Tips for spotting elusive screech owls: Listen at night and look for holes

Q: I would really like to see a screech owl, but I never have. What’s the best way to locate one of these owls?

A: These small owls are described as “common” but are notoriously challenging to spot out in nature. One of the best ways to locate a screech owl is to keep an eye on wooded areas, especially those with trees featuring holes that could hold an 8½-inch-tall owl. On cold winter days, screeches are known to perch at the entrance to such holes to soak up the warming sunlight. If you hear a screech owl in your neighborhood at night (hear their sounds here: allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Screech-Owl/sounds), try going out in the daytime to see if you can locate the owl.

Q: The crabapple tree in my backyard was visited today by the most amazing looking birds. They were sort of buff colored and looked somewhat like cardinals but sleeker somehow. Was this unusual?

A: You were treated to the sight of one of our most handsome songbirds, the cedar waxwing, named for the waxy-looking red tips on their flight feathers. Add a black eye-mask, taupe-colored plumage, head crest and sleek-looking feathers, and you can see why many call them the “Art Deco birds.” Waxwings primarily eat fruit, and at this time of year, that usually means crabapples and juniper berries. They’re social birds, flocking together as they search for fruit. Once they’ve stripped branches bare, they move on. During the December Christmas Bird Count I spotted 70 or more cedar waxwings feeding on winterberries near the Como Conservatory for several days.

Q: Why do chickadees peck at cattails? Are they eating the fluff? I was watching several of them working on cattails in the local marsh recently.

A: The chickadees you saw were probably searching for insects or insect eggs deposited in the cattails late last summer. These little birds are always on the hunt for insect protein and cattails are a good wintertime source. If it were spring, then the ‘dees might be collecting some fluff for their nests.

Q: Why would anyone go bird-watching in the winter?

A: For a simple reason: to see birds and observe their behaviors. Sure, in winter we have many fewer bird species to focus on, but there are birds around and they’re active and not as secretive as they can be during nesting season. With no leaves on deciduous trees and shrubs, it’s much easier to spot birds, and they’re so intent on foraging for a meal that you might be treated to longer views. About three-fourths of our state’s summer species migrate away before winter. But you still might see Northern cardinals, black-capped chickadees, American goldfinches, house finches, blue jays, dark-eyed juncos, white-breasted nuthatches and several woodpeckers, such as the pileated, red-bellied, hairy and downy. Add in bald eagles and hawks such as the red-tailed and Cooper’s, too. And then there’s the possibility of spotting unusual species, such as snowy owls, various sparrows or tufted titmice. So yes, winter bird-watching can be very rewarding.

Q: This isn’t really about birds, except that birds like to sit in trees, and beavers seem to be gnawing many of them down around the metro. There are signs that beaver have been active at many of the parks I visit, especially those along rivers. Are there more beaver in the metro area these days?

A: Good question, and I’ve noticed the same thing, along Minnehaha Creek and the big river parks such as Fort Snelling, Crosby Farm Regional Park and Hidden Falls Regional Park. I asked Jason Abraham, furbearer specialist for the Minnesota DNR, about this, and here’s his reply:

“It sounds like people are coming across some areas where local [beaver] populations may be increasing. Lots of factors influence local populations of beaver, including habitat, disease, weather and in urban areas, human control, such as trapping and dam removal.” Abraham says beaver damage can be troubling if it causes flooding that threatens roads, farm fields, homes and other structures. But “if located in the right place, beaver ponds support an abundance of wildlife and help control spring runoff.” The DNR, he added, does not trap or remove problem beavers.

Q: What do cardinals eat when they’re not at feeders?

A: In the wintertime, cardinals are searching primarily for seeds and fruit. They’ll eat crabapples, winterberries, grapes and, unfortunately, buckthorn berries (helping to spread this invasive shrub). They search out seeds and grains, too, and get most of their daily diet out in the wild. However, cardinals often visit our bird feeders and have a decided preference for black-oil sunflower seeds. If you, like me, don’t relish the mess and slight toxicity to your lawn from these seeds’ shells, some other options include safflower seeds, sunflower pieces, peanut pieces and small bits of suet. These beautiful birds are, at heart, ground feeders, so they look to find food on the ground, as well. Even though it’s not high in nutrition, they seem to relish cracked corn.

Note to readers: For those of us plagued by house sparrows dominating our feeders, St. Paulite Lisa Peters sent in a tip: She hangs lengths of fishing line anchored by heavy metal nuts on each side of her tray feeder. This has worked to keep out the neighborhood sparrows, but doesn’t deter her other feeder birds.

House sparrows aren’t known for their maneuverability in flight, and Peters’ system presents too much of a challenge for them, apparently. It may not work for everyone, but seems worth a try.

And Jodi Hicks-Trick of Anoka has a tip for those who don’t offer black-oil sunflower seeds in their feeders because of the mass of shells that builds up underneath: “I saved the window screens when we had our windows replaced and put them under the feeders in winter. This makes for easy cleanup come spring,” she says. [Wish I’d saved some screens!] Turns out that even if the screens get snowed under, they still protect the ground from the shells.

St. Paul resident Val Cunningham, who volunteers with bird organizations and writes about nature for local, regional and national newspapers and magazines, can be reached at valwrites@comcast.net.