We sometimes have some of these owls around here in Scotland, but the local jackdaws keep killing them. They're not native to Scotland and we suspect that they are being released from a falconry in northern England. Whoever keeps doing this can you please stop, you're making the jackdaws far too brave. I had to condition the birds not to attack children in the area. Stop sending us all your owls.
We have a pair of barred owls and they are such a delight. The male ("Barny", as I first met him in my barn) will visit and chat for an hour or more at a time. A few weeks ago, I struck up a fire in our fireplace that we hadn't used since we moved in 2 years ago. A short while later, I heard Barny outside my house calling LOUDLY (not the song...the actual "come here now!" call). I went outside and he got very close and was looking panicked, leaning forward and keeping his wings spread and pointed back. I think he was trying to warn me that my house was on fire. I talked to him calmly trying to let him know there was no problem, and he settled down and went off to hunt.
That is so sweet to hear that you had a connection with Barney. I think he was trying to warn you thinking something was wrong. We have barred owls by our home. The beautiful sounds can be heard throughout the night.
@@ketchuph8r No, he lives in a cypress grove on the other side of my neighbor's field. But there were plenty of rats in the barn, so that probably drew him in, at least until he ate them all.
A couple years ago, I found an injured Barred Owl on the road near my home. It was soaked from the rain and was so stunned and passive that I was able to pick it up, put in the front seat next to me the rest of the way home, and then set it in a blanketed plastic tub for the night. I took it to a licensed vet clinic a few towns over to get looked and and hopefully treated. I knew that its mate lived in my neighborhood and enjoyed their presence. In fact, his mate seemed to know that I had taken him and she kept coming to my bedroom porch for a few days after I had taken him to the vet. Unfortunately, the clinic euthanized him, citing severe and unrecoverable blunt force trauma (likely due to a car). The day after I got the news, I once again found his mate on my porch staring at me as though she knew. I felt terrible. Bleeding heart that I am, I apologized and explained to her what had happened. As if she could understand me, but it made me feel a little better I guess 🙄. After that I didn't see her except for a couple times the rest of the year. I figured she would eventually leave and find another mate. Cut forward to last year. I'm coming home from my late night of work and pull into my driveway to find THREE Barred Owl youths all perched on the electric lines above my driveway. In the shadows I can see a small male Barred Owl perched on the power line going to my house. Sitting with the youths and in full illumination of the street light was the female Barred Owl from the previous year. It felt as though she was telling me that she was ok and I didn't need to guilt myself over her previous mate's death. I sat in the driveway for an hour crying and enjoying the moment. The father obviously very cautious, the mother less so, and the youths all bobbing their heads and looking and me with curiosity. They kept coming every night for about a week and I would sit on the hood of my car for a little while, each time, to watch and be thankful. I still see and hear the Barred Owls every now and again and hope that they will visit me again this year.
Thank you, for sharing. Similar things have happened in my life. I call them "God Winks". Love to hear when this type of life experience happens. Thank you, for taking care of them. I also admire Barred Owls. 🦉
We love our barred owl conversations while camping here in Nova Scotia. It used to terrify my 7 year old but I would tell him that the owl just wants to know "who cooks for you?" 😂 Now we laugh every time we hear it!
They are fascinating creatures! When I lived in Seattle in a treed area, we had a pair calling to each other who sounded like monkeys or apes. Thank you, Lesley!
That is so awesome about you getting to hear a pair. Their calls really are neat, and they certainly do sound like monkeys. Cool birds. Thanks for watching!
Thank you for putting the spotlight on Strix varia. Lots of Barred Owl habitat near where I live, and I can hear them some nights from my front porch. I got to photograph two owlets that had made it from the nest and into the top of a Cypress tree. Their parents kept feeding them while they built up enough strength to fly.
Awesome youtube name! Thank you for the kind donation, appreciate it a lot. That is so awesome about you getting to see the family, and they must be so incredible to listen to at night! Thanks for watching, have a great evening!
@chriscarlsen2100 Yes on the RUclips app, a few spaces down from the like/dislike button is a "Thanks" with a dollar sign next to it. You can donate any amount and customize your message.
I have at least one pair in the city woods behind my house, and they have been there several years. During the daytime, they do battle with the hawks, chasing each other between houses and over our pool area. Come night, they begin with their calls back and forth. By 10:00 PM, they sound like howler monkeys. By 5:00AM, the show ends. Soooo cool!
@@zeldasmith6154 I never understood why it can't be both. God(s) gave the ingredients for life, and that life evolved and continues too. Though, that's just my two cents. So let's just appreciate the barred owl..
I had a barred owl screech just as I stepped out of the door in total darkness- every hair stood on end and my muscles locked! 😳 It took a moment to realize what it was and I laughed. Didn't know they sometimes use nest boxes, will definitely build one for next year... Stunning clips and photos, and the calls were awesome! Thank you for the video (and the outtakes- they were a hoot!) Have a great evening!🦉
I reside deep in the Willamette valley, a rainforest in Oregon, and I'm lucky enough to have a pair of giant & gorgeous barred owls frequenting our property. I've only seen them on very foggy mornings at dawn & feel them looking at me before I spot them way up peering down at me. I love listening to them, but I'll yell ya, the first time I heard that screaming type call in the middle of the night, my hair stood on end 😳 Another great addition to a fantastic channel! Thank you, Leslie 🐦
Hahaha I can totally understand how that call would frighten you. I would be no good out in the woods and hearing that sound! WOW. I think it's pretty cool that you got to see them one time and under the most beautiful atmospheric conditions. Must have been beautiful. Thanks so much for watching, I hope you have a wonderful night :)
Sounds like you live in paradise 😇 We have few native owls here in UK, but I am privileged enough to live near a park and have a pair of resident Tawnies and they can get VERY vocal sometimes 😊 Woohoohoo-hoooo and Kewick! are very much a part of my bedtime routine ❤🦉
Last summer I had a pair that would cackle maniacally in the spring/summer making mating calls literally 3 ft over my bedroom ceiling EVERY night around 930PM haha. Luckily I dont go to bed early
I love the sound the Barred Owl makes! Recently I have one living just inside the woods at my house. 18 years I've lived here, and I've never seen one!! Oh well! Thank you, Lesley!!
I have fond memories of camping in the Berkshires, sitting on a mountain top and twilight and hearing various barred owls hooting across the hillside and valleys. At night sometimes one would hoot loudly just above my tent, startling me, but that feeling would quickly be replaced by gratitude for the experience.
Iast week in suburban Austin Texas, I had the honor of having 2 barred owls in my backyard trees in the early morning. They were calling back and forth to each other. It was a special moment. ❤
Hi, Lesley! Thank you so much for this great Barred Owl video. I have never seen one here in Northeast Pennsylvania, but I hear them often, mostly in late Spring and summer. I was on my computer last year listening to various bird calls late one evening near an open window when I heard one nearby. I happened to be listening to Barred Owl vocalizatons when I received a return call. I played it again, and received another return call. At that point, I discontinued the calls so as not to disappoint the bird if it came seeking a mate. Happily, I heard the call of a second owl that was clearly of the opposite sex. The banter went on for several minutes before fading away. Still one of my all-time favorite birds!
What a fun and unexpected experience that must have been, and I'm so glad that there was another caller in the woods for him. Birds lead some pretty fascinating lives. Thanks for watching and sharing your story. It was a pleasure to read. :)
I heard the monkey sounds they make and I had no idea at the time what it was I was hearing and they were really loud. I'm not embarrassed to admit it scared me haha as I was alone in my cottage and it was late at night. Felt like I had been teleported to a jungle!
I overheard a father talking to his daughter while walking in front of my house. He said: You hear that owl?! For years I thought it was an owl too. Nope doves! 🕊️ Love your channel. You show me stuff that's so foreign to my everyday life. Keeps me tied to nature. Thanks for the vids
I watched a breeding pair for years in exactly the environment described. I eventually left a lawn chair to sit in within 50 yards of an annual nesting site. The pair would regularly come to watch me sit. If I walked my dog in the same woods one of the owls would follow. I discovered that the dog was spooking mice from under logs and the owl would try to catch them. They make a peculiar sound when angry or threatened. It is a loud clicking sound, like hammering on a board with a stick. I’ve heard/seen them attack a raccoon too close to a nest. The attack was preempted with the clicking. Wonderful bird to watch. Thank you for program.
I feel incredibly lucky that a month ago, when I was walking my dog around my neighborhood around 8 or 9 am, a barred owl flew up into a tree across the street from me. It stayed perched in that tree when I approached, and leaned down and looked into my eyes as if interested a few times. I've been around captive hawks and other birds of prey who seem to look through you as if you don't matter to them, so this was a unique experience.
Lesley, what great coverage of the Barred Owl! Thank you for the time, research, effort that went into that presentation. Expressions of appreciation go out to those who contributed images as well. After having had the privilege of five Barred Owl sightings starting in the autumn of 2021, I have not come across one for the past year. I carefully scrutinized your contributors images and failed to see one with the full tawny coloured under feather chest exposed. I continue to count it as a privilege to have seen and captured such an image. I also wish to thank you for the kind reminder to be respectful of our feathered friends 'space'.
I love these owls. They are all around our land and I often see one swooping over our creek when I pull into the driveway at night and I love listening to their sounds❤
We have barred owls near our cabin in NW Wisconsin....I so love listening to them in the middle of a summer night calling to each other. So calming and beautiful. Now if I could just see one! 😊
I hope you get to see one :) Maybe this will be the year ( Fingers crossed for you ) I can totally see how their calls can be so calm and soothing, as long as it's not those crazy frightening ones they make, hahah. Wonderful birds. Thanks for watching, I hope you have a great night 🥰
this is my favorite owl. I discovered them by my place in Gainesville FL many years go when I had my window open in January (FL, remember) and I heard what I thought was coyotes howling in the distance, then realized that no, it was some weird birds outside closer. I went outside and saw my neighbors looking up at the trees "It's owls!" they said. The sounds you describe here were coming from all of the trees surrounding our buildings. I did some research on the sounds they were making and learned what a barred owl is. I've since moved a bit north and to a new apartment by some thick woods, and there are barred owls hooting in those woods every evening.
7:35 Had no idea that was what that sound is. I heard that call in South Carolina last year and just assumed two owls were just trying to find each other. Apparently Mr. male owl was getting his rocks off. Kudos to those owls. Thanks Lesley for breaking this down
I live in Georgia, U.S. My first encounter with this bird was about 3 am in the middle of the night when a pair were calling back and forth. They were not far from our bedroom window since we live by a woods with a creek running through it. Woke me up out of a dead sleep and I sat straight up. Sounded like screaming monkeys! Kinda scary at first until we figured out what was going on.
Same here. I live in a suburb south of Atlanta. My backyard is wooded and there's a creek and marsh very close by. The calls used to scare me but now it provides a soothing effect. I now get excited and feel blessed to have them around. Some nights during mating seasons it's like a symphony of back n forth chatter that can last for up to an hour.
@@LesleytheBirdNerd Thank you- you’re the first to explain the “monkey sounds” as they truly sound just like a barrel full of monkeys squabbling amongst themselves! I hear them do this all the time! I actually can call them in, and it’s a “hoot” to have them come in close to figure me out. Lately, however, my Belgian Malinois has decided to howl when she hears them, and especially when I call them. I think she’s just jealous! I, too, live in NW GA, about an hour’s drive from Atlanta. I’m blessed to have several patches of woods around and I have a nice creek less than 100 feet from my house (my property ends in the middle of the small but consistent stream. I think this location is why I seem to hear several pairs calling. Just wondered how territorial are they? The woods behind me is not a very large tract and serves as a buffer between several older neighborhoods. As a bird lover in general and a Raptor lover, I find this species most intriguing. I’m also an artist and would love to create a nice portrait of one. While I can find lots of photo references, I’ve found that seeing them (or any subject) in their habitat provides me with a perspective that is unavailable through still photos or even high quality videos. I’m hoping to see them in person with a little more effort (although using a wheelchair in the woods is a bit of a challenge, I used to hunt quite often using one, so “where there’s a will there’s a way”! Thanks again for sharing this educational video. I’m going to share it with my fellow Owl lovers!
I live in Arkansas and I have many barred owls around my area. Some nights they're all around our house, calling back and forth. We've also been lucky enough to have one frequent a huge old pine tree on the property line right behind the house-we've seen it many times since moving here. I never get tired of hearing them. 😊
How I love hearing these majestic birds calling each other across our ridge. While there's some lots still being developed, there's still a lot of woods. Another great video, many thanks.
🐦Another FANTASTIC and Fascinating Informational BirdNerd Production Lesleyl!!! As it so happens, we are somewhat fortunate to have a pair nesting (?) close to our house in either the large Spruce, or big hardwood burr oak possibly.. Seemed most years we would hear some off and on, especially Fall or Spring into Summer...Then for z couple years, nothing. So delighted to hear them again!! One time I swear there were several out back doing the mating call cacaphony!! Comical lol!! They are so elusive and I never see them. I have gotten photos in the past when hubby and I would drive the back roads.... However,, gas, wear and tear on all ( car, us, camera) lol takes a pricey toll... Love your scenics! That sunset or sunrise is DAZZLING!!! !I've to see more!! I'm expecting to get out to the park for sky -storm cloud shots possibly...this year.. Thank You and Keep up the Beautiful work!! Happy Easter also! Your Birdy Fan, Mindi 🐣🕊🐧🦃🐓🐔🙋
I had the lovely opportunity to watch a couple of these owls in the forest. It was just me and them. I watched the male for more than an hour and captured over 400 photos. Coolest ever wildlife experience for me so far.
Wildlife photography in all it's forms is wonderful. To be able to get close ups of birds always amazes me. I can hear 'em in the trees and rarely spot 'em
Thank you Lesley❤... I would like to add that Cornell has a live camera on a Barred Owl nest. A few days ago, there were eggs she is sitting on...always interesting to watch 😊
Wonderful video with lots of helpful information!! We used to have some very nearby and one landed on a tree branch right outside of my window, just a few days after I said I wanted to see the owl others were seeing! My wish was granted! We used to hear them at night and it's true, they are very loud!! Such beautiful creatures!!
I've yet to see the barred owls that lives below me on the edge of the river. I've been listening to their calls for years. I want to go to a friends duck blind to see if I can snap a photo or two. They've just got it done. I love hearing them. I've heard most of their calls. Thank you for sharing Lesley. 😊
Another wonderful video, Lesley! Thank you! I live in rural Maryland with woods and a creek in our backyard. We love to hear our very loud barred owls almost daily! Their calls are LOUD! We’ve been here 30 years and have heard them most of that time!
I just saw a pair of these in a rural park this evening. They are sedentary birds so it is probably the same pair I have seen in that park last year and the year before. Barred Owl caterwauling is the best sound in the woods!
Thank you for including the calls. One recent night our resident Barred owl & Co made sounds we had not heard before. This confirms for me, that He has a mate this year! I will watch the trees in our yard for daytime owl movements.
Thank you for this in-depth video. We have a wooded back yard with a creek near Pocahontas State Park, VA and everything you covered happened just minutes ago. A pair was calling, one the ‘who cooks for you’ song and then came the response. Then the loud “monkey sounds” started up which blew me away. I kid you not, a crow started to warn the forest directly afterwards and then all fell silent. A testament of how accurate your information is! Thank you.
I've never seen one, but my son and I heard a pair while rough camping in the Red River Gorge in Kentucky (Late June 2022, for seasonal context). The sun had just set, I was starting to drift off to sleep when I thought I heard someone yelling from a ways off. The "yelling" started getting closer; This roused me up, and we ended up listening to two of them calling back and forth from either side of our dwellings for maybe a half-hour. I memorized two of the calls and when we got back to civilization I started sifting through owl calls online 'til I found my answer. Cool creatures.
What an amazing video...wow thank you so so much...been lucky to have daily visits of a beautiful barred owl lately...many days in a row....right there at 40 feet from my house..and 2 days ago, was treated by a really over vocal one...for 30 minutes...it was amazing as always...still so much snow around here and having that amazing bird perched right there...cannot ask for more....thank you again...big fan of yours...
I had one in my yard a few nights ago. At first I didn't recognize the loud call, but then it dawned on me and I saw her take up and off. It was truly a magical moment.
When I bought my property (In Northern Ohio) 7 years ago, I bought it as an as-is foreclosure. Meaning I had to mow it. All 2.5 acres of it. Nipple high. With a push mower. During the mow, I felt.....like I was being watched. Sure enough, a barred owl was watching me, maybe 20 yards away. "Oh, COOL! What are the odds that---oh God I'm mowing down his hunting ground" 😢. Now there is a family of at least three, either in our back woods or the park across the street. They seem most chatty on rainy evenings. Never understood why they hoot at night, when they...are...hunting....🤔
I have a family on my property. The female is not shy at all. She is very active after 3pm usually. She is very protective of her nest. All my friends cime by just to see the owl. Lol.
I built a Barred Owl house and put it about 30 ft up in a tree behind my house in SC in Nov 2019. It was vacant until this spring when we got tenants. There is no camera inside but based on observed behavior, I think the chicks have hatched. In any event, we get to watch the adults come and go when we are lucky and get to hear them just about every day. It makes me happy. Thank you Leslie. I enjoy your stuff.
We used to have a barred owl that would visit every night just after dusk. She would come as close as ten feet and seemed to be very interested in out dogs. She would visit us, then flit from one tree trunk to another low on the trunk. Love the funny sounds you found of these owls. Thank you for publishing!
I love...Owls...very cool birds...got scared when I was a Boy Scout camping out....convinced it was a ghost making that noise...lol....have a wonderful week
Hahaha, Russ I can completely understand how you would be scared of them as a boy. The imaginative minds of kids, so fun. You have wonderful week too, and your wife...and your birds :D
Love hearing these guys. It tells me I'm in an older and healthy forest. They tend to despise the crowded understory of young forests as it gives them very little space to glide. So if I'm camping at night and I hear a barred owl it always feels special. Like something telling me "this is a holy place, drink it in, but tread gently."
Wow, what a detailed and well-structured video! The effort and dedication from this channel are truly commendable. 🦉👏 Some key highlights I loved: - Barred Owls are found in North America, favoring forests and wooded areas. 🌲 - Their haunting yet beautiful "Who Cooks for You" call is unforgettable! 🎶 - Learning about their diet and nesting habits, including how to attract them with a nest box, was so insightful. - The comparison between Barred Owls and Spotted Owls was a great addition, especially for nature enthusiasts. - Fun fact: The oldest recorded Barred Owl was over 34 years old! Thank you for such an informative video - definitely sharing this with fellow bird lovers! Keep up the amazing work! 🙌
I have these in my area, and during breeding season I have heard them hooting at all hours. When I volunteered at the raptor center, I was the aviary caretaker for the display Barred owls for years. There were six of them in the aviary, and if one started hooting, they would all join in as would some of the rehab patients in other cages and maybe even a local wild one or two.
We have had Barred owls on our property here in southern nh for years. We love listening to their chatter in the woods. March of 2020 we had one fall down our chimney and ended up in our family room. The female was in a big pine out side and while the male was stuck in the chimney, they were calling back and forth. Once the male was in the family room, we opened the door and out he flew. We will never forget that.
I miss these guys in my small town Iowa neighborhood. They were plentiful for a couple of years, saw them everyday. Counted five at once, most likely three of them off spring. I still hear the monkey call every once in a while though!
We had a pair in our little grove of mesquite trees a few years ago. I’ve since moved, but the owls would sit outside our window at night and hoot to each other. I loved them. ❤
The bloopers at the end were hilarious! Great touch! This was a very interesting video. I love these owls eyes. They are so beautiful. I just started following Sophie's backyard wildlife and have been watching her live feed of a pair nesting. They are such cool owls. I was alittle disappointed to hear that if you have Great Horned Owls you probably would never see them. I have a pair of Great Horned Owls that have been nesting near by for the last couple years. They like to hang out like in my oak tree and whoot all night. I love listening to them. I think they have been dinning on mice that come and feed on the fallen bird seed under the feeders. I live on the edge of a farm field and having field mice sneak in the house is very common in the winter. Since those Owls showed up I can probably count on one hand how many mice have snuck in the last couple years. Anyway back to your video, thanks for all the info. I loved that you played alot of their calls. That was neat to hear. Awesome video!
Haha. I'm glad you enjoyed the bloopers 😅. I like Sophie's videos too, especially the barred owl. Really incredible. Great horned owls, any owl really, are definitely good for the ecosystem. Can't imagine the rodents we'd have without their presence 😮. Thanks a lot for watching. I hope spring is shaping up nicely out your way 😊
Thank you for sharing this video Lesilie. Barred Owls are probably my favorite. They are spooky and have a variety of vocals. I like doing night photography around wooded areas. My first encounter with a Barred Owl was a scary experience. I was photographing a river at night. Had a camera on a tripod stand doing stiill photography. It was about 1:30 AM. I thought I was alone in the woods. But a Barred Owl made such an unusual noise. It sounded like a 16 feet tall monster. Was fortunate enough to catch the call in a recording. It took a few days to determine it was a Barred Owl. I am a fan!!!!
Lovely video, Lesley- always glad to see an upload from you. Barred owls are a favorite of mine. There's a pair who's lived in the riparian woods behind my house in Alabama for several years. I often hear them calling and sometimes duetting even during the day. One early evening a month ago I stumbled upon one of them as I was walking the trail into the woods. I noticed a lot of songbirds sounding perturbed in the trees nearby, and I looked up to see the barred owl perched directly above me, with its head turned down staring right at me! I liked to think we're friends- I give them space whenever I spot them, and I've had one seemingly come watch me a few times when I've been in the backyard, with it flying in to a nearby tree branch and looking right at me. I've gotten to see an adult pair with an owllet in another neighborhood off my creek (all were perched separately in a cluster of pines), and it was so neat to see the fuzzy owllet bob its head in circles as it looked at me.
Some great footage there. Owls are an endless source of fascination. A few weeks ago, I was fortunate to hear a Powerful Owl nearby one night. The area around here isn't quite right for them so I hope the owl found a more salubrious home.
We had one roosting about 40' up on a pine branch overhanging the driveway. He was magnificent. The first time we heard the Mating Boogie sounds.... scared the hell out of us. Sounded like hyenas. Amazing birds!
We have Barred Owls (Jacksonville FL) and hear them 2-4 nights a week. (Year 'round.) So fun to listen to. Am planning to put up a box. Thanks for this.
I hear em every year at my place in western Maine, sometimes wake me up with that goosebumpy whale call. Old growth hemlock and pine and mixed hardwoods with a year-round brook.
I love watching the wing spans. When they… do, … fly. It’s incredible. I might be very mistaken… thank you. I’ll listen. Watch. You’re the best! Lesley.
I’ve been watching the same pair of barred owls for 9 almost 10 years. I see them every day. They’ve had 8 clutches so far. They’re like family to me. (Eastern Massachusetts)
Leslie,I am one of the lucky people who has the pleasure of seeing a nesting pair last year and they are back again this year. I see at least one every day. Had a great opportunity to see them take care of their fledgling last year. One of the adults calls then flush over my house.
I live at the edge of a rural town in Northern Vermont, where it's absolutely quiet, especially at night. Across the valley from my house are hills covered with dense forest. I sometimes awake rather early in the morning, and if I'm lucky, I'll hear the "Who cooks for you?" calls of the barred owl. They echo through the pitch black forest. The calls are mysterious but strangely comforting. BTW - I'm a transplanted city girl. I originally lived in a large noisy city in lower New York State, and had yet to learn about the barred owl and other wildlife of the area. In the first week living in my new home, I was out on my front stoop at night. I happened to hear the calls of a barred owl and thought, "Who's that joker?" I assumed it was a drunk "howling at the moon"! 🤣
I had a great horned owl that used to follow me and my 3 rotties around at night. I’m in north Texas so summers are too hot to exercise Rottweiler dogs in during the day and sometimes even at night. He would sit on the diving rock on our pool and watch us as the dogs rested with a chew toy after a walk around our 11 acres or rounds of ball chasing. It was startling sometimes to look up and see him flying not far above my head silently. I always used to think he was just habituated to us as co creatures of the night and grew to enjoy our company but more likely we scared prey into making mistakes as we roamed the darkness and he just waited with us when resting until we got back out to scare up some more mice or rabbits. 😊
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We sometimes have some of these owls around here in Scotland, but the local jackdaws keep killing them.
They're not native to Scotland and we suspect that they are being released from a falconry in northern England.
Whoever keeps doing this can you please stop, you're making the jackdaws far too brave.
I had to condition the birds not to attack children in the area. Stop sending us all your owls.
😂😮😂😮😂😮😮@@samwamm85
We have a pair of barred owls and they are such a delight. The male ("Barny", as I first met him in my barn) will visit and chat for an hour or more at a time. A few weeks ago, I struck up a fire in our fireplace that we hadn't used since we moved in 2 years ago. A short while later, I heard Barny outside my house calling LOUDLY (not the song...the actual "come here now!" call). I went outside and he got very close and was looking panicked, leaning forward and keeping his wings spread and pointed back. I think he was trying to warn me that my house was on fire. I talked to him calmly trying to let him know there was no problem, and he settled down and went off to hunt.
That is so sweet to hear that you had a connection with Barney. I think he was trying to warn you thinking something was wrong.
We have barred owls by our home. The beautiful sounds can be heard throughout the night.
wonder if he had a nest in there
@@ketchuph8r No, he lives in a cypress grove on the other side of my neighbor's field. But there were plenty of rats in the barn, so that probably drew him in, at least until he ate them all.
@@DoubleplusUngoodthinkful sounds like he is on The Good Boy Helpy Squad! eradicates rats and watches for chimney fires! 🩷
@ketchuph8r same thought!
(Also: ketchup is awesome!!)
A couple years ago, I found an injured Barred Owl on the road near my home. It was soaked from the rain and was so stunned and passive that I was able to pick it up, put in the front seat next to me the rest of the way home, and then set it in a blanketed plastic tub for the night.
I took it to a licensed vet clinic a few towns over to get looked and and hopefully treated. I knew that its mate lived in my neighborhood and enjoyed their presence. In fact, his mate seemed to know that I had taken him and she kept coming to my bedroom porch for a few days after I had taken him to the vet. Unfortunately, the clinic euthanized him, citing severe and unrecoverable blunt force trauma (likely due to a car).
The day after I got the news, I once again found his mate on my porch staring at me as though she knew. I felt terrible. Bleeding heart that I am, I apologized and explained to her what had happened. As if she could understand me, but it made me feel a little better I guess 🙄. After that I didn't see her except for a couple times the rest of the year. I figured she would eventually leave and find another mate.
Cut forward to last year. I'm coming home from my late night of work and pull into my driveway to find THREE Barred Owl youths all perched on the electric lines above my driveway. In the shadows I can see a small male Barred Owl perched on the power line going to my house. Sitting with the youths and in full illumination of the street light was the female Barred Owl from the previous year.
It felt as though she was telling me that she was ok and I didn't need to guilt myself over her previous mate's death. I sat in the driveway for an hour crying and enjoying the moment. The father obviously very cautious, the mother less so, and the youths all bobbing their heads and looking and me with curiosity. They kept coming every night for about a week and I would sit on the hood of my car for a little while, each time, to watch and be thankful.
I still see and hear the Barred Owls every now and again and hope that they will visit me again this year.
Beautiful ❤
Thank you, for sharing. Similar things have happened in my life. I call them "God Winks". Love to hear when this type of life experience happens. Thank you, for taking care of them. I also admire Barred Owls. 🦉
We love our barred owl conversations while camping here in Nova Scotia. It used to terrify my 7 year old but I would tell him that the owl just wants to know "who cooks for you?" 😂 Now we laugh every time we hear it!
lol to sweet
And the dumbasses in the USFS want to kill 400k of them to “save the spotted owls”. Let the better species live…
They are fascinating creatures! When I lived in Seattle in a treed area, we had a pair calling to each other who sounded like monkeys or apes.
Thank you, Lesley!
That is so awesome about you getting to hear a pair. Their calls really are neat, and they certainly do sound like monkeys. Cool birds. Thanks for watching!
@@LesleytheBirdNerd yes, they get WILD sometimes
We live in south western British Columbia, the Barred Owls on our hobbie farm make it sound like a Zoo, monkeys and all.
@@LesleytheBirdNerd I love your picture 🥰
Thank you for putting the spotlight on Strix varia. Lots of Barred Owl habitat near where I live, and I can hear them some nights from my front porch. I got to photograph two owlets that had made it from the nest and into the top of a Cypress tree. Their parents kept feeding them while they built up enough strength to fly.
Awesome youtube name! Thank you for the kind donation, appreciate it a lot. That is so awesome about you getting to see the family, and they must be so incredible to listen to at night! Thanks for watching, have a great evening!
@@LesleytheBirdNerd how do you make a donation like that?
@@chriscarlsen2100 i think it’s called a super thanks. Look around the video or in the description.
@chriscarlsen2100 Yes on the RUclips app, a few spaces down from the like/dislike button is a "Thanks" with a dollar sign next to it. You can donate any amount and customize your message.
@@chriscarlsen2100 I love your picture😊
So that's the owls I hear in my woods! They are amazing to hear! (And almost always at dusk and throughout the night)
I have at least one pair in the city woods behind my house, and they have been there several years.
During the daytime, they do battle with the hawks, chasing each other between houses and over our pool area.
Come night, they begin with their calls back and forth. By 10:00 PM, they sound like howler monkeys.
By 5:00AM, the show ends.
Soooo cool!
Another beautiful creation from above! Thank you, Lesley!
So glad you enjoyed it, thank you for watching :)
Evolution is a wonderful process.
@@zeldasmith6154 I never understood why it can't be both. God(s) gave the ingredients for life, and that life evolved and continues too. Though, that's just my two cents. So let's just appreciate the barred owl..
only God knows a preditor needs wing feathers that break up wind turbulence to produce silent flight. thats intelligent design not mindless nature
I had a barred owl screech just as I stepped out of the door in total darkness- every hair stood on end and my muscles locked! 😳 It took a moment to realize what it was and I laughed. Didn't know they sometimes use nest boxes, will definitely build one for next year... Stunning clips and photos, and the calls were awesome! Thank you for the video (and the outtakes- they were a hoot!)
Have a great evening!🦉
I absolutely love there face & those eyes.
I reside deep in the Willamette valley, a rainforest in Oregon, and I'm lucky enough to have a pair of giant & gorgeous barred owls frequenting our property. I've only seen them on very foggy mornings at dawn & feel them looking at me before I spot them way up peering down at me. I love listening to them, but I'll yell ya, the first time I heard that screaming type call in the middle of the night, my hair stood on end 😳
Another great addition to a fantastic channel! Thank you, Leslie 🐦
Hahaha I can totally understand how that call would frighten you. I would be no good out in the woods and hearing that sound! WOW. I think it's pretty cool that you got to see them one time and under the most beautiful atmospheric conditions. Must have been beautiful. Thanks so much for watching, I hope you have a wonderful night :)
Sounds like you live in paradise 😇 We have few native owls here in UK, but I am privileged enough to live near a park and have a pair of resident Tawnies and they can get VERY vocal sometimes 😊
Woohoohoo-hoooo and Kewick! are very much a part of my bedtime routine ❤🦉
Last summer I had a pair that would cackle maniacally in the spring/summer making mating calls literally 3 ft over my bedroom ceiling EVERY night around 930PM haha. Luckily I dont go to bed early
Such a beautiful bird❤
My absolute favorite! Their eyes are so mystical.
I love the sound the Barred Owl makes! Recently I have one living just inside the woods at my house. 18 years I've lived here, and I've never seen one!! Oh well! Thank you, Lesley!!
A testament to how hard it really is to see them. Really cool that you hear them though, Thanks a lot for watching. Hope you have a great night 🐦💙💜
Who cooks for you? LOL
I have fond memories of camping in the Berkshires, sitting on a mountain top and twilight and hearing various barred owls hooting across the hillside and valleys. At night sometimes one would hoot loudly just above my tent, startling me, but that feeling would quickly be replaced by gratitude for the experience.
Iast week in suburban Austin Texas, I had the honor of having 2 barred owls in my backyard trees in the early morning. They were calling back and forth to each other. It was a special moment. ❤
Hi, Lesley! Thank you so much for this great Barred Owl video. I have never seen one here in Northeast Pennsylvania, but I hear them often, mostly in late Spring and summer. I was on my computer last year listening to various bird calls late one evening near an open window when I heard one nearby. I happened to be listening to Barred Owl vocalizatons when I received a return call. I played it again, and received another return call. At that point, I discontinued the calls so as not to disappoint the bird if it came seeking a mate. Happily, I heard the call of a second owl that was clearly of the opposite sex. The banter went on for several minutes before fading away. Still one of my all-time favorite birds!
What a fun and unexpected experience that must have been, and I'm so glad that there was another caller in the woods for him. Birds lead some pretty fascinating lives. Thanks for watching and sharing your story. It was a pleasure to read. :)
@@LesleytheBirdNerdgreat video 👍
I heard the monkey sounds they make and I had no idea at the time what it was I was hearing and they were really loud. I'm not embarrassed to admit it scared me haha as I was alone in my cottage and it was late at night. Felt like I had been teleported to a jungle!
Ha..yep it would have that same effect on me too.
What a majestic bird!
Thank you for the enriching information.
(Also, loved the blooper outro)
I overheard a father talking to his daughter while walking in front of my house. He said: You hear that owl?! For years I thought it was an owl too. Nope doves! 🕊️ Love your channel. You show me stuff that's so foreign to my everyday life. Keeps me tied to nature. Thanks for the vids
Lesley, what a beauty!! Wonderful footage. This is one of my favorites so far! What a delight. Thank you so much.
Dear Lesley. Thank you! I adore that bird. Inspire me.
I watched a breeding pair for years in exactly the environment described. I eventually left a lawn chair to sit in within 50 yards of an annual nesting site. The pair would regularly come to watch me sit. If I walked my dog in the same woods one of the owls would follow. I discovered that the dog was spooking mice from under logs and the owl would try to catch them.
They make a peculiar sound when angry or threatened. It is a loud clicking sound, like hammering on a board with a stick. I’ve heard/seen them attack a raccoon too close to a nest. The attack was preempted with the clicking.
Wonderful bird to watch. Thank you for program.
I feel incredibly lucky that a month ago, when I was walking my dog around my neighborhood around 8 or 9 am, a barred owl flew up into a tree across the street from me. It stayed perched in that tree when I approached, and leaned down and looked into my eyes as if interested a few times. I've been around captive hawks and other birds of prey who seem to look through you as if you don't matter to them, so this was a unique experience.
Lesley, what great coverage of the Barred Owl! Thank you for the time, research, effort that went into that presentation. Expressions of appreciation go out to those who contributed images as well. After having had the privilege of five Barred Owl sightings starting in the autumn of 2021, I have not come across one for the past year. I carefully scrutinized your contributors images and failed to see one with the full tawny coloured under feather chest exposed. I continue to count it as a privilege to have seen and captured such an image. I also wish to thank you for the kind reminder to be respectful of our feathered friends 'space'.
I love these owls. They are all around our land and I often see one swooping over our creek when I pull into the driveway at night and I love listening to their sounds❤
We have barred owls near our cabin in NW Wisconsin....I so love listening to them in the middle of a summer night calling to each other. So calming and beautiful. Now if I could just see one! 😊
I hope you get to see one :) Maybe this will be the year ( Fingers crossed for you ) I can totally see how their calls can be so calm and soothing, as long as it's not those crazy frightening ones they make, hahah. Wonderful birds. Thanks for watching, I hope you have a great night 🥰
Who cooks for you
@@LesleytheBirdNerd 😱barred owls live in Canada
@@TimothyB-lb6ek funny 🤪
@@LesleytheBirdNerd I hope I see one🤞
this is my favorite owl. I discovered them by my place in Gainesville FL many years go when I had my window open in January (FL, remember) and I heard what I thought was coyotes howling in the distance, then realized that no, it was some weird birds outside closer. I went outside and saw my neighbors looking up at the trees "It's owls!" they said. The sounds you describe here were coming from all of the trees surrounding our buildings. I did some research on the sounds they were making and learned what a barred owl is. I've since moved a bit north and to a new apartment by some thick woods, and there are barred owls hooting in those woods every evening.
Barred Owls are beautiful and mysterious creatures! I always enjoy seeing them fly. It's interesting that they are silent flyers.
Stunning owl and you have given us a great insight into their world!
Wonderful :) Thank you for watching!
7:35
Had no idea that was what that sound is. I heard that call in South Carolina last year and just assumed two owls were just trying to find each other. Apparently Mr. male owl was getting his rocks off. Kudos to those owls. Thanks Lesley for breaking this down
I live in Georgia, U.S. My first encounter with this bird was about 3 am in the middle of the night when a pair were calling back and forth. They were not far from our bedroom window since we live by a woods with a creek running through it. Woke me up out of a dead sleep and I sat straight up. Sounded like screaming monkeys! Kinda scary at first until we figured out what was going on.
Wow, I can see how that would have been startling. Crazy owls. Thanks for watching. :)
@@LesleytheBirdNerd great 👍 video
Same here. I live in a suburb south of Atlanta. My backyard is wooded and there's a creek and marsh very close by. The calls used to scare me but now it provides a soothing effect. I now get excited and feel blessed to have them around. Some nights during mating seasons it's like a symphony of back n forth chatter that can last for up to an hour.
@@LesleytheBirdNerd Thank you- you’re the first to explain the “monkey sounds” as they truly sound just like a barrel full of monkeys squabbling amongst themselves! I hear them do this all the time! I actually can call them in, and it’s a “hoot” to have them come in close to figure me out. Lately, however, my Belgian Malinois has decided to howl when she hears them, and especially when I call them. I think she’s just jealous!
I, too, live in NW GA, about an hour’s drive from Atlanta. I’m blessed to have several patches of woods around and I have a nice creek less than 100 feet from my house (my property ends in the middle of the small but consistent stream. I think this location is why I seem to hear several pairs calling. Just wondered how territorial are they? The woods behind me is not a very large tract and serves as a buffer between several older neighborhoods.
As a bird lover in general and a Raptor lover, I find this species most intriguing. I’m also an artist and would love to create a nice portrait of one. While I can find lots of photo references, I’ve found that seeing them (or any subject) in their habitat provides me with a perspective that is unavailable through still photos or even high quality videos. I’m hoping to see them in person with a little more effort (although using a wheelchair in the woods is a bit of a challenge, I used to hunt quite often using one, so “where there’s a will there’s a way”!
Thanks again for sharing this educational video. I’m going to share it with my fellow Owl lovers!
I live in Arkansas and I have many barred owls around my area. Some nights they're all around our house, calling back and forth. We've also been lucky enough to have one frequent a huge old pine tree on the property line right behind the house-we've seen it many times since moving here.
I never get tired of hearing them. 😊
How I love hearing these majestic birds calling each other across our ridge. While there's some lots still being developed, there's still a lot of woods. Another great video, many thanks.
🐦Another FANTASTIC and Fascinating Informational BirdNerd Production Lesleyl!!! As it so happens, we are somewhat fortunate to have a pair nesting (?) close to our house in either the large Spruce, or big hardwood burr oak possibly.. Seemed most years we would hear some off and on, especially Fall or Spring into Summer...Then for z couple years, nothing. So delighted to hear them again!! One time I swear there were several out back doing the mating call cacaphony!! Comical lol!! They are so elusive and I never see them. I have gotten photos in the past when hubby and I would drive the back roads.... However,, gas, wear and tear on all ( car, us, camera) lol takes a pricey toll...
Love your scenics! That sunset or sunrise is DAZZLING!!! !I've to see more!! I'm expecting to get out to the park for sky -storm cloud shots possibly...this year..
Thank You and Keep up the Beautiful work!! Happy Easter also! Your Birdy Fan, Mindi 🐣🕊🐧🦃🐓🐔🙋
Thank you for this informative video.
I had the lovely opportunity to watch a couple of these owls in the forest. It was just me and them. I watched the male for more than an hour and captured over 400 photos. Coolest ever wildlife experience for me so far.
The gentle, calming hoots of an owl are such a rare pleasure. Kudos, Lesley.
Wildlife photography in all it's forms is wonderful. To be able to get close ups of birds always amazes me. I can hear 'em in the trees and rarely spot 'em
Thank you Lesley❤... I would like to add that Cornell has a live camera on a Barred Owl nest. A few days ago, there were eggs she is sitting on...always interesting to watch 😊
I've been watching the live cam when I have a few moments to spare. Isn't it wonderful to watch them? Thanks for watching, have a great evening 💙💜🐦
Wonderful video with lots of helpful information!! We used to have some very nearby and one landed on a tree branch right outside of my window, just a few days after I said I wanted to see the owl others were seeing! My wish was granted! We used to hear them at night and it's true, they are very loud!! Such beautiful creatures!!
I've yet to see the barred owls that lives below me on the edge of the river. I've been listening to their calls for years. I want to go to a friends duck blind to see if I can snap a photo or two. They've just got it done. I love hearing them. I've heard most of their calls. Thank you for sharing Lesley. 😊
A working day in an urban environment is a good day with a nature video, especially a quiet one with a calm voice-over, and a laugh at the end.
Thanks for the great intro to barred owls! You are so good at this.
That is so kind of you to say. Thanks a bunch :)
Thanks!
Thank you very much
The best thing about this channel is Lesley’s voice. I could listen to it all day
We have barred owl here in northeast Florida. They are so wonderful.
This is sooooooo beautiful....thank you Bird Goddess!
Thank you so much!
Another wonderful video, Lesley! Thank you! I live in rural Maryland with woods and a creek in our backyard. We love to hear our very loud barred owls almost daily! Their calls are LOUD! We’ve been here 30 years and have heard them most of that time!
Great video as always! I just saw one a week ago in my backyard making it iconic call! It flew away and I have it on video! As silent as a mouse!
I just saw a pair of these in a rural park this evening. They are sedentary birds so it is probably the same pair I have seen in that park last year and the year before.
Barred Owl caterwauling is the best sound in the woods!
The best breakfast viewing!
Southern NH here, last night at dusk a pair put on quite a concert for over 15 minutes.
Following morning here you are😁
That is great timing. Awesome! And I'm super jealous that you get to hear these fascinating owls.
Thank you for including the calls. One recent night our resident Barred owl & Co made sounds we had not heard before. This confirms for me, that He has a mate this year! I will watch the trees in our yard for daytime owl movements.
Thank you for this in-depth video. We have a wooded back yard with a creek near Pocahontas State Park, VA and everything you covered happened just minutes ago. A pair was calling, one the ‘who cooks for you’ song and then came the response. Then the loud “monkey sounds” started up which blew me away. I kid you not, a crow started to warn the forest directly afterwards and then all fell silent. A testament of how accurate your information is! Thank you.
Congrats on hitting 200 thousand subscribers. You definitely deserve it. Love to hear the owls.
I've never seen one, but my son and I heard a pair while rough camping in the Red River Gorge in Kentucky (Late June 2022, for seasonal context). The sun had just set, I was starting to drift off to sleep when I thought I heard someone yelling from a ways off. The "yelling" started getting closer; This roused me up, and we ended up listening to two of them calling back and forth from either side of our dwellings for maybe a half-hour. I memorized two of the calls and when we got back to civilization I started sifting through owl calls online 'til I found my answer. Cool creatures.
My wife and I really appreciate your knowledge and love for nature.
What an amazing video...wow thank you so so much...been lucky to have daily visits of a beautiful barred owl lately...many days in a row....right there at 40 feet from my house..and 2 days ago, was treated by a really over vocal one...for 30 minutes...it was amazing as always...still so much snow around here and having that amazing bird perched right there...cannot ask for more....thank you again...big fan of yours...
I had one in my yard a few nights ago. At first I didn't recognize the loud call, but then it dawned on me and I saw her take up and off. It was truly a magical moment.
This is such a great RUclips channel. Thank you for all your bird teachings.
Glad you enjoy it!
I see them on fences and power lines. I frequently hear their call.
I like their innocence & cool & calm personalities.
When I bought my property (In Northern Ohio) 7 years ago, I bought it as an as-is foreclosure. Meaning I had to mow it. All 2.5 acres of it. Nipple high. With a push mower.
During the mow, I felt.....like I was being watched. Sure enough, a barred owl was watching me, maybe 20 yards away. "Oh, COOL! What are the odds that---oh God I'm mowing down his hunting ground" 😢.
Now there is a family of at least three, either in our back woods or the park across the street. They seem most chatty on rainy evenings.
Never understood why they hoot at night, when they...are...hunting....🤔
I have a family on my property. The female is not shy at all. She is very active after 3pm usually. She is very protective of her nest. All my friends cime by just to see the owl. Lol.
This video is EXQUISITE.
Thank you!!
(I also liked the bloopers at the end 😂)
I love hearing these owls while I'm out in the woods. But, then again owls in general are my favorite birds of pray😁😁😁
I built a Barred Owl house and put it about 30 ft up in a tree behind my house in SC in Nov 2019. It was vacant until this spring when we got tenants. There is no camera inside but based on observed behavior, I think the chicks have hatched. In any event, we get to watch the adults come and go when we are lucky and get to hear them just about every day. It makes me happy. Thank you Leslie. I enjoy your stuff.
We used to have a barred owl that would visit every night just after dusk. She would come as close as ten feet and seemed to be very interested in out dogs. She would visit us, then flit from one tree trunk to another low on the trunk. Love the funny sounds you found of these owls. Thank you for publishing!
How timely!!! We have just had them move into our woods and your video was very informative. I saw four of them !
I love...Owls...very cool birds...got scared when I was a Boy Scout camping out....convinced it was a ghost making that noise...lol....have a wonderful week
Hahaha, Russ I can completely understand how you would be scared of them as a boy. The imaginative minds of kids, so fun. You have wonderful week too, and your wife...and your birds :D
Love hearing these guys. It tells me I'm in an older and healthy forest. They tend to despise the crowded understory of young forests as it gives them very little space to glide. So if I'm camping at night and I hear a barred owl it always feels special. Like something telling me "this is a holy place, drink it in, but tread gently."
What a wonderful video! Thank you Lesley ❤
Wow, what a detailed and well-structured video! The effort and dedication from this channel are truly commendable. 🦉👏
Some key highlights I loved:
- Barred Owls are found in North America, favoring forests and wooded areas. 🌲
- Their haunting yet beautiful "Who Cooks for You" call is unforgettable! 🎶
- Learning about their diet and nesting habits, including how to attract them with a nest box, was so insightful.
- The comparison between Barred Owls and Spotted Owls was a great addition, especially for nature enthusiasts.
- Fun fact: The oldest recorded Barred Owl was over 34 years old!
Thank you for such an informative video - definitely sharing this with fellow bird lovers! Keep up the amazing work! 🙌
I love hearing these when camping, amazing how far they echo through the deep woods!
I have these in my area, and during breeding season I have heard them hooting at all hours. When I volunteered at the raptor center, I was the aviary caretaker for the display Barred owls for years. There were six of them in the aviary, and if one started hooting, they would all join in as would some of the rehab patients in other cages and maybe even a local wild one or two.
We have had Barred owls on our property here in southern nh for years. We love listening to their chatter in the woods. March of 2020 we had one fall down our chimney and ended up in our family room. The female was in a big pine out side and while the male was stuck in the chimney, they were calling back and forth. Once the male was in the family room, we opened the door and out he flew. We will never forget that.
I miss these guys in my small town Iowa neighborhood. They were plentiful for a couple of years, saw them everyday. Counted five at once, most likely three of them off spring. I still hear the monkey call every once in a while though!
We had a pair in our little grove of mesquite trees a few years ago. I’ve since moved, but the owls would sit outside our window at night and hoot to each other. I loved them. ❤
The bloopers at the end were hilarious! Great touch! This was a very interesting video. I love these owls eyes. They are so beautiful. I just started following Sophie's backyard wildlife and have been watching her live feed of a pair nesting. They are such cool owls. I was alittle disappointed to hear that if you have Great Horned Owls you probably would never see them. I have a pair of Great Horned Owls that have been nesting near by for the last couple years. They like to hang out like in my oak tree and whoot all night. I love listening to them. I think they have been dinning on mice that come and feed on the fallen bird seed under the feeders. I live on the edge of a farm field and having field mice sneak in the house is very common in the winter. Since those Owls showed up I can probably count on one hand how many mice have snuck in the last couple years. Anyway back to your video, thanks for all the info. I loved that you played alot of their calls. That was neat to hear. Awesome video!
Haha. I'm glad you enjoyed the bloopers 😅. I like Sophie's videos too, especially the barred owl. Really incredible. Great horned owls, any owl really, are definitely good for the ecosystem. Can't imagine the rodents we'd have without their presence 😮. Thanks a lot for watching. I hope spring is shaping up nicely out your way 😊
Thank you for sharing this video Lesilie. Barred Owls are probably my favorite. They are spooky and have a variety of vocals. I like doing night photography around wooded areas. My first encounter with a Barred Owl was a scary experience. I was photographing a river at night. Had a camera on a tripod stand doing stiill photography. It was about 1:30 AM. I thought I was alone in the woods. But a Barred Owl made such an unusual noise. It sounded like a 16 feet tall monster. Was fortunate enough to catch the call in a recording. It took a few days to determine it was a Barred Owl. I am a fan!!!!
Heard a barred owl for the first time this week! We live by a stream in the woods. He sounded amazing!!
fabulous beautiful bird. cuddly, but tough -a good hunter. I think he/she is magical and when you hear it when you are camping, you are blessed.
Lovely video, Lesley- always glad to see an upload from you.
Barred owls are a favorite of mine. There's a pair who's lived in the riparian woods behind my house in Alabama for several years. I often hear them calling and sometimes duetting even during the day.
One early evening a month ago I stumbled upon one of them as I was walking the trail into the woods. I noticed a lot of songbirds sounding perturbed in the trees nearby, and I looked up to see the barred owl perched directly above me, with its head turned down staring right at me!
I liked to think we're friends- I give them space whenever I spot them, and I've had one seemingly come watch me a few times when I've been in the backyard, with it flying in to a nearby tree branch and looking right at me.
I've gotten to see an adult pair with an owllet in another neighborhood off my creek (all were perched separately in a cluster of pines), and it was so neat to see the fuzzy owllet bob its head in circles as it looked at me.
Some great footage there. Owls are an endless source of fascination. A few weeks ago, I was fortunate to hear a Powerful Owl nearby one night. The area around here isn't quite right for them so I hope the owl found a more salubrious home.
We had one roosting about 40' up on a pine branch overhanging the driveway. He was magnificent. The first time we heard the Mating Boogie sounds.... scared the hell out of us. Sounded like hyenas. Amazing birds!
Wow. This is the owl we have on our property! No mistaking that hoot! Thanks Lesley.
We have Barred Owls (Jacksonville FL) and hear them 2-4 nights a week. (Year 'round.) So fun to listen to. Am planning to put up a box. Thanks for this.
Ill never forget the conversations I shared with hoot owls when I used to go squirrel hunting and my trusty owl call with me. Fantastic memories.
I hear em every year at my place in western Maine, sometimes wake me up with that goosebumpy whale call. Old growth hemlock and pine and mixed hardwoods with a year-round brook.
Hearing them like that in the middle of sleeping must be chilling. Thanks for watching :)
I love watching the wing spans. When they… do, … fly. It’s incredible. I might be very mistaken… thank you. I’ll listen. Watch. You’re the best! Lesley.
We love these sweet, little barred owl buddies in North Texas. They're quite vocal, especially Feb through April.
I’ve been watching the same pair of barred owls for 9 almost 10 years. I see them every day. They’ve had 8 clutches so far. They’re like family to me. (Eastern Massachusetts)
I love their calls. They are in my woods.
Leslie,I am one of the lucky people who has the pleasure of seeing a nesting pair last year and they are back again this year. I see at least one every day. Had a great opportunity to see them take care of their fledgling last year. One of the adults calls then flush over my house.
That is awesome!
I live at the edge of a rural town in Northern Vermont, where it's absolutely quiet, especially at night. Across the valley from my house are hills covered with dense forest. I sometimes awake rather early in the morning, and if I'm lucky, I'll hear the "Who cooks for you?" calls of the barred owl. They echo through the pitch black forest. The calls are mysterious but strangely comforting.
BTW - I'm a transplanted city girl. I originally lived in a large noisy city in lower New York State, and had yet to learn about the barred owl and other wildlife of the area. In the first week living in my new home, I was out on my front stoop at night. I happened to hear the calls of a barred owl and thought, "Who's that joker?" I assumed it was a drunk "howling at the moon"! 🤣
My favourite bird
I live in Maine ❤ and we hear Barred owls and what’s cool is listening to them when they start caterwauling❤❤
I had a great horned owl that used to follow me and my 3 rotties around at night. I’m in north Texas so summers are too hot to exercise Rottweiler dogs in during the day and sometimes even at night. He would sit on the diving rock on our pool and watch us as the dogs rested with a chew toy after a walk around our 11 acres or rounds of ball chasing. It was startling sometimes to look up and see him flying not far above my head silently. I always used to think he was just habituated to us as co creatures of the night and grew to enjoy our company but more likely we scared prey into making mistakes as we roamed the darkness and he just waited with us when resting until we got back out to scare up some more mice or rabbits. 😊
I'll never forget my first encounter with a barred owl ❤ it was amazing!