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Great Horned Owl calls
- To: carolina birds list serve <carolinabirds@duke.edu>
- Subject: Great Horned Owl calls
- From: Len/Esther Pardue <eljeep@mindspring.com>
- Date: Thu, 2 Dec 1999 20:03:24 -0500
- Sender: carolinabirds-owner@acpub.duke.edu
Until the recent discussion on Carolinabirds of the calls of Great Horned
Owls, I had never given a thought to whether male and female could be
distinguished by call. So I plunged into my reference collection of a
dozen or so books and found just two that mentioned a difference.
One was my trusty old Peterson, which said of the GHO's call: "A resonant
hooting of 3 to 8 hoots. Male usually 4 or 5, in this rhythm: Hoo,
hoo-oo, hoo, hoo. Female lower in pitch, 6 to 8, Hoo, hoo-hoo-hoo, hoo-oo,
hoo-oo."
The other was Donald & Lillian Stokes' Guide to Bird Behavior Vol III,
which said: "A series of four or five deliberate, deep, resonant hoots.
Given in various rhythms by different individuals. Female hoots are
shorter and higher-pitched than those of the male, even though she is a
larger bird."
Ah, well, you pays your money and you takes your choice. What a hoot.
Len Pardue, Asheville, NC