Re: [cobirds] More on the topic of protecting Flammulated Owls in Colorado

I wonder if this years flam sights  is simply a fluke  The spring up her in Estes was so cold and wet that maybe the owls simply stayed st lower elevations for this  nesting season.

I have a few areas  around Estes Park where I would see flans every year. This year the birds were absent.  Also this year I knew of two flam nests in Lyons, were they had previously been unseen.

It will be interesting what happens next spring.

Scott Rashid
Estes Park

On 9/23/2019 11:53 AM, Joe Roller wrote:

Chuck Aid raised the question of possible harm to "Flame Owls" in a note to CObirds on September 2.

That note and my response are below. I asked Dr. Brian Linkhart, FLOW expert at Colorado College to weigh in, and his note follows too.

Sept 2: message from Chuck Aid

The increase in recent Flam Owl sightings reinforces my feelings that it would be best not to report some sightings on eBird.  Does this look like harassment to anyone else?  I would appreciate the perspective of others.

Thanks, 

Chuck Aid

Sept 2: reply from Joe Roller

As far as I can tell, the 2019 FLOW reports have not been from a single, certain nesting location,

but have been on roads going SE of Bailey toward Cheesman Lake, a large, vague area. So this seems

different for instance from a Spotted Owl Stake Out nesting site, which would attract many birders to a certain,

exact site, leading to probable harassment.

There is a lot of good Flammulated Owl habitat in those general areas of Jefferson County, so maybe eBird reports are not so bad.

Some very ethical, experienced birders have been among the birders posting this year.

Next, it seems better to me if field trips are made after the breeding season, instead of during it, perhaps minimizing harassment.

Colorado Bird Atlas II notes nesting dates of: May 25 (first occupied nest) to July 23 (last nest with young).

So mid to late August and early September checklists seem less problematic than ones in June and July.

And the ABA code of ethics pertain here, with obvious guidelines like: 

a) not playing owl tapes til your batteries run low, 

b) trying to get in and out of a small owl's neighborhood without dawdling, gawking, shining lights like Las Vegas 

c) or trying for the 80th flash photo til "the crank of dawn".

Joe Roller, Denver

Sept 23: opinion of Dr,. Brian Linkhart, Professor at Colorado College

Happy to weigh in on this, and I appreciate your contacting me about it, Joe. 

Your comments are largely on target, so I'll only state a few additions to incorporate. 

First, I'd expand the dates of the nesting season to go to Aug. 1, since we regularly have late nests (certainly this year) that don't fledge young until early August. 

Otherwise your mid/late August timeline for conducting field trips is reasonable, as June and July are definitely problematic for conducting playbacks (this can cause females to abandon nests if within 100 m of playbacks, and it's very challenging to know with certainly if one is outside this radius). 

Second, I'd limit total playback time to 15 min, as August and September are when males are establishing ownership of breeding territories (before they migrate), and extensive playback use may cause them to abandon their occupancy of the area. Thanks for your efforts to minimize human impacts on owls (and all birds). Any other questions, let me know. 

Best, 

Brian D. Linkhart, Professor, Department of Organismal Biology and Ecology

Colorado College 4 E. Cache La Poudre St.Colorado Springs, CO 80903

Office: 719-389-6605

Cell: 719-684-4145

Other comments and viewpoints on this topic are welcome.

Birders are encouraged to spread this information among friends and through Colorado birding and conservation organizations.

Joe Roller, Denver

jroller9@gmail.com

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