers carry hunting duties and bring food to the den every four to six hours. But fathers do more than deliver the bacon, they plays with their pups, too. As they get older and stronger he teaches them to hunt and hide from predators. Meal service ends when the pups reach three months in age.

Some refuges where you may spot him: Seatuck Refuge, NY; Innoko Refuge Alaska; Missisquoi Refuge, Vermont; Stewart B. McKinney Refuge, Connecticut.

Role model: Great horned owl (Bubo virginianus)

Reason: While his mate warms their clutch of eggs, the male owl catches small rodents to feed both him and her. Once the eggs hatch, he hunts for and feeds the whole family.

Some refuges where you can look for him: Target Refuge, New York; Pea Island Refuge, North Carolina; Bosque Refuge, New Mexico; Wertheim Refuge, New York; Hagerman NWR, Texas, Aransas Refuge, Texas; Tallahatchie Refuge, Mississippi.

Role model: Ruddy duck (Oxyura jamaicensis)

Reason: Unlike many of his duck buddies who spend their time courting and playing the field, the male ruddy duck shares responsibility for his young.

Some refuges where you may spot him: Malheur Refuge, Oregon; San Pablo Bay Refuge, California; Pea Island Refuge, North Carolina; Montezuma Refuge, New York; Muleshoe Refuge, Texas.

Role model: Greater flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus)

Reason: Flamingos tend to mate for life and the male helps feather his mate’s nest. He then takes turns with her sitting on it. When their single egg hatches he shares childrearing duties.

Some refuges where you may spot him: Aransas Refuge, Texas; Archie Carr Refuge, Florida; Arthur M. Loxahatchee Refuge, Florida; Cedar Keys Refuge, Florida; Caloosahatchee Refuge, Florida.

Role model: Barking tree frog (Hyla gratiosa)

Reason: The male makes a distinctive contribution to parenting. He sticks close by until the eggs are hatched preventing them from drying out by dousing them with urine.

Some refuges where you may spot him: Carolina Sandhills Refuge, South Carolina: Pocosin Lakes Refuge, North Carolina: Santee Refuge, South Carolina.

For more information on any listed refuge, visit http://www.fws.gov/refuges/. Use the “Find Your Refuge” tool to search for refuges by state, alphabetic listing or zip code.

For more information about activities and events at Hagerman NWR, see http://www.friendsofhagerman.com.

Photo: Great Horned Owl by Eileen Sullivan