Reccomendation for the Owl Lover

So I realize that many of you are not visiting this to hear about book recommendations, but there is a very conservation minded book that I found to be very interesting and worth sharing  

Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien tells the true story of a women who ended up with a barn owl as a pet--really he ended up more like family. The book has hilarious antidotes about dinner time (after all barn owls like mice) and you get the opportunity to learn a little bit about the biology of a barn owl.  This is a fun read for the bird lover in your life!

If you have been on one of my owl prowls, you would have heard me wax poetic about if you EVER hear the sound of a barn owl (near where we live in SE PA) you should contact me immediately.  The typical habitat of a barn owl is open fields and grassland and in our little slice of Chester County, we have grasslands in abundance (thanks to the conservation efforts of many organizations and concerned landowners), but no barn owls to speak of.  


There have been numerous sightings of Short Eared Owls and Norther Harriers (both of whom prefer a habitat similar to that of the Barn Owl) but alas no barn owls.  They have a very distinctive sound which is a "rasping shriek" and a very distinct look.  Feel free to visit us at one of our upcoming owl prowls (the next one is February 25, 2013) to learn about what owls typically reside in our area.  Last owl prowl produced THREE species of owls (that's a pretty big feat) so who knows what will come on the next one!  You can register online at: www.tlcforscc.org.  The link for the 2013 events will be up after the first of the year!