Raptors- Day or Night

Lyman Woods is home to a few large raptors. Obviously, there is plenty of food for them to prey upon here. During the day, the most common raptor to be seen is the Red-tailed Hawk. This powerful bird can spot a small mouse high in the air. There is nothing more exciting than seeing a hawk circle overhead, then swoop down for an attack as it captures its unfortunate prey with its very sharp talons. Red-tailed Hawks make a shrill shriek that is instantly recognizable. In fact, in movies the sound of the Red-tailed Hawk is often used no matter what raptor is seen circling on screen. Coopers Hawks, a smaller hawk, have also been spotted at Lyman Woods as recently as this past week.

As the sun sets and darkness rolls around, another raptor takes ownership of Lyman Woods- the massive Great Horned Owl. Great Horned Owls, being at the very top of the food chain, may eat smaller owls and hawks if given the chance. In fact, they are one of the only predators of the striped skunk. They are large and powerful enough to capture a skunk, and do not possess a very good olfactory sense. In other words they can’t smell a darned thing if they get skunked! While we think of owls as being nocturnal, often Great Horned Owls are crepuscular, meaning most active at dawn and dusk. One of the best times to spot owls at Lyman Woods is just before sunset. This time of year is a great time to find them- look especially well in evergreen trees near the Interpretive Center!