This morning I heard a chestnut sided warbler between the pond and the river during a brief visit to The Wetlands. This afternoon after a quick errand downtown I went by the footbridge to Belle Isle and found cliff swallows under the highway bridge. The way they were visiting multiple jugs and squabbling made it seem like they had just recently arrived. A quick inspection showed at least 41 jugs up there, and I did not look hard at all. Later I took a longer walk at The Wetlands and found one barred owlet that has climbed to about head height without the dogs killing it. One of the adult owls is very wild, but the other one is quite placid. This is the pair between the pond and the golf course (I will send directions to the Wetlands Before Work people, don't have time or energy to do anything else right now). I located adults on the Pony Pasture side near the pipeline and ran out of daylight before I could find owlets, though their behavior tonight does seem to suggest that they are also guarding and feeding young now. What a difference a day or two can make! The first fledging I had any experience with happened on 4/18 that year, so by now I tend to want to give up looking. What I have gathered over the years is that the owlet comes out of the tree and ends up on the ground without the ability to fly. While having all sorts of adventures (snakes, near drowning, unleashed dogs, preschoolers...) they gradually work their way up into the trees, assuming a predator or a clueless dog owner doesn't manage to do them in (don't ask, yes it happens), and as they climb and their feathers grow in they get stronger and start flapping and branch hopping. One owlet that I observed frequently seemed to recognize me and the kids when we walked by and would make noises and show off new skills. The adults get so focused on feeding the owlet that they have hunted next to the car and flown right in front of me to carry the food to it. The little one I found tonight is not yet making noise-too dangerous when they are on or near the ground-but there is a characteristic begging whine that they make when they are bigger and higher up. It still took my breath away when I made eye contact tonight-this never gets old! Jan Richmond