Journal 278 - A Day at the Hawk Owl Cafe
Jan. 28 - Is It a Hawk or an Owl?
Is it a hawk or an owl? Scores of birders have been flocking to Nanaimo to see for themselves as a very rare Northern Hawk Owl has taken up temporary residence on Morden Road in south Nanaimo. Local resident, GILLIAN BUTLER first noticed the bird on Jan. 24 when it landed on a tree close to her house. At first she thought it was a hawk, but further inspection, photos, and consultation with some birders confirmed that it was a rare Northern Hawk Owl. Her sighting was posted on the "bcbirdingvanisland" and "BCVIBIRDS" yahoo sites, and since then she has been greeting a constant stream of birders and photographers from all over the Island and Mainland to show off her distinguished avian guest.
The Northern Hawk Owl is common from central B.C. north to Alaska and east to the Atlantic. It is very rare in southwestern B.C. and only a handful of sightings have ever been recorded on Vancouver Island. For the dean of Island birders, DERRICK MAARVEN of Duncan, it was the first Hawk Owl he had ever seen on the Island. For veteran Victoria birders like ED PELLIZON and TED ARDLEY and many other experienced Island birders, it was a "lifer" (or first-ever sighting).
The bird is definitely an owl, but it is no accident that it is called a Hawk Owl. It has short wings like a falcon and a long tail like a Sharp-shinned Hawk. Like a hawk it also hunts by day and with its hawk-like flight it can pursue and overtake birds in the air. On the other hand, like an owl it has a round face, large front-facing eyes, facial disk, narrow bill, and a swivelling head. It also hunts at night like most owls. It's preferred hunting technique is to sit on an elevated perch where it's sharp eyes can scan for voles, mice, frogs and small birds up to a half mile away, and it's keen auditory sense can even detect prey under a foot of snow.
There is no telling how long the Hawk Owl will stay. A lot depends on the availability of prey and the level of disturbance. It has already been there for six days, it has been seen capturing voles, and it has cached prey in a tree next to Morden Road. It has also shown a high level of tolerance for birders, photographers, and barking dogs as it has returned many times to one its favorite perches right beside Morden Road. Regardless of whether it leaves or stays, it has already been a special opportunity for many people to enjoy another one of the magical wonders of nature.
*** I know I posted shots of the Hawk Owl on Tuesday, but what a difference a day makes, especially with sunshine and blue skies.
Meet Hazel, the Northern Hawk Owl. How do I know she is a female? According to Derrick Maarven, it has a sweet bum, and I would never question his judgement.
Hazel kept everyone amused with her constant looking around and other perky head movements.
Right now she is on one of her favorite perches on a tree beside Morden Road. Apparently she cached some food nearby.
Hawk Owls are known to be unafraid of humans which has been the case at Morden Road.
Hazel usually hangs around her Morden perch for about 20 minutes before heading for another of her favorite perches.
Here she's taking one last look around before deciding where to go next.
Now she's doing a little preening and preflight inspection of all the instrumentation.
Checking the rudder and the landing gear before filing the flight plan and taking off ...
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