LE or SE Owl

[cldavis at xmission dot com]

I went to Antelope Island on Friday and the ride was a sensory delight.
Meadowlarks were singing everywhere, accompanied by the sweet voices of the
horned larks.

At Garr Ranch I saw what appeared to be a short-eared owl fly out of the
trees right over my head.  I followed him down to the next bunch of trees
(and so did a magpie) and got within about 30 feet of him and he flew off
again.  I thought I had him pegged as a short-eared until I saw in Sibleys
that the under-wing markings are very similar on the long-eared owl.  I
never got a good look at his face. I noticed that the magpie was being
silent in his pursuit of the owl--wanting to be a little annoying but not
overly-annoying in case the owl was hungry.

I also saw an insect in one of the ponds that I have never seen before. 
After searching my insect books I finally found it--the Common Backswimmer
or Water Boatman.  If anyone would like to take a look at this insect it's
at:
http://home.comcast.net/~utahauras/common_backswimmer.html#cb
This little predator swims through the water upside-down and rows just like
the Olympic rowers--in little spurts. I guess it's true that you're never
to old to learn something new. Take a look in the ponds and check out the
wildlife before the algae takes over.

Carol

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