An Owl in the Family!

I like to say I got an owl for Christmas! When I looked out the window on Christmas Eve!  The nesting box that Deryl installed last winter finally had a resident! A red-phase Eastern Screech Owl has turned the box into an Air B&B! His bed is in the nesting box and breakfast can be found at the nearby feeder!

He showed its face several times during daylight hours on Boxing Day! It was startled when a Mourning Dove landed on the roof, causing the owl to pop back inside.

Many people are feeding squirrels in local parks. They are cute, but over population of squirrels decreases the number of available cavities required by Screech owls. There is a lot of competition in a forest for wildlife to find shelter.

Some birds can make their own cavities. We could hear drumming in a dead tree for over 5 minutes before this male Red-bellied Woodpecker finally peaked out of a hole. We were surprised that there was room inside the trunk for the woodpecker to move around.