Barred Owl (adult)

I went out to feed the birds just after 7:00 this morning and heard a strange, yet familiar, sound coming from the woods behind my home. It was a sound I knew but hadn’t heard in quite a long time (two years, to be exact). I immediately recognized the sound as a bird call, a very distinct and raspy one at that (you can listen to it here under “juvenile calls”). I also knew it was a juvenile, but I couldn’t readily recall which species. That I’d only had two sips of coffee up to that point didn’t help matters. I was standing in the middle of the backyard listening to the sound and saying to myself, “That’s a baby…baby what?”

And then it hit me: it was a baby owl. Two summers ago, there was a family of Barred Owls (two adults and two or three juveniles–I was never sure) that was very active in the woods behind my home. They frequently hunted during the daytime, and as I remember, the juveniles called almost incessantly. That was how I used to locate them. Barred Owls are otherwise silent hunters and are incredibly well-camouflaged.

Last summer, I had hoped to see them again, but it never happened. So, you can imagine my suprise–and my delight–when I heard those familiar juvenile Barred Owl calls this morning. I waited patiently (about two hours) to get these photographs of the adult. The two juveniles remained high up in the canopy.

I hope to see them again soon.

All photographs here are of an adult except the last two.