FreeLists / bristol-birds / [Bristol-Birds] Urban Barn Owl strategy in Bristol, TN

["Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>]

A couple of friends have reported to me that a pair of Barn Owls
has been frequenting a 100-year-old tree which I think is some type of wild 
cheery.
It has a crown of nearly 100 feet across and the trunk may be about 4 feet in
diameter.  The site is in the Fairmount section of Bristol Tennessee.

The owls have been noisy and fly about neighborhood yards, sometimes perching
atop a house.  They first became aware of the birds in late winter but have not
seen them for a couple of weeks or so due to having been out of town.

This is in an older neighborhood with many mature trees.  It seems to be a bit 
strange
habitat for Barn Owls due to the fact there is no open country habitat nearby 
and no
agriculture activities.  But all of this speaks to the urban population of Barn 
Owls
that we may be largely unaware of in our regular birding activities.

  







































In the photo above, the roost/nest (?) wild cheery-type tree is shown at the 
right as a red plus (+). Each of the
yellow circles with a H in the center represents high-density condominiums, 
many of which are low
income housing units.  In an area of about three or four city blocks, real 
estate property records from 
the city indicate approximately 40 such units by address and ownership.  I have 
used only 19 such
markers to give the general location of the structures which contain several 
units each.  All of this is 
found in and area equal to about three city blocks.

Some, but not all, of the condos and units are not well maintained and trash 
cans and other debris is
often visible.  The block in which the wild cherry tree is located is fairly 
dense in trees and low vegetation.

In this urban setting there is no doubt that Barn Owls find an abundance of 
small mammals for prey.
Perhaps rats and mice are possibly in larger numbers where people live in such 
density with limited 
space for outdoor activities, general living along with solid waste management.

Barn Owls have long been known to live in urban-suburban habitats.  It is 
speculated that Barn Owl populations 
are shrinking as urban development encroaches on their open-country habitat and 
as agriculture practices evolve.
Perhaps the distribution of owls is just as closely associated with high 
densities of small rodents as it is with the
suitability of nesting cavities.  Granted there are few mature trees and 
suitable man-made structures such as
church steeples and barn lofts available.  But fewer people tolerate conditions 
that attract rats and mice in large
numbers.

In the early 1990's we had Barn Owls nesting in a large tree hollow on Columbia 
Rd. behind Vance Middle School
in Bristol Tennessee until a violent storm blew the nest down at night when it 
held young large enough to fly out
and escape a tragedy.

During our years of trapping and banding owls in urban settings we have found, 
for example,  that Barred Owls
have several times been found in winter in downtown areas of Bristol roosting 
in evergreen tree cover at the
entrance door to a high rise apartment building; among abandoned industrial 
buildings near the main street and in tall
white pines along residential streets in front yards where children played just 
beneath them.  They find higher
densities of rodents here in winter than they would in river bottoms and 
mountain terrains where the breed.
Yes, they experience short range winter seasonal migration from the wild lands 
to towns and cities.  And our radio
tracking of a Barred Owl in such a setting found it traveling like a harrier 
for several miles a night as it
hunted from one neighborhood to another.  Another roosted near a large dog pen 
where food scraps were
thrown and drew mice and rats.  We trapped, banded and studied that bird.

At Abingdon, VA a residence had a Barred Owl roosting in the daytime during the 
winter in the basement garage.
It perched on water pipes in the darker recesses.  It entered and departed thru 
a door that was left open.

At the Veterans Administration Center in Johnson City we have long had Barns 
Owls living in the theatre  building
right along the street.  Birders have often wondered where they hunt.  Food 
analysis by a graduate student
from ETSU biology has produced curious small mammal species not otherwise 
expected.  There is little doubt
that the veterans home owls could be hunting right in the yards and 
neighborhoods of the inner city streets
up and down the nearby blocks.  That, coupled with possible overflowing trash 
bins and spillage about the
buildings and human density, probably produces plenty of rodents for a year 
around food supply.

Perhaps birders might be more alert to urban wintering and breeding season owls 
such as the
Barn Owls and others.   We might visually accustom our eyes to "reading" 
habitat conditions
of high human densities, mature trees, heavy under story growth and good 
conditions for rodents.
And, nearby, the nests and roosts of Barn Owls.

I have twice attempted unsuccessfully (once with Chris O'Bryan) to see the 
Fairmount owls.

Let's go birding.....

Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN