[Birdtalk] Re: [Birdnet] Northern Hawk Owl

[Tim Avery]

Connie, et al.

As of now there are no records for Northern Hawk Owl in Utah. This species
breeds across Canada and Alaska as well as northern Europe and Asia in boreal
coniferous forest.  Some years, if food supplies are short, this species will
wander, or invade south.  The winter of 2004-2005 was such a winter, when
numerous birds were seen across the northern tier of the lower 48.  The Sax-Zim
Bog area in Minnesota was the poster-child for the owl invasion, hosting dozens
of Hawk Owls and several hundred Great Gray Owls.  In 2004 one bird was seen
near Ketchum, Idaho that many birders form Utah went to see:

http://www.utahbirds.org/FeatureNoHawkOwl.htm

As for the bird you heard near Garden City each spring, the more likely
candidates would have been either a Western Screech-Owl, or Northern Saw-whet
Owl, which both have similar songs, albeit a little different.  Northern
Saw-whet Owl are quite common in that area, and are very vocal in the spring,
often singing up a storm all night long.

Cheers

Tim
Salt Lake City, UT
tanager at timaverybirding.com
http://www.timaverybirding.com
http://www.timavery.com


Quoting Connie McManus <connie.mcmanus at gmail.com>:

> I went to Cornell's All about Birds page and looked up this bird. As I
> listened to the recording of the sound this owl makes, it brought back
> memories of when I lived in Garden City (RIch County).  I owned a cabin in
> the mountains overlooking Bear Lake and would sit out on the deck spring
> evenings and hear this same or similar call.  I could have listened to it
> all night long and have always wondered what made it.  Judging from the fact
> that utahbirds.org doesn't even have Northern Hawk Owl in the bird guide, I
> have to assume this bird is very rarely seen this far south.  But, every
> spring that same call would sound through the forrest, always at night.  I'm
> still curious to know what kind of night bird makes a sound similar to the
> Norther Hawk Owl.  Anyone know?  I can't believe that every spring I was
> hearing a Northern Hawk Owl in Garden City, Utah. If so, maybe next spring
> someone should spend some time checking it out???
>
> --
> Connie McManus
> Nibley, Cache County, Utah
>