Date: 4/26/25 5:40 am From: Carole Winslow <cjwinslow94...> Subject: Clarion Co- saw-whets, short-ears, early spring arrivals, and nesting raptors
My most exciting birds for the bird atlas this spring are two active northern saw-whet owls nesting in nest boxes. Several members of our local Seneca Rocks Audubon are very active in placing and checking nest boxes and they get the credit for doing all the work and finding these two active nests several weeks ago. They are both on local game lands but that's all I can say about location. They both had 5 eggs on the 9th, and one checked on Thurs had at least four very small young, probably just days old. I am hoping that these nests can fledge successfully. I also have an area where short-eared owls remain as of Wednesday, so hoping once again I can find any concrete sign of breeding.
Cooper's hawks are still working on a new nest right near the house, and there is a red-tailed hawk nest not far away in a white pine near the field edge where I finally was able to see a couple of young ones being fed by mom a couple days ago, still very small so I think they just hatched last week.
A couple of birds were fairly early this year, orchard orioles have been here on the japonica, along with yellow warblers and common yellow-throats, catbirds, wood thrush, rose-breasted grosbeak, and yesterday ovenbirds, redstarts and prairie warblers. I am looking forward to more everyday. Despite so many springs passing since I started birding, it still always comes as almost a shock how fast the changes come every year. One week passes and it's a whole new world..
