Join us on October 14th at 8pm and get to see this tiny owl! We have caught saw-whets every year except for one, so your chances of seeing one are excellent.

Last year, 28 children and adults joined Northeast PA Audubon at Skytop Lodge to watch Darrel and Jackie Spicher of Pocono Avian Research Center, and helpers capture and band saw-whet owls. We met in a room at Skytop’s skating ring where Darrel told us about what they are doing and about the saw-whet owls. From there Darrel and those who want to accompany him went down to a rhododendron grove to check the mist nets to see if they have caught any saw-whets. Mist nets are fine nets that are about 6 feet high that stretch across an area. They play a recording of the bird they are trying to catch behind the net. Hopefully the bird will be attracted to the recording and fly into the net. On their first trip down to the nets they caught a saw-whet. It was the only owl of the night but everyone was satisfied. They put the owl in a cloth bag to calm it down and then brought the owl up to the room at the skating ring, collected all the data they needed, put a band on one of its legs and then took it outside and released it. The room looked like the president’s press conferences with flashes going off all the time. Almost everybody had a camera or a camera phone. We didn’t catch anymore owls that night even though we kept trying until 11pm. Many people left early but everybody was satisfied.

For more information and to register, please contact Bob at jeanbob@ptd.net.