Tweets,

In a recent chat with my Mom (my parents live in Norris TN on the edge of
a multi-thousand acre Tennessee Valley Authority forest land), she told me
about a family of owls living near them. As they are still beginning
birders, they asked a local expert to ID these birds. They are BARRED
OWLS! My folks have seen them standing in the birdbath at dawn; at
least one owl likes to look in their living room window. Dad now fills
the birdbath daily because the owls use it at night. I'll be attending my
father's family reunion.....for the first time in 27 years.....there
in early August. Hope these owls are still around, a life bird for me,
and would relish the chance to study them a bit.

The literature suggests that barred owls are "shy" birds that avoid human
habitats. My 70+ year old parents have a large, mature landscaped yard
with a paradise of feeders for most any taste. Other visitors include
indigo buntings, summer tanagers, zillions of ruby-throated hummingbirds,
and pileated woodpeckers plus many other avifauna (I hope to have a large
list) and assorted furry creatures, large and small.

I'll share my list with ya'll when I return in August.

Meanwhilst, waiting for the Puget Sound
pelagic/shoreline winter returnees,
Maureen Ellis, me2 at u.washington.edu, Univ of WA and Des Moines WA