The Powerful Owl has returned to section 12 in the ANBG and is there today
with the carcass of a sugar glider. It is the same bird that was resident a year
ago as the scar on the cere can still be seen. Much darker plumage.He is
in a Melaleuca and is just along from a very approachable male Satin Bowberbird
setting up his bower (the second path in about 50 metres NNW of the old PO roost
site.
The PO didn't seem as settled as he was on his last term of residence and
this is perhaps because of his being hassled by Currawongs. On going thru my
notes (I was the person that collected all the pellets and bagged them for Jerry
Olsen to send off on the PO's last stay) the Owl departed the ANBG after a
serious and continued attack by 60 or 70 Curawongs (and one grey Currawong) that
lasted about an hour. This occurred on my last day on a ranger shift and when I
returned to work the bird had gone. However it was not til many months later
that when comparing records with another staff member , Robyn Lawrence , we
realised that that was the event that scared the bird off. The presence of
people ,in my view, had absolutely no impact on the bird at all. In the few
months he was there I spent hours showing him to people and watching him
and had numerous after hours opportunities following him and at one stage, with
another staff member recording his calls. Never once did I get the impression
that we startled or scared him off. It was always a quick glance and then on to
something more interesting.
Here's hoping he will once again thrill many visitors with the chance of a
close up sighting
Greg Flowers
