In early November 2023, the Eastern Screech Owls (ESO’s) that have frequented our yard in the past were readying for their annual winter/spring mating season by starting their local housing search. The cams caught glimpses of him / her / them roosting and as in years past, I hope a pair will move in to raise their brood. This season I’ll use this blog format to update their activity which could end quickly or stretch until May. The owls choose their seasonal nesting spot and while we did not have a pair in our yard last year, we did for several years prior - check out my yard owls photo gallery.

The owl activity coincided with the refurbished owl treehouse installation in a new location, as fall is the time to get it on the market and I was behind schedule. I mounted the house to the tree and the next day it was inspected before dawn by a potential tenant, then again during the day, then again days later for mealtime - sporadic but encouraging and common roosting behavior. The house is outfitted with a camera inside looking straight down and another camera on a nearby branch to attempt to capture some of nature in action. As I did in my past treehouses, I added oak bark to graft the tree to the house. Spikes are a new test, added to dissuade predators based on my observations of attack routes. Next we cross our fingers for the owls to take up residence when they are ready and for the cameras and their quirky software to work when needed.

If you are interested in these incredible owls, the internet is your friend, but I am, too, so I collected some general info to share here: eso faq.

* That’s a strip of live oak bark fastened inside the treehouse along with grooves cut in for their climbing use, wood shavings on the bottom for nesting. Just imagine it filled with 2 - 4 owlets and an occasional adult dropping on them - cozy.