Maurice Barnhill wrote: 

"I don't see how birders, even large numbers, who are on a regularly used trail can be significantly more of a disturbance than the usual hikers.  Now if the birds have in fact flushed while being observed by birders, I'll withdraw that comment.  Meantime, it is possible that having  conscientious birders showing the birds off responsibly will help prevent others from plunging in to the point that the birds will indeed flush.  So is it better to cut off the show or to keep it controlled?"

Having been out to the site and seen how masterfully Bob Ringler handled things, I would urge that the latter option be followed as long as this "show" might last. I suspect there are plenty of picture happy birders who might be very tempted to try to get closer to the birds - which I would hate to have happen. Better to have these discussions and raise everyone's awareness of the necessity of keeping disturbance to a minimum. I also think someone should monitor these owls to determine if they are breeding - that would be really big news. 

Also, anyone who has been to the site knows how well fertilized the ground is with horse manure. There appears to be a huge volume of equestrian traffic through the park, which I would think would be much more disturbing than well-behaved birders.  

Tom Stock
Silver Spring, Md.