I hear them in the dead of winter roughly in the Blockhouse Creek area of
Williamson Co. if I go outside late enough at night. No idea where they
roost here. I used to hear them at the Utley place as well around the same
time frame, Dec-Feb again if I went outside late enough in the
evenings...Usually after 9 PM. Simmons 1925, has some interesting
historical insights into the species for the area in his "Birds of the
Austin Region" but I don't have that text before me so I can't quote it and
don't wish to trust memory. Agree it is scarcer now, or at least
incredibly over-looked.
On Fri, Mar 27, 2020 at 3:28 PM Justin Bosler <justin.bosler@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
Texbirds,
Generally a pretty scarce bird in the county (especially on the Balcones
Escarpment), on three consecutive nights, 23-25 March, a Barn Owl was
detected somewhere in Travis County. All three were nocturnal detections. I
was ecstatic to get a brief aural detection (classic harsh scream) over my
apartment complex on Southwest Parkway just before 9:00 PM on 25 March.
Only one brief vocalization is all I got from this high flyover in direct
flight. I haven't examined historical eBird observations or reviewed the
literature, but this small spike in detections may indicate a pulse of
N-bound migrants in mid-to late March. Is anyone aware of whether this
species persists as a breeder in Travis County? I know the Mueller Tower
birds abandoned that site years ago, and they haven't been detected there
since.
Good birding, even if it's confined to your own yard!
Justin Bosler
Austin, Texas
