Great Horned Owls

We've seen and/or heard owls around our yard three times so far. In all three cases, they have been the Great Horned Owl, which is generally the most common owl in most parts of North America. The first experience was at the end of December, just a few months after we moved to our house. We heard at least two owls calling back and forth; it started before dawn, and it lasted for several hours, although we were unable to find them to see. The second time was at the beginning of June, at the end of the day as it was getting dark. There was a big commotion in the dead tree behind our house, and it turned out it was several robins protecting their nest, trying to chase the owl that had flown into the tree. The owl didn't make any sounds, but stayed long enough that we were able to get a few pictures, including the one above. It was getting dark and we didn't want to try to move to close, so the picture is pretty fuzzy, but you can see the silhouette of the "horns", which are actually tufts of long feathers around the ears.

Our most recent experience with the owls came a few weeks ago on January 11. Jenn heard some hooting around 8:00 (pm), and we noticed an owl perched in the same dead tree, but it flew off just as we saw it. We continued to heard the calling, but couldn't see it. I went onto the back deck quietly and waited for it to call again. The hooting of the Great Horned Owl is fairly easy to mimic, and the birds are often curious to know where the new sounds are coming from, so I called out my best version of it. The owl replied, and I called again, and then the owl flew back up into the dead tree where we could see it's silhouette. It perched there, quietly looking around for a couple of minutes. I hooted out to it again, and this time it took to the air and did a fly-by to check things out. It flew just over the house into the front yard, passing maybe 20 feet from where I was standing on the deck. It's wingspan is huge when you see it up close. I went back inside, and looking out the living room window, we saw that it had perched atop the hydro pole at the end of our driveway. From there it flew into one of the oak trees in our front yard, where it continue to hoot for about 10 or 15 minutes before flying off. Later, around 10:00, I went outside with the dogs, and again noticed an owl in one of the trees behind our house, which flew off just after I saw it. A minute later, I noticed another silhouette in a tree near our neighbour's house, which could have been the same bird or a different one. I hooted for it, and it flew towards me and perched on the top of our other neighbour's barn. A minute later, a second owl flew up also to the top of the barn, from the other direction. So there were two owls on the peak of the barn, separated by perhaps 20 feet and facing each other. I could see their silhouettes perfectly, because the sky in that direction is lit up due to the lights in the golf course parking lot. One of the owls was significantly larger than the other; it turns out that females are the larger ones. They took turns hooting back and forth to each other for several minutes, then they followed each other from perch to perch among the trees in our front yard and our neighbour's, hooting frequently back and forth. They would land so close to each other, at the tops of the trees, on small branches that looked like they wouldn't support their weight. At one point, they seemed to lock talons with each other. Finally, they flew off to the north. This is the time of year that the owls are courting and looking for a place to mate, and it was a very exciting thing to watch.

-posted by Dave-