{"id":3722,"date":"2024-10-23T14:03:59","date_gmt":"2024-10-23T18:03:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/?p=3722"},"modified":"2024-10-23T14:17:11","modified_gmt":"2024-10-23T18:17:11","slug":"campfire-and-owl-calling-field-trip-recap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/?p=3722","title":{"rendered":"Campfire and Owl Calling Field Trip Recap"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>On October 20, 2024, AuSable Valley Audubon hosted an owl calling campfire for members.&nbsp;&nbsp;In general, interactions with our wild feathered friends helps strengthen our resolve towards conservation of their habitat; it reminds us of \u2018who\u2019 we represent in our stewardship activities.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Fifteen members participated in this light-hearted and fun evening.&nbsp;&nbsp;The evening was a bit breezy, which is not great for owl calling.&nbsp;&nbsp;Three members at the fire heard a \u201choo,\u201d which may have been from a Great Horned Owl.&nbsp;&nbsp;Usually if a large predator is around smaller birds won\u2019t call so it is likely we had a Great Horned Owl watching us.&nbsp;&nbsp;Otherwise, the night was quiet.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Notable outcomes:&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Strengthening of friendship\/camaraderie<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Demonstration of ethical owl calling by an expert<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Good food (thank you to Dawn H. for the delicious scotcharoos)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Clear sky \u2013 we watched a ladder type satellite fly over<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It is worthwhile to mention the ethics of bird calling.&nbsp;&nbsp;As with all recreational activities, there are right and wrong ways to engage because wildlife harassment needs to be avoided.&nbsp;&nbsp;If you are not familiar with ethical bird calling, then consider going with a group that is led by a guide or an expert.&nbsp;&nbsp;It is especially important to learn from an expert because bird calling should not be done under the following conditions:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>During breeding season, because it can disrupt courtship<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>When birds are rearing and raising young, so the birds can focus on their offspring (especially woodpeckers)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For threatened or endangered birds<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For rare birds that are somewhat celebrities (like snowy owls)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Loud calling can scare the birds &#8212; so call quietly<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Frequency, no need to keep calling if no response; birds can hear from far away so be patient after the call<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Keep your speaker away from the group for good viewing and safety, some individual birds can be aggressive towards a speaker<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>What a perfect evening.&nbsp;&nbsp;Thank you to everyone that participated.&nbsp;&nbsp;Since the group consensus was a very positive experience, this could be the first of an annual event.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On October 20, 2024, AuSable Valley Audubon hosted an owl calling campfire for members.&nbsp;&nbsp;In general, interactions with our wild feathered friends helps strengthen our resolve towards conservation of their habitat; it reminds us of \u2018who\u2019 we represent in our stewardship &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/?p=3722\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":355,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,7],"tags":[22,24,14,23],"class_list":["post-3722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-events","category-upcoming-events","tag-bird-calling","tag-campfire","tag-event","tag-owl-calling"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/gr-horned-owl.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3722","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3722"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3722\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3723,"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3722\/revisions\/3723"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/355"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ausablevalleyaudubon.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}