Returning to Tennessee from the Moon Lake CBC in Mississippi yesterday, Dick
Preston and I stopped to observe the Short-eared Owls that are known to roost
near Buck Island Road in Tunica County. We drove onto a side road that runs
through the field where the owls are known to congregate. The parliament was
present, with eight birds evident, along with several Northern Harriers. As we
were turning back onto the main road we were blue-lighted by a Tunica County
sheriff's car. The very nice young deputy politely asked what two middle-aged
West Tennesseans were doing driving around a vacant soybean field in Tunica
County, MS, at sundown. After running our license plate, he listened with
obvious skepticism to our explanation. The arrival of the supervisor led to
more discussion until it became evident that such an unlikely story could not
be anything but the truth. We all parted with smiles, an advisory to drive
carefully and a comment of, "If you don't ask, you will never learn".
Van Harris
Millington, TN
