Site 5, The owner did a quick check and confirmed that there was not only a nest, but at least 4 owlets that look like they are getting ready fledge in a week or 2. You can see Mom (gray morph) running out of room in the lower right. cornerFirst there was the really early rescued owlet, and now these where the eggs are estimated to have been laid 3rd week of Feb. Most of the other active sites on this trail are still on eggs. Updates to come on the other sites.
Up here in Massachusetts a more northern climate, we think we know screech owl breeding season, the bulk of screech owls in our region lay eggs between mid march and mid April, which tend to fledge mid may through mid June. The earliest fledging screech owl on this trail was a single owlet on the night of April 14-15th https://owloasis.wordpress.com/2012/04/19/only-one-owlet-lots-of-photos/ . I thought that was very early and it kinda was. However….This year a fledgling Screech Owlet was brought to Cape Ann Wildlife (more complete story of the adventure the little owlet available on the linked facebook page) March 7th 2024, it was found in the middle of a street in northern MA. This would put egg laying in the first 1/3 of January 2024! That seemed crazy early! Erin H. from CAW did mention that owl expert Norman Smith has had fledgling in January in MA. Which piqued my curiosity! The good news is the original nest was found and the Cape Ann Wildlife team was able to locate and re-nest the fledgling screech owl with its original family on March 10th 2024, Job Well Done! (Photos Courtesy of CAW, used with permission)
first photo, fledgling owlet brought in getting weighed at Cape Ann Wildlife,
second photo, owlet released, joining its family again!
As timing would have it, my family went to renowned owl expert Norman Smith https://www.projectsnowstorm.org/posts/norman-smith-champion-of-the-owls/ presentation at a near by Mass Audubon property . He has re-nested thousands of raptors over his 50 years of work. I got to chat with him after the presentation to find out through the years has experienced over 1/2 dozen fledgling screech owls this early or earlier…. as early as mid-January in Massachusetts which would put egg laying mid-November. Now that is crazy early! But also a great reminder that there can always be exceptions to what we think we know.
Relocated Site 1 about 2 years ago, Recently was looking to upgrade the box here as well, but before I swapped it out for a new version of squirrel resistant box, I did a quick check of the the older box so I would not be surprised on a ladder, good thing too as a den of 3 flying squirrels had moved in. I have seen flying squirrels on cam at night in boxes, but I have never had them set up shop in a box. So this was a first. I felt bad I had to dislodge them but they quickly scurried and found natural hollows to shelter in, one did pause long enough on a tree trunk to get a good pic as well. This also means no screech owls around or using the box, as flying squirrels are small enough for a Screech to prey upon flying squirrels.
This bit of ironic American History was brought to my attention from a friend that owns a surf shop https://www.surfcapeann.com .
It seems back in the 1700-1800’s squirrels as pets were quite the rage, especially among the elites…In fact Benjamin Franklin penned a letter with poem as an ode to squirrel that met its untimely demise at the jaws of a dog named Ranger….the letter is all the more humorous to me seeing as how I currently have a Dog name Ranger!
https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Franklin/01-19-02-0202
als (draft): Yale University Library
London, Sept. 26. 1773 [17724]
Dear Miss,
I lament with you most sincerely the unfortunate End of poor Mungo: Few Squirrels were better accomplish’d; for he had had a good Education, had travell’d far, and seen much of the World. As he had the Honour of being for his Virtues your Favourite, he should not go like common Skuggs5 without an Elegy or an Epitaph. Let us give him one in the monumental Stile and Measure, which being neither Prose nor Verse, is perhaps the properest for Grief; since to use common Language would look as if we were not affected, and to make Rhimes would seem Trifling in Sorrow.
Alas! poor Mungo!
Happy wert thou, hadst thou known
Thy own Felicity!
Remote from the fierce Bald-Eagle,
Tyrant of thy native Woods,
Thou hadst nought to fear from his piercing Talons;
Nor from the murdering Gun
Of the thoughtless Sportsman.
Safe in thy wired Castle,
Grimalkin never could annoy thee.
Daily wert thou fed with the choicest Viands
By the fair Hand
Of an indulgent Mistress.
But, discontented, thou wouldst have more Freedom.
Too soon, alas! didst thou obtain it,
And, wandering,
Fell by the merciless Fangs,
Of wanton, cruel Ranger.6
Learn hence, ye who blindly wish more Liberty,
Whether Subjects, Sons, Squirrels or Daughters,
That apparent Restraint may be real Protection,
Yielding Peace, Plenty, and Security.
You see how much more decent and proper this broken Stile, interrupted as it were with Sighs, is for the Occasion, than if one were to say, by way of Epitaph,
Here Skugg
Lies snug
As a Bug
In a Rug.
And yet perhaps there are People in the World of so little Feeling as to think, that would be a good-enough Epitaph for our poor Mungo!
If you wish it, I shall procure another to succeed him.7 But perhaps you will now chuse some other Amusement. Remember me respectfully to all the [torn] good Family; and believe me ever, Your affectionate Friend
B Franklin
[Note numbering follows the Franklin Papers source.]
4. bf misdated the draft by a year. He wrote on the inside of the four-page sheet that Georgiana used for the preceding document, to which he was clearly replying; five months later he sent the correspondence to df: below, Feb. 14, 1773.
5. The “Name by which all Squirrels are called here, as all Cats are called Puss”: ibid.
6. bf has christened the dog that Georgiana mentioned as the culprit.
7. bf did so, and the successor apparently lived to a ripe old age. See df to bfbelow, Oct. 29, 1773; Georgiana to bf, May 1, 1779, APS.PERMANENT LINK What’s this?https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Franklin/01-19-02-0202
Note: The annotations to this document, and any other modern editorial content, are copyright © the American Philosophical Society and Yale University. All rights reserved.Back to top
I have received quite a few questions on “how long did it take to write the Screech Owl book?” The quick answer is almost 3 years….However, for some behind the scenes insight on the actual time it took to gather the information, insight and our best understanding of Screech Owls to present in book form, I present a 2009 email between Jim and myself.
> > On Mon, May 4, 2009 at 2:08 PM, Scott Weston
> > wrote:
> >
> > > good to hear, I was hoping it was something like that
> > >
> > > I am testing a squirrel resistant design for an owl house, that isn’t
> an
> > > eye sore. I replaced the normal house that I gave my sister in D.C
> > > (maryland) that was successful last spring, but there was a roost of 3
> > > squirrels evicted in Nov. on one visit and again another 3 squirrels in
> > > early march and then replaced the normal style with the resistant
> style,
> > > with in 2 weeks an owl sighting in box was reported to me, with
> > consistent
> > > sightings since late march in the box (no camera though). the true
> test
> > > will be fall when squirrels seem to get first dibs. as her
> neighborhood
> > has
> > > a huge population of squirrels.
> > >
> > > Scott> > >
> > > >>> Jim Wright <celeryfarm@gmail.com> 4/30/2009 8:58 AM >>>
> > > The answer is 3 — waiting till end of season…
> > >
> > > My owl has five babies, and briught in a snake the other night to feed
> > > them…
> > >
> > > I hope to have some great videos later…
This is the Maryland Box, one of the original prototypes, reclaimed the cedar wood front from a normal type box I built and integrated it into vinyl covered white pine with sloped roof.
Seemed a good year for screech owls nesting. 4 sites with 15 owlets fledging.
Total: Owlets 15
Total Owlets Since 2010: 149+
Barred Owls:
None this year.
Total: 2 Owlets,(2022)
Site 1
Massachusetts
No Nesting this year, Need to find new Site 1.
Site 2
Massachusetts
No screech owls…but local barred owls are heard regularly.
Site 3
Massachusetts
Screech Owls: M,F. Female red phased Male Gray, successful nesting.
Total: 4 owlets fledged around 5/29/2023 (Photo from 5/28/23)
Site 4
Screech Owls: Pair M,F Gray. Successful nesting.
Total: 5 eggs, 4 owlets successfully fledged 5/23-5/25/2023
After owls left, a pair of Flickers laid eggs in June, unfortunately they were unviable
Site 5
Relocated in 2022 to Massachusetts
Screech owls: Successful Nesting Female Gray, Male Gray
Total: 3 owlets fledged by 5/23/2023
Site 6
Massachusetts
Screech Owls: Female Red, male Gray Did not nest in box this year, box used in fall and winter
Total: 0
Site 7
Massachusetts :Relocated for 2017 season
2022: Screech owls active in winter, seemed to nest elsewhere, activity stopped early march, no nesting this year.
Site 8
Massachusetts
Screech Owls: Female Red
Presummed nesting in box not part of my trail.
Massachusetts
Screech Owls: M,F Gray
Total: 4 owlets, 4 eggs one egg unviable, but a recently hatched owlet was adopted into the nest so 4 owlets fledged by 5/31/2023. See https://owloasis.wordpress.com/2023/06/10/baby-owlet-rescue/ for full story.
Site 9
This is the second foster family success story for this site. The first one was with an older a few days away from fledging owlet 2 years ago. This time it was due to an untimely tree cut with a screech owl nest in it. (From a nesting bird perspective spring is a dangerous time to prune or cut trees and bushes). Anyway, as timing would have it Site 9 had 3 recently hatched owlets with an egg that did not hatch. It seemed like a perfect fit. The raptor rehabilitator was able to introduce the orphan recently hatched owlet into the foster family. The little one was integrated into the family 5/1/2023. Two owlets fledged 5/25/2023 and the other two fledged (one was the orphan) 5/27/2023. (important that this type of fostering activity is done only through a licensed raptor rehabilitator. )
The very young owlet at Cape Ann Wildlife. (photo used with permission)
Staging to introduce the owlet into the nest box. The owlet is safely in the carrier under the towel. (5/1/2023)
Quick video of the owlet joining its new foster family
All the owlets grew and fledged successfully, A day before the first 2 owlets fledged, one owlet is in the entrance, 3 are on the floor, with mom who is in the lower left corner of the picture
The last 2 owlets that fledged, we are thinking the cuddled up one is the orphan.
Site 9 (4 eggs), Site 4 (5 eggs), and Site 3.
Site 9, first egg was March 26th, and currently there are 4 eggs that should be hatching in about a week.
Site 4, first egg was March 22nd and currently there are 5 eggs that should be hatching any day now, also a nice night video of a raccoon investigating the nest, hopefully the squirrel resistance will be enough to thwart the other predators as well. Pay attention to the top right, see the owl fly to attack the raccoon, and turn volume up and listen to the defensive bill clacking.
Site 3, presumed nest, if so this is the male that spends most if not all day in entrance as not to crowd the female on eggs.
For the last couple years, I have been busy working on a screech owl book, It is finally coming to fruition. Official Release will be October 2023!
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/jim-wright/the-screech-owl-companion/9781643261898/
Jim Wright and I have been sharing screech owl observations since 2008 and he has been featured in Smithsonian Magazine for another book of his.
The fantastic Cover Photo is by: Kevin Watson: http://www.kevinwatsonphoto.com who has worked quite a bit with Jim Wright on other projects.
Here is our write up:
“In The Screech Owl Companion, Jim Wright and Scott Weston introduce screech owls, show how to distinguish them from other species, share fun lore and legend, and provide step-by-step instructions for making your yard screech ready. You’ll learn how to build a squirrel-resistant nest box and install a simple nest cam that you can monitor from your cell phone to watch when owls move in, lay eggs, and raise a family.”
“Hearing an owl call and seeing one in the wild is a nature-lover’s dream. In fact, of the top ten birds people hope to see, three are owls. What many people don’t know, however, is that the screech owl is North America’s most common and widespread backyard owl—and further, that by taking a few simple steps including building and siting a basic nest box, you can actually attract owls to nest in your yard each year. Screech owls are the owls most likely to make their homes near humans.”
More to Come!
Last year a red pair used the boxes during the winter but nested in the area a few hundred feet away from the boxes at this site (owlets fledged around 5/25/2022)…
Reminder…Screech owls are always looking at potential cavities all year round even if they don’t stay in the cavity during the day. A new gray phased owl took a quick visit to a box at about 1:20 am on June 10th 2022..
A gray phased and a red phased (could be one remaining part of last nesting seasons pair) both visited this site towards the end of October 2022. But most of the winter was very quiet with no owls staying in the boxes. Until late January 2023 when there would be a sporadic stay from the gray phased owl. However, activity here has picked up with an owl staying in the box every day for the last week or so. Both a red phased and gray phased have been seen recently and are a presumed pair. Nesting season is about a month away so hopefully good things to come.
Frame grab from the brief early morning visit 6/10/2022 (1:19 am)
Gray phased in box 2/18/2023
Owl Oasis Trail 