Barn Owls in west Longmont, Boulder County

[Kat Bradley-Bennett]

I've been hearing bizarre screeching at night coming from a former goat farm just south of my subdivision in west Longmont. It didn't sound like any owl call that I was familiar with, but last night, there were three clear voices. Best of all, they were on the move, like chicks calling to Mom to hurry up with supper. I suspected Barn Owls, but having no experience with Barn Owls in the wild, I was unfamiliar with the calls of the young.

I went out this morning and played the Audubon phone app of young Barn Owl calls near the farm. I scanned every shed and building I could see from the open space path that runs along the property line, but couldn't see a Barn Owl anywhere. I took my dog for a walk and about twenty minutes later passed the farm only to see a young Barn Owl sitting on the roof of the red barn! I just went out tonight and watched two young owls follow each other around, perching on roofs in the subdivision and screeching for food, while a third could be heard to the west on the old AHI Double Dove Ranch, now recently acquired Boulder County open space).

So, three young Barn Owls, call clamoring for dinner while Mom is out somewhere hustling up a vole or mouse somewhere!

Kat Bradley-Bennett

Longmont, CO

katpb...@gmail.com