Birds and owls

Post by **SCIN** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 4:24 pm

Does anyone know of the best trails in the gorge where I could possibly see an owl or lots of birds?

Post by **mike_a_lafontaine** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 4:29 pm

Auxier Ridge is great for owls in the evening. You may not see them, but you can call them and hear them like mad in the valleys below. One cool thing to do, grab a copy of the Peterson's Field guide on CD, and play it loud on a portable radio from the ridge. The resident owl of the species that you play may get territorial and come check you out. Just be a bit careful how you do it. One year back home we called in a great horned owl, got to see him, then called in a barred owl. Unfortunately for the barred owl, the great horned hadn't left, and when the barred owl showed up...well, there were lots of feathers and not much else left. So make sure to call them in from smallest species to largest, lest you artificially thin the population of the little guys!

Post by **possum2082** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 5:00 pm

i think there are some snipes at whistling arch.

Post by **anticlmber** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 9:38 pm

tacketts got some owls up on the hill.

Post by **Clevis Hitch** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 9:53 pm

yeah! Tackett is a real "hoot"!

Post by **ynot** » Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:53 pm

All my owl encounters happened while I was sitting quietly and the owl dropped in.
They spook to easily to just walk up on. You never get a good look at them.
I use to park along a creek before work and get there before everyone else. about 3 times, the biggest damn owl I have ever seen would come flying low over the creek before sunrise and land about 10 feet away It was cool and creepy. his head would swivel around and when he's looking right at you his eyes would turn black.
I'l never forget it. then the bastards buldozed the whole place and wrecked his hunting ground.

Post by **dipsi** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 2:03 am

Back in my happy, hippie, stupidly married days, we had a beautiful horned owl get in our corn crib each year. Her wing span was too large to get back out the top, so we would call the game warden, and he would come with his big padded gloves and release her. She was beautiful, and I have some gorgeous photos of her. After a few years, she stopped coming and I missed her.

Post by **kato** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 7:03 pm

Seconding that owls are so shy you almost have to know where they live. There was one that lived in the woods behind CT and he flew right over my car once as I was leaving late one night. Wide as the windshield, I almost wrecked. For awhile, if I went up on the roof at dusk, sometimes I could catch a glimpse of him.

Post by **SCIN** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 7:14 pm

How about birds in general? Are there any areas in the gorge where I have a better chance at seeing lots of birds?

Post by **toad857** » Wed Apr 21, 2010 8:17 pm

SCIN wrote:How about birds in general? Are there any areas in the gorge where I have a better chance at seeing lots of birds?

depends on what kind of birds you want to see. the conspicuous & popular birds like osprey, herons, waterfowl are best seen on water bodies. otherwise, most of your bird-watching will be bird-listening. wetlands make the best birdwatching in my opinion. find some standing water with lots of dead trees & heterogeneity in the habitat. the more diverse, the better.

places that are 'transitional' are good, too. like, where a field turns into woods, or where a floodplain starts to go uphill.

if you know where shakertown is, that's a good place. they have bird-blinds (big feeders behind two-way mirrors to let you get a closeup look) and also really good birds that you don't usually see. there's a great mixture of habitat around there, so you can find jsut about anything you're looking for.

owls are transient & uncommon in the first place, so it's tough to find them. calling them in is the best way, though. a family of screech owls was pretty reliable around miguel's last 2 years. have heard screech owls, barred owl and great horned owl in the drain between military & LF all in one night. you have to be up at night or really early in the morning, but they get up in the day sometimes too.

most of the migrants are back, most of the winter residents are gone.

in general, if you want to see birds, get up early. just as the sun is breaking the horizon (630 is good right now). it's a madhouse in the morning, but bird activity drops down to practically nothing at midday.