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BirdNote ® Barred Owl

Air Date: Week of

A Barred Owl in flight. (Photo: © Tom Grey)

As the frigid long nights of January grip much of the country, Mary MacCann has an unexpected encounter with a Barred Owl.



Transcript

CURWOOD: January 27th sees the first full moon of 2013, called the Wolf Moon by Native Americans. But in our BirdNote ® today, Mary McCann has a tale of an encounter with a different creature of the night.

[MUSIC]


A Barred Owl. (Photo: © Gregg Thompson)

MCGANN: Winter grips the land and dawn comes late. Our house sits at the edge of a field of grasses that are limp and broken, tunneled through by voles. I awake as two Barred Owls fly in tandem, low, by my windows, swift dark shapes against the grey and brooding light. How close they are – banking at the corner of the house.

Then, a loud and mighty smack! I find one owl lying on the floor of the porch, upside down beneath a window, a heap of feathers, one wing protruding, barely breathing. Shall I cover the bird with a blanket, put it in a box and keep it warm? Has it broken a wing, cracked its beak? Or shall I keep my distance, so as not to frighten it further? I decide to hold still and watch.


A Barred Owl perched in a tree. (Photo: © Tom Grey)

Minutes pass. Then the owl rights itself and moves its head. Our eyes lock. Dazed, it sits quietly, turning its head from time to time. More minutes pass. I leave to get my binoculars to study it more closely. When I return, it is gone. It has flown away.

Tonight, temperatures will plunge and a winter moon will illuminate the new snow. I’m Mary McCann.

CURWOOD: To see some photos of the barred owl, swoop on down to our website at LOE.org.

[Written By Chris Peterson
Musical selection from “When Comes December” composed and played by Tim Story, on A Winter’s Solstice, Windham Hill Records.
Producer: John Kessler
Executive Producer: Chris Peterson
© 2013 Tune In to Nature.org January 2013 Narrator: Mary McCann]

 

Links

BirdNote ® Barred Owl

 

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