Holly talked about the eight species of owls that breed in Michigan (Great Horned, Eastern Screech, Barred, Northern Saw-whet, Barn, Long-eared, Short-eared, and Great Gray Owls) and the three that winter in Michigan (Boreal, Snowy and Northern Owls). Her presentation included slides and bird calls.

Owl heads can rotate 270 degrees. They have huge eyes, equivalent to human eyes being the size of oranges. Owls have excellent hearing. They are able to detect a mouse moving under a foot of snow. Owls are primarily nocturnal. They have wings designed for silent flight, Owls also have great camouflage that made for the best photographs that the group enjoyed on March 8, 2018. Owls are raptors that eat small mammals, birds, insects, reptiles and smaller owls. Holly offered members sanitized pellets of undigestible material to investigate later.

Outside of habitat loss, predation and ingesting rodent poison, owls are generally doing well in Michigan. If you put up an owl box, the opening should face east and the box should be 15-20' high.

To sign up for the customized interest Michigan Department of Natural Resources weekly email, go to the bottom of http://www.michigan.gov/dnr

To make a donation to the non-game wildlife fund, go to http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,4570,7-350-79137_79767_81160-44120--,00.html