Encouraging Signs

Activity has picked up a bit in the last two weeks. Ward and June announced that they had survived the winter by exchanging classic hoots at midday on March 9th. They also engaged in a frenzied duet near the nest at 9pm on March 14th. This was followed by June landing in the doorway and hooting into the nest box for almost three minutes. She did not, however, enter the nest to rearrange things -- this would have been a sure sign of impending nesting. Last season, June laid her first egg on March 16th, but that was about two weeks early for barred owls in this area. You may recognize the snow covered tree as the one where the flightless owlets roosted during their first week outside of the nest last year. The obvious lack of cover explains the owls dependence on evergreens for their winter roosts.

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