Nova Mackentley and I are thrilled to be back at WPBO for another spring owl banding season. It’s still exciting to get back out in the woods at night to work with these amazing birds. As is often the case, the season’s first week has hit us with some wintery conditions, but some owls have been on the move. It’s been a relatively slow start, but that is not unexpected. So far, we have banded 18 Northern Saw-whet Owls, which isn’t bad. We never know what March is going to produce. In previous years, we’ve banded as many as 371 owls and as few as two during the last two weeks of March. The species diversity that WPBO is famous for also varies widely from year to year at the start of the season. The weather does not look promising for the next few nights, but we know the owls will eventually pick up sooner or later. Aside from the owls, we’ve seen northern short-tailed shrews with some regularity, which is a first for us. Then, tonight a red-backed vole walked between my feet, tried to get under my boot, and reached up, seemingly thinking about trying to climb my leg.
Weighing in at 131 grams, this Northern Saw-whet Owl may be the heaviest we have ever banded.
Red-backed vole. As these guys are a primary food source for some of our favorite owls, we have a fondness for them.
~ Chris Neri & Nova Mackentley
2023 Spring Owl Banders
You can read Chris and Nova’s weekly blog posts and follow WPBO’s social media (Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter) for owl banding highlights this season.
Owl Banding Presentations — Visitors may observe owls that have been banded on Friday and Saturday evenings from dusk until midnight. Please note that banding is weather dependent and it is at the banders’ discretion to cancel banding accordingly. Observation will be limited to outdoors only and we encourage participants to wear masks and continue to practice social distancing whenever possible. For the safety of the owls, flash photography and recording video is prohibited.
