As the autumn chill takes to the air, a tribe of tiny owls is on the move, winging their way from Canada & the northern United States to warmer climes, where it’s not quite so hard to hear a mouse scampering under the snow. Considered by many avid birders to be a “once in a lifetime” species, Northern saw-whet owls seem rare, but they’re not; these secretive, tiny predators simply keep well hidden. Over the last three years, Antioch University New England graduate student Chris Volonte has caught & banded over 400 of these wee migrants as part of southwest New Hampshire’s first-ever saw-whet owl banding project. How does her Monadnock region research contribute to the nationwide effort to better understand owl migration? Find out when Chris presents her fascinating findings from the first three years of Northern saw-whet owl banding in our neck of the woods on Friday, September 30 from 7 – 8 pm in Keene State College Science Center Room 101. This event is co-sponsored by the Harris Center for Conservation Education and the Keene State College School of Sciences.
A note on parking: for this event, you may park in the Madison/Holloway parking lot off of Winchester Street (Holloway is #31 on this campus map) or in any Keene State College parking lot designated for “Faculty/Staff.” You can also park at any of the metered spots on Main Street (which are free after 5 pm!)
A related event — a saw-whet owl banding demonstration at the Horatio Colony Nature Preserve — will take place on Friday, October 14. (Space is limited, and registration is required.) Click here for more information.
*UPDATE* Click here to read the article about this event published in the Keene State College Equinox!
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