Inga and I were fortunate enough to join the DVOC in visiting one of Scott Weidensaul’s Northern Saw-whet Owl banding stations. The particular station is located near Wayne, Pennsylvania, along the Kittatinny Ridge. Jim Logan Jr. was the lead bander, and working with him were seven owl-savvy volunteers.

Several participants “adopted” Saw-whet Owls throughout the night (we saw five in our two hours!), and all of us learned heaps about owl ecology, migration, and biology. The project is run through the Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art, and you too can adopt an owl through their website here. You will receive a certificate with a photo of “your” owl, and if the owl is ever caught again, all information on the owl will be sent to you. This is a wonderful (and cheap!) way to get involved and support great research, the results of which are just now beginning to paint the picture of Saw-whet migration across North America. Here are some photos I took during our evening visit:

*if you can’t see the photos, they’re also available on my flickr site: http://www.flickr.com/photos/woodcreeper