“It was the strangest sound I’ve ever heard. Spooky. Late at night, out in the woods, moving fast through the trees. I have it on tape. Would you like to hear it?” I stood in my safe little kitchen ...

The sound was unmistakable and led me outdoors to face the thick woods across the road. In the advancing twilight the sound pierced the darkness again, and then again. The ghostly mournful wail, best ...

Q. Why are they called screech owls when the only sound I’ve ever heard them make are warbling noises that remind me of musical Morse code? A. I was able to answer this question a few years ago during ...

This past summer I heard my first screech owl. My son, who majored in mythologies of nature in college was excited to hear this. He told me about how entwined screech owls are with our feelings about ...

Though common and widespread, it is rarely seen. More often it is heard. I’m speaking of the Western Screech Owl, the Coachella Valley’s smallest owl. Standing only eight inches tall and weighing in ...

Claim to fame: Standing at a height of six to eight inches, the eastern screech owl is one of the smallest birds of prey in the United States. It is also known for its call, a quavering whistle that ...

It was a magical time in my backyard for two weeks this past summer. One August morning I walked out the back door just at dawn to meet a friend for a “beat the heat” walk, when suddenly two birds ...