Somewhere just above the cottonwoods, in that realm of darkness on a moonless night, a screech demanded attention. A second screech — every mouse foraging on the ground doubtlessly froze in place. A ...

And let's take a moment to listen to the sounds of your backyard, or one like yours. OK, that's not actually a bird whistling reveille. But when we invited people to send us sounds of nature, we heard ...

Q. Why are they called screech owls when the only sound I’ve ever heard them make are warbling noises that remind me of musical Morse code? A. I was able to answer this question a few years ago during ...

The sound was unmistakable and led me outdoors to face the thick woods across the road. In the advancing twilight the sound pierced the darkness again, and then again. The ghostly mournful wail, best ...

Fun fact: Almost all owls have eyes that are proportionately large to their heads for increased visibility during low-light hours, but the Great Gray Owl's peepers are especially big—roughly the size ...

This past summer I heard my first screech owl. My son, who majored in mythologies of nature in college was excited to hear this. He told me about how entwined screech owls are with our feelings about ...

Several readers have phoned with reports of “eerie, whistling sounds” coming from their neighborhoods in the past week or so. My step-daughter also heard it last weekend, from the woodlot behind my ...

Q: We have four owls that have taken up residence in our palm tree in the past two weeks, and they are showing no signs of leaving. This normally wouldn’t be a problem except they screech from dusk to ...

Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Recent work is shedding new light on the distinctions between what ...

Q. Why are they called screech owls when the only sound I’ve ever heard them make are warbling noises that remind me of musical Morse code? A. I was able to answer this question a few years ago during ...