Ward and June
were unusually quiet for most of the winter. While I heard Ward hooting on several occasions,
the absence of nest inspection visits leads me to believe that
June wandered out of the area in search of better hunting. It was a highly unusual winter
with record warmth through mid-January followed by snow and bitter cold. This made life extremely difficult for owls with record numbers forced into
populated areas in search of food. I received many reports of barred owls
"camping out" at bird feeders in search of the rodents that are
attracted by spilled seed. One barred owl has even spent the winter in a busy park in downtown Boston.
Ward and June, however, came through it in good shape and appear to be ready to
start a family. Click the links below to find out what they are up to.