Screech Owl

I was standing in the back door way at Desert's Edge a few mornings ago, looking in the desert for the javelina family that wandered through the back yard while we were having dinner on the porch the night before. No sign of the javelina, but I looked up to the rafters of the porch and saw a sleeping screech owl. How exciting! I had planned to eat breakfast on the porch, but I decided to eat inside, leaving the door open. The owl gradually realized I was there taking pictures, and flew away. But I had a good fifteen minutes to check him or her out.

I wonder if that is what I heard up in the attic about 3 AM? There was something up there that sounded BIG, tearing and scratching. I looked all around the eaves, and the largest hole is about an inch wide tear in the screen on the bird board. Hmmm.

Then, a while later, I was sitting at the kitchen counter with the door open and a cactus wren hopped in and perched under the backgammon table. I thought about chasing it out, but decided that might scare it off further into the house, so we just kept eyeing each other until it hopped back out the door.

What a wonderful place.