the Way of the Turtle

A LONE SAW-WHET OWL...
1 Mile Walk at the Owl Woods
Monday, March 19, 2012

Dropped Ann off at work, then headed up to Braddock Bay and the Owl Woods to see if any owls came in last night. I was a bit surprised at how many people were there - four other while I was there, and two more pulled up as I was leaving. I sometimes wonder if the success of Braddock Bay Raptor Research in drawing attention to the owls that pause there while migrating will ultimately lead to the owls going somewhere else, as more and more people tromp through the woods looking for them. Then again, the saw-whets always seem remarkably unperturbed by people being just a few feet away.

I didn't spend a lot of time, just walked to main loop and the side trail just past the entrance where we've seen owls before. One saw-whet in view... I stopped long enough to take a couple of photos, but didn't linger because I had a pair of people not far behind me and didn't want a crowd lingering around the little guy.

Back at the parking lot I spent a few minutes watching a crow perched on a nearby road sign... guess he and his pals had found something dead to eat, because he spent a while working on a piece of something that looked a bit bloody.

JMH