[Birdtalk] Re: [Birdnet] Re: Snipe vs Boreal owl

[Cliff and Lisa Weisse]

Just a quick note on differences between Boreal Owl's song and Snipe's 
winnowing.   Both species are regular here and it can be difficult to 
separate the two.  Here's what I listen for.  The quality of the 
Boreal's song is more musical than the winnowing of Snipe.  The 
winnowing of Snipe is part of a dive display in which they climb up 
high, then turn and fly back down at which time they make the winnowing 
sound.  This winnowing trails off at the end of each dive, or sounds 
like it fades out.  Boreal Owl songs don't do this.  Another easy way to 
identify which one you are listening to is the cadence of the song or 
winnowing.  Winnowing happens at evenly spaced intervals.  The song 
sequences of Boreal Owl are not evenly spaced.  If you listen to any 
recordings the song bouts are usually delivered in sets of three, the 
first two closer together and the third with a longer pause.  
Individuals sing at widely varying speeds but the spacing of the song 
bouts is usually consistent, unless the male is in the presence of a 
female at which time the phrases will be longer and closer together but 
that's highly unlikely.  Hope this is helpful.

Cliff

Sherwood Casjens wrote:
> I'm not sure if <Birdnet at utahbirds.org> address will find Connie - 
> Kevin can you forward this to her if you think it won't get to her?  
> thanks.
>
> - - - -
>
> Connie,
>
> I believe that the Wilson's Snipe makes a "winnowing" sound that can 
> be quite reminiscent of the Boreal owl's call.  Snipe winnowing is 
> heard in the Utah Mts (e.g., north slope of Uintas is where I have 
> heard it at night). This may be what you heard at your cabin??
>
> Sherwood Casjens
> SLC
>
> = = = =
>
> On Nov 13, 2007, at 2:56 PM, Tim Avery wrote:
>
>> Actually, Northern Saw-whet owl would be the most likely candidate, 
>> and not a
>> long shot. Saw-whets are a common breeder throughout the area in 
>> question.  And
>> in the spring that species is very vocal.  In terms of which species 
>> sounds the
>> most like a Hawk Owl there are several differences in the songs of 
>> all the
>> small owls species mentioned that are clearly different from Hawk 
>> Owl, that may
>> sound very similar to those not familiar with the sounds.  I would 
>> have to
>> respectfully disagree that Boreal Owl necessarily sounds more like a 
>> Hawk Owl
>> than a Saw-whet, as they both sound different in both tone and speed, 
>> as well as
>> number of notes.
>>
>> The Hawk Owl, a species I have not heard in the wild gives a rapid 
>> succession of
>> fast "to" notes, around 50 or so in less than 10 seconds.  It really 
>> is a neat
>> sound that you can hear here:
>>
>> http://www.hawkridge.org/audio/Northern%20Hawk%20Owl.mp3
>>
>> The tone of a Boreal and the speed is very similar to the Hawk Owl, 
>> but Boreal
>> Owl has more of a staccato feel to the song, starting and ending not 
>> quite as
>> loud as the middle.  This owl also sings in short bursts, I would 
>> guess 12-18
>> toots. to-to-to-too-too-tooo-tooo-tooo-too-too-too-too-to, with the 
>> notes in
>> the middle sounding the longest before fading out at the end.
>>
>> http://www.hawkridge.org/audio/Boreal%20Owl.mp3
>>
>> Saw-whet owls often stay on the same pitch at the same speed for long 
>> periods of
>> time, to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to-to... etc.  
>> Those who
>> have heard saw-whets know that this can be quite variable however, often
>> ranging from short toots, separated by up to a second, to very fast, 
>> several
>> toots a second when alarmed.  Although I would say that this species 
>> at its
>> fastest, doens't match the speed of the song of a Hawk Owl, but is 
>> much more
>> similar in the respect of average tone, and the fact that their 
>> typical song is
>> longer than 15 fast notes, often tooting out several 100 notes 
>> without any
>> interruption.
>>
>> http://www.hawkridge.org/audio/Northern%20Saw-whet%20Owl.mp3
>>
>> Both Saw-whet and Boreal (in the same genus) have similar songs to 
>> the Hawk-Owl,
>> but both are quite unique and different if you study them.  
>> Screech-Owl which I
>> mentioned yesterday as being similar, is typically found in riparian 
>> corridors,
>> and the area in question, I believe is all coniferous, so unless the 
>> area had a
>> ribbon of deciduous trees that would probably rule out WSOW.
>>
>> If you haven't been out owling, it is something worth trying, and now 
>> is a great
>> time for both Saw-whet and to try for Boreal Owl, especially in the 
>> mountains
>> between Bear Lake and Logan.
>>
>> Cheers
>>
>> Tim
>> Salt Lake City, UT
>> tanager at timaverybirding.com
>> http://www.timaverybirding.com
>> http://www.timavery.com
>>
>>
>> Quoting Kevin Colver <colver at csolutions.net>:
>>
>>> You might check out the song of the Boreal Owl to see if it matches
>>> the sounds you've heard at the cabin.  Northern Saw-whet Owl would be
>>> a long shot but sounds less like the Hawk-owl than does Boreal.
>>> Kevin
>>>
>>> Kevin Colver
>>>
>>>
>>> colver at csolutions.net
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> On Nov 12, 2007, at 9:14 PM, Connie McManus wrote:
>>>
>>>> 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
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> Birdnet mailing list
>>>> Birdnet at utahbirds.org
>>>> http://utahbirds.org/mailman/listinfo/birdnet
>>>
>>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Birdnet mailing list
>> Birdnet at utahbirds.org
>> http://utahbirds.org/mailman/listinfo/birdnet
> _______________________________________________
> Birdnet mailing list
> Birdnet at utahbirds.org
> http://utahbirds.org/mailman/listinfo/birdnet
>
>
>

-- 
Cliff and Lisa Weisse
Island Park, Idaho
cliffandlisa at octobersetters.com