Owl calls recorded tonight!

Coming back late from the store, heard some beautiful owl calls in my neighborhood. Camera handy, I decided to record the sounds. NO shots of the owls, though, with that one. I did get a video camera partway through with nightshot, but haven't had a chance to check that yet, and see if I caught any of the owls themselves. Don't think so, but maybe watching on the TV, something will show. If it does, will upload that, too. In any case, beautiful calls! I am not at all certain of the species, though I don't think they are great horned owls. My son has seen these in the neighborhood more closely, and he is sure they are not. I saw one elsewhere (locally), that I am certain was not as well, with a similar call. Rhythm was different (more of a whoo who-who whoo rhythm), but about the right size. It's possible these are short-eared owls. The call on this page seems similar, in any case. short-eared owl call and info

Anyway, here is the "video". Not really anything to see, just lights in the area, so you can minimize or go to another tab while listening. Just the calls (and one to my son to grab the nightshot cam). Enjoy!

In early Rome a dead Owl nailed to the door of a house averted all evil that it supposedly had earlier caused. To hear the hoot of an Owl presaged imminent death. The deaths of Julius Caesar, Augustus, Commodus Aurelius, and Agrippa were apparently all predicted by an Owl.

Another Roman superstition was that witches transformed into Owls, and sucked the blood of babies.

In Roman Mythology, Proserpine (Persephone) was transported to the underworld against her will by Pluto (Hades), god of the underworld, and was to be allowed to return to her mother Ceres (Demeter), goddess of agriculture, providing she ate nothing while in the underworld. Ascalpus, however, saw her picking a pomegranate, and told what he had seen. He was turned into an Owl for his trouble - "a sluggish Screech Owl, a loathsome bird." (Names in brackets indicate the Greek names for the same Gods)

Folklore surrounding the Barn Owl is better recorded than for most other Owls. In English literature the Barn Owl had a sinister reputation probably because it was a bird of darkness, and darkness was always associated with death. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, the poets Robert Blair and William Wordsworth used the Barn Owl as their favourite "bird of doom." During that same period many people believed that the screech or call of an Owl flying past the window of a sick person meant imminent death.

The Barn Owl has also been used to predict the weather by people in England. A screeching Owl meant cold weather or a storm was coming. If heard during foul weather a change in the weather was at hand.
OwlPage

Run !

reply to post by Ben81




Always tons of legends about owls, and all so silly, really! Being a serious night person, I can't find fault with them for the hours they keep. Not much of one for superstition, in any case. 'Sides, if they were harbingers of doom, the one I hear years back would have gotten me!

Do wish, in all seriousness, that I could get a nice shot of one! Tried getting closer with the older cam (the one with the SO-hard-to-find-these-days nightshot), but the one flew to another tree every time. Of course, it then flew right back, just to tease. Love listening to them, though. Never heard so many at once! Maybe it was a competition for the girl or something.

reply to post by LadyGreenEyes


Thats a owl allright
you should leave the camera near its nest over the night and come back and collect the data, eliminating background noises

I love owls and puss

reply to post by Spacespider


Three of them, at least. No doubt of the numbers, as the calls overlapped from at least three locations. More locations, but one was flying - we saw it. They are something, though! Will have to try and locate a nest during the day, though - see if I can capture any images!

First thing that came to mind after I read the thread heading was,

"I wonder if owls gossip as much as humans when they make a call to each other.

Originally posted by fourthmeal
First thing that came to mind after I read the thread heading was,

"I wonder if owls gossip as much as humans when they make a call to each other.

They might have been thinking, "Why are these weird humans out here with those odd, shiny things?"

Who knows, though......bids are pretty smart.

reply to post by LadyGreenEyes

I am not at all certain of the species, though I don't think they are great horned owls.

www.allaboutbirds.org...

:-)

(We raised a young one for release when I was a kid - off the record - courtesy of F&W)

reply to post by Spiramirabilis



My cousin and I decided we wanted an owl as a pet once... waaaay back when. Well, back then we didnt really have the same laws.... and we were kids and wouldnt have even thought of it even. We spent MONTHS... trying to catch an owl.. ANY owl.. with a sheet, flour sack, fishing net, mice with string, you name it. never were successful.. but did learn that owls are badass.. and not overly friendly when youre trying to drop a sheet on them in grandmas barn.

I still have the scars on my arms and abdomen from trying to grab a wildcat that we thought was just a cool cat... spent a while in the hospital due to an infection from its claws and bites. Bartonellosis... ugh. Caught that cat though.. and my dad went berzerk. HEHE!

On that note.. Im almost on my 5th decade of life.. and Im trying to catch this crow...

reply to post by Advantage

On that note.. Im almost on my 5th decade of life.. and Im trying to catch this crow...

The owl we had had lost her mother - the tree they were nesting in was down. The whole plan was to take the young one and raise it as best we could to live on it's own - then let it go

It all went according to plan

put the wildlife down - and step away Advantage

:-)

best to leave them all alone - free - in the wild

(I have a special fondness for crows too)

Originally posted by Spiramirabilis
reply to post by LadyGreenEyes

 

I am not at all certain of the species, though I don't think they are great horned owls.

www.allaboutbirds.org...

:-)

(We raised a young one for release when I was a kid - off the record - courtesy of F&W)

Nice recordings, but not like what we have here. Plus, these don't have the large "ears" that horned owls do. Pretty familiar with them, and yeah, they can be here.

Sounds like fun, raising one.

reply to post by LadyGreenEyes

Nice recordings, but not like what we have here. Plus, these don't have the large "ears" that horned owls do. Pretty familiar with them, and yeah, they can be here.

they're everywhere! Pretty sure that's what you were listening to that night
compare your recording to the short eared, then with Great Horned Owl, 'pair calling' in this recording:
www.owlpages.com...

it's not easy to see one since they pretty much only become active at dusk - but they definitely can share territory with your short ear - which I've never seen in the wild myself

owls are tricky :-)

Sounds like fun, raising one.

well - I don't want to give Advantage any encouragement - but, yeah. They're smart - and funny

and painful - even when they're just playing :-)

reply to post by Spiramirabilis


They are very smart, and gorgeous animals! In this case, though, my son has seen the ones in our neighborhood, and what he's seen (and I glimpsed once or twice) isn't great horned. They also sounded pretty much like one I saw, nice and close and clear, on post not too far from where we are. Large owl, like the short-eared can be, and looked pretty much like one (ears down, as these seem to do), whoo-ing at me pretty as could be, from the top of a pole at a gas station one night. Very talkative fellow, that one, and SO pretty. Virtually identical pitch to these, and yes, very similar to the great horned, as well.

Of course, I would be happy to see both types around! They are great hunters, for keeping unwanted pests away, and beautiful creatures! Keep hoping one will be in a tree that I can catch with the nightshot on the video camera some night! The one we get most often seems to prefer a nice, dark tree across the street, and he flies to another if you walk too close. Camera shy!

reply to post by LadyGreenEyes


funny how two people can listen to the same thing - and hear it all different

:-)

life is like that sometimes - isn't it?

You probably have both living right there - you just haven't seen the one

here:
birds.audubon.org...
still going on right now - seems like something you and your kids would really enjoy

we birders are an odd lot - but you belong to ATS - so that shouldn't scare you off :-)

We could always worship that owl at bohemian grove (Molech).

Owl talk to you later.

reply to post by Spiramirabilis


Odd? Define "odd". "Normal" is totally boring! I am sure there are great horned owls in this general area, just not right where I am. In any case, any and all are cool to listen to!

Originally posted by resoe26
We could always worship that owl at bohemian grove (Molech).

Owl talk to you later.

Um...no? Couldn't they have chosen some stupid thing, instead of an owl?

Whooo knows....!