I think I heard about the same owl, up in Jericho. I looked up details on
Birds of the World, and couldn't find anything about courtship gifts. I
think it's myth, too.

Still! Good interactions.

Best,
R

On Mon, Jan 25, 2021 at 5:32 PM anneboby <
[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Maeve - at times raptors have to be opportunists re food availability.
> I've seen a Rough-leg competing with Co. Ravens for a road killed fox
> carcass at the Ft. Edward grasslands in Washington Co, NY adjacent the VT
> border. Not exactly their usual lemming Arctic fare.  I'll pass on the
> rabbit head thing as probable pure myth: normally rabbits are field
> dwellers, Barred Owls dense forest dwellers.
> Bob Yunick
> Schenectady, NY
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Maeve Kim <[log in to unmask]>
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Sent: Mon, Jan 25, 2021 5:02 pm
> Subject: [VTBIRD] Barred Owls eating rabbits
>
> I’d always thought Barred Owls take prey they can swallow whole, so when
> we saw one in our driveway last winter, huddled over a rabbit, we thought
> it was just desperate because a hard coating over the snow was preventing
> it from getting to its usual prey. However, a friend e-mailed photos taken
> a few days ago of a Barred Owl eating a rabbit in their yard. He said he’d
> heard that the males of this species often use rabbits’ heads as courtship
> gifts. Has anyone else heard this?
> Maeve Kim, Jericho Center
>


-- 
Richard | @richlitt <https://twitter.com/richlitt> | burntfen.com
<http://www.burntfen.com>