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Take the Estuary Test
September 25 is National Estuary Day. This year, it coincides with Coastal Clean-up Day, and what a happy pairing that is! Healthy estuaries are unique places that are vital to environmental well-being and essential to human health and food sources. With more than 90% of the original estuary wetlands in the Bay Area gone, the remaining estuaries really need our attention.
An estuary is the thin zone along a coastline where freshwater systems and rivers meet, mix with sea water, and become brackish. These wetlands provide essential habitat for fish, shellfish, crabs and a host of other wildlife species. They also filter mud from river run-off and protect shorelines from flooding.
Estuaries are classified by two characteristics -- their geology and the way saltwater and fresh water mix in them. There are five major types of estuaries.
Coastal plain estuaries were once river valleys. Chesapeake Bay surrounded by Maryland and Virginia is one example. Sandbars or barrier islands built up by ocean currents are called bar-built estuaries and include the barrier islands off of North Carolina, Massachusetts and Louisiana. Delta system estuaries form at the mouths of large rivers like the Mississippi and Nile Rivers. In places like Glacier Bay, Alaska, glaciers ground out long narrow valleys and fjord estuaries are created when melting ice mingles with seawater.
San Francisco Bay is a tectonic estuary, created by earthquakes that formed basins below sea level. The San Francisco Bay delta estuary is vast, and includes the waters of San Francisco Bay, Suisun Bay, the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and San Pablo Bay. San Francisco Bay once supported hundreds of thousands of acres of highly productive tidal marsh, nearly 90% of which is now gone.
Two of the most pristine wetlands left in the estuary are protected as part of the San Francisco Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. China Camp State Park in Marin is one of them. The other is Rush Ranch Open Space Preserve, part of Suisun Marsh, the largest and most intact brackish tidal marsh in the San Francisco estuary system. The Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary encompasses four major estuaries in Marin and Sonoma Counties -- Tomales Bay, Bolinas Lagoon, Estero Americano and Estero de San Antonio.
After San Francisco Bay, the Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve in the Monterey Bay Area harbors the largest tract of tidal salt marsh in California.
What is an estuary?
a. A terrestrial system that drains water from the mountains into creeks and reservoirs.
b. An area where a river meets the ocean, and fresh and salt water mix.
c. A term that describes someone who estimates your taxes.
Answer: b. Estuaries are places where fresh water from rivers or streams mixes with salt water from the ocean, or where fresh water from rivers or streams mixes with the chemically different water of a large lake.
What are other names for estuary?
a. Bay
b. Lagoon
c. Sound
d. Slough
e. All of the above
Answer: e. Estuaries are called all of the above, but all of the above are not estuaries unless two types of water mix.
Why are estuaries important to our environment?
a. They provide homes for many species of wildlife
b. They are nursery areas for a variety of marine species
c. They filter pollutants from the water
d. All of the above
Answer: d. Most fish and shellfish eaten in the United States, including salmon, herring and oysters, complete all or part of their life cycles in estuaries. Vegetation helps trap and filter silt from run-off. However, too many nutrients from artificial fertilizers, or from sediment caused by destruction of the riparian river system upstream will create an imbalance and will cause a decline in the biodiversity.
When would be the best time to see shorebirds hunting on estuary mud flats?
a. During tidal ebb
b. On sunny days
c. During the Superbowl
Answer: a. During tidal ebb the tide pulls estuary water back to the sea. During this time many creatures rush to the mudflats to feed on stranded marine creatures.
Which of these would affect the estuary food web if it were removed?
a. Plankton and algae
b. Marsh grasses and plants
c. Oysters and clams
d. All of the above
Answer: d. Each organism within a food web is connected to, and depends on the others for food. Food webs begin with algae and plankton (free floating microscopic plants, animals and bacteria) that form the lower food web on which all others depend. Filter feeders like oysters and clams must have enough plankton and algae to sustain themselves. Grasses provide nursery grounds for coastal fish and shellfish. Oysters, clams and other filter-feeders clean the water.
For more fun activities, videos and information about estuaries, visit
estuaries.gov and National Estuarine Research Reserve System.
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Beach Family Day (free hike for the whole family)
September 25, 2010 at 10am
Enjoy a day at beach and look for shells, beach hoppers, egrets and more. We’ll also explore the area around Rodeo Lagoon and look for Killdeer, Brown Pelicans and the elusive River Otters. Directions: Meet at the Rodeo Beach parking lot at the end of Bunker Road in Sausalito. Click to learn more about WildCare's free Family Adventures programs.
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| Coyote hears a rodent rustling in the grass. Photo by Trish Carney |
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| Coyote pounces. Photo by Trish Carney |
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| Coyote. Photo by Trish Carney |
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| Coyotes have traditionally hunted by day, but those that have moved closer to humans are changing itheir habits, becoming more nocturnal to avoid contact with people. Photo by Trish Carney |
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| Coyote territories overlap ours. Photo by Helen Pass |
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| Poisons don't work, and hurt all species in the food chain. Understanding and respecting the coyotes' nature will allow us to coexist with them. Drawing by a WildCare Nature Camper |
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| Click for a larger view. Courtesy of API |
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All-american Song Dog
The coyote began to evolve in what is now the southwestern United States millions of years ago, but since settlers began raising livestock on the American prairies, a type of war has been waged against them. However, all of our lethal attempts to erradicate them have only made these survivors more successful. Luckily, attitudes are changing. As coyotes become more common in urban and suburban habitats, a little coyote biology can help us understand this highly social wild neighbor.
The coyote is the apex predator in much of its range, and recent research has revealed some surprising information on just how important coyotes are to the ecological balance of their territories. A number of studies have shown that coyotes exercise population control on rodents, waterfowl and smaller mesopredators (medium-sized predators whose populations often increase in abundance when larger predators are eliminated) such as raccoons, skunks and foxes.
A study by Henke and Bryant (1999) revealed that the removal of coyotes in Texas led to a rapid decline in rodent diversity and an increase in both jackrabbits and mesopredators. Within just nine months of coyote removal, the Ords Kangaroo Rat (Dipodomys ordii) dominated the grassland and, at the twelve-month mark, it was the only rodent to be found. The study went on to describe the ramifications of this lack of population diversity to livestock ranchers -- the availability of cattle forage decreased in proportion to Ords Kangaroo Rat population increases. This was due to the aggressive and targeted nature of the rats’ diet, which led to a decline in the flowering and seeding of local vegetation.
What Doesn't Work
Shooting, poisoning, gassing, trapping, recreational tournaments and bounties didn’t eradicate coyotes in the past, and these methods won't now. In his book, Coyotes: Predators and Survivors (1983), Charles Cadieux, a predator control specialist for the U.S. government, describes all the techniques used to kill coyotes, and admits none has worked. In fact, indiscriminate lethal control has an opposite effect on coyote populations because they are considered “responsive breeders.”
Dianne Wittner, Wildlife Biologist of the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation and a coyote specialist, writes in a recent issue of the NWRA Wildlife Rehabilitation Bulletin, "The term [responsive breeders] is applied to a species that can alter its breeding cycle in response to environmental pressures. For example, if either the alpha male or female within a pack is killed, the resulting effect can be ovulation in all breeding-age females, and an increase in both the number of litters and the number of pups per litter. Under normal circumstances, only the alpha females breed, even though there may be other breeding-age females present, a process referred to as ‘controlled ovulation’.” An additional concern is that inexperienced coyotes may not be as effective at parenting, and pups born to them are more likely to exhibit problem behaviors leading to negative interactions with humans.
This means that all of our attempts to control coyote populations have simply produced more coyotes and potentially more coyotes with behavioral problems. It's high time for a change in attitude.
Coyote Biology
Understanding social structure is the key to understanding coyote behavior. Dianne Wittner writes, “Regardless of whether they are part of a family unit, a mated pair, or solitary, [coyotes] live according to a hierarchical system of dominants and subordinates. The majority belong to a pack, which is led by an alpha male and female that dictate the structure and territory for the whole...The primary role of non-alpha adults within a pack is for patrol of territorial boundaries and protection of pups.”
A coyote pack's territory consists of a home range, a large area where all hunting, playing and exploring occurs, and a smaller territory in which multiple den sites are located. The animals are tolerant of intruders in their home range, but will defend the smaller territory and den sites vigorously.
A pack's defense of its territory begins with communication, both vocal and scent-marked. If increased defense is called for, it escalates to posturing and intimidation, followed by chasing, nipping and feinting. Fighting is rare. Conflicts with dogs usually occur because the dog has threatened a coyote's den site.
The Poisons Are Killing Us
WildCare is working to eliminate the poisoning of wildlife, beginning with rodenticides (rat poisons), which affect beneficial predators like coyotes, hawks, owls and other rodent population controllers. While rodenticides are the more common poisons in urban and suburban areas, Camilla Fox, Executive Director of Project Coyote, reminds us that two deadly poisons, Compound 1080 and Sodium Cyanide are still being used to kill coyotes and other wildlife on America’s ranch lands. Representatives DeFazio (OR) and Campbell (CA) recently introduced H.R. 5643 -- The Compound 1080 and Sodium Cyanide Elimination Act. This federal bill would ban these two deadly poisons. Please support this bill.
What Does Work
The only way to prevent problem coyote encounters is to understand and learn to tolerate coyote nature, and to apply preventative measures. Coyotes are not particularly dangerous to people unless they feel threatened, and even then defensive feinting and nipping behavior is the most common aggression. An established pack provides rodent control, manages its own population size, and by protecting its own territory, prevents potential problem coyotes from moving into the area. The biggest problems occur when people feed wildlife, either actively, to see them up close, or passively, by leaving food scraps available in unsecured trash containers. Like many carnivores, coyotes are actually omnivores, and may find things like certain fruits and nuts, breads and corn chips attractive. And pizza. Everyone seems to like pizza. Removing attractants will cause the animals to look elsewhere for food.
Coyotes are diurnal (daytime) hunters, but they are adapting to life among people in many ways, including adopting nocturnal habits to avoid contact with us. Because of their social nature, they generally recognize humans as dominant predators and if one comes too close, vexing is a good tactic. Feinting an attack, flapping a jacket, spraying with a hose, shouting and waving your arms -- essentially acting like a scary lunatic – will help convince the animal that people are bad news. Needless to say, keep your dogs on a leash when walking in possible coyote territory and keep your cats indoors, especially at night.
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| "Coup d'Etat". Photo by Christine Hansen |
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| "Quail Fluffing Feathers" Photo by Christine Hansen |
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| "Swallow Feeding" Photo by Christine Hansen |
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Winning Photo Tips
The deadline to enter WildCare's Fourth Annual Living with Wildlife Photography Contest is September 17, 2010, so you have this week and next to get outside with your camera and take the perfect shot!
To inspire creativity, we asked two of our winning photographers from previous years for their best photo tips. What a treasure trove of great advice that request produced!
Christine Hansen was last year's Best in Show winner with her extraordinary "Coup d'Etat" and our People's Choice awardee with her beautiful "Quail Fluffing Feathers".
Christine writes:
1) Join a local camera club like the Marin Photo Club. It's a super place to learn the basics and meet like-minded people to go out and shoot with.
2) Learn from Marin's highly respected photographer, Brenda Tharp. She's written a super book on composition, Creative Nature and Outdoor Photography, teaches in workshops and at BetterPhoto.com, leads tours all over the world and is a darn nice person too.
3) Take PhotoShop classes at your local Junior College. Sonoma JC has many excellent courses on its Petaluma campus and some entirely done online.
5) Sign up for online courses at a site like BetterPhoto.com. These classes are a bit expensive but get used to it, EVERYTHING connected with photography is expensive.
5) Buy the best camera you can afford at the time. If you're serious and work at it, you'll outgrow any simple camera in no time.
6) Lastly, have fun! And remember that anyone's opinion of your work is just that; highly subjective. If you like your image, that's all that counts. The heck with anything else!!!
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| Photo tip 1: poor background – too busy, many light patches. Photo by Laura Milholland |
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| Photo tip 2: subject stands out from nice soft background. Photo by Laura Milholland |
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| Photo tip #3: not-so-great midday light. Photo by Laura Milholland |
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| Photo tip #4: pleasing late afternoon light. Photo by Laura Milholland |
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| "A dark husk or shell (exuviae) caught my attention – when I bent down for a closer look, I was surprised to find the bright green Cicada which had recently emerged from underground and had molted to its adult form." Photo by Laura Milholland |
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| "I was so glad I had my camera with me to get this unexpected coyote shot." Photo by Laura Milholland |
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Laura Milholland was Best in Show in our 2008 Contest with "Lesser Goldfinch and Grasses" and the winner of our 2007 General Nature category with "Swirled Creekbed with Leaves."
Laura writes:
One fun way to heighten your enjoyment of the great outdoors is to bring back memorable photos of your encounters with nature and wildlife. In this age of quality “point and shoot” digital cameras, even beginners can come away with very nice images without spending a fortune on gear. Here are a few suggestions you might find helpful in your quest for good wildlife photos:
1. Pick Good Locations – We’ve all been surprised by an occasional incident when wildlife showed up where not at all expected, but to increase your chances of encounters you need to go where wildlife is seen on a regular basis. Ask friends, look at where photos have been taken, search for local parks and reserves online. Don’t wait for “them” to come to you. Keep in mind that wild “visitors” often change seasonally, so a location that doesn’t seem to have much to offer today might well have great viewing another time. A good location might be as close as your own backyard!
Photo Tip #1: Try to avoid bright patches that would draw your eye away from your subject as you compose your shot.
Photo Tip #2: Simpler or less-busy backgrounds often give you a more pleasing image. However, sometimes the busy setting is part of the story your shot tells. Decide if the background adds or distracts, then move around if needed.
2. Pick the Right Time of Day – Many animals, birds, insects, etc. are active and most viewable in the early morning or just before dusk. Fortunately, in photography, this is also the ideal time for the prettiest lighting in most cases. If you are stuck with midday – on a lunch hour, for example – you can still make the best of it.
Photo Tip #3: Harsh lighting (very bright sunlight) usually doesn’t give you flattering shots.
Photo Tip #4: A grey or overcast day( or morning or evening time) can result in beautiful shots due to the nice even lighting.
3. Be Inquisitive – Look closely at what’s around you – up high, down low, nearby and at a distance. I watch for movement, listen for birdsong or noises, and check out anything that looks unusual or out of place. I may start out thinking I’m going to “shoot” birds and end up finding butterflies, insects, or deer, or something else. Be adaptable to what you find. The cicada image to the left is an example of something unusual I happened upon simply by being curious.
4. Walk Quietly, Move Slowly, BE PATIENT – These seem so obvious, yet don’t come naturally to most of us with the busy lives we lead. Take the time to stay in one place for a while – whether it’s at your sliding glass door, on a quiet trail, or at a local park – allow the setting to adjust to your presence and resume its natural flow.
Photo Tip #5: If you find a good location, you may want to take a shot or two before you actually find a good subject, so you can check your settings – i.e. Is my exposure too light or too dark? Do I have enough shutter speed in case my subject will be moving? That way you’re ready to quickly get the best shot when something comes your way.
Photo Tip #6: Telephoto or zoom lenses do give you a real advantage for wildlife shooting.
5. Be Ready! – Probably the best tip I can give you is – HAVE YOUR CAMERA WITH YOU. This seems like a “Duh!” statement, but the best part about wildlife is that it’s wild and will surprise you. Having your camera on hand will let you capture the unexpected.
Photo Tip #7: Don’t wait to take a shot when you see something. Take a shot or two right away, then continue to move closer if you can. Be careful not to spook your subject, but if he runs away, at least you have something!
With digital there’s no film cost, so take lots of pictures! And have fun!
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| Red-tailed Hawk Juvenile. Photo by Lisa Woldin |
| Click for an Entry Form and Official Rules! |
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We are accepting entries of Bay Area wildlife and nature into four categories:
1. Bay Area Wild Birds in Their Natural Settings
2. Bay Area Wild Animals (Other) in Their Natural Settings
3. General Nature
4. Living with Wildlife (animals in human environments)
Entry deadline is Friday, September 17, 2010. Enter your best photos today!
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| Peregrine Falcon in flight. Photo by Tom Grey |
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Peregrine Falcons are adapting to life in cities. An abundance of Rock Pigeons offers fast-food convenience. Photo by Tom Grey
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Pele is WildCare's Wildlife Ambassador Peregrine Falcon. Photo by Mary Blake
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California Fish and Game Commission
The California State Fish and Game Commission is made of up to five members, appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate. The Commissioners are not full-time State employees, but individuals involved in private enterprise with expertise in various wildlife-related fields.
The Commission meets at least eleven times each year to publicly discuss various proposed regulations, permits, licenses, management policies and other subjects within its areas of responsibility.
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Peregrine Falcon Soars Off List
by Lyann Comrack, California Department of Fish & Game Wildlife Biologist, and Dana Michaels, Information Officer
In August 2009, the California Fish and Game Commission voted to remove the American Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus anatum) from California’s endangered species list.
“The recovery of the peregrine in California and its current delisting is an excellent example of what is possible and the direct result of hard work by many individuals, agencies and organizations over the years,” says Dale Steele, Department of Fish and Game (DFG) Environmental Program Manager. “I’m proud of the role DFG has served in this effort and especially the contributions made by key biologists throughout their careers. With the public’s support, we can work together with our partners to recover many other species in California.”
DFG recommended the delisting of the Peregrine Falcon based on long-term monitoring data showing an increased breeding population, reoccupation of most of the birds' historic breeding range in California and reduction in the threats that led to the listing.
The unanimous vote was only the second time the Commission has ever voted to delist an endangered species due to its recovery. The first such event occurred in February 2009 when the Commission voted to remove the California Brown Pelican from the list.
The Commission’s decision had to be reviewed by the Office of Administrative Law before the species could be officially removed from the endangered species list. The American Peregrine Falcon is currently designated as a Fully Protected Species under the Fish and Game Code; that will not change as a result of the delisting. It is still illegal to kill, harm or harass an American Peregrine Falcon in California.
Of the three subspecies that may be seen in California, the American Peregrine Falcon is the only peregrine falcon subspecies that nests here. It nests throughout the state—excluding the arid southeast and Central Valley regions—in locations where it can prey upon other birds such as waterfowl, shorebirds and pigeons.
The American Peregrine Falcon was listed as endangered in 1971, and was one of the first animals so designated under the statute. At that time, California’s breeding population had declined from an estimated 100 to 300 pairs to less than 10 pairs, with only a few active nest sites.
The falcon’s decline was attributed in part to contamination by the pesticide DDT, which became concentrated in the birds' tissues and resulted in thin eggshells that broke under the pressure of incubating adults. Human disturbance at the few remaining nesting sites was another known threat to peregrines at the time of listing.
After DDT was banned in 1972, California’s ecosystem began to recover. Concurrently, an ambitious captive breeding and reintroduction program was developed by the Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group (SCPBRG), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), DFG and other cooperatorating agencies. This program successfully reestablished the peregrine at historic nest sites, and facilitated the release of more than 1,000 peregrines throughout the Pacific states, including California. Today, the peregrine has met or even exceeded historic population numbers in California and has reoccupied most of its historic habitat.
“The recovery of the Peregrine Falcon in California has been a monumental conservation achievement, and one that I am extremely proud and honored to have been a part of during my time at Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group,” says Brian Latta, Biologist and Executive Director of the Bird Group. “It took about 35 years to reverse the damage done by 25 years of DDT contamination in California. Though we still see the lingering effects in thin eggshells that can be found in some areas, the vast majority of breeding pairs are successfully producing chicks again."
“Under the dedicated and innovative leadership of people like the late Brian Walton, Ron Jurek, Grainger Hunt, Lloyd Kiff and others, an unparalleled cooperative effort was conceived and carried out to bring an animal back from the very brink of extinction.”
DFG, USFWS, SCPBRG and other cooperatorating agencies will continue to monitor the American Peregrine Falcon population. California taxpayers can support DFG’s Rare and Endangered Species Preservation program by donating to a dedicated fund on Line 403 of their state income tax Form 540.
For more information about Peregrine Falcons and other non-game wildlife, visit the DFG website.
Reprinted with permission. This article was originally published in Outdoor California, a magazine published bimonthly by the California Department of Fish and Game, Troy Swauger, Editor.
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| Juvenile Barn Owls quickly learn to swallow prey whole. |
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| Baby Barn Owls in a nest made of dry owl pellets. |
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| Rescued owlets now residing in a new nest box. |
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| Male delivers a rodent to his mate in the nest box. |
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| Nest box placed at Nicasio School with branches to facilitate fledgling by the “branchers”. |
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| Thinking “outside the box.” |
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| Night flight captured by the Owl Cam |
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| Ginger, Cinnamon and Peppermint consider their options. |
A Virtual Visit to a Barn Owl Family
Photos courtesy of Hungry Owl Project
Last year, attentive viewers of the Hungry Owl Project's web cam noticed that a female owl with very young chicks had not moved for a long time. Emails alerted Hungry Owl Project (HOP) Director Alex Godbe, who went out to investigate. She found that the mother had died of natural causes inside the box.
Barn Owl parents work together to feed their brood, but the female does all the incubation and feeding of the owlets for the first few weeks. The male Barn Owl has one job and it’s a big one-- to bring in enough food for the entire family. His instinct is to simply drop the food off to the female and then take off to find more. If the owlets are not self-feeding, and the female dies, the male may provide an ever-growing pile of food, but the owlets will freeze or starve to death in the midst of that abundance.
These chicks and eggs were in need of an intervention. The owlets and eggs were removed and cared for by WildCare Foster Care Volunteers until they were old enough to live on their own. This scenario is just one of many dilemmas facing us in the brave new world of streaming nature, at its best and worst, over the Internet.
Streaming Owls 24/7
This year we had the opportunity to broadcast real-time streaming video from one of our boxes. Students monitoring an empty box at the Nicasio School in West Marin County, California sent word that the box was occupied! The school’s IT guru, Mark Tong, connected our camera to a free live video streaming service called Ustream. For the first time, we could watch the owls in real time and even save recordings of their activities. Ustream also provides a live chat feature so that people watching the box can talk to each other in real time.
Male Barn Owls have an almost snow white breast, while the female has a darker breast peppered with spots, so the Nicasio School students decided to name the adult pair Salt and Pepper. The three chicks hatched just as school was ending, and the students dubbed them Ginger, Cinnamon, and Peppermint. The chicks soon became affectionately known in the chat room as The Spices and the viewers were called The Spice Rack.
The Spices were watched, exclaimed over and worried over, even before hatching. Barn Owl eggs usually hatch asynchronously (on alternating days) instead of all at once. But Salt and Pepper’s eggs fooled everyone by hatching on consecutive days. Naturally this generated many questions from the owl cam viewers, and also made it difficult to distinguish between the owlets.
Once HOP saw the level of activity and interest in our owl box, and knowing the misinformation and speculation that can rapidly proliferate in live chat rooms, we knew that we had to have a presence there to answer questions. It also gave us the opportunity to advocate for wildlife on issues like the tragedies caused by tree cutting during nesting season and the secondary poisoning that occurs when owls and other beneficial predators consume poisoned rodents and gophers.
Nocturnal Drama
One night we had some drama during the “branching” process – "branching" is when young raptors first venture out of their nest, but are not yet fully flighted. HOP had added an external camera, as well as branches on the outside of the nesting box to give the branchers a place to hang out, since their box was not on a tree. The first owlet ventured out and became fascinated with a small electrical box on the wall nearby.
Suddenly the owlet decided to jump from the branch over to this very small, slippery box. She disappeared from view as she fell to the ground. The next night the second owl did the same thing. This happens all the time in nature, but most natural nests are in trees, and the branching raptors are fully equipped to simply walk up the trunk of the tree to safety using their talons and wing flapping. But our owlet could not walk up the side of a wall.
Immediately, concern broke out among the Spice Rack: would the baby be attacked by predators or fall to some other sad fate? The property is fenced, and there are bushes and small trees nearby that might provide shelter to the owlet. It was even possible the owlet had the wing power to fly a short distance to a nearby grove of trees.
But concern is contagious and soon one of our intrepid HOP volunteers was enroute to the location. Arriving after midnight, no sign of the owlet was seen on the ground, nor were any clumps of feathers seen that would indicate predation. It was very dark and very quiet under a sky of brilliant stars, and there was no owlet to rescue.
The following day HOP volunteers returned to the school and added more branches, this time allowing the owlets a way to climb up high enough that they could get back to their box. We beat the bushes looking for the missing owlet but didn’t find anything. All the watchers anxiously waited for dark and hoped the young owl would return and show herself to be alive and well. On the second night, the first branching owlet returned to the owl box on her own wing power! All was well.
All three owls branched and fledged and returned often to their box to hang out together. They were like a band of rowdy adolescents demanding food all night, playing around and just exploring their powers as fearsome, yet still goofy, birds of prey. We witnessed playfulness, tenderness and even food sharing amongst the sibling owls. They greeted each other with clear knowledge that they were family and seemed to seek out each other’s company as they stood shoulder-to-shoulder on top of the box, night after night, looking out into the darkness and waiting for the next meal.
Click to learn more about the Nicasio Barn Owl family and the Hungry Owl Project's other owl cams.
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Great Gift Ideas for September
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Just in time for the new school year, choose a fun, eco-friendly and personalizable Goodbyn lunchbox!
WildCare logo-wear also makes a great gift! Choose from a cool selection of caps, tees and sweatshirts on our Shop page, or visit WildCare and choose from an even larger selection!
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When you give a WildCare gift membership, your gift recipients will receive all the benefits of WildCare membership as well as the knowledge that, as WildCare members, they help create a healthy and sustainable habitat for humans and animals alike.
What a perfect gift!
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Or choose another extraordinary wild animal to adopt for that someone special! Your gift recipient will receive an art-quality photo of your chosen animal, a personalized certificate of adoption and a page of informative natural history.
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