Saw-whet Owl Banding! Tons of pics!

Hi everyone,

So in the real world I get to be a biologist and play with wild birds. Well, not really play with them, more like fondle them and their babies as I band them, measure them, sex them, age them, and yes, occasionally pet them.

Recently I've worked for a small saw-whet owl banding operation here in upstate NY. I was never much a fan of owls until I held one of these little beauts and discovered just how charming and alluring it is to stare into those big yellow eyes.

We capture them with mist nets using a loud audio lure. Then we extract them and work them up and release them back into the wild 10 minutes later with no harm done besides a prick in their ego (and under their wing)!

This season I am taking blood samples for a blood parasite study that has never been described for my area before. Does anyone have experience looking at blood parasites under oil immersion? Me neither. They are proving to be quite challenging.

So without further adieu, here are some photos of our work (all taken by me except the last one).


Heading up to the banding bench, just out of the net.


Owl being prepped for bloodwork. I wrap them in a towl for their safety and peace-of-mind. You can see just how little they are - and this is a big lady owl!


A closeup of her aluminum band with its unique 9-digit identification number.


Me holding one in the banding shed.


This one is stepping up onto my finger to fly away. Check out those sharp talons!


Fluorescence pattern of an after-second-year bird.


An Eastern Screech Owl that we had to capture and release a few miles away because they can eat saw-whets. He was actually a lot better off than he looks in the photo! Poor guy.


And lastly, here I am holding the only Barred Owl we ever caught in over 5 years. How cool!!


Thanks for looking!

Beautiful birds. The saw-whets come through here in the winter. It's so amazing to see them up close. They sure are cute.

Lavalleer said:

Beautiful birds. The saw-whets come through here in the winter. It's so amazing to see them up close. They sure are cute.

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Thanks, they really are adorable! If they come through in the winter then they must also come through in the spring. Do you get to hear them hoot as they pass by?

Amazing photos, Gillis and a wonderful project to be involved with. Thank you so much for sharing.

The little Saw-whets are so small and so beautiful. I've never seen them in person, your post is a real treat.

Thank you for sharing some AMAZING pics with us! As Allee said, a real treat to see. That's quite an amazing job you have too!

Allee said:

Amazing photos, Gillis and a wonderful project to be involved with. Thank you so much for sharing.

The little Saw-whets are so small and so beautiful. I've never seen them in person, your post is a real treat.

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RavensGryf said:

Thank you for sharing some AMAZING pics with us! As Allee said, a real treat to see. That's quite an amazing job you have too!

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Thank you both!! Yes, I feel extremely privileged to do what I do, even though I can barely buy my own groceries after providing for my cats and parrots lol! No one became a biologist to get rich.

And I have never seen one in the wild, either. They are so tiny and secretive.

Oh. My. Goodness. I have serious Owl Envy! I LOVE owls and have done for the past fifty or so years. Thank you SO much for sharing your fabbo photos - your northern hemisphere owls are stunning!

What an absolute treat you've given us, Gillis! THANK YOU so much!!!

No gloves while handling them? Couldn't their 'little' talons do some damage if they wanted to, especially the Barred Owl?

I laughed at this picture because the legs 'almost' look furry compared to the rest of the little gal. LOL

Awesome pics!

Can I ask why you band them? Just tracking migration? Kill rates?

I almost caught an owl a couple years ago....after it flew into the side of my car, lol

What amazing photos! Thank you for sharing.

Thanks for posting those amazing pics! Never knew owl species were this small! They are beautiful.

Appreciate your chosen avocation to help wildlife; they will benefit from your personal sacrifices.

wow! I love these photos! I've never had the opportunity to be 'up close' with an owl. Must be an amazing experience.

What beautiful owls! Thank you for sharing these photos! What an amazing experience to see them so close. To hold them in your hands. These pics are the closest many if us will get, so they're very much appreciated.

I've done some work with owls when I was doing rehab and release with the Lindsay Museum...

THOSE ARE CUTE LITTLE BUGGERS...

But parrots are goofier... and have bigger personalities than most raptors.

Thank you all so much! It's a privilege to be able to share this experience with you all.

JerseyWendy said:

What an absolute treat you've given us, Gillis! THANK YOU so much!!!

No gloves while handling them? Couldn't their 'little' talons do some damage if they wanted to, especially the Barred Owl?

I laughed at this picture because the legs 'almost' look furry compared to the rest of the little gal. LOL

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Haha, actually, the feathers on their legs are so fine it almost does seem like fur! Yes, their talons can be quite harmful if you're not careful. In the case of the barred owl - I extracted it from the net so I just held onto it the entire time. It would have been too risky to transfer the bird and someone probably would have gotten nailed!

ToMang07 said:

Awesome pics!

Can I ask why you band them? Just tracking migration? Kill rates?

I almost caught an owl a couple years ago....after it flew into the side of my car, lol

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Thank you! That's unfortunate that one nearly flew into your car. We band birds for a variety of reasons: to determine migration routes, tally population numbers, acquire data on age and gender metrics, study longevity, migration and nesting site fidelity, and a plethora of data gathered from the birds themselves such as what types of ectoparasites live on them, what kind of diseases do they carry, what blood parasites do they have, etc. Here is a useful article from the place we get our bands from explaining some of the benefits of banding: https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/BBL/homepage/whyband.cfm

Birdman666 said:

I've done some work with owls when I was doing rehab and release with the Lindsay Museum...

THOSE ARE CUTE LITTLE BUGGERS...

But parrots are goofier... and have bigger personalities than most raptors.

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You hit the nail on head - they are cute, but, we would much rather have parrots for pets! Seabirds, on the other hand... don't know if you have worked with them, but, being so long-lived like parrots they have quite the personalities as well. I have raised baby gulls, terns, puffins, shearwaters from tiny chicks and they are so full of fun and love. If only they did better in captivity and weren't so specialized...

Gillis said:

Thank you! That's unfortunate that one nearly flew into your car. We band birds for a variety of reasons: to determine migration routes, tally population numbers, acquire data on age and gender metrics, study longevity, migration and nesting site fidelity, and a plethora of data gathered from the birds themselves such as what types of ectoparasites live on them, what kind of diseases do they carry, what blood parasites do they have, etc. Here is a useful article from the place we get our bands from explaining some of the benefits of banding: https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/BBL/homepage/whyband.cfm

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There was no "almost".....he nailed me. Scared the crap out of me, too. I got out to find the presumed body, and it was still alive! At first I thought it was injured, as it watched me but didn't do anything as I got within a few feet. I took my jacket off to throw over it in an attempt to capture for a rescue/vet visit, it hopped and flew a couple feet away. I tried again, and it flew up into the trees, and I lost it! I was just glad the bugger was alright! I believe it was a barred owl.

ToMang07 said:

Gillis said:

Thank you! That's unfortunate that one nearly flew into your car. We band birds for a variety of reasons: to determine migration routes, tally population numbers, acquire data on age and gender metrics, study longevity, migration and nesting site fidelity, and a plethora of data gathered from the birds themselves such as what types of ectoparasites live on them, what kind of diseases do they carry, what blood parasites do they have, etc. Here is a useful article from the place we get our bands from explaining some of the benefits of banding: https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/BBL/homepage/whyband.cfm

Click to expand...

There was no "almost".....he nailed me. Scared the crap out of me, too. I got out to find the presumed body, and it was still alive! At first I thought it was injured, as it watched me but didn't do anything as I got within a few feet. I took my jacket off to throw over it in an attempt to capture for a rescue/vet visit, it hopped and flew a couple feet away. I tried again, and it flew up into the trees, and I lost it! I was just glad the bugger was alright! I believe it was a barred owl.

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Wow. Isn't it amazing how sturdy and strong owls are? That impact probably would have killed another bird, but not an owl! They are so amazing. I'm glad she appeared to be alright. Barred owls are pretty sizeable, it's a good thing she didn't leave a dent!

Gillis said:

You hit the nail on head - they are cute, but, we would much rather have parrots for pets! Seabirds, on the other hand... don't know if you have worked with them, but, being so long-lived like parrots they have quite the personalities as well. I have raised baby gulls, terns, puffins, shearwaters from tiny chicks and they are so full of fun and love. If only they did better in captivity and weren't so specialized...

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Never worked with any seabirds. I did have a neurotically overbonded Turkey Vulture, who came in badly injured, and survived, and became overly attached to the people who provided care... (i.e. Don't set me down - EVER!)

He had trouble perching due to mangled feet. So you used to tuck him under your arm like a football, and carry him around that way...

HE HAD A FACE ONLY A MOTHER COULD LOVE, but quite a sweet personality.

Gillis said:

Wow. Isn't it amazing how sturdy and strong owls are? That impact probably would have killed another bird, but not an owl! They are so amazing. I'm glad she appeared to be alright. Barred owls are pretty sizeable, it's a good thing she didn't leave a dent!

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I was dumbfounded. Animals are so tough. I literally stood there in the darkness with my jaw on the pavement for a few moments before I gathered my wits and went home. I think the only reason he didn't leave a dent was he hit the window, lol

Birdman666 said:

Gillis said:

You hit the nail on head - they are cute, but, we would much rather have parrots for pets! Seabirds, on the other hand... don't know if you have worked with them, but, being so long-lived like parrots they have quite the personalities as well. I have raised baby gulls, terns, puffins, shearwaters from tiny chicks and they are so full of fun and love. If only they did better in captivity and weren't so specialized...

Click to expand...

Never worked with any seabirds. I did have a neurotically overbonded Turkey Vulture, who came in badly injured, and survived, and became overly attached to the people who provided care... (i.e. Don't set me down - EVER!)

He had trouble perching due to mangled feet. So you used to tuck him under your arm like a football, and carry him around that way...

HE HAD A FACE ONLY A MOTHER COULD LOVE, but quite a sweet personality.

Click to expand...

Haha - what a cutie! Was he eventually releasable back to the wild? I'm guessing no if he became so attached. Your description provides a pretty funny mental picture. I've worked with turkey vultures that have a ferocious stink because of their diet, hopefully his was a little better!