barred owls can't wait for spring
- vermontmuseum
- Mar 13, 2025
- 2 min read
Several years ago, famed local wildlife rehabilitator, Fred Homer commented: "It's a bad time for barred owls when they are on the front page of the Reformer". What Fred meant was if there were enough people seeing owls out during the day to get a picture onto the front page of the local paper, those owls were working some extra shifts.
Most effective hunting at night, a barred owl's sensitive hearing and silent flight combine to make them incredibly effective predators of rodents and other small animals. Even a covering of snow is not protection against this perfect combination of adaptations. The price that the wing and feather structure must pay to achieve this silence is speed and maneuverability. This makes daytime hunting a challenge to the owls. Their prey can see them coming before they get there and flee.
When there is a thaw in the winter and snow melts and then refreezes, the snow develops a hard crust on the surface. Sometimes strong enough to support an adult human, sometimes almost strong enough to support
us which makes walking in the woods very unpleasant. These conditions are even worse for the owl. The crust provides a solid barrier that even a large (2 pound) barred owl cannot break through. And the rodents are safe, the owl is hungry.
Over the past week there has been a barred owl hanging around the overlook during daylight hours. At first we thought he'd been hit by a car and then wondered if there was a roadkill there that he was scavenging. (Unusual behavior for an owl, but winter is hard) Then we really looked. The south-facing hillside was clear of snow. It was the only place he could hunt unless some rodent made the very bad decision to come out from under the crust and run around on the surface.
Over the past few days we have noticed that he appears to be doing better and has not been there as regularly. As we have been paying so much attention and watching for him regularly we found an owl pellet. It was sitting on the railing as if to show us "I am eating". As the snow melts his options will increase and he can stop spending days alongside the road.
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I read the article about barred owls waiting for spring and how they work hard to find food in cold snow while they wait for warm days. It made me think of when I was stuck on numbers and needed someone to Do my online calculas class so I could clear my head and enjoy a long walk outside, and that taught me that taking care of your mind helps you learn better.
I read the post about barred owls waiting for spring and it shows how these birds stay active even when cold weather lingers, which made me think about patience and change in nature. Last semester I was so behind on work that I had to do my online class for me to catch up with all my tests and projects. That taught me that sometimes support helps you keep going when things feel overwhelming.
Reading the Barred Owls Can’t Wait for Spring post helped me picture how tough winter is for these owls as they struggle to find food until snow melts and spring gives them more chances to hunt around Vermont forests and roadsides. When I was stressed about classes last term, I once even used English communication exam help services, like extra study guides, just to make sense of speaking tasks, and it reminded me real effort matters. It made me think patience and steady learning always pay off.
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