Snowy Egret – Gatorland 4-2-15 by Lee
“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.” (Colossians 3:17 NKJV)
Give Thanks – Egret
Category Archives: Birds
Reginald the Turkey Commander: The Corn Field
Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) by Daves BirdingPix
Reginald the Turkey Commander: The Corn Field [Part 4]
by Emma Foster
Here are the Thanksgiving, Reginald, the Turkey Commander Tales
Reginald, Turkey Commander [2014]
Reginald, The Turkey Commander – Part 2 [2016]
Reginald, The Turkey Commander: The Great Snowstorm [2017]
And Now – Reginald, the Turkey Commander: The Corn Field [Part 4]
The turkeys were looking forward to another Thanksgiving at their fort as they made their way through the forest. Reginald had them march to the fort early that year just in case there were any hunters getting ready to hunt. The fort that the turkeys had built helped protect them from the hunters every Thanksgiving and Christmas. Reginald led the way through the forest until he came to the farmer’s old house they had visited a year before. This time, however, a large corn field was in their way.
Corn Maze © Pixabay
The turkeys inadvertently wandered into the field and became confused. Everything began to look the same. Reginald eventually made all of the turkeys stop, and he declared that they all needed to turn around and walk back to where they had come from in order to get out of the field. The turkeys turned around and followed Reginald as he led them out of the corn field. Suddenly, Reginald realized that Oliver was missing.
Shaking his head, Reginald led the turkeys back to the forest. As soon as he returned the turkeys to the forest, he set out to find Oliver.
Reginald searched the field, making sure that no one would hear him. He hoped that there were no hunters nearby in case anyone heard Oliver. Reginald spotted Oliver, who was wandering through the field, loudly gobbling and stomping through the stalks of corn in order to find the other turkeys.
Reginald dragged Oliver back toward the forest. Halfway there, a large scarecrow toppled over as Reginald and Oliver made their way through the corn field. Oliver bolted away, gobbling loudly as Reginald ran after him.
Scarecrow beginning to fall over ©foodista-com
Oliver continued running as fast as he could, terrified because he thought that the scarecrow was going to eat him. Eventually, Oliver tripped and landed head-first in a tumbled-over wheelbarrow. Shaking his head, Reginald resignedly picked up the wheelbarrow by the handles and carried Oliver back to where the other turkeys were hiding.
Wild Turkeys ©WikiC
Dumping Oliver in front of the other turkeys, Reginald proceeded to lead them through the forest. When they were close, one of the turkeys pointed out that they had less food than they expected. Some of the turkeys began to believe that there might not be enough for the winter.
Oliver had an idea. He remembered all of the corn he had seen in the field, and he told Reginald that they could take the corn to the fort with them.
Corn for the Winter ©rode diaz. unsplash.com
After taking the rest of the turkeys to the fort, Reginald and Oliver returned to the corn field, though Oliver was a little afraid that the scarecrow might jump out of the field and attack. They took a wheelbarrow full of corn and brought it back to the fort. The turkeys now had plenty of food to last them through the winter and Thanksgiving, which was now approaching. The farmer eventually harvested all of the corn in the field, but not before Reginald returned the wheelbarrow. The turkeys were safe in the fort, and once again the hunters would not have turkey for their Thanksgiving dinner.
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Lee’s Addition:
Oliver should have remembered these verses:
“Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh. For the LORD shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken.” (Proverbs 3:25-26 KJV)
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9 NASB)
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Emma, you continue to entertain us with your Turkey Commander, Reginald. It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving this year without another of these tales. Thanks for taking the time out from your studies to provide us with some wholesome adventures.
Thanksgiving – Reginald, the Turkey Commander Tales
Reginald, Turkey Commander [2014]
Reginald, The Turkey Commander – Part 2 [2016]
Give Thanks – Bleeding-heart Dove
Luzon Bleeding-heart Dove by Dan at Zoo Miami
“Sing praise to the LORD, you saints of His, And give thanks at the remembrance of His holy name.” (Psalms 30:4 NKJV)
Give Thanks – Eagle
Bald Eagle (close up) Lowry Park Zoo by Dan
“Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.” (1 Chronicles 16:34 NKJV)
Give Thanks – Hornbill
Wrinkled Hornbill (Aceros corrugatus) Brevard Zoo by Lee
“Oh, give thanks to the LORD! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples!” (1 Chronicles 16:8 NKJV)
Where Eagles Dare: French Military Training Eagles vs. Drones
Eagle Taking On a Drone ©Euronews
“Like an eagle swooping on its prey.” (Job 9:26b NKJV)
After receiving an email about the French Military training Golden Eagles to capture Drones, my curiosity kicked in. Below are links to articles and video of this training.
“The French military is literally going where eagles dare in an effort to combat the increasing use of drones by criminals and terrorists.
Following incidents of drones flying over the presidential palace and restricted military sites – along with the deadly 2015 Paris terror attacks – the French air force has trained four golden eagles to intercept and destroy the rogue aircraft.” Where Eagles Dare
“Faced with the specter of a terrorist threat from rogue drones, the French are recruiting an avian ally. At a base in the southwest of the country, a special army unit has for months been training four golden eagles to spot drones and perform mid-air takedowns.” Drones-Eagles-France
NTD has a great video of how they train baby Golden Eagles as babies, and then as adults.
“Though you ascend as high as the eagle, And though you set your nest among the stars, From there I will bring you down,” says the LORD.” (Obadiah 1:4 NKJV) [I took some liberty with this verse.]
Checking YouTube, there are several video of how bird attack drones.
Here is just one example. This drone is downed by a Hawk.
Woodpeckers in the Waterman Bird Collection
BJU Bird Collection 2018-Display Case 3 – Woodpeckers and Shorebirds
“If a bird’s nest happens to be before you along the way, in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs, with the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young;” (Deuteronomy 22:6 NKJV)
The next Display case of the Waterman Bird Collection contains Woodpeckers from the Picidae family and some shorebirds from the Scolopacidae Family. [Next post]
BJU Bird Collection 2018
– Woodpeckers
This post is about the five Woodpeckers; Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus), Black-backed Three-toed Woodpecker [now the Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus)], Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) and a Common Flicker [now the Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus).
Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)
BJU Bird Collection 2018 Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)
Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) “The Pileated Woodpecker is one of the biggest, most striking forest birds on the continent. It’s nearly the size of a crow, black with bold white stripes down the neck and a flaming-red crest. Look (and listen) for Pileated Woodpeckers whacking at dead trees and fallen logs in search of their main prey, carpenter ants, leaving unique rectangular holes in the wood. The nest holes these birds make offer crucial shelter to many species including swifts, owls, ducks, bats, and pine martens.”
Pileated Woodpecker by Lee at Circle B
Cool Facts – “The Pileated Woodpecker digs characteristically rectangular holes in trees to find ants. These excavations can be so broad and deep that they can cause small trees to break in half.” [Pileated Woodpecker – All About Birds]
American Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis)
BJU Bird Collection 2018 BJU Bird Collection Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus)
American Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis) – “Found in boreal forests and montane coniferous forests across North America. Because of its choice of habitat, it is infrequently seen by most people.” “The “Three-toed Woodpecker” was split in 2003 into the American Three-toed and Eurasian Three-toed woodpeckers. The two species are nearly identical in appearance, but differ in mitochondrial DNA sequences and in voice.”
American Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis) by Daves BirdingPix
Cool Fact “Most woodpeckers have four toes on each foot. The three-toed and Black-backed woodpeckers have only three. The loss of the fourth toe may help deliver stronger blows, but at the expense of climbing ability.” [American Three-toed_Woodpecker – All About Birds]
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) Male – Waterman Bird Collection BJU
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) – “The active little Downy Woodpecker is a familiar sight at backyard feeders and in parks and woodlots, where it joins flocks of chickadees and nuthatches, barely outsizing them. An often acrobatic forager, this black-and-white woodpecker is at home on tiny branches or balancing on slender plant galls, sycamore seed balls, and suet feeders. Downies and their larger lookalike, the Hairy Woodpecker, are one of the first identification challenges that beginning bird watchers master.”
Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) Brevard Zoo by Dan
Cool Facts – “In winter Downy Woodpeckers are frequent members of mixed species flocks. Advantages of flocking include having to spend less time watching out for predators and better luck finding food from having other birds around.” [Downy Woodpecker – All About Birds]
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius)
BJU Bird Collection 2018 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius)
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) – “On a walk through the forest you might spot rows of shallow holes in tree bark. In the East, this is the work of the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, an enterprising woodpecker that laps up the leaking sap and any trapped insects with its specialized, brush-tipped tongue. Attired sharply in barred black-and-white, with a red cap and (in males) throat, they sit still on tree trunks for long intervals while feeding. To find one, listen for their loud mewing calls or stuttered drumming.”
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (Sphyrapicus varius) by Daves BirdingPix
Cool Facts – “Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers have been found drilling sapwells in more than 1,000 species of trees and woody plants, though they have a strong preference for birches and maples.”[Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – All About Birds]
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)
BJU Bird Collection 2018 Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) – “Northern Flickers are large, brown woodpeckers with a gentle expression and handsome black-scalloped plumage. On walks, don’t be surprised if you scare one up from the ground. It’s not where you’d expect to find a woodpecker, but flickers eat mainly ants and beetles, digging for them with their unusual, slightly curved bill. When they fly you’ll see a flash of color in the wings – yellow if you’re in the East, red if you’re in the West – and a bright white flash on the rump.”
Northern Flicker cropped by Lee at S. Lake Howard Nature Pk
Cool Fact – “Although it can climb up the trunks of trees and hammer on wood like other woodpeckers, the Northern Flicker prefers to find food on the ground. Ants are its main food, and the flicker digs in the dirt to find them. It uses its long barbed tongue to lap up the ants.” [Northern Flicker – All About Birds]
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Some of the Previous Woodpecker Posts:
- When I Consider! – Woodpecker
- When I Consider! – Woodpecker and Bones
- Woodpecker Video
- Yellow-bellied Sapsucker – Chief Corner Stone’s Keystone by A J Mithra
- Buddy Davis – Woodpecker Song
- Red-headed Woodpecker – Video (Peterson’s Bird Series)
- God’s Amazing Pileated Woodpecker
- Pale-bellied Woodpecker
- The Woodpeckers by Fannie Hardy Eckstorm
- Woodpeckers – The Core Species.. – A J
- Ian’s Bird of the Week – Black Woodpecker
- Ian’s Bird of the Week – Crimson-crested Woodpecker
Wordless Woodpecker – Yellow-Fronted
Double Life of a Hummingbird – Creation Moments
Learn more about one of God’s most
unusual creatures by watching our video
“Double Life of the Hummingbird”
Who doesn’t love the beautiful hummingbird? You’ll love them even more after viewing our “Double Life of the Hummingbird” video! That’s because you’ll learn about the unique abilities their Designer has given them. Truly, hummingbirds bear evidence of God’s creative hand!
This Week’s Creation Action Moment:
1. Watch our “Double Life of the Hummingbird” video by clicking here or on the picture above.
[Used with permission of Creation Moments]
Jaybirds Mix It Up in Colorado
Jaybirds Mix It Up in Colorado
Dr. James J. S. Johnson
Of fowls after their kind, and of cattle after their kind, of every creeping thing of the earth after his kind, two of every sort shall come unto thee, to keep them alive. (Genesis 6:20)
As my recent blogpost on Corvid hybrids illustrates [see blogpost reference below], birds feel no obligation to conform to taxonomist classifications of “genus” and/or “species” — because they limit their gene pool activities to the created “kind” categories that God gave to them, from the beginning, on Day # 5 of Creation Week (see Genesis 1:21), when God made different kinds of “winged fowl”. And, it follows likewise, that real-world corvids likely reject modern speculations (by “natural selection” advocates) that appear in public wearing the term “speciation”.
Accordingly, it should not shock us to learn that hybrids are observed where the Blue Jay and Steller’s Jay ranges overlap, in America’s Great West.
Hence, this limerick:
Caveat, Taxonomists: Jaybirds Mix It Up in Colorado!
In Western pines, before my eyes
A jaybird perched, to my surprise
Yet its front, wings, head, and back
Were feathered blue, not much black
Wow! Western jaybirds hybridize!
(Birder’s take-away lesson: don’t take terms like “species” and “speciation” too seriously.)
See recent blogposts: “Ravin’ about Corvid Hybrids: Something to Crow About”, posted at https://leesbird.com/2018/11/07/ravin-about-corvid-hybrids-something-to-crow-about/ .
Bible Birds – Hawk Introduction
“Does the hawk fly by your wisdom, And spread its wings toward the south? (Job 39:26 NKJV)
According to the King James Version of Scripture, the other two verses with hawk in them are:
“the ostrich, the short-eared owl, the sea gull, and the hawk after its kind;” (Leviticus 11:16 NKJV)
“the ostrich, the short-eared owl, the sea gull, and the hawk after their kinds;” (Deuteronomy 14:15 NKJV)
For more advanced reading, you can check out Birds of the Bible – Clean vs. Unclean, Birds of the Bible – The Law Of The Birds and Deuteronomy 14:11-18 Visualized on Leesbird.com
What is a Hawk? To what Family of birds does it belong?
Hawks are one of God’s Created Avian Wonders. The bird family of Hawks, Accipitridae, not only includes Hawks, but also Eagles, Kites, Harriers, Vultures, plus more. The Lord has given them great eyesight, hearing, and speed.
Hawks have excellent eyesight. They can see up to 8 times more clearly than the sharpest human eye. Eyesight is primarily used for hunting.
Their hearing is acute, but their sense of smell is poor.
Hawk species are known for their speed, particularly when chasing prey. During the hunt, some species of hawks can dive 240 kilometers (150 miles) per hour through the air. [Just Fun Facts]
“All hawks are almost exactly the same structurally as all other birds, and the distinguishing features that set them apart from all of the other hawks are minute. Hawks are distinguished from all other birds, especially falcons, by their broader, more rounded wings. They also have sharp, curved, hooked bills, strong feet with curved talons, and amazing sight capabilities. All hawks have uniform 20/2 vision, exactly 8 times better than a human with good eyesight! Almost all male hawks are smaller than females.” Hawks – CreationWiki [with editing]
Hawks are in the Accipitridae Family of Kites, Hawks & Eagles and you can read more about them in the Birds of the Bible – Hawk section.
Hawks have claws which are used for catching their prey. Beware of these:
- A Cooper’s Hawk captures a bird with its feet and kills it by repeated squeezing. Falcons tend to kill their prey by biting it, but Cooper’s Hawks hold their catch away from the body until it dies. [Cool Fact from All about Birds]
Hawks and the other birds in this family did not always prey (catch) other living critters. Because of sin, these avian creations from the Lord, were placed under God’s curse. One day, when that curse is removed, the birds of prey will become birds of play [with others.]
Check out All About Birds – Hawks and Falcons
See also:
- Bible Birds – Hawks
- Bible Birds
- Waterman Bird Collection – Hawks and Owls
- Birds of the Bible
- Birds of the Bible – Hawk Migration
- Ian’s Bird of the Week – Spotted Harrier
- Hawk Photos
- Hawk Videos
- Raptor ID
- Raptor Overview
Accipitriformes – Order, Accipitridae – Family (Kites, Hawks & Eagles)
Ravin’ about Corvid Hybrids: Something to Crow About!
Ravin’ about Corvid Hybrids:
Something to Crow About!
Dr. James J. S. Johnson
HOODED CROW (World Life Expectancy photo)
“Every raven after his kind” (Leviticus 11:15)
Who provides for the raven his food? When his young ones cry unto God, they wander for lack of food. (Job 38:41)
Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; they neither have storehouse nor barn, yet God feeds them; how much more are ye better than birds? (Luke 12:24)
There is, as Moses noted, a “kind” (i.e., genetically related family) of birds that we call “corvids”, crow-like birds, including ravens. [In the English Bible (KJV), these birds are always called “ravens”.]
These black (or mostly black – see Song of Solomon 5:11) omnivores are known to “crow”, often calling out a harsh KAWWWW! Also famous for their “ravenous” appetites and eating habits, it is no wonder that the English labeled many varieties of these corvid birds as “ravens”.
The HOODED CROW (Corvus cornix) lives and thrives in the Great North – including Sweden, Finland, and Russia. This I learned firsthand, on July 6th of AD2006, while visiting a grassy park near the Vasa Museum of Stockholm, Sweden. The next day (July 7th of AD2006), it was my privilege to see another Hooded Crow in a heavily treed park in Helsinki, Finland. Again, two days later (i.e., the 9th of July, AD2006), while visiting Pushkin (near St. Petersburg, Russia), I saw a Hooded Crow, in one of the “garden” parks of Catherine’s Palace. Obviously, Hooded Crows appreciate high-quality parks of northern Europe!
HOODED CROW (photo credit: Warren Photographic)
The physical appearance of a Hooded Crow is, as one bird-book describes, “unmistakable”.
Unmistakable. Head, wings and tail black, but body grey (can show pinkish cast in fresh plumage).
[Quoting Chris Kightley, Steve Madge, & Dave Nurney, POCKET GUIDE TO THE BIRDS OF BRITAIN AND NORTH-WEST EUROPE (Yale University Press / British Trust for Ornithology, 1998), page 271.]
Like most large corvids, the Hood Crow is quite versatile in filling various habitats.
Wary, aggressive scavenger found in all habitats from city centre to tideline, forest to mountain top. Generally seen in ones and twos, but the adage ‘crows alone, rooks in a flock’ unreliable; often accompanies other crows, and hundreds may gather at favoured feeding spots and roosts. Watch for crow’s frequent nervy wing flicks whenever on ground or perched. Calls varied. Typically a loud, angry kraa, usually given in series of 2—6 calls. Unlike Rook, pairs nest alone (usually in tree).
[Again quoting Kightley, Madge, & Nurney, POCKET GUIDE TO THE BIRDS OF BRITAIN AND NORTH-WEST EUROPE, page 271.]
CARRION CROW (Yves Thonnerieux / Ouiseaux-Birds photo)
Yet the HOODED CROW is not a genetically self-contained “species”, regardless of what taxonomists might wish about them. They happily hybridize with other crows, especially the CARRION CROW [Corvus corone], whose international range the Hooded Crow overlaps.
CARRION CROWS + HOODED CROWS = HYBRIDS (Bird Hybrids photo)
CARRION AND HOODED CROWS. The familiar crow. Two distinct races occur … [In the]British Isles and western Europe, Carrion Crow (Corvus corone) is common everywhere except north and west Scotland, Ireland, Isle of Man and Europe east of Denmark, where it is replaced by Hooded (Corvus cornix). Where breeding ranges overlap hybrids are frequent [emphasis added by JJSJ].
[Again quoting Kightley, Madge, & Nurney, POCKET GUIDE TO THE BIRDS OF BRITAIN AND NORTH-WEST EUROPE, page 271.]
The Carrion-Hooded Crow hybrids are also noted within a larger discussion (i.e., pages 224-228) of Corvid family hybrids, in Eugene M. McCarthy, HANDBOOK OF AVIAN HYBRIDS OF THE WORLD (Oxford University Press, 2006), at page 227.
CORVIDS Jelmer Poelstra / Uppsala Univ. image
Dr. McCarthy, an avian geneticist, has accumulated and summarized genetic research on Carrion-Hooded hybrids, especially examples observed in Eurasia:
Because the Carrion Crow has a split range … with the Hooded Crow intervening … there are two long contact zones, one extending from N. Ireland, through N. Scotland, to N.W. Germany, then S to N Italy, and another stretching from the Gulf of Ob (N Russia) to the Aral Sea. … Even in the center of the [overlap] zone, only 30% of [these corvid] birds are obviously intermediate. Due to hybridization these [corvid] birds are now sometimes lumped, but Parkin et al. (2003) recommend against this treatment since the two have obvious differences in plumage, as well as in vocalizations and ecology, and because hybrids have lower reproductive success than either parental type. Hybrid young are less viable, too, than young produced from unmixed mating (Saino and Villa 1992). Genetic variability increases within the hybrid zone (as has been observed in many other types of crossings). Occasional mixed pairs occur well outside [the overlap range] zones (e.g., Schlyter reports one from Sweden).
[Quoting Eugene M. McCarthy, HANDBOOK OF AVIAN HYBRIDS OF THE WORLD (Oxford University Press, 2006), at page 227.]
Dr. McCarthy, on pages 224-228, lists several other examples of documented corvid hybridizations, including: Corvus capellanus [Mesopotamian Crow] X Corvus corone [Carrion Crow]; Corvus cornix [Hooded Crow] X Pica pica [Black-billed Magpie]; Corvus albus [Pied Crow] X Corvus albicollis [White-necked Raven]; Corvus albus [Pied Crow] X Corvus ruficollis [Brown-necked Raven]; Corvus albus [Pied Crow] X Corvus splendens [House Crow]; Corvus brachyrhynchos [American Crow] X Corvus caurinus [Northwestern Crow]; Corvus corax [Common Raven] X Corvus brachyrhynchos [American Crow]; Corvus corax [Common Raven] X Corvus corone [Carrion Crow]; Corvus corax [Common Raven] X Corvus cryptoleucus [Chihuahuan Raven]; Corvus corax [Common Raven] X Corvus levaillantii [Jungle Crow]; Corvus corax [Common Raven] X Corvus macrorhynchos [Large-billed Crow]; Corvus corax [Common Raven] X Corvus ruficollis [Brown-necked Raven]; Corvus corone [Carrion Crow] X Corvus macrorhynchos [Large-billed Crow]; Corvus daururicus [Jackdaw, a/k/a “Coloeus dauuricus”] X Corvus monedula [Jackdaw, a/k/a “Coloeus mondela”]; Corvus levaillantii [Jungle Crow] X Corvus macrorhynchos [Large-billed Crow]; Pica nuttalli [Yellow-billed Magpie] X Pica pica [Black-billed Magpie]; plus it looks like an occasional Rook [Corvus frugilegus] joins the “mixer”, etc. Looks like a good mix or corvids!
Avian hybrids, of course, often surprise and puzzle evolutionist taxonomists, due to their faulty assumptions and speculations about so-called “speciation” – as was illustrated, during AD2013, in the discovery of Norway’s “Redchat” — see “Whinchat, Redstart, & Redchat: Debunking the ‘Speciation’ Myth Again”, posted at https://leesbird.com/2017/12/12/whinchat-redstart-redchat-debunking-the-speciation-myth-again/ .
CORVID RANGES of the world (Wikipedia map)
Meanwhile, as the listed examples (of corvid hybridizations) above show, corvid hybrids are doing their part to “fill the earth”, including Hooded-Carrion Crows.
Now that is are something to crow about! ><> JJSJ profjjsj@aol.com
Pleasant Surprise – Hawks and Owls
BJU Waterman Bird Collection Hawks Display 2018
“Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom, and stretch her wings toward the south?” (Job 39:26 KJV)
The next upper display case had Hawks and Owl specimen. The three Hawks give a size perspective of those hawks. The largest is the Red-Shouldered Hawk, then the Northern Harrier (female), and the Broad-Winged Hawk.
BJU Waterman Bird Collection Hawks and Owls Display 2018
“And the owl, and the night hawk, and the cuckow, and the hawk after his kind, The little owl, and the great owl, and the swan,” (Deuteronomy 14:15-16 KJV)
The Owls went from small to the large Great Horned Owl being the largest. The two small owls are the Boreal Owl, and the Common Screech Owl. Out of the five species, we have only seen the Red-shouldered Hawk, the Harrier and a Great Horned Owl in the wild. Again, I think these birds look pretty good, considering how long they have be preserved. [Before 1910]
Hawks and Owls are both mentioned in Scripture and are therefore – Birds of the Bible. Birds of the Bible – Hawks and Birds of the Bible – Owls. Did you notice their coloration? Most sleep during the day and the Lord, their Creator, has provided them with a camouflage that helps many of them look like bark on trees.
Tawny Frogmouth (Podargus strigoides) Tail by Lee
[My favorite “bark” covered bird is the Tawny Frogmouth. We see them in the zoos.] Back to this article.
Here are some very informative articles with great photos about these birds from WhatBird and All About Birds. The WhatBird links have sounds to which you can listen.
Red-shouldered Hawk BJU Bird Collection 2018
- The Red-shouldered Hawk and the Barred Owl occupy the same range in the eastern United States. They prefer the same moist woodland habitats and eat similar animals. The hawk is active during the day, and the owl is active at night. [WhatBird]
Red-shouldered Hawk All About Birds
Northern Harrier BJU Bird Collection 2018
- Unusual among hawks, Northern Harriers use their sense of hearing to help locate prey. They have an owl-like facial disk to help with directional hearing and soft feathers for a quieter flight. [WhatBird]
Northern Harrier All About Birds
Broad-Winged Hawk BJU Bird Collection
- During migration, weather and geography cause these birds to concentrate into groups that number in the thousands. These large groups are referred to as “kettles.” [WhatBird]
Broad-Winged Hawk All About Birds
Boreal Owl (Aegolius funereus) BJU Collection
- The Boreal Owl is also known as Tengmalm’s Owl, after the Swedish naturalist Peter Gustaf Tengmalm. [WhatBird]
Boreal Owl All About Birds
Screech Owl (Megascops asio) BJU Bird Collection 2018
- The Eastern Screech Owl was first described by Carolus Linnaeus, in 1758. They have also been called the Common Screech Owl, Ghost Owl, Dusk Owl, Little-eared Owl, Spirit Owl, Whickering Owl, Little Gray Owl, Mottled Owl, Mouse Owl, Cat Owl, Shivering Owl, and Little Horned Owl.” [WhatBird]
Eastern Screech-Owl All About Birds
Great-Horned Owl BJU Bird Collection
- A group of owls has many collective nouns, including a “bazaar”, “glaring”, “parliament”, “stooping”, and “wisdom” of owls. [WhatBird]
Great Horned Owl All About Birds
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Accipitriformes – Order, Accipitridae – Family (Kites, Hawks & Eagles)
