Owl That Jazz

Owls are beginning their mating season — and they’ll be doing a lot of hooting. (Courtesy Peter Lourie)

There’s an old joke about two neighbors talking. The first woman says, “Boy am I sleepy. My husband heard this owl hooting last night, and so he hooted back — and what do you know? It hooted right back again. He was up hooting at it all night!”
“That’s funny,” the other woman says, “The same thing happened to my husband!”

I’m telling you this because it’s getting to be that time of year when owls begin their mating season — and they’ll be doing a lot of hooting — hopefully, to other owls. But our two most common species often will answer back if you do a good enough impression. So now’s the time for you to hone your own owl-calling skills.

Our most common species is the barred owl — a light colored bird with dark striping big brown eyes, and sounds like this…
People often use the mnemonic device to remember its phrasing as “Who cooks for you, who cooks for you all.” Be aware, barred owls do a lot of variations on this theme and can sometimes sound like monkeys carrying on.

Our other hooter is the great-horned owl. They are a tiny bit bigger than the barred owl, but darker overall in color with striking yellow cat-like eyes. They get their name from the two horn-like feathers that protrude from their heads. Great horned owls sound much deeper…
That’s typically translated as “Whose awake? Me too!” So start practicing and maybe you’ll get to meet some of your neighbors — wild or otherwise!