Birds, Bats and Beyond

New Address

Jim Wright's blog is now at:

http://celeryfarm.typepad.com/cf/

OWL: 'Think Worms,' a video poem

OWL: Feeding fest (video)

   

Amazingly, after five days and far more votes than I expected, the "Name Mrs. Ace" contest has ended in a virtual dead heat among three names: Carolus, Winnie and Mrs. Ace.
   "Carolus" was suggested by Sally Teschon. "Winnie" was suggested by Christina Kobelin. "Mrs. Ace" was suggested long ago by Seymour Drakes. All three are longtime friends of this blog.
  Rather than prolong the agony, the judges have decided that the female owl sitting on five eggs shall henceforth be known as Carolus Winnie Ace -- or Mrs. Ace for short.
   If people prefer, we also can call Ace "Mr. Ace," just for balance.

   Those who want to post comments concerning their preferred nom de owl should feel free.
   Thanks to all for their votes and exuberance.
    Congratulations to the winners.
    We can now all go on with our lives... :-)


   

   

All is fine at 1 Owlbox Lane. The egg count has been five for more than a week, and in all likelihood it will stay there.
   Mrs. Ace is incubating the eggs with great dedication, and Ace is a terrific provider.
   The voting on naming Mrs. Ace has been brisk. It closes tomorrow (Wednesday) at 8 a.m.
   I hope to put together a video of Ace bringing home some goodies in the next week.
   On rainy nights, think worms.

   

   Let me tell you about the five screech owl eggs that rest snugly in the nesting box beyond my backyard.
   To the eye, they are smooth, white and nearly round. They are a little smaller than a walnut, and a third the heft of a chicken's egg. And so much more.
   They are everyday treasures that enrich my life. But they come with a catch. They remain valuable only if I do not possess them.
   In a month, if I am lucky, the five eggs will give way to five owlets.
   In two months, if I am luckier still, those owlets will grow big and leave home, never to return, and the nesting box will sit empty once more.
   All the while, the eggs are reminders that what is worth the most in life is not what I can grasp with my hands but what I can hold in my heart.

(Click "Continue reading" to read about how the photo at the top of the post was taken.)
   

   Several friends of this blog have asked me to give  Mrs. Ace a name, or to hold a contest to that end.

   This being April Fool's Day, I say let the nominations begin.

   You may be chagrined to hear that one early bird has already come up with a great name: Winnie, the perfect description of her voice.

  Me, I am not big on naming wild critters.  "Ace" is short for the Latin word for owl, Asio. I named the male owl "Ace" because it is simpler than calling him the male screech owl in every post.

    I call his mate "Mrs. Ace" because she arrived on the scene later last spring, and I needed an easy way to  differentiate between the male and female, and get across that they were a pair.

   So fire away. If anybody has a better name than Winnie or Mrs. Ace, let's hear it! Nominations ends Friday.

    In the meantime, welcome to April. :-)

    If you are new to this blog, welcome. If you are an old friend, welcome once more.
   Mrs. Ace, a screech owl, has been sitting on five eggs for a few weeks ...  

Click "Continue reading..." for an amazing owl video and more about the owls this spring...

    

Mrs. Ace is a fast worker this spring -- four eggs in eight days vs. four eggs in 10 days last year.
   She may have more eggs, but I doubt it, and I do not want to count any owlets before they hatch.
   Incubation takes from 26 to 31 days.
   Let's hope for the best.

For those who want to see how the Ace family developed last year, as well as a timeline, I put together this index   of posts.

  It also includes posts on wood ducks, red-shouldered hawks and some nice writing.

  Holler if any of the links are broken.

  Click "Continue reading..."

And the winner is ...

   

Amazingly, after five days and far more votes than I expected, the "Name Mrs. Ace" contest has ended in a virtual dead heat among three names: Carolus, Winnie and Mrs. Ace.
   "Carolus" was suggested by Sally Teschon. "Winnie" was suggested by Christina Kobelin. "Mrs. Ace" was suggested long ago by Seymour Drakes. All three are longtime friends of this blog.
  Rather than prolong the agony, the judges have decided that the female owl sitting on five eggs shall henceforth be known as Carolus Winnie Ace -- or Mrs. Ace for short.
   If people prefer, we also can call Ace "Mr. Ace," just for balance.

   Those who want to post comments concerning their preferred nom de owl should feel free.
   Thanks to all for their votes and exuberance.
    Congratulations to the winners.
    We can now all go on with our lives... :-)


   

OWL: Update

   

All is fine at 1 Owlbox Lane. The egg count has been five for more than a week, and in all likelihood it will stay there.
   Mrs. Ace is incubating the eggs with great dedication, and Ace is a terrific provider.
   The voting on naming Mrs. Ace has been brisk. It closes tomorrow (Wednesday) at 8 a.m.
   I hope to put together a video of Ace bringing home some goodies in the next week.
   On rainy nights, think worms.

Owl: The triumph of the egg

   

   Let me tell you about the five screech owl eggs that rest snugly in the nesting box beyond my backyard.
   To the eye, they are smooth, white and nearly round. They are a little smaller than a walnut, and a third the heft of a chicken's egg. And so much more.
   They are everyday treasures that enrich my life. But they come with a catch. They remain valuable only if I do not possess them.
   In a month, if I am lucky, the five eggs will give way to five owlets.
   In two months, if I am luckier still, those owlets will grow big and leave home, never to return, and the nesting box will sit empty once more.
   All the while, the eggs are reminders that what is worth the most in life is not what I can grasp with my hands but what I can hold in my heart.

(Click "Continue reading" to read about how the photo at the top of the post was taken.)
   

OWL: Naming Mrs. Ace

   Several friends of this blog have asked me to give  Mrs. Ace a name, or to hold a contest to that end.

   This being April Fool's Day, I say let the nominations begin.

   You may be chagrined to hear that one early bird has already come up with a great name: Winnie, the perfect description of her voice.

  Me, I am not big on naming wild critters.  "Ace" is short for the Latin word for owl, Asio. I named the male owl "Ace" because it is simpler than calling him the male screech owl in every post.

    I call his mate "Mrs. Ace" because she arrived on the scene later last spring, and I needed an easy way to  differentiate between the male and female, and get across that they were a pair.

   So fire away. If anybody has a better name than Winnie or Mrs. Ace, let's hear it! Nominations ends Friday.

    In the meantime, welcome to April. :-)

OWL: The story thus far

    If you are new to this blog, welcome. If you are an old friend, welcome once more.
   Mrs. Ace, a screech owl, has been sitting on five eggs for a few weeks ...  

Click "Continue reading..." for an amazing owl video and more about the owls this spring...

OWL: Four eggs!

    

Mrs. Ace is a fast worker this spring -- four eggs in eight days vs. four eggs in 10 days last year.
   She may have more eggs, but I doubt it, and I do not want to count any owlets before they hatch.
   Incubation takes from 26 to 31 days.
   Let's hope for the best.

SPRING 2007: The owl archive

For those who want to see how the Ace family developed last year, as well as a timeline, I put together this index   of posts.

  It also includes posts on wood ducks, red-shouldered hawks and some nice writing.

  Holler if any of the links are broken.

  Click "Continue reading..."