SO cool that you got this photo - and that this guy is living in your nestbox. I hope that he does stay and have a family, that would be so neat to see.

How do you know when he is leaving the nestbox at night?
Do you hear him, or is it just luck?

Thanks-I love watching his behavior. He sits in the entrance hole of the nest box each day, just before dusk and waits for the sun to go down. After awhile, he flies down to a branch in the same tree and perches there looking back and forth for several minutes before he flies off to hunt for prey. I can often tell where he tends to perch, as he leaves droppings and pellets on the ground beneath the branches.

I didn't even know we had these here, but i'm Eastern dddaaa. I heard unusual noises one night a few years back, went out to find one of these guys on a Blue Bird box. It was not shy and just looked at me. It was a beautiful bird. I though it was looking for a nesting site and would realize the box was to small and leave. Sadly the next morning I found a pile of feathers. It was after the Downy roosting in the box. I feared it WOULD stay and continue to raid my nesting boxes in the spring Blues, Dees, Trees etc. It must have found a mate elsewhere, I haven't seen one since. I do hear Great Horned Owls around this time of year. Lovely birds Just don't want them around here.

lisa-that's sad about the owl going after the downy. I love woodpeckers. I had a bluebird box only 10' from the tree the screech owl nest box. Once an owl started roosting in the box, I moved the bluebird box. I didn't want to provide a bluebird buffet.

That is a great pic of a screech owl! I love to hear their whinny. I live in the country but as more & more people move in there are less & less owls (that I hear, at least). I heard 2 GHO calling back & forth over the Christmas holidays around 2am & woke my SIL up to hear them. She was impressed as they were quite close.

Not trying to start an argument but I'm not sure a screech owl could take a Downy as there are only a couple of inches difference in size. I think screech owls prefer insects & small rodents. Perhaps an expert will chime in.
Susan

Thanks! I'd read in the past that E. Screech owls will eat birds so after reading your post I checked the Cornell Ornithology website. It says on there they'll eat songbirds. I know they also eat small snakes, lizards, moths and mice. Whatever they choose to eat, I love having them around.

Here is a link that might be useful: Eastern Screech Owls-Cornell

That link was great. I didn't know they could take songbirds so large. I did know that starlings were big problems as competitors for nesting sites for woodpeckers and now I know they compete with our owls too. Thanks for the info,
Susan

I love hearing their whinny and think they're darling but forest rangers told me they raid songbird roosts at night, even deep in thick firs, and drag out birds larger than them-that they're voracious killers. I love Great Horned Owls, too, but they're the same way..15 years ago one even got my beloved Chinese Gray Goose off our pond, although the Pekin duck dove under water and escaped

If they did not eat other animals there would be no baby owls.

Here's another photo of this owl:

I know this may seem a little bit off topic, but for anyone out there who has younger children in their lives, one of the best children's books out there, for both story and illustrations, is "Owl Moon" by Jane Yolen.

I read this to my daughter for years and have given it as gifts. I also recommended it to countless people when I worked for Barnes and Noble. If you want nature, and especially wild birds, to hold fascination for your child, this is a great start. Walking out in the evening to see a special bird where he lives and being awe-struck by that bird sends a powerful message. It is a wonderful way to inspire some interest in nature and in owls, or birds, in particular.
I hope some of you (who haven't already) get to enjoy it!