No pictures yet, though I did get a peek when my son pointed it out in one of our trees using a flashlight, so I can be quite sure it is a sort of owl. I won't venture to paint it in words except to say probably between 14-16 inches in height while perched in the tree, and colored in a gray/black pattern, not real distinctive (except insofar as all owls look pretty otherworldly). To be honest I'm not very confident of either of those descriptions. I didn't get a great look.
But maybe someone can nail it down by the sound: a shriek like tires squealing, some 2 seconds in duration, with a slightly rising pitch at the end before it cuts off, covering just a half step or so on the musical scale. Then there is a pause of 20-25 seconds before it makes the same sound again, possibly from a different tree, a neighbor's yard, down the street... Volume of the shriek varies, and is sometimes very faint, which is what leads me to think it is moving around.
We've only seen it the one time, and although tonight was the first night I have heard it, my wife says she has been hearing it for weeks. (She is a lighter sleeper than I am, and stays up later.)
Any guesses based on my poor information? If not, I'll try to get a picture next time we hear it very close to the house - or make a sound recording.
The only other call I am familiar with locally is the barred owl's "who cooked for you" -- this is obviously nothing like that call, but much more discordant.
But maybe someone can nail it down by the sound: a shriek like tires squealing, some 2 seconds in duration, with a slightly rising pitch at the end before it cuts off, covering just a half step or so on the musical scale. Then there is a pause of 20-25 seconds before it makes the same sound again, possibly from a different tree, a neighbor's yard, down the street... Volume of the shriek varies, and is sometimes very faint, which is what leads me to think it is moving around.
We've only seen it the one time, and although tonight was the first night I have heard it, my wife says she has been hearing it for weeks. (She is a lighter sleeper than I am, and stays up later.)
Any guesses based on my poor information? If not, I'll try to get a picture next time we hear it very close to the house - or make a sound recording.
The only other call I am familiar with locally is the barred owl's "who cooked for you" -- this is obviously nothing like that call, but much more discordant.
