It seems like my living has turn into a professional game of “ I Spy . ” Mr. B and I are constantly pointing out the eccentricity of nature as the band of lifetime blossom out around us . look out the living room windowpane : “ Did you see that skunk ? ” Gazing out from the porch : “ What butterfly stroke was that ? ” Walking through the woods : “ Can you name thiswildflower ? ” We discovered perhaps our most interesting find of all this weekend while driving the state roads back to the farm .
Saturday dark , on the room home from dinner , Mr. B and I were chatting — probably about which farmhouse project to tackle next — when our car happen over something in the road . It was a strange - sized blob , standing more upright than a stick or a rock music might . A view flickered through my mind—“Was that an owl?”—but I was n’t going to say anything . All too often I ’ve speculated my sightings out of hope only to have been let down . But then Mr. B confirm it out loud : “ I think that was an owl . ”
“ Well , you have to turn around ! ” I insisted . I ’ve never seen an bird of Minerva up - close and personal in the wild — this was my luck ! And , of course of action , we could n’t leave the poor chap in the route to get persist over by some heartless passerby … of grade . Rachael Dupree
Mr. B decelerate down for a U - ey , though with hesitance , because surely that owl would n’t still be in the route after wejust drove over it . for certain not . But I ’m rather persistent , and he cave to my asking .
To put our dubiousness to reside , it was indeed an owl . A small one … with a fierce stare . Much to our surprisal , it was still there , seemingly unfazed . Or mayhap it was startled — I have n’t mastered the nicety of owl consistence language quite yet . I slip it for an owlet due to it ’s size , but after some immediate Googling , I learn I was amiss . It was an eastern screech bird of Minerva , which only stands about 6 inches tall , and perhaps the most pall one I ’ve ever understand — though give my oh - so - frequent interaction with eastern screech owls , that ’s not articulate much . We sat there with our car discontinue in the middle of the dark road , hop the boo of prey would wear upon of the vivid headlights — and the bright paparazzi - dash news bulletin of our camera — and aviate away . It did n’t .
“ We have to get it out of the road , ” I pleaded with Mr. B.
Rachael Dupree
Now back to our story .
As Mr. B go about the owl ( and I continue a dependable distance ) , it gave him a undecomposed sizing - up , lento scanning his body , looking him directly in the eye , and lento scanning back down — but it stubbornly stayed put . Mr. B find a log , and pushed it toward the owl , hop it would hop-skip on or only move away from it toward the berm . Still giving Mr. B the side eye , it kept firm footing . “ Hoothe heck is this guy ? ” was surely ply through its mental capacity . ( Could n’t help the wordplay — sorry not sorry)Rachael Dupree
I hopped back in the automobile , suppose we should probably just let this little owl be . Maybe it was sit in the middle of a dark country route for a reason . Why should we exert our human authority over it ? Then Mr. B throw it one last niggling nudge with the log , and the most magical matter happened : It pass around its flank — a wingspan that seemed to treble its size — and silently fly to a roadside tree . I mean , it was dead silent ! None of that flapping ruction vulgar to other neighboring birds , like gasconade and buzzards .
We become to bed that nighttime satisfied we ’d done our daily duty for the animal kingdom — but not without a small more Googling . And that ’s where our epilogue begins .
A friend of ours let us have it away that easterly screeching owls make a funny whinnying noise that voice like a knight . ( It does!Listen to it here . ) What we happily learned is that this is the sound that Mr. B and I have beenobsessingover during our farm walk . We love it so much ! Maybe we ’ll be spotting another midget but fierce hooter again shortly in less unstable setting .
Rachael Dupree
