Keith, I am the one who responded regarding the saw whet possiby starving. I'm not sure who Kathy is that I think I am being confused with, it actually wouldn't be a bad idea if someone could collect that dead saw whet and get it to oneof my co-workers in DNR in order to relay it to Dave brinker or another biologist. That would certainly yield more data as to what happened to it for sure.
I know that alot of the time first year birds which haven't learned to hunt very well or when prey is scarce often don't make it and starvation can be the possible cause, also take into consideration that the bird has probably flown some distance to get to Assateague Island.
For anyone else who is interested a healthy birds pectoral muscles will look and feel much like a Thanksgiving turkey where the keel of the sternum is just barely noticeable. A bird which is starving and living off its muscle witll have the sternum keel which will look and feel much like the turkey after the entire family has decimated it. I learned this through working with wildlife rehabilitators and falconers.
Hope this helps, Mike Lathroum
On 12/17/12, Chris Wright wrote:
Keith: Please don't apologize for your post. Us armchair ornithologists learn a lot from these conversations. Wish I'd known to check the breast muscle of a dead Redtail a neighbor brought me last year. Thanks for your question (and Kathy's response).
Chris
Sent from my iPhone
On Dec 17, 2012, at 7:35 AM, Keith Costley <oriolekec1...> wrote:
> Thank you responding Kathy. Starvation did not enter my mind. I known the life and death struggle plays out everyday (and night); but it's hard for me imagine anything sneaking up on a independent owl.
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> Although I would love to learn more and your response provided that. I'm an idiot for posting this message to MDBirding -- I'm very sorry.
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> Be well,
> KEC
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> On Dec 17, 2012, at 5:48 AM, <kmlathroum...> wrote:
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>> Is it possible that the intact saw whet starved? You can tell by checking the pectoral muscles if the breast bone is very sharp and protruding then the bird didn't have much muscle. I do recall from my days at frostburg when Dave brinker was banding saw whets at Finzel Swamp a marauding Barred Owl which killed several saw whets in the mist nets
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>> On 12/16/12, Keith Costley wrote:
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>> I had a couple of minutes to visit the shell road on Assateague yesterday. Unfortunately my search for a Saw-whet Owl produced one intact dead Saw-whet and a pile of feathers that may have been another. Of course I'm very curious about which predator would attack and kill a wintering Saw-whet then leave it like that.
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>> Keith Eric Costley
>> <OrioleKEC1...>
>> Randallstown, Baltimore County, MD
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