The Celery Farm & Beyond

Evicting Squirrels from Screech Owl Nesting Boxes

   Squirrels invading Screech Owl nesting boxes are like early stages of a forest fire: If you can fight them early enough, and persistently enough, you have a chance of putting them out. 

   One minute your Screech Owl is chilling in the box (left), and the next minute a squirrel has moved in with extreme prejudice.

    You cannot let the squirrel have a chance to get attached to her new digs. You as the landlord have to evict the squatter asap.

   In the eviction process,  I have found that a nesting box video cam attached to your TV or DVR is half the battle.

    Thanks to the mini-cam, and a three-pronged attack, I have had good success in evicting these bushy-tailed rodents.

   Click "Continue reading... " below to see my three rules of squirrel removal.

   (Note: No squirrels were injured in the making of this blog post.)

Screech Owls' Biggest Nemesis

    Suddenly, a shout rang out.* It was me, yelling to no one in particular after looking out my living room and seeing a new gray face sticking its head out of the Screech Owl nesting box.

   Even from 100 feet, I could see it was no owl. It was Public Enemy No. 1.

   That's right, it was an Eastern Gray Squirrel, one of those the furry mischief-makers who -- went they aren't busy raiding bird feeders -- love to evict Eastern Screech Owls from their nesting boxes and then set up house themselves.

   I have heard from many Screech Owl nesting box proprietors over the years, and they have lost more Screech Owl tenants because of squirrels than for any other reason.

   So far I have found only three counter-insurgency methods that seem to work.

   Can you guess what they are?

   To be continued Friday.

  * See comment to Wednesday's post.

Screech Owl Nesting Box: The Good News

    If you happened to see a guy in a red jacket by my Screech Owl nesting box earlier this month, you'll be relieved to know that the guy was not a wacko but rather a trained nesting-box camera installer, better known as (the legendary) Mike From Philly.

   Mike installed the first mini microphone and mini infrared video cam for the neighborhood Screechers more than three years ago, and the elements finally got to them.

   When the cam and mike crapped out early last fall, I asked the MFP to do a new installation (left). Everything works great.

   And yes, we removed the lens cap.

   Click "Continue reading..."  for more owl cam info.

Peregrine Cam

  If you have not checked out the live Peregrine Falcon cam in Jersey City, check it out -- several hatchlings are in view.
   The link is here.

SCREECH OWLS: The ultimate video

   "Screech Owl Family Jamboree" was one of my first videos, and I realized it could use an overhaul. The video is now shorter, sharper, with easier-to-read subtitles. 

   (Might allow a little time for the video to load.)   

   And maybe it's just me, but that bluegrass music by the Hunger Mountain Boys sounds better than ever. The video simply must be played with the volume "up."

   I will try to re-do the Spanish-language version as time allows.

OWL: The Family Screech, Part VI

This is the last in the series of videos about this year's crew. It's one-minute long.

    Of the five owlets, one jumped one night, then three the next, then this last little one the third night.

    As far as I know they were all safe and sound after leaving the box. After they jump out of the box, one of the adults calls to it and (I think) helps direct toward a tree to climb.

   After his four siblings had gone, I figured this guy was going to get out of there as soon as he could.

   I have not cleaned out the owl box but hope to do so this weekend. I am expecting mostly wood chips and feathers from prey. I will take some photos and post them.

  I do not expect an owl to return to the box until late October at the earliest.

   In the meantime, I hope to do an upgrade or two to the box, including flashing on the roof to make it harder for squirrels to get in.

  In future days I hope to do a couple more posts about this year's owl adventures, including a few photos of owls and owlets outside the box and a little surprise that I learned thanks to the otherwise inactive Quacker Tracker camera in the nearby wood duck box.

Tuesday: Snapping-turtle egg update.

 

OWL: The Family Screech, Part V

 

   In this video, the owlets are nearly a month old, and it is about time for them to go.
   Mom no longer enters the nesting box, and is not seen in  this video.
   In videos past, I have done tight editing and snappy music, but we are nearing the end of the line and for me at least, it's a bittersweet time.
   So I let the video unfold -- no feeding frenzys, no wacky youngsters.
   This is best played with the sound on.
   On a lighter note, around 1:29 into the video, I think you can hear the first known recording of screech-owlet flatulence. I apologize in their behalf.
   See what you think (and hear).

MONDAY: And then there was one...

OWL: The Family Screech, Video 4

In this video, the owlets are more than two weeks old, and Mom has dropped off a larger meal -- a large hatchling from another nest somewhere.
   It's a hard-knock life, and the owlets will eventually become potential prey themselves.
   Sometimes it's a bird-eat-bird world out there.

   COMING MONDAY: The next owlet video.

 Scroll down for more videos.

OWL: The Family Screech, Video 3

   

    The five owlets are getting bigger, and so are their appetites.
   Features a slo-mo feeding frenzy.
   Not for the squeamish: food chain footage.

   COMING FRIDAY: Another feeding frenzy, and Mom intervenes.

   Scroll down for more videos.

OWL: The Family Screech, Video 2

In this video, the owlets are roughly two weeks old and getting occasionally noisy.  
   Mom leaves the nest more often, and when she or Dad drops off food, it's a bit chaotic.
   Scroll down the blog for the first video in this series.