Date: Fri, 8 Dec 2000 20:58:51 -0500 Reply-To: Maryland Birds & Birding Sender: Maryland Birds & Birding From: Eugene J Scarpulla Subject: SNOWY OWL ALERT MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Last week my neighbor, who is not a birder, asked me about a white owl that he had seen a week earlier on the Monday (11/20/00) before Thanksgiving. He had seen the bird perched on a limb overlooking a field on Millers Island Road not far from the intersection with North Point Road. I questioned him about the bird (including why he had not told me about it a week and a half earlier) and his description fit for an immature Snowy Owl. He said that he was familiar with hawks, Barn Owls, Barred Owls, etc. and that this was a large white owl with black flecking. He showed it to me in my Geo Guide; He does not have a field guide of his own. He had not seen the bird since. I have looked for the bird daily since then, every time I drive up Millers Island Road. Neither he nor I have seen the bird. Now, in the category of "DO WHAT I SAY, NOT WHAT I DO" (This statement has come around to bite me in the butt.): People often tell me they are envious of all of the good birds that I see on Hart-Miller Island. To which I reply, it is mindless persistence that keeps me going back to the island most every Saturday. Good birds stop at Hart-Miller Island and you have to be there every weekend to find them since anything could show up on any day. With all that said, I decided to take a break from going to the island the last two Saturdays (The excuse I give is having things to do around the house). When I called the island today(12/08/00) to make arrangements for tomorrow's visit, I joking said we hoped that a Snowy Owl might be there tomorrow. His reply was: "It still might be here." I said: "WHAT!!!, are you kidding me?" He said "No" and that the Snowy Owl had first been seen on Wednesday, November 29 and had been on the island (INCLUDING LAST WEEKEND, "AAGH!!!") until at least Tuesday (12/05/00) or Wednesday (12/06/00). The bird had not been seen on either Thursday (12/07/00) or Friday (12/08/00). I will be on the island tommorow looking for the bird even though it has not been seen there the last two days. There is no reason why this bird can't be anywhere in southeastern Baltimore County (e.g.: North Point State Park, Black Marsh, Fort Howard, Sparrows Point, Rocky Point County Park). Sandy Point State Park is probably worth a look also. If anyone is looking for places to bird tomorrow, try one or more of the above. I should learn to listen to myself. Regretfully, Gene Gene Scarpulla Millers Island, Maryland ejscarp@juno.com ________________________________________________________________ GET INTERNET ACCESS FROM JUNO! Juno offers FREE or PREMIUM Internet access for less! Join Juno today! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. ======================================================================= To leave the MDOsprey list, send e-mail to listserv@home.ease.lsoft.com with the following message in line 1: signoff mdosprey ======================================================================= =========================================================================