How many species of owl have you seen (1 Viewer)

Dave B Smith · Jan 15, 2006

Well, my Owl species list is pretty short - 8, but the number of owls I've seen has just taken a quantum leap. Last weekend we went up to Beaverhill Lake just east of Edmonton where there have been a lot of Short-eared Owls reported in large hunting groups.
We managed to find them and counted 64 SEOs at one time in a very large field. Fantastic. We also got two Snowy Owls on the same trip (both SEO and Snowy were lifers). My Owl list is:
Barn Owl
Barred Owl
Burrowing Owl
Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl
Great Horned Owl
Northern Pygmy-Owl
Short-eared Owl
Snowy Owl

A CHAPLIN · Jan 15, 2006

Hi Dave,

64 SEO's in one field wow, there must be plenty of food around. I don't suppose by any chance you got a photo? I have never seen an Owl yet in the wild.

It is good to know birds are doing well somewhere, the conditions are obviously right for them.

Thanks for the posting.

Ann

Richard W · Jan 15, 2006

Barn, Little, Tawny, SEO & LEO in UK.

Scops many years ago on holiday on Crete.

and thse two (Spotted Eagle Owl) below, found at a vineyard last year in SA

Dave B Smith · Jan 15, 2006

A CHAPLIN said:
Hi Dave,

64 SEO's in one field wow, there must be plenty of food around. I don't suppose by any chance you got a photo? I have never seen an Owl yet in the wild.
Ann

Ann,
Sorry no photos of the SEO's. I didn't carry my camera with me as it was late afternoon (low light) and I had no idea we would find that many owls, though large numbers had been reported there several times over the last month. And in reality, it was a very large field and only a half dozen were close enough for decent photos. How about a photo of Burrowing Owls instead?

dendroica_john · Jan 15, 2006

I have seen only two - barred owl and great horned owl. On another occasion I thought I heard an eastern screech, but never confirmed it. That's one of several big gaps in my life list.

lassa8 · Jan 15, 2006

I've seen ten species...the latest was the Snowy Owl just last weekend.

Barred Owl
Great Horned Owl
Eastern Screech-Owl
Barn Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl
Short-eared Owl
Snowy Owl
Crested Owl (Costa Rica)
Mottled Owl (CR)
Bare-shanked Screech Owl (CR)

Dave B Smith · Jan 16, 2006

My Owl list just climbed to 9 with a Northern Hawk Owl this afternoon. I did carry my camera this time

columbidae · Jan 16, 2006

Sad to say, but in four years of birding I have only one owl on my life list--barred owl. I know that there are others in my neighborhood, but so far I have not been in the right place at the right time.

Larry Lade · Jan 16, 2006

Dave, good find (and great photos) of the Northern Hawk Owl. A fantastic bird! Where did you spot it?

Until last January it was still on my "want list". But I was able to get not just one, but eleven of them January 2005 up in the Duluth, Minnesota, area!

Dave B Smith · Jan 16, 2006

Larry,
It had been reported in Kananaskis Country (in the foothills west of Calgary) so we were actively looking for him. After 45 minutes we did find him. Beautiful bird, now I'm just looking for the Great Gray and Boreal to finish up the winter Owls

Now eleven of them in one trip - that's something!

Larry Lade · Jan 17, 2006

In January 2005 around Duluth, Minnesota:
I got eleven Northern Hawk Owls, twenty-one Great Grays, one Snowy but, dog-gone it, I missed on the Boreal. We went to the place where it had been the evening before, but "no joy" when we were there the next evening. So I am still looking for that one!

Larry Sweetland · Jan 17, 2006

How did you see them ?

Hi all,

I was just wondering what proportion of owl species on some of these lists were seen only as a result of a tape lure, especially for the people that had seen lots of species. Just curious !

My Owl list's not up there with the big guns, but at 50 seen and an extra 4 heard includes only 2 that I've only seen because of a tape lure.

Barn
Mountain Scops
Indian Scops
Sunda Scops
Eurasian Scops
Oriental Scops
Flammulated (tape lure)
Western Screech
Pacific Screech
Whiskered Screech
Tropical Screech (hd)
White-throated Screech
Cuban Screech
Great Horned
Magellanic Great Horned
Eagle
Rock Eagle
Dusky Eagle
Brown Fish
Tawny Fish
Snowy
N. Hawk
Brown Wood
Great Grey
Ural
Tawny
Spotted
Mottled
Black and White
Rufous-banded (tape lure)
Spectacled
Collared Owlet
Eurasian Pygmy
Californian Pygmy
Northern Pygmy (hd)
Andean Pygmy
Ferruginous Pygmy
Cuban Pygmy
Saian Barred Owlet
Jungle Owlet
Elf
Burrowing
Spotted Owlet
Little
Tengmalm's
N. Saw-whet
Barking (hd)
Morepork
S. Boobook
Brown Hawk
Stygian (hd)
Long-eared
Short-eared
Marsh

Some were hooted or whistled out though !

Tim42 · Jan 17, 2006

I have seen the Barred Owl, Great Horned Owl and the Flammulated Owl. I also saw a Barn Owl, but it was caged at a nature center. For owls I have only heard I list the Eastern Screech-owl. Happy birding! :bounce:

Larry Lade · Jan 17, 2006

Of the 17 species on my owl list, I have seen 16 without using recordings to lure them in.

I have used "owl tapes" sometimes on Migratory Bird Counts/Christmas Bird Counts to get owls to respond vocally, thereby, verifying their presence (so they can be added to the count). Most times, in these instances, they do not appear but just respond vocally.

James Eaton · Jan 17, 2006

Hi Larry,

Good question! I've had a run through, I imagined it to be a few more, but I've seen all but 5 of my 54 without the use of playback, this is mainly achieved by following up the calls through the forest at night, a sure way to getting yourself lost sometimes!

Wallace's Scops Owl
Flores Scops Owl
Sangihe Scops Owl
(Timor) Southern Boobook
Philippine Boobook

Larry Sweetland · Jan 18, 2006

Lost in the jungle

Nice one James, a birder after my own heart. I bet it hasn't done our owl lists any favours though !

James Eaton said:
Hi Larry,

Good question! I've had a run through, I imagined it to be a few more, but I've seen all but 5 of my 54 without the use of playback, this is mainly achieved by following up the calls through the forest at night, a sure way to getting yourself lost sometimes!

Wallace's Scops Owl
Flores Scops Owl
Sangihe Scops Owl
(Timor) Southern Boobook
Philippine Boobook

Swift · Jan 18, 2006

42 species of Owl seen, it sometimes takes a lot of effort night after night whilst abroad with no return,also 5 Sp of Frogmouth 4 sp of Potoo and 39 sp of Nightjar.

Dave B Smith · Feb 13, 2006

A beautiful Great Gray Owl this evening brought my Owl list to 10.

Nightjar61 · Feb 15, 2006

My owl list stands at 17. I should be able to see Little Owl in Tunisia in March, and am hoping to get Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl in southern Texas this summer.

Barn Owl
Eastern Screech-Owl
Whiskered Screech-Owl
Great Horned Owl
Snowy Owl
Spotted Owl
Barred Owl
Great Gray Owl
Northern Hawk Owl
Mountain Pygmy-Owl
Northern Pygmy-Owl
Elf Owl
Burrowing Owl
Boreal Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl
Long-eared Owl
Short-eared Owl

Larry, in January 2005 I saw the Boreal Owl in Two Harbors, Minnesota. I'm sure it was the same one you chased. We missed it on the first day, but got it on the second day. When we heard that it was making an appearance again, we drove the 60 miles or so from Isabella in record time. It was the 700th ABA Area bird for one of our group.

Dave

Larry Lade · Feb 15, 2006

Nightjar61 said:
Larry, in January 2005 I saw the Boreal Owl in Two Harbors, Minnesota. I'm sure it was the same one you chased. We missed it on the first day, but got it on the second day. When we heard that it was making an appearance again, we drove the 60 miles or so from Isabella in record time. It was the 700th ABA Area bird for one of our group.

Dave

Yes, it sure sounds like it was the same Boreal Owl we had hoped to see. Did you get it over by the harbor or was it near the Two Harbors High School? We looked in both places for a couple of days but "no joy".

I think your chances are probably pretty good for a Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl in Texas. If you get that you will pass me by one, as I also have 17 species of owl.

How many species of owl have you seen (1 Viewer)

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