2013 Costa Rica Trip Report

In search of the cara de gato.

In Costa Rica the common word for owl is buho, but owls are also known by cara de gato, which translates to cat face.

In 2013 my Dad agreed to fly out to Portland to take care of our 2 year old, Charlie. My wife Tui and I took the opportunity to visit Costa Rica. I tried my best to squeeze in as much owling with out pissing off my wife. Here's what happened......

2/6 Dad and Charlie dropped us off at PDX at 6am. We caught an American flight to DFW and then on to San Jose. We took a van out to Thrifty, where we had to wait an age while dissatisfied customers argued and cursed at the feckless agents. Fortunately we were upgraded to a Diahatsu 4x4. Although Tui had mapped to route to our B and B; Vida Tropical, in Alajuela, we got turned around. Once I started asking around it quickly became apparent that Ticos don't really use street names. A nice guy called the B and B and drove us there. Vida Tropical was informal and friendly.

2/7 We awoke early from the street noise and bright sun. We had our first of many Gallo Pintos for breakfast, then set off on foot to explore Alajuela. The weather was cool, but the sun was brilliant. Soon we hit the road and made our way over the ridge above town, and then down the long descent to the Caribbean lowlands. Past Pital the road became rocky, and the Diahatsu's harsh ride made the rest of the drive tedious. The lodge-Laguna de Largato was recommended by the guide we would later use: Leo (costaricabirding@gmail.com), as a site for Central American Pygmy Owl.

The lodges resident guide, Zac cheerfully let me know that he had never seen the pygmy owl. A bit disheartened, we decided to while away the heat of the day on a nature walk with Zak. He pointed out lots of plants and a couple of strawberry poison arrow frogs. Eventually as the sun's heat waned, we broke away from the group and started owling. Tui eventually retired, but I continued. About ten minutes before it got dark, I got a response. (I was on the trail that bisected the main road 1km North of the lodge and about 75 m east of the main road). Soon an angry Central American Pygmy owl was criss-crossing in front of me in some dense second growth. I only saw the bird in flight, but was able to ID it by call. What a great start.

When I got back to the lodge, I told Zak-he was eager to go out an look for it tomorrow. He agreed to take us out to look for some resident black and white owls after diner. We soon got a response along the main trail, just 50m from the lodge. Much to my surprise a beautiful Mexican Mottled owl was the respondent. We enjoyed great views of a bird perched low above the trail. It was a mid sized owl, about 30cm long, with dark eyes, without ear tufts, with very dark upper parts and a streaked breast. It's call was a single note-a questioning, almost two part hoot, repeated at intervals.

Later that night I heard the resident black and white owls calling. I tried taping them from our balcony, but they immediately fell silent.

2/8 I got up before dawn  and took Zak to the pygmy owl site. The bird responded, but was more wary, and we never got to see it. Still Zak was pleased to have heard it. While waiting for breakfast one of the guys found a big fer de lance by the trail, right where we had found the mottled owl last night! After breakfast Tui and I returned to the same area and saw both species of macaw. About 300m east of the site, Tui's whistles drew in a calling Pygmy Owl. We were unable to locate it, and it soon stopped calling.

It was a long bumpy ride back to Pital. From there we went to Albergue de Socorro which is on the north slope of the ridge that separates the central valley from the Caribbean lowlands. This turned out to be a great home stay. The food was great, and our host really kind and interesting. After lunch we were taken down to the river, where we saw tapir tracks and puma scat. After dinner we drove up the road and looked for bare-shanked screech owl, however it was windy, and we soon gave up.

2/9 I was awakened at 5am, by howler monkeys. After breakfast our host took us to see some amazing waterfalls. On route we found a small group of howlers sunning themselves on top of a large tree. These were Tui's first monkeys.

We parted ways with our host and drove to Sarapiqui to visit a modest archaeological site and museum. We then hustled back over the mountain and met Leo at a MegaSuper near the airport.

Leo directed us across the dense traffic of San Jose and onto the Interamerican which led us into the Cordillera de Tallamanca. The drive through the mountains felt very familiar, having hardly changed since I was here in 1999. We drove straight to a site in Savegre, which was supposed to have nesting Costa Rican Pygmy Owls. We waited for over an hour, as the light fell. Leo tooted constantly, but to no avail. As a compensation, the oak forest was absolutely beautiful, and was highlighted by wonderful late afternoon light. As dusk descended we drove to a secret, (ask Leo), site for Unspotted saw-whet owl. Having no luck there, we returned to Miriam's Comidas Tipicas for a great diner. We stayed in a cabin, just below Miriam's restaurant.

Later Leo and I explored trail 1, at Miriam's, and found a silent Bare-shanked screech owl, near the first stream (about 200m from the cabins). The bird came in to a tape. At first we thought it was a Mottled Owl, because it looked huge. It had no obvious ear tufts, but prominent pale eye-brows and a white line that encircled it's nape. It had yellow eyes, and a pale breast that had a darker area in the upper chest. Each breast feather had a dark center shaft, creating streaks, and a dark tip, giving an occilated appearance. The feet were yellowish and bare. It held it's wings open when perched, and the tail was fanned, enhancing it's large appearance. Great. What a fantastic owl! At one point, it clung from a vertical vine, perfectly doing what a cloud-forest inhabiting owl should do!

2/10 I awoke at 230am and brewed a potent cup of coffee. After a drink, I found Leo and we drove to the secret saw whet site. We spent the rest of the night trawling for the owl, but to no avail. Leo used a lot of tape, and lights, and we didn't really penetrate the habitat.

We returned to Miriam's at 6am. While parking the car, Leo heard a Costa Rica Pygmy-owl call. After a few minutes of taping, it flew into another tree. I got brief flying views. Not the best, but still a new owl! Having secured all the owls, but the saw whet, I decided to ask Leo to leave today, rather than tomorrow as we had originally planned. His owling style was quite frustrating to me. It was a bit awkward explaining this to Leo, but we paid him for two day's work, and drove him to a truck stop on the Interamerican. Leo certainly wasn't thrilled about having to take a bus home!

Once we had dropped Leo off, we parked at the entrance to the new Los Quetzales national park, and hiked down the dirt road to La Providencia. It was a beautiful sunny day, and the sun was intense. At about 2km, where there is a strong right-hand bend, on a down hill section of the road we heard a Costa Rican pygmy-owl. The bird was high in a densely forested slope. I tried to get under the bird, by climbing the slope, and could twice deduce where it was from a cloud of mobbing humming birds that swarmed it perch. But no luck. Tui and I returned up the road a few hundred meters, and played the tape, It worked, the owl flew over the road. We got progressively better and better views of the bird as it eventually descended onto some small trees above the road.I saw yellow eyes, a finely streaked face, and rufous collar and occipital face. Head and upperparts were brown-clearly a brown morph bird. The tail was dark with 6 or 7 whitish bars. The breast had a center that was brown, and brown flanks, between them two white areas. Song was a rapid piping, vaguely paired, prolonged for about 30 seconds. Excellent. A beautiful bird.

We ate a great lunch at Miriam's veranda, surrounded by lots of common birds. After lunch we tried to organize a horseback ride, but failed. We did see a stunning pair of quetzales by the river. We lazed away much of the afternoon at Miriam's. We walked trail 1 in the afternoon, and then ate another delicious meal at Miriam's. After last night's exploits we went to bed early.

2/11 I awoke at 1am and returned to the saw-whet site. This time, I spent a lot of time listening for responses. I also probed the habitat. At one point I saw a pair of low, wide-set eyes in my light. Scared of a puma, I advanced, so as not to appear like prey. The eyes eventually raised to reveal themselves to be those of a cow! By 4am, it became quite windy, and the owling potential poor. It was also really cold-the grass was encrusted with frost. An hour later the wind relented, and I frantically tried to locate an owl, before the skies lightened. It was to no avail, and soon I was done for.

I heard a Costa Rican Pygmy owl near the cabin, but this time it flew away in response to the tape. Back at the cabin I dozed for a couple of hours. Tui and I then ate a great breakfast and said goodbye to Miriam. We drove to Fela's horseback riding down the hill and enjoyed an easy 90 minute ride along the valley bottom. Another first for Tui.

We then drove across Cerro de Muerte, which was beautiful-so bright and clear, and on to Bosque de Tollumuco above San Isidro. We ditched our bags at the room, and then drove on to Cloud Bridge Rainforest Reserve. Here we hiked up a rugged canyon past many waterfalls.

We ate late at a restaurant at km 119 on the interamerican. We had a perfect view of San Isidro, far below. At the edge of town a couple of brush fires burned spectacularly in the night.

Back at Tollomuco I found a very cooperative bare-shanked screech-owl, and enjoyed views down to 5'. Like the last bird, it held its wings open and fanned it's tail. Unlike the last bird, it called a lot. I also got to discern it's greenish-gray bill.

2.12 We ate another huge breakfast. Our host Lise showed us sequential pictures of the screech owl's ground nest. What am amazing find.

We drove down to the Pacific coast, where we visited Hacienda Baru. At the visitor's center we saw photos of spectacled owls, so we scanned the forest carefully, but came up short. We did get to see lots of white-faced capuchins. Tui also got bit by a swarm of ants. We found a sloth curled up on the ground, looking like it was dying. The Pacific was big, quiet and beautiful.

We drove North West along the pacific highway to Quepos, where we ate lunch and watched the tide come in. The drive back to Vida Tropical was easy, apart from some rush hour traffic in town. I had thoughts of venturing out that night to redeem myself and find a saw-whet. Instead I hatched a plan to travel to Chiapas to satisfy my quest.

2.13 Another beautiful morning. I am sorry to leave such a beautiful country, but excited to see Dad and Charlie. Surprisingly we were able to drop off the rental car with no hassles. Everything else went well on our flight home.

2011 owling

Intro

Near the beginning of the year I hatched a plan to focus on world owling. This is something that very few people are doing. I was attracted to the idea of focusing on one group of birds. And owls, for me, are the best group. There is something wonderful and sometimes terrifying about going out into the forest at night looking for owls.

Once I had the germ of the idea I went to Portland Central library to pick up a copy of Konig's wonderful owl book to learn more. Then I consulted with my good friend John Fitchen over a couple of pints at the Yukon Tavern. The last thing I needed to do was to ask Tui, my pregnant wife if I could go to Peru in the fall, after our son, Charlie was born to chase owls. She said yes!

The below entry details my exploits in and around Portland Oregon. The Peru trip can be found at http://iainsowls.blogspot.com/2011/04/updated-peru.html

12.31.11 Taped out a pygmy owl near on the Metro property near Skyline School. First pygmy owl for Tui.

12.24.11 Returned to Stanwood, WA. Saw three snow owls on a dike including one very heavily marked bird, presumably a first year female. Also saw two short-eared owls, a male and female off of Eide rd.

12.17.11 returned to Wyatt road with Tui and flushed a barn owl from the same barn. Then revisited the same stand of small pines at Locust Grove and saw two great-horned owls. One was being mobbed by a cooper's hawk.

12.4.11 northern pygmy-owl seen 3 miles south of mp4 on Larch mountain. Did not respond to my tape. Car broken into!

12.3.11 Barn owl flushed from a barn on Wyatt Rd. A great horned owl and three long-eared owls flushed from a stand of small pines at Locust Grove. Female barn owl flushed from cotton woods in De Moss County Park.

11.25.11 Stanwood, WA, Tui, Vai and I twitch a snowy owl. Also at least 13 short-eared owls are hunting in the fields.

10.31.11 Tui and I were walking with Ziggy, when a great-horned owl landed on a street light next to the Mausoleum.

9.25.11 in an abandoned barn along Tygh Ridge Road, found a male great horned owl. Bird seen very well at close range.

9.24.11 Saw two great horned owls near eight mile road, SE of the Dalles. At the Dufur Gap campsite, heard a pair of great horned owls and elicited a response (heard only) from a western screech owl.

9.23.11 heard two barn owls at UCP. Tui saw one fly overhead.

9.17.11 went owling at Tideman-Johnson park. After 20 minutes heard a Western Screech. For the first time I heard the bird land-on a wet branch-with a splash of drops. Once heard it was easy to spotlight.

9.13.11 walking with Tui and Charlie at dusk. We heard several barn owl screams from the top of the mausoleum.

9.6.11 walked to the Mausoleum and down the steep bank to Oaks, then clockwise around Oaks and out of the south entrance. Saw one western screech in response to the tape. Heard 3 other birds.

8.31.11 Barn owl flew by the corral at Exit 18. Seen briefly at dusk. Tui was with me, but missed it.

7.18.11 recently fledged barn owl at exit 17.

7.13.11 pair of western screech at N end of oaks

7.12.11 three western screech, include 1 juv at N end of Oaks

7.6.11 one great horned near Tryon visitor's center, mobbed by crows

7.3.11 flammulated heard only at Metolious wildlife refuge

6.30.11 one barred owl by Tryon Ck, mobbed by robins.

6.27.11 one owl calling on west side of Lost lk. Two short notes, followed by a longer hoot. Strix-like.

4.11 roosting western screech at south end of Oaks. Seen twice. Then came in to tape at night.

4.11 northern pygmy heard briefly at mountain quail site in Washington County

3.11 great horned at south end of oaks. Seen at night.

3.11 western screech heard on Yukon and 20th.

2.11 western screech heard in Woodstock neighborhood.

1.11 short-eared at Broughton beach at dusk.

1.11 great horned owl seen and heard at the road to the South Jetty of the Columbia.

2012 owling

In 2012 I tried to find all fifteen species of north western owls. Here's what I saw that year around Portland and further afield in the Pacific Northwest.

12.30.12 The whole family explored the Willamette Valley. At Willamette Mission State Park, I heard a pygmy owl tooting. While approaching the calling bird I flushed a huge barred owl-presumably a female. Magnificent. We all enjoyed really close views of the bird perched in an open tree. Although the pygmy owl called intermittently  I was never able to get a a view of the bird, and it soon fell silent.

12.28.12 I walked around Reed Canyon on one of the first really cold nights of the winter. I got a response to a screech owl tape from across the canyon. Once on the other side I got a very loud, but only single response. I soon found the bird with a flashlight, and was able to view it from just a couple of feet away. I could see from it's upper parts that it was a brown phase. I eventually switched of the light, and watched the bird in silhouette, for some time against a moonlit sky. Periodically the bird would extend it's neck, and change shape dramatically. It was both peaceful and exciting to spend time with the owl this way, in the absence of artificial lights.

12.25.12 the whole family drove up to Ballad to check out a couple of snowy owls reported in a residential area above the bluff overlooking the sound. It was a rainy cold morning, so we chose to drive in ever-expanding circle and scan for the owls. Soon we found a darkly barred young bird, perched atop of a tiled roof. We enjoyed the bird for several minutes. Eventually a pair of crows mobbed the owl. At times I could see small ears on the owl-similar to pygmy owls, which are not normally eared, but can appear so when excited.

 12.22.12 The whole family walked along Reed Collage Place. I played a tape for Western Screech Owl. I never heard a response, but when we got back to the car, which was parked in front of Duniway school,  I saw a screech owl perched on an utility wire. We got good views of the owl, Charlie included.  I had brought an old incandescent surefire flashlight, which created a very different view of the owl from the LED Eagle tech  The incandescent bulb cast a much warmer light, and the owl looked like a brown morph. Using the bright LED, the owl looked extremely gray, appearing like a gray morph bird.

12.9.12 Ziggy and I took a short, snowy walk on Tumala Mountain Road, east of Estacada. I played a tape for Northern Pygmy Owl, and soon got a response. The owl came in really close, and soon changed its response from a tooting call, to a whinnying trill. Unfortunately my taping was drowned out by some nearby target shooting, and the owl fell silent before I could see it.

12.1.12 The whole family, dad include visited Tryon Creek for a later afternoon walk. We heard a singing great-horned owl. Dad and I hiked in to investigate.  Eventually the owl fell silent. A little later, after walking along the trail, we heard to bird singing again. This time, by crossing a steep gully, I was able to get below the owl and see it, and it's mate silhouetted against the sky. I was a fantastic view. The dueted for several minutes, perching almost horizontally, and cocking their tails as they sung. I returned with dad, who really enjoyed his first view of a great-horned owl.

11.12.12 I took Charlie and Ziggy to Broughton Beach. Ziggy flushed at least two short-eared owls-a male and female. We enjoyed great views as they floated overhead. A female was the first owl that Charlie saw-"lulu".

11.10.12 The family went to Windy Mountain on the Washington side of the gorge. The summit was really dramatic, with amazing Indian ruins, a fly by golden eagle (how symbolic), and a very cold snake. On the descent we heard a pygmy owl call in response to my tape. Soon we got great views of a pygmy owl, which descended well below the canopy to investigate the "intruder".

11.9.12 The family went to a cabin at Underwood, WA for the weekend.While walking Ziggy after dark I hear a barn owl screech. I tried taping the bird, but got no response.

11.4.12 Below the mausoleum at Oaks Bottom, I taped out a western screech owl.The bird responded from very low in the undergrowth.By crawling through some bushes I got great views of a gray morph bird.

10.12.12 Ziggy and I are walking at the Crooked River Ranch, when I hear a barn owl. The next day the whole family is at Cove Palisades State Park, and we find a puddle of long-eared owl feathers!

9.15.12 Another attempt at Boreal Owl! I hiked into Forest lake at Mount Rainier. I waited about an hour at the lake for darkness to descend. A snipe fed along the lake shore, as large bats hawked above. I hiked back to Sunrise, but had no responses. At the parking lot I had a flyby great-horned owl. (I also saw a great horned owl as I left the parking lot several hours later). I then walked down to the camp site by the small lake. On the return trail a small owl flew in to my tape. (I was alerted to its presence by the sound of its claws on the branch). I was elated for a moment, as I thought I had a Boreal. This bird was a screech owl however. Still I was able to get within three feet, and so enjoyed beautiful views.  This is my first screech owl in an alpine environment.

9.5.12 The gang of four went out to the Sandy river near Troutdale airport. We lit a small fire on the banks of the river. On our return to the car we found a great-horned owl perched on top of a light in the sewage treatment plant.

9.2.12 Tui, Charlie, Ziggy and I set off at MP4 on Larch Mountain. We hiked to the clearcut at the end of the dirt road. Immediately we heard an unsolicited pygmy owl call during the middle of the day. Unfortunately we were unable to get the bird to respond to a tape. When we returned to the civic, we were appalled to find both driver's side windows smashed. Fortunately we had removed everything of value from the car.

8.25.12 I set off at dusk to explore Oak Island Road on Sauvie Island. I parked around MP 2.25, and walked the rest of the way. At the end of the sealed road I heard a distant barn owl. As the gravel road crosses the dike, I heard a great-horned owl in response to my tape. I checked out the old farm buildings to the east of the parking lot at the end of the road. Surprisingly I could locate no barn owls there. (Prime nesting habitat). Walking along the east side of Oak Island loop, a male barn owl hovered briefly overhead in response to my screech-owl tape. Beautiful! A quarter of a mile up the trail, an unsolicited female barn owl floated past me. (The three quarters moon, made finding flying owls easy). Back on the west side of Oak Island trail I heard a distant barn owl scream, way off to the west. Walking back to the car, at the first sharp corner to the left, once on the sealed road, I saw a barn owl cross low over the road. I played a tape, and three barn owls (at least two were males), circled overhead!

On the return drive, I saw a great-horned owl, perched on a utility pole by Bybee Howell House.

8.18.12 Ziggy and I arrived at Barlow Pass. We followed the Pacific Crest Trail north for 4 miles, taping for Pygmy owl as dusk fell. We turned around at the Timberline trail, and headed back down. At 1.5 miles from Hwy 35, I saw two long-winged owls pass overhead, in response to a tape. The birds were silent. My first thought was that they were predatory barred owls. After scouting around for a few minutes, I caught a bird in flight in the flashlight-a long-eared owl! I played a recording of long-eared owl and the bird returned, hovering briefly above me.  In the distance a juvenile bird called. A little further down the trail, Ziggy bit a western toad, which caused him some distress, vomiting and gave him a terrific appetite.

8.12.12 Charlie, Ziggy and I walked along the dirt road that leaves Larch Mountain Road at MP 4. At the terminus of the road we heard a pygmy owl tooting rapidly in response to our tape. Despite our best efforts we were unable to get a view of the bird-perhaps due to the blazing sun and eighty degree temperatures.  We did get to enjoy at least three nighthawks over the clear-cut.

 8.11.12 I awoke to hear the scream of a barn owl, while camping near Friend Road.

8.10.12 Tui and I had just set up camp near Friend Road, south west of Dufor. We heard great horned owls calling in the distance. The next morning we found a large gray downy plume, which appeared to be from a large young owl.

8.9.12 At 1 am Tui awoke me. She head heard a great horned owl calling in the distance, through our open bedroom door. We listened to it calling a couple of times.

7.23.12 I visited Wapato Lake on Sauvie's Island. Almost as soon as I arrived I heard a singing great-horned owl, deep in the woods. I got close to the bird, then decided to try the tape. Despite have heard that great-horneds are not tape responsive, the bird flew in over me, perched near by, flared it's ear-tufts and sung vigorously at me. Great. A second great-horned also came in, but remained out of view.

Just south of the dog kennels I heard a faint screeching. Walking towards the noise, I flushed a barn owl. It was carry prey from it's long, hanging legs. The barn owl flew back to a distant barn, and was met by intense screeching of young barn owls.

I tried for screech owl in the riverside cotton woods, but to no avail. Near the small blind, I did get a soft response. Soon a screech owl flew over head and perched in dense thicket of hazel. I got great views of a singing screech owl.

7.14.12 While visiting Tui's family in Federal Way, I visited Sunrise, on the shoulder of Mount Rainer. I hiked around for four beautiful hours looking for boreal owl. Alas, nothing but shooting stars and snow. On the return, in light rain I found a beautiful female barn owl at Enumclaw, perch on a wire. Perhaps a young bird, it tolerated being spotlit, allowing great binocular views.

7.12.12 Ziggy and I drove over to Westmoreland Golf Course.We walked the side of the golf course, taping for screech owls.Eventually we ended up on Reed College Place and Lambert. I got an immediate response here. The elms here are very tall, and I only glimpsed one bird in flight. It sounded like their were about four birds responding to the tape-perhaps I was at the site here two territories met, or perhaps some juvenile birds were responding to the tape.

7.1.12 Ziggy and I drove out Estacada way to Shellrock campground. We arrived well before dark, to a beautiful rising moon. Lat time I had visited Shellrock, the creek was fast flowing and crossing it on a series of tangle of fallen logs was tricky. Tonight the water level was very low, and we crossed easily where the old bridge had been removed. We hiked to the end of the trail. Perhaps because of the full moon, common nighthawks were particularly noisy and active.  On the walk back we heard no owls. 

We continued up the road, looking for Highrock campground, which according to the Cascade Birding trail also has spotted owls. We never found the campground. Nonetheless we drove around and tried for spotted owls at any likely looking patch of forest. We did find a steep-sided narrow track, still muddy from last month's snow melt. Getting through the mud, and turning around on this very narrow road was touch and go. The mist and dampness only added to the air of expectancy and apprehensaion. 

1am looking sleepy

Returning back forest road 58, we passed quite a lot of decent habitat, so progress was slow as we stopped every third of a mile or so, to try for spotted owls. Before we reached Skyline road, we stopped. We heard a couple of snipe singing beautifully. And a barn-owl-like screech. Soon, three large owls flew across the road. I guessed that they were barred owls. A quick search revealed a very curious barred owl staring down at me. 

We found some flat, old growth forest, probably 4000' above sea level. Here I heard a similar barn (or barred) owl like call, as I had heard at the previous stop.  I had to get down on my hands and knees to crawl through he thicket of vine maple that lined the forest road. Once inside, the forest opened up, and I was able to make my way easily. The begging calls of the young owls, sounded a little quieter, more hollow and softer than the young barreds at the previous stop. After a couple of minutes spotlighting I got to see a juvenile spotted owl. It had a couple of patches of down, but otherwise was clearly a spotted owl, being smaller, darker, browner than the barred owl, with pale spots and no longitudinal streaking on the underside on the underside. I saw two other birds briefly. My best guess is there were at least two juveniles.

6.23.12 Ziggy and I drove through the night down towards Malheur in search of burrowing owls. On Highway 205, we saw two great horned owls and a great close up of a female barn owl along the road side. We arrived at Ruh-Red road around 2 am, and slept in the car for a couple of hours. We awoke around 430, cold and stiff. I took Ziggy out for a brief walk in the half light of dawn. When returning to the car, I heard a burrowing owl's alarm call. Ahead of me, right where Paul had suggested (on the 6th fence post), was a perched owl. We got in the car, and I pulled up closer to the owl, and waited for the light to improve. I soon enjoyed great views of this charismatic little owl. When a tractor drove by, it retreated into it's burrow, so just the crown was visible. By now it was 530am, and we had to get home. Despite the heavy rain we were back by 10:20.

6.22.12 Despite an ever deteriorating forecast Ziggy and I left town around 5pm and drove south-east to Bend on Highway 26. From Bend we took the Cascade Lakes Highway southwest to Virginia Messner Snow Park. We walk about 1/2 mile in before hearing a deep hooting at dusk. It was still quite light, and I initially thought I was hearing a long-eared owl calling. When I got a little closer, I could hear the double note quality that some flamm calls have. I started taping, and a few minutes later I had brief views of a flamm flying back and forth. Soon after it started raining heavily, and I moved on down the road. I tried for saw-whet and heard a brief screech response of an irritated saw-whet owl.  I tried a couple of spots off of the highway further down the mountain, but to no avail. Eager to get a better look at a flamm, I returned to the snow park, and birder the track, that follows the highway. I soon taped in a responsive flamm.  Unfortunately despite a lot of taping I could never get a decent view.

6.17.12 Fathers day. We returned to Portland. en route stopping at Umatilla Army depot to look for burrowing owls. We were never able to get near the depot and soon gave up.  A few mile down the freeway Charlie started to cry. We pulled out at the three Mile Canyon exit and stopped under the railroad bridge. Next to the car was a human turn and some shit stained panties. And also pellets. I searched the bridge and found two juvenile owls, one plainly darker than the other. a dead owlet and an adult. Wonderful!

6.16.15 Tui , Charlie and I birded the gully behind the campsite. At one point I heard three deep hoots which sounded like a great gray-deeper shorter and more forceful than a dusky grouse. Despite a lot of searching we could not locate an owl. We tried a couple of other territories.  At one point we heard a frantic yowling and I thought Ziggy was being attacked. I ran through the forest towards the calls, with Charlie strapped to my back,. I half expected to find a mountain lion killing Ziggy, but instead I found Ziggy intact. The calls were coyotes, which continues up the ridge for some time. We gave up around noon and headed for La Grande. Following Evanich's directions-from 1990 we checked out an area for burrowing owls, but came up short. Next we visited a bank swallow colony which supposedly housed an occasional barn owl. Equipped with a flash-light and sunglasses for protection I examined a large cavity, with pellets at the entrance. Sure enough, 2' away was a beautiful barn owl staring back at me.

We set up a new camp site, and then checked out an area off road 700. I found a day old fawn, but no owls. We then returned to our original campsite.While driving up a rough track, Tui spotted an adult bird in a tree. Sharp eyes! We got out of the car and enjoyed this amazing owl for a while. It preened and shook= it's feathers, then stretched it's wings before finally flying to a nearby tree. Down hill we could hear a young bird begging, and after a while were able to locate a 3/4 size juvenile cloaked in a mix of down and full feathers. Wow, what a great find.

6.15.12 Tui, Charlie and I drove out to Spring Creek. At dusk I saw a great horned owl perched on a utility pole from the Interstate 84 at mile marker 189. We camped 1/4 mile up road 050 (off of road 2155, which is off of road 21), shortly before midnight we heard a great horned owl calling from inside our very cold tent. This was a bit dispiriting because this was supposed to be a great-gray territory, and horneds predate grays.  

5.26.12 Tui, Charlie, Ziggy and I, went to the Sandy River delta. It was a sad morning, I had just called home and spoken to the nurse who was caring for mam. She explained that mam was dying. After a despondent beginning, we began having a good walk. Tui heard some robins scolding in a cottonwood tree. We went over to look for an owl. Tui found a dark, male (?) great horned owl. She was quite thrilled to be the first to see him. (Per a long-standing bet, she got a piece of cheese cake later in the day).

5.5.12 Whilst looking for spotted owl at McDonald state forest with Ziggy, I heard a great-horned owl calling persistently around 130am.

4.28.12 Tui and I heard a spotted owl call briefly at dusk, near Oakridge.

4.25.12 Tui and I head a barn owl from our bedroom around 11pm.

4.23.12, while looking for owls at Rippenbrook ranger station, I saw a barred owl standing on the lawn by the Ranger Station. It was 2am at the time, but the bird was illuminated by a street light. The owl appeared extremely long legged, and looked almost stone-curlew like.

4.16.12 While looking for spotted owls on Memloose road in Clackamas county. I heard a barred owl about 1/4 mile above the river.

4.9.12 Charlie, Tui and I were walking from Woodstock back home, when I heard a screech owl call one block east of Reed Parkway on Toleman. After briefly imitating it's call, the owl flew away from the top of a tall deciduous tree.

2.26.12 Charlie, Tui, Ziggy and I went owling along the side of Oaks Bottom. We found a screech owl that was very responsive, just north of the mausoleum. Simultaneously we heard a barn owl above us near the houses on the bluff.

2.11.12 a busy day. Charlie, Ziggy and I walked Broughton Beach. It was really busy, there was a polar bear plunge going on by the boat ramp. We walked out east of the Sea Scout base before we flushed a beautiful male short-eared owl. He flew out towards Washington, then returned back to Oregon. At one point he made contact with the river. It was unclear if he saw a food item or was trying to drink. (He was not forced into water by strong winds or mobbing birds).

We drove east to Wyatt Road. I checked the barn that had housed a barn owl last year, but no luck this time.

Up the road at Locust Grove Rd, Charlie and I slowly checked the pines. We flushed one or two barn owls an also heard a soft double hoot. Suspecting a long-eared or great horned, we went around again for a second round. Sure enough we had a brief but fabulous view of an amazingly skinny and upright long eared owl, with blazing orange eyes and rufous cheeks. Moments later he flushed along with a second bird that appeared larger.

Pressing my look, we drove to Cape Meares, looking for spotted owls. Alas no luck, the site was quite small, probably too small to support a permanent population.

2.10.12 Ziggy, Charlie and I walked around Oaks Bottom, on a mild damp night. I got a response to a tape of a western screech owl below the mausoleum. I saw one bird well and heard another near by.

2.3.12 I hiked through Tryon Creek State Park on a clear night with a bright moon. I got a response from three saw whet owls. The owls were calling from high in the canopy, and would not come close to my tape. I also heard one or two great-horned owls. Eventually on the North Horse Loop Trail, I got a a responsive bird that called and flew rapidly in a low canopy. I got decent illuminated view with the bins.

1.28.12 I hiked into MP 4 on Larch mountain. At the final clearing I soon found a pygmy owl. The bird was remarkably tame, and I was able to get to within 20' of it. The bird was very gray, with a hint of brown just below the false "eyes". The bird did not respond to a tape. Unfortunately, when I got back to the civic it had been broken into. A window was smashed and a diaper bag full of baby supplies stolen.  It was a cold drive home, made all the more bitter by flecks of broken glass being blown into our (Ziggy, Charlie and my faces).

1.16.12 Charlie, Ziggy and I went to Ramsey Lake. We checked the row of pines, between the lake and the railroad track. Almost immediately we flushed a great-horned owl-probably a male, it appeared relatively small. despite checking hundreds of trees no other owls were seen. We then returned to the same patch of forest as yesterday, but were unable to locate any pygmy owls.

1.15.12 Charlie, Ziggy and I returned to the valley between Cornelius Pass and McNamee Road to look for pygmy owls. We had a bird briefly respond to a tape, but were unable to see it.

1.14.12 the four of us drove out to Spokane County, WA, to chase a northern hawk owl. (We stayed the night at Kennewick, WA). Within a few minutes we had distant views of the owl, sat in the top of a pine, being mobbed by ravens. I hiked out to the trees, and after 45 minutes of searching, found the hawk owl, perched just above me. I had great views in the 'scope. I went back to get Tui. As we returned the owl flew to a distant locust tree. It's flight was direct, but buoyant, and reminded me of a Clarke's nutcracker. We were able to hike to withing 100yards of the bird, allowing Tui, reasonable scope views. Whilst looking for the hawk owl, I flushed a roosting barred owl from a thicket.

1.8.12 The four of us drove up from Long Beach WA, where we were spending the weekend at a beach hotel, up to Ocean shores. We spent a couple of blustery hours out on Damon Point watching six beautiful snowy owls. We were able to compare a smaller male with a much larger female. We also saw a couple of birds fly, and could observe their relatively pointed wings and rapid flight.

1.2.12 Tui and I followed up an a report of a barred owl roosting in Reed Canyon a coupe of days ago. After just a coupe of minutes Tui spotted a beautiful awake barred owl about sixty feet up in a Doug fir. The bird was not tape responsive, but would watch us as we walked around the tree.

2013 owling

Intro

In 2012 I tried to find all fifteen species of Northwestern owls. I failed. I didn't see a boreal owl. With the same goal in mind I tried again.........

12.29.13 The whole family took an afternoon walk through Reed Canyon. I was hoping for a barred owl, but instead chanced upon a roosting screech owl. It was a very brown bird with prominent ear tufts. Perhaps surprisingly, I found it just 100' from the remains of a screech owl killed by a Cooper's hawk earlier in the month.

12.22.13 I hiked down the steep bank from Wilheim Mausoleum to Oaks Bottom. I then started working the trail south-bound for screech owls. Just south of the viewing platform I found a silent screech owl. (I have become increasingly aware that owls frequently fly in to tape, often without calling. Scanning with  a flashlight a few minutes after taping is a great way to locate these silent owls if they are not seen flying in).

 12.21.13 I travelled down to Linn county with the whole family to track down a burrowing owl. We found the owl right away perched by a flooded culvert on Brandon Road, near Halsey.
This was the first time that Tui had seen a burrowing owl.
Eventually the owl squatted to avoid some over zealous photographers:

 Poor neglected Charlie:

12.15.13 On my fifth attempt I located a barred owl first reported to me a week ago by Rhett. I eventually found the owl at the entrance to Reed Canyon, trying to roost in a large cedar. It was being energetically mobbed by several dozen crows and a pair of stellar's jays. Beatiful! Strix owls are just the best.  (On my third attempt I found the sad remains of a Western screech owl who had been eaten by a cooper's hawk).

12.7.13 I drove from Tui's mom's house in Federal Way, WA to Moscow, ID through the night. Apart from the cold, it was a quiet beautiful drive. Just west of Othello, WA I saw a road side barn owl. I arrived at Moscow at sunrise and pulled into the Eastside Market parking lot

(If you have sharp eyes you may see that the temperature at Eastside Market is five degrees that morning). As soon as I arrived I saw the hawk owl in a distant pine tree.  I soon got great views through the scope. A couple of times the owl called it's kestrel-like chatter. I also got to see it fly on several occasions.

Here is a cell phone photo taken through my scope. I was struck how amazingly long the flank feathers were. What an incredible owl!

At one point it had perched on a street sigh on the median of a fairly busy street, and I became quiet worried it would be struck by a passing car if it flew.

Just beautiful. What a beautiful little owl.


11.30.13 The whole family went to LL Stub Stewart State park. At the upper end of the park, where the trail for unfit settlement lookout starts, I was able to elicit an intermittent Northern pygmy owl response. Alas, it wasn't a particularly aggressive bird, and I wasn't able to get a view.

11.24.13 Ziggy and I went on a day time owling road trip to Umatilla. Our first stop was to drive up the Celilo-Wasco Highway. Just east of Welk Road I saw a great-horned owl perched on a roadside utility pole at first light. A little further to the east at the intersection of Locust Grove Road, I found a singing great-horned owl also perched on a roadside utility pole.

At Mc Neary Dam I found a great horned owl roosting in a small ponderosa. This bird was really close and I got amazing views of it's huge eyes.

On the return journey I saw another roadside great-horned owl at dusk about 1 mile east of the Dalles Dam along side the interstate.

11.3.13 I visited Smith and Bybee lakes after dark. Near the entrance I heard a great-horned owl sing. Soon after I heard a barn owl screech a couple of times. It was a strange place to owl. I felt nervous that my car would get broken into or towed. The orange glow form sodium lights was surprisingly bright, even out at the end of the trail.

10.26.13 I returned to Calliope Crossing. About a quarter of a mile west of the crossing I relocated the Northern pygmy owl. I got brief in flight views. A half a mile west of the crossing I taped out a beautiful Great-horned owl. It flew between three perches and sung for several minutes. By slowly fading light I could see it's white throat and ear tufts before a shooting star passed over us.

10.2013 I went to Oak Island road to look for barn owls after dark. I heard one call several times in response to my tape, but it refused to show it's self. It was an amazing night, with a big bright moon, a thin low fog, above which trees and barns floated. All around coyotes yowled and cried, while sandhills bugled.

10.13.13 I walked around Oak's Bottom on a clear breezy night. I was greeted by a chorus of coyotes. I got a single response from a screech owl about 100 yards north of the south entrance to the east trail. I located a perched brown phase screech owl, perched low in a bush. Surprisingly it hard a barb like whisker that protruded 3" from it's right side of its chest. It did not appear like a foreign body such as a porcupine spine or piece of plant. I suspect that it was a barb-less feather that had mutated.

9.8.13 The whole family went to Oak Island Road to look for barn owls at dusk. It was a beautiful night, and although we failed to find barn owls, we did hear a great-horned owl singing at mp2.5.

9.3.13 Charlie, Ziggy and I too a walk along the east side of Oaks Bottoms. I found a roosting screech owl in a small conifer about 100m north of the south gate. (I had seen screech owls roosting in the same conifer in 2011). Just north of the mausoleum, we found the young barred owl. It was actively hunting, which was quite comic, as it was a terrible flier. It crashed through the trees, making lots of noise. It also was very energetic when perching; peering and extending its neck, and sometimes letting it's wings hang loose.

9.2.13 The whole family walked along the east side of Oaks bottoms to look for a barred owl that I had seen 10 days ago. On the return, just north of the mausoleum, we saw it just above the trail at dusk.

9.1.13 I awoke early and after a coffee, Ziggy and I walked over to Malheur headquarters where we soon relocated the great-horned owl roosting above the bathrooms in a cottonwood. I ran into a local birder, Tim, from Burns. He suggested Benson Pond as a good site for Barn Owls. While driving the southern section of the Central Patrol Road, I saw a roosting great-horned owl above the Blitzen. This bird was much grayer than the brown bird at the headquarters.

At Benson Pond, I found at least three more great-horned owls. All were very gray. Two were clearly juvenile birds. They were very tame, and emitted a screech-like yelp. The mosquitoes were fucking horrible!

8.31.13 A banner day! During the night I heard a great-horned owl singing near the tent. Then at first light a pygmy owl sang a very rapid, almost trilling series of toots. I walked the creek side to the west with Ziggy at dawn and saw a red-shouldered hawk and a white-headed woodpecker.  Then we set off on our long drive to Malhuer. Along the way I saw a ferruginous hawk and a few Swainson's. I stopped at Ruh Red Road, but was unable to find any Burrowing owls. Ziggy and I were tormented by thousands of no-see-ums.

Next we headed to the headquarters at Malhuer, where I found a roosting Great-horned owl. This bird was quiet brown. (Being in a desert environment I had expected a paler bird).

After driving the northern section of the central patrol road, we headed to the South entrance road to the Steens. Bob Archer had kindly given me directions to where he had seen long-eareds back in June. The site was 2.5 miles up the road, between a rough track to the south and a gated road to the north. The site was the ridge top to the south of the road. After 20 minutes I had surveyed the few trees on the ridge to no avail. Not even pellets or feathers. Immediately to my west was a dried up water coarse, with junipers on either side. I explored this watercourse, and followed it to the south. I found a few tell tail signs, a stick nest with pellets beneath, three feathers and some white wash on another tree. Eventually we flushed a long eared! I was able to get good in flight views. Eventually we cam to a small pond were Ziggy cooled off.

Back at the car I celebrated with a cold beer. Then we headed back to Ruh Red road. Again we were devoured by insects, and despite our suffered I saw no Burrowing owls. We drove east along Rur Red, and stopped on the bridge over West fork of the Silvies river. It was dusk, and down the channel I could see a ruined farm. Perched on the roof was a singing great-horned owl. I watched the owl for several minutes. It was a beautiful scene. Just up the road, I flushed a burrowing owl. It disappeared into the sage brush. I briefly played a tape, and it returned to the road. I got amazing views as it flew around the car, looking very alert. About a mile from the bridge I flushed a short-eared owl from the roadside. Judging from how dark the bird appeared, I suspect it was a female. Shortly after I saw another great-horned perched on a utility pole. Amazing! I looped back to 205, by way of Embree Bridge lane. I kept my eye out for barn owls, and even checked a few barns, but to no avail. We camped in an abandoned quarry adjacent to Malheur headquarters. In previous years barn owls had lived in the quarry, but it had been excavated substantially over the years and I could not find them this night. None the less, it had been an amazing day. I built a small camp fire, and reflected on my fifteenth and final Northwest owl of 2013.

8.30.13 Ziggy and I left Portland on a hot Friday afternoon. We drove out east Estacada way to beat the holiday traffic and made it to Calliope Crossing near Sister's as the sun was setting.  As soon as I had pitched the tent, we walked east, parallel to the creek. I played a tape for pygmy ow, and about 1/4 mile down the trail, I heard a distant response. The owl flew in to a near by tree, and I eventually saw it flying between two big Pondarosa pines.

After dinner, I tried the riparian area for Long-eared owls. I worked the area west of the crossing, with no luck. I eventually returned to the area where I had seen the pygmy owl. No Long-eared owls responded, but I did hear at least three great-horned owls.

8.23.13 While driving home from work, Rhett called to say he had seen a young barred owl below the mausoleum at Oaks Bottom. I arrived there half an hour later and eventually located the bird by the SW corner of the mausoleum. I got great views of the bird roosting low in a chestnut tree. About an hour later I returned with Tui and Charlie, who both got great views.

8.16.13 The family and Lina Jr and I were driving across Sauvie. About 1/3 mile north of the intersection of Reeder and Gilihan loop road I saw two great-horned owls at dusk perched on utility poles.

8.11.13 Rhett Wilkins and I went to Sauvies Island for a couple of hours of daytime owling. We tried for barn owl at the barns about a mile along Oak Island Road and also at the abandoned farm at the end of the road. We struck out at both sites. Amazingly Rhett was able to find three barn owls roosting in conifers along the road. What was particularly impressive was his ability to find the owls without flushing them. Instead of peering between the branches and flushing the owls as I usually do, Rhett  looked for holes in the dense foliage, that the owls use to fly in and out of the dense conifers. By looking carefully through the holes to the center of the tree, Rhett found three beautiful barn owls. We also checked the nearby slough for roosting great-horned owls, but found non.

8.8.13 I explored Deschutes State park and the canyons of Wasco County looking for long-eared owls. It was a hot and stormy night. It rained lightly on and off, and above me the sky lit up by lightening. The air was heavy with the smell of damp, oily sage. I biked from the entrance if the park up to a small group of threes about 3.5 miles in. My only success was a heard only barn owl about 2 miles down Locust Drive.

8.2.13 Tui, Charlie, Ziggy, Lena and I visited Puget Island. We stayed at the Stockhouse Farm. At dusk, I saw a pair of barn owls flying around. In the neighboring barn, I found 5 almost fledged young barn owls.

7.28.13 I visited Hagg Lake in Washington County after dark to look for long-eared owls. I didn't see and long-eareds, but I did hear a great-horned at the far end of the lake. More details on the site are available at http://thebirdguide.com/washington/site_guides/hagg_lake/hagg_lake.htm .

7.14.13 Based on a sighting of a couple of juvenile long-eared owls by Russ Namitz, I went to J S Burres state park, about 17 miles south east of Wasco. The owls were reported from the first copse of trees northwest of the bridge on the left side of Highway 206. I carefully combed the few trees, and found a dead long-eared owl. I explored the state park until it got dark. At dusk I heard a great horned owl near the park headquarters. At the copse, I tried for long-eared, but got no response. Back at the bridge, a young barn owl calling from a column under the bridge. I got good views of a very dark barn owl. At the intersection of Locust Grove and Highway 206 (a few miles northwest of Wasco), I heard two juvenile barn owls, begging.

7.6.13 Over the fourth of July holiday I had read about a pair of breeding hawk owls in northern Washington. Because I was on call for that week, I had to wait a couple of days before I would get a chance to look for them.

After dropping Tui and Charlie of at her families place in Federal way, Ziggy and I drove through the night to Winthrop. Even at night time, highway 20 was beautiful. I could make our the huge mountains above me as I drove through the North Cascades. I narrowly missed a pair of raccoon on the road, and also saw deer, elk and a coyote. Just east of Panther Creek, in the North Cascades I had a mid sized owl fly overhead. I suspect it was a long-eared owl, but for reasons I can't explain, I didn't want to be distracted from my quest, and didn't bother to stop.

At Winthrop, I took forest road 37 to the northeast, then forest road 39 for 3.8 miles. I arrived a little after dawn at 530. I spent the next 5 hours covering progressively further clearings and roads from the site. Walking off trail was pretty rough. A lot of the ground was uneven and wet.  A major burn years back had downed many lodgepole pines, making walking strenuous.

At one point I thought I head the begging calls of young hawk owls, but I was fooled by a pair of gray jays.

At approximately mp 4.2, along Brown Meadows Creek I saw a distant bird high on a dead pine. It was a hawk owl! Wow. I was able to sneak up on the owl, which was buy hunting. I eventually got really nice views of it as it actively hunted from a perch. Several times it called-a softer version of a kestrels whinnying chatter. To my right, I heard a second bird calling, and soon I had even better views of it hunting.

On my way back to the car, I ran into four car loads of birders and was able to show them one of the hawk owls.

The drive back to Winthrop was mostly coasting down hill, which was good, because I had driven 420 miles since fueling, and the car was running on fumes.

6.30.13 The whole family was walking in Tryon Creek. We heard several Robins calling, which alerted us to a great-horned owl. I got brief views, but he flew away before Tui and Charlie could see it.

6.22.13 We had made our way from Lost Creek down to Elk Lake resort, southwest of Bend. At dusk I left everyone at the cabin, and drove to Virginia Meissner Snow Park. This is the site where I had seen flammulated owls last year. As soon as a played my tape, I got a distant response. I tracked down the bird about 300m into the forest. Soon I had two birds singing in response to my tape. I got very brief views, perhaps a flam or just a bat? I pursued the birds, but this was difficult. Under foot there was a lot of fallen wood, making my progress very noisy. These tiny owls can be real bastards to get a view of. After twenty minutes I decided to give these two owls a break, so sat down to take a rest. I decided to find some new owl to harass, but when an owl called near by, I could not resist trying again. I snook under the singing bird, doing my best to stay on the grass and avoid the noisy fallen wood. I knew I was close when I heard a tiny soft growl above me. Wow, there in my light was a perfect tiny owl. This is the first time I have seen a flam in full color! All previous sightings were in silhouette. No sooner had I sighted the owl, it took off and disappeared into the thick firs. Still I was really happy to get a color view of this fantastic little owl.

6.21.13 The whole family was camped out at Lost Creek camp-ground in Clackamas County. While walking the nature trail to the beaver dam at dusk we heard some Stellar's jays alarm call, followed by a barred owl song. I ran back to the car and grabbed my owling gear. In response to my tape, I got a couple of birds to sing. Typical of many barred owls, they did not fly in to the tape.

6.16.13 I headed out to Lolo Pass, in Clackamas County, at dusk. I left the civic and biked out down a forest road into the mountains. The first area I explored was mostly scrappy forest. I saw lots of nighthawks, but no owls. I eventually made my way to mid-elevation forest. I stopped every half mile to listen for spotted owls. Around mid night I found a beautiful spotted owl. I got decent views, as it was perched low in a tree. The bird sung, which was just amazing. I could hardly believe my luck! What a brilliant bird. It was a long steep bike ride back to the car, but made so much easier having found my bird.

 6.8.13 The three of us continued to check out various nesting platforms for great gray owls. We eventually found an adult bird at Emerald Ponds. (Go 1/2 mile west from the freeway on Road 21, turn left on road 800. About a mile down 800, we turned right on road 802, which we traveled down for 1/2 mile, until we came to a dead tree on the right. We parked and walked to the right, at a diagonal, following the trees for about a 1/4 until we reached two ponds. The owl was 100 yards to the left of the far pond. It was absolutely beautiful!

We then made our way west to Heppner, then traveled south on Highway 207 to the national forest. We camped in the forest off of road 100 and heard a singing flammulated owl that night.

6.7.13 Charlie, Ziggy and I drove to Spring Creek Wildlife Management area in the blue mountains. We drove 3.4 miles west on road 21, then turned left on road 2155, and continued about a mile to road 050 on the right. An 1/8th of a mile up road 050, we found wildlife photographer Scott Carpenter and a barely fledged great gray owl in a low perch. In the adjacent gully an adult owl was waiting.  Amazingly easy.  I chatted with Scott who gave me some good information about owls in the area.

We then drove back towards the freeway and camped by the creek off of road 21. Here we heard a flammulated owl briefly at dusk, and a great-horned owl during the night.

5.20.13 I return to road 58 off of Skyline Road in Mt Hood National forest. One mile down the road from Skyline I taped in a barred owl. The bird perched 50' up in a conifer and sang loudly from an exposed perch. Nearby I heard a triple soft hoot. The notes were similar to a long eared owl, of about half a second duration and the spacing was about half a second. I suspect a long-eared owl. I also asked David Johnson who suggested the same, or great gray owl. The great gray that I heard called at Spring creek sounded very similar (6.7.13)

5.18.13 At the usual camping spot off of Dufur Gap road, Tui, Charlie and I were camping. Charlie woke us at 1am, and soon after we heard a western screech owl singing just above our tent.

5.15.13 I followed up on a report of a pair of long-eared owls near the John Day river. The exact location of the report is 44.862486 -120.409679.  It was a long drive, and then when I got there, I had a hard time figuring out the exact location. Eventually I figured I needed to take the closed dirt track that starts a half a mile after the road closed sign. The track lead to an area of dry pines and juniper. I spent a couple of hours taping for the owls but got no response. On the return drive I flushed a big great-horned owl just east of Maupin.

5.11.13. Tui and I were in the yard at 930pm when we heard a barn owl screech a few times from  a tall tree in the neighbor's yard. We tried to spotlight it, but were unable to.

5.4.13 I set up to visit the burrowing owl project at the Umatilla Chemical Weapons depot.  The project was organized by David Johnson djowl@aol.com as part of the global owl project globalowlproject.com . David kindly allowed me to watch (and lend a hand) with the research on burrowing owls.  I arrived mid afternoon and it was hot, dry and dusty. David arrived soon after with a team of volunteers. They had been installing artificial burrows, which has been a very effective way to support the owls. (Especially since badgers have been extirpated from the depot).

David showed me the results from his research. Remarkably the female birds disperse to California, while the males move north to the Yakima area. He proposed that the females go to access the best food, while the males stay relatively nearby so that they can quickly return to the best territories early each spring.

In the early evening we started setting traps for the owls. For trapping females, a trap is placed at the end of the nest burrow. To trap males, a trap with a mp3 player and speaker playing a male song, is placed in a nearby burrow, or if only one burrow is present, in a decoy burrow. Remarkably this is very effective and we caught 3 out of 4 pairs in two hours. We also saw three other birds when driving around. I got to handle the birds, which was amazing. They are so small in the hand. Overall they were very calm in the hand, and their only protest being occasionally bill clapping. Blood was drawn for most birds, as part of a second project to see if burrowing owl could be a vector for the plague. (They carry the same fleas that transmit the plague).

The north side of the depot was a beautiful grassland complete with singing curlews and coyotes.

4.30.13 Tui and I were at the fire fit in the back yard when we heard a barn owl call multiple times at dusk.

4.6.13 Tui, charlie, Ziggy, Lina and I went to Puget Island, WA. We stayed at Rog's retreat, at Stockhouse farm. Surrounding the cabin was some rough pasture and a lot of small coniferous trees. Charlie and I set about checking the conifers for roosting owls. We flushed a rare Columbia white tailed deer. Soon we found a tree splattered with white-wash and strewn with pellets. Above us a male barn owl emerged from it's roost and flew to an adjacent tree. Nearby we found a second, also male barn owl. Both owls flew into a conifer next to our cabin, so we were able to show the owls to Tui and Lena. 

Tui, Charlie and I then went to explore an adjacent barn. Inside we found an owl box and an owl platform  Perched next to the platform, a beautiful female barn owl. This bird had a remarkably dark back and upper wings. Fortunately the bird did not flush, and we got excellent, but brief views.

Around dusk, our host Bob, came over and we go talking about owls. he mentioned that the barn owls nested in the barn. He also said that great-horned's sometimes call from the cottonwoods behind his house. Later that night while building a fire in the rain  sure enough a great horned started singing. Despite the fairly heavy rain I was able to track the owl down. It was a beautiful, very dark male, with a very conspicuous white throat, perched in a spruce next to a canal.

3.12.13 I owled Tryon Creek, starting at Boone's Ferry Road. It was an uneventful night. I did hear a great-horned owl calling from the usual gully north of the visitor's center.  In the same area I heard a raspy screech, like a barn owl, but not as harsh. I suspect this was a young great-horned begging for food.

3.3.13 I owled Mt Talbert in Clackamas County. Near the summit I heard a distant Saw-whet owl, which did not call a second time. At the far NW corner I heard a great-horned owl calling. On the lower west side I heard a western screech owl. Finally in the far south east corner I heard a great horned owl-probably a second bird given the distance-about 1.5 miles. Disappointingly I was not able to get a look at any of these owls.

2.24.13 Ziggy and I went to Sauvie's island. About 1/4 mile east of Coon Point I saw a barn owl perched along the road side. I was able to stop and get pretty decent views. We tried but failed to see a barred owl that Andy Frank had reported from the blue heron nursery area of the island. We then headed for Tryon where I got a very distant single response from a barred owl at the North end of the park. Unfortunately the bird did not come in. A little north of the visitor's center I heard a loudly calling great-horned owl in the same place that dad and I saw a pair of birds last year.

1.26.13 After reading about a recent sighting of a roosting western screech owl at Oaks Bottom. Ziggy and I went to the northern "Frog Pond". I found the owl roosting in a nearby fir tree. It was a brown phase bird. We clearly interested it, as it elongated it's posture as we approached and raised it's ear-tufts. It also turned its head to follow us as we walked around it.
That afternoon the whole family went to LL "Stub" Stewart State Park. While walking near the cabins we heard a distant saw-whet respond to our pygmy owl tape at dusk. Later after night had fallen, under a brilliant full moon, I heard a saw whet calling near our cabin. I walked towards the bird, and played a tape. Moments later I saw the bird fly in. It appeared narrower-winged than a screech owl-though that may have been the perspective. I got excellent views for two minutes-the white hair-like markings that encircle the face are very curious to me. Are they little whiskers? Or perhaps white center shafts of feathers. Amazing. One of my favorite owls.


1.21.13 Charlie, Ziggy and I went to Sauvie's island to track down a reported spotted owl. We didn't find the barred owl, but did flush a barn owl from a red barn adjacent to the marina on the east side of the island. Just south of the county line on Reeder Road we found a silhouetted great-horned owl perched in an oak. Just east of Coon Point we saw a second great-horned owl perched in a tree. And just west of Coon point a second barn owl flew across the road.

1.19.13 I visited Stanwood WA, in pursuit of Snowy Owls. Just like last winter, the birds were perched along the dike across from Thomle Road. I walked part way across the marshy fields and got pretty decent views of one very white male bird, including some great in flight views. When flying the wings were noticeably pointed for an owl. In total I saw three snowies. I also saw three short-eared owls.
Further north I visited west 90( on Samish Island Road) , where 54 short-eared owls roost. I enjoyed absolutely fantastic views of the hunting short eareds. I heard a lot of calling birds, their call reminded me of the call of a flushed snipe, but a little softer. I waited until dusk, as a long-eared was reported in the area. Despite braving the bitter cold, the long-eared failed to show itself.

1.13.13 Charlie, Ziggy and I walked east along Broughton Beach. At the end of the beach I saw a distant short eared owl flying mid channel over the Colombia. Later, just west of the Sea Scout Base, we flushed a dark-probably female short-eared owl from the rocky bank of the Columbia. On the return we saw a distant Short-eared owl flying high above the river. This bird appeared much lighter and may have been a male.

1.6.13 The whole family went to Hagg Lake. Starting at Scroggins Creek, we walked counter clockwise along the road. It was very quiet and slightly misty. Unfortunately Charlie cried almost the whole walk. At Sain Ck, I got a good response to a pygmy owl tape. Although the bird was very close it was quite elusive. Like many pygmies, it flew about between three trees, and eventually I could pin it down and get a decent view despite the rapidly fading light. When calling it's throat was conspicuously puffed and white-just like a great-horned owl's.
A few minutes later a pair of great horned owls started singing. I taped a couple of times, but it was still very light, and Charlie was tired and upset, so we didn't linger.

2014 Philippines Trip Report

Philippines January -February 2014

I have stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains. 

I traveled to the Philippines in 2002 and 2010 on general birding trips. On these trips I saw Eastern grass owl, Palawan, lowland Luzon, Mantanani and Giant scops owls, spotted wood owl and Luzon and chocolate hawk-owls. The purpose of this trip was to look for other Philippine owls that I had missed on the last two trips.

Jan 18th Tui's family dropped me off at PDX. I feel guilty leaving 6 month pregnant Tui with Charlie for 3 weeks, especially for putting myself in harm's way, when my family is so vulnerable. Once I step onto the plane, these concerns fade. It's a beautiful sunny afternoon. At SFO its a beautiful spring-like afternoon. PAL is using an old 747 to fly to Manila-I always have a hard time believing these giant planes can fly.

Jan 19th was lost to the international date line. This is still weird to me.

Jan 20th. After a couple of hours sleep I arrive in Manila around 3am. My plan for today is to go to Subic, and area of lowland forest to look for the rare and magnificent Philippine eagle-owl. Manila feels familiar and comfortable to me. It's busy despite the hour.

I catch a cab to the Victory Liner terminal on Rizal Ave.  The lady security guard at the bus terminal grills me about my marital situation and intentions at Subic. (As a former US naval base its still a popular place for sex tourists). For excellent birding information on Subic I used http://www.birding2asia.com/W2W/Philippines/Subic.html . My bus drops me off at Olangapo, and from there I take a cab to the Crown Peak Hotel in Subic. I kill some time catching up on sleep and prepping for the night. That afternoon I explore the forest along the road to the hospital and down to the bay. The forest at Subic is great and I run into a group of macaques and some huge roosts of flying foxes.

After a meal I sleep some more. My alarm goes off at 6pm, and I have to struggle to rouse my sorry self. Outside I feel better, it's a beautiful sunset and a warm breeze flows off the South China Sea. I hear an owl, that sounded like a Chocolate Boobook, but I can't get it to respond to my tape. Along the road to the hospital I find four Luzon hawk-owls without taping-just by the street lights. I also hear several more! I also hear a couple of lowland Luzon scops-owls and finally tape one in for a great view along the waterfall trail near the hospital. I love the crazy white eye-brows that flow into the ear-tufts. Its an amazing looking owl. And twice the size of the hawk-owls. Along the trail I find a beautiful 9' python.

Back at the hotel grounds in response to my tape I hear a distant eagle-owl far below to the south east. It does not fly in, so I make the long walk down towards the Mangrove Trail. I never did hear another call. It was getting late, and I was tired and thirsty, but I persevered, and a few kilometers later I came to a road on the left that parallels a creek. On it's right is a large gated building. A dog barked and a security guard buzzed me with his flashlight, but I continued down the side road. At the end of the building a big owl flew from a street light into an open tree. I was able to spotlight it-a Philippine eagle owl! My most wanted owl in the Philippines! I got within 20 meters and got great looks at its massive golden eyes, big gray bill, streaked flanks, big feet, short tail, and dark flight feathers. Wow! What a brilliant owl.

I pressed on down the road looking for Chocolate boobook. At the end of the road another guy with a flashlight started spotlighting me. I made a hasty u-turn and snook back to the coast road. I played tapes along the road back to the hotel but got no responses. After 30km of walking I was exhausted by the time (4am) I got back to the hotel. I fell into a fitful sleep filled with dreams. Every time I woke I remember-I have seen it!

Jan 21st I wake at 10am. I decide that I would like to go for Chocolate boobook tonight-a bird I have seen before, but it would be new for the trip. After a heavy Filipino breakfast, I head out to Olangapo. Before heading to the Mountain Woods Resort where the boobook had been reported, I check the bus schedule and to my dismay see that the last bus to Manila leaves at 730pm. This does not give me time to look for the boobook, so I catch the next bus back to Manila.

I arrive in Pasay, which at rush hour is a bit intense with dusty street whores and shoeless waifs wandering around in traffic. I grab some street food, and (struggle) to find a hotel that's not a brothel. I sleep early and well after last night's efforts.

January 22nd I am up at 230am. After a hot shower, I feel ready to take on the world. I catch a cheep cab to the airport. The terminal feels so familiar after spending so many hours there on my 2010 trip with Shaun.  By deftly hiding my second bag, I am able to dodge the weight restrictions on the flight to Basco in the Batanes. (The Batanes are a group of remote island halfway to Taiwan. They are home to Elegant scops-owl. The form that occurs on the Batanes may be split into a Philippine endemic, the Calayan Scops-owl. Either way it was a new owl for me). The flight started beautifully, ascending above Manila's orange dusty dawn. As we flew into Basco the flight got progressively rougher. I fucking hate those kind of flights, and by the time we were in final approach, plunging haphazardly towards the ground, I was sick with fear. Moments before we violently bounced down the runway, some old guy gets up to take a piss! Everyone shouted at him to take a seat. What a fucking relief to be alive.
I stayed at Shanedels Inn. Despite a couple of recommendations, the place was chaotic. In front of the hotel, a big surf ate away at the cliff beneath Shanedels, and pounded the hulk of a collapsed freighter that had died by the wharf. I had a  tough time finding something good to eat in town. Eventually I found a tiny cafe that served tinier plates of pancit. I asked for the tourist office, where they purportedly had maps. I was told that it was closed. When will it open? "Later". I make do with Google maps and figure out a route into the forest that hopefully avoids the strong winds which have me worried that they will ruin the owling tonight. I head out to the west side of Mt Iraya and eventually find some reasonable forest. It's really windy here, so the key to finding a good owling site, is to find forested gullys.

Back in town I ate some salted barbecue pork belly. Cold and pretty much devoid of meat, its hard to stomach. I laze around in waiting for the day to end. At 5pm I set out back along the same route going north west of town towards Mt Iraya. Part of the route goes through an incredibly windy gap to a shoreline road that runs past the relentlessly pounding ocean. At a small bridge in the low point of the road I turn right and go inland following a dry river bed. At my third attempt a largish scops owl flies in and perches obviously. I get a great view of an Elegant (Calayan) scops-owl-yellow eyes, small ear tufts, weakly marked underparts, brownish chest fading to an ochre-yellow belly. The bird made a double note call, given at 20 second intervals. (The same quality as George Wager's recordings: http://www.xeno-canto.org/53943 from Calayan, but with a wider interval). The bird also made both a soft bark and a short quiet bark. A half a kilometer upstream I hear a second bird. A kilometer higher up the main track I hear a third bird. Eventually a barking dog convinces me to turn around. On the way back I try taping in the hedgerows and gardens, but find nothing. Given the wind, I feel lucky to have found the owl so easily.

Jan 25th. Despite my best efforts to sleep in I wake at 5am. Surprisingly I am greeted by a calm day and blue skies follow. The ocean looks beautiful. I watch a plucky little open boat depart for the neighboring island of Itbayat.

Breakfast is pretty horrific-fried canned sausage and fried bread. I try and walk it off by exploring the woods around the airport, then decide to hire a motor bike to better explore the island. The ride was pretty fun-I explore the whole island. I had coffee at Honesty Coffee House-where there is no shopkeeper-just an honesty box. A celebration of the honesty of the local people. On the east coast the scenery is really wild-mostly treeless with grazing animals and wild bluffs pounded by big waves. I stopped here and there, but mostly it was fun just to ride. At one point I left the bike, and when I returned it had blown over in the wind-breaking off a mirror. Towards the end of the ride I scoped out some owling locations near Basco.

Back in Basco, I replaced the mirror for 195 pesos. After that I killed time walking and emailing. Tui had found an online recommendation for six to eight Panciteria, which was indeed a much better place to eat.

At dusk I walked along the western side of the airport. It was a beautiful scene, the people of Basco using the airfield as a park, taking an evening walk or bike ride, girls and boys flirting with the setting sun. After dark, I owled alongside the airport, but to no avail. I then checked the Contracosta road for owls, but found none. A bit defeated, I had a drink back in my room and called it an early night.

Jan 24th I awoke to another beautiful dawn at Basco. I packed, had a coffee and watched the ocean. The bill was irregular, which is always irritating to deal with. "Fake Casio calculator" was the explanation!

As I thought about my schedule, I realized I was going to have a hard time reaching Mt Polis tonight. (Mt Polis is in Northern Luzon and is a reliable location for Luzon scops-owl). This wasn't helped by having to check my tent poles-because they were considered a potential weapon. At least the flight to Manila was sweet and smooth. I grab a cab to the Quezon Victory Liner station. It's a long hot ride and the cabbie complains about the lousy governance of the Philippines. It's a long wait for the next bus (to Solano). A woman selling soft drinks eagerly inquires about my marital status-when I need a second drink, I decide to head round the corner to Seven Eleven, where drinks come without propositions. It's a long slow ride to Solano, and I don't arrive until 9pm. It's too late to make it to Mount Polis, so I stay at the AMPM hotel. I feel a bit deflated not to be owling tonight and wish for my own wheels.

Jan 25th I am up early at 4am, and after a shower feel ready to face the world. I only have to wait ten minutes for a Jeepney to head off to Lagawe. As we ascend the cordillera the sky turns orange, then is briefly obscured by mist, then returns brilliant blue. It's wonderfully chilly. At Lagawe I have a minute for a coffee and a scrawny thigh of fried chicken.

Its a short slow ride to Banaue. there I have a quick meal, check email, then charter a motor trike to Mt Polis. Fortunately I can remember the way-because my driver starts me in the wrong direction. Christian Artuso had been owling here in 2012 and recommended Hannah's Coffee House as a place to stay at Mt Polis. (This is way better than camping). I was put up in an upstairs bedroom at Hannah's, and I was also shown the trail system that starts at a large Virgin Mary Statue. The trail system wasn't bad-at least 2km though mossy forest interspersed with small fields. I saw a couple of Luzon Racket tails which was a new bird for me.

Back at Hannah's I refueled on noodles and coffee. I then made my way north on the main road towards Bontoc. When taking a roadside piss, I splash on a coiled black snake that is tied by it's mouth to a stake. I can't tell if it's caught in a trap, or has eaten a smaller snared animal. Regardless it's disturbing!
By now is hot and sunny, which is a welcome reprieve from the earlier cold and mist. At a small water feature a couple of kilometers down the road I find a Luzon jungle-flycatcher. There isn't much along the road that inspires me to owl here at night, although the open pine forests below offer the promise of a new habitat from the cloud forest along the peaks and ridges. On the way back to the summit I get a ride from a couple of friendly guys in a van. After a Coke and a quick rest I check out the main road to the south of the pass, where I don't find much good habitat and soon give up.

Back at the summit around dusk I eat some good beef stew, have another Coke and am then ready for the night. I head back along the trail that starts at the Virgin statue For three hours I walk the trail slowly and tape regularly. I hear a couple of intriguing sounds, but nothing materializes into an owl.  Then back at the beginning of the forest near the pass I get a response. Walking quietly towards the owl, taping as I go, a small owl flies over me. Soon I track it down, and get a great view of a Luzon scops-owl perched above the trail. I am able to see its yellow eyes, big ear-tufts, whitish supercillium, white throat, whitish belly and pale grayish -white toes. The overall color of the upper parts and chest are brown, and it's size medium small for a scops. While looking at it, it swooped down and landed into bush right next to me, then took off and grabbed a vine, from which it momentarily hung before flying off into a larger tree. Once in the tree it continued calling only this time instead of uttering a single note, it made a two note call. Excellent! This was a really wanted bird for me, having looked for it and missed it in 2002 and 2010. What an exciting owl.

I was back at Hannah's at 930pm and her place was locked as she said it would be. I tried banging on the door, and throwing gravel at the window, but got no answer. Oh well time for a Red Horse beer! I convinced a shop keeper to open up their closed store and sell me a celebratory beverage. Then back to Hannah's. After banging the door about as loudly as humanly possible I decided to get creative. I eventually climbed up some scaffolding up to a balcony on the third floor. When I knocked on the door from the balcony the very confused lady came out and let me in from the balcony.

Jan 26th I slept fitfully, too excited by last night. At 4am I was wide awake, but with nowhere to go, I lay in bed and waited for both the sun and my hostess to arise. It was an incredible sunrise over cloud-filled valleys and terraced green slopes. Above me towered Mount Polis and a perfect sky fading from orange to blue.

After a robust breakfast I began walking down the mountain, and made it 11km, before picking up a bus that took me all the way to Bagabay. From here I only have to wait a minute for a Manila-bound bus. Tedious movies ensue on a surprisingly slow journey which lands me in Cubao at 10pm. I can't face Manila at this hour, so take a cab to the airport. I spend a surprising comfortable, brief night asleep on the airport floor.

Jan 27th I am up at 230am, and check in for my very early flight to Davao. I manage to dodge the weight restrictions for carry on again. And I get to sleep a little on the short flight. I am relived to see that Davao is hot and sunny-a week ago I had seen photos of a very flooded Davao, and had been worried that this leg of the trip would be impossible because of the flooding. My plan is to travel to Mt Apo, where both Minadanao scops-owl and Mindanao hawk-owls have been reported. I take a cab to the bus terminal and the a bus out to Kidapawan (the jumping off point for Mount Apo). Without coffee I have a pounding headache, exacerbated by an ever more intense need to piss. I am much relived to take care of these needs once I arrive. Then I go to the tourist office to arrange permits for climbing Mt Apo. This is the world's friendliest tourist office-they serve me coffee, share a pizza lunch with me and sort out my permit and guide: Arnel. Arnel and I then take off to buy groceries, rum (for the cold) and fuel. Then we take a motorbike to the trail head. I start down the trail, past some hot springs and sulfur vents while Arnel picks up Durwin, our porter. We crossed a river six times, using bamboo bridges or by wading against the swift current. After a couple of hours we reach a fork in the trail and set up camp. I am not too sure of the elevation-perhaps 1300m here. Before dinner I climb the steep trail that climbs away from the river-apart from it's steepness, its a decent trail that passes through nice forest. I return at dusk and we eat a huge dinner-whenever I camp with Filipino people, it seems like an excuse to indulge in a lot of food. Arnel is really good cook, and its hard to stop eating.

After dinner it takes a while to convince Arnel to let me go out owling-go tomorrow, go when you see a moon, when its stopped raining etc. Despite his concerns that I will get lost, I take off. We agree I will return in two hours, and after three hours of very wet steep owling (for both scops and hawk-owls) I return to a worried Arnel. Back at the camp, I have a quick drink, before Arnel and Durwin polish off the rest of the bottle. Fueled by rum, I crawl into a wet tent and sleep and shiver the whole night through.

Jan 28th I awaken at first light to discover Durwin has left for civilization to pick up another bottle of rum! I have a coffee and eat and a talk with Arnel. To kill time I wander upstream and find a Goodfellow's jungle-flycatcher just past the campground. What a fabulous little bird. Then I pack my sodden gear and start the very steep hike. After 90 minutes, I am surprised to come to the next camp site, called Ko-ong which is at 1700m or so. The site is a small damp meadow, by a creek, that's populated by frogs and litter. I plan to owl above the site tonight for Mindanao Scops-owl.

We spend a lot of the middle of the day resting and eating. I try and dry out my gear when the sun briefly appears. I do a little exploring to figure out the trail ahead. Then eat again, before taking off at 4pm, up a ridiculously steep trail towards Lake Vernao. On the way up, the sky clears and reveals Mt Apo above. Inspired by the view, I start climbing quickly, and soon reach Lake Verano, and climb beyond to the treeline at about 2400m. By now its cold and dusk, so I wait for the skies to darken and the owls to come out. As I wait I see Whiteheads swiftlets and hear Bukidnon woodcock. Its pretty magical place-cold and isolated. It's a fantastic starry night, and I have high hopes, but after three hours of painstaking owling down an incredibly steep trail, I have nothing to show for my efforts. Not yet defeated I eat a big diner, then head back down the trail towards the first camp. Still no owl! At 11pm I crawl into my bag, wet and muddy to sleep.

Jan 29th At 230am I get up, and with rare discipline retrace my steps up the trail to Lake Verano, then take a right and descend steeply down a new trail. After an hour it starts to pour so I try and rush back to camp, but its all but impossible to rush on the terrain. Thoroughly soaked, I retreat into my now soaking sleeping bag and try to sleep.

At 7am, the sun awakens me. After a coffee I feel good again. Well, until I think about the scops-owl. We enjoy a breakfast of champions-pilchards and rice, then return to the trailhead. Once back in civilisation, Arnel discovers his daughter is sick with a fever. We head into Kidpanwan, where he meets with his family and takes her to the hospital. Durwin helps me out, taking me to an Internet cafe, then a restaurant, and finally to visit an old friend of Arnel's, where we wait. The friend is a decaying sort of guy, friendly but like wet cardboard or an spoiled fruit-some one you would avoid if possible. I spend the afternoon talking with Arnel's friend and washing my gear. After a few hours Arnel returns, his daughter was admitted, but he's certain she will be fine. We pack and then ride out to Barangay Perez, in Kidapawan's watershed. Here at 800m, I plan to look for Everette's scops-owl and Mindanao hawk-owl. We meet with a porter, Lorenzo, and head out to a his farm that's 3/4km above the barangay's basketball court. There is a small hut on his farm, where we stay. I am told the NPA (insurgents) are active in the area, though there is little concern about them-folks in the community seem to hold them in high esteem and show no fear of them. When we arrive, its absolutely dark. Lorenzo points out some trails, which end up being a maze of little paths through his fruit trees. I am a bit disappointed, as I had asked for access to the forest. I return and implore Arnel to help me get into the forest. Lorenzo sends me out on another trail, that's wet and muddy. It does not lead into the forest, but at least runs along the edge of it. Still no owls, and by 10pm I return to the hut. There the guys are excited, because they can hear a distant owl. I head out again with Lorenzo, and am shocked as I get closer to realize it's a Mindanao scops-owl, a rare bird at such a low elevation. My holy grail!

The owl is by a gully and the terrain is fucking horrendous-a steep viney forested slope broken up between bits of cliff. The owls calling from some very high trees, the view of them is obscured by a middle story of tree ferns. All the plants sting or have thorns. I slip and fall a lot. The owl is wholly indifferent to my tape. When I try and spotlight it, it moves on to another location, and resumes singing. I slip and fall, climb and fall, slip and climb and slide chasing that owl. And eventually give up. It's midnight and I am tired and defeated by this owl. I lie in my bag and listen to it call. Later its joined by a calling giant scops-owl. I try and ignore them both and feel terrible about myself. It's after midnight and despite the rum, I am cold. Everything is wet and muddy.

Jan 30th At 430am I wake up the guys. They all chain smoke as we pack up. Then we make our way back to the village. Lorenzo awakens a driver, who takes us down towards Kidpanwan. Alas we get a flat, and have to wait a while, then walk before picking up a second bike to take us the rest of the way into town. I say goodbye to Arnel, then catch a van to Davao.

I am at the airport early. My wet feet stink, and my clothes are caked with mud so I try and sneak into the baby-changing room to wash off. The janitor spots me, and sends me into her closet and lends me a brush and soap. It's not ideal, as her coworkers come by to watch and pepper me with questions. Still I clean off the worst of the mud. Up in the lounge I dry out my wretched feet.

I contemplate my missed owls and realize I will be back someday.

The flight to Cebu is uneventful. I take a taxi to the Supercat terminal, for the 330pm service to Tagbilaran, Bohol. The boat has AC, and it's nice to feel dry again. I arrive at Tagbilaran's bus terminal at dusk and discover that I have missed to last bus that runs to Rajah Sikatuna National Park. A cool guy with a bike offers to take me. On the map, it's just 40km, but because of a big earthquake a lot of bridges are down and we have to weave across the island on small roads to find a passable route. It's a beautiful night for a ride. Coincidentally the driver's wife lives by the park entrance, so we pay her a surprise visit-she looks so happy to see her man.

I've visited Rajah Sikatuna in 2002, and it's great to be back. It's a lovely forested park with great trails than run through little limestone hills. I actually hear my first Everette's scops-owl when paying the driver. I soon get an in flight view of a calling bird along the entrance road. The calls were consistently like George Wager's recordings on Xeno-canto http://www.xeno-canto.org/53972 . Triumphant, I head back and find the park guard who sets me up a mattress in the education building. I then return to the forest and owl for a few more hours to try and get a good view of a perched owl. I end up hearing several more scops-owls and a Luzon hawk-owl, but see none. The forest floor is infested with huge millipedes, which momentarily look like coiled snakes to my tired eyes.

Jan 31st What a schedule! To try for the 8am ferry to Dumaguette, I get up at 430 and hike out of the park. At the bus stop I watch the transition from night to day, returning bats, stray dogs and joggers go by. The bus to Tagbilaran is pretty swift, and I make it to the dock by 745am.......only to be told that there is a category one typhoon coming, and that no boats will be sailing. I am surprised, it's a lovely day. My first thought is to weather the storm. I ask around and the consensus is that it won't be severe. I wait and think about my state-I have sores all over my arm and hand from a poisonous plant, I have a couple of hideous boils growing on my thigh and I smell terrible. By 11am the typhoon has been upgraded to a category two, so no ferries will sail today, and likely none for a couple of days. I find a filthy green concrete hotel, that looks stout enough to withstand a storm. I wash my sorry self and horrendous clothes, then head out to find the internet. After some research, I realize I can fly to Manila, so rush over to the PAL office and buy a ticket. More rushing around and I am soon at the terminal.

During the short flight I work hard to rewrite my itinerary for the rest of the trip. I decide to start at Mindoro (home of two endemic owls, the Mindoro scops-owl and Mindoro hawk-owl); then head south east from there as time allows. Once I arrive in Manila, I hit the ATM because these changes will be spendy, then take a cab to Pasay and board a express bus to Batangas. From there I catch a 9pm Starlight ferry to Calapan on Mindoro. I sleep for the entire ride on the wonderfully warm smokey boat.

I end up at a decent hotel by the wharf at Calapan, where I can dry off in the AC.

Feb 1st I take a bike down the street to Apak Outdoor shop to arrange a trek to Mt Halcon, home of the Mindoro scops owl. The owner Richard recommends I wait a day for the upcoming typhoon to pass, and suggests Talipanan Beach as a location I can to find lowland forest and look for Mindoro hawk-owl.

I take a van to Puerto Galera, and a bike up to Talipanan Beech where I find a room at a modest resort. A local kid shows me the trail to Mt Talipanan. The trail passes some falls, and after exploring the slopes, which were steep and though crappy scrubby forest, I return and slip by the falls on some wet bedrock. I am not badly hurt, but my knee is bloodied and pants are torn. That afternoon I worry about the weather and about our climb on Halcon being cancelled. (All day the weather is pretty bad).

By mid afternoon I set out looking for better forest. I hike up to Ponderosa Golf resort, which is a steep windy climb. At the resort I find a trail to the left than runs through excellent forest to a quarry. I reach the quarry shortly before dusk, but have to wait a couple of hours for the worst of the rain to die down. Then I work back down the track, taping for Mindoro hawk-owl as I go. Despite the rain and wind I get a response after 15 minutes. An owl flies overhead a couple of times, and eventually I spotlight wet owl on a perch. What a relief after a fucked up couple of days. The owl looked bigger than a Luzon hawk-owl, and was warm brown above, with dense barring on the head and neck, the breast and belly were orange-brown with fine dark brown bars. Eyes are yellow. The call is like a less intense version of barn owl's screech, given in paired notes. Brilliant! Moments later it starts to pour and the wind gusts and bends the trees. Fireflies blow by overhead like sparks in the wind. An owl in a typhoon. Brilliant!

It's along walk and then bike ride back to the resort. I celebrate with a fish dinner and a couple of Red Horse beers. I call Richard from a borrowed phone, who informs me that the NPA and Filipino army clashed on Mt Halcon and he can't get a permit to take me there.

Back at my room I discover that leeches have gotten to me and riverlets of blood run from my bites soaking my woolen socks crimson.

Feb 2nd I get up at 445am and walk towards Puerto Galera, hoping for a passing ride. It's a beautiful night-the typhoon has passed and it's calm and starry. I feel disappointed not to be climbing Mt Halcon today. Eventually I catch a ride with a passing cycle. At Puerto Galera I pick up a van for Calapan, where I change and get another van for Roxas. I want to sleep, but its impossible as the van drives so erratically, and there really isn't space for my big self in the cramped van.

Roxas is a humid busy little port. I eat chicken and rice while swatting away lazy flies. There are no boats running to Tablas today, so I take a ferry to Caticlan. (Tablas is home to Romblon hawk-owl, my next target. Caticlan is an alternate gateway to Tablas). The ship is big and rusty, but being on the open water with the breeze is just great. During the crossing we are accompanied by a school of dolphins. When we arrive at Caticlan, there is a ship at the docks and another waiting ahead of us. Its a long four hours we have to wait before disembarking. I felt so trapped by the situation I pondered jumping in the warm sea and swimming ashore. Common sense prevails! I am forced to endure the ships toilet again and again. A urinal soap is confusing placed by the sink, and I try to wash my hands with it. The door to the stall has no latch, instead I have to tie it closed with the world's filthiest rag.

Once ashore, I find a hotel room. I can't find Internet or beer, so settle down for some crap TV and an early night.

Feb 3rd I get up early and find the man with a tiny table who sells tickets to Tablas. The pump boat does not leave till mid morning, and arrives at Tablas at noon. I hire a motor bike to take me across the island to San Augustin. There I check into the Hotel August. The friendly owner knows about the special birds of Tablas. I find the Internet in town and eat a fish diner. I hire another bike to take me out to the village of Dubduban. I then start hiking up a ridge that leads to the mountainous interior of Tablas. I follow the trail for an hour before it ends at a small clearing high above town. By now it's 5pm. At the clearing I see Tablas fantail and Streak-breasted bulbul. I wait around until dark, then start taping for Romblon hawk-owl. I immediately get a response far below in thick forest. The owls don't fly in, so I try to descend towards them. Alas the forest is too dense, and reluctantly I give up. As I hike back along the trail I hear about 8 hawk-owls. They have a really diverse vocabulary, as well as the typical series of notes, they have a roaring growl, and a single note call. I am really disappointed that I can't get one to come into view. A terrible pessimism sets in-it's been an increasingly hard trip and this is such a frustrating night. The whole thing seems hopeless if the owls won't fly in. I arrive back in town after 10pm, eat some junk food and set my alarm for 1am.

Feb 4th I awake at 1am, and feel surprisingly OK. On my way out to Dubduban, I tape out a pair of Mantanani Scops-owls, and get a fair view of them. At the end of the road, by the falls, I get a response from pair of Romblon hawk-owls. The birds are in an area of palms and tall trees. They have loud calls, and I am continually surprised how far away they are. I eventually see one owl fly from one tree into the dense canopy of another, but fail to get a full color view of a perched bird. To this end, I persevere for a long time. The owls move about and call, but I am never able to nail them in my spotlight. I make it back to my hotel at 4am, which gives me time to clean up and catch my 430am motorcycle to the ferry at Santa Fe at the far end of Tablas. The bike ride is beautiful, riding through misty fields and smoke filled villages. The little pump boat starts on time, but a couple of miles out into the sea the motor dies. The guys replace a fan belt and an hour later, but dies after a few minutes. No one has minutes on their phone, so they text for help. Another pump boat passes, but it's too far away to recognize our distress. I try and sleep, but its boiling under the blue tarp that covers us. The guy in front of me moves his plastic chair, and inadvertently breaks through the deck of the boat with a leg of the chair. The boat is truly a piece of junk! After another hour the motor is started and soon we are in Caticlan.

Once in town I inquire about a flight to Cebu, but they only have expensive standby tickets for sale. I decide instead to make my way to Negros by land and sea. (Negros is home to the Negros scops owl). The first step of the journey is a five hour cramped van ride across Panay to Iloilo. I just make the last ferry to Bacalod. I arrive there at 7pm, and decided to try to get to Mt Canloan that night to look for Negros scops-owl. This involves a tricycle ride to the bus depot, a bus ride to La Carlota and another tricycle up to Guintubdan. I make it to Guintubdan by 10pm. It's a sort of small hill station on the slopes of Mt Canloan.

I am able to camp at Guintubdan Visitor Center, which is a steal. Plus it's a beautiful night with a quarter moon, orange from the burning of the cane fields. After setting up camp, I sneak past the security guard and explore the road looking for good forest. A couple of hundred yards up the road, I find a Luzon hawk owl singing in a tree. I continue up the road, taking the first, then second left, past Raphael Sales Nature park. Near where the road starts to descend I hear a calling Negros scops-owl. Soon I have a great view. It's clearly smaller than a Lowland Luzon scops, but with similar white eye brows that lead up into its ear-tufts. The cheeks and neck are bright rufous, contrasting with the white breast and belly. The breast and belly show only faint blackish fine bars. The eyes are orange-brown. Excellent! What a great find. I am so glad I made the effort to get out here tonight. By the time I make it to my tent, I am tired and thirsty but very content.

Feb 5th I get up at 430am, and pack up my tent, then walk off the mountain, down to the cane fields far below. Eventually I find a tricycle, who takes me the rest of the way to La Carlota. From there I take a bus into Bacalod. Once in town I find an ATM and an internet cafe. Then it's a short jeepney ride to the bus terminal, and a four hour bus journey to San Carlos. Once at San Carlos I wait a couple of hours, then catch a short ferry over to Cebu. Once in Cebu, I take a jeepney to Balambam. By now it's dusk and I am anxious to make it over to Tabunan, in time to look for Cebu hawk-owls. I soon find a motorcycle taxi to take me to Tabunan. It's an amazingly hilly dramatic ride, made even better by a beautiful calm night. The rider knows the way, and once in the village of Tabunan, I have no trouble tracking down Oking, the local forest ranger and bird guide. We both remember each other from my visit in 2010. Oking is incredibly hospitable and well organized. Within half an hour of arriving unannounced at his home, we are on the trail owling.

Soon we have a Cebu hawk-owl flying overhead. Minutes later we see three more Cebu hawk-owls surround us. Each calls vigorously from exposed perches! Finally we see a fifth bird, really close, low in a small tree. The owls are bigger than Luzon hawk-owl, with yellow eyes and a conspicuous white throat. The chest and belly is rufous-brown and strongly barred with darker bars. Upper parts are brown and flight feathers are dark with lighter spots or bars. The underwing covers are white with chocolate bars. The calls are diverse and energetic. Frequently they would perch out in the open and hold their wings open, like a mantling hawk, creating the impression of a much bigger bird. They were very active, calling vigorously and moving around the canopy as they called.

Back at Okings, I filled out his log book, then we made arrangements for his son to take me up to the main highway. Once at the highway Oking's son tells me it isn't safe to leave me here. Despite my protests, he insists on taking me to Cebu City, which is an hour away. Once at Cebu I find an internet cafe, and settle down to buy airline tickets to Camiguin and back to Manila. Alas the security features on my credit card prevent me from making a purchase. I end up taking a cab to the airport, where I am able to directly buy a flight to Cagayan del Oro and another back to Manila. By midnight I am all done, and find a place to sleep on the floor, until I have to check in for my flight.

Feb 6th I slept like a log on the airport floor. My flight was smooth, we even arrive early and are forced to circle the runway until its light enough to land! Its a long ride into town. Once there I feast on siao paos and coffee, then take a bus out to Balingasag. From there, I catch a ferry to the small volcanic island of Camiguin. From the harbour I rent a motorbike and head out to Mambojao. I find a hotel and wash everything. Its been a while and it feels good to be clean again.

After a good Filipino lunch and email, I ride around looking for good forest. I eventually make my way to Itum, a village high above town at a pass between two volcanoes. Where the road disintegrates to a track, I park my bike, and continue on by foot. After a few kilometers the habitat deteriorated, so I rest up and wait for darkness to come. I saw a couple of camiguin sur yellowish bulbuls. Just as it becomes dark, the wind picks up and it starts to pour. Undefeated I make my way back towards the bike, stopping and taping for Camiguin hawk-owl whenever the rain lets up. Eventually lying on my back, and staring at the sky I see a hawk-owl fly overhead and into thick trees, where it sings. I try and approach the owl, but am blocked by a small cliff. I try taping some more, but eventually the owl stops singing. Close to my bike, at the top of the pass, I get another response, but fail to see that owl. It's wet and windy, so I decide to retreat, eat some food and then look for more sheltered forest. After a Coke and quarter chicken, I spend a few hours working the forested gullys and small woodlots. I ride up hills, then descend slowly on the bike, without the motor running, stopping every 200m to tape. By 1130pm I have run out of energy and give up on getting a full color view of Camiguin hawk-owl.

Feb 7th I stumble out of bed at 3am, hop on the bike and ride down to the pier, where I pick up a 4am ferry back to Balingasag on Mindanao. It's pouring by the time I reach Balingasag, which does not bode well for my plans to go owling on Mt Dulang Dulang tonight. (Mt Dulang Dulang is a rarely visited birding site, that is home to Mindanao scops-owl, the bird I had frustratingly failed to see at Mt Apo).

At Cagayan del Oro I hit the ATM again because this constant travelling is expensive. Then I take a bus to Malaybalay, a market town set in the mountainous tablelands of Mindanao. My appetite for one final effort is much diminished by the terrible weather. At Malaybalay, I transfer to the Philippine's slowest bus, which crawls along to Songco. From there a friendly guy points me in the direction of Binahon Farm in Barangay Bol-ogon. See http://www.birding2asia.com/W2W/Philippines/Dulang-dulang.html for more information. (The owner Henry Binahon is a progressive agricultural entrepreneur). It's great to finally arrive and spread out my gear to dry. I sleep a little and eat a good lunch and have coffee. I am now feeling much better about tackling this last attempt at finding Mindanao scops-owl. So even though its pouring outside, I make the steep hike up to the treeline. From the end of the track I take a wrong turn and end up at a small river. I back track and find the correct trail to Mt Dulang Dulang, which is a sharp left about 100m before the end of the track. By now it's 6pm, and nearly dark. Miraculously the rain lets up and a beautiful moon peers through the canopy. The trail is just beautiful, it climbs not too steeply through gorgeous mountain forest. I climb higher and higher, taping for Mindanao scops owl as I go. Just past a camp ground the wind picks up and I decide to turn around. It's a long walk back to the track, from there I resume taping as I walk back towards Binahon. Just before I leave the forest, I get a quiet response! I tape again and again. But hear nothing else. Then I turn on my headtorch, and right in front of my face, a tiny Mindanao scops-owl flushes, and flies into a tangle of vines and eventually out of view. Redemption! It's a small dark brown owl with extensive blackish markings on it's back, with long partially feathered thighs and pale feet.

It's a long steep walk back down to the farm. My knees burn and I slip on the steep clay road. Still nothing can diminish my enthusiasm. When I arrive at the farm, I am relived that the employees are not waiting up for me. (I found Filipino people often worried about my late night adventures).

Feb 8th I get up at 445am and stumble out of bed. This morning's target is giant scops-owl, a bird that I saw in 2002 on nearby Mt Katanglad. It's been reported on the farm, so I walk around and tape for it. Unfortunately I don't get a response. Soon it's too light to owl and I retreat back to my room for a little more sleep.

I am roused by a knock on the door to let me know that I have a huge breakfast to eat. It's a completely overwhelming meal of fish, pork and noodles, rich and salad. I barely make a dent in the food, and settle down to nice coffee instead. After breakfast I don't have much to do-basically I am waiting for it to get dark, so that I can go out and look for giant scops-owls. I try my best to catch up on sleep. In the middle of the day, Henry shows up. We talk about his farm, and ideas about farming. He is an interesting guy, who convinces me that progressive agricultural policies could transform the lives of millions of poor Filipino farmers. Eventually Henry returns to Malaybalay. I sleep for most of the afternoon. I get up just on time to make the steep hike up to the treeline by nightfall. From there I plan to return downhill and tape for giant scops owl in the small woodlots as I go. For an hour I do this, and don't get any response., Then it starts to rain torrentially, and I end up running back down the farm. The rain continues all evening. I eat another big dinner, then try to sleep, which isn't easy.

Feb 9th I get up at 345am and pack. Then I walk down towards Malaybalay, taping as I go. After 2km, I tape out a giant scops-owl. I get great views of it perched in an open tree. It strikes me more as a little eagle owl than a giant scops owl-having a massive bill. What a great way to finish the trip.

I continue walking towards Malaybalay, until it gets light, then I pick up a motorcycle to the next village, and then a bus to Malaybalay. I take another bus onto Cagayan del Oro, where I am pickpocketed out of 850 pesos! (It's been two decades since this last happened to me). The flight to Manila works out great, as does the transpacific flight to SFO. There is a big winter storm in the pacific northwest, and I don't make it home until 2am after a snowy cab ride home.

What a great trip. It's my third to the Philippines. It is always hard birding in the Philippines, with little habitat remaining and the birds being under intense pressure from hunters. It seems like every site involves a lot of hiking, usually up some really big mountains. Still the owls are amazing and Filipino people are wonderful, warm, helpful and great company. I ended up seeing 10 out of 12 owls that would have been lifers. I also saw four other owls that I had seen before. Many thanks to Rob, Christian, Bram, Adrian, Mike, Arne and Stijn for their invaluable advice.