Family Strigidae, Strix aluco
Tawny owls are medium sized owls found in Europe and Asia and have red, grey, and brown color morphs. They are related to the barred owl found in the US. Tawny owls prefer to live in woods and open areas with large trees for perching. Their call is the famous "to-Wit, to-Woo."
With the loss of much of their rural habitat, tawny owls are moving into cities and suburbs. Their hunting techniques have changed with their new environment. One new technique involves landing on a branch and then slowly walking sideways along the limb until it is next to a sleeping songbird. One quick snatch, and the owl has a meal!
Awesome! It's about time they started laying eggs! I love working with those Tawny Owl chicks.
ReplyDeleteMe too! Are you the same Daniel I saw feeding those barn owl chicks on Thursday? :-)
ReplyDeleteHaha I wondered who was monitoring the blog...Yes it is. How's the oldest? He didn't seem to be hungry at all when I fed them.
ReplyDeleteI don't know. I only work on Thursday too. This is Steph by the way!
ReplyDeleteIf you have any blog ideas, send them my way. I am open to suggestions (pictures too!)
See you tomorrow at World Eagle Day!
Ohhh Hey Steph! I thought this was Jen :P. Yea, I'm looking forward to seeing you at WED.
ReplyDeleteAnd, you know me, I'm always suggesting the prairie dogs for something. You could do a blog on them :). I don't have any pictures though.
Just to clarify it was Shakespeare who first quoted to-whit to-woo as the call of the Tawny Owl. It was a rare mistake. That sound, often heard and I have heard it my self, is a combination of the young birds food begging call, translated to 'ke-wick' and the adults ooo ooo ooo.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Dave UK
Steph, I didn't see you today at WED. I was working at the cafe.
ReplyDeleteWe were there! I saw you, but it was pretty crowded and I was being led around by a ten year old.
ReplyDeleteThere was a big turnout I'd say. We caught one of the eagle shows and just kinda wandered around. Good times!
Hey remind me to give you my email address this week so we can discuss the blog.
Steph
Ahh. Yea, It was a pretty good turnout, but we didn't have as many people this year as we did last year. I stayed pretty busy.
ReplyDeleteSounds good! If I don't see you, leave your email address on the desk, and I'll pick it up when I get there!