2015 Owling

Intro

I live in Portland Oregon with my wife Tui, two sons Charlie and George, and dog Ziggy. This entry details my owling exploits for 2015 around Portland and further afield in the Pacific Northwest.

1.3.15 I followed up on a report of a short-eared owl on the Yamhill Christmas count. Paul Sullivan gave directions to the south end of McMinville Airport, where the owl had been seen around dusk for a couple of weeks.

We arrived at 330, but had to wait until 445 on a dark chilly afternoon. The owl came out and quartered the airfield. What a wonderful bird! This bird was much darker than the one I saw at Broughton Beach last month.

1.24.15 I decided to explore Washington and Yamhill counties. My first stop around 2am, was Tualatin Hills for Barred owl. I found a scrawny coyote in the parking lot, but no owls.

Next stop was Tualatin National Wildlife Refuge for screech owl which I failed to find. I heard a lot of geese and at least two tail-slapping beavers, I also heard a singing Great-horned owl.

On the advice of Paul Sullivan and ebird, I headed for Gopher Valley Road near Sheridan. Passing through McMinville I found a roadside barn owl on the south side of town.

Near Dear Creek county park I heard a saw-whet and great-horned owl. A few miles further up Gopher Valley Road I found a lovely singing screech owl and got great views. I tried further up the valley for pygmy owl, but to no avail.

Later that day the whole family walked along the east side of Oaks Bottom. It was an amazingly warm afternoon. The screech owl was roosting in the usual Ash tree.

1.25.15 Andy Frank let me know the great-horned had returned to Vanport Wetlands. George and I arrived under a heavy late afternoon fog. We found the nest, but no bird was visible. After wandering around to kill time we eventually heard a male bird singing deep in the misty cottonwoods. The bird on the nest responded by stretching its wing and raising it's head.

1.26.15 I had an extra 20 minutes before I needed to start work so I ventured to Reed Canyon in search of barred owls. After a couple of minutes I found one, perched quite low in a conifer. Lovely bird! (In the last six trips to Reed, this was my first successful one).

1.31.15 I returned to Tualatin Hills nature preserve in search of barred owl, but struck out. I then drove to Jackson's Bottom and quickly found a lovely screech owl.

The next stop was High Heavenly drive. Paul Sullivan had recommended this area for Barred owl and I did hear a a distant Barred.

I then ventured to McGuire reservoir. I had about an hour before dawn and spent it searching for saw whets, but failed to find any. I did hear a gang of coyotes singing beautifully. After dawn, I looked for pygmy owls for 90 minutes, but failed to turn up any. Nonetheless it was a beautiful frosty clear morning.

2.6.15 Rhett and I met in Tryon in search of saw whet owls. Rhett had heard on early in the evening. Despite this we were unsuccessful in our attempts to solicit one.

While walking past the barred owl nest site we flushed a barred owl out from a low perch in a cedar. Although we were unable to relocate that bird, we did find a second bird perched midway up in a conifer facing the nest cavity.

2.8.15 Ziggy, George and I walked around Oaks Bottom in search of screech owls. At the usual ash tree we found a roosting screech owl-only it's belly and thighs were visible.

2.15.15 While visiting Tui's family in Federal Way, I took the afternoon off and visited Eide Road on Camano Island. For weeks the internet had been ablaze with reports of a pair of roosting long-eared owls, plus several short-eared owls. Most of the conversation had been focus on photographers and birders getting to close to the owls.

It was a fabulous day, warm and sunny. T-shirt weather. After reading about crowds mobbing the owls, I was a bit surprised to find just a couple of visitors. No one had seen the owls today. Once I had figured out where the owls had been sighted, I started working the bushes in a progressively wider circle in search of long eareds. I soon racked up 5 or 6 wonderful short-eareds. Some hiding in tall grass, others perched on trees or driftwood.

A quarter of an hour after sunset I decided to return to the original roost site and watch for long-eareds emerging from their hiding places to hunt. I spotted a spot of white-wash under a thicket. Amazingly a lovely long-eared was perched very low in the thicket. Soon the bird started to stir. It stretched it's wings, preened and yawned.  Like a cat. I was amazed at how orange it's under-wings were. Just a lovely owl.

2.16.15 On route back from Federal Way we stopped at Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. A pair of great-horned owlets had been reported on the birding list-serve Tweeters. It was a warm day and the reserve was packed with visitors. On twin barns loop trail we were shown a dark adult birds, and nearby two large owlets.

2.21.15 The whole family went to check on the barred owl nest site at Tryon. It took a while and we had pretty much given up, but as we left I found a barred owl high in a Doug fir.

3.15.15 During a warm and wet weekend I took Charlie out to Oaks Bottom and found a screech owl roosting in the usual broken ash tree.

Later the same day George and I braved the strong winds and went to Tryon. We found a barred owl standing guard close to the nest site.

3.21.15 The whole family walked to the overlook above Oak's bottom. I could see the roosting screech owl in the usual ash tree.

3.22.15 I ventured out to Hood River County very early this morning. E-bird suggested that Post Canyon Road may have barred and saw-whet owls but I turned up neither there. Next I tried Elder Rd (from Old Dalles Dr). I had up to three saw whets-one for sure-it gave a classic song, I also heard a load explosive chattering alarm in response to a tape and at a third location just a single note. Additionally I heard two distant great-horned owls. After a cloudy sunrise I taped out a pygmy owl. This was the only owl I actually saw.

It rained for most of the rest of the day. Around diner time George, Ziggy and I went to Tryon. We found a lovely barred owl roosting in a cedar overlooking the nest site.

3.26.15 The whole family walked out to Oak's overlook. I could see the screech owl roosting in his usual hole in the ash tree.

3.2915 I got up at 1245 and with some difficulty made it out of the house. I drove down to Benton county in search of spotted owls. As soon as I got out of the car I heard a singing saw-whet. Soon I was able to track it down and get a nice view. Amazing there were five saw-whets singing in the area. I also heard a distant barn owl and three screech owls sang softly among the saw-whets.

Eventually I heard a pair of spotted owls. They sang very infrequently and I struggled to pin point the location. Alas they went unseen.

At a second location I heard a another spotted, briefly in steep terrain. Again the bird did not call consistently and I wasn't able to find it.

On the way back to the car a pygmy owl responded with one toot to a tape.

April 4th I ventured out to Kinzel Lake. I called Zig Zag Ranger Station yesterday and was told the road was open. I decided to take Tui's RAV4. This turned out to be a good thing as there was 8" of fresh snow. 

It was an exciting drive out to the lake, with some mud holes and slick hills. Once there the foot trails were impossible for me to find. I called for owls by the lake, then returned, stopping at promising patches of forest. A small bird flew across in front of the car, possibly a saw-whet, but I could not be certain. There was a full moon and it was such an amazing night I had to write about it despite the dearth of owls. 

April 11th On a squally cool morning the whole family ventured out to Tryon. After sheltering from a deluge under a Doug fir we found a barred owl near the nest site. Despite being wet it looked just perfect.

April 12th After George was in bed I drove out to Camas Prairie east of Mount Hood. I hear a pair of singing barred owls there. Nearby I hear a distant great-horned owl.

I then checked out an area near Little Crater Lake where I heard a saw-whet owl singing persistently.

April 17th. (George's first birthday). I went out to the Hood River-Wasco border, east of Mount Hood in search of spotted owls. I drove as far as I dared, until I reached a lot of old deep snow that was alternatively frozen, then soft. I parked the Toyota and set off up the hill. It was an amazing warm night. I hiked up through the snow in search of spotted owls but heard nothing. On the way back I taped for saw-whet, but got no response.

Back on highway 44 i heard a group of at least three great-horned owls. Eventually I was able to spotlight one in flight.

April 18th. We took Tui's family and the kids out to Tryon to look for barred owls. Near the nest I found a bird roosting low in a cedar. We all got to enjoy the owl. Below in the gully I could hear the tell-tale sounds of scolding robins and stellar's jays. I made my way down and found a gorgeous barred owl roosting in a maple. When the light is this good, barred owls are just perfect.

April 22nd. Charlie and I went to visit my friend Andy who had a nesting screech owl in his yard in Northwest Portland. I got to see owl fly a couple of times and perch in the nest tree.

April 25th. George, Ziggy and I went to the Tryon barred owl nest site. As soon as we arrived we saw a group of people watching a barred owl in a maple. Soon we got to watch it hunt. A couple of times if flew to the ground, then hopped around between the bushes. I am not sure if it was hunting for invertebrates? Either way we got fantastic views of the owl. (I din't see the owlet, but was shown photos of an owlet taken of the nest site earlier this morning).
The nest tree was devoid of white-wash or pellets. I think that barred owls avoid soiling the nest tree-perhaps to reduce detection by predators?

April 26th. Charlie and I drove out a wonderful patch of old growth in to the coast range . Along the way we drove through some pretty fucked up desolate clear cuts. It was a stark contrast between the madness of the climactic ancient forest and the barren logged hills.
Far up the hillside we heard a spotted owl call, then another responded. Both birds were far away and it wasn't practical to chase after them with a four year old in tow. Still it was brilliant to hear them. My first spotted owl for Polk County.

April 29th. I met Rhett at the overlook above Oaks Bottom. Wasting no time we hiked down the steep bluff through tall wet grass the the screech owl ash tree. Near the tree Rhett found a lovely roosting screech owl. We had great views of the owl for about 45 minutes, then we took off to check out other roost sites. We returned just before dusk to find the owl had gone. We didn't have to wait long before we found the owl flying around. I eventually landed near a broken tree-we will have to return in the day to confirm if there is a good nesting cavity in that tree.

May 1st. The whole family went to a cabin near Prineville. I had planned on owling the next night, but Charlie had been rambunctious at bed time and I had yelled at him. I felt guilty and wanted to apologize, but didn't want to wake him. Unable to sleep I set of up McCay Creek trail. Near the summit I heard a saw-whet. I was close to homing in on it, when a great-horned started singing. Immediately the saw-whet was silenced. At Stein's Pillar trail head I tried for flammulated, but got no response. I did manage a lovely view of a saw whet in some small ponderosas.

Later that day we all went to check out a barn that Chuck Gates had kindly told me about. It took knocking on a few doors, but eventually we got to the right place. We found 3 barn owls at the back of the barn. Charlie got to see them quite well and he was pretty excited to see them. The entrance was littered with dead voles-perhaps its a good year for voles?

Back at the cabin we went for an evening walk. I tried taping for pygmy and pretty soon located a super distant owl at the top of a spruce. It stuck around and we eventually got fairly good views.

May 9th. The whole family was in Federal Way visiting Tui's folks. Ziggy and i got up at 230am and I drove to Othello in search of burrowing owls. As I past Lake Easton I began to smell the most disgusting smell. I pulled into the next rest area to discover Ziggy, a senior dog, and partner in crime had shit in the hatch of the civic. I was able to ditch the crapped-upon blanket and wipe up the car. After a cold mile of driving along the freeway with the widows down the car smelled tolerably.

Just west of Othello the smell returned with a vengeance. Only worse. I pulled over and it looked like Ziggy had been mud wrestling all over the back seat. I was at a loss with how to deal with it, so I drove on to Othello feeling nauseous, by probably not as sick as Ziggy evidently was.

I was following Mary Hrudkaj's directions. A couple of hundred yards from the site I saw this:

Can you see the burrowing owl perched on the bales of straw? I ended up getting really great views by using the car as a blind.

Now for the dog diarrhea clean up. I drove up to a coral.

I bathed Ziggy in an open irrigation channel. Then tore up my shirt and used it to mop up jello-like lumps of wet dog shite. Apart from the smell the drive home was uneventful.

May 17th. My sister, Fiona, was in town for a week and we decided to explore the Deschutes and John Day rivers. At Cottonwood Canyon State Park we found a female barn owl and at least two chicks nesting in a cliff side hole.

May 18th. I took my sister to Tryon State Park to see barred owls. We had to wait 'till dusk until one, then two adults vocalized. Then three juveniles started hissing. We were able to watch the juveniles fly clumsily between maples at dusk. 

May 22nd-23rd. I took my sister, Fiona and Charlie out to the Ochocos. We camped at Steen's Pillar trailhead. It was a surprisingly damp and misty evening. Just before it got dark I heard a flammulated owl singing. Despite my best efforts I could not see him-the trees by the small creek where he was singing were giant ponderosas. In the area I also heard what I am pretty sure were juvenile saw whet owls begging. 

It was a cold damp night, made worse by the constant song of the flammulated-taunting me to go out again and try and find him.

The next morning we hiked Steen's Pillar trail, then checked out the painted hills before returning to forest road 2610. We camped by a beautiful meadow. I had hopes of finding a great gray owl, but didn't. Once it got dark Fiona stayed with Charlie, freeing me up to pursue flammulated owls. I didn't find any flammulated owls, but heard a  spontaneous singing saw whet owl. I was able to get amazing views of this bold little owl descend down the branches of spruce in series of short flights-almost like a person would descend a flight of stairs. 

May 24th. The whole family walked around Oaks Bottom. At the south end a scolding robin gave up a roosting screech owl.

Near the regular site just south of the mausoleum I found a second screech owl. I suspect that the two birds are not a pair because they were about 500m apart. 

May 30th. The whole family stayed at a cabin south of Trout Lake, Washington. At dusk I ventured above Pine Side Sno Park and heard a flammulated owl 1/2 mile above the park and saw one 2 1/2 miles above the park. The bird I saw was perched on a snag, and I got good views of this tricky mountain owl. 

June 5th-7th. Charlie, Ziggy and I headed south east along highway 26 after work on a Friday. We made it as far as La Pine State Park, where we camped. It was a beautiful, but cold night.

We woke early, cooked a bacon and coffee-based breakfast, then headed south towards Klamath Lake. We ended up along Keno Access road where I had heard several recent reports of a family of great-gray owls. As soon as we pulled in I saw a birder's truck. An even better sign were the incessant begging calls of the young owls. It took just a minute to find the two young owls, perched quite high in a spruce. 

We spent most of the day either hiding out from the hot sun and playing in the creek, or making forays into the forest in search of an adult. (The owlets are great, but the adult is such a fabulous bird and well worth the effort). By evening time we had expanded our search and eventually lucked into an adult). We accidentally flushed the owl, but it landed amazingly close by on a stump. It was just gorgeous. Charlie and I named it cloud owl.

Our next location was the Gold Hill area. We were a  little disappointed to find little old growth and even less opportunities for camping. We settled on a clear-cut where the good people of Jackson County shoot old TVs. No owls, but it was a lovely night. 

The morning was marred by a plague of ticks. Ziggy had over 25 and Charlie had 5! It was a hot drive back to Portland. 

June 14th A week ago I had heard about a spotted owl family in Douglas County. I contacted Janice Reid, a biologist who worked for 30 years on spotted owls. All week I could hardly wait to get out into the forest and look for spotted owls. 

I got up early Sunday morning and drove down to Douglas county to met Janice at a gated road. We met up with the property owner and drove in to some unpromising-looking secondary forest. We took a short hike up a shady laurel-filled canyon. Within a couple hundred yards of the nest a female owl came to check us out.  I think feeding the owls mice has caused them to associate humans with food. Janice quickly found a juvenile which she had banded last week. We had to offer up a couple of white lab mice to locate the second unbanded juvenile. Janice proficiently caught the young owl and banded it. While doing so the female struck her twice, drawing a little blood. We offered up a third mouse in an effort to distract the owl. Watching the big chocolate owl take the mice was amazing. 

Most of the time, about 2 hours, the owl just watched us. It was unbelievable to have such a difficult owl be as obvious as snow. Ah just gorgeous. 

June 21st. The whole family walked around Oak's Bottom. I failed to find any roosting screech at the usual sites, but on the return a scolding robin alerted me to a potential owl. The owl was deep in a wet willow thicket and it took a while to creep through the tangle. I was rewarded for my efforts by a lovely brown screech owl. 

June 27-28th. The whole family went to Federal Way to celebrate Tui's mom's 80th. We stayed at a cabin on Five Mile Lake. Early on the morning of the 27th Tui was woken by a family of noisy barred owls. She woke me and I got to go out in the warm night and hear the end of their performance. 

The next day I got up at 1am and drove to Sunrise on Mt Rainier. I passed three roadside barn owls on Muckleshoot reservation, all perched on utility wires. 

At Sunrise I walked about and listened for the tell-tale calls of begging juvenile boreal owls. I heard none and after 90 minutes it was dawn. 

My luck soon changed and I heard a pygmy owl. Later while searching for roosting boreal owls I flushed a long-eared owl!

July 4th. I returned to Sunrise at Mt Rainier in search of juvenile boreal owls. I spent a couple of hours listing for begging calls, but heard only some wild thing bark far below. All too soon the sky lightened:

Next I worked through the denser stands of firs for roosting boreal owls. I found a downy feather, two small pellets and some whitewash. No boreal though.

July 12. George, Ziggy and I went to Oaks and found a roosting western screech in the usual area. We were able to show it to a couple of appreciative hikers. 

July 18th. The family went to Silver Falls and stayed at a cabin. I got up at 230am and took a drive down to the valley. On the way back to the park I found a great-horned owl by the roadside just north of the park entrance. 

July 27th. Charlie and I went to the south end of Oak's Bottom at dusk. This was the first time I had taken him night owling since he started talking. We taped in a pair of screech owls at dusk and were able to enjoy them flying in silhouette below the canopy of a big maple. Charlie was easily able to track the owls. It was a wonderful little trip.

Aug 2nd. I awoke at 1am and set off to do some owling in the Willamette Valley. My first stop was Willamette Mission State Park. The entrance was gated so I had to walk in. This turned out to be a good thing as I heard a couple of distant barn owls out across the hop fields under a big moon. By the first parking lot I heard a pair of screech owls singing and caught a glimpse of one in flight. 

My next stop was Baskett Slough. I hiked the trail that lead into oak covered grassy hills. I heard a couple of young barred owls begging. I also heard the bark of a screech owl. Back at Livermore road I had a fly-by barn owl. In the old metal barn I found a second barn owl. A distant great-horned called. 

My final stop was McGuire Reservoir near McMinville. Near the dam I found a screech owl flying in front of the car. It was already light, but the little owl sang spontaneously from a patch of alders. In the same area I got a vocal response from a distant pygmy owl.

Aug 7th. I awoke at 130am and set off to Clatsop County. I stopped at Sunset rest area and tried for screech owls there but came up short. Next I tried Fishhawk Falls Hwy for barred owl-again with no results. 

At Jewell State Wildlife Viewing Area I heard a group of coyotes and saw lots of elk. I also heard a screech owl.

Along Beneke Creek road I heard two barred owls by the creek. Higher up I heard three great-horned owls calling well into daylight. I also heard a pair of pygmy owls.

Aug 16th. I awoke at 1am and drove to Brownsmead on the Columbia. It was a beautiful night, complete with shooting stars. I heard a barn owl call from the pastures. The marine air smelled wonderful. 

I then tried for barred owl at a couple of spots near Clatskanie, but failed to find anything. At one point I heard a "woosh" close to my face, but saw nothing. Heading North past Mist I stopped repeatedly for barred owl. At the ninth stop I heard a distant pair, then had a close encounter with a territorial bird. In the opposite direction another pair called. 

By now it was dawn. It was cool and misty in the clear-cuts. I ventured about a half mile down Apiary Road and heard a distant pygmy owl.

Aug 22nd. The family stayed at Beverly Beach State Park. I set my alarm for 3am and woke in a daze and left everyone sleeping in the yurt. I checked the marshy grasslands around Newport Bay, but found none. At Siletz I heard a barn owl in farmland, but was unable to see it. 

I tried for barred and screech owls along the road but found neither. At dawn I heard a pygmy owl in the foothills above the mouth of the Siletz. 

Aug 23rd. George, Ziggy and I took a walk to Oaks Bottom. We found no screech owls, but on the way back we found a great barred owl right by the trail.

Two years ago I saw a barred owl in the same area at the same time of year.

Sep 19th I visited Mt Rainier in search of boreal owls. I arrived early just before dusk:

It was a beautiful evening. In the parking lot I came across a beautiful cascade red fox. Along the trails I heard a chorus of coyotes. I don't find any boreal owls, though I do hear a single soft contact note that piques my attention. Unfortunately I don't hear it again to get a bead on the bird.

Oct 2-3rd. John Fitchen and I made a trip out to the Blue Mountains north of Tollgate. As we drove east along the interstate the wind picked up. We grew increasingly worried that the trip would be a bust. (Owling in the wind can be hopeless). However by the time we reached Tollgate the weather was pretty calm. We worked Skyline for 9 hours and didn't detect any boreals. Tired we retreated from the mountains at dawn. Our drive back wasn't so bad. We saw a lovely, and surprisingly dark great-horned owl near Athena. Revived by espresso in Pendleton the rest of the drive went well-i.e. I wasn't falling asleep at the wheal. At the eastern end of the Columbia Gorge we saw 6 big horn sheep. 

Oct 24th. My Dad, Charlie and I were staying at a yurt in Nehalem State Par. Just after dark i went to the airfield. I played a recording of great-horned owl through Jawbone speaker-this has way more bass and volume than the little Imaingo I usually use. Immediately I got a distant response way to the east. The owl never came in. 

Oct 31st. The whole family walked out to Reed Canyon on a mild cloudy Saturday. (Earlier in the week Rhett had jet me know a barred owl had been relocated in the Canyon). On the way up we saw nothing interesting. But on the return we heard a murder of crows. Now as obvious as snow an unhappy looking barred owl flinched as the crows launched their attacks. 

Nov 1st. The whole family went to Tualatin Hills Nature Park. I have tried there a few times for barred owl. On the way out of the park, we found a lovely gray barred owl, low in a maple tree, bathed in sun light. This was my first for Washington County. 

Nov 7th. I got up at 2am and drove down to Linn County. Just south east of Stayton, along Kingston-Lyons Drive I started owling next to small woodlots. At my first woodlot I heard a bran owl calling. It was a slightly shorter note than the usual territorial scream. 

Next I tried a small copse of oaks for screech owl. Surprisingly a barred owl responded with a subdued call-I am not sure of the significance of this call-it was a multi note call, like the territorial song, but lacking in emphasis.

At the next site-mixed creek side forest, I taped for screech owl again. In some oaks a nearby screech replied with two barks. In the distance a great horned sang, and a minute later a barn owl screeched. I tried a stand of Doug firs for saw-whet, and immediately got a saw whet's slightly double note call in response. 

I decided to return home via Marion county. In the foothills of the cascades I heard a saw whets loud whining screech-a call which reminds me slightly of the begging call of a young Strix, but less rough sounding. A little before dawn I heard a slightly pumping deep muffled hooting of a great-gray owl! 

An epic night!

 Later that morning, George, Ziggy and I hiked from our house through Reed Canyon in search of barred owls. We drew a blank on the way through the canyon, but on the return I found a whitewash-splattered tree at the west end of the canyon. I lovely barred owl peered down at us. It stood on one leg, the other dangled below the perch-something I have never observed before. Perhaps it is hurt?

Nov 11th. George, Charlie and I walked up Reed Canyon, we found a lovely barred owl roosting in the same young Doug fir that we found it in on the 7th.

Nov 14th-15th. I left home around 830pm, just after the boys went to bed. My first stop was the area just south west of Hood River. Along Riordan Hill Dr I had a saw whet respond with two short alarm calls in response to a barred owl recording.

On Post Canyon Dr I had a barred owl fly in silently into a Doug Fir. This was a new county owl for me. 

My next stop was to work to area above Mossier for saw-whet owl. I started up Huskey Road. My first couple of stoops were thick with wood smoke from household fires. The hill sides are a patch work of small oaks and conifers. I took Wilson Road back to Mossier and heard a saw-whet alarm call a couple of times in response to a saw-whet tape. Another new county owl.

Nov 21st. George Ziggy and I went to Reed Canyon. It was a bright, cold morning and I had a rare hangover. I found the barred owl in the usual small conifer at the West end of the canyon.

Nov 22nd. I got up at 215am and drove to Lincoln County. I stopped at Rose Lodge to read the map. I heard footsteps running and then a tap on the passenger window. My heart skipped a beat, but it ended up being OK, a young guy told me his car had been stolen and he needed a ride to Salem. I told him I would help him out in a couple of hours. 

I then owled the road out to Three Rocks. Early on I heard a saw-whet sing in response to my tape. I was surprised to have it sing in the fall, especially on a cold frosty night. Despite my best efforts I was unable to find great-horned, barred or screech owls. Sill it was beautiful to smell the wet forest and hear the waves break. 

I wrestled whether to pick up the stranded guy, his story seemed off. If my car had been stolen I would have called the police or phoned a friend. I eventually decided to help the guy out, and stopped in the predawn gloaming at Rose Lodge. I was kind of relieved that he wasn't there. A few miles down frosty Highway 18 I found the guy hitch-hiking. He seemed really happy to have been picked up. He introduced himself as Jesus, and told me a story that didn't jive about the car, where he was from and where he was going. I was beginning to regret picking him up, when I saw him reach into his pant leg. He brought out a nylon dog leash, that he wrapped around his knuckles. I honestly don't know what he was doing, Jesus was a slight guy and I don't think he could have overpowered me with a dog leash. Still it made for an uneasy ride. I let Jesus know I had two boys, ie. that I would be missed. We got to Salem, and Jesus got out by the bridge, thanking me sincerely for the help.

Nov 28th. I followed up on a report by Paul Sullivan of a short-eared owl at Scappose Bottoms. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon and I brought Charlie with me. I had to wait for about a half hour, before the owls started to emerge from the wet grass. In all 4 or 5 owls came out. Two circled very high above the field and then dispersed to places unknown. One of the remaining females squabbled with a northern harrier. At times the bigger raptor would harass the owl, yet at others the owl would chase the harrier.  

Nov 29th. Ziggy and I walked to Oak's Bottom. I found a roosting screech owl in one of the regular ash trees. This is the first roosting screech at Oaks for me in months. 

Dec 7th. It was a warm rainy night. Ziggy and I were out walking in Westmoreland Park after dark. I  saw a silhouetted owl flew into a bare oak tree. I got up close enough to see it illuminated by a street light-a lovely hunting barred owl!

Dec 12. George, Ziggy and I took a rainy walk to Reed Canyon. As soon was we arrived I could hear crows. It took us just a minute to find a roosting barred owl low in the usual conifer. 

Dec 13th. Tui, Charlie, George and I took a walk in Reed Canyon today. The beautiful barred owl was roosting in the same fir today. Charlie was pretty excited because he found him by looking for the white-wash, then looking up. We got to watch him scratching his neck with huge cat-like legs! 

Dec 19th. I went out birding with John. Our first stop was Reed Canyon where we quickly found the resident barred owl at it's usual roost tree.

Later that afternoon Charlie and I took a walk around the east side of Oaks Bottom and I found the screech owl in the usual crack in an old ash tree.

Dec 21st. I was walking Ziggy around Westmoreland Park before dawn. It was miserable out, cold and rainy. I saw a barred owl hunting from the same tree that I had seen it in about two week ago. Their was a nearby street light that the owl may have been using to illuminate wet mice below.  

Owls seen on my world birding trips

Intro
From being a little kid until 2011, I was an avid birder. I traveled a lot trying to rack up a big life list. During this time, I always made an effort to find owls, because they are beautiful and hard to see. This entry chronicles the owls I saw during these travels. Beginning in 2011, I gave up on trying to see all the birds in the world and narrowed my focus to search for the owls of the world. Descriptions of the trips dedicated to owling can be read in individual Trip Report entries on this blog.
1982 Yugoslavia, the whole family saw a little owl along a dirt road at night. (At the time I thought it was a Scops owl).

1985 South of France I heard an eagle owl, and found a feather!
1980s Mediterranean scops owl
1986 Australia Tasmanian masked owl flew in front of my parents VW camper at night.
Southern boobook, seen in mainland southeastern Australia.
Tasmanian boobook, Tasmania.
Barking owl, seen in New south wales in 1985.

China 1986 Eagle owl, two birds roosting in a forest east of Canton.
February-March 1991 Malaysia Brown wood-owl at Mt Kinabalu above Poring hot springs along Mempening Trail.
Barred eagle-owl, seen in 1991 in Sabah.
Brown hawk-owl Gunung Mulu national park, Sarawak.
Buffy Fishing owl, seen at near caves at Gunung Mulu National Park in Sarawak. Flushed in day time. Late afternoon after a recent thunderstorm. Seen minutes after a wonderful Garnet Pitta.
1988 Australia Barking owl Northern Territory.
April 1991 India, Indian scops owl a roosting bird by the tea shop pointed out to me by a guide at Bharatpur.
Spotted owlet in Northern India.
Rock eagle-owl also somewhere in India on this trip.
Jungle owlet, seen in Goa.
April-May 1991 Nepal, Himalayan wood owl, brown wood-owl and spotted owlet.
June-July 1991 Peninsular Malaysia, Barred eagle-owl.
Mountain scops owl seen at Frasier's Hill, with Andrew Lawson.
Aug 1991 Thailand, Spot-bellied eagle owl at Doi Inthanon. Collared owlet, seen in SE Asia in 1991.
Dec 1991 Gambia, Grayish Eagle-owl. Paid a forest guard in Gambia to show us a pair of roosting birds in gallery forest.
Northern white-faced scops owl-spotlighted in a coconut grove in the Gambian coast.
Pearl-spotted owlet also seen on this trip.
March-April 1992 Venezuela, Burrowing owl was seen in cactus desert near Valencia.
Ferruginous pygmy owl, first seen in Henri Pittier National Park.
July 1992 Kenya, Verreaux's eagle owl seen near Lake Naivasha.
August 1994 Mexico American barn owl at San Blas fort.
April 1998 Costa Rica, I was shown a pair of Spectacled owls by a guide at El Gavilan Lodge near La Selva.

January 1999 Mexico. Great-horned owl seen at Almoloya del Rio (Lerma Marshes).
Ridgeway's pygmy owl at Colonia Francisco Barrios
August 1999 Mexico, Colima pygmy-owl-Seen near San Blas, Nayarit. The bird was originally heard in large canopy trees in a shade grown coffee plantation. It's song is to repeated call a series of whistles, each series is one longer than the rest, five whistles, six whistles, seven whistles etc. I imitated the bird clumsily and by the sixteenth whistle I was getting very out of breath. I was surprised and thrilled to see Colima pygmy-owl fly between to large trees with it's distinct undulating flight.
Febuary-March 2002 Philippines, Palawan scops owl was taped in by Arnel Mallari at Iwahig penal farm.
Spotted wood owl was seen at dusk in the suburbs of Puerto Pricessa.
Eastern grass owl seen in March 2002 at dusk at the airfield serving PICOP in eastern Mindanao in the Philippines. It was seen only after several hours of wading through a swamp adjacent to the airport. Luzon hawk-owl at  Makiling and Rajah Sikatuna NP next to the cabins.
Lowland luzon scops owl at Mt Makiling by the start of the trail.
Mindanao Eagle-owl was seen near the "lodge" on Mount Katinglad, Mindanao, after dark.

August/September 2003 Indonesia, Barn owl seen east of Surabaya and at Mauro Angke.
Sulawesi masked owl I spent a couple of nights looking for this bird. I eventually was taken to a roost site by a guide named Freddie at Tangkoko Nature Reserve. The owl was roosting on a sea cliff. I had to climb from a small boat onto the cliff, and then scale the cliff to a small cave. The cave was guarded by large red ants, who stung me severely before I could get a great close up view of a roosting bird. Having had enough ant bites, I jumped off the cliff and swam back to the boat. I felt quite smug that my companion, an uptight Englishman, didn't see the owl, but was treated to a view of my hairy balls hanging from a hole in my boxer shorts.
Sumba boobook. On a wonderful full moon I went with a guide Freddy Hambuwali, by his quite fast scooter from Waingapu to Lewa. We had tapes and soon were able to lure a Sumba boobook. Freddie left me in the clearing that night. He warned me that the local people feared foreigners, because of the days when the dutch came to Sumba to catch slaves. Despite this, the night was so beautiful, and the owling so perfect that it was impossible to remain anxious. I camped conspicuously atop of a small grassy hill under the splendid moon.
Little Sumba hawk-owl. After another 30 minutes of owling Freddy and I were able to tape out the recently discovered Little Sumba Hawk-Owl.
Sunda scops. Seen from taxi in farmland in south Sumatra. Later seen at Gunung Gede with guide who claimed it as a Javan scops.
Wallace's scops. See at dawn at a mountain lake in central west Flores.
Sulawesi scops. Taped at night at Tangkoko Nature Reserve in north Sulawesi.
Moluccan scops owl. Taped in at Halmahara.
Spot-bellied eagle owl. Seen at Gunung Kerinci in Sumatra.
Southern boobook. Seen east of Kupang, Timor, while camping in limestone foothills.
September 2001 Madagascar, African marsh owl-first bird of the trip at Tana airport-seen when disembarking! Also seen at Vohiparara.
Tarakoro scops owl seen at Ampiparoa and Zombitse.
Madagascar scops owl at Masoala and Perinet.
Madagascar hawk-owl seen in Zombitse in southwest Madagascar, after a long night hike. Lots of spear carrying men surrounded the car that had given me a ride for the final few miles.
Madagascar long-eared owl at Perinet.
October 2005 Brasil, with Shawn Coyle and Torquil Grant. Burrowing owl a whole family seen at the restinga antwren site near Cabo Frio, just NW of Rio. Burrowing owl also seen at Sooretama, Pedra Talhada, by the roadside in Pernambuco, Chapada Araripe, en route to Lencois and at Boa Nova.
Tawny browed owl-taped and day roost birds at Nova Lombardia.
Tropical screech owl seen before dawn after taping at Sooretama reserve.
Variable screech owl seen before dawn after taping at Sooretama reserve.
Black-banded owl at Una.
American Barn owl was seen by the roadside in Pernambuco and en route to Lencois
Ferruginous pygmy owl seen high in the canopy, being mobbed at Camaca, in Bahia.

August 2005 Mexico, Mexican Mottled owl. After 20 minutes of taping, I started to give up. Dawn was rapidly approaching, and I was unable to climb the bank to get closer to the owl. I eventually started to pick up small rocks from the road side and throw them near the calling owl, in an attempt to flush to bird into view. In the dawn's gloam, I saw a larger white stone and reached for it. "Ahh", the white stone was a wet puddle of toilet paper! Undeterred I continued to throw small stones at the lone tree, until the owl flew from the tree.
November 2006 Peru, American barn owl at Lomas de Lachay.
Burrowing owl seen near Lago Junin.
Peruvian pygmy-owl at Siniscap, Peru seen on a wire in late afternoon. Also seen above at Batan Grand and Santa Eulalia also on wire.
Tumbes screech-owl, at Quebrada Frejolillo, Limon, Peru. Taped at night with George Wagner. We also heard striped owls in the distance.
June 2007 Barn owl seen en route with Tom Linda from Juarez to Madera.
January 2008 Ecuador Black and white owl predawn bird spot-lighted in mist at Buenaventura, Ecuador. Also at Cerro Blanco (Chongon Hills, near Guayaquil),in a gully day roost.
Peruvian pygmy-owl was seen at both edge of mangroves near Guayaquil and just north of Loja at high elevation (on a wire, in a small village).
American barn owl and burrowing owl seen from the car on the drive towards Cerro Mingus in Ecuador with Shaun. American barn owl was also seen at Yanococha.
I found a beautiful Great horned owl roosting in a grove of Podocarpus at Las Cajas.
Vermiculated (Choco) screech owl, shaken from a tree (after very extensive taping) at Canande' (banded ground-cuckoo) reserve.
Crested owl, Shawn showed me a day roosting bird in bamboo at Canande' (banded ground-cuckoo) reserve. We had heard birds singing the previous night, but had been unable to lure them in by tape.
April 2008 Jamaica, a Jamaican owl, seen at the Gap. Taped, then spotlighted in an old roadside quarry after being seen flying by in the Echo's headlights.
Barn owl also seen at the Gap, Treasure Beach and Elim Ponds.
January 2009 Colombia,  Rufous-banded owl, taped at the Colibri Del Sol reserve, spotlighted in open snag by the river, then seen at Rio Blanco at night-taped with Shaun (he missed the first bird). Finally seen in car headlights at Monterredonde at first light from the car as we drove to the Cundamarca antpitta site.
Riohacha-Great-horned owl and ferruginous pygmy owl were seen.
Santa Marta screech owl taped with difficulty above the lodge at Santa Marta. Subsequently spotlighted twice a little higher up the road.
Colombian screech owl shown by a guide at Arrietrito Antioqueno Reserve, Anori, Antioquia. Tropical screech owl was also seen at this site.
April 2009 Dominican Republic Ashy-faced owl, seen northeastern Dominican Republic. Taken to a nest site in farmland, after dark by a guide working for a local hotel.
Burrowing owl was seen near Puerto Escondido and near Baharrona.
Stygian Owl. I found pellets at a water tank in SW Dominican republic, near Haiti. I waited in the car until dusk, when I heard a low deep hoot. Thankfully I had brought with me a recording of Stygian Owl. I played a tape once, and the bird immediately flew into a pine tree. I was able to spotlight this magnificent owl for a few seconds before it flew away. best bird of the trip.
Febuary-March 2010 Philippines, Mantanani scops owl seen on a small island, near Puerto Princessa, Palawan, Philippines. Came into a tape after dark. 
Chocolate boobook. Seen in the daytime at Siburan Penal colony, Mindoro with Shawn. Roosting on a telephone wire!

Owling in Britain

Intro

I was born Wales and raised in Cumbria. This entry details the owls I can recollect from my childhood, plus those I saw when I returned home to visit with my family.

Childhood

Spring 1980 (?) I saw a daytime barn owl at Bass Lake. This was a banner day for me because I also saw a buzzard, Kestrel and sparrowhawk (attacking a greater spotted woodpecker) on the same outing.
1981 (?) I was biking through Tallentire with my friend Mark Pattinson, when we saw a daytime barn owl. Around this time I began hearing and occasionally finding Tawny owls at Brigham quarry. Mark and I also found one roosting in a small limestone quarry between Brigham and Eaglesfield.
1982 I was shown a little owl by John Callion near Siddick.
1984 My friend Mark and I found a fantastic short-eared owl hunting in frosty fields at the back of Siddick Pond.
Oct 1987 I biked across from Peterborough to Kings Lynn, and found a little owl in farm land at dusk.
I found several short-eared owls and one long-eared owl along Blakney Point-recently arrived migrants from Scandinavia.


June 1989 My friend Greg Lowther and I made a pilgrimage to Fetlar to look for an old female snowy owl. Years back a pair of snowies had nested on Fetlar. Subsequently the male bird had died, but the old female remained faithful to the site and returned for many years.

We took the train to Thurso, then biked and ferried to Orkney. On Orkney we were treated to wonderful views of short-eared owls. From Orkney we ferried up to Shetland and mad our way by bike and ferry to Fetlar. We soon found owl owl, and had fantastic views of the bird hunting by day over open grasslands.

18th Feb 1990. Dad and I were returning from a hike on a winter's afternoon near Newton Stewart in SW Scotland during February half term, when we saw a daytime hunting barn owl.

May 1990 Near Loch Lomand I saw a short-eared owl hunting with mam and dad.

Home visits

September 2010 Tui and I borrowed my parents camper and took a trip to the Mull of Kintyre. Opposite Jura we found a short-eared owl quartering over salt-marsh. Even without bins we got amazing views in the lovely evening light of this wonderful owl. 

8.17.11 As soon as Charlie was old enough to travel, Tui and I took him home to England to visit with mam and dad. It was a strange trip because mam had been diagnosed with melanoma and was quite sick. 

I went owling down Isel road with dad. We heard a female tawny followed by a male. I spent half an hour in a dense thicket, before hearing a male very near by. Responding to the tape it landed above me and allowed brief views in the torch beam. Another male was also calling nearby. (Dad had long since given up).

8.18.11 Tried for little owl near Daltson with a local birder; Jeremy. We only heard one distant tawny owl.

8.19.11 Dad and I drove out to Trudy's place by Gilcrux. We heard a juvenile barn owl calling from the nest box. While driving home dad spotted a barn owl flying up the A595 and across a field.

8.23.11 Tui and I were returning from Castle Rigg and while driving along the bottom of Bassenthwaite lake we saw a Barn owl perched atop of a hedge. We saw the owl quite well in the van's headlights.

8.25.11 went owling with Fi and Ed at Wimbledon Common. We were trying for little owl. (I initially wanted top try at Richmond Park, but it's closed at night). We failed to hear little owl, but did see a curious badger and heard a pair of Tawnys. Despite a lot of taping and bright city skies, we could not lay eyes on a tawny.

3.21.12 By now my mam was really sick with Melanoma. Her memory of recent events was shockingly sparse.  Charlie and I visited with her and dad in Cumbria. 

After puting Charlie to bed, Dad and I drove to Sunderland hoping to find tawny owls by the roadside. Along the straightaway, past the big wood, on the way to Sunderland. A tawny owl flew over the car.

5.17.12 A few days ago I spoke with Fi, who explained to me that mam was dieing and that I should return home soon if I wanted to see her one last time. I flew into Heathrow and stayed the night with Fi and Ed. The next day I drove up to Cumbria in a rental. I stopped for a pee off of the A1 at Barrister Lane, and flushed a little owl in day light.

5.19.12 Dad and I went to visit Trudy and Michael at Bridekirk. We arrived just after 7pm, and after a few minutes, and still two hours before sunset a male barn owl peered out of the nest box. A few minutes later he hopped out of the box and clambered onto the branch below the box. For a minute he moved his head side to side, before he started vigorously preening for ten minutes. He then flew off past the window. Amazing views.

5.20.12  I got up at five and headed out the door. At the Bridekirk junction I saw a barn owl perched on the road sign-probably the same bird that we had seen last night at Trudy's. I drove on to Broughton Moor and hiked around looking for short-eared owl. Eventually I flushed a barn owl from one of the dumps old munitions buildings. Soon I was enjoying excellent views of a pair of barn owls, both perched and hunting. the male was incredibly white in the bright sun.

A little after ten, just as it was getting quite dark I walked out to the house and down the Ghyll. In response to playing a male's call I got a ''Kerwick'' response. We called back and forth for a couple of minutes a I approached the bird, but eventually it fell silent. I walked down the footpath along the Ghyll to the clearing, where I heard a male bird singing. I tried taping and approaching the bird, but it was tricky due to thick noisy vegetation. I eventually saw a couple of fly-by silhouettes, before getting a nice view of a brown male singing. By this time I had 3-4 birds around me, all close. 3 where males singing with a fourth (?) ''Kerwicking.''

5.31.12 My mam died on Memorial day weekend. A couple of days later I returned home to be with Dad and Fi. Fi, Ed and I walked down the Ghyll. We heard but could not see a tawny owl.

6.3.12 I awoke at 130am thinking about mam. I drove out to Broughton Moor. I tried for Tawny and Little owl, but to no avail. I did flush a beautiful barn owl from an old building. It was a cold windy morning, completely different from my visit ten days ago, when mam was still alive. On the way home I stopped at Trudy's and saw another barn owl peering from the box. Soon after it hopped outside and preened itself for ten minutes.

6.4.12 I awoke at 230am and left home and dad. I arrived in Geltsdale around 330 AM. By the time it was fully light, a pair of short-eared owls were intermittently climbing to 500', then descending back down to the ground. The female was conspicuously moulting-probably the inner most primary. Wonderful birds.

9.24.13. Charlie and I took a trip home to visit with Dad and Fi. At my dad's house in Blindcrake, Cumbria, I taped for a tawny owl. I saw a Tawny owl fly between some ash trees in the Ghyll at the bottom of his garden. Lower down in the Ghyll I heard a second owl singing.

9.25.13 Charlie, Dad and I visited Mike and Julie Porter in Wigton, Cumbria. Mike showed us an Oak in a field, where he had seen a little owl six months ago. Remarkably the bird flew up into a fork in the tree and Julie and I were both able to see it briefly.

9.27.13 Charlie, Dad and I heard a tawny owl calling at the bottom of his garden.9.29.13, I heard a tawny owl calling to the north side of dad's house for an hour before our early morning departure for Manchester.

long term owling plans

Intro

A roadmap to total world owling domination. Unencumbered by any useful details....


Cape Verde and Ivory Coast-2 weeks: Cape Verde barn and Etchecapar's owlet

Ghana 2 weeks: Rufous fish, Cinnamon scops, Akun fish, Fraser's eagle, Shelly's eagle and maned

Cameroon and Sao Tome 3 weeks:  Sao Tome barn and Sao Tome Scops, Vermiculated fish, red-chested owlet, Sjoestedt's owlet

Tanzania 3 weeks: Aftrican grass, African scops, Pemba scops, southern white-faced,  spotted eagle, Usambara eagle, Pel's fish, African barred owlet and Abyssinian long-eared

Ethiopia, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda 4 weeks: Itombwe, chestnut owlet, Albertine owlet, Ethiopian little


Socotra 5 days: Socotra scops

India 1 weeks: Collared scops, tawny fish, Himalayan wood.

Sri Lanka 1 week:  Seredib scops, chestnut-backed owlet

Nicabor 1 weeks: Nicabor scops

China and Taiwan 3 weeks: Lanyu scops, Sichuan, northern little

Japan and Palau 3 weeks: Japanese scops, Blakinson's fish, Palau scops, Rykuyu scops, Rykuyu hawk

Thailand, Malaysia and Sulu 2 week: White-fronted scops

 
Sumatra 2 weeks: Streseman's scops,  Enggano scops, Mentawai scops, 

 
Java and Christmas Island 2 weeks: Oriental bay, Christmas Island hawk,  and Bartel's wood

Siau & Kalidupa 1 weeks: Kalidupa scops & Siau scops

  Wetar :  Wetar scops

Taliabu and Molucas 2 weeks: Taliabu masked, lesser masked, moluccan hawk, Sula scops

New Guinea, Solomons and Biak 3 weeks: Jungle hawk, Papuan hawk, Biak scops, Solomon hawk, fearful

New Britain 3 weeks, Manus and Boang: Boang barn, Golden masked, Manus masked, Manus hawk, New Britain hawk and Bismark hawk

Australia and New Zealand 3 weeks: Australian masked, Australian barn, Lesser sooty, greater sooty, rufous, powerful, red boobook and morepork

Cuba 5 day: Cuban bare-legged,  Cuban pygmy

Venezuela and Curacao 1 week: Curacao barn and Foothill screech

Puerto Rico and St Vincent 1 week: lesser Antillean barn and Puerto Rican screech
 

Brazil 3 weeks:  Pernambuco pygmy



Indonesian owl spreadsheet

African owls spreadsheet

Latin American owls spreadsheet

Australasian owls spreadsheet

Asian owls spreadsheet

2014 Owling

Intro

I live in Portland Oregon with my wife Tui and son Charlie, and dog Ziggy. This was the year that my second son, George was born. This entry details my owling exploits for 2014 around Portland and further afield in the Pacific Northwest.

January 1st 2014
Motivated by lots of good online reports I headed out to south eastern Washington. It was a rough night, I had a killer headache and low grade fever. I pulled off the road a couple of times to sleep, which helped a little. My first stop was to look for pygmy owls along the south fork of Russell Creek Road south east of Walla Walla. This site was kindly recommended me by Mike Denny. It was a beautiful sun rise above the fog of the flat-lands below. Unfortunately I could not lure in any pygmy owls.

I headed out to Fish Hook park on the Snake River. The drive was really slick, with freezing fog and unsalted roads, the Civic slid through a couple of four way stops. Ice accumulated all over the Civic.

At Fish Hook I soon found an amazing saw-whet owl roosting very low in a Juniper. Ah aegolius owls are the best! I also found the remains of a couple of barn and a great horned owl.

My next stop was Charbonneau Park, where I flushed a big female great horned owl from a spruce. I also found a very delicate male barn owl roosting high in a pine tree.

I drove down to Nine Canyon Road to look for three snowy owls which had been reported a few days ago. Unfortunately the fog was thick on the plateau and I soon gave this up as a waste of time.

I drove out to Levey park and found another beautiful  all had saw whet roosting low in a spruce. Above it, in the same spruce was a barn owl.  Nearby I found a beautiful pair of great horneds.

Interestingly all the owls were in conifers, and all had large quantities of pellets and white wash below the roosting birds.

My final stop was at Sacajawea park, where I found evidence of a couple of roost sites, but no actual owls.

January 12th. Charlie and I took a neighborhood bike ride and stumbled across a gang of raucous crows at SE30th ave and Crystal Springs blvd. Suspecting that they were harassing a predator, we stopped and searched. Sure enough we found a roosting barred owl in a tree. What a great surprise!

January 14th. I played hooky from work one afternoon and took off with Rhett to check out some local owls. At a railroad bridge in Beaverton we found a roosting female barn owl. There was a vast quantity of pellets under her perch suggesting this is a long-term site for her.

I also was lucky enough to be shown a wonderful roosting saw whet, about 25' up in a conifer-a complete needle in a haystack.

Mar 1st Dad and I drove down to Tangent to look for a roost of Short-eared owls reported by Bill Bradford. We the intersection of McLagan and Seward. Although it had rained all day the evening was wonderfully dry with enough sun to cast our shadows long across a yellow stubble field. We watched dozens of bald eagles assembling in some tall cottonwoods. Suddenly, just after sunset the owls appeared. In all about a dozen hyper active short-eareds emerged. Once airborne some hunted low like harriers. Many flew quite high and hovered, then plunged down to the grown. A few barked, while others chased each other. It was a beautiful sight.

Mar 8th Dad and I drove out to the Old Dalles Road, near Hood River. Just south of the turn off to the Verizon communication tower we found a very responsive pygmy owl. We were able to enjoy great views of this charismatic little owl as it called back at us from the tops of spruce trees.

Mar 16th Charlie and I took a walk along Oaks Bottom. It was a wonderful blustery sunny afternoon. About 300m south of the mausoleum, I found a screech owl roosting at the entrance to a hole in an ash tree. The hole was about 15m high. I noticed the birds upper eye lids were distinctly pinkish-something I have never noticed on a western screech. We ran into a party of birders who were carrying a high powered scope. This was great, as we all enjoyed (Charlie included), frame-filling views.

Mar 18th Charlie and I returned to Oaks for another look at the roosting screech owl. Sure enough it was in the same place.

Mar 19th I could not resist coming back for another view of the roosting screech owl at Oaks. This time I found a second bird, barely visible as it was recessed deep in a cavity. Great! I wonder if they are nesting? Seems like one bird would be on eggs? Perhaps it's too early in the season?

Mar 20th Again I return to find a pair of western screech owls at their same roost at Oaks Bottoms. I am amazed just how brown these birds are-in a bright spotlight they appear much grayer. Even their chests are quite brown.

Mar 21st And again I returned to Oaks to looks at the screech owls. This time I brought Phine to see her first owl and Tui and Charlie. The owl showed well. While we were 'scoping it a red tailed hawk soared low overhead and the more exposed screech owl deftly retreated down the hole and out of sight.

Mar 22nd Again I returned to Oaks to look for the screech owls. They were in their usual roosting place. Several walkers stopped to ask me what I was looking at, so it was fun to show people the owls. I was also able to find one of the owls from the overlook.

Later that day, Phine, Tui Charlie and I went to Milne Road in Washington county to look for a short-eared owl that's been reported there. We could not find the short-eared, but was fortunate enough to get good views of a great-horned owl, that flew into a small pine, where it was mobbed by a northern harrier. It was one of those wonderful rich dark northwestern great-horned owls.

Mar 23rd I returned to Oaks Bottom overlook to view the pair of roosting screech owls from high above.

Mar 24th I returned to Milne road in Washington County to look for short-eared owls. It was a beautiful calm night, with banks of leaden clouds to the west. I saw one or two great-horned owls, far across the fields at dusk. They were hunting, shrike-like from exposed perches.

Once it was quite dark, I returned north-bound on Milne road. Luckily a short-eared owl crossed in front of the civic's lights.

Mar 25th After a heavy down pour, Ziggy and I went to Oaks Bottom overlook to check on the screech owls. The rain must have driven the more exposed owl deep into it's hole. The head of the second owl, that's better protected was visible from above through a hole.

Mar 26th between heavy showers Ziggy and I rode out to Oaks Bottom overlook to check on the screech owls. I was able to easily see the more prominent owl.

Mar 29th Ziggy and I rode out to Oaks Bottom overlook to check on the screech owls. I was able to easily see the more prominent owl.

Mar 30th. A banner day. Mid afternoon I drove out to Hood River. Near the small quarry along Old Dalles Road, I taped in a northern pygmy owl. After a steep hike through mixed pine and oak forest I got great views of a singing pygmy. What a beautiful bird.

I then drove east along the interstate. At the Rowena exit I passed a crowd gathered around a motorcyclist who looked like he had run off the road and died. (Later I found out he had been running from the police and had crashed badly, but had survived).

I drove up Fulton Canyon and then a third of a mile down Welk Road, where I stopped at a dilapidated barn where I had seen barn owl in the past. Sure enough I found a very pale bird-presumably a male barn owl. Just beautiful.

About a mile before Locust Drive, I found a large nest in an open tree on the east side of the road. I stopped to check it out and found great-horned owl was sat on the nest. What a great day.

I pressed east through Wasco and on towards Cottonwood Canyon state park. As highway 206 would it's way down towards the John Day river, I sopped to check out small groups of trees for Long-eared owls. At the last copice before the bridge I flushed an amazing long-eared owl from a dense willow. In flight it was a very gray bird with some rust tones. The bird appeared relatively small-perhaps it was a male. The bird perched nearby and I was able to enjoy great views. The cheeks were orange-but fairly lightly colored. What was especially striking were the unmarked, feathered rufous-orange thighs.

Down at the bridge over the John Day I checked the nest boxes for barn owls, but had no look. With white-throated swifts flying overhead, and a beautiful sky, the setting was perfect. I felt elated, having seen such great owls, and sad, that this is such a beautiful and lonely place and I would be leaving soon. I thought about my friend Carl, who died earlier this month. Carl loved this place.

I enjoyed a long and beautiful drive back to Portland, set to a great spring sunset. By the great horned owl nest I found a second bird-this one much paler than the first. Eager to see just how many owls I could find tonight. I checked on the Oaks Bottom screech owls. After a few moments of taping two birds perched right next to me. They sang. It was perfect, way to lovely to intrude with a flashlight.

On to Tryon Creek I tried for both saw-whet owl and barred owl. All I could find was a calling saw whet in response to my taping it uttered a wonderful quavering call-reminiscent of a boreal owl. Alas my luck had turned, and I was not able to see it.

I tried for Barred Owl at Reed Canyon, but to no avail. By now it was close to midnight, and I decided to call it a night.

Apr 5th Ziggy and I made our way out to the Oaks Bottom screech owls. I got a decent view of one of the owls at its usual perch.

Apr 5th I travelled out to Silver Falls State Park to look for great gray owls. I was unable to see or hear any grays. None the less it was a beautiful evening.

Just outside the park I found a large herd of female elk. The forest was thick with sooty grouse singing from high in the trees. I also heard a pygmy owl singing over quite a large area-it moved around over about a quarter mile.

Apr 7th Andy Frank suggested that I go to Vanport Wetlands to look at a great-horned owl nest. It was a warm beautiful night. I took Charlie, Tui and Lena. Lena re-purposed an abandoned grocery store cart and used it to carry Charlie.

We were able to enjoy scope views of a large downy juvenile. A dog walker explained that he had been seeing them at this nest for ten years!

April 12th I returned to the Clackamas Spotted owl site, where I had found a spotted owl last summer. Getting to the site wasn't easy. I left the civic at the gate and rode up the forest road. Almost immediately I encountered snow, and soon the road was completely covered.

It was a lovely warm evening, and the snow was really soft, which made for slow going.  After an hour of pushing the bike through the wet snow, I decided to abandon my bike in the forest and hike the balance of the way to the spotted owl site.

Sure enough, after abandoning the bike, I descended a half mile through the snow to find completely open dry road. Reluctantly I slogged back up through the snow to retrieve the bike, and brought it back down to the open road.

While bombing down the hill I heard a big crash from a vine maple thicket. I skidded to a halt and got to see a giant black bear lumbering down slope from me!

A little further down the road I stopped to watch a roadside ruffed grouse. I heard a pygmy owl call spontaneously above me. I tired taping and it flew across the road. Alas I was never able to get a view of the owl.

Out at the spotted owl site I heard nothing. I tried a series of places for the next mile, but got nothing. Still it was a fantastic place and a beautiful night with a three quarters moon.

It was a long ride back up the hill, followed by a really hard slog up the last last mile of snow to the top of the pass, then another mile down hill through the snow. I was really beat by the time I made it back to the civic.

Apr 13th on a warm evening, I biked and Ziggy ran over to Oaks Bottom overlook. I got good views of one of the screech owls sleeping or sunning itself.

The whole family and Lena returned to Vanport to check out the great-horned owl's nest. Near to the nest tree we found a dark beautiful adult owl. In the nest two juveniles practiced wing flapping. I expect that they will be leaving the nest very soon.

Apr 20th George was born on the 17th! I was home from the hospital for a couple of hours to exercise Ziggy. I rode my bike out to Oak's Bottom overlook, where I got a nice view of the roosting screech owl.

Apr 21st. I took Charlie out to Oak's Bottom overlook where I got a good view of the roosting screech owl. A couple overheard us talking about the owl, and came over for a look.

April 29th. At dusk the whole family, George included went to Vanport to look for the nesting great-horned owls. We found a juv (still partly downy) and an adult perched side by side quite low in a tree. The adult moved away from us into a distant tree. Meanwhile the juv nervously bobbed its head side to side.

May 1st. Tui, George, Ziggy and I went to Tryon Creek to investigate a family of barred owls reported by Jack Williamson.

This was my first attempt to carry George using a sling and it worked quite well. (The sling is so much more versatile than the stroller on smaller trails).

We found a roosting barred owl near the intersection of West Horse loop and Cedar trail. At the trail intersection we were shown the cavity where the owls had nested by a group of students. They also pointed out a large owlet 20' from the nest and another adult roosting nearby. Tui eventually found a third adult nearby-this bird was fantastic as it was perched low in a tree and really close to the trail.

At Sunset the whole family returned to Tryon to watch the family of barred owls again. The birds were really active and we got to hear their wonderful song. We also saw the adult birds hunt from low perches dropping down to the ground several times. The light was far better at this time of day and the views were wonderful.

May 3rd. Again the whole family went to Tryon to look for the barred owls. This time we only saw one adult, but still got good views of it perched next to the trunk of a fir tree. We were able to show the birds to several passing hikers. 

May 4th. While Tui and George slept, Charlie and I returned to Tryon to look for the barred owls. Between heavy showers we got great views of two roosting barred owls in the same large Doug Fir. We were also able to point out the owls to several passing hikers.

May 6th. In search of screech owls I tried a couple of locations in Eastmoreland, but turned up nothing. At Tideman Johnson, I was taping for screech owl when a barn owl flew in with-in 20'! I am curious if the barn owl was interested in eating the "screech owl".

Determined to find a screech I returned to the Oaks Bottom site. (I had been checking the Ash tree nearly every day, but had not seen a roosting bird in the tree for over two weeks. I am assuming that they are nesting and that's why they are not in their usual location). Almost immediately I heard a screech from a barn owl flying over the marsh. 

May 7th. The whole family returned to Vanport around sunset to look for Great-horned owls. Sure enough we found a roosting bird in the cottonwoods. Soon it started flying between perches and then over the golf course. The bird was relatively small and appeared to be an adult male-though the light was poor, so I am not certain. 

Both at this site and the barred owls I have notice that these big obvious owls were not being mobbed. Perhaps the local birds and resident owls establish a detente? Also I still have not heard these birds sing-despite multiple visits at dusk-these may be by chance-or perhaps at this sensitive time with recently fledged young owls, the adults are reluctant to draw attention to the nesting area?

May 11th. While visiting Tui's family in Federal Way, I decided to explore the Gray Wolf River in the Olympics in search of spotted owls. It was a wonderful hike that followed the river through some nice old growth.

At the end of the trail I waited until it got dark, then returned through the forest searching for spotted owls, and warily watching for bear. I saw neither. On the night drive back to Federal Way I found a beautiful barn owl just south of Bremerton, hunting along the road, and a second alongside I5 just north of Tacoma.

May 13th. Tui, Ziggy, George and I escaped the heat and went to Tryon Creek about midday to check on the barred owls. We were able to get good views of one roosting barred owl. Interestingly all the adult birds we have found roosting here have been perched close to the trunk of coniferous trees. 

May 15th, Tui, George, Charlie and I went to check out a back yard screech owl reported by my friend Andy. We waited beneath an old cavity filled birch tree. We got to hear the owl sing for several minutes from a distant tall conifer-after sunset, but while it was still quite light. Perhaps because of all the commotion and noise coming from Charlie we never got to see the owl.

May 17th. The whole family went to Sauvie's island. I checked out the row of cyprus trees along Oak Island Road where I had found a roosting bird in 2003 with John and where Rhett had shown me three roosting barn owls late last summer. Sure enough I found a beautiful roosting barn owl. It looked like a male bird-very pale and quite small. Lovely.

May 19th. Tui, George and I went to the Metro property off of SW McNamee Road. We hiked up to a lovely small grove of old growth forest where we located a singing pygmy owl. Eventually we were able to enjoy brilliant views of him singing in a small maple tree. 

May 22nd. Tui, George, Ziggy and I went to Oaks. I was determined to relocate the screech owls that I had been seeing very regularly up to a month ago. Sure enough, near the original roost tree I heard a robin chucking at a tree stump. With some investigation I found a roosting brown screech owl at the top of a broken off tree stump. When we returned, half an hour later the owl (and Robin) was gone. Hopefully this turns out to be a reliable site.

After dark I headed out to Tryon to look for baby owls. Having heard baby saw-whet owls previously in May, I planned on checking out parts of the park where I had seen or heard adult saw-whets in the past. Around the head quarters I hard a possible distant juvenile saw-whet. The call was very faint and it soon fell silent. I also could hear the barred owls across the valley. They were primarily making a four note call, repeated once. Further west I was able to hear a little bill chattering-presumably an agitated adult saw-whet followed by a nearby hiss of a baby saw-whet. I tried to spotlight the juvenile, but failed, having not accurately pinpointed the call, and having some very thick conifers to deal with. Despite not being able to see any owls, it was a wonderful warm night and it was great to try a new technique. 

May 24th. Tui, George, Ziggy and I returned to Tryon to look for roosting saw-whet babies. We found tons of owl crap under several trees, but no saw-whets. Down by the creek we heard occasional two and three note barred owl calls from the far side of the park.

At sunset Charlie, Ziggy and I walked around Oaks to check out the relocated screech owl that was using the tree stump a couple of days ago. Sure enough the bird was still there. Perhaps because it was getting late, the bird was much more exposed than last time, and I got beautiful views of the whole owl. With the evening light, the bird looked amazingly bright and rufous-toned. Even the cheeks looked a little rufous-reminding me of a long-eared.

May 26th. I went out fairly early in the morning to Tryon to look for saw-whets. Almost as soon as I entered the park, I heard scolding robins. I tracked them down and briefly saw a great-horned owl fly out from a big maple. 

I returned to the site where I had recently heard a young saw-whet. Within a couple of minutes a found a lovely adult bird in a very secluded roosting site.

Later in the day the whole family returned and Tui got to see her first saw-whet. This time the bird had orientated itself parallel to the branch it was perched on, making it even harder to see.

May 27th. Following AndyFrank's advice, Tui, George and I headed up to Leif Erickson to track down a pygmy owl. Well before we reached the site, we heard a distant pygmy owl tooting. Despite taping and doing our best to get close to the bird, (not easy with George swaddled to my chest,) we were unable to located the bird.

A mile and a half up Leif Erickson we were able to locate the bird that Andy had reported yesterday. This time we got decent views of it perched high in a conifer. Interesting the call of this bird was much more widely spaced and more prolonged than a regular pygmy owl. The effect of the call was to sound like it was emitted from a larger owl. 

May 31st. I closed out the month at 11.57pm, when a great-horned owl flew over the Civic while I was departing from Phine's house in Federal Way, WA. This was a great start to my trip out to Eastern Washington to look for burrowing owls

Jun 1st. It was a great drive out from Federal Way to Hanford. Despite not having slept, it was an easy drive and I was just excited to be on the road. I reached Hanford at 3am. I had to wait a bit before first light. Once the sky had lightened I ventured out in search of burrowing owls. I worked the area between mile posts 10 and 12 going west along Hwy 240 west of Richland. I chose this area because Charlotte Reep cmreep@charter.net who had worked on the burrowing owls kindly recommended it to me. 

After 3 hours of scanning and a little taping I decided to try a different site. Using http://nerp.pnnl.gov/projects_f&w/burrowingowls.asp I decided to move to a site at mile post 15. Eventually I got scope views of a distant burrowing owl about 1/8 mile east of mile post 15 on the south side of the road. 

From here my next destination was George, WA for a family of barn-nesting screech owls. Screech owls are apparently quite rare here. I was curious to see screech owls out in the desert and see if they look the same as Western Oregon's screech owls. I also have never seen screech owls in a barn, so was curious. Thanks to Matt Yawney for posting about the owls and Robert Olson, who was kind enough to let me view the owls on his property. Sure enough there were 5 large juveniles perched together in Robert's barn. We also saw one adult in another part of the room that was calling (bouncing ball song).

My last stop was to visit Cle Elum high school, where a family of great horned owls had nested at the top of a broken totem pole. Within a couple of minutes of arriving I found two beautiful juveniles in a pine next to the totem pole and an adjacent adult watching overhead. I kept a wary eye on the owls, especially after eyeing their huge talons. Interestingly the adult was almost motionless, while the juvs moved around to face me as a walked below them.  

June 3rd. A great day. Back in Portland, Tui, George, Ziggy and I headed off for a late morning walk at Tryon. At the usual site I was able to locate a saw-whet owl at head height. This bird was about 15' from where I had found one last week. 

What a lovely little owl! Next we walked around the park to get some exercise. Near the great-horned owl nest site sharp-eyed Tui found a juvenile great-horned owl perched next to the trunk of a large Doug fir. Soon we found a second juvenile perched a little higher up in the same tree. These birds were big, fluffy, buffy birds like those I saw a couple of days ago at Cle Elum. 

Jun 7th. The whole family went to Tryon in the evening to look for Barred owls. Near the nest site, I heard a scolding robin, and sure enough, after following the call for a hundred yards through the forest I found a Barred owl roosting close to the trunk of a Doug fir-approximately 30' above the ground. A squeak was all it took to get this handsome owl to turn around and face me. Lovely!

Jun 8th. The whole family went to Sauvie's Island. On the way to the beach, we checked on Oak Island road. At the line of Cyprus trees, I found a roosting barn owl. The bird was quite large and dark-breasted, so it was likely a female bird.

Jun 10th. I returned to Leif Erikson trail to look for pygmy owls. I got a response to my tape at the first creek-about an eighth of a mile up the trail. The bird did not seem particularly aggressive, and soon moved on before I could locate it.

At mile post 1.5-1.75 I was unable to elicit a response.

Jun14th. I took an overnight trip out to the John Day area to look for flammulated owls. I tried for pygmy owl  at the Old Dalles Highwaynear Hood River. Gusty winds and bright sun, thwart my efforts with the pygmies. I also missed the barn owl at the Welk Road barn. And the great-horneds that had nested just up the road. Near Cottonwood Canyon, the only sign of the long-eared was a couple of egg shells beneath the nest.

Ten miles down the road I felt a tick behind my ear. This distracted me so that I ended up with my right wheels in the gravel at 65mph! Fortunately I regained control of the Civ.

My look began to turn about 10 miles before Fossil, where I found a beautiful pale great-horned owl roosting in an old barn. I assume by it's relatively small size that it was a male bird. 

I met up with Tom Winters in the uplands south of John Day. Tom had kindly offered to take me out to look for flams. I had arrived early and we used the time to check for a local great-gray owl, which we failed to find. At dusk we headed out to look for flams. At the first stop a flam came in, and flew excitedly above us, but stayed high in tall pines. We were able to brief, spotlighted views as it flew. Like the Mt Bachelor bird, it was very active and sang almost continuously.

At the next two stops we head spontaniously singing flams, but they did not come into our tape.

At the final stop, there was a mix of both mature conifers and small trees on a steep slope. Tom mentioned that the small trees were helpful, as the flams sometimes perch in them, enabling great views. Sure enough, a bird responded and within a couple of minutes, we found a singing owl at close quarters in a small tree. We enjoyed amazing views of the flam, by far the best I have ever seen.

Satisfied we returned to Tom's place. Tom had suggested a nearby site for saw-whet, so I drove from Star Campground towards Lookout Mountain, and turned right at the T. Six tenths of a mile down that road I quickly got a response to my tape. Soon a saw-whet flew by my face. It took a lot of cat and mouse before I got a good view of a silent saw-whet perched in a small conifer. Prior to this, the bird had both sung and screeched at me multiple times. This bird was very interesting to me, as it was first summer saw whet I had found in Eastern Oregon. I was also interested in how responsive it was-Portland area birds are quite indifferent to the tape in June. 

Jun15th. I camped with Ziggy by the saw whet site. 

After coffee, I tried for Pygmy owl at various elevations, but with no success. 

I spotted the same barn dwelling great-horned owl from the car in Gilliam county that I saw yesterday. I also tried for the Cottonwood Canyon long-eared owl to no avail. 

Jun 19th. I pursuit of pygmy owls the whole family went to Forest Park after dinner. We parked at the far end of Leif Erickson Road, by Germantown Road. Once we were out of range of the motorcycles and cars tearing up the asphalt on Germantown, I played a tape for the pygmy. Immediately I got a response! It wasn't going to be so easy to see one of these tiny owls. High above the canopy were some tall Doug Firs. It seemed like to pygmy owl remained out of sight by perching high in the Doug Firs. Add in a mischievous three year old, a deaf pointer mix and plenty of mosquitoes and it began to look like I was not going to see this owl.

Eventually I coaxed the owl to fly across Germantown road, where I got brief in flight views. Nice!

June 21st. For my birthday, Tui had booked a cabin for a couple of nights at Emigrant Springs State Park. I had strategically picked the location because its close to Spring Creek, which is a great site for great gray owls. The whole family was packed into the Civic for the long hot drive to the Blue Mountains.

Once we had set up at the cabin, and had eaten dinner, I set off down to Spring Creek with Ziggy. I was a bit nervous about my chances, as both Laura Navarrete and Trent Bray had both warned me that the great-grays had not nested at their usual locations. It was a rough drive down FR 800.

I came up blank at the Green Pond site off of FR 800. Then I worked my way west to a steep forested slope about 1/3 mile from Green Pond. My spirits were buoyed by a great gray feather lodged in a tree. Next I heard a pair of scolding robins. I climbed as quickly as I could back up slope and there it was! A beautiful juvenile great gray. Wow! What a  lovely bird. Thrilled I returned to the Civic and bounced down the road back to the cabin. Many thanks to both Laura and Trent for their excellent advice.

I spent the next day owling on and off, mostly checking for roosting day time owls during family activities. Alas all I saw was bark!

June 23rd. On the way home we made a brief pit stop at Three Mile Canyon. Under the railroad bridge I found one large nearly fledged barn owl, and one small dead chick. (None had nested last year, but two years ago there were several chicks).

July 4th. America's holiday was being celebrated with surprising of enthusiasm in Sellwood.  

Literally between fireworks lighting up the sky, a screech owl flew over the overlook and into the neighborhood.

July 5th. The whole family went to Tryon in the evening. Near the nest of the barred owl we heard the begging calls of the young owls. Soon an adult barred owl flew across the gully below us. It was closely followed by three juveniles. Though the juveniles had been fledged for about 8 weeks they were remarkably uncoordinated. The noise and chaos with which the family moved through the forest reminded me of a family of toucans moving through the canopy. Eventually one juvenile flew into a tree just 12' above Charlie and me! We got amazing views.

July 10th. I night hiked 14 miles in South Hood River county. There was a good full moon to owl by. Everything was good. It was a warm night, and as I passed the talus and rock outcrops I could feel the saved up heat radiate of the stone.

A couple of deer scared me pretty good. I was lucky enough to hear a spotted owl. Alas I didn't get a view, but it was still fabulous and special.

Also special was the first light-just gorgeous:

July 27th. I went to Eastern Hood River county in search of spotted owls. At my first stop, I had a spotted owl call! The bird was really near. Alas it only called once. The bird was on a steep slope in dense forest, which made it impractical to walk around under the canopy and spotlight the owl.

I revisited the site a couple of times through the night but was greeted only by silence and shooting stars.

I worked the whole area, but had no other encounters. At one point I caught a pair of widely spaced eyes low in some tall grass. For a moment I thought a cougar was stalking me. Fortunately it was just a fawn.

Aug 3rd. I ventured to Hart Cove, at Cascade Head Preserve. After a hot August day the drive across the northwest Willamette Valley at dusk was perfect. The entrance road to the trailhead was foggy and damp. 

At the parking lot I heard two barred owls duetting far below me. What a great start! Despite this I had no owl encounters along the rest of the Hart Cove Trail. The hike was perfect all the same. The magnificent old growth was dripping with moisture. All the plants smelled good. Along the way I heard sea lions bark from the beach far below! I also heard what I think were baby marbled murrelets calling from the trees.

Something heavy and unseen moved on through the heavy undergrowth, a Roosevelt elk perhaps?

Undeterred I decided to continue my spotted owl quest along the entrance road. At my first stop I heard young owls begging. The young of both barred and spotted owls sound the same to my ears. I scrambled through thickets of salmonberry which tore off my head torch, then slid down a steep soft clay bank. Above me shrouded in mist a young owl called. My flashlight lit up the mist, shockingly bright, like a blizzard in the brights. My eyes adjusted and there it was, high in a maple, staring back at me. A barred owl, not a spotted, but how can I be disappointed? It's just so beautiful.

And then it lifted of its perch, and made a long fast pass over me, covered a hundred feet in a blink. I flinched as it landed just above me. Again, it dropped, and this time it stuck my back. The impact was so, so soft, and no claws were drawn against me. Surprised, I grabbed the owl, which had ended up under me, and threw it into the air, which it took to, and flew clumsily into the salmonberries. I got a good look at it resting there. Presumably as shocked as I was. A young bird for sure, with this spring's fine down still sparse among the grown-up owl feathers.

I retreated back up the bank and through the thicket, wary of getting hit properly, but the owl kept it's distance. A little high on adrenaline, I took the entrance road a little to fast and came real close to hitting a young buck on the way out!

Aug 9th. While visiting Tui's family in Federal Way I decided to try for Spotted owl at Mount Rainier. I heard two or three pygmy owls near Mowich Lake. It was a beautiful night.

Soon a big August moon rose high in the sky. Despite the moon's illumination, I was unable to find any spotted owls.

8.16.14 I decided to follow up on a report of a possible spotted owl that was flushed last week along Mazama trail on the northwest side of Mt Hood. 

Immediately before the trailhead I saw two mid-sized owls fly over the car. After a couple of minutes of listening I heard a female long-eared owl bark! I hiked up the Mazama trail for a mile and a half, but found no sign of spotted owl. The habitat looked promising though. It was a beautiful night, moonless, at first. I saw three shooting stars, and wished on each for just one spotted owl. The gatekeeper of Mazama trail:

Just below the trailhead I saw a long-eared owl in the headlights flying parallel to the road.

Back along highway 26, between Sandy and Gresham, I got good views of a roadside coyote.

Aug 24th. I decided to explore South Western Wasco county in search of spotted owls. It was a gorgeous night, a shower had just passed, but the stars were bright and perfect. It has At one location I heard a young strix begging call. I was really eager to locate the bird, as it looked like perfect habitat for a spotted owl. However the bird only called intermittently. Just as I was about to give up, a pair of spotted owls duetted. As I was making my way towards them, a pair of barred owls started duetting. The spotted owls fell silent and reluctantly I withdrew. 

I had discovered a new way home via Damascus, which payed off well, as I got a nice view of a pale-faced barn owl on a utility wire. 

Sep 1st. I follow up some ebird reports of spotted owls. My trip takes me up the Clackamas River, then onto Skyline road, north to highway 26, then back west to Portland. The two sites I check out don't seem promising, and I hear no owls. I listen a lot along Skyline, but hear nothing.

The night is not a bust. The sky is lovely, and I see three shooting stars. Along the Clackamas, I see a roadside skunk, and near Zigzag a Coyote. Coming back into town, along the Clackamas Expressway a screech owl flew in front of the car.

Sep 13th. While visiting Tui's family in Federal Way, I visited Sunrise on the east shoulder of Mount Rainier in search of owls. I arrived just after dusk, on a wonderful warm evening.

Soon after it got dark, I heard a Boreal owl sing briefly. The bird then came close and made a couple of calls- a harsh squeal and a more hollow bark. I briefly saw the bird fly by, but it was a terrible view. While pursuing the Boreal in small trees in a meadow, I had a long-eared hover briefly overhead before it realized I wasn't a tasty small owl. (This is the third time I have encountered long-eareds this way).

Determined to get a better view of a boreal, I headed another half mile down the trail. I heard another boreal far away, and had to hike up to some ridge-top spruces. There I found a wonderful fluffy boreal owl. How gorgeous! 

Determined to make the best of my apparent luck, I worked the lower part of the entrance road for spotted owls. Low down, near the White River I heard a juvenile strix call. It called very intermittently, and was not able to locate it on the very steep terrain. 

(I contacted Mount Rainier National Park about the Strix. A helpful biologist told me it was likely a barred owl, as there was a territory in the area).

Sep 22nd. On a sunny Sunday afternoon, George and I ventured to Oaks Bottom. We quickly found two separate screech owls, both roosting in sites they were using last spring. It was great to relocate them.

That night I ventured to Kinzel Lake, a mountain lake near Government camp. The road in was rough, making for a slow arduous drive. From the primitive campground it took a while to locate the unsigned trail down to the Salmon River Trail. The trail wound through some great old growth forest, then followed a sparsely forested slope, before descending, zig-zag fashion through middle-aged forest to the Salmon River Trail far below.

The hike was intensely visceral. The breeze brought smoke from the Pit 36 fire. It began to rain lightly and far away lightening briefly lit up the clouds. In the dense thickets of vine maple, unseen animals moved loudly. I felt claustrophobic, this was increasingly interrupted by barely controlled fear. 

It was a long hike back up to the car. It was hot, and I felt thirsty. All weekend I had been sick, and the hike was a lot harder than I had expected. 1 soon stripped off my shirt, smelling foul, and feeling just slightly feverish. It was a very long hike back to the car.

If there were Spotted Owls along the trail, they were silent that night.

Sep 27th. The whole family walked around Oaks Bottom. At the usual roost site in an ash tree we found a lovely screech owl sleeping in the warm Indian sun.

That night after putting the kids to bed, I drove out to southern Wasco county. I visited the same site that I heard spotted and barred owls last August. Again I heard a young strix calling/ Later in some more open forest I heard a great horned owl call twice. 

It was a lovely crisp starry night. 

Back along highway 26 I had a female roadside barn owl at the Damascus turn off. 

Oct 2nd. Rhett and I visited Tryon after work. We were blessed to have a warm moonlit evening. With a lot to catch up on we were still able to hear a distant barred owl calling. 

Oct 4th. The whole family decided to explore the South Willamette Valley. It had been unseasonably warm for a couple of weeks, and today we enjoyed 84 degrees, sunshine and ice-cream.

I had heard about a spotted owl that nested in Benton County and decided to check it out. I spent about an hour during the afternoon searching for roosting owls. I flushed several black-tailed deer from bramble thickets and was sidetracked by a party of scolding stellar's jays, but found no owls.

On our drive to Eugene we found a beautiful bobcat sunning itself on a grassy hillside. In town we stayed in a converted garage off of brewery row. The yard smelled of abandoned apples, rotting in the grass and overripe grapes.

After diner, I left my family and returned to the spotted owl site. I was greeted by a pair of singing great-horned owls. I figured this was a bad sign, as great-horneds occasionally eat spotted owls. Within a couple of minutes I heard a spotted owl sing. Barely able to contain my excitement I crept through the moonlit forest in the direction of the singing owl. Then I heard (another?) spotted owl make a contact call repeatedly. Using the moon light I quickly got under the bird as it called from a fir. Moments later I had it beautifully illuminated. What a lovely, lovely owl. So chocolately and vulnerable. Just the best owl in Oregon. 

On the return to Eugene I visited some riparian ash forest. I was surprised to hear a spontaneously singing saw-whet. Twenty minutes later I tracked him down and got excellent views of him low in a dog wood. 

In similar habitat I also heard another great-horned owl. A little further down the road I tried taping for a screech-owl. Instead a big owl flew in. I turned on my flashlight and a male barred owl was perched in the tree. It moved it's head intently from side to side, looking for a tasty screech owl no doubt. Lovely bird.

The road at night.....

Oct 5th. George, Ziggy and I visited Oak's Bottom and quickly found a roosting screech owl sunning itself high in an ash tree.

10.13.14 I ventured into the coast range in Polk County in search of spotted owls. I soon heard a pair of barred owls singing far below me in a forested ravine. Travelling back through the same area a half hour later I caught sight of a beautiful barred owl in my headlights. I was able to spotlight it and get a great view. 

On the far side of the same hill I was able to solicit a saw whet owl. It made a couple of calls; a whine and (per the Macaulay "Voices of North American Owl) "fall calls. Both were very similar to the calls of Boreal owls heard (and seen well) on Mount Rainier last month. 

Back at the valley bottom I searched along a back road for screech owls in some patchy ash forest. Instead I heard a pair of great-horned owls. I also heard a female squawk call which reminded me of the barking call of a long-eared owl.

Driving home I glimpsed something on a roadside sign. I made a couple of deft maneuvers and got to spotlight a lovely female barn owl.This was by the federal prison in Sheridan, Yamhill County. It was my hundredth county owl!

Oct 18^th and 19^th

John and I decided to work the Blue Mountains near Tollgate in search of boreal owls. This would be a state bird for me and a lifer for John. This wasn’t our first effort for the owl here. We visited in 2007 and spent a long, cold, fruitless October night working Skyline Road.

This time would be different. I was really excited for our adventure. It had been 5 years since John and I had embarked on a long journey together. The Indian summer would be perfect for owling tonight. Late in the day we worked our way out to a site near Jubilee Lake where Trent Bray had found boreals last year.

At dusk we decided to take a walk along the road. Almost immediately a cow and calf elk crossed the road just in front of us. Moments later we heard a diesel truck pull up on the far side of the elk. I had barely spoken what I feared, when a big shot tore through by us. John and I stared at each other, checking for bullet holes. I took cover and yelled at the shooter not to fire on us. We heard an “OK”, and then another big shot moments later.

We retreated up the road to the Outback and laughed nervously at our luck. Eventually we figured that the hunter had gotten an elk, and it would be safe to speak to him. After all we still wanted to owl the road, without getting shot at again. In the middle of the gravel road was a kid with blood-soaked arms finalizing an efficient piece of elk butchery. The kid was friendly, allaying my fears and stereotypes of those in the forest with the big guns. I explained our plans and he assured me he would be gone in a few minutes.

Back at the Subaru we started taping. The kid in old red dodge flatbed carrying the gutted calf rumbled up to us, then killed the engine. “You guys got a side arm? There are wolves and cougars out here.”

At the next stop a wheeze in John’s breath fooled me into thinking I heard a distant boreal call. Otherwise despite two dozen stops along the whole drive north to the state line we heard nothing but singing elk. I saw a dozen shooting stars, one blazed a brilliant colored tail over us. On every one I wished a boreal owl.

Back at Jubilee Lake we headed east on a loop. At our next stop east of where the calf elk died we heard a saw whet owl. I played a tape, and we had a flutter of an owl moving between the trees, but no real view. 

At this point we were pretty much out of gas, and the loop ended up being far, far longer than I had miscalculated from the map. With the gas light on E, a tense silence fell upon us. I drove carefully back to highway 204. From there we freewheeled almost the whole 20 miles off of the Blue Mountains to Highway 11 on the plains far below. From there we set the cruise control and made our way at an undignified slow speed all the way to Pendleton. After gassing up, the rest of the drive was an exercise in staying awake.

Nov 13th. I got the day off work because of a minor ice storm. Ziggy and I braved the cold and wet. First we ventured to Oaks Bottom in search of screech owls, but came up short. Then I visited Reed Canyon, where Rhett had reported a barred owl in late October. I soon found a lovely bird at the Western end of the canyon.

The owl continually shook, shedding it's feathers of icy rain drops. Against a red-barked pine the big gray owl looked exquisite. 

Nov 22nd. The family had stayed at Phinie and Lena's place in Federal Way. My alarm woke me at 3am. I managed to slip out of our big crowded bed without waking anyone. My plan is to drive through the night across to Brewster for a Northern Hawk Owl that's been hunting in an orchard for over a week. I am feeling pretty anxious about this one. Yesterday Snoqualmie Pass was intermittently closed due to snow fall. I don't have chains for the civic and don't want to get ticketed for venturing onto the pass without them. 

Snowqualie ends up being just slushy, and I get by without a problem. Blewett Pass was a lot steeper, higher and snowier. Still I get through just fine. After Wenachee the sky begins to pale, and I start to drive faster, determined not to waste the morning behind the wheel.  

Once I leave the highway at Brewster the roads are all icy. Up in the orchards on the flats, where the owl has been hunting, the roads are covered in 10" of powder. It's a lovely morning, blue and bright. I walk Ziggy along the orchard roads. After a couple of hours I find a birder scoping the owl. I get a momentary look, then it disappears among the apple trees. The birder turns out to be a Portland guy, Stefan Schlick. Stefan and I last met at a Mackay's bunting in British Columbia ten years ago. Eventually the owl returns, and we are able to get better and better views. What an amazing and strange owl. Stefan tells me that they have been breeding for several years in burns to the west of here, so it is possible that it's local and not an arctic migrant.

The drive back is fine. I decide to cross the Cascades at Highway 20, which turns out to be a blessing, as Snoqalimie was again intermittently closed this afternoon. I get to pick up a couple of really nice hitchhikers, avid snowboarders who work at the resort at Steven's Pass. Largely unencumbered by experience, their youthful enthusiasm was infectious. 

Nov 27th. I had heard about three short-eared owls at Broughton Beach a few days ago. Today is Thanksgiving, so I had time to venture out and look for them. It was a warm blustery day. I brought George and Ziggy and we walked up the beach to the Sea Scout base. We flushed a roosting short-eared owl near the end of the beach. It was a really pale bird, almost frosted looking. 

Nov 29th. The whole family went to Reed Canyon in search of the resident Barred Owl. At the west end of the Canyon we saw a couple of walkers taking photos of what turned out to be a very tame and cooperative barred owl. 

Dec ?. The whole family returned to Reed Canyon. Once we entered the canyon we could hear angry crows ahead. Just before the footbridge that spans the canyon I found a lovely barred owl being harassed by a gang of crows. The crows soon left and we were able to enjoy this lovely owl in peace.

Reports of a snowy owl at Fern Ridge Reservoir had been enticing me for a couple of days. Today at lunch, I read a report of the bird been seen this morning with in ten minutes I had hit the road. It was a swift drive down the interstate to a pull out by the side of the lake. Almost immediately I found a pale blob out on the mud. I ventured around the lake side for a better view, and didn't relocate the bird. Then returned and got a slightly better and more convincing view. I then ventured on foot towards the owl. My luck improved when I met a birder with a fancy scope and not so fancy eyes. I located the owl for him, and with the good scope could see the owls eyes and beak, plus extensive barring on its wings. Wonderful! My 15th and final Northwest owl in 2015. And my first inland snowy owl.  

Dec 7th. I returned with George and Ziggy to Reed Canyon. I quickly found the barred owl roosting in a conifer by looking for whitewash. I got a really nice view of the owl preening in it's shady dormitory.   

Dec 13th. The family had just returned via Burlingame, from a walk, when I opened my email and saw that John had emailed me about a Burlingame snowy owl. This was a big deal for me. About seven years ago I had missed a long-staying snowy owl in Multnomah County while I was out of the country birding. I raced back up the hill to find a wonderful juvenile snowy owl perched on a roof top. The owl was being mobbed by crows, and would periodically respond with a violent gesture. What an awesome owl!

I ran into Andy who sent me the following wonderful photo:

Dec 21st. George, Ziggy and I walked over to Reed Canyon. Almost immediately we heard several crows. This lead me to find the barred owl low in a conifer. I was able to get really great views. 

Dec 27th. Tui and the boys had stayed on in Federal Way after Christmas. I had to return home to work the day after. This gave me a Saturday morning for owling. I decided to take a second stab at a Burrowing owl that had been reported for over a month at Yaquina Head. (The whole family had made a trek out there two weeks ago. That day the bird must have been holed up out of sight).

I got up hours before dawn and drove through the darkness to the coast. The road to the lighthouse was gated, so I parked by highway 101 and leashed up Ziggy. 

I made a pathetic attempt to jog out to the quarry. In my big blue boots and old rain coat I quickly gave up and walked the balance. Sure enough the wonderful little owl was where it was supposed to be, half way up the face of the quarry. I was struck how large billed this burrowing owl looked. More a predator than a clown. Still when a red-tail drifted overhead, the vigilant little owl cowered.