Wow! Thanks for all those great observations. I was worried that it might be hunting the median . I'm glad to hear that it's successfully hunting. I, too, wish it would move away from the mall to a safer place. Thanks for sharing. Carol Keeler
Sent from my iPad On Dec 29, 2011, at 7:42 PM, Donna Scott <[email protected]> wrote: > I spent about 2.5 hours watching the Snowy Owl at the Waterloo Outlets Mall > this afternoon, from around 2:30 to 5 PM when it got dark. These are my > observations, including what the owl was eating! > > Since I am not a shopper and have never been to this mall, it took me a few > drives around the place to notice that the "Sunoco sign" to which Dave Bonter > referred is at the big Thruway service station across the Thruway from the > rear side of the outlet mall. > When I finally figured that out, I drove around an access road at the back of > the stores and found a car parked facing the T'way and the service station > across the way. They were watching the Snowy Owl with binocs from their car. > They left shortly after. > > SNOW was then perched on the left lamp of the tallest lamppost, that has 3 > large lamps pointing at the large services building. I walked up to the T'way > fence to watch SNOW who remained there for 5-10 minutes. The owl looked all > around at its surroundings, seemingly unbothered by the loud din of the > constant T'way traffic. Now and then it did some charming head bobbing. > Then it flew up to the main roof of the large building and sat there a few > minutes. > > Next, to my horror, it flew down in a low arc to the Thruway median! > It caught a dark animal there and with that prey and a bunch of grass in its > mouth it then, again to my horror, flew in a very low arc across the > west-bound lane of the T'way!! > > Luckily, there was a short gap in the heavy traffic and SNOW escaped > unharmed. It flew safely up into the air and perched on a shorter lamp post > on a rectangular light, and I was able to see it tear apart its mid-afternoon > snack and eat it! The grass later floated down to earth below the post. So, > SNOW is eating normal owl food, not french fries or discarded bubble gum. > After eating its prey, SNOW flew again to the roof, then over to the ball on > top of the flagpole that holds the NYS flag, where it sat for about 20-30 > minutes, all the while looking every which way. > > At 3:57 pm it flew back to the mall side of the T'way and perched on the > point of the large blue and white sign by the T'way that says Waterloo > Premium Outlets - this exit. I pulled up nearby in my car and stayed inside. > SNOW then flew into the retention pond area (which is between Post 6 back of > Old Navy and the T'way; that is most likely why the owl is often seen there - > because the pond area and its banks are good places to hunt.) > It again caught a small dark animal (smaller than the catch in the T'way > median) and flew back to the sign and wolfed it down. > I noticed the several muskrat houses in the long r. pond. The water is pretty > low, there are numerous large grass plants and a mowed bank all around the > pond. > > At 4:20 pm SNOW flew right down by my car and into the r. pond, where it > caught another critter! It sat on the ground and ate that one. > SNOW then flew to Post 6 for a few minutes, then flew across the main parking > area of the mall and disappeared; came back minutes later and perched on post > 33 in the parking lot, near J. Crew store. Then in a nerve-wrackingly low > swoop it flew back up to Post 6 at about 4:33. It then flew into the pond > area again and immediately west, up to the roof of the Levis building and > disappeared over the top wall. > > Moments later it reappeared and flew out to perch on the electric pole > nearest the T'way and the bridge just west of the mall that crosses the T'way. > It sat there some minutes and then (again to my horror) flew DOWN towards the > T'way median! > This time SNOW was actually either slightly grazed by the top of a > semi-trailer truck or was so close to the truck that it was startled into > flying up and away! > It swooped down a bit over the median and the west-bound lane and up onto an > electric pole on the north side of the T'way. (This pole is also east of the > bridge that crosses the T'way.) > > SNOW was still perched on that electric pole when I left at 5 PM due to > darkness. > > I hope somehow the encounter with the truck will help SNOW figure out that > the middle of the T'way is not the best place to hunt. > I wish it would head out to some of the more rural farm fields that are > nearby. Since it is used to low flying, SNOW is in danger at the mall and by > the T'way. > I agree with Dave Nutter that nowhere else is more bleak and tundra-like than > a mall, but I wish Snowy would end its adventure at the Waterloo Outlets. > However, except for this real concern for the owl's safety, it was > fascinating watching as "Snowy goes to the Mall"! > > > Donna Scott > Lansing Station Road > Lansing, NY 14882 > [email protected] > -- > Cayugabirds-L List Info: > Welcome and Basics > Rules and Information > Subscribe, Configuration and Leave > Archives: > The Mail Archive > Surfbirds > BirdingOnThe.Net > Please submit your observations to eBird! > -- -- Cayugabirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/CayugabirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/Cayugabirds 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/CAYU.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
