This morning, while inspecting a part of our front yard that doesn't get much attention, I noticed, with a great deal of dismay, 3 or 4 small collections of 8-10 feathers each, feathers with brown and tan rows on them, probably owl feathers. There were no bones, no body parts, just many feathers. Did one of our owls get killed in a scrap with a raccoon or skunk or, worst of all, a vermin cat? Did one of our owls survive said scrap, losing only a bunch of feathers? It's hard to tell if the feathers are those of a youngster or an adult. The tips are worn, meaning they probably belonged to an adult, but the feathers of one of our babies would probably look worn by now too. In addition, the babies are in the process of getting their juvenal plumage and their feathers might come away from their bodies more easily than an adult's would. The non-discovery of bones or body parts could mean that, if the owl were killed, whatever killed it either ate it right there, or took the whole body away. A cat would kill it and leave it. Another unknown is that we don't know when the feathers were deposited there. The last time I was in that area was about 4 months ago! The feathers did look pretty fresh, but we had rain last Friday morning, and the feathers looked like they had not been in rain.
I did a thorough check of the redwoods in the back yard and found one of our babies in his or her usual spot, but these owls are so good at secreting themselves in the jumble of branches at the tops of the redwoods, they could all have been up there somewhere! Anyway, we'll look carefully tonight.
