Journal archives for September 2018

September 29, 2018

Owls and Hawks at Edenvale Garden Park

The other day my granddaughter and I went searching for feathers at Edenvale Garden Park near the Hayes Mansion. There were many feathers from two species of owls (Great Horned Owl and Barn Owl), a Red-tailed Hawk, and several other species of birds. We also found three owl pellets under a eucalyptus tree where I saw a great horned owl perched last year (https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/8242916). Last spring there were several Great Horned Owl offspring in this park (I didn't see them, but I talked to a couple who had seen them several times).

I'm wondering how three large predatory birds can live within a several yards of each other? They all appear to be nesting in a stand of eucalyptus trees in the northwestern section of the park.

This park has lots of California Ground Squirrels and Eastern Gray Squirrels (including the melanistic variety), so there is a plentiful food supply.

Several blocks away there is another park - Martial Cottle Park, part of which is an inner-city farm. There are Barn Owls and Great Horned Owls nesting in that park as well. A volunteer told me they had about a dozen owl chicks in one of the bird houses there last spring. However, the staff poison the ground squirrels at Martial Cottle Park because they damage the crops. Perhaps the owls from Martial Cottle Park fly the short distance to Edenvale Park to hunt.

Posted on September 29, 2018 11:24 PM by truthseqr truthseqr | 16 observations | 3 comments | Leave a comment