Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
saw-whet was given to me much more recently; it, too, had died of natural causes—very possibly star-
vation, since it was found in the middle of a severe winter.
The second reason why the saw-whet is so seldom seen is that it's silent for most of the year. Only
with the approach of spring does the little owl vocalize, emitting a sustained series of rapid whistles,
most frequently described as a monotonous
tootootootootoo,
well over one hundred times a minute.
Clearly, the saw-whet is the Johnny One-Note of the bird world.
To the best of my knowledge, I've never heard a saw-whet owl, but an acquaintance told me about
her initiation with its “song.” For hours on end, while she worked around the house on an early spring
day, she kept hearing a strange and unfamiliar noise. She described it as sounding like a radio test
signal—a sustained series of very short, high-pitched beeps—which went on and on until they nearly
drove her crazy.
The unfortunate woman began to fear that there was either something wrong with her hearing or that
she was losing her mind. Finally, in near desperation, she called in someone else and asked if that per-
son could hear the noise. When the answer was affirmative, she was first greatly relieved and then set
about locating the source of the sound. After some effort, and a bit of aural triangulation, she finally
found it—a little saw-whet perched demurely in an evergreen tree behind her house.
Like other owls, the saw-whet eschews any nest-building chores. Nesting takes place in a tree cavity,
often in holes abandoned by woodpeckers; abandoned flicker nests appear to be a favorite. Nesting can
start as early as the end of March, but may be a month or two later, with five or six eggs laid on the
floor of the cavity. Incubation takes three to four weeks before the next generation of this minuscule
owl hatches.
Stereotypes being what they are, owls will no doubt continue to symbolize all that is wise for many
people, but they're clearly otherwise—far from the brightest of birds. That shouldn't diminish our ad-
miration for them one whit, however. Quite the contrary, owls have such astonishing abilities as predat-
ors that we should view them with respect and wonder. With their wide variety of sizes and habits, and
their many amazing adaptations, owls of all descriptions will richly repay any time spent in studying or
observing them.
