Subject: [Tweeters] Hawk Owl Horror?!?
Date: Jan 9 15:52:34 2016
From: Jon Houghton - jon.houghton at hartcrowser.com


Hi Tweets - not to ruin your day but, the following post just came up on ebird's rare bird alerts wire:


"Northern Hawk Owl (Surnia ulula) (1)

- Reported Jan 09, 2016 12:30 by Sandy Schreven

- Cassimer Bar Wildlife Area, Okanogan, Washington

- Map: http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&t=p&z=13&q=48.0936744,-119.7121811&ll=48.0936744,-119.7121811

- Checklist: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S26801658
- Comments: "Spotted the NHOW soon after arriving. Home owner had posted a sign stating no photographs so out of respect for that we went up the road a bit. As we were ready to leave a truck pulled up to the driveway and the man inside appeared to write down our license plate as we drove past. We left the area to bird Cassimer Bar waterfront for about an hour. Before leaving for home we drove through the area to see if the owl had moved so that a photo could be taken. What we saw instead was what appeared to be the owl hanging by one foot, upside down dead from the tree. We remembered hearing a gunshot a short while earlier. No pictures taken we felt it best to leave the area. Feeling sick!"

I'm betting we're all are. If this is true, I hope someone can get a picture of the carcass (without becoming one yourself). This guy should be prosecuted within the full extent! Maybe with Sandy's observations would be enough to convict if the bird is indeed hanging from a tree on the property and was live one gunshot earlier. This guy should be prosecuted within the full extent!

Jon Houghton, Edmonds