Extras and Answers All About !

Winter 2016-17

Northern Pygmy

By Doug Schurman

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Answers to true or false questions. false or true to Answers Inside

12. Northern Pygmy Northern 12. Dear Members………….…...... 2

11. Northern Saw-whet Owl Saw-whet Northern 11.

10. Western Screech Owl Screech Western 10. Owl Coloring Page...... 3

9. Burrowing 9. 8. Long-eared Owl Long-eared 8. Spotlight on Barred Owls .…..4-5

7. Short-eared Owl Short-eared 7. ……….

6. Barn Owl Barn 6. Put Some Eyes on It! 6-7

5. Spotted 5. 4. Barred 4. Whoo’s the Biggest?...... 8

3. Great Horned Owl Horned Great 3. True or False?...... ……………9

2. Snowy Owl Snowy 2.

1. Great Gray Owl Gray Great 1. Owl Puzzle…………………..10-11 Solution to Whooo’s the Biggest? the Whooo’s to Solution

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12 Dear Members Owl Puzzle

Whoo’s ready for winter? Can you unscramble the pieces below to complete the picture? Cut out the puzzle pieces to find out! This issue of the Rookery Activity book is all about owls! (Make sure to check the answers for the other pages on the back of Winter is a great time to go out on owl prowls, since it gets this page before cutting!) dark earlier in the day. Just remember to bring your flashlight and lots of warm clothing. This edition of the 1 2 3 activity book includes an owl puzzle, a true or false quiz all about owls, and information on the most common neighborhood owl, the Barred Owl. You can also find information about Seattle Audubon’s longest-running citizen science program, the Christmas count! Families with children can contribute to this annual bird count by signing up for the youth count on 4 5 6 December 15, or Feeder Watch, which takes place on December 29, from the comfort of your own warm home. We hope everyone has a lovely holiday season!

Mark your calendars for the following youth and family- friendly events: 7 8 9 Holiday Crafts at the Nature Shop Open House: Sat, Dec. 1 st , 11:30am-2:30pm at the Seattle Audubon Nature Shop Youth Christmas Bird Count: Sat, Dec. 15, 10am-noon at Discovery Park (visit the Seattle Audubon website for more info and to register for the count!) 10 11 12 Fledglings and Friends Storytime: Wed, Dec. 19 th , 10:30-11:15am at the Seattle Audubon Nature Shop

For more information, visit www.seattleaudubon.org or call: 206-523-4483

2 11 Owl Puzzle Coloring Page

Glue or tape the pieces on this grid below to complete the puzzle. What type of owl is it?

This is a ______owl!

10 3 Spotlight on Barred Owls True or False?

Barred Owl How much do you know about owls? Take the true or false quiz below to find out! Scientific Name Strix varia 1. Owls can turn their General Info heads all the way Barred owls are medium to around. large owls that have dark brown eyes, and are overall 2. Owls cannot move their grey brown in color. They eyes. have light colored bellies with brown vertical streaking 3. Owls can digest the (bars) on their bellies. Nesting bones and hair from Barred owls develop long- their prey. Habitat and Diet term monogamous Barred owls are the most relationships. The pair stay 4. Owls can hunt in total Duke Coonrad together throughout the year commonly-seen urban owl in darkness. Seattle. They prefer forests and defend their territory. with old-growth or mature They nest in holes in trees, old 5. All owls are nocturnal (awake only at night.) second-growth trees. They squirrel, hawk, or crow nests, can also be found in forested or even in nest boxes. The 6. Some smaller owls eat seeds and berries. parks and residential areas female will lay, incubate, and with lots of trees. They are raise the eggs and chicks 7. All owls hoot. generalists, which means while the male brings her and they eat anything they can the chicks food. 8. Owls hunt other owls. catch, from rodents, to frogs, to , to invertebrates! Behavior Barred owls are very vocal and are often spotted by their “who cooks for you?” call. They also call back and forth to their mates with different hoots and vocalizations. They are “sit-and-wait” predators that hide on branches before swooping silently down to Barn Owl catch their prey. 4 9 Whooo’s the Biggest? Spotlight on Barred Owls

Can you rank these owls from biggest to smallest? Barred Owl: Friend or Foe?

______Invaders from the East ______Northern Barred owls are not native to the Pacific Northwest, and Barn Owl many consider them to be invasive . They are Pygmy Owl originally from the eastern part of the US, and have slowly Gregg Thompson Gregg Thompson moved westward, due to human disturbances in habitat . Spotted Owls in Peril ______The endangered spotted owl competes with the larger, Western more aggressive barred owl for nesting space in old Screech Owl Snowy Owl growth forests. Though barred owls can nest in second Greg Lavaty John DuBois growth forests, spotted owls can’t. There are currently efforts to remove barred owls from old growth forests to help the spotted owl. ______Great Gray ______At-Home Discussion Owl Spotted Owl So what do you think? Is the barred owl a friend or a foe? Have an adult help you look up more information on this Melissa Dannelet US Fish & Wildlife environmental conundrum and see if you can decide!

______Short-eared Burrowing Owl Owl Duke Coonrad Greg Lavaty

______Northern Great Horned Saw-whet Owl Owl Doug Schurman Earl Blackaby

______Long-eared Barred Owl Photo by Shawn M. Pare Barred Owl Owl

John Forsen Yoshiki Nakamura 8 5 Put Some Eyes on It!

Did you know that you can turn anything into an owl by simply putting some big owl eyes on it? Trace the template below or create your own owl eyes using felt, construction paper, googly eyes, and more! You can add wings and a tail to complete the look or leave it as-is.

Trace this template, or make your own!

Will you make your eyes yellow like this snowy owl?

Make a fancy goblet come to life!

Hint: If you cut the tops off at an angle, the eyes look Earl Blackaby extra fierce! (Or just kind of grumpy.) Or super fierce like this baby Great Horned Owl?

Planter pots give the owls extra fun hair. Make a whole owl family! Barn owls and Barred Owls have very dark You can stick your owl eyes on nature! brown eyes. 6 7