Hootie Returns

[doctinker]

After a long absence, our eastern screech owl has returned. He sits there in the late afternoon, overlooking our woodland pond and watches us tend to our ducks and chickens. We call him Hootie.

 

[RobS]

Nice! We have a Great Horned Owl that will occasionally perch on top of our house and call through the night. Amazing how loud they are when that close to my sleeping ears...

 

[murphy1244]

That is sooo cool. I have yet to see a owl here. Did you make his house? details please.

 

[doctinker]

His house is a wood duck house I made several years ago. I made three of these houses and put them in trees in my woods/swamp. A few years ago there were two screech owls in separate houses. Last year, neither one of the owls returned and I was disappointed. I'm really thrilled that one has returned.

 

[murphy1244]

His house is a wood duck house I made several years ago. I made three of these houses and put them in trees in my woods/swamp. A few years ago there were two screech owls in separate houses. Last year, neither one of the owls returned and I was disappointed. I'm really thrilled that one has returned.

Do you put them around the pond or swamp. I have both.

 

[doctinker]

Two are near the pond and one is in the swamp. They have used both placements. The ones by the the pond are easiest to view from my family room, so I can see him from my lazy boy.

 

[doctinker]

There is some competition with the wood ducks. The ducks only use the boxes in the spring, for a short time. They seem to just dump eggs and leave. We did have a wood duck egg randomly hatch though. The duckling jumped out and walked into the fenced back yard. One of our weiner dogs got to it before we could catch it.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Cool. Heard a barred owl the other day.

 

[oldballs]

Big owl(s) hang around my place....probably the Great Horned Owl. He (?) does most of his(?) hooting at night. During the day he sits in various trees quite silently, but flies away for a distance whenever I go outside. Seems that he is shy. The Crows gang up on him occasionally.

 

[Looking4new]

Your owls will hang around more if you have a food source (cats) for them. Yes, they will kill and eat a cat.