Owls

[Zoso]

Back when there was so many rabbits i had owls all the time . At night you would hear two of them hooting back and forth. Then they would get louder . Then suddenly silence , few seconds later youd hear squeek! One less rabbit. So i figure they were being loud making rabbits confused and not caring they were there. Also i found that whenever you locked eyes with an owl during the day, youd never see him there again. I guess they like being hidden, and not disturbed so they can close their eyes.

[Ken7]

Well I've built a owl box, hoping to hang it this week. Looking to house a barn owl. Not sure, but if I do have any I'll hopefully get a few photos of them.

Will be up in Peachland on a acreage I care for. Hurry up spring!!

https://usercontent2.hubstatic.com/9280897_f520.jpg

[Grandan]

This is a regular visitor to our Weeping Willow tree in our back yard along Brandt's Creek in North Glenmore.
I heard a racket outside early one morning and he stuck around long enough to get a few photos before he flew off. I was no further than about 10 ft away from him. I believe he is a Great Grey Owl. Attracted by the voles that are active along the creek.

[Graphite]

Thats a beautiful photo!

[Anonymous123]

This is a regular visitor to our Weeping Willow tree in our back yard along Brandt's Creek in North Glenmore.
I heard a racket outside early one morning and he stuck around long enough to get a few photos before he flew off. I was no further than about 10 ft away from him. I believe he is a Great Grey Owl. Attracted by the voles that are active along the creek.

He looks like a Great Horned Owl.

Here’s a pic of one:

[Catri]

This is a regular visitor to our Weeping Willow tree in our back yard along Brandt's Creek in North Glenmore.
I heard a racket outside early one morning and he stuck around long enough to get a few photos before he flew off. I was no further than about 10 ft away from him. I believe he is a Great Grey Owl. Attracted by the voles that are active along the creek.

That is a great photo! Anon's right though, that's a Great Horned Owl.

[trapp]

Quail hide under bushes at night, so I doubt it's an owl taking them. Here is one of my rescues in progress, there were 10 in all.

Capture.JPG

My Mom helping.

Capture 2.JPG

What exactly requires this "rescue". It is an offence under the Wildlife Act to possess wildlife and an offence to relocate without
proper permits.

[DANSPEED]

What exactly requires this "rescue". It is an offence under the Wildlife Act to possess wildlife and an offence to relocate without proper permits.

My neighbor feeds coyotes and rescues turtles! She thinks a turtle crossing a road is lost!

This is a regular visitor to our Weeping Willow tree in our back yard along Brandt's Creek in North Glenmore.
I heard a racket outside early one morning and he stuck around long enough to get a few photos before he flew off. I was no further than about 10 ft away from him. I believe he is a Great Grey Owl. Attracted by the voles that are active along the creek.

That's one mean looking killing machine! It was most likely thinking how it's going to rip your face off. Definitely not a pet.

[Grandan]

My owl photo does not have the massive ear tufts that the Great Horned Owl has. However in looking further I am seeing some with tufts turned down so it likely is a Great Horned Owl

[Sonny Taylor]

Great horned owls are a major predator of skunks.

My guess is that's because owls (like most bird species) are thought to have no sense of smell. Obviously vultures are an exception and have a highly developed sense of smell.

No sense of smell doesn't seem to explain it all though since the biological effects of skunk spray involve more than just the olfactory system; the spray can cause temporary blindness. You can smell them from miles away (no exaggeration) when they become road kill. Maybe the owls are skilled at making the kill before the skunk can spray.

I've never seen a skunk in BC but have seen some owls. Toronto is overrun with skunks and raccoons, but I never saw any owls there.

[Fancy]

Lots of owls in Toronto - just have to be at the right place at the right time.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Be5ikeDHERc ... e=ig_embed
http://toronto-wildlife.com/Birds/Owls/owls.html

Used to be a huge population of skunks in the Okanagan - seem to have gone underground though one skier at Silverstar last year posted a photo of a skunk running across a ski run.

[alanjh595]

Great horned owls are a major predator of skunks.

My guess is that's because owls (like most bird species) are thought to have no sense of smell. Obviously vultures are an exception and have a highly developed sense of smell.

No sense of smell doesn't seem to explain it all though since the biological effects of skunk spray involve more than just the olfactory system; the spray can cause temporary blindness. You can smell them from miles away (no exaggeration) when they become road kill. Maybe the owls are skilled at making the kill before the skunk can spray.

I've never seen a skunk in BC but have seen some owls. Toronto is overrun with skunks and raccoons, but I never saw any owls there.

An owl will swoop in from above and kill it's prey with it's talons by grasping the spine and paralyzing their prey, thereby giving the animal the opportunity to react.

Striped Skunks do have predators other than Great Horned Owls (bobcats, foxes and coyotes-fishers have been known to prey on skunks, but very infrequently), but these predators have to be pretty desperate before they will prey on a skunk. Automobiles and disease kill more skunks than all of their predators put together, but Great Horned Owls have the distinction of being the primary predator of Striped Skunks.

https://naturallycuriouswithmaryholland ... ed-skunks/

Sorry Cat, if this is offensive.....

[Fancy]

Contrary to popular belief, predators don't always kill their prey before dining on them - owls included.

[alanjh595]

Contrary to popular belief, predators don't always kill their prey before dining on them - owls included.

Just like humans do.

[Ken7]

If you have good hunting grounds for them...they will come.
Are there hawks or any other raptors that nest nearby?

I do see brown hawks on occasion and the odd bauldy flying past. Yesterday in the snow there was a wing sweep by a large bird. Couldn't see if it touched down as the snow covered where it would have stuck.

I've caught a game cam photo some time ago of a owl, likely a great horned owl next door to the area I'm going to place the box. There is plenty of critters for owls, as we are in the bush and also have a smaller vineyard. I plan on placing the box on the edge of the vineyard.