I believe it was DDT spraying, not hunting, that drove Bald Eagles so 
close to extinction.  and it was the termination of DDT use that 
permitted them to come back so well that a trip to the Potomac on either 
side of the river is likely to produce a sighting. 
chris kessler
falls church

RICHARD JILL WOOD wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I'm going to ask a couple of questions about these owls that I am 
> probably not the only person out there wondering about:
>
> A.  What about those of us that have seen Long-eared Owls in our 
> "birding careers", and have seen them just by accident?  I suppose we 
> were "harming" them, too?
>
> B.  Why do we single out these owls for this special treatment?  What 
> about all of those people that trekked to see the Kingbirds, 
> Flycatchers and other rarities in the area?  Are we not stressing them 
> as well?
>
> I've seen Long-eared Owls before, and quite frankly, I want to see 
> them again.  And not just because of a "tick" (I hate that term).  I 
> want to see them as many times as I can before their habitat is gone 
> and they are here on this planet no more.  It really shames me that I 
> am a part of a society that "celebrates" the comeback of species like 
> Bald Eagles, when it was us that nearly HUNTED them to extinction.
>
> As far as those more "knowledgeable folks than me" that say, "we are 
> probably disturbing a pair that want to breed", I think we are guilty 
> of this almost everywhere we go to bird.  What about those that DRIVE 
> their cars on Padre Island in Texas, where Snowy Plovers breed, while 
> these stressed birds are breeding?
>
> Good birding,
> Richard
>
>
>
>> From: Gerald & Laura Tarbell <>
>> Reply-To: Gerald & Laura Tarbell <>
>> To: 
>> Subject: [MDOSPREY] Long-eared owls
>> Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2007 15:20:36 -0500
>>
>> I am going to admit some ignorance as to the owls we have been 
>> viewing. I
>> thought they were probably migrating thru and were not likely to stay 
>> here.
>> That's because I never bothered to consult my only Owl book. Although 
>> it is
>> dated, -Alcorn, 1986 - it says and I quote, "It is not highly 
>> migratory and
>> the winter range is approximately that of the breeding range."
>>     I have been advised by more knowledgeable folks than me that we are
>> probably disturbing a pair that want to breed. The fact that they keep
>> moving only underscores the likelihood that we are disturbing them.
>>     With this in mind, I recommend that the tours stop. I know 
>> another tick
>> on a list is exciting, but I for one have decided to discontinue 
>> visiting
>> Morgan Run for a while. I hope others act responsibly and do the 
>> same. It
>> practically took somebody hitting me over the head with it.
>>     For reference I stole the page out of Birder's Handbook on them, 
>> so here
>> are some more interesting facts:
>>
>> BREEDING: Conifer and mixed conifer-deciduous forest, especially near 
>> water;
>> occasionally deciduous forest, also parks, orchards, farm woodland.  1
>> brood. Mating system is monogamous
>> DISPLAYS: Courtship: male flies in erratic zigzag with deep, slow 
>> wingbeats,
>> occasionally gliding and clapping wings together beneath body.  
>> Courtship
>> feeding.
>> NEST: Usually in abandoned nests (especially crow, also squirrel, hawk,
>> magpie, heron, raven).  Perennial.  Rarely scrape on ground, of small
>> sticks, inner bark strips, pine needles.  Female selects site.
>> EGGS: White. 1.6" (40 mm).
>> CHICK DEVELOPMENT: Female incubates. Incubation takes 26-28 days.
>> Development is semialtricial (immobile, downy, eyes closed, fed). 
>> Young are
>> able to fly after 23-26 days. Both sexes tend young.
>> DIET: Overwhelmingly rodents, rarely amphibians, reptiles, fish, 
>> insects.
>> Hunts over open areas, strictly nocturnal.  Ejects pellets.
>>
>> CONSERVATION: Winters s to c Mexico.
>> NOTES: Occasionally nests in loose colonies; prey density may determine
>> breeding density.  Pair bond long-term where sedentary on year-round
>> territories.  Male feeds incubating female.  Young hatch asynchronously;
>> female broods.  Young fly at about 34 days; parents feed them for 56-63
>> days.  Perform distraction display in groups when colonial.  Family unit
>> retained perhaps until winter.  Roosts, often communally, in dense 
>> cover,
>> less often in caves, rock crevices.
>>
>>
>> Copyright © 1988 by Paul R. Ehrlich, David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye.
>>
>>     Jerry Tarbell
>>     Carroll County
>
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