Our Special Friend

We've been feeling very lucky, as we have a friend living in our backyard: an owl!

One day, we saw a lot of bird poop on the back patio, looked up, and there he was!

He's been hanging out with us for about six weeks. We've identified him as a screech owl and it's so fun to have a feathered friend. He lives in a perch in the massive oak--but just above our patio table where we can look up and see him all day long. This photo is a little dark, as it was taken at dusk. We check on him and say hi--he seems fine with our presence. He follows us with his eyes (when he's not asleep). He leaves in the evening and returns home from the nightly hunt at about 6:30 am.

Recently, we've been dissecting the owl pellets he's left us to see if we can identify what he's hunting for at night. There's a great book called Owl Puke that helps you identify the bones. The kids (and the adults) feel very special to have such a unique visitor. I'm sure he'll move on eventually (he may find a mate), but for now, we really enjoy having him.

My 11th street owl stamp, a tribute to another owl visitor (a barn owl who came visiting in our yard one day), is in need of repair (it split). Maybe I'll add a second species and make it a series.

If you have older elementary readers interested in owls, I really recommend the Guardians of Ga'hoole series by Kathryn Lansky. My 9 year old avidly devoured them all (he can't wait for the next one to come out July 1st), and the six year old enjoys having them read to him at night. They're a little bloody (the owls do a lot of battling), but it's amazing to find a series that the kids just love.