Black Phoebe At Yolo Wildlife Area photos by Larry Jordan
After visiting my favorite Burrowing Owl colony I told you about last week, I headed just a few miles East on I-80 to the Vic Fazio Yolo Wildlife Area. This 16,000 acre wildlife area has undergone 3,700 acres of wetland restoration in the Yolo Bypass floodway, an Important Bird Area (IBA) designated by the Audubon Society and BirdLife International.
Immature Bald Eagle photos by Larry Jordan
And then the raptor took flight… (click on photo for full size image)
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Burrowing Owl Head Tilt photos by Larry Jordan
I happened to be in the Sacramento area over the weekend and stopped to visit the Burrowing Owl colony at Wildhorse Golf Club in Davis, California. I arrived before dawn and watched the sunrise in this owls eyes as she gave me the endearing Burrowing Owl head tilt. I can’t think of a better morning greeting. It brought a great big smile to my face.
The Burrowing Owl colony at Wildhorse seems to be a very successful conservation story. I counted over twenty owls in the short time I was there. There were a few owls in the area of the artificial burrows, but most had taken up residence in the surrounding natural burrows dug by their symbiotic friends, the California Ground Squirrel.
There were families of four, five and six owls occupying burrows on the golf course and along the walking path that skirts the course boundary. This family was able to enjoy a respite from almost constantly being on alert for predators like unleashed dogs.
(You’ve got to love those eye lashes!)
Then there are the avian predators to be on alert for.
Mostly other raptors but, according to Birds of North America Online, American Crows will also prey on the owls.
There are several groups working hard to bring this beautiful species back from its current decline. One of them is the California Burrowing Owl Consortium.
The California Burrowing Owl Consortium has been fighting for this “Species of Special Concern” for nearly twenty years and we feel that the time is finally drawing near for this dwindling species to have their day.
The next California Burrowing Owl Consortium meeting will be held at Viansa Winery and Wetlands, in Sonoma, on Saturday, September 11th. Both the science and citizen science community are most welcome. The cost is $30, which includes a gourmet lunch. For more information, email Tom Rusert.
Another organization on the Burrowing Owl horizon, advocating for this beautiful bird, is the Burrowing Owl Conservation Network. I am a staff member of this organization, supported by Earth Island Institute and founded by none other than Scott Artis of Journowl.
I feel that we are getting close to turning this dreadful situation around for the California Burrowing Owl. I leave you with this excerpt from our mission statement and a video of that cute owl doing the endearing head tilt.
“By educating communities, garnering land owner cooperation, championing progressive burrowing owl and habitat management policies and laws, increasing scientific research, and fostering appreciation we will reverse a trend that currently promotes extirpation.”
To see some great bird photography, check out Bird Photography Weekly.
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